WWE Chief Content Officer Triple H held a talent meeting backstage at the Resch Center in Green Bay, Wisconsin, ahead of the live SmackDown episode on Friday night.
Fightful Select reports that Triple H thanked the wrestlers for all they do and said he understood there was some concern. He told them that the role of new WWE Chairman Vince McMahon since returning to the company last week is to spearhead the search to see if they will sell the company and to whom they may sell.
As previously noted, WWE is looking to sell the company by the middle of this year, and several companies are interested in potentially buying WWE.
Not a Done Deal
Triple H also made an attempt to squash the story of the WWE sale being a “done deal” and said even if it happened, it would take a lot longer. This comes after the rumors about the Saudi Arabia Investment Fund buying the company, only for those rumors to be squashed.
Triple H reiterated that this would not affect the current WWE creative team or process. This calmed many of the talent’s concerns over the last week.
He kept it open by noting anything could change, but Vince defers the final creative say-so to Triple H. He noted that while he and his father-in-law may have discussions, Triple H makes the final call.
Mercedes Mone (real name Mercedes Varnado) has booked a new acting role.
Deadline reported today that Mone (real name Mercedes Varnado) has a role in the upcoming action-thriller film “The Collective.” The movie has already wrapped filming.
It is a movie from Yale Entertainment. Lucas Till, Ruby Rose, Tyrese Gibson, Don Johnson, and Paul Ben-Victor are also part of the cast. Deadline wrote about the film:
The Film
“In the recently-wrapped film from director Tom DeNucci, a group of righteous assassins called The Collective take aim at a highly sophisticated human trafficking ring backed by a network of untouchable billionaires. With their backs against the wall, The Collective has no choice but to put their most important mission in the hands of rookie assassin, Sam Alexander (Till). What he lacks in experience he makes up for in savvy, grit, and a keen ability to improvise in the most dangerous situations. He is aided on his journey by Hugo (Gibson) and Liam (Johnson), former CIA operatives turned rogue vigilantes. They face off against Daisy (Rose), the cunning general manager of this evil, clandestine organization. Sam must prove to himself, Liam and Hugo that he’s Collective material on this life-or-death, take-no-prisoners mission.”
Ben-Victor will play Miro Lindell, a character who serves as auctioneer to a seedy underground cabal of billionaires bidding on human lives. Mone will play Nikita, who watches his back at all times and is the blade wielding company pit-bull and chief of security.
Mone was previously used in two episodes of “The Mandalorian,” playing the character Koska Reeves in the Star Wars series.
Several months after walking out of WWE and negotiating her WWE release, Mone returned to pro wrestling when she appeared at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 17 earlier this month.
Mone will challenge KAIRI for the IWGP Women’s Championship at NJPW Battle in the Valley on Saturday, February 18, from the San Jose Civic in San Jose, California, and will be available as a live Fite TV pay-per-view.
WWE is gearing up to celebrate 30 years of Monday Night Raw on January 23rd.
One big name won’t be making the show as the company plans to bring in several top stars and legends for the special occasion.
WWE Hall of Famers Sean ‘X-Pac’ and the Big Red Monster Kane are scheduled to appear on the show that night. Tatanka and Ric Flair have also publicly stated that he received an invitation.
Ronda Rousey Pulled
Pwinsider.com reports that Ronda Rousey is no longer being advertised for the show. This serves as a bit of a surprise, but backs up the disclaimer that the card is subject to change. It’s unclear what WWE had in mind for her at the show nor why she was pulled.
The current advertised Main Event for the special is Austin Theory vs. Seth Rollins for the WWE United States Championship.
In recent months, Rousey has been paired with Shayna Baszler. She lost the SmackDown Women’s Title to Charlotte Flair last month on Friday Night SmackDown.
We will have to see what WWE does to celebrate 30 years of Raw, but it is presumed that Triple H will still be in charge of things when the day comes around and load up the event.
Stephanie McMahon quickly resigned from WWE this week, days after her father, Vince, returned to the company. A new report noted that the two did not work well together.
For years, the company had the dynamic of Vince as the Chairman and CEO, Stephanie working as an executive, and Paul “Triple H” Levesque overseeing developmental.
