SEScoops

Author: David Bixenspan

  • Triple H: No Specific Or Credible Terrorist Threat To Survivor Series

    Less than 24 hours before Survivor Series 2015, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent, Live Events, and Creative Paul “Triple H” Levesque tweeted the following update to the rumors about the pay-per-view in Atlanta being a target for an ISIS terrorist attack:

    Federal, state and local law enforcement authorities have confirmed there is no specific or credible information involving a threat against tomorrow’s WWE Survivor Series at Philips Arena. However, WWE and Philips Arena have coordinated with the appropriate agencies and law enforcement, and significantly increased security measures to ensure the safety of all those in attendance, which is our highest priority. Doors will open at 6 p.m. to help fans avoid any delays in entering the arena due to the additional precautionary security procedures put in place. Fans are encouraged to take public transportation (MARTA) to the event and are advised that bags will not be permitted in the arena.

    While not explicitly stated, it sounds like the security measures will slow down cars getting into the parking lot since they’re recommending fans take public transportation.

  • WWE & FBI Issue Statements On Possible ISIS Threat To Survivor Series

    Earlier, we brought you the news that reportedly, tomorrow night’s WWE Survivor Series 2015 pay-per-view at Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia may be on an ISIS target list for a terrorist attack.  There were mixed signals being sent as to just how legitimate a threat this is, and now, we can update you with official statements from both WWE and the FBI:

    WWE (from Ryan Satin of Pro Wrestling Sheet):

    Survivor Series is currently scheduled as planned while we investigate the matter with federal, state and local authorities.

    FBI (from WSB-TV):

    The FBI is aware of an alleged threat that includes an Atlanta, Georgia venue and event. While we take all threats seriously, we do not have specific or credible information of an attack at this time. We have, however, made the proper notifications as we continue to work closely with our law enforcement and private sector partners to keep our community safe.

    We’ll have more later as it comes in, of course.

    UPDATE: WWE executive Paul “Triple H” Levesque tweeted this:

  • WWE Survivor Series On Possible ISIS Target List For Terror Attack

    This morning, the International Business Times reported that, per a PasteBin dump by hackers identifying as part of Anonymous, ISIS is planning a number of terrorist attacks worldwide this weekend. One of the targets, listed as not 100% confirmed, is tomorrow’s WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view event at Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia.

    Anonymous is not planning to release the proof publicly but told the IB Times that they have “passed proof to the MI5 intelligence agency in the U.K., the CIA and FBI in the U.S., and the Australian government.”

    There was some skepticism on Twitter at first: On one hand International Business Times is a legitimate news organization and the author is an editor there with a verified Twitter account. On the other, they’ve become best known for being a “content farm” full of “click bait” style articles with headlines about nonexistent new technology products to get Google hits. It became clear that the story is very legitimate when Mark Winne of WSB-TV in Atlanta chimed in on Twitter:

    WSB then posted a statement from Jim Butterworth of the Georgia Emergency Management Agency, saying that they are “working closely with the FBI, the Georgia information sharing and analysis center and others in evaluating the threat on a Sunday WWE event in Atlanta reported by the group Anonymous.” After that, Winne tweeted more new information:

    https://twitter.com/MarkWinneWSB/status/668119847461605376

    As of right now, this is clearly a developing story with conflicting stories and we’ll bring you more when we have it.

    UPDATE: Both the FBI and WWE have released statements on the situation.

  • Hulk Hogan Sex Tape Police Report Analysis In Depth

    Last night, I went over the key items in the report that the Tampa Police Department released released this week about the 2012 theft of DVDs from Bubba the Love Sponge Clem. These DVDs included videos of his former wife Heather Cole having sex with various men, some (like a police officer friend) who knew they were on camera and others (like Hulk Hogan) who didn’t. While there are still some unknowns, like who leaked one of the Hogan videos to Gawker and why nobody has been prosecuted, the report fills in a lot of details that weren’t public previously. I tried to outline those in last night’s article, and now, it’s time to examine them a little deeper.

    So, how do you contextualize all of this?

    To me, the most interesting part overall was the detailed summary of the December 14, 2012 FBI sting operation in which Hogan and lawyer David Houston pretended to go along with making a deal with sex tape broker Keith Davidson. Not only was it a detailed look at a strange, seedy backroom celebrity business deal, but Davidson made some telling comments. Specifically, the “issues” in the videos that he mentions are Hogan’s now-infamous N-word rant and Hogan saying his son Nick’s then-girlfriend’s twin sister had been coming onto him. The former has been out since July and the latter was known going back to Gawker’s October 2012 article.

    I was able to confirm that, contrary to the baseless rumors about racist comments towards Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson being on one video,  there are no other comments deemed to be a threat to Hogan’s public persona. At least when it comes to the videos themselves, there’s not much more damage they could do to Hogan. He was lucky, relatively speaking, that only transcripts got out and not the audio. That the general public hasn’t heard the comments likely plays a factor in why:

    1. He’s so optimistic about being rehired by WWE.
    2. Some fans mistakenly think he got in trouble for an old radio interview where used the n-word in the context of quoting people.

    Obviously, he wants to make sure that doesn’t change, and he also wants to ensure nobody else sees him having sex. But unless there’s something that came up in the FBI investigation that we have no real concept of, there may not be further skeletons this case’s closet that can ruin Hulk Hogan.

    Gawker has, at times, claimed that determining if Hogan was aware of the cameras in Bubba the Love Sponge Clem’s house is why they sued the FBI. He’s always insisted that he wasn’t, with skepticism coming from Bubba talking about his security system on his radio show and Cole seemingly positioning Hogan for the camera on the video. While a friend of Bubba’s who had a tryst with Heather after Hogan was aware of the camera, Heather swore to police that Hogan was unaware. From the report (in a section that’s been redacted from the version Bubba posted on his website):

    Cole stated that the sex she had with others during her marriage to Bubba was consensual. She stated that Bubba insisted on it being videoed. I asked Cole if Bollea knew he was being recorded and she said no. I told Cole that the in the videos it appears as though she is positioning Bollea for the camera. She said she did that because that is what Bubba wanted. Cole said Bubba could be very controlling. Cole said she remembers Bubba coming to the house after they had separated and requesting the DVDs sometime around the end of 2011.

    One would think that issue should be put to bed at this point. Of course, that passage raises another issue, which is that Bubba comes off terribly here. It at least reads as if he heavily pressured his wife into participating in making secret videos of trysts with his friends even if she was fully into their swinger (for lack of a better term) lifestyle. That doesn’t take away from him being a legitimate victim when it comes to the DVD theft and related crimes, and he’s right to be angry at the prosecutors for not charging anyone. After all, if the police have so much evidence and are willing to name Matt Loyd in this report, why do the prosecutors think they won’t get a conviction?

    There’s honestly no good answer other than that  conspiracy theories about Hogan using his influence because he’s worried about things that could come out in a trial. As I said earlier: If it’s not on the videos, we don’t know what that is. Unless it’s just not wanting anyone to hear his racist comments on the videos out loud, there’s no indication why this would be.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wk0ZACuiYAY

    Speaking of things that Hogan doesn’t want out: One would think that Gawker as well as various interested media outlets (who have filed intervening motions in the past) may try to parlay the release of this report into the unsealing of some of the FBI documents. After all, if the substance of what was said during the sting operation is now public record, why not the word for word transcript? It wouldn’t shock me at all, and it’s something to keep an eye on in both lawsuits.

    As for Matt Loyd being named as who stole the DVDs from Bubba, that’s no surprise at this point, as it had been hinted at in various lawsuit filings. But if he didn’t leak one of the DVDs to Gawker, then we don’t really have any good leads as to who it is. That is unless there’s some obfuscation going on here.

    We’re still over three months away from the Hogan-Gawker civil trial, and this story is far from over.

     

  • Hulk Hogan Sex Tape Theft, Leak Detailed Extensively In Police Report

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Od9HQpwesVM

    Earlier in the week, we noted that Tampa area media, having procured a new police report, had jumped on the story that Matt “Spiceboy” Loyd was the man behind the theft and leak of the Hulk Hogan sex videos. The local TV stations mostly covered the most basic of details: That Loyd was named as the suspect, prosecutors declined to charge him, and Bubba the Love Sponge (the videos came from his security cameras after he had  given Hogan his blessing to sleep with his then-wife Heather Cole) was angry that the prosecutors were doing nothing.

