“Stone Cold” Steve Austin and the Rock headlined WrestleMania a record number of 3 times. The Rock recently answered some questions for fans on social media and took the time to talk about his rivalry with the Texas Rattlesnake.
“There has been no feud that has been a greater box-office draw and that, in my opinion, and it’s so totally biased, by the way, because it’s me, that actually had more x-factor heat and electricity and sometimes you can’t write it, you can’t put your finger on it, but when it happens it explodes and it is an emotionality that you cannot deny.”
The Rock then went on to say that he’d been a big fan of Austin’s even before he came to WWE.
“I’d been a big fan of ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin before he was ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin as “Stunning” Steve Austin,” Rock said in the video. “His wrestling days in World Class, his wrestling days in WCW and of course up in ECW with Paul Heyman and that crew before he came over to the WWE.”
He would continue to talk about how when the rivalry started, Rock had just turned heel and was part of the Nation of Domination. He said the first time the Austin character and Rock character interacted on WWE programming felt special. Rock then spoke about facing Austin for the first time at WrestleMania 15.
“Steve had broken his neck and came back from a broken neck so he was very particular about who he wrestled with,” Rock continued.
“He trusted me and there was only a handful of guys that he trusted with his injury and wrestling him at that time. I was so honored.”
The Rock’s comments can be heard in the Instagram post below:
Jake “the Snake” Roberts has brought Lance Archer into AEW and they are targetting Cody Rhodes. Archer is scheduled to make his in-ring debut on the upcoming Dynamite but according to Cody, he hasn’t earned a shot at him yet.
Cody took to Twitter and explained why he will not be the one facing the former Killer Elite Squad member on Dynamite this week. He explained that Archer is just making his debut and needs to get some wins under his belt before facing someone in the Top 5 rankings.
Cody tweeted, “I appreciate Lance & his skillset. AEW is glad to have him. I’m not interested in social media angles though. He will debut this week, but not against me. He has zero record with AEW, me wrestling him does a disservice to others climbing into the Top-5. Maybe down the road.”
Despite Cody’s explanation, Roberts and Archer will likely claim he is ducking them.
Jake & Lance Archer Target Cody
Jake “the Snake” Roberts returned to wrestling and confronted Cody on the March 4th edition of Dynamite. He told Cody he was not there to praise him but rather to “slay” him.
Roberts was seen in a backstage vignette this week talking about both Cody and his new client, Lance Archer. Jake “the Snake” Roberts’ promo from last week’s Dynamite can be viewed in the player below:
Roberts recently also explained who helped bring him into AEW in a recent interview.
“My name kept getting brought up by people, but it was actually [Tony] Khan that said ‘I want him in here.’ That’s quite a compliment there. That’s not the way I expected to be brought in, I expected it to be through Dallas or through Dustin [Rhodes], but it wasn’t, it was Khan who wanted me in there.”
Matt Hardy’s vessel is currently being used by Damascus, a 3000-year-old being that is able to sense the “essences” of others inside Daily’s Place even when no fans are allowed in attendance. As he told us last week on Dynamite, Chris Jericho recently banned fans from attending live AEW events.
During Hardy and Jericho’s face-to-face segment last week, Hardy appeared to teleport to different places in the empty arena.
Hardy has recently offered up an explanation for how his character appeared to teleport but did so without breaking the rules of physics and reality.
It appears that Vanguard 1, Hardy’s drone, projected images of Hardy all over the arena to confuse Chris Jericho.
Teleportation? No, @MATTHARDYBRAND explains how Vanguard 1 and his fleet of Aerial Assault Drones projected an array of images of The Broken One to confuse @IAmJericho and hasten the Painmaker’s descent into madness during last week’s #AEWDynamite. https://t.co/MpMPLFDM9a
Jericho recently took to his Facebook account and published a live stream with his thoughts on the angle.
Jericho continued to say that some pre-recorded parts had to be filmed over on Wednesday as he wasn’t happy with how they originally came out. They then had to wait for the sun to go down to film the segments again.
Jericho then went on to answer questions from fans during the stream. You can watch Chris Jericho’s live stream embedded below or at Facebook.com.
Arn Anderson was recently asked on an episode of his podcast who he thinks is the “most interesting man in the wrestling world.” Anderson was unable to name just one person, however.
Conrad Thompson got the ball rolling by mentioning Paul Ellering and Chris Jericho as particularly interesting people in the world of pro-wrestling.
“Paul Ellering was a completely different kind of cat, you know what I mean?” Anderson said about Ellering. “He trained people for the Iditarod (sled dog race), were you aware of that? That’s pretty heavy, that’s pretty stout. He disappeared up to Alaska and that’s what he did for a while.”
Anderson then spoke about how Jericho has been able to reinvent himself and has done a credible job throughout his career.
Tony Khan was then listed as someone Anderson considers an interesting person in wrestling.
“Tony Khan and his background of where he has came from and just going from being a very successful entrepreneur and wrestling fan to being an owner of a company that, I’ve been saying it, is the future of the wrestling industry.”
