Baron Corbin lists Bam Bam Bigelow as one of his favorite wrestlers and the 34-year-old might end up sporting a similar look soon. Corbin recently took part in an interview with Chris Van Vliet and unveiled plans to tattoo his head just like Bigelow had, only Corbin doesn’t plan to ink flames on his head.

“Bam Bam Bigelow is one of my favorite wrestlers of all time. So I’m not going to tattoo flames, but I would like to tattoo my head and getting rid of the hair was the first step to getting there,” Corbin said. “I don’t know when it is going to happen and it might actually kill my mother so it’s one of those things where I’m going to work slowly into it.”

• Baron Corbin Comments On Negative Raw Reviews

Baron Corbin On Getting Approval To Shave His Head

Corbin also said that shaving his head was the first step towards getting his head tattooed. He said it took about 8 months to get WWE management to approve the look.

“I went and talked to Vince about cutting my hair at one point and he was like not yet,” Corbin continued. “And then I went and talked to him again and he said we’ll see what we can do. I think it has to go through the legal department and stuff like that because it’s on action figures and video games and all of those things. It’s not just one person saying ‘ok, you can do that’. If I would have showed up with just my head shaved, I’d probably be out of a job.”

When asked, Corbin also said he enjoys being booed by the WWE Universe.

“Yeah, you know people don’t really like me. It’s a good thing I guess, right? I mean, I love it. It’s awesome to me because I was always that little kid that irritated people. I remember I was in this group and one of the kid’s moms told me ‘You know, it’s always funny to this point but you always take it one more and then one more after that’. So I think it’s just in my nature to irritate people and push things as far as I can so it’s really benefited me in WWE.”

The full interview can be viewed below:

WWE and AEW are both interested in the same up-and-coming female wrestler. According to a report from the Wrestling Observer, Bea Priestley is on both promotion’s radar. It sounds as though AEW is closer to landing the English star.

“The only name that I’ve heard among women is STARDOM’s Bea Priestley, who WWE was pushing hard for, but AEW looks closer with her,” wrote Dave Meltzer. “She’s not signed as of yet.”

The report would continue to say AEW might be the better destination for female wrestlers right now.

“All Elite seems like a great choice for newer women to go right now,” Meltzer continued. “WWE has a lot of great wrestlers, but there is so many people, that it’s easy to get lost in the talent pool, or take forever to make it up the ranks. AEW, if a success, they’re going to feature women at a top level, so there is more opportunity to be featured and make an impact quicker.

Bea Priestley, AEW and WWE

Priestley has recently traded the WOS women’s championship back and forth with Viper. She’s also held the WhatCulture Pro and Defiant women’s championships. She is a 3-year pro, having begun her career in early 2016.

Priestley is currently in a relationship with NEVER Openweight Champion, Will Ospreay.

https://twitter.com/WillOspreay/status/1090604114327859201

AEW Women’s Division & Intergender Wrestling

• Brandi Rhodes Discusses If She’ll Wrestle For AEW

Brandi Rhodes will be heading up AEW’s women’s division. She has promised new signings to the division could be introduced at the Double or Nothing rally in Las Vegas.

Also concerning female talent and AEW, Brandi told Diva Dirt earlier this month that inter-gender wrestling won’t be apart of AEW initially.

“There are some of us on-board who have worked intergender (matches). I’ve always been a fan of it. I learned a lot working in those scenarios,” said Brandi Rhodes. “There are reasons for and against it, always. We’re going to handle everything with care. I don’t think it’s something you’re going to see out of the gate with AEW.”

The Lawler family and attorneys representing Brian Christopher’s estate have issued subpoenas to the Hardeman County Sheriff’s office and Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. The subpoenas are part of their ongoing investigation into Christopher’s death.

The news was reported by local media in Memphis.

“FOX13 has learned that Lawler’s attorneys have filed two subpoenas to investigate Brian Christopher Lawler’s death,” said Ernie Freeman on Good Morning Memphis. “Investigators ruled Lawlor’s death was a suicide. Attorneys for his estate issued subpoenas to both the Hardeman County Sheriff’s Office and the Tennesse Bureau of Investigation. The subpoenas are part of a civil action by the Lawler family.”

Lawler Family Doubts Official Cause Of Death Finding In Brian Christopher Case

• Jerry Lawler Does Not Believe Brian Christopher Committed Suicide

This summer, the Lawler family hired civil rights lawyer, Jeff Rosenblum, to investigate the official cause of Christopher’s death. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation opened an investigation into the case which is ongoing.

Jerry Lawler expressed his doubts to Local Memphis media in August that his son committed suicide.

“It just doesn’t pass the smell test,” Lawler said. “We’ve received literally countless calls, text messages from people, actual eyewitnesses, that were in the jail and saw things that happened on the actual day that Brian died that now has opened up a new can of worms,” he continued. “It just doesn’t seem like it was suicide.”