    What I did next was procure the entire 31 page police report from the Tampa Police Department. Since then, Bubba has released a version on his website, but it’s heavily edited and redacted, seemingly to remove the information he doesn’t want out. With that in mind, here are some of the key revelations in the report:

    * This specific police investigation started separately from the Hogan videos. as in May of 2014, Loyd (using @Joshisinthecity, a now-deleted dummy/sockpuppet account) tweeted a photo of a stolen non-Hogan DVD to Bubba, who replied to attempt to bait him:

    * Loyd no longer had possession of the original Hogan DVDs because they were seized by the The DVD in a 2012 sting operation targeting his “sex tape broker,” oft-disciplined lawyer Keith Davidson. The remaining DVD, labelled with the name a non-celebrity friend of Bubba’s, showed Cole having sex with said friend. The friend did say know he was being recorded, while Cole told the TPD that Hogan did not. When the TPD asked Cole why she appeared to be positioning Hogan for the camera, she replied that it was “because that is what Bubba wanted” and “Bubba could be very controlling.”

    * This explains why, to a point, the FBI had stonewalled Gawker in their attempts to get a copy of the FBI’s Hogan investigation. Gawker’s first Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request was filed on November 8, 2013 and rejected on privacy grounds. When they got the necessary waivers from Hogan and Cole via the lawsuit, the refiled on November 7, 2014. By the time the FBI responded on February 4, 2015, not only had the TPD investigation been ongoing for months, but they were also using the FBI file as evidence. That’s why law enforcement privilege was cited to block the release of the file but Gawker had statements stating they were not the target of an investigation: The crime being investigated had nothing to do with the leak to Gawker because Loyd didn’t make contact about the Hogan videos.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTLztVGd414

    * The DVDs were taken from Bubba’s office, where he moved them during his divorce from Cole in October 2011. Why?  “Clem transferred the DVD’s from his home to his workplace where he believed they would be more secure.” The DVDs were eventually moved when he moved to a new studio in December 2011 to January 2012. He didn’t know they were missing until March 2012, when a screenshot showed up online from one of the Hogan videos. “Clem immediately responded to the office/storage area and became aware that each of his DVD’s were now missing.”

    * @Joshisinthcity’s tweet was eventually traced to Loyd’s workplace. He claimed that the DVD was a fake and, having known of the DVDs for years, forged Bubba’s handwriting on a new blank DVD to spook him. The handwriting in the photo was consistent with other burnt DVDs Bubba had written on that he provided to the TPD. At this point, Bubba told the TPD “that the FBI had conducted an investigation involving the Bollea DVDs and he thought that case was over.”

    * The FBI eventually got approval for the TPD to see the Hogan case file. On January 20th of this year, the Tampa investigators watched the Hogan videos with the FBI agents assigned to the case and summarized them as follows:

    Disc marked HOGAN 7/13/07 contained Heather Clem and Terry Bollea engaging in sex. Bollea does not look at the camera. The camera appears to be on a high ledge in the master bedroom behind a plant. There is no discussion about them being recorded.

    The disc marked HOOTIE 7/3/07 showed the camera to be in the same location as the previously mentioned disc. Bollea and Heather are standinganext to the bed, Heather is topless and facing Bollea as Bubba walks into view and comments about a scratch she has on her back. Bubba then leaves the room. Bollea and Heather engage in sex.

    The disc marked HOOTIE with no date shows that Bubba walks in after sex between Bollea and Heather. Bollea, Heather and Bubba have conversation. Bollea leaves. Bubba makes comment about tape being used for retirement. Bubba says he is going to get the tape and walks out. Tape ends.

    * The FBI also provided the TPD with audio recordings taken during the investigation into “sex tape broker” Keith Davidson when he tried to sell the original DVDs to Hogan for Loyd via intermediaries. When Davidson negotiated with Hogan attorney David Houston over the phone as part of a sting operation, they started at $1 and $1 million respectively before settling on $300,000. $150,000 would be paid upfront with two other installments of $75,000 each at the nine and 16 month marks.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRpnLCvRhkw

    * Perhaps the most interesting portion of the 31 page report is the detailed summary of the final meeting with Davidson on December 14, 2012 that closed the sting operation. When Houston asked which video “has the issues,” Davidson is paraphrased as saying that “tape 2 talks about his son’s twin girlfriend” while “tape 3 talks about n word, Brooke dating black guy, etc.” Obviously, the tape 3 note refers to Hogan’s racist comments that got him fired by WWE. The other note marks the video Gawker got from Loyd as tape 2, because A.J. Daulerio wrote this in the article that was originally published alongside their “highlight reel” of the video:

    But Hulk has to go meet his son Nick at midnight. Then Hulk tells a story about how Nick’s new girlfriend has a twin sister who called Hulk on the phone. Hulk reveals that the young woman inquired about his divorce and, if that’s true, she would like to be the first to go out with him.

    It appears that, with that story having been out for over three years now and then n-word rant leaking in July, there is no other incriminating information on the other video, described here as “tape 1.” The audio of the racist comments getting out would be harmful since nobody has heard them, and obviously he doesn’t want anyone to see him having sex, but in terms of damaging information, it’s all out there.

    * Davidson, for whatever reason, would only give Houston certain details out of earshot of Hogan.  For example: “I don’t know if they were stolen and quite frankly I don’t want to know if they were stolen.” He also gave his word he would assist in having the clips removed from Gawker’s site, as they were still up at the time. While Davidson told Hogan and Houston his client knew the videos existed because he was shown them and Loyd said it was well-known that the videos existed, Bubba denies showing them to anyone at work.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LmPis1-wJlo

    *As outlined in the Tampa media coverage, Lori Burbridge, a friend of Loyd and his wife, Tasha Carrega, handled financial transactions to shield Loyd. Loyd went to TMZ when leaking stills To TheDirty failed to generate enough buzz. She told police that TMZ put Loyd in touch with Davidson, who bragged about handling similar cases when she questioned if what they were doing was legal. TMZ paid $8,500 for the videos, which they never published for legal reasons. TMZ’s Mike Walters had spoken to Hogan on the air on their syndicated TV show about having seen the videos.

    * It appears that, while Loyd did contact Gawker under an assumed name, he was not the person who leaked one of the videos to Gawker. Davidson coached Loyd, Carrega, and Burbridge to say they were the Gawker leak to ensure the deal with Hogan went through.

    It’s not clear at all why local prosecutors are not charging Loyd if the Tampa Police Department has so much evidence and is willing to name him as a suspect. Tomorrow, we’ll go over some additional details and try to analyze exactly what all of this means.

  • WWE Using Reid Fliehr’s Death Trivializes His Life, Mental Illness

    Because some people ask for a label: Yes, this is an editorial.

    Last night’s show-closing segment on Monday Night Raw was not the first time WWE has, uncomfortably, worked someone’s real life death into an angle. That goes back a decade to Eddie Guerrero’s death, and you can go back further for them using it outside of the storyline context, like the Raw interview with Brian Pillman’s widow in 1997. It’s never a good thing and it’s always uncomfortable, but what they did last night was, in its own unique way, the worst of them all.

    “You know what, Charlotte? You’re wrong sweetheart. ‘Cause your little baby brother? He didn’t have much fight in him, did he?” -Paige

    It’s been over two and a half years since Reid Fliehr’s death at just 25 years of age from an overdose of heroin and prescription medication. Ashley/Charlotte considers her wrestling career, in large part, her way of fulfilling his dream and keeping his spirit alive, .as he had been working for independent promotions and All Japan Pro Wrestling. As you might think from the cause of death, he had been battling drug addiction for years. Which is the beginning of why last night’s scripting stands out as so objectionable.

    The Eddie Guerrero exploitation was terrible and crass, but was never really about demeaning him in a direct way. The same goes for the Paul Bearer stuff, and that at least had th slight improvement of it being more clearly delineated that the Paul Bearer character was killed off because William Moody had actually died. How they died was off limits.

    Last night? It wasn’t.

    As bad as it is to invoke his death for some lame pro wrestling angle in the first place, here, the inference is, effectively, “Ha-ha, your junkie brother ODed!” It prostitutes his worth as a human being and the mental illness he struggled with from his teens (and yes, addiction is as much a mental illness as OCD, depression, or bipolar disorder are). And for what? Some doomed to fail skit put at the end of the show because the third hour is siphoning viewers anyway?