Arn Anderson on Billy Corgan & The NWA
Anderson also mentioned Billy Corgan as an interesting person in wrestling.
“I think the guy, the Smashing Pumpkins gentleman that has opened up the NWA is an interesting guy,” Arn continued. “To go from a rocker to the owner of the NWA which has a lot of stroke with me, that name, it totally means something if we make it mean something. The NWA is what I was brought up on, they are carving out a niche for themselves. Their champion is doing a good job and their whole crew.”
Anderson then spoke about how he feels wrestling is in a good place right now due to all the places wrestlers have to work. He mentioned ROH, Impact, the NWA and more.
Chris Jericho serves as the narrator for Season 2 of VICE’s Dark Side of the Ring docuseries. The first two episodes of the season focus on the Chris Benoit double murder-suicide tragedy from 2007. Jericho recently spoke to Paste about his involvement in the documentary and the complicated question of Chris Benoit’s legacy in pro-wrestling.
During the interview, Jericho was asked about Benoit’s contribution to pro-wrestling and if it is important to revive the memory of his body of work.
“I don’t know, man. It’s a weird thing,” Jericho responded. “I’m not doing this to glorify a murderer but I’m also not doing this to wash away the things that he did. I think it’s a personal choice. If you were someone that didn’t know Chris Benoit you might want to study his matches because he was one of the greatest of all time. There’s no doubt about that. No matter what he did in the last weekend of his life, as a professional there were none better.”
Jericho said the issue of Benoit’s body of work and its legacy is more difficult for those who were around or following the business in 2007.
“Where it becomes harder is if you knew him, or if you were there or around or involved or a wrestling fan in 2007, when this went down.”
“I would say probably 10, 15 years from now—even now—you’re going to have a whole generation of performers that weren’t really fans back then, or might not have really known the true story, that won’t care as much. They’ll want to watch his matches and just try to learn and see what he did and what he was.”
Chris Jericho On Chris Benoit’s Body of Work In Wrestling
Jericho would then continue to say that he’s not sure if he wants to go back and watch old Benoit matches but understands why others would want to do so.
“I don’t know if I really want to go back and watch those matches even though they’re so connected to me in so many ways. It’s hard to do. But I don’t blame other people for doing it, because those matches are great examples of what perfect pro wrestling is.”
Jericho covers a whole range of topics during the interview. He also spoke about other episodes of the docu-series and how Chavo Guerrero got him involved. The full interview can be found here.
Becky Lynch will face Shayna Baszler with her WWE RAW Women’s Championship on the line at WrestleMania. Lynch won the title in a triple threat match at WrestleMania last year when she defeated Charlotte Flair and Ronda Rousey. This year, however, there will be no fans in attendance when Lynch wrestles on the show.
Lynch spoke to ESPN’s Ariel Helwani about the unique nature of this year’s WrestleMania.
“I’m somebody who has fed off the energy of the crowd so much,” Lynch said. “It’s been my connection with the crowd that’s gotten me to where I am and I know that without those people I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing. It’s a different shift in your brain. You have to use a different part of you because you know at the other end of it, there’s millions of people watching. So you have to connect to them differently.”
“You’re not going to get that same gratification that you get when you’re going out there in front of an audience and they are letting you know how well you’re doing or how well you’re not doing but they are responding to you constantly. So it’s a little bit, there’s less self-gratification but more concentration on the nuances and of what your message is, why do I want people to care about why I’m going to mess Shayna Baszler up so much?”
Becky Lynch’s full comments to ESPN can be viewed in the player below:
Teddy Hart could be looking at significant jail time as a result of new charges he’s facing. Hart was arraigned in Richmond, Virginia on Thursday and is facing charges of strangulation resulting in wounding/bodily harm. The charges are related to an incident involving Hart’s girlfriend Maria Manic.
Hart is facing up to 5 years in prison for the Class 6 felony offense and up to a $2500 fine. His court date is set for April 22nd and he is currently being housed in Richmond City jail without bail.
Independent wrestler Ace Montana took to his Facebook account to say he had to pull a gun on Hart. He went on to detail the assault against Manic. Hart was arrested shortly after the incident took place.
This is the 3rd time in the last 2 months that Hart has been arrested. He was arrested and charged with possession of a schedule III substance with intent to sell or distribute. On March 4th, he was charged for violating the terms of his bail by not staying under house arrest.
The 40-year-old Hart is a former MLW World Middleweight Champion and held the tag titles along with Davey Boy Smith Jr. He’s also a former JCW World Champion with the Insane Clown Posse’s Juggalo Championship Wrestling.
Ace Montana spoke to Hannibal TV in detail about the incident:
Booker T was recently a guest on Konnan’s “Keepin it 100” podcast. During the conversation, Booker was asked what he feels is missing wrestling today. During the conversation, Konnan asked Booker what he feels is lacking in modern wrestling.
“I think the psychology I think is missing, the stories, not the stories but the storytelling,” Booker said on the show. “Being able to go out there and make the fans say your name and chant your name because they were invested in you, they had an emotional connection. You know, when you are getting beat up real good you might see a kid crying because they want to see you get back in there. I think that part of it has been removed from the business due to it’s a different time there, a different game.”