Last summer that changed when Vince resigned from his duties amid the hush money scandal, Triple H took over main roster creative, and Stephanie was named co-CEO with Nick Khan.
Vince brought himself back last week by electing himself to the WWE Board Of Directors as he looks to sell the company. A sale of the company is something Stephanie and Triple H reportedly opposed.
Stephanie resigned from the company this past Tuesday, while Vince was officially named Chairman of the Board, and Khan was named the sole CEO.
Dave Meltzer reported in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that those close to the situation “in WWE tried to present her [McMahon] decision to leave as being related to the decision last year.”
Buffer
Before taking over as co-CEO and Chairwoman, Stephanie announced a leave of absence with the idea of focusing on her family life. She returned once the hush money scandal broke.
“But that doesn’t explain why this was a resignation, and she left the board and cut all ties with the company she has worked for since she was a teenager. It was also conceded that she and Vince did have issues in working together as family members and how Khan was a buffer who kept things smooth between them and between Vince and Levesque,” Meltzer wrote.
WWE is looking at selling the company by the middle of this year.
WWE is looking at potentially selling the company by the middle of this year and has hired JPMorgan to help with talks.
Barron’s, the sister publication to the Wall Street Journal and a subsidiary of Dow Jones & Company, reports that AEW’s Tony and Shad Khan are said to be interested in buying WWE.
The article noted that the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund appears more likely to buy Vince McMahon‘s company. The Khan family “is in the pool of potential buyers for WWE.”
The story added, “the Khans will likely look for a financial partner to acquire the asset. Tony Khan’s father Shahid Khan, a co-owner of AEW, already owns the football team Jacksonville Jaguars and the English soccer club Fulham Football Club, indicating the duo have deep pockets.”
Other Buyers
Comcast (NBCU’s parent company), Netflix, Amazon, Endeavor Group Holdings (UFC’s parent company), Warner Bros. Discovery (TNT & TBS’ parent company), Disney, and FOX have been speculated as potential buyers.
“We think that now is the time to Buy WWE,” Benchmark’s Mike Hickey wrote on Friday. “Business momentum is strong, and future growth prospects appear promising.” Through the end of trading on Wednesday, the stock was up 24% since the close on Jan. 5, before Vince McMahon said he believed WWE should consider strategic alternatives.
Dave Meltzer said on Wrestling Observer Radio today that WWE CEO Nick Khan met with Disney CEO Bob Iger and ESPN President James Pitaro this past Monday while at the college football championship game.
WWE is gearing up for its next premium live event Royal Rumble, later this month.
Every year, fans look forward to seeing who will be in the Royal Rumble matches for both the men and women from the active roster and those returning to the company and legends.
The 2023 PLE won’t be any different, as it’s believed several wrestlers will be returning at the show.
The Names
According to Mike Johnson of PWInsider.com, Edge and his wife, Beth Phoenix, are slated to be at the event. Neither has been on WWE television since the injury angle with Phoenix at the 2022 Extreme Rules PLE, where they were laid out by Judgment Day.
The report noted that Doudrop, who recently stated that she’s been dealing with an illness, is expected to be back in time for the show and will return to the Raw brand.
As far as other return possibilities go, Johnson noted that “Logan Paul is absolutely being talked about in regard to an appearance at the Rumble as well, as long as his knee is rehabbed and he’s ready to go.”
Paul’s recovery from injury was said to be going “better than expected, “as there has been speculation about him returning as soon as the Rumble. He last wrestled Roman Reigns at Crown Jewel in November.
William Regal has been given a new title in WWE following his return to the company.
Regal’s previous title before his WWE release last year had been Director of Talent Development and Head of Global Recruiting. He had been working backstage in the company since June 2014 and was considered Triple H’s right-hand man.
According to a report from PWInsider, Regal is now the Vice President, Global Talent Development for WWE.
Regal’s Journey
The former NXT General Manager returned to WWE after being with AEW since debuting there at Revolution on March 6, 2022, where he helped form the Blackpool Combat Club.
The faction included Bryan Danielson, Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, and Wheeler Yuta. Regal had the following to say about his time in AEW.
