WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross is back with another blog update, which you can read in its entirety at JRsBarBQ.com. Here are some highlights of what JR wrote about:
WWE’s “Top 25 Masters Of The Mic” List: “Obviously, any ‘list’ is partially designed to create controversy and this one certainly has. Steve Austin was ranked #1 and Captain Lou Albano was ranked #25 and in between there were many surprises. Many fans including @CMPunk felt that Roddy Piper should have been #1..Hot Rod was #2 … The best talkers, without fail, on the list were all from the generation of instinctual speakers who would select the approiate bullet points and take it from there.”
Chris Jericho’s Brazil Incident: “Bit of advice for those traveling outside their own borders…know the country of which you are traveling’s laws and customs. Take no risks that might be perceived as disrespect and certainly do not break any local laws. When in Rome….”
CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan “Any one that did not thoroughly enjoy Punk vs. Bryan last Sunday on PPV cannot be made happy as it relates to enjoying a wrestling match. Those who say that size primarily matters when evaluating main event talent are about a generation removed from reality.”
Brock Lesnar was cageside at Saturday night’s UFC 146 pay-per-view and could be returning to the organization next year, according to UFC president Dana White.
At the UFC 146 post-show press conference, Dana White was asked whether there was anything to Lesnar being at the show. He responded, “maybe” and smiled. White said, “He was here, I think that says it all.” He said Brock Lesnar contacted him and requested to meet with him at the UFC event face to face. When asked directly if Lesnar could be returning to UFC and responded, “Possibly, yeah.”
Lesnar is signed with WWE through Wrestlemania 29 in April 2013. While Lesnar’s multimillion dollar deal did come with unprecedented stipulations (limited appearances, the ability to wear his own sponsors, etc.), it’s unknown whether he would be able to fight for UFC before next April. If Lesnar’s WWE contract allows him to fight for the UFC, White said he would be open to it and thinks the audience understands WWE and UFC are separate environments.
Check out this video of Dana White talking about Brock Lesnar’s possible return to the UFC:
Next Thursday, TNA Impact Wrestling goes live every week in a new time slot – 8pm EST.
The main event for the historic broadcast will see TNA World Heavyweight Champion Bobby Roode vs. Sting in a lumberjack match.
Devon will defend the Television Championship against the choice of the fans. Starting this Monday, the TNA website will reveal one challenger each day. Voting will open at noon eastern time on Thursday, May 31st and fans will decide who Devon defends the title against that night.
TNA will announce matches for Slammiversary and Brooke Hogan will debut as the new head of the Knockouts Division. Check out this promo hyping her arrival:
The Inside The Ropes podcast just interviewed former WWE, WCW & TNA writer – Vince Russo.
‘In this full 80 minute interview, Inside The Ropes hosts Robert and Kenny go head to head with the most controversial man in professional wrestling: Vince Russo. In addition to what you heard on the broadcast episode of ITR #19 – Vince discusses the worst of mid-90s WWF, his relationship with Bret Hart and the Montreal Screwjob, how Steve Austin may have been the most paranoid WWF champion of all time, and his further dealings as head writer for both WWE Raw, WCW Nitro and TNA Impact.’
— The South Wales Evening Post has an article up stating that Welsh wrestler Stevie Starr has been offered a WWE development contract and will be moving to Florida, pending his medical physicals.
– WWE’s upcoming No Way Out pay-per-view will be called “No Escape” in Germany next month because Germany already ran a “No Way Out” pay-per-view earlier this year. February’s Elimination Chamber PPV was marketed as “No Way Out” in Germany due to restrictions on the “chamber” name due to national history (World War 2).
– The new episode of “Santino’s Foreign Exchange” features the one and only Santino heading backstage before a show as he “stalks … err, follows his fellow Superstars to see what they do in their spare time.”
– WWE announced on Friday’s SmackDown that Sin Cara will be making his long awaited return to television on next week’s broadcast.
– The Miz replaced Chris Jericho in the main event of Friday night’s RAW live event from Guayaquil, Ecuador, losing to WWE Champion CM Punk. John Laurinaitis and David Otunga opened the show with an announcement that Miz was replacing Jericho due to Jericho’s suspension.
– Eve Torres, Damien Sandow and others are featured in the latest episode of WWE’s Backstage Fallout from SmackDown:
– Mr. Long Island Iced Z is back with the latest installment of hte Z! True Long Island Story:
Alberto Del Rio became the #1 contender to the World Heavyweight championship on Friday’s SmackDown. He defeated Kane and Randy Orton in a three-way match to earn a title shot against Sheamus at next month’s No Way Out pay-per-view.