Booker would continue to say that this type of storytelling still works and you do still see some of it today. He gave Roman Reigns as an example of someone who tells good stories in his matches.
“I like Roman Reigns because he goes out and tells me a story pretty much every time he’s in the ring,” he continued.
“Some guys go out there and they forget about the emotional connection that you’re supposed to make with the fans. I think that is the biggest part that’s missing more than anything.”
Booker’s full comments can be heard in the player below:
Rezar from the Authors of Pain is looking at spending a significant amount of time on the injured list. According to a report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, he recently had surgery to repair a torn biceps.The 25-year-old is expected to be out of action for 7-8 months.
Additionally, the decision is being made for his tag-team partner, Akam, to simply sit-out during the time his partner is on the shelf.
“Right now the decision is not to use Akam without him so as of right now there are no plans for either of them for appearing on television,” wrote Dave Meltzer.
Akam and Rezar had both been members of Seth Rollins’ stable along with Buddy Murphy on RAW as of late.
The Authors of Pain are former 1x RAW tag team champions. They won the titles by defeating Seth Rollins in a 2-on-1 handicap match on the November 5th episode of RAW. They then dropped the titles to Bobby Roode and Chad Gable in a 3-on-2 handicap match when their manager at the time, Drake Maverick, was pinned.
Footage of the AOP winning the RAW tag titles can be seen in the player below:
CM Punk’s agent reportedly reached out to WWE recently. According to a report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, however, WWE sent word they are not interested in opening up conversations regarding Punk.
“Vince McMahon labeled him the one man I just can’t do business with and nobody at the top level, including Paul Heyman has argued the point or pushed for him,” wrote Dave Meltzer.
It was also included in the report that Punk’s agent attempted to open a dialogue with WWE but was turned down by the company. It is being said that Punk’s role on WWE Backstage was something FOX pushed for and WWE allowed it only to appease FOX.
It is also being reported backstage that Punk’s role on WWE Backstage has devalued him some, as the show’s ratings have not been strong. Punk’s inclusion on the show did cause an initial spike in ratings his first week but the ratings have since been in something of a holding pattern.
“I was told that while you never say never in wrestling, there is no interest right now in him for anything in WWE,” Meltzer continued.
WWE filmed content this week for several of its shows including matches for WrestleMania 36. According to comments made in a PW Insider audio update, there is only one person who wanted to go ahead with the WrestleMania and that person was Vince McMahon.
“I can confirm after speaking to dozens of people in the company,” said PW Insider’s Mike Johnson. “I’m talking wrestlers, behind the scenes people, whatever, there is only one person who felt that they should have went forward with WrestleMania and that’s why they’re going forward with WrestleMania and that’s Vince.”
There are also reports that several WWE wrestlers reported feeling sick and were taken off the shows this week. Other WWE wrestlers said they did not feel comfortable flying out to the shows.
McMahon also recently sold off about 15% of his WWE stock through a prepaid variable forward contract with Morgan Stanley. This type of transaction allows McMahon to receive something of a cash-advance without actually having to hand over the stock until 2024. He also won’t have to pay taxes on the deal. According to a report from Bloomberg, McMahon received approximately $80 million.
AJ Styles is scheduled to face the Undertaker in a “Boneyard Match” at WrestleMania 36. Little was known about the stipulations of the match but AJ Styles recently commented on it during a video game streaming session on his Mixer account.
Styles didn’t waste any time addressing the boneyard match after starting his steam.
“I think I need to explain a few things,” Styles began. He then thanked some new subscribers before offering up an explanation on the Boneyard match name and rules. “A boneyard match, everybody wants to know what the heck is a boneyard match? Even I was wondering what a boneyard match is?”
“There’s a reason why I think it’s called a boneyard match because we didn’t want to say cemetery,” Styles said. “Or graveyard, let’s tread a little delicately on this.”
“Boneyard is slang for graveyard, it really is,” Styles continued. “What is the match? I mean, Chris, if I said boneyard match what would you think the match rules are?” he asked his co-host. Chris responded that it would be like a street fight in a cemetery.
“Bingo,” Styles responded.
“How does the match end, is there a referee?” Styles asked Chris, who responded he figured there would be. Styles, however, then indicated there would not be a referee involved in the match.
“Maybe this is something new, I don’t know,” Styles continued. “It’s not in an arena, of course.”
“I think it’s a combination of things you thought it was,” Styles said.
The lineup for WrestleMania 36 reportedly underwent even more changes this week. Matches for the show were taped this past week from the WWE Performance Center and Full Sail University in Florida. WWE has content filmed for shows up until after the 4/6 episode of RAW. Most of WrestleMania was taped this Wednesday and Thursday.
According to a report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, more wrestlers have reported feeling sick and did not take part in the tapings. It is not yet clear who those Superstars are and what changes this caused to their scheduled matches, however.
“Names are being kept confidential because so few know, but it’s been confirmed that multiple people on the card either said they were sick, which meant instantly being pulled off all shows this week,” wrote Dave Meltzer.