“Yesterday was my last official day with @AEW. I’d like to thank @TonyKhan, Megha and all the hard working crew. Contrary to people who’ve never spoken to me or have their information from people who don’t know me or are trying to make themselves noticed, I had a lovely time working there and had a great time. Lots of talented Wrestlers, and lovely people to work for. To my fellow BCC members, it was a special, albeit brief few months but it cemented our already strong friendship. To everyone there, thank you for welcoming me. Best wishes.”
AEW President Tony Khan revealed during an ROH Final Battle media call last month that Regal asked him not to pick up the option year on his contract because he wanted to return to WWE to help train his son, NXT wrestler Charlie Dempsey.
Sudu Shah, real name Sudu Upadhyay, has confirmed that he has finished up with WWE after working as an announcer for the NXT brand.
In a post on Twitter, Shah issued a statement announcing that the NXT Level Up taping from Orlando, Florida, at WWE’s Performance Center on Tuesday night marked his final appearance for the company. He noted that he was grateful for his time with WWE:
The Statement
“Yesterday was my final day with the WWE. What an incredible experience working with some of the most talented people I’ve ever met.Thank you to everyone who watched and supported every week!”
Shah first signed with WWE in January 2022 as a play-by-play commentator for the 205 Live brand before the cruiserweight show was replaced with NXT Level Up that February.
Before joining WWE, he previously worked for Fox 5 News in Atlanta and was a sports anchor on WMC-TV in Memphis for three years, in addition to doing viral campaigns for the likes of ESPN, Bleacher Report, and SBNation prior to signing with WWE. In 2017, he was named a finalist in the Tennessee Associated Press Sportscaster of the Year award.
This announcement comes one day after Chairwoman and co-CEO Stephanie McMahon announced her departure from the company.
Vince McMahon, who returned to the company last week after resigning amid a wave of sexual harassment allegations, has been dealt with a lawsuit.
According to court documents from Bloomberg Law, a WWE investor named Scott A. Fellows has filed a lawsuit alleging McMahon pushed aside the board to install himself as chairman again illegally.
The suit was filed in Delaware’s Chancery Court, where the WWE shareholder accused him of using his 81% voting control to oust three board members and then replace them with two loyalists (George Barrios and Michelle Wilson) and make bylaw changes that would “impose his will on the board and WWE.”
The Course
The lawsuit was filed six months after Vince stepped down as chairman and CEO of WWE because of the allegations that he paid $12 million over more than 15 years to keep the sexual harassment accusations quiet.
Vince’s daughter, Stephanie McMahon, resigned as co-CEO and chairwoman Tuesday. Nick Khan is now the WWE CEO, while Triple H is still in charge of the main roster creative.
The lawsuit notes that McMahon managed to time his return to get control of upcoming negotiations over the company’s expiring media rights by leveraging a threat to withhold support for any deal reached if the Board didn’t bring him back.
This was also shared in public SEC documents from December in addition to McMahon stating he wanted to oversee a potential sale of the company. The board, which had included Stephanie, Khan, and Triple H, unanimously voted against McMahon coming back.
The suit stated the move to “take complete personal control over any major corporate decision” by “adding his cronies to the board” violates Delaware law.
Saraya is bringing back up to AEW Dynamite tonight when she teams with Toni Storm to take on Britt Baker and AEW Women’s World Champion Jamie Hayter.
This will mark Sarayay’s second match in AEW as she worked her first match since 2017 last November at the Full Gear pay-per-view event against Bakker.
The match has drawn a lot of buzz, with many expecting Mercedes Mone to be involved in some capacity. Originally, Saraya announced that she would have a mystery partner that she would pick, which sparked speculation the former Sasha Banks would be filling that role.
The former WWE star had to wait out her non-compete clause that expired on January 1 before she made her NJPW debut just days later at Wrestle Kingdom 17 when she confronted KAIRI.
The Tease
AEW later announced that Storm would be teaming up with Saraya. There’s been speculation that Mone could show up after the match. Saraya stated during a Twitch live stream today that she has used two tickets she was given b yBaker.
Saraya stated, “Britt did give me two tickets, and they were put to good use, so thank you, Britt!”
We will have to wait and see who Saraya gave her tickets to for tonight’s Dynamite from the Forum in Los Angeles, CA.