As of this weekend, only Sheamus vs. Del Rio and John Cena vs. Big Show are confirmed for the event.
It’s worth noting that local advertising for No Way Out states that John Laurinaitis will be in the Big Show’s corner for his main event match against John Cena. The stipulation has yet to be announced on television, but could be announced this Monday night.
TNA’s lawsuit against WWE has been picked up by The Associated Press and includes several new details not included in our original report.
To recap, TNA is suing WWE after former TNA employee Brian Wittenstein left TNA, was hired by WWE and provided WWE with sensitive company information, including details of TNA talent contracts. WWE released Wittenstein and contacted TNA about their former employee leaking information to WWE, however TNA feels WWE waited too long before contacting them (approximately 3 weeks).
The AP article states that TNA and WWE employee Brian Wittenstein had signed a non-disclosure agreement when he left TNA and agreed he would not pass on confidential information.
WWE lawyer Jerry McDevitt told the AP that WWE never asked Wittenstein to disclose any information about TNA and when he did, they fired him and then sent the information back to TNA. McDevitt told the AP:
“To us, it’s no good deed goes unpunished kind of thing. They sued us for doing the right thing.”
The AP tried to reach TNA’s lawyers and Wittenstein for comment but phone calls were not returned. The next hearing on the TNA vs. WWE lawsuit is set for June 11th.
Upon checking with reliable sources in TNA, we can report that basically, nobody’s willing to talk about it at this time.
Here is the list – Comment Below and tell us if you agree with the rankings.
25. Captain Lou Albano
24. Rick Rude
23. Santino Marella
22. Ted DiBiase Sr.
21. The Miz
20. Jesse Ventura
19. Triple H
18. Paul Heyman
17. Edge
16. Vince McMahon
15. Billy Graham
14. Mick Foley
13. Hulk Hogan
12. CM Punk
11. Randy Savage
10. JBL
9. Bobby Heenan
8. Dusty Rhodes
7. John Cena
6. Jake Roberts
5. Chris Jericho
4. Ric Flair
3. The Rock
2. Roddy Piper
1. Steve Austin
After initially suspending Chris Jericho “indefinitely” for the Brazilian flag incident that took place at Thursday night’s WWE live event, WWE has now announced that Jericho will be suspended for 30 days:
“WWE Superstar Chris Jericho has been suspended for 30 days due to an irresponsible act of denigrating the Brazilian flag at a WWE live event in São Paulo on May 24.”
Following the incident, Jericho did not immediately return home to the United States. He flew onto Ecuador with the WWE crews and just flew back into Miami this morning.
Upon returning home to the United States, he wrote:
“Just landed in Miami and its the longest walk to passport control ever! Like I’m talking I need a staff and a donkey…. Longest immigration line in the world. The last five days have been like a really bad video game-”Worst Business Trip Ever!” by Activision”
WWE had no idea Jericho was going to desecrate the Brazilian flag. It was merely Jericho improvising and being a heel without understanding what he was doing is a felony in Brazil. Jericho’s longtime friends Shawn Michaels and Lance Storm have commented on the incident:
Shawn Michaels: “I’ll stand behind @IAmJericho any day of the week & twice on Sunday…what’s the big ‘E’ stand for in WWE anyway!!”
Lance Storm: “Thoughts on @IAmJericho He didn’t do anything that hasn’t been done a million times in wrestling. Wrong place & times change.”
As a result of his suspension, Jericho has been pulled from all upcoming live events over the next 30 days. Daniel Bryan will replace Jericho in WWE title matches against CM Punk in the coming weeks. Jericho is still advertised for next month’s No Way Out PPV, but will not be competing due to his suspension.
– In anticipation of MMA fighter “King Mo” making his TNA debut this fall, TNA is having a custom throne built for his ring entrances. As previously reported, Mo has been seeking career advice from Sting and Hulk Hogan and will begin training at OVW this summer.
It’s expected King Mo will debut by November and his contract would see him working one Impact taping per month during the Bellator MMA fighting season.
– There is talk of using Douglas Williams as an agent for TNA live events or as a trainer at OVW
– According to early estimates, TNA’s recent Sacrifice PPV did around 8,000 to 9,000 buys. Sacrifice was the first PPV event that TNA posted on Youtube for purchase after it aired live, so they likely made some additional revenue from the online buys.