There are reportedly other names who did not feel sick but had fevers over WWE’s cutoff point of 100.4. Others on the roster reportedly said they were not comfortable flying in for the show.
At least one match, Undertaker vs AJ Styles, appears likely to have been filmed on location. The match was made a Boneyard match and will likely have been taped in a studio graveyard setting, though this is not yet clear.
Both Rey Mysterio and Dana Brooke have already been reported to be off the shows and in quarantine. Brooke exhibited symptoms when checked out by WWE medical personnel and was asked to go into quarantine. Mysterio exhibited symptoms while at home in California and quarantined himself. Nobody in WWE has tested positive for the virus, however.
Jerry Lawler is also said not to have been at the shows out of concern due to his age.
WrestleMania 36 will air on the WWE Network on April 4th and 5th.
Matt & Nick Jackson are this week’s guests on the AEW Unrestricted podcast with Tony Schiavone and Aubrey Edwards. During the conversation, the brothers told the story of how they came to be known as “The Young Bucks.”
Early in their careers, Matt and Nick got booked on a show at the Grand Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles. The venue has hosted several wrestling and boxing events in the past including ECW’s Heatwave 2000 PPV.
“There was a local show that was running the Grand Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles,” Nick Jackson said.
“Famous building for boxing and wrestling,” Matt Jackson chimed in.
“The promoter contacted us and he had saw us wrestle at a local lucha libre show and he was interested in booking us,” Nick Jackson said.
Matt Jackson said at the time the brothers weren’t even wrestling as a tag-team yet.
“So, they were like, ‘we’re going to team you up” and we were like ‘what?’ Nick continued.
“The arena was famous and we had to do it because this was going to be our first big break.”
The brothers then joked that at the time, they were being paid in hot dogs and lucha masks.
“So eventually we get to the building and we look at the names on the list of who is booked and we’re not seeing our names,” Nick continued. “So we went up to the promoter and we were like ‘hey, our names aren’t on the list’ and he’s like ‘no, they are, we have you named as the Young Bucks.'”
Matt Jackson then recalled how the promoters explained the name to them.
“If I have to be honest, I didn’t know your names so when we were going over the card we were like ‘hey, didn’t we book those two young bucks? Yeah yeah, throw them on there and will call them Matt & Nick the Young Bucks,'” Matt said. “They just remembered our first names.”
Start the Superkick Party! A new episode of the #AEWUnrestricted Podcast featuring The Young Bucks is out NOW!
Impact Wrestling and AXS TV announced today they will be airing a one-night-only special next Tuesday, March 31st at 10 p.m. following a regularly scheduled episode of Impact Wrestling. The show will feature names from TNA Wrestling’s past including Scott Steiner, Kid Kash, Chase Stevens, and more.
The special will broadcast all-new previously unaired matches. The main event of the show will pit former TNA world heavyweight champion Rhino against Madman Fulton.
Scott Steiner will also appear on the special offering his honest and unfiltered thoughts in a segment titled “Scott Steiner Uncensored.”
Hernandez from LAX will take on Chase Stevens. Kid Cash and Johnny Swinger will also team up to take on Suicide and Manik.
TNA returns to television for one night only next Tuesday at 10/9c featuring TNA legends such as Scott Steiner, Hernandez, Kid Kash, Chase Stevens, and more plus all new matches. Join us and celebrate TNA history one more time.
“For years, the loyal fans of TNA have asked us to bring back some of their favorite wrestlers of the past,” said Impact’s Scott D’Amore, “and after the incredible response we received from the now-postponed ‘TNA: There’s No Place Like Home’ iPPV, we thought an AXS TV special would be the perfect opportunity to celebrate our history.
“Right now we’re dealing with unprecedented circumstances, so here’s a great reason to stay home, turn everything off and enjoy the excitement that is Total Nonstop Action wrestling!”
AEW has released its weekly rankings for March 25th, 2020. The promotion releases new top-5 rankings every Wednesday for its men’s, women’s and tag team divisions.
AEW Men’s Division
World Champion: Jon Moxley (7-0)
Chris Jericho (0-1)
MJF (3-0)
Cody Rhodes (4-1) (+1)
Jake Hager (3-0) (previously unranked)
Kenny Omega (1-0) (-2)
Cody Rhodes moved up one spot this week in the rankings. He was on the losing end of the 6-man tag on Dynamite along with Matt Jackson and Hangman Page. They lost to Jake Hager and Sanatana & Ortiz. Cody benefits from Kenny Omega dropping 2 spots in the rankings this week.
PAC dropped out of the rankings this week after being ranked #5 last week. He was scheduled to team with the Death Triangle but wasn’t on the show and might not be for some time now. Omega is out with an injured hand and dropped 2 places in the rankings as well.
Jake Hager also finds himself in the rankings this week. He made short work of Joe Alonzo on Dark.