MLW has announced its main event for the SuperFight 2023 show as Alex Hammerstone will defend his MLW World Heavyweight Title against Jacob Fatu.
This event will take place on Saturday, February 4, at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia.
Their first match happened when Hammerstone defeated Fatu to win the MLW World Heavyweight Title at MLW Fightland 2021 after The announcement of the match was touted as the biggest rivalry in Major League Wrestling.
Backstory
Fatu earned his title shot by winning Battle Riot IV last year in New York City, but up to this point had not revealed the date and location for it. Now, they will square off in the ring to see who will walk out as champion.
Since winning the MLW World Heavyweight Title, Hammerstone has defended the title against various challengers ranging from Davey Richards to Richard Holliday as well as other top stars.
During this time, Fatu has continued to be pushed as a dominant star to crush CONTRA after having a falling out with the group and forming the Samoan SWAT Team.
No other matches have been announced thus far for the upcoming event that will serve as a taping for its weekly Fusion TV series. MLW will announce additional bouts as the event gets closer.
The January 10, 2023 episode of WWE NXT touted New Year’s Evil, aired live on the USA Network from Orlando, Florida at the Capitol Wrestling Center.
WWE NXT Results
Dijak defeated Tony D’Angelo
Winners of Gauntlet: Gallus (Wolfgang & Mark Coffey).
NXT Champion Bron Breakker defeated Grayson Waller via countout
Charlie Dempsey defeated Hank Walker
Jinder Mahal defeated Julias Creed.
Here are the takeaways from this week’s show:
Gauntlet Match
Pretty Deadly wants another shot at The New Day’s NXT Tag Team Titles after losing them at NXT Deadline.
On this show, Pretty Deadly held a gauntlet match against three teams to earn a future title shot.
They quickly beat a bootleg Rockers team. Woods and Kingston came out and gave them a real challenge against Malik Blade and Edris Enofe.
Pretty Deadly thought they were going to face Josh Briggs and Brooks Jensen. Instead, Jensen & Briggs were shown laid out by a returning Gallus, Mark Coffey and Wolfgang, who then defeated Pretty Deadly.
Tony D’Angelo vs. Dijak in a singles match was booked.
The finish saw D’Angelo tossed Stacks to the floor before Dijak hit D’Angelo with a big boot for the pinfall win. This opened the show.
Dijak interfered in D’Angelo’s North American title bout two weeks ago despite Stacks’ telling him not to do so by costing D’Angelo the title. On last Tuesday’s show, it was revealed that Dijak had kidnapped and tortured Stacks before their match. Dijak accepted D’Angelo’s challenge for New Year’s Evil after winning a match against Stacks.
The victor of the bout between Dijak and D’Angelo will seemingly challenge the North American Champion Wes Lee in the near future based on Lee indicating the winner of the bout will get the title shot.
Charlie Dempsey vs. Hank Walker in a singles match took place.
Dempsey vs. Walker was originally scheduled for last week’s show. However, commentators noted that Dempsey was not cleared to compete. Dempsey was shown taking off his arm sling during a match between Gulak and Andre Chase. Gulak won it via submission.
A 20-woman battle royal was held, with the winner facing NXT Women’s Champion Roxanne Perez at Vengeance Day next month.
Wendy Choo vs. Cora Jade vs. Indi Hartwell vs. Thea Hail vs. Jacy Jane vs. Gigi Dolin vs. Elektra Lopez vs. Jakara Jackson vs. Nikkita Lyons vs. Kiana James vs. Fallon Henley vs. Zoey Stark vs. Tatum Paxley vs. Ivy Nile vs. Amari Miller vs. Layra Valkyria vs. Lash Legend vs. Sol Ruca vs. Valentina Feroz vs. Dani Palmer.
Last Tuesday, Toxic Attraction did a promo about how, after Mandy Rose (who wasn’t named) lost the title to Roxanne Perez. They said they would rebuild the group brick by brick. This drew several NXT stars, which ultimately led to an all-out brawl among the women’s roster. After that, Perez made an appearance and declared that a battle royal would happen, with the winner receiving a title opportunity against Perez at Vengeance Day in February.