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2WR40HgDbU

    What gives this more wide-ranging, real world consequences that past WWE death exploitation angles is that mental illness is heavily stigmatized, especially in the United States. Die from cancer and the perception is that you lost your valiant battle. Die from a mental illness and the perception is that you’re weak. Unless, by some small chance this storyline ends with a passionate Charlotte promo about destigmatizing mental illness, then what exactly is the point?

    No, most viewers don’t know how Reid Fliehr died. But plenty do: Charlotte talks about him all the time when she does media appearances and more fans than ever follow wrestling news online, anyway. Being cryptic helps WWE, because, like with Lana’s promo last year that viewers thought was about the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines Flight 17, you can always say that’s not what they meant.

    As for Charlotte, it’s really quite simple: If it wasn’t her idea, it’s disgusting as her employer to script her to take part in last night’s angle. If by some chance it was her idea, and her mom’s tweets certainly suggest that it wasn’t, then she should have been vetoed anyway.

    To think this company wonders why they have trouble getting advertising rates at the level of non-wrestling programming with the same viewership. They’re in the bubble. Nothing will ever change.

  • NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 10 To Feature English Commentary On NJPW World

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzLFT1jTAII

    It’s official: NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 10 at the Tokyo Dome on January 4th will be available in English, but they’re making a different play from what they did for this year’s show. Kevin Kelly announced on his latest podcast that he and Matt Striker, the voices of ROH and Lucha Underground, respectively, will return as NJPW’s English announcing team. They debuted last month at the King of Pro Wrestling event. The show will air live on NJPW World in both languages, unlike this year’s event, which aired in Japanese on that service and in English on traditional pay-per-view via a deal with GFW. It remains to be seen if NJPW will ad a proper English version of the website, as right now it’s still in Japanese with an English Google Translate button.

    Kelly made the announcement at the 1:39:39 mark of the podcast, saying that “On January 4th, I, once again, am going back to New Japan Pro Wrestling…I’m going to be part of the broadcast team for Wrestle Kingdom 10 (NJPWorld broadcast). I’m very excited…” Acknowledging the criticism that he sounded too new to the NJPW product last time, he added that “I’ll be more comfortable next time, and I think it will be much improved.”

    Last year’s GFW production, with Jeff Jarrett producing, was called by Jim Ross and Striker to rave reviews. For King of Pro Wrestling, NJPW made the hiring on their own. Mauro Ranallo and Josh Barnett, who call NJPW’s American TV show on AXS TV, were not contacted. The AXS deal is with TV Asahi, NJPW’s broadcast partner in Japan, and not the promotion itself. ROH, on the other hand, which Kelly works for, is effectively NJPW’s American affiliate promotion.

  • ROH Announces TV Deal With COMET, Done With Destination America

    ROH just sent out a press release indicating that they’ll be airing Wednesday nights at midnight ET/11 p.m. CT on COMET, a new digital subchannel from MGM and ROH parent company Sinclair Broadcasting.  COMET launched on Halloween and is primarily an outlet for sci-fi and fantasy reruns like Stargate SG-1. Digital subchannels are the additional stations that were introduced via the American transition to digital television, opening up bandwidth for additional programming. Networks like Antenna TV, MeTV, Retro TV, ThisTV, and Buzzr are some of the more well-known subchannels.

    Availability depends on the market, the signal strength, and the cable provider (they may not carry it). For example, in New York, COMET is technically available via WZME in Bridgeport, Connecticut, which may not be on all area cable providers and would be difficult to receive via antenna in much of the area.

    As for Destination America, the press release also confirms that they’re done with that network after November 25th. That’s the end of the original contract, and there was (largely baseless) speculation online that they’d stick around until TNA finishes up in January or February as companion programming.

    Here’s ROH’s press release:

    Ring of Honor to air nationally on COMET starting December 2nd

    #WatchROH every Wednesday at MIDNIGHT EST/11pm CST on COMET

    (BALTIMORE, MD) – Ring of Honor (“ROH”) is proud to announce that beginning December 2nd, ROH will air its weekly television program nationally on the COMET television channel. Fans will be able to #WatchROH every Wednesday night at midnight for the latest Ring of Honor action.

    “Ring of Honor has been enjoying tremendous growth and expansion across the broadcast space, including new local TV deals in strategic markets, and even internationally with L’Equipe 21 in France,” said Ring of Honor COO, Joe Koff. “As we continue to push for greater domestic and international distribution, Ring of Honor truly showcases itself as world-class wrestling. Having Ring of Honor on COMET, in addition to the availability in Sinclair markets and independent agreements, means fans across the United States can continue to enjoy ROH television weekly.”

    Ring of Honor’s weekly episodes recently enjoyed great success on Destination America, peaking at 227,000 viewers on a single television airing. ROH’s 26-week deal signed in May 2015 with Destination America is set to expire, which will see ROH’s final episode air on the channel on November 25th, 2015.

    Sinclair Television Group, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: SBGI) (“Sinclair”), and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (“MGM”), recently announced that COMET, the first-ever 24 hour/7 day per week science fiction multi-channel network, which will feature more than 1,500 hours of premium MGM content, would premiere in over 60% of the country and over 65 million homes on October 31st of this year. The network will debut in all top markets including New York, NY; Los Angeles, CA; Chicago, IL; Philadelphia, PA; Seattle, WA; Denver, CO; St. Louis, MO; San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose, CA; Washington D.C.; Boston, MA; Pittsburgh, PA and Houston, TX. In addition to the Sinclair owned television stations, COMET will also launch on a number of Tribune and Titan stations.

  • Pete Gas Talks Growing Up With Shane McMahon, WWE Run, & More

    The folks at the Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling podcast are back with another interview: Mean Street Posse member Pete Gas (Pete Gasparino). Being that his on-screen persona of being one of Shane McMahon’s childhood friend was no gimmick, he has a unique perspective that you don’t really hear from anyone else. Here are some of the key quotes from the interview:

    Did Shane have aspirations to take over for Vince?

    Because of our friendship it’s not like we ever sat around at a bar on Greenwich Avenue and he said “I’m going to run this place”. It was never that type of conversation. Shane started from the bottom up, his father was and we all know his father is a genius. Shane started doing summer jobs and working for the company, he would work in the warehouse one summer. Eventually as he got older he started going on the road during summer break and he would set up the rings, he would get involved and do some refereeing.

    Shane was groomed to learn every facet of the business and this way the more you know, the better you are and that was the way it is. I believe Stephanie was too. If I remember correctly she was working in the office in the main building at Titan Tower working in different departments there as well. The family is so close and I know that the bond that they all have is that since it’s just such a close family they always wanted to be together and this business is the air they breathe. It’s everything to them.

    Will Shane ever return to WWE?

    I think it’s one of those things where you don’t want to live in your Dad’s shadow. To be honest with you the only person who can truly answer that is Shane. It will always be in his blood to be in the business, whether or not he ever comes back. I don’t know, I couldn’t tell you. But he’s one of those guys that truly loves the business, he loved everything about it but maybe it was something he had to prove to himself.

    How did the Mean Street Posse end up getting trained to wrestle and put into the developmental system?

    At the time Dr. Tom [Prichard] was scouting talent and living in Stamford and it was like a toned down version of what they do on Breaking Ground, it wasn’t as intense it was just about the wrestling aspect. When he didn’t have anybody to train he was working just with us and God Bless Him because we gave him a few potatoes and I know we hurt him a couple of times but he was great to us. We learned from him at the studio and we were training every day after work and as time went on the office said we need to get you more matches so we are going to send you to Memphis to do TVs and you are going to fly back to Memphis on Wednesday’s and do shows with the developmental program.

    Did he like the pro wrestler lifestyle?

    I could honestly tell you that I woke up every single day jumping out of bed and I truly mean that with all my heart. I would jump out of bed and say I cannot wait to find out what I was going to be doing today. It was new, it was exciting and to live that lifestyle and I see how people get worn out and are beaten down because of the job but I guess it is the individual because for me I absolutely loved it, loved the attention, I always loved giving autographs and helping people out. Whether it was charity or going to a hospital whatever the case was I enjoyed it. The wrestlers that are upset, those guys didn’t have it like Rodney and me had it. Rodney and I never got to win a match. We never got the shine in a match we basically just got our asses kicked and I loved every bit of it.

    In the full interview, he also talks about Pete his feud with Pat Patterson and Gerald Brisco, meeting Shane McMahon, getting cut by WWE, and more.