AEW Women’s Division
Champion: Nyla Rose (4-1)
Hikaru Shida (5-1)
Kris Statlander (2-3)
Yuka Sakazaki (1-1)
Britt Baker (2-2)
Riho (3-3)
There was no movement in the women’s rankings this week but Hikaru Shida certainly solidified herself as the top contender in the division. She defeated Penelope Ford, Kris Statlander, and Riho in a fatal 4-way match this week. Former champion Riho has been sliding down the rankings in recent weeks, and her loss to Penelope Ford last week on Dark is a key contributor to her drop.
AEW Tag Team Division
Champions: Kenny Omega & Hangman Page (6-0)
The Dark Order (5-0)
The Young Bucks (2-2)
SCU (2-3)
Lucha Bros (1-2) (previously unranked)
Best Friends (3-3) (-1)
The only movement in the tag division this week saw the Lucha Bros re-enter the rankings at #4. They defeated the Best Friends on Dynamite, who subsequently dropped one spot in the rankings this week and are now at #5. Private Party didn’t wrestle this week and they fell out of the top-5 rankings as a result.
Impact Wrestling presented a show last night on Twitch and AXS TV. The episode featured a main event of Eddie Edwards & Tessa Blanchard against Michael Elgin & Taya Valkyrie. A segment from the Undead Realm was featured heavily on the show as well.
Impact Wrestling 3/24/20 Quick Results:
Willie Mack defeated Chris Bey, Acey Romero, Jake Crist, Rohit Raju, Cousin Jake, Trey, and Daga.
Michael Elgin & Taya Valkyrie w/ John E Bravo defeated Eddie Edwards & World Champion Tessa Blanchard
Rosemary, Havok, & Su Yung Align In The Undead Realm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n4sp19uAEhU
The undead division was on full display during this episode of Impact Wrestling. Havok and Su Yung were about to do battle in the undead realm when the Twitch stream cut-out and showed a disclaimer asking for fans to go to Impact’s YouTube channel as the content of the scene was deemed not suitable for the platform. In the end, the two battled until James Mitchell let it be known that both warriors were too much trouble and he banished both of them to the barren wastelands of the undead realm.
At the end of the show, Rosemary eventually teleported to where Su and Havok both were and asked the two to align with her to undo what Mitchell had done to them. Havok and Su returned to Mitchell and Havok stabbed him. The last scene was Mitchell waking up in heaven and asking “Who booked this s**t?”
Raven Gives Rosemary Advice About Revenge & Rivalries
Nothing quite puts your lust for vengeance into perspective like running into @theraveneffect in a bar.
Raven has popped up a couple of times in Impact Wrestling as of late and was also recently teased as the Exalted One in AEW. In general, wrestling is better when Raven plays a role. With legends coming back as managers nowadays, one has to wonder if Raven will eventually be in such a spot to offer guidance to someone. This week, he offered some solid advice to Rosemary about the nature of blood feuds.
Rosemary, who has been playing with the real wives of Slam town as of late, was shown in a bar this week. She noted that she spent two years trying to get revenge when Raven overheard her. He said that two years is nothing for revenge and rivalries.
“Two years? That’s it,” Raven said. “Why don’t you just tap out to a headlock?”
“Feuds, revenge, pain, all the damage you can do, you’re just starting to get good after 2 years.”
He would continue to explain how blood feuds continue through the years with comparisons to his feud with Tommy Dreamer.
“Sometimes I wonder, do I hate Dreamer or do I love Dreamer? I don’t care because it goes on forever!”
Eventually, this advice struck a chord with Rosemary and would play into her scenes with Su Yung and Havok at the end of the episode.
Unfortunately, it is not clear when, where, or how Rebellion will take place but when it does, Sami Callihan will face Ken Shamrock. Callihan was shown this week cutting a promo from isolation about his fireball attack on Shamrock from last week.
Michael Elgin & Taya Valkyrie Earn Victory Over Tessa Blanchard & Eddie Edwards
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GeVcLyeMuMk
With the status of the Rebellion pay-per-view currently unknown or uncertain, it’s not clear how long fans will have to wait before the Impact world title match between Tessa Blanchard, Eddie Edwards, and Michael Elgin.
Elgin picked up a victory in this week’s main event, however, when he pinned Eddie Edwards with an Elgin bomb in this hard-hitting mixed tag team match. There can be no doubt that Elgin is still targeting winning the world championship for the first time, and this win builds him momentum in that direction. When the match will actually take place, however, is still not clear.
Willie Mack Earns X-Division Championship Match Against Ace Austin
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgthMaOhvgA
Impact kicked off with a fast-paced multi-man scramble match this week. An X-Division title shot was on the line. Everyone in the match was given time to shine including newcomer to the division Chris Bey. There were two big spots involving Acey Romero as well that played heavily into the match. Midway through the match, a tower of doom spot involved Romero being the man on the peak of the big suplex. Romero would also factor into the end of the match when a suicide dive to the outside took out all but a few members of the match. This allowed Willie Mack to hit Cousin Jake with a frog splash and get the win.
Mack and X-Division champion Ace Austin were shown in the back later in the show. Recently, Austin came to Mack’s defense in a tag match against Johnny Swinger and Disco Inferno. Swinger was also shown speaking with Mack in the back later in the night, suggesting that fans want to see the “Pack” and “Mack” face each other for the X-division title.