Jayne and Dolin were the final two in the match. Jayne super kicked her after faking like she was going to toss her out of the ring. They both fell to the floor at the same time after brawling. There was confusion in storyline and then it was announced that both were the winners. Perez came out to stare them down.
It will be a triple threat match at Vengeance Day.
NXT Champion Bron Breakker defended his title against Grayson Waller in the main event. Waller earned the title match after winning the Iron Survivor Series match at Deadline last month.
The match was in the middle of the show.
At one point, Waller sent Bron into the corner and the rope broke. Waller hit Bron with a nasty knee strike. Later in the match, Waller fell out of the ring after the rope broke when he was on the middle rope. The finish was when Waller couldn’t get back into the ring and the match ended in a countout.
It was later announced Breakker would defend the NXT Title against Waller in a steel cage at Vengeance Day.
Jinder Mahal is once again a member of the WWE NXT roster.
On Tuesday’s episode of WWE NXT, a New Year’s Evil special, The Creed Brothers (Julius & Brutus Creed), were scheduled to take on Indus Sher (Veer & Sanga).
However, Sanga came out to the ring and stated that Veer was not present for their match. Sanaga stated that he’d face The Creeds 2-on-1 but coming from behind to ambush The Creeds was Mahal. Sanga and Mahal took out both Julius and Brutus.
Mahal joined WWE in 2010, and he made his main roster debut the following year. He joined the stable 3MB with Heath Sater and Drew McIntyre after a brief alliance with The Great Khali before he and McIntyre were fired from the company in 2014.
Mahal returned to WWE in 2016 with a significantly improved physique, which led to his victory over Randy Orton for the WWE Championship in April 2017. His reign lasted for about six months. He captured the WWE United States Championship at WrestleMania 34 in 2018.
Mahal and Seth Rollins squared off in 2012 to crown the first-ever NXT Champion.
Mahal’s previous TV match was in November when he lost to Braun Strowman in a SmackDown World Cup First Round match.
Stephanie McMahon announced late Tuesday night that she is resigning as Chairwoman and co-CEO of WWE.
She issued a statement on Twitter announcing the news and mentioning her taking a leave of absence from WWE several months ago. This comes just days after her father, Vince McMahon, elected himself back as a member of WWE’s Board of Directors alongside Michelle Wilson and George Barrios. She issued the following statement:
Stephanie’s Statement
“Dear WWE Universe,
About 8 months ago, I took a leave of absence and within a few weeks, unexpectedly had the opportunity of a lifetime. I had the privilege to return as the Co-CEO and Chairwoman of the Board of WWE. I cannot put into words how proud I am to have led what I consider to be the greatest company in the world, working alongside a remarkable leadership team and one of the strongest executives I have known in my Co-CEO, Nick Khan.
Our Founder, Vince McMahon, has returned as Executive Chair and is leading an exciting process regarding strategic alternatives. And with Nick’s leadership and Paul “Triple H” Levesque as Chief Content Officer, I am confident WWE is in the perfect place to continue to provide unparalleled creative content and drive maximum value for shareholders.
WWE is in such a strong position, that I have decided to return to my leave and take it one step further with my official resignation.
I look forward to cheering on WWE from the other side of the business, where I started when I was a little kid, as a pure fan. I will always remain dedicated to WWE. I truly love our company, our employees, our Superstars, and our fans. And I am grateful to all of our partners.
Thank you for everything. Then. Now. Forever. Together. -Steph.”
In December, WWE’s Board of Directors unanimously disapproved of Vince McMahon’s return to the Board before he elected himself last week. The board had Stephanie, Nick Khan, and Paul “Triple H” Levesque.
WWE confirmed following the news via a press release that the WWE Board of Directors has unanimously elected Vince McMahon as Executive Chairman of the Board, and it was also revealed that Khan would be serving as the new WWE CEO.
Dave Meltzer reports Stephanie is no longer part of the Board of Directors.
Just to clarify, Stephanie is also off the Board of Directors. The election evidently took place after her resignation.
Ricochet and Samantha Irwin are set to become man and wife as the two are engaged to be married.
Ricochet took to his Instagram account to share the news when he posted three photos. He included a photo of the ring, one of him proposing and one of them kissing. Congratulations to the happy couple.