  • Ronda Rousey Fans Far More Likely To Go To WWE & Other Pro Wrestling Shows According To Nielsen Survey

    Nielsen (the research company best known for being behind television and terrestrial radio ratings in the United States) has released data from a survey they conducted about UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion, wrestling fan, and WrestleMania guest star Ronda Rousey. There are a number of stats listed, but one is of special interest to wrestling fans:

    Rousey fans are 32% more likely to have attended a WWE or other pro wrestling card in the last 12 months.

    By comparison, Rousey fans are also:

    * 30% more likely to have a subscription to an online music service.

    * 29% more likely to be “very” interested in the UFC,

    * 32% more likely to be “very” interested in pro boxing.

    * 40% more likely to be “very” interested in “extreme/action sports”

    In the email sent out to the media going over all of stats, Nielsen ran down these items as the key findings:

    * 44% Americans know Ronda Rousey. Among those who know her, 70% find her to be likable and 67% think she’s successful.

    * Rousey’s endorsement of Carl Jr.’s is a fit with her fans: Rousey’s fans are 30% more likely than the average U.S. adult to have visited a fast food restaurant 10+ times in the past 30 days.

    * Rousey’s fans are willing to shell out money for tickets for other sporting events. In fact, they’re 44% more likely than the average U.S. adult to be willing to pay over $75 for NBA tickets and 30% and 20% more likely to do the same for MLB and NFL tickets, respectively.

    * Fans of Rousey are more likely than the average American adult to be very interested in pro boxing (32% more likely) than UFC (29% more likely).

     

    Rousey fights tomorrow night at UFC 193 live on pay-per-view.

  • Remembering Eddie Guerrero 10 Years After His Death

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9htQLbhCys

    If you asked me about the first time I ever saw Eddie Guerrero wrestle, my first instinct would be to respond with one of the more common answers: The match where he and Art Barr lost their hair to El Hijo del Santo and Octagon at AAA When Worlds Collide in 1994. It’s a positively brilliant match, one that not only blew away the lucha libre newbies watching on pay-per-view, but played off years of storylines that long-time fans would know. The match got him his job in ECW, which he parlayed into his WCW run.

    When I think deeper about when I first saw Eddie, the real answer is probably one of two other matches. The first would be his famous squash match loss to Terry Funk in WCW in May of 1989. I don’t really remember for sure if I saw it when it aired since I was very young, but I was watching all of WCW’s shows then and I’m pretty sure I did see it. Funk was wrestling his first WCW match since debuting by injuring Ric Flair, and Eddie was brought in as a great working job guy to make him look amazing. Funk being Funk, he gave Eddie a lot, including a gorgeous plancha, before winning the match. Since it was 1989, Eddie was “too small” to hire and not given a second look.

    The only other match I would have seen first was from a TV taping for Red Bastien’s WIN promotion, a short-lived lucha libre startup. Mario Savoldi’s ICW promptly lifted matches from WIN shows to craft an “international” tag team tournament in 1990, which included a throwaway Eddie Guerrero match that I know I saw. That’s how I saw a lot of older wrestling for the first time: ICW airing it because reasons.

    I became a huge fan of Eddie’s during his ECW run, though unlike most fans, I was partial to his matches with 2 Cold Scorpio over his more famous feud with Dean Malenko. As wonderful as the technical wrestling was in the Malenko matches, the Scorpio matches weren’t run into the ground and  had a more clear babyface/heel dynamic. In WCW, he built upon that by becoming one of the best babyfaces in the  business, even being named the most likable wrestler in the company when they hired research companies to poll the audience.

    As he mastered the psychological side of the business more and more, that became his strength. It carried him to a level of stardom in WWE that nobody could have foreseen, especially as his body was breaking down. Not only was his heart on borrowed time as we soon learned, but his back was a wreck to the point he shouldn’t have been able to walk.

    I hate to say it, but my reaction when he died was not exactly surprise. He had gotten too muscular and he had a long history of drug abuse. When the coroner listed steroid use as a contributing factor in his death, there was hope that the black and white information would lead to changes. To a point, they did. Days later, another wrestler had a drug-related episode on WWE’s European tour, and the company announced that they’d be resuming drug testing. As much as there’s been skepticism into WWE’s Talent Wellness Program, and rightfully so at times, in the long run, it has been a net positive.

    But that’s just a silver lining. It doesn’t bring Eddie Guerrero or anyone else back. There should have never been the pressure on him to get bigger that he had to deal with for his entire career. Has that changed? Probably.

    Has it changed enough? I honestly have no idea, and that worries me.

  • Hulk Hogan vs. Gawker Lawsuit Hearing Scheduled For 11/18

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ki_MGwOopI

    Hulk Hogan’s lawsuit against Gawker is the pro wrestling news story with the most wide-reaching “real world” consequences, and rolls on next week with a hearing on Wednesday, November 18th. An amended notice about the hearing went up today, and it outlines which topics will be covered, time permitting, over the course of the hearing. All of the matters mentioned in the notice were raised by Hogan’s side, and they include:

    1. Hogan’s motion for attorney’s fees and costs on discovery rulings:

    This was covered in detail here at SEScoops about two weeks ago. The short version is that Hogan’s side is accusing Gawker of violating the rules of discovery (the process that includes document production, deposition testimony, and so on) in bad faith. This would put them on the hook for Hogan’s fees in the discovery issues where he had to fight them in court, which total $427,665. Most of that comes from attorney’s fees with less than 10% being from court costs. Hogan accused Gawker, of, among other things, making it difficult to secure some depositions and doing things designed to drag him into court so often that he’d drop the case for financial reasons.

    2. Hogan’s motion to compel complete production of documents in response to financial worth discovery, reconsideration of a related ruling, and a request for sanctions:

    This sort of ties into #1. Hogan has won previous motions for additional financial information from Gawker, and Gawker has refused to produce some documents. Specifically, Gawker hasn’t provided Hogan with a “Transfer Pricing Study” that shows exactly what Gawker pays Hungarian sister company Kinja. Last year, one of Hogan’s discovery requests specifically asked for the study, but Gawker said the only versions that existed were confidential, covered under attorney/client privilege. Hogan is moving for sanctions against Gawker because a privilege log (filing that outlines what the other side can’t see due to attorney/client privilege) as an “economic analysis” instead of a “transfer pricing study.” Gawker insists it’s still privileged, Hogan’s side argues it’s not.

    Similarly, Gawker founder Nick Denton is saying he does not have records of his family’s trust, which the court ordered him to produce.  Hogan’s side is saying that’s ridiculous. So this all comes down to whether or not Gawker is acting above board.

    3. Hogan’s motion to determine the confidentiality of court records, specifically an affidavit filed by Charles J. Harder (one of his lawyers):

    Like #2 tying into #1, #3 ties into #2, because the affidavit is in support of the financial worth discovery motion. It looks like Hogan wants Gawker’s information out there.

    Those will all be covered for sure on Wednesday. The following are listed as being dealt with “time permitting,” so they may be held off for a later hearing…

    4. Hogan’s motion to strike Gawker’s affirmative defenses:

    Gawker’s most recent answer to Hogan’s most recent amended complaint includes two “affirmative defenses,” which are that Hogan is:

    * Committing a fraud upon the court.

    * Violating recent Florida’s statutes that bar Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP, or essentially a lawsuit filed solely to censor a legal exercise of free speech).

    Hogan’s side, of course, is arguing that the case can’t be a SLAPP, because the heart of the matter is Gawker publishing clips of Hogan having sex that were shot in private without his knowledge or consent. As for the vase being a “fraud upon the court,” Hogan’s side argues it’s not an affirmative defense. Cornell’s legal dictionary defines an affirmative defense as “a defense in which the defendant introduces evidence, which, if found to be credible, will negate criminal or civil liability, even if it is proven that the defendant committed the alleged acts.”

    5. Hogan’s stipulation and motion to amend/modify 10/27/15 order on motions to determine confidentiality:

    Both Gawker and various outside media companies have filed motions this year to get various sealed filings unsealed with the idea that Florida’s public records laws were being violated. This applies to not just the FBI records from their investigation into Hogan being extorted with the sex tapes, but all sorts of other exhibits and motions. They range from financial information to a magazine photo spread of him with naked women with who knows what else in between. Hogan is willing to let some of the exhibits be unsealed as long as the filings they’re supporting are left sealed, and his side’s suggestions will be considered.

    That’s a lot to cover, so if they don’t have time to cover #4 and #5 this will bleed into a second hearing. Some past hearings have streamed live on Florida TV station websites, so keep an eye out and we’ll let you know if this one is streamed, but either way we’ll keep you updated.