Dean Ambrose’s decision to leave WWE when his contract expires in April is sending shockwaves throughout the industry.

Late Monday night, PWTorch.com broke the news that Ambrose informed WWE over the weekend that he won’t be signing a new deal with the company. The buzz surrounding this story was so intense that WWE issued a rare statement on the matter. In an unprecedented move, WWE said, “We are grateful and appreciative of all that Dean has given to WWE and our fans. We wish him well and hope that one day Dean will return to WWE.”

Ambrose is not the first WWE Superstar to ask for his release this month due to creative frustration, but he’s the biggest name so far. WWE is very aware All Elite Wrestling is well-financed and offering big money deals to bolster their roster. They’re not taking this lightly and met with several performers this week to prevent more defections.

• Renee Young Comments On Dean Ambrose Leaving WWE

According to PWInsider, meetings were held backstage at Tuesday’s SmackDown Live TV taping to address the situation. More specifically, wrestlers whose contracts are coming up in the next year or two had private meetings with management to discuss signing long-term deals.

“After the Dean Ambrose news came out on late Monday/early Tuesday, there was a buzz of activity backstage at SmackDown as anybody who had a contract that was coming up in the next year or two was pulled into rooms and spoken to by management about signing longer form deals,” the report reads.  All the wrestlers were sitting around looking at each other and going ‘would you look at this? this is crazy!’”

Ambrose is reported to have turned down a 5-year deal which would have seen him earn over a million dollars per year.

Cody is scheduled to have surgery on his knee shortly. The AEW executive was pulled from the ROH Global Wars tour back in November after hearing his knee pop. Cody was to defend the IWGP United States championship against Beretta in Toronto but was unable to make the match.

“Sadly folks I will not be able to wrestle tomorrow in Toronto,” Cody Tweeted. “I will still be at the pre-show meet/greet to say hello to everybody.”

An MRI later confirmed Cody would need surgery to repair the damage done to his meniscus. He would delay the surgery until after Final Battle and Wrestle Kingdom, however. In an update to this story, the Wrestling Observer is reporting Cody’s surgery is scheduled for February 12th.

“Cody will be undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery on February 12 in Atlanta,” wrote Dave Meltzer. “The surgery will keep him out of action for two to three months but he’s not scheduled to wrestle until Double Or Nothing on 5/25.”

• Cody and Hangman Page Invade Independent Wrestling Event

Cody On His Knee Injury

Back in November, Cody provided a somewhat encouraging update on his knee. He was able to compete at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom back on January 4th, but his damaged meniscus will require him to undergo a minimally invasive procedure.

GOOD news is my doctor is fairly confident that my mcl/pcl/acl are structurally sound.

BAD news is the meniscus is fairly damaged, gonna’ require a scope. No dates will be adjusted at the moment, and I’ll definitely still compete in the final battle main event & at WK. pic.twitter.com/PtyK1wpoiz

— Cody Rhodes (@CodyRhodes) November 12, 2018

AEW is expected to announce more signings at their February 7th rally in Las Vegas. While it is not clear who those names will be, a report from the Wrestling Observer is stating both Sammy Guevara and Kylie Rae are expected to sign with the new promotion.

Guevara had been wrestling with MLW but he is reported to have canceled dates and was becoming difficult to book.

“(MLW) were under the impression (Guevara) is going to AEW and I am under the impression that he is very likely going to AEW as well,” Dave Meltzer said. “Another name to mention for AEW is, whether it is a done deal or close, is Kylie Rae.”

• The Best Friends Leaving NJPW

Sammy Guevara & Kylie Rae

Sammy Guevara currently works for AAA in Mexico where he is the World Cruiserweight champion. The 25-year-old recently returned home from a tour with DDT in Japan which went from November 30th to January 14th. The last time he wrestled for MLW was at their Chicago tapings in November. He was defeated by Rush, who also recently left the promotion.

Kylie Rae is a 26-year-old pro who has gotten noticed for her performances with RISE and Chicago’s AAW promotion. She has also toured Japan with Stardom this July.

MLW and Impact Wrestling have announced they will collaborate over WrestleMania weekend in order for fans to be able to see both of their live events.

Impact Wrestling released the following statement earlier today:

“IMPACT Wrestling, a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment Corp., and Major League Wrestling (MLW), announced today that they will be collaborating for their events on April 4 by coordinating talent and schedules to ensure that fans can attend live events presented by both organizations when virtually the entire professional wrestling world descends upon the New York metropolitan area.”

IMPACT Wrestling and @MLW will be collaborating for their events on April 4 by coordinating talent and schedules to ensure that fans can attend live events presented by both organizations!