The Engagement
“She said YES! When you find that one person. The one person that when you close your eyes you could never visualize life without them… you keep them close to your heart. Now we are closer than ever. @samanthairvinwwe I love you so much,” Ricochet wrote in the caption.
Irvin works for WWE as a ring announcer and correspondent.
Ricochet is best known for his time with various Japanese promotions before joining WWE, including Dragon Gate and New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW). In Lucha Underground, Ricochet competed as Prince Puma, becoming the first person to win the Lucha Underground title twice.
Ricochet found success in NXT in 2018 after signing with WWE. Ricochet began making appearances on the main roster in February 2019. Last year, he would go on to capture the Intercontinental Championship, making him the first wrestler to hold the United States, Intercontinental, and North American Championships.
Posted January 10th, 2023 in WWE. Tagged: Ricochet.
The trailer for the Netflix series ‘Against The Ropes’, which will premiere on January 25, was released today, and WWE shared it.
The tweet from WWE previewed the series by writing, “An ex-convict tries to regain her daughter’s affection after leaving prison, but it seems impossible — until she steps into the ring.”
The Trailer
Rey Mysterio is featured in the trailer as it shows an ex-convict’s journey in her attempt to train to become a wrestler. According to Netflix’s website, the synopsis is as follows:
“Released from prison, Ángela tries to regain the respect of her daughter, who loves lucha libre wrestling, by entering the ring as a mysterious persona.”
The cast includes Caraly Sánchez, Scarlet Gruber, Carmen Ramos, and Alisson Santiago, Giovanna Zacarías, among others. Check it out below:
An ex-convict tries to regain her daughter's affection after leaving prison, but it seems impossible — until she steps into the ring. Against the Ropes, featuring @reymysterio premieres on January 25, only on @netflix! pic.twitter.com/a8Vyx4U3hc
Mysterio has some acting experience as he voiced himself on ‘Booyaka! Rey Mysterio vs. The Darkness,’ which aired on Cartoon Network Latin America.
The former WWE Champion has been feuding with Karrion Kross as of late on Friday Night SmackDown. He was sent over from Raw to SmackDown last year after feuding with The Judgment Day and his son, Domnik, turning on him.
The wrestling world is still processing the return of Vince McMahon to WWE as a member of the Board Of Directors along with Michelle Wilson and George Barrios.
Last July, the wrestling world changed when Vince McMahon announced his retirement and stepped down as WWE CEO amidst the hush money scandal, leading to Triple H taking over WWE creative. Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan were named co-CEOs. Stephanie also took over as Chairwoman.
McMahon officially returned on January 6, 2023, as a member of the board to help with media rights negotiations and a potential sale. WWE has reportedly hired JPMorgan to advise on a potential sale. Many people believe that McMahon will find a way or force his way back into power and take over creative again.
Khan’s Take
While speaking on In The Zone, AEW President Tony Khan was asked if he’s been following the news of Vince’s return to WWE. Khan responded,
“Yeah, absolutely. I’m following it very closely.”
– Tony Khan
Khan was asked what separated AEW and WWE and if there was room for both companies. Khan thinks there is enough room for both promotions but thinks what separates them are the fans of AEW, as they’ve built a loyal fanbase and cited the television ratings.
WWE’s media rights for WWE Raw on USA Network and WWE SmackDown on Fox are set to expire in 2024. They will be gearing up for its next set of negotiations with TV networks later this year for media rights.
Andrade El Idolohasn’t used the way he and fans thought he would be in AEW when he signed with the promotion. He was believed to be on his way out of the company at one point. He has further ignited the fuel by posting a cryptic message.
El Idolo made a name for himself in Mexico before signing with WWE, where he was a top NXT star. However, expectations weren’t met on the main roster due to his booking, so he left the company in March 2021.
El Idolo made his debut in AEW in June 2021. When he first debuted, some fans thought he would have a better run in All Elite than he had in WWE. However, that clearly has not happened.
Andrade is sidelined with an injury, and it’s been heavily reported that he was unhappy in AEW and wants to leave the company despite having years left on his deal.
The Post
On social media, he shared a photo that showed his mask packed in a bag with a goodbye message in the caption.“Bye!!!”