Joey Ryan believes the Deaners suffer from “toxic masculinity” and need to be canceled. Ryan narrated a video from Cancel Culture this week about Cody Deaner and Cousin Jake.
The tag-team then lamented on all the great TV shows that had been canceled in the past. They concluded that if they want to avoid being canceled, then Deaner must defeat Joey Ryan.
Moose is not happy that so many stars from TNA wrestling are showing up in modern-day Impact as of late. This week, Moose made quick work of Chase Stevens before Scott D’Amore came up on the stage and told him all he has to do is turn around to see more stars from TNA’s past. A new-look version of Suicide appeared and took out Moose to end the segment.
Impact Wrestling has announced it will not be hosting the planned Rebellion PPV from New York. The event was to emanate from the Terminal 5 venue. Tickets for the event had been taken down over the weekend. The promotion is still looking for alternative ways to produce the show, however.
Additionally, the promotion has canceled its planned shows in Toronto on April 17th and a set of tapings on April 24th and 25th scheduled for Columbus. Impact’s statement suggests they are looking at alternative ways to produce these shows as well.
As a result of the coronavirus outbreak, IMPACT Wrestling will not be hosting “Against All Odds” on April 17th, the April 19th "Rebellion" pay-per-view event at New York City's Terminal 5 and the April 24 & 25 TV tapings in Columbus, Ohio.
Impact Wrestling Statement On Rebellion PPV Status
“As a result of the Coronavirus outbreak, IMPACT Wrestling will not be hosting “Against All Odds” on April 17th in Toronto, the April 19th “Rebellion” pay-per-view event at New York City’s Terminal 5 and the April 24th & 25th TV tapings in Columbus, Ohio,” the statement from Impact Wrestling reads.
“We are monitoring the situation closely and are looking at alternative ways that we can produce the events. All tickets will be fully refunded from point of purchase.”
“The safety of our fans, talent and staff is of utmost importance and we will continue to adjust plans as necessary while still delivering as much IMPACT Wrestling as possible.”
Rey Mysterio and Dana Brooke are both off WrestleMania 36 due to being in quarantine. According to a report from the Wrestling Observer, both wrestlers are off the WrestleMania 36 cards as a result.
No other details are immediately available regarding their medical conditions but it is said that people are being cautious if they are feeling sick due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Dana Brooke had been scheduled in the multi-person match for the Smackdown Women’s Championship at WrestleMania. Her involvement in the match had been announced on Smackdown last Friday.
Mysterio had not been announced for a match at WrestleMania. He wrestled on the March 16th edition of Raw, defeating US Champion Andrade in a non-title match.
Andrade has since been announced as teaming with Angel Garza against the Street Profits for the RAW tag team championships at WrestleMania. Garza and Andrade defeated Ricochet and Cedric Alexander last night on RAW. The Street Profits defeated Brendan Vink and Shane Thorne on the show as well.
Updated WrestleMania 36 Lineup
WWE Championship Brock Lesnar (c) vs Drew McIntyre
NXT Women’s Championship Rhea Ripley (c) vs Charlotte Flair
RAW Women’s Championship Becky Lynch (c) vs Shayna Baszler
WWE Universal Championship Bill Goldberg (c) vs Roman Reigns
Smackdown Women’s Championship Bayley (c) vs. Lacey Evans vs. Tamina vs. Naomi vs. Sasha Banks
John Cena vs Bray Wyatt
Boneyard Match The Undertaker vs AJ Styles
Last Man Standing Edge vs Randy Orton
Kevin Owens vs Seth Rollins
Smackdown Tag Team Championships John Morrison & the Miz vs The Usos or the New Day
RAW Tag Team Championships The Street Profits vs Andrade & Angel Garza
Maxwell Jacob Friedman evidently had quite the high school experience. The #2 ranked wrestler in AEW’s male single’s rankings recently boasted on Twitter that he sang in both an acapella group and choir while attending high school. Footage of him singing an acapella version of Sugar Ray’s “Someday” has recently surfaced online.
The name of MJF’s group was the “Acafellas.” He is featured prominently in the group’s rendition of the Sugar Ray song. MJF comes in around the 4:08 mark of the below video:
MJF noted on Twitter in response to the video that he is the only graduate of his high school to be All-State in football.
Only Plainview JFK graduate to be All State in football (middle linebacker)
All-round nice guy and salt-of-the-Earth Maxwell Jacob Friedman holds a 5-0 record in single’s matches.