FULL DETAILS: https://t.co/SQkjmx93VM pic.twitter.com/hc56ZosbRh

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) January 30, 2019

Impact moved their event to the state of New Jersey so they could hold it after 11 PM.

“Due to the New York curfew preventing us from starting at 11:00 p.m. ET, we have moved our live event to New Jersey,” stated Impact’s Scott D’Amore. “We want to thank our partners at WrestlePro for facilitating this collaboration on April 4th and also thank House of Glory and stress that we couldn’t make this happen for our great fans without their cooperation.”

Impact Wrestling & MLW Events Over WrestleMania Weekend

MLW will present “Rise of the Renegades” at 7 PM on April 4th from the Melrose Ballroom. At 11 PM that same night, Impact Wrestling will present “United We Stand” from the Rahway Recreation Centre in New Jersey. The two venues are said to be about an hour’s drive from one another.

“This arrangement eliminates talent booking conflicts and ensures that loyal and passionate fans of both IMPACT Wrestling and MLW are able to attend our respective live events on April 4th,” said Impact Wrestling President, Ed Nordholm.

“Both promotions believe in putting the fans first,” said MLW COO Jared St. Laurent. “Fans will be traveling from all over the world in hopes of seeing the best of the best.”

Members of the Elite have been showing up at independent wrestling events recently. Cody and Hangman Page appeared at an event in Waterbury, MA recently. The Young Bucks, Page, and Cody have also appeared at Bar Wrestling in LA and DEFY Wrestling in Seattle recently.

It appears the Young Bucks could be headed to Atlanta this weekend. Nick Jackson appeared in the replies section for an event featuring SCU versus the Lucha Bros.

Kazarian made a point to capitalize the letters A, E, and W in the following post:

I wonder if we should buy flights for this?

— Being the Elite (@BeingTheElite) January 30, 2019

Colt Cabana didn’t need any more hints:

Hahaha. I wonder if anyone can figure out this “puzzle”?!

— Colt Cabana? (@ColtCabana) January 30, 2019

Later, Nick Jackson confirmed that he bought tickets. “Just bought flights,” Nick Jackson Tweeted. “This weekend is gonna be nuts!”

https://twitter.com/MattJackson13/status/1090437446691483648

Cody and Brandi Rhodes live in Atlanta and could likely appear as well. Brandi doubts Cody knows how to get to the venue, however.

I don’t think you know where we live hun. ?

— Brandi Rhodes (@TheBrandiRhodes) January 30, 2019

Hangman Page looks as though he’ll be staying nearby this weekend as well:

https://twitter.com/theAdamPage/status/1090433678059147264

The Young Bucks On Independent Wrestling Event Appearances

On the most recent episode of Being the Elite, the Young Bucks revealed they are making these appearances to give back to independent wrestling. They are paying their own ways to the shows and not accepting payment from the promotions.

Matt Jackson On OWE Partnership

Matt Jackson recently took the time to speak on AEW’s partnership with Oriental Wrestling Entertainment (OWE).

“Immediately when I saw a couple of GIFs of the OWE guys on Twitter, I was attracted,” he said. “So, I looked up more clips and did research on them. I quickly learned my old friend CIMA, who I’d made friends with years ago in Japan, was affiliated with them. That made sense right away, because the clips I watched had a real Dragon Gate feel to it.”

He continued, “Yet still, it looked and felt so original. Like a fight scene from an old Kung fu movie.  I knew I’d one day work with these guys right away. I’m attracted to anything out of the ordinary.”

• The Young Bucks talk AEW TV Plans

Renee Young has posted her first comments since news broke her husband, Dean Ambrose, will not be renewing his contract with the company in April.

Young posted the following supportive message to her husband, stating, “No guts, no glory.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/BtPGJBcBmG0/?utm_source=ig_embed

WWE Releases Statement On Dean Ambrose Not Renewing Contract

Dean Ambrose (Jonathan Good) will not be renewing his contract with WWE when it expires in April,” a WWE press release regarding Ambrose reads.

“We are grateful and appreciative of all that Dean has given to WWE and our fans. We wish him well and hope that one day Dean will return to WWE.”

Young commented last summer on how being in WWE effects her relationship with Dean Ambrose. She spoke about how being on Total Divas impacted her and Dean.

“It was hard, it was really hard and even now when I see the girls and they are on the road, and you’ve got a camera in your face, and you’re taking these vacations that aren’t really vacations, it’s exhausting, it’s really a lot of work,” Young said on Lillian Garcia’s podcast.

“I commend them all for doing it. For the people that it’s great for, its great for, but I think the problem that I essentially ran into was that I’m not a private person and my husband is.”