  • WWE Is Squandering World Title Tournament; Does A Roman Reigns Heel Turn Save it?

    When WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins’ knee exploded last week under a mistimed sunset flip powerbomb attempt in Dublin, Ireland, fans were sad. He’s in the middle of the biggest run of his career and is going to miss WrestleMania 32 in Dallas, which WWE has planned as a “biggest show ever” type of event. That said, when the dust settled and a tournament was announced, there was hope.

    With Randy Orton injured, John Cena on sabbatical, Daniel Bryan out indefinitely, and now Rollins out six to nine months, everyone figured WWE had to shake things up. How couldn’t they? They’re being forced into something new and have a ton of options.The bracket and booking for the tournament so far, however, have made it look like they’re not really interested in that. The expected names are in the tournament, like Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose, Cesaro, Sheamus, Kevin Owens, and to an extent, Dolph Ziggler. Everyone else felt like a designated jobber.

    Nothing against Kalisto or Titus O’Neil, but they both stuck out like a sore thumb. At least The Miz is a former champion. Tyler Breeze being in the tournament was, in and of itself, a good idea, but then he lost his first ever Raw match in the process to Ambrose. What exactly is the point of that exercise? Seriously, why would you even consider doing that?

    The way the brackets line up, it looks like the finals will be Roman Reigns from the left side taking on Dean Ambrose from the right side. There have been a number of times over the last several months where references to their friendship got so heavy-handed that it seemed like one or the other turning heel was inevitable. Now, with a new top heel being a necessity, it’s hard not to think one of them won’t turn. At first, maybe you’d think it’s Ambrose: He’s been a great heel in the past and a strong heel run would make him an even stronger babyface down the line.

    After Monday’s Raw, though, that doesn’t look like the plan.

    Raw opened with Triple H announcing the tournament and, basically, inviting Roman Reigns to turn heel, join The Authority, and get handed the title as an alternative. After all, that’s what Triple H did as a management-approved top contender in 2002 when the world title split off. Reigns, of course, turned him down…for now.

    Where it gets interesting is that there are similarities to The Rock’s storyline 17 years ago this month in 1998. The Rock, then a freshly turned babyface, had left Vince McMahon’s Corporation stable and turned down offers to return. He made it to the finals of the WWF Championship tournament at the famous Survivor Series: Deadly Game PPV, where he was gifted the title in a Montreal Screwjob reprise.

    Is this what WWE’s going for? Should they be trying it? One of the things about the fan reaction Monday in Manchester, England was that the fans like Reigns…they just don’t like his current babyface persona and wanted him to turn heel. That’s probably not changing for a while. A heel run where he wipes off the stink of WWE trying to model him too closely on John Cena would be a good setup for an eventual run as top babyface, similar. t0 what I said about Ambrose but arguably more necessary.

    That would shake things up. Ambrose turning would shake things up to a point and probably help him, but feels like the worse thing possible for Reigns. At this point, I don’t see what option they have other than Reigns turning heel to get him the momentum he needs.

    Meanwhile, in his WWE.com interview that went up today, Triple H had this to say (h/t Cageside Seats for the transcription):

    People will do amazing things when given the opportunity. Some people will look at that opportunity and turn it down because they think they know better. Some people would look at that and say they’re crazy for turning that opportunity down. But I can guarantee you this: That opportunity is still there. Somebody will be crazy enough to take that opportunity. Somebody is willing to do absolutely anything to be the man.

    Well, that’s certainly interesting.

  • Alberto Del Rio Shows Up On Non-WWE TV In Angle Shot Pre-Signing; Will It Be Followed Up On?

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-BkH9xjZnrM

    As initially reported in PRWrestling.com’s WWC Super Estrellas TV report (Spanish) and shown in the video embedded above, a new angle featuring Alberto Del Rio (technically Alberto El Patron) aired today on the Puerto Rican wrestling show. In the angle, Alberto walked into the Texas Wrestling Academy and saw Ray Gonzalez Jr. With Ray “Mr. Ratings” Gonzalez Sr. having hurt Ricardo Rodriguez, Alberto decided to send him a message by beating up his son.

    While it looks like the angle was shot before Alberto re-signed with WWE, WWE confirmed to WrestlingObserver.com that he will be working the previously scheduled match for WWC. This makes sense, as WWC and WWE do have a fairly close relationship, as WWC promoter Carlos Colon does local promotion for WWE in Puerto Rico and his family members in WWE (son Primo/Diego/Eddie and nephew Epico/Fernando/Orlando, plus son Carlito/Carly in the past) get to work a few dates a year for WWC.

  • WWE 2K16 Patch Version 1.02 Released; What Got Fixed?

    Late last night, the first patch for WWE 2K16 video game (which you can order here), version 1.02, got pushed out, tweaking all sorts of things from the version 1.01 release code. At 2K Sports’ official forum, they posted the official patch notes, which you can read below:

    GAMEPLAY

    • Addressed several issues where performing a move would cause a character to warp unnaturally
    • The AI should now be able to consistently climb to the second rope
    • Fixed an issue where Superstars unnaturally dropped back to a prone position when interrupted while transitioning from a prone to kneeling position
    • Fixed a warping issue when a kneeling Superstar attempted to pin a grounded opponent
    • Reversing a ground stomp now provides the reversing character with adequate time to perform a follow-up action or attack
    • Addressed an issue where a character could not use both Finishers if one was a strong strike and the other was a grapple
    • In tag matches, reduced the delay for the AI to perform a double team tag
    • Fixed several issues where reversal indicators weren’t appearing consistently
    • Fixed several display and functional issues with leverage pins
    • Fixed an issue with an attacker not cleanly transitioning into a dazed state after having a running attack reversed in the corner
    • Reduced the delay before the victory scene after a Superstar wins a table match
    • Addressed a delay that would occur if two different Stone Cold versions were used in a One-on-One match
    • Addressed an issue where the player could lose character control after falling from the side of the cage onto a broken announce table in a Hell in a Cell match
    • Addressed an issue where warping could occur when playing as a manager during entrance break-outs
    • Addressed an issue with reversals consumed and momentum gained when reversing an announce table OMG! move
    • Fixed an issue where a character would vibrate unnaturally when pushed against the ropes from chain wrestling
    • Fixed an issue where the first count wasn’t grayed out when a character performs a pin after a Finisher in a steel cage match
    • The charge finisher prompt now appears properly when performing a charged finisher from the top or middle rope
    • Addressed several gameplay exploits that could occur in Elimination Chamber matches
    • Fixed a stability issue that could occur when playing a Royal Rumble match
    • Chain wrestling will no longer occur in a match after a character enters the ring with a foreign object
    • Fixed an exploit where corner finisher were not properly consuming a Finisher icon under certain conditions

    ONLINE
    • Addressed numerous issues related to stability in online matches and when transitioning from the end of one match to another or when handling a player disconnection mid-match
    • Alternate attires will no longer revert to the default attire and move-set when entering an online game
    • Eliminated an issue where users could experience a prolonged hang while searching for a 2K Tonight match
    • Fixed an issue where Custom Superstar names weren’t appearing correctly on the results screen after online matches
    • Addressed an issue where a mic chat icon was incorrectly appearing for COM players
    • Fixed an issue where the crowd wasn’t holding up sign boards for the Superstars or Divas in the current match
    • Addressed an issue in which a player’s framerate suffered significantly after finding an opponent during a practice match
    • Fixed an issue where character hair and the announce tables stopped displaying after a number of consecutive online matches
    • Addressed an issue where hands were not animating as intended in online matches
    • Fixed an issue with the referee’s size in 2K Tonight and WWE Live Matches
    • Addressed an issue where Superstars could get stuck in an Elimination Chamber match under certain conditions

    VISUAL PRESENTATION
    • Fixed an issue where Superstars wearing an alternate attire were invisible during victory scenes
    • Addressed lighting issues with several characters when using in custom arenas or with a custom entrance
    • Addressed camera propping and clipping issues during the introduction sequence before title matches and during entrance break-outs
    • Addressed several presentation issues that were occurring during replays after a match
    • Addressed an issue with the pre-match title presentation when using a Custom Superstar holding a Custom Championship
    • Addressed an issue where male managers for Divas were performing an inappropriate animation during victory scenes
    • Fixed an issue where the referee behaved unnaturally during break outs in singles matches