A fan asked Conrad Thompson why Andrade is not following him on Twitter. Andrade saw the post and responded, “someday I will be with you in the podcasts and I will talk about everything….Sueña Interesante!”
If Andrade does leave AEW, it will be interesting to see if he returns to WWE under the new management led by WWE Chief Content Officer Triple H.
Edge hasn’t been seen on WWE programming since his latest absence, as he lost an I Quit Match to Finn Balor at the Extreme Rules show in October.
The company already had some plans for him months ago, according to Fightful Select. As of late November, WWE had Edge penciled in for the first couple of PLE events of 2023.
Working Plans
The working plan was for Edge to take on Finn Balor upon his return to pick up their long-running feud. WrestlingNews.co reported that they would be competing at Royal Rumble.
The reason for the rivalry being spread out comes down to Edge working limited dates. Fightful also confirmed WrestlingNews.co’s report that as of that point ahead of Survivor Series, it was slated to be a Hell in a Cell match.
Fightful reports that Edge wasn’t the only one to be planned for the Elimination Chamber PLE in February. In November, WWE’s tentative plan was for Edge’s wife, Beth Phoenix, to be involved in the Montreal event by teaming with Edge to take on Rhea Ripley and Finn Balor.
It should be noted that things can change and can’t be considered official until WWE officially announces it themselves.
Posted January 9th, 2023 in WWE, News. Tagged: Edge.
Fans can expect to see Chelsea Green make her WWE return anytime now.
It has been reported that WWE has discussed bringing Green back to the company. She finished up with Impact Wrestling in late 2022. Other indications that she was going back to WWE were her shutting down her OnlyFans page and Major Pod having to limit new Green merchandise production due to her signing.
Other Stars
According to Fightful Select, Green has been under contract with WWE “for quite some time and is still awaiting creative.”
Once it was reported that WWE was interested in bringing back Green, there was speculation that her husband, Matt Cardona, could be on his way back to the company as well.
However, Fightful reports that WWE sources have indicated that “Cardona is not signed, but that we shouldn’t rule anything out for the future.”
There was speculation that Kylie Rae may be the next name to be signed with the company after she was brought in for a tryout and later used for a match on Main Event. Fightful notes that Rae is still a free agent.
Fans have wondered who is behind the mysterious Uncle Howdy since the character made his first appearance on WWE television.
Various names have been speculated, from Bo Dallas to Vincent to Cameron Grimes.
As previously reported, WWE has been playing its cards close to its chest with the character as the person behind the costume wears the mask backstage to hide their identity. It looks like fans are one step closer to finding out who is behind the Uncle Howdy mask.
Confirmation?
PWInsider and Fightful Select report that former WWE star Bo Dallas, the brother of Bray Wyatt, is backstage at tonight’s Raw show in Birmingham, Alabama.
On last week’s WWE Monday Night Raw, Alexa Bliss viciously attacked Bianca Belair during their Raw Women’s Championship match, which led to Belair needing stitches from the attack. WWE has confirmed that Bliss will explain her actions last week on tonight’s show.
With Dallas being present backstage, it would sure seem that Dallas is the man behind the Uncle Howdy mask.
Bray Wyatt is set for his first match since returning to WWE at the Royal Rumble by taking on LA Knight in a Pitch Black match.
Mandy Rose is set to address her WWE release for the first time.
Rose, real name Amanda Saccomanno, will appear as a guest on this Tuesday’s edition of “Tamron Hall.” This is a syndicated talk show that airs on ABC stations.
According to the promotional material, the episode description notes that the former NXT Women’s Champion will address her “controversial firing” from WWE in an exclusive interview with Hall.
Breaking Silence
“Tamron has an exclusive interview with former WWE’s MANDY SACCOMANNO addressing her controversial firing from the WWE. Five-time Grammy and Emmy nominee, actress and comedian MARGARET CHO stops by to chat about her new comedy tour ‘Live and LIVID.’ Plus, an All-New Shop Tam Fam!!”
Last month, Rose was released from WWE after learning of adult-themed photos and videos Rose posted on her FanTime subscription service.
Her release came less than 24 hours after dropping the NXT Women’s Championship to Roxanne Perez on NXT TV, which was pushed up from when it was originally supposed to happen in January. This was done because Rose was being released.