Chris Jericho is likely not finished with New Japan Pro Wrestling. Despite signing with AEW recently, the 48-year-old has consistently suggested he has unfinished business left in Japan. According to a report from Wrestling Observer Radio, Jericho is expected to continue his working relationship with the company.

“He has not signed with New Japan but he’s talked with Gedo,” Meltzer said. “Obviously, they’ve had a meeting of the minds and ideas for this year. His contract allows him to do New Japan. He wants to do New Japan, Gedo wants him.”

Meltzer would continue to say a contract has not yet been signed, however.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BtOJDfLBf0d/

– Chris Jericho Promises to return to New Japan Pro Wrestling

Chris Jericho In NJPW and AEW

Jericho revealed on his podcast recently that he’s been in talks with Tony Khan for several months. He said it was Tony Khan’s personal jet that flew him to All In on September 1st.

“We happened to have a Fozzy gig in Jacksonville, FL around that same time (September 26th). That was when I had a meeting with Tony Khan for four hours and really had a chance to get to know this guy,” Jericho said. “That’s when I realized this guy really wants to do this,” Jericho continued.

Beretta and Chuckie T are scheduled to play a big role on the New Beginning in USA shows this weekend for NJPW. It appears the popular tag-team won’t be with the promotion much longer, however. According to a report from Wrestling Observer Radio, both wrestlers have given their notice and are expected to finish up with the company shortly.

“They are finishing up with New Japan with the shows this weekend,” said Dave Meltzer on the show. “Beretta was offered a contract. I’m not sure about Chuckie T but Beretta was offered a contract and Beretta was going to get a real good push this year.”

While there has been no word regarding the Best Friends signing with AEW, both Beretta and Chuckie T have appeared on the Being the Elite series frequently.

https://twitter.com/SexyChuckieT/status/1090439158886105088

The Best Friends Leaving NJPW

The report would continue to say that storylines involving Beretta had been planned for the next year. Beretta is said to have verbally committed to a new deal with NJPW but never signed. He then backed away from the deal before signing officially. This apparently didn’t go over that well with NJPW management.

He is scheduled to face Juice Robinson for the IWGP United States championship at the New Japan this weekend.

Add Hideo Itami’s name to the list of Superstars who will be leaving WWE shortly. According to a report from Fightful, Itami asked for and was granted his release from the company. He finished up with WWE last night.

Itami, like many other Superstars asking for their releases lately, was unsatisfied creatively.  He will likely have to sit-out a 90-day no-compete clause before being able to wrestle for another promotion. If this is the case, he would be free in May.

Itami, who recently changed his Twitter handle to his old in-ring name, KENTA, posted the following to his social media channels on Tuesday night.

THANK YOU.

— KENTA aka Lil’K (@KENTAG2S) January 30, 2019

Several wrestlers from WWE and elsewhere offered their support to the Japanese star:

Thank you.

— Mustafa Ali (@MustafaAli_X) January 30, 2019

https://twitter.com/PeytonRoyceWWE/status/1090483395388305408

Thank you, Kenta! @HideoItami.
I will always #Respect you! pic.twitter.com/84Lk4ypQAf

— Levis (@LevyValenz) January 30, 2019

https://twitter.com/WillOspreay/status/1090527160404725760

I respect @HideoItami

— PRYME Alexander (@CedricAlexander) January 30, 2019

https://twitter.com/GentlemanJackG/status/1090483341101457408

KENTA to Hideo Itami

KENTA wrestled with ROH from 2005 to 2009. Itami spent 2000-2014 building up his name in Pro Wrestling NOAH before signing with WWE in 2014.

Renamed Hideo Itami, he was sent to NXT but only achieved modest success there. Injuries hampered his momentum in NXT before he finally debuted on the main roster for the 205 Live brand in 2017.

Former X-Division champion, Matt Sydal, is reportedly done with Impact Wrestling. According to a report from PW Insider, the 35-year-old’s deal with the promotion is up. He has drawn interest from both AEW and WWE.

Sydal is currently awaiting surgery to repair cartilage in his knee that will keep him on the shelf for the next few months. He should be ready to return to the ring by May, however.

• Matt Sydal Dealing With Knee Injury

Matt Sydal & Others Moved To Impact Wrestling Alumni Page

Impact Wrestling moved several names from their roster to alumni section recently.

Austin Aries, Caleb Konley, Diamente, El Hijo Del Fantasma, Gursinder Singh, Joseph Park, McKenzie Mitchell, Rebel, Sonjay Dutt, Taiji Ishimori, and Trevor Lee are all now listed as alumni.

Sydal spoke to the Sporting News this summer about the future landscape of pro-wrestling.

“Wrestling used to be like this — it was this bathtub that we will fill up from only one faucet,” Sydal said. “It was mainly WWE filling the tub of love of wrestling for the entire world. And because of the internet, technology, the interconnectedness