    WWE CREATIONS
    • Addressed numerous clipping and warping issues with clothing parts used in certain combinations
    • Addressed several stability issues when modifying various parts in combination
    • Addressed an issue with designs failing to appear on faces in gameplay for Custom Superstars with a face photo image applied
    • Edited Move-sets for a WWE Superstar or Diva will now copy properly to other characters rather than the default move-set
    • Fixed an issue where face changes could revert when selecting ‘ACCEPT’ after using Face Photo and Face Deformation
    • Fixed a large number of texture issues occurring with certain outfits
    • Addressed an issue with hair styles appearing unnatural when paired with certain clothing options
    • Logos can now be consistently applied to sleeves and the legs of longer outfits
    • Addressed an issue with improper geometry on Divas’ heads when deforming the face to look smaller
    • Fixed an issue where head accessory items were not applying properly when using a particular face template
    • Fixed several issues where the dummies in Edit Move-set didn’t sync properly when performing a move
    • Edited multiple moves in the ground category in Edit Move-set to highlight the correct respective body parts that they target
    • Fixed an issue where numerous hairstyles were appearing with a green tint
    • Fixed a hang that could occur when making color changes from the Edit Layers menu
    • Fixed a loss of functionality that could occur when trying to access the Edit Parts or Edit Face menu for multiple Custom Superstars in a row

    WWE COMMUNITY CREATIONS
    • Improved overall download and search times when using Community Creations
    • Fixed an issue with sort filters not displaying the expected content
    • Addressed a stability issue when trying to download a character with max logos applied
    • When searching for download items by a specific creator, the downloads page will no longer reset to show all listings after backing out of viewing one item
    • Addressed an issue where the player couldn’t effectively search for their own uploaded creations using the “User’s Own” search condition
    • Addressed an issue where custom entrance settings for Custom Superstars were not uploading to Community Creations
    • Fixed an issue where alternate attire saves were not showing up in save slots, which allowed them to be unintentionally overwritten

    2K SHOWCASE
    • Fixed several stability and presentation issues that occur when skipping certain entrances or cutscenes
    • Fixed a gameplay issue when pinning Austin as Triple H when playing the match for Special Objective “Triple H vs. Steve Austin”
    • Addressed an issue when trying to complete the Special Objective “Three Time Royal Rumble Winner”
    • Addressed lighting issues with characters in certain cutscenes
    • Addressed a warping issue when restarting the King of the Ring 1996 match
    • Addressed a stability issue that could occur in gameplay against Bret Hart in the Survivor Series 1996 match
    • Addressed an issue where Stone Cold didn’t properly appear in the ring in a cutscene for the Survivor Series 1996 match.
    • Fixed an issue that could occur with the pin meter during the Degeneration X: In Your House 1997 match
    • Fixed an issue where the player could improperly fulfill an objective against Dude Love in the Over the Edge ’98 Match

    MyCAREER
    • Attributes, Abilities, and Skills now clearly display as grayed out when copying a move-set from a Custom Superstar via Quick Edit in MyCAREER
    • Addressed an issue where relationships were not resetting properly upon the completion of a rivalry with a tag team
    • Addressed an issue where an imported Custom Superstar would not appear properly until after the match against Enzo Amore if Career Invasion was toggled ‘on’
    • Fixed an issue where the user could be matched against Sting while in a temporary alliance with him
    • Eliminated an exploit where Sting’s bat could be used indefinitely during run-ins
    • Addressed an issue where incorrect dialogue choices could occur during an interview
    • Fixed oddities in camera movement during interviews when playing as a very short Superstar
    • Fixed an issue where Tyler Breeze’s selfie stick would flicker and float in mid-air when the player performs a run-in on him
    • Addressed issues where the ring announcer wasn’t correct calling the champion and challenger during certain events
    • Addressed issues where an improper facial animation was used during certain scenes
    • Fixed camera view and issues with Superstars gesturing to missing arena elements in several cutscenes
    • Addressed an issue where commentary wasn’t playing properly in certain cutscenes
    • The main event for the Royal Rumble Pay-Per-View will now always be a Royal Rumble match regardless of the title the player is currently pursuing
    • Addressed several issues where interactions with The Authority were causing inconsistent rivalries and match bookings to occur
    • Fixed an issue where the Finisher prompt wasn’t displaying properly for the player when first performing an entrance run-in during the tutorial
    • Participants in the Tag Team Championship rankings now appear more frequently in singles competition, allowing the user more opportunities for run-ins to establish rivalries
    • Fixed a few instances where cutscenes were ending abruptly
    • Decreased the occurrence of matches against Career Invasion Superstars since they were happening too frequently
    • Fixed several instances of ill-fitting commentary in various cutscenes

    WWE UNIVERSE
    • Title matches are now creatable for all matches on the match card. They do not require a rivalry.
    • Addressed a title stability issue that could occur after a ‘No Content’ is called during a break out or run-in
    • Rivalry matches with customized participants no longer appear blank on the match card
    • Fixed several instances where match events weren’t triggering under the appropriate conditions
    • Addressed an issue where the No. 1 Contender rank wasn’t properly displayed under “Current Ranking” when editing Superstars or Divas
    • Fixed an issue where the crowd didn’t appear correctly if entering a WWE Universe match when exiting WWE Online under certain conditions

    MENU
    • Addressed several instances where a player’s UI could become blurred
    • Reduced the delay before the match begins after the loading screen bar appears full

    AUDIO
    • Fixed numerous issues with impact sounds for certain moves or actions playing twice or not at all
    • The ring announcer will now correctly announce the team name of a custom team
    • Eliminated a random buzzer noise that would play during the pre-match against the AI when matchmaking for a 6-Man Elimination Chamber match
    • Lilian Garcia now announces Custom Superstars when holding a title and mentions custom championships as intended
    • Impact audio will now play properly when throwing a Superstar onto a table in a Table or Extreme Rules match

    DLC
    • Added support for the WWE 2K16 New Moves Pack downloadable content ahead of release. Players who have not purchased the downloadable content will still be able to matchmake with and participate in matches against those who have the downloadable content installed.
    • Fixed a stability issue with editing Arnold T1’s entrance in Advanced Creation

     

  • WWE Rearranging House Show Lineups In Light Of Seth Rollins’ Injury

    With Seth Rollins blowing out his knee and Dublin, Ireland and vacating the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, WWE has a lot of things to get done. Of course, in the big picture, they need to figure out who will become the new champion and how. The more immediate concern, though, is how to deal with the house shows. WWE is already missing John Cena (on hiatus), Randy Orton (injured), and Daniel Bryan (not cleared due to concerns over the quantity of concussions he’s suffered), so there aren’t a lot of of options.

    What did they do, then?

    According to Dave Meltzer at F4WOnline.com and Mike Johnson at PWInsider.com, Kevin Owens and Dean Ambrose have been moved from the “Roman Reigns” tour to what had been the “Seth Rollins” tour.  That means that the top three matches on each tour are now:

    The Former Seth Rollins crew:

    * Kevin Owens vs. Dean Ambrose
    * Kane vs. The Big Show
    * New Day vs. The Dudleys

    The Roman Reigns crew:

    * Roman Reigns vs. Bray Wyatt in a street fight
    * Ryback & The Usos vs. Braun Strowman, Erick Rowan, & Luke Harper
    * Alberto Del Rio vs. King Barrett vs. Neville in a Triple Threat Match.

     

  • Kurt Angle To Do Commentary On Tonight’s Bellator MMA Card?

    Just a few minutes ago, Sean Grande, the play by play announcer for Bellator MMA, tweeted this:

    That’s a not so veiled reference to Kurt Angle, who has signed some sort of contract with Bellator and was already in St. Louis to appear at their Fanfest event and at least watch tonight’s card. While the idea of him fighting seems farfetched, there’s clearly a much deeper relationship than just Angle signing autographs at Bellator events. Tonight’s card includes Angle’s fellow TNA roster member Bobby Lashley in action against James Thompson, so perhaps Angle will just be sitting in with Grande and color commentator Jimmy Smith for that fight.

    If by some chance Angle were to fight, Bellator does have Ken Shamrock under contract. Both are old enough and beaten up enough that it wouldn’t be considered wildly unfair. Angle had negotiated with MMA promotions in the past but he never committed to anything.

  • Hulk Hogan vs. Gawker Is The Most Important Pro Wrestling News Story Today

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VegtxEp2rU

    This is an editorial, obviously. It reflects the views of David Bixenspan only and should not be construed as reflecting the opinions of SEScoops.com.