– To update the story of Anthony Nese being released from TNA, it was reportedly his decision to leave. Nese asked TNA for permission work a June 1st internet pay-per-view event for the PWS promotion in a tag team match against the legendary Great Muta. TNA turned down his request so he asked to be released so he could perform on the iPPV, which they granted.
– Former AWA Tag Team Champion Doug Somers is suing WWE, Vince McMahon and Linda McMahon over WWE using AWA footage of him without consent. The lawsuit, which was filed in Georgia but has since been moved to federal court, claims Somers unwillingly appeared on four DVDs, WWE Classics on Demand, books and other materials.
WWE and the McMahons have filed motions to have the case dismissed. Their defense is that WWE purchased the rights to the AWA’s tape library and intellectual property back in 2003 (for a seven figure sum) that allows them to use the AWA footage however they want.
– FCW Divas Champion Raquel Diaz (real name Shaul Guerrero, daughter of Eddie and Vickie Guerrero) debuted a new gimmick at Thursday night’s FCW TV tapings. She now has blonde hair and crazy makeup that fans in attendance have compared to pop singer Lady Gaga.
There had been talk last year of doing a similar gimmick on the main roster with current WWE Divas champion Layla.
Check out these pictures of the beautiful Raquel Diaz:
WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross appeared on Sports Talk 1400 radio in Norman, Oklahoma on Friday and commented on Chris Jericho’s “indefinite suspension” from WWE.
Here’s what Jim Ross said about Chris Jericho’s actions:
“He was playing the part of a wrestling villain in an entertainment based entity,” Ross said.
“It’s not like he was at a sporting event like soccer and disrespected the flag, but rules are rules and they have strict rules regarding the flag in their company… He’s playing a character, did an ad lib, and unfortunately he stepped over the line for the local culture, so he’s been suspended indefinitely and hopefully it will work out.”
Jericho was nearly arrested on Thursday night after denigrating the Brazilian flag during his match with CM Punk at WWE’s first-ever event from Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Brock Lesnar’s legal representative Paul Heyman landed WWE on the front page of ESPN and their hot-as-hot-can-be TRENDING section with a surprise “Breaking News” edition of The Heyman Hustle. (ESPN.com)
Heyman, who was not live at Raw this Monday, but was in Las Vegas, interviewed WWE Hall of Famer Mike Tyson on the recent DUI arrest and fall from grace of UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon “Bones” Jones.
So Heyman, who is now back on WWE television in one of the company’s top storylines, got a scoop no other member of the MMA media did – interview Mike Tyson about Jon Jones.
Check out the video of Heyman’s exclusive interview with Mike Tyson:
As previously reported, WWE has suspended Chris Jericho for an incident that took place at Thursday night’s live event from Sao Paolo, Brazil that almost saw Jericho thrown in jail. During the main event match between Jericho and WWE Champion CM Punk, Jericho took a Brazilian flag from ringside and kicked it. Because denigrating the Brazilian flag is illegal in the country, police came to the ring and ordered Jericho to apologize or be taken to jail. Jericho apologized to the live crowd and the match continued.
Former WWE superstar John Bradshaw Layfield has posted a reaction on his Facebook page regarding the incident that occured involving Chris Jericho at Thursday night’s WWE live event from Brazil. As previously reported, Jericho was nearly arrested after denigrating the Brazilian flag during his main event match against CM Punk.
JBL, who had his own international incident several years ago for “goose stepping” at a live event from Germany, had this to say about Jericho’s incident:
“After seeing reports of Chris Jericho in Brazil-it was what I suspected–Chris trying to entertain and be a heel. Apparently a Brazilian Flag comes into ring and Chris grabs it and kicks it (or something to that effect). Compare that to Sgt Slaughter burning the flag or all the crazy stuff that has gone on. This is nothing. EXCEPT we are in a new era and now that isn’t acceptable.
Chris did what most old heels would have done, he reacted and a decade ago it would have been loved for the heat. However, times change and we have to as well-Chris acknowledged this and apologized. Chris is a wonderful person and one of all time great entertainers-there was no malice here from what I see and know about Chris. A mistake was made and is being dealt with.
As far as being illegal, please, if done in an entertaining arena it is considered as such. Like saying you can prosecute Anthony Hopkins for cannibalism because of his role in ‘Silence of the Lambs’. I understand the arguements, I went through same thing in Germany and it was never considered a problem in Germany-only over the Internet and the Internet reporters. Chris’ intent was to entertain not insult anyone in Brazil or the great Brazilian fans.