2/10/19: defeated Brandon Cutler on AEW Dynamite #1
11/27/19: defeated Adam Page to win the Dynamite Diamond Ring on AEW Dynamite #9
1/21/20 defeated Joey Janela on AEW Dynamite #16
2/12/20 defeated Jungle Boy on AEW Dynamite #19
2/29/20 defeated Cody Rhodes at AEW Revolution
He is 3-0 in tag matches:
7/13/19: Maxwell Jacob Friedman, Sammy Guevara & Shawn Spears defeated Darby Allin, Jimmy Havoc & Joey Janela at Fight for the Fallen
1/15/20: The Butcher And The Blade (The Blade & The Butcher) & MJF defeated Diamond Dallas Page, Dustin Rhodes & QT Marshall at AEW Bash at the Beach
3/11/20: MJF & The Butcher And The Blade (The Blade & The Butcher) defeated The Jurassic Express (Jungle Boy, Luchasaurus & Marko Stunt) on AEW Dynamite #23
He is 1 win and 2 losses in multi-person matches.
5/25/19: 21-Man Casino Battle Royal won by Adam Page
6/29/10: Adam Page defeated Jimmy Havoc, Jungle Boy, and MJF at Fyter Fest
11/20/19: Adam Page & MJF were the final two left in the Dynamite Dozen Battle Royal and advanced to their single’s match for the ring the next week.
Major League Wrestling presented an episode of Fusion this weekend on BeIN Sports and YouTube. The show emanated from Philadelphia’s famed 2300 Arena and featured an 8-Man tag-team main event.
The full episode of the show can be viewed in the player below:
MLW Fusion 3/21/20 Quick Results:
El Lindaman defeated Zenshi
The Blue Meanie defeated Richard Holliday via count-out
Killer Kross, Davey Boy Smith Jr., Ross & Marshall Von Erich defeated Tom Lawlor, Dominic Garrini, Erick Stevens, & Kit Osbourne
The main event of Fusion this week featured an 8-man tag team match as Tom Lawlor’s Team Filthy took on the Von Erich brothers, Killer Kross, and Davey Boy Smith Jr. Last week on Fusion, Lawlor was disqualified in his singles match against Kross setting up this week’s main event.
It was noted on commentary that at times this match resembled the old Philadelphia Flyers games from back in the team’s Broad Street Bullies days.
The Von Erich’s would take control early before Ross missed a knee in the corner which allowed Team Filthy the advantage. A hot tag would later bring in Kross, however, and he would suplex all of Lawler’s cronies.
Kross accidentally hit the referee, however, taking him out of action. This allowed the former Rip Von Erich, and Team Filthy yoga instructor Kit Osbourne to land a low blow on Davey Boy Smith Jr. This brought in Marshall Von Erich who gave the imposter Von Erich an Iron Claw Slam followed by a moonsault to get the pin.
The end of the match did little to stop the brawl, however, as the babyfaces continued to take it to Team Filthy member Osbourne after the match.
It was right in the show’s closing moments when King Mo attacked Killer Kross from behind backstage and announced that he and American Top Team have joined Team Filthy.
It was announced this week on Fusion that Mance Warner had been attacked at the pay window by Maxwell Jacob Friedman recently, and MLW officials banned MJF from the 2300 Arena as a result.
It was also arranged that Richard Holliday would face a mystery opponent this week, something Holliday’s lawyer/father was likely not pleased about.
Warner chose someone with a lot of history in the former ECW Arena as the Blue Meanie would take on the current possessor of the Caribbean Championship.
Holliday was distracted by Warner at the commentary booth, however, and it would end up costing him the match. He took the time to pour out one of Warner’s light beers but the Southern Psychopath would then blow beer mist in his face and prevent him from getting back in the ring in time to meet the referee’s count. As a result, the Blue Meanie picked up a victory inside the ECW Arena via count-out. The loss will no doubt not sit well with the members of the Dynasty.
MLW fans were also treated to a special cooking show this week featuring LA Park and El Hijo de LA Park. The Father and son combo cooked up sausage and eggs while stating they are after some championship gold in MLW.
The segment ended when LA Park grew upset about not having his chopping board or being able to add onions to the meal.
This week’s show kicked off with a high-paced match between El Lindaman and Zenshi. Zenshi came into the match with a taped-up shoulder and El Lindaman was not shy about focussing on his opponent’s injured limb throughout the match. In the end, however, it was the member of OVE’s vicious suplexes that would earn him the victory here. He hit a blue thunder bomb followed by a tiger suplex to get the win.
Brian Pillman Jr. Faces Jordan Oliver Next Week
Back to Back Rookie of the Year!!! Wish me luck as I plan to do the same in 2020!!! pic.twitter.com/8F4oTJKYKK
It was also announced on MLW Fusion this week that Brian Pillman jr. will take on Jordan Oliver next week. Pillman and Injustice have been at odds since the Opera Cup last year. The members of Injustice were alternates in the tournament and attacked Pillman backstage at the venue. Pillman made it all the way to the finals, eventually losing to his Hart Foundation stablemate, Davey Boy Smith Jr.
Pillman has since said he is going to be dropping weight so that he can compete in MLW’s middleweight division. He will be looking to earn a shot against middleweight champion Myron Reed. He’ll get his chance to show what he can do as a middleweight next week when he takes on Reed’s stablemate Jordan Oliver.
That match is in addition to King Mo vs Low-Ki also scheduled for next week’s show.
With much of the world on lockdown due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic, many people have turned to streaming services looking for a new show to binge-watch. One documentary currently on Netflix is Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness.