    Last night, The New York Observer’s editors posted an editorial about some of the recent developments in Hulk Hogan’s lawsuit against Gawker Media. Specifically, it pertains to the judge’s ruling allowing Hogan to hire a forensic expert to search Gawker’s computers, portable devices, cloud storage, and so on for proof that they leaked Hogan’s racist comments to The National Enquirer. As I reported here last week, Gawker will be appealing that ruling and has compelling evidence to suggest that it’s incredibly premature to suggest they were behind the leak.

    The New York Observer editorial gets some of the basic facts wrong. Like many wrestling fans, they think Hogan using the N-word in an old interview is what got him in trouble when it was actually an oddly personal racist tirade on one of the sex tapes that was shot without his knowledge in 2007. Having said that, the overall point of the article is dead-on: This is a big deal, and it has implications reaching far beyond pro wrestling and celebrity gossip. Hell, the whole case does.

    Specific to this latest development, the Observer describes the most recent ruling as having “much of the news media in frenzy”  because of “the potential loss of reporter’s privilege.” It’s a basic First Amendment Protection, and Judge Pamela Campbell is just throwing it out…why, exactly? Because they just happened to have an interest in Hogan’s reputation being ruined even if there’s no evidence to suggest they were behind said ruining?

    Throughout the case, the perception has been that Campbell has favored Hogan, sealing any court filings that could make him look bad (like an old magazine photo shoot of him with naked women). This is just the latest and most egregious thing she’s done. Yes, she did limit what can be searched for, but there’s still no actual evidence suggesting Gawker did this. Regardless of how you feel about Gawker or the lawsuit itself over them publishing clips of one of the Hogan sex tapes, this is just not something that should be happening.

    Like I said, though: It’s not just this. The whole case is a big deal. As egregious as Gawker’s actions may come off and as strange as their defense (Hogan made graphic depictions of his sex life part of his public persona) may sound, most legal experts who have commented to the media thinks they have the case won. A Hogan-friendly local jury could go against them, but they’d inevitably win an appeal. It’s a fascinating battle over freedom of the press involving arguably the biggest pro wrestling star ever and all sorts of crazy things like sex tapes, FBI stings, and alleged cover-ups.

    Jesse Ventura’s defamation lawsuit against Chris Kyle’s estate was a similarly big deal. On its face, it may not be any kind of precedent setting piece of litigation because it’s much more straightforward: Did Chris Kyle lie about Jesse Ventura making comments suggesting he deserved to lose friends in the Iraq war and that he then punched Ventura? A jury (the majority, as agreed to by both sides) agreed that yes, he lied. But it was almost unheard of for a public figure to win that kind of defamation case. The estate is appealing and various media companies are intervening on the claim of unjust enrichment (essentially making money from the lie), which Ventura has spoken out against in interviews. That fight could have huge, long-term legal implications, as well.

    In all likelihood, the Hogan-Gawker trial will be even bigger, at least in terms of coverage. It’s so much more tabloidy and salacious, but the consequences of all of the actual legal issues have real world importance.This is bigger than pro wrestling and celebrity gossip.

    I know I’ll be watching closely, and I hope you all will be, too.

     

  • Tyler Breeze On Being Indie Stars’ NXT Gatekeeper: “There Was No Jealousy Whatsoever”

    Rolling Stone has published their latest interview with a WWE star, and this week’s is with the newest addition to the main roster: Tyler Breeze. Having just moved up to touring with the main roster, that’s one of the topics covered, as well as his “gatekeeper” role and NXT and much more. Here are some key quotes:

    How did he find out he was being called up?

    I had heard some rumblings that they were looking to bring up someone. When you look at the roster of NXT, you kind of gauge yourself and figure out where you fit in, and I figured I’d be a possibility. Finally, I had a meeting with Triple H, and he said that I was given the green light, and we were going to start moving on it. We weren’t sure of all the details, but I knew it was happening. The next thing I know, I was sitting there, ready to go.

    Was he worried that they’d tinker with the character?

    No, not really. Given the time that I had been Tyler Breeze, and the reactions I had been getting, I really wasn’t too concerned. Now, there are so many great minds here, and if someone tosses an idea to me and we want to add it in, then I can make it work. But if there’s one thing about the character that I know, it’s that I have confidence in it. I can do something that other people can’t; anything that they want me to try, I can go out there and make it work. I’m really not too concerned with any changes that may be made. It will always come out entertaining as far as I’m concerned.

    On being seen as NXT’s gatekeeper to the “indie stars,” most recently Apollo Crews:

    People see it in different ways. Some people see it as me being bumped aside and shuffling down the card. I didn’t really view it that way at all. The guys coming in, I either knew, or got to know very quickly. I also got the chance and the opportunity to work with all of them. These guys, they’re not just coming in from scratch, they’ve been wrestling for 10-plus years. To top it off, all of them are really cool guys too. As soon as they come in, the fact that either I get paired with them, or I get to work with them later,

    I didn’t see it as getting pushed down the card. I saw it as another opportunity to work with someone good and steal the show in another capacity. Whether there’s an NXT title there or not, the match would be one that people wanted to see. I loved working with Hideo and Finn. Me and Owens did some stuff, Zayn, Neville. All these guys that they’re bringing in, it’s not a bad thing, it’s not a jealousy thing. We wanted to make the roster something where people wanted to see every match on the card. The NXT title is where you want to be, but if you’re working with those talents, it’s going to be a match that people are looking forward to, and will buy tickets to see. There was no jealousy whatsoever. It’s just cool to see that everyone is doing well and having fun.

    Make sure to check out the whole interview at Rolling Stone for much more, including the prestige of the NXT brand.

  • Ricochet Reportedly Asking To Cut Promos As Prince Puma On Lucha Underground Season 2

    Ryan Satin at Pro Wrestling Sheet is reporting an interesting item pertaining to Lucha Underground’s second season, which is about to start production. According to Satin’s “sources close to the situation,” Trevor Mann, the wrestler better known as Prince Puma in Lucha Underground and Ricochet everywhere else, wants to start talking as the Prince Puma character. He’s not necessarily looking to do big long promos, but he wants a shot to show what he can do, as the masked character has never spoken so far, with Konnan functioning as his mouthpiece. Mann is scheduled to have a meeting to discuss the issue with  “executives,” though it’s not clear if he means El Rey or Lucha Underground executives.

    There’s one possible complication to this request, which Satin doesn’t mention: Mann is a non-Latino playing a masked Latino character on a TV show that airs on networks targeting Latinos. One could argue that they may not want to risk him coming off inauthentic if he were to speak and not sound like a Mexican Aztec Warrior. Yes, it’s pro wrestling, and that’s nothing new, but it would not be an entirely ridiculous concern in this context.

  • Taryn Terrell On Her Time in WWE: “I Was Not A Good Person”

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nuWAyEfcepc

    A few days ago, the above video featuring WWE Diva (as Tiffany) turned TNA Knockout Taryn Terrell started to get passed around a bit by wrestling fans (though it’s actually a month old). In the video, she talks about taking a renewed interest in her faith as a Christian, being that it was something she had neglected for a while. Today, both The Christian Post and The New York Post picked up her comments, which brought the video a lot of attention.

    She’s not really specific about what specific behavior she’s talking about, whether it’s her domestic incidents with Drew Galloway or something else. She seems to have taken responsibility for whatever she feels bad about, though:

    I went on the road with WWE for a while and that want to be a Christian sort of went by the wayside. I lived in sin. I was not a good person. I can say that I am ashamed of who I was in a lot of ways and the decisions that I made, and it was because I wasn’t a Christian.

    A lot of times I thought, ‘How am I going to be a Christian?’ How can I be accepted by God? I have done awful things. I have not lived as a Christian. I lived as a sinner.

    Terrell also explained that she didn’t actually have a good concept of how, theologically speaking, the concept of forgiveness works in Christianity:

    What I didn’t understand about being saved was that I could be forgiven. I could truly be forgiven for all of the bad things that I have done. I will tell you that the moment that I truly feel and believe that I was saved—all these years of thinking, ‘Sure, I’m a Christian. I am going to Heaven. I believe that I was going there’—I was speaking with a Christian counselor in June and he asked me … ‘Are you saved?’ Again, I gave the same answer, ‘Yeah, sure. I believe in God, I believe in Heaven.’

    It was then that he said, ‘Well, that’s great, but being a Christian means that you believe in Jesus. You believe that He died on the cross, that He died for our sins, that He was resurrected, that He is going to come again. That is your ticket to Heaven. That is your ticket to the Kingdom.’ It registered. It was something that I don’t know if I had heard before, or if I had heard it before, I didn’t truly hear it.