Times change and for the better. Chris did what a ton of older heels would have done and he reacted. He is being punished and he apologized. He is one of all time greats and a great friend, old habits are hard to change but we must.
Times change and we have to change with it, and we all will.”
– UFC heavyweight Roy Nelson is once again teasing that he’ll be joining WWE after his fight at Saturday’s UFC 146 pay-per-view. During an interview with MMA Weekly, Nelson was asked what’s next after Saturday. He replied:
“might just have to go to WWE because I might just have to call him [Brock Lesnar] out, go to WWE, and whoop his ass.”
UFC Legend Tito Ortiz Strongly Hints That He’s Joining WWE
– Alberto Del Rio turns 35 years old today.
– Ezekiel Jackson has launched a Facebook page at Facebook.com/BigZekeWWE.
– WWE has announced the next live SmackDown special will take place Tuesday, July 3rd from Corpus Christi, Texas. Superstars from both brands are being advertised for the show, including John Cena. This will likely be a 4th of July special.
Chris Jericho has commented on the “international incident” that took place at Thursday night’s WWE live event from Sao, Paulo, Brazil that almost landed him in jail.
In a statement he issued to the WWE website, Chris Jericho said:
“I made a bad judgment call in the course of entertaining [WWE] fans in Brazil. I apologized to the people in the crowd for showing disrespect. It was a bad move. I did it with [our] fans’ entertainment in mind and I’ll accept the consequences for that.”
Chris Jericho later tweeted the following message on Twitter:
“Just for the record I love Brazil and wish we could’ve spent more time here. Beautiful country!”
TNA Wrestling is suing WWE and former TNA/WWE office worker Brian Wittenstein for “interference with existing contracts, conversion, breach of contract, civil conspiracy, unfair competition, breach of loyalty” and violation of the Tennessee Uniform Trade Secrets Act.
The lawsuit alleges that Wittenstein, a former TNA employee with knowledge of sensitive company information, provided WWE insider information on contracts and other matters pertaining to TNA’s operations. The lawsuit alleges that WWE is now using the knowledge obtained from Wittenstein to poach TNA talent.
After departing TNA, Wittenstein was hired by WWE earlier this year and worked under Michael Hayes before getting let go in April. The lawsuit alleges that during this time period, Wittenstein provided WWE the inside information from TNA. WWE did not immediately inform TNA about their former employee leaking company information.
TNA claims that this information was presented on 5/7. Coincidentally, just days later, WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair approached TNA management about being released from his contract. TNA alleges that Flair wanted out so he could return to WWE.
An injunction was issued earlier demanding that WWE & Wittenstein return whatever confidential information retained during his TNA tenure. They were both instructed not to destroy the material.
WWE attorney Jerry McDevitt commented to The Nashville City Paper:
“Our reaction is that no good deed ever goes unpunished. What the WWE did here is what you would hope any company would do in these circumstances it found itself in.”
(Sources: Nashville City Paper, Pro Wrestling Insider)
The Miami Herald has published Part 2 of its recent interview with WWE Hall of Famer, Shawn Michaels. In this installment, Michaels talks about the first half of his legendary WWE singles career during the 1990’s – including how he earned his reputation of being such a pain in the ass behind the scenes, how he was able to keep his job, Jim Ross’ role as the head of talent relations and much more. Here are some highlights of what Michaels said about:
Why He Was So Difficult To Work With Behind The Scenes:
“If I’m putting on my psychiatrist’s hat and you dig all the way down to the root of it has nothing to do with wrestling or anything else,” Michaels said. “It just has to do with a young man’s insecurities with himself.
“Having said that, that can manifest itself in any form and how that’s interpreted obviously depends on the time and depends on the spin. Let’s face it. The ability it takes to be difficult really is to disagree with somebody. Nine times out of 10 mine were usually more creative issues than anything else. The company felt one thing. I felt another. We both feel opposite things, so therefore it’s going to be difficult.”
He later said, “I was a young guy full of piss and vinegar — excuse my language — and I felt I had a very good idea of where the business needed to go and things that needed to be done
“I never went back and told anybody what I did was justified. I’m not saying that at all, but let’s face it. That is where the business went — to more attitude and things of that nature and to perhaps being a little more truthful and a little more reality based, which I was doing many years ago as well as other guys.