The documentary focusses on Joseph Maldonado-Passage, best known as Joe Exotic, a tiger breeder and former Presidential candidate now serving 22 years in federal prison for a murder-for-hire plot and animal abuse violations.
Joe’s a character straight out of pro wrestling. As it turns out, he was actually involved in wrestling a few years back. He promoted Texacoma Pro Wrestling, NWA Texoma Wrestling (2016), did some commentary for NWA Texoma.
Some of Joe Exotic’s wrestling past can be found on his official YouTube channel:
A link to the Netflix documentary series is here. The series currently has a 100% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes 4 out of 5 stars on IMDB.
“A zoo owner spirals out of control amid a cast of eccentric characters in this true murder-for-hire story from the underworld of big cat breeding.”
Podcast kingpin Conrad Thompson noticed that Joe Exotic bares a striking resemblance to wrestling legend Michael P.S. Hayes.
— Conrad the Mortgage Guy (@HeyHeyItsConrad) March 22, 2020
Undertaker & Michelle McCool’s Love of Big Cats
Recently, a video surfaced online of The Undertaker and Michelle McCool touting their love for tigers and the need for people to protect the endangered species.
The video was filmed at the T.I.G.E.R.S. Preservation Station in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, a wildlife refuge prominently featured in the Joe Exotic Netflix docuseries.
Adam Cole has broken the record for the longest single-reign with the NXT Championship. As of this writing, Cole has spent 295 days with the title, topping the previous record of 292 set by Finn Balor in 2015.
Cole defeated Johnny Gargano to win the title at TakeOver: XXV on June 1st, 2019 from Bridgeport, CT. He commented on his accomplishment in the below Tweet:
Officially, I stand before you as the LONGEST REIGNING NXT Champion of all time. This championship means everything to me, because it shows the world how good Adam Cole really is. I’ve had quite a few “first evers” in my career. But this? This is #Undisputed#AdamColeBayBay#UEpic.twitter.com/5OzhYzUGjT
There have been 18 total reigns with the NXT Championship. Seth Rollins was the inaugural champion having won the title on July 26th, 2012 defeating Jinder Mahal in the finals of a tournament.
WWE reportedly taped two episodes of Friday Night Smackdown and two episodes of 205 Live yesterday at the WWE Performance Center. According to a report from PW Insider, it was a long day of tapings for the company as WWE seeks to ensure they have content prepared for the next several weeks.
Today, NXT is scheduled for tapings from the Performance Center. The plan is then to present a live episode of RAW from the same venue on Monday night. RAW will be back in the Performance Center on Tuesday to then tape several more episodes to ensure WWE has content up until April 6th.
Some portions of WrestleMania 36 will be taped on Tuesday and Wednesday. The show will not air live and recent internal memos are reported to have circulated within the company to avoid tag lines such as “live on WWE Network” or “streaming live.”
WWE WrestleMania 36 will now air on the WWE Network as a two-night event on Saturday, April 4 and Sunday, April 5 in Orlando, Florida from the WWE Performance Center.
WrestleMania 36 Lineup
WWE Championship Brock Lesnar (c) vs Drew McIntyre
NXT Women’s Championship Rhea Ripley (c) vs Charlotte Flair
RAW Women’s Championship Becky Lynch (c) vs Shayna Baszler
WWE Universal Championship Bill Goldberg (c) vs Roman Reigns
WWE Smackdown Women’s Championship Bayley (c) vs Lacey Evans vs Dana Brooke vs Tamina vs Naomi vs Sasha Banks
John Cena vs Bray Wyatt
The Undertaker vs AJ Styles
Kevin Owens vs Seth Rollins
Smackdown Tag Team Championships The Miz and John Morrison (c) vs. (The New Day (Big E and Kofi Kingston) or The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso)
Jake “the Snake” Roberts shocked the wrestling world last week on Dynamite by coming out to confront Cody Rhodes. Roberts told Cody and the live crowd that he was not there to praise Cody but rather to slay him. He then said he was once told to never turn his back on someone he is afraid of or someone he respects before doing exactly that to Cody.
Roberts mentioned that he has a new client he will be managing and that client is going to face Cody. The legend posted the following details about his new client to his Instagram stories:
Previously, Roberts had posted a picture of his appearance on Dynamite last night with the following caption:
“Beware AEW…The Darkness has arrived. And to answer your questions: Yes I wrote what I said. No I don’t ever do “practice runs.” On the first shot I give you my heart and soul. I’m not giving up my sobriety. And…I have so much more left to do…the time is NOW.”
Jake “the Snake” Roberts
Roberts is arguably one of the most compelling wrestlers of all time and his debut on Dynamite last week garnered a strong response online from fans and those in the wrestling industry alike.
Bully Ray feels Roberts’ AEW debut should lead to a change regarding how the DDT is used in wrestling today:
Dear Wrestlers,
With Jake Roberts returning to #AEWDynamite last night…
If you’re working a match anywhere on the planet and use the DDT in any way, shape or form as a false finish, you should get shoot mafia kicked in the face.