  • Bubba The Love Sponge Could Face More Ratings Tampering Charges

    A few weeks removed from being sued by ratings giant Nielsen Audio for tampering with their sample, there’s more bad news for Bubba the Love Sponge Clem. The “shock jock”/former TNA interviewer/former best friend of Hulk Hogan may have paid more people to strategically listen to his show than previously thought.

    The Tampa Bay Times is reporting that Nielsen Audio released a statement declaring that for the second month in a row, they are not listing ratings for WBRN-FM in Tampa Bay. The key is that the tampering that led to the lawsuit was completely eliminated by the end of September, so it looks like Nielsen found evidence of additional tampering by Clem. In text messages with the listener he paid who then went to Nielsen, he referenced having at least one past similar relationship.

    Beasley Media Group (parent company of WBRN) President Bruce Beasley issued this statement:

    We cooperated fully with Nielsen to ensure the accuracy of their past and forthcoming ratings. Therefore, we were blind-sided and disappointed to learn that Nielsen Audio will exclude WBRN-FM from the October 2015 ratings. The fallout from this dispute may inflict collateral damage on Beasley, which, indisputably, has done nothing wrong.

  • Jimmy Snuka Arraigned On Murder Charges In The Death Of Nancy Argentino; Judge Issues Gag Order

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0-Z-GXKEWQ

    The latest chapter in the three decade-plus long saga of the death of Nancy Argentino started today, as Jimmy Snuka was officially arraigned on involuntary manslaughter and third degree murder charges in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh County Court. Argentino was Snuka’s girlfriend from Brooklyn, New York who travelled the WWF territory with him while his family lived in North Carolina.

    A number of things came out in court today, as reported by  Sarah Cassi of Lehigh Valley Live (who also live-tweeted the hearing on her Twitter account):

    * Snuka, 72, claims to be suffering from some form of early-onset dementia as well as complications from post-concussion syndrome. If true, that means he developed symptoms for well over seven years, as “early-onset” means “before 65 years old.” When Judge Kelly Banach asked some questions used to determine if someone is competent to stand trial, Snuka didn’t know what day of the week it was or what city he was in.  He also said that “I never really been to school” and never got a high school diploma or equivalent diploma. Snuka’s lawyer, Robert Kirwan, added that “He had good days. He has bad days. Today is actually a good day.”

    * The judge issued a gag order on the participants as well as the Argentino family, saying that “I’m not going to permit this case to be tried in the press.” Chief Deputy District Attorney Charles Gallagher III requested the order in light of the statements that Kirwan made after the last hearing. Kirwan pointing out that the Argentino family had been participating in a Dateline NBC story about the case is what led to the judge adding them to the order. While the proceedings remain open to the public, everyone under the gag order can not speak publicly about the case outside of the courtroom.

    * If the case does go to trial with Snuka deemed competent, Kirwan wants an out-of-county jury, presumably because locals have seen by far the most non-wrestling media coverage of the case.

  • Hulk Hogan Trying To Get Gawker To Pay Six Figure Court Costs

    Hulk Hogan’s lawsuit against Gawker rolled on this past week. First, Gawker president and General Counsel Heather Dietrick conceded that the company will probably lose at trial. Then, Gawker filed a stay to attempt to freeze and overturn a ruling allowing their computers to be searched for evidence that they leaked Hogan’s racist comments. Now, the latest big move is from Hogan’s side, who filed on motion on Tuesday demanding that Gawker reimburse his attorney’s fees and other court costs stemming from a number of discovery issues in the case.

    Discovery is the pre-trial procedure where the two sides get information from each other as well as third parties via document production, answering interrogatories, and deposition testimony. For example, Hogan’s 1998 WCW contract was everywhere last week. How? It became public record in the famous racial discrimination lawsuits against WCW because it was filed as an exhibit by the plaintiffs, who got it from WCW during discovery. There are of course a number of very specific rules governing discovery, and in the case of Hogan’s lawsuit against Gawker, Hogan (real name Terry Bollea) is saying that Gawker is in violation of a bunch of them.

    Hogan is asking for $427,665 ($392,475 in attorneys’ fees and $35,190 in court costs) stemming from the abuses that his side his claiming Gawker has committed throughout the discovery process. His lawyers are arguing that Gawker is doing this specifically to raise costs to the point that the case is too expensive for Hogan to litigate.  As for their accusations of wrongdoing, they include:

    * That “Gawker repeatedly refused to produce any documents or information related to” sister company Kinja/Blogwire Hungary. It’s alleged that they continued to do this even after the Special Discovery Magistrate overseeing the case ruled in Hogan’s favor. “Eventually, Gawker’s delay tactics required Mr. Bollea to sever Kinja from the case simply to secure a trial date.”

    * This: “Gawker attempted numerous times to turn discovery into an inquisition into Mr. Bollea’s private life. At the start of this litigation, Gawker wanted to know the name of every woman Mr. Bollea had sex with over the course of a decade. Gawker wanted to know if there were sex tapes other than the illegal recording that had been sent to Gawker [Note: There were, but they were other illegally made recordings], and Gawker repeatedly asked witnesses at deposition about Mr. Bollea’s private sex life. Gawker also wanted all of Mr. Bollea’s medical records, even though Mr. Bollea did not seek any damages based on any claim that Gawker’s actions led to his seeking medical treatment.”

    The claim is that Hogan had to spend “large amounts of money” just to go to court to protect basic privacy rights. And that’s even after the judge issued an order  prohibiting discovery of that nature.

    * Gawker filed 24 third-party subpoenas in the case, “many of which were not tailored at all to the First Amendment defenses in its case,” instead seeking “private information” that violated the judge’s protective order. Among those served subpoenas were Dixie Carter, TNA Wrestling, WWE, Bischoff Hervey Entertainment, Hogan’s lawyer David Houston, Keith Davidson (the lawyer representing the mystery person who tried to extort Hogan using the sex tapes), and Matt Loyd (a former Bubba the Love Sponge employee). Hogan says he cooperated with all of the subpoenas.

    * Gawker objected to a subpoena to their loan broker in an attempt to determine the worth of the company.

    You get the idea: Hogan’s side is saying that Gawker tried to block legitimate discovery because they knew it would run up costs for Hogan. while the other side made ridiculous requests to further run up said costs. Where exactly the truth lies, who knows?

    As for the costs themselves, Hogan has a total of eight lawyers working on the case at rates ranging from $295 to $550 per hour. In determining costs that Gawker were owed, Charles Harder, one of Hogan’s lawyers, wrote in a sworn affidavit that not only did he did not include travel costs, but all hourly billings were rounded down instead of up.

    So for example: When responding to Gawker’s exception to the ruling on discovery about Hogan’s sexual partners, four of his lawyers billed a total of 27 hours ranging from $395 to $550 each for a total of $12,390. That’s on the lower end of some of these itemized arguments, as they ranged from $6,315 to a whopping $72,960 (five lawyers working a total of 160 hours).

  • Update: WWE Confirms Rusev’s Injury & How Long He’ll Be Out, Rusev Comments

    WWE.com has confirmed that Rusev did in fact sustain an injury at Tuesday’s WWE Main Event tapings:

    “Rusev sustained a proximal bicep tendon rupture during his match with Neville at the WWE Main Event tapings Tuesday night, WWE.com can confirm. The match was called due to the injury, and the former U.S. Champion’s recovery time is currently slated at three to four weeks.”

    Rusev also tweeted:

    Original Story: Last night, most talk on social media about the WWE SmackDown and Main Event tapings in Phoenix, Arizona centered around what looked like an injury to Rusev. His match with Neville was stopped when he suffered some kind of arm or shoulder injury. Afterwards, he menaced the timekeeper for ringing the bell, and nobody was completely sure if it was part of the storyline or not.

    The latest information to come out since then is not good, as multiple sources have told PWInsider’s Mike Johnson that Rusev suffered a torn bicep. WWE has yet to officially confirm that there was any kind of injury. As for the shenanigans after the match, Johnson speculated that it was all a work to fill time lost when the match was cut short by the injury.

    This is another bad setback for Rusev, as he just had his long-term storyline with Dolph Ziggler, Lana, and Summer Rae ended abruptly after his real-life engagement to Lana went public. That program transitioned him from a killer heel feuding with John Cena to more of a comedy character.