How He Was Able To Keep His Job:
“I fear people will misinterpret me trying to say, ‘Therefore, I should be absolved of all the stuff I did wrong,’ Michaels said. “I’m not saying that at all, but the reason I survived it, and the reason I’m still part of the WWE now is because the one guy who loves absolutely every stitch of it, which is Vince McMahon, the guy I argued with more than anybody, understood it.
“He understood that it wasn’t unprofessionalism or ego that was driving all that. It was a desire and a passion to be the guy and to be the absolute very best that I could be. His only challenge was channeling all that in the right direction, and he did that pretty darn well. He tells people all the time the reason he didn’t fire me is because he could see through all that. Ultimately, when it came down to his way or my way, he always knew when he said, ‘This is what I want done, period.’ He knew I’d do it, and I always did.”
It’s a great read – check out the full interview at MiamiHerald.com.
It’s official – the cryptic “The Revolution is Coming” videos that have been airing on the WWE website are for the next installment WWE’s video game franchise – WWE ’13.
Here is the latest update from The Ultimate Warrior discussing his recent biceps injury, the 1-year anniversary of Randy Savage and plenty of ‘inspiration’ for his Warriors:
THE ULTIMATE REDNECK-STYLE COMPETITION SERIES “REDNECK ISLAND,”
HOSTED BY WWE SUPERSTAR STEVE AUSTIN, SET TO PREMIERE JUNE 9 ON CMT
NASHVILLE – May 24, 2012 – Hosted by WWE superstar Steve Austin, REDNECK ISLAND will take 12 red, white and blue-collared Americans out of their element, and far away from cold beer, for the ultimate redneck-style competition series, which debuts Saturday, June 9 at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT with a special 2-hour long premiere.
From a remote tropical paradise, Austin will guide the men and women through a number of hilarious mental and physical challenges designed to celebrate the group’s strengths and limitations in a quest for $100,000. At the end of each episode, teammates will send one competitor packing.
The REDNECK ISLAND contestants include:
Catherine Long (Harrisburg, N.C.) – Blonde, bubbly and funny “Southern belle.” Likes to have a good time and is fun to be around, but can become stubborn and hot-headed at times. Loves her family, hunting and drinking beer.
Cayton “Tex” Flippen (Sumner, Texas) – Small town guy with a competitive nature and plenty of ambition. He is highly motivated and always wants to succeed. He is married and has a young daughter.
Eric Bradford (Lexington, S.C.) – The party boy jock. As a professional wrestler and former cheerleader in college, he is extremely energetic and highly competitive, but can sometimes come off as abrasive and selfish.
Kevin “Bobo” Floyd (Midland City, Ala.) – A good-hearted truck driver who will do anything for you, as long as you don’t piss him off. Loves beer, hunting and guns, but is terrified of tornadoes.
Jeannie Hunter (Marble Falls, Texas) – Fun-loving and adventurous, pistol-packing “Southern belle.” Enjoys bull riding and went to college on a full rodeo scholarship. Likes to hunt and be outdoors.
Jennifer Kercher (Lakeland, Fla.) – A tough ex-Navy girl, Jen is a certified EMT and a guy’s girl who can change her own car tires and oil. She is outgoing, caring and always up for anything. Having grown up with a twin, Jen is also highly competitive.
John Paul “JP” Burwell (Panama City, Fla.) – A bartender who enjoys drinking and having a good time. He is outgoing and can talk to anyone. Loves playing golf almost more than he loves hunting, fishing and four-wheeling.
Adam Freeman (Nashville, Tenn.) – After two marriages that ended in divorce, he came out as a gay man. He is a hairstylist with a big and fabulous personality, but is just as much of a proud redneck as the next guy. Adam is competing for his five kids.
Kassie Worley (Navarre, Fla.) – Single mom who likes to get dolled up and pretty, but not afraid to get down and dirty. She may come off as sweet and innocent, but is not afraid to speak her mind and tell it like it is.
Adam Sullins (Bristol, Virg.) – Outgoing and likeable professional wrestler. He is very competitive and always expects to win. Loves hunting, fishing, mudding, NASCAR, beer and football. Competing to win money for his fiancé and baby daughter.
Teri Allen (Ft. McCoy, Fla.) – Proudly calls herself a loudmouth party animal. Became a grandmother at the age of 30 by marriage, and is very outgoing. Loves shooting guns, and even has a shooting range in her home.
Dove Bush (Castlewood, Virg.) – Educated, artistic and open-minded. She is a huge Dolly Parton fan and tribute artist. Adventurous and loves traveling, music, spirituality and outdoor activities.