Rose’s reign as NXT Women’s Champion lasted 413 days before losing the title to Perez. Since her departure, Rose has made big money by earning $1 million on FanTime.
Following the news that Vince McMahon would be returning to the company as a member of the board of directors, WWE hired JPMorgan to advise on a potential sale of the company.
McMahon claimed that he was returning to WWE to help assist WWE in their media rights negotiations.
While speaking on What Happened When, Conrad Thompson said a WWE sale has been brewing for a while. He also noted that when Nick Khan first joined WWE as an agent to help negotiate the TV deals that they eventually landed with FOX and NBC Universal, he heard an interesting thing. That was when Khan made a deal with Vince that he would get paid big money should he help with a sale of the company.
The Claim
“My friend was represented by the same company that Nick Khan was sort of running, and when my friend sees that the guy who runs this big agency is now going to WWE, he thought, ‘What the f**k? This doesn’t make any sense.’ So he called his contact and said, ‘Dude, what’s up with Nick going, blah, blah, blah.’ He said, and this is years ago now, ‘Yea. He’s got a deal with Vince where in his contract, he gets a big payday when he helps facilitate the sale.’ He told me the number, and I won’t say the number because that’s talking about somebody’s money and that’s not cool, but let’s just say this, it’s more than AEW’s TV contract is for a year. It’s a lot. It’s a lot, a lot. So when you hear it’s a lot, a lot, you think, ‘Well why would this guy go here?’, Ah ha, and now, Ta Da. I’ve heard backchanneling before Mean Gene passed away, he said, ‘Well, I heard from’, and I won’t say who he heard it from, ‘When the stock gets to so and so,’ This has been brewing for a while. I know a lot of wrestling fans have been thinking, ‘Well this is just a brand new development.’ It’s years old.”
In 2020, Khan joined WWE as President & Chief Revenue Officer. He previously worked for CAA.
He also helped negotiate media rights deals for top companies such as Top Rank Boxing and the Southeastern Conference.
Becky Lynch is returning to Young Rock to portray the role of Cyndi Lauper.
The former Raw Women’s Champion previously appeared in the role of Lauper on Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s show which is currently airing every Friday night on NBC last November.
That episode included a young Rock meeting Lauper at a party she threw around WrestleMania I in 1985.
Reprise
Lynch posted a tweet on Monday revealing that she’s back filming on the “Young Rock” set. She wrote the following about the news:
“She’s baaaaaaaack! Delighted to be back on set with the incredible #YoungRock cast and crew playing the iconic Cyndi Lauper! Stay tuned.”
In a tweet after the season three premiere, Johnson thanked Lynch and gave her props for the job she did playing Lauper on the show.
The show is based on Johnson’s life and tells the story of how he was shaped into the person he is today as he went from being a football player to being one of the biggest wrestlers in the history of the business to a top movie star.
After being sidelined with a shoulder injury at SummerSlam last July, the top star returned to in-ring action in November at Survivor Series by working the Women’s WarGames Match.
Charlotte Flair may have one of her wishes come true regarding a dream match that she recently talked about.
Flair made a recent return to WWE television as she won the SmackDown Women’s Championship on her first night back against Ronda Rousey on December 30.
Fans are looking forward to seeing “The Queen” work against some of the current talent on the roster such as Shotzi and Raquel Rodriguez. However, there are some names from the past that she’s interested in stepping into the ring with. Flair recently spoke to WWE’s The Bump about several legends she wants to face.
The Tweet
Mickie James, Lita, and Michelle McCool were all names that she mentioned. McCool made it clear on Twitter that she is open to the idea of them working a match against each other.
She let Stephanie McMahon and Triple H know as she said, “Real Talk….RESPECT! Oh…..& I stay ready for anytime @wwe @TripleH or @StephMcMahon call! #FlawlessQueen.”
McCool wrapped up her full-time career in 2011, but has since worked one-off matches for the company. The first being in 2018 at the Royal Rumble as the former two-time Women’s and Divas Champion. She followed that up by competing in the 20-woman battle royal at WWE’s Evolution premium live event and then was part of the 2022 women’s Royal Rumble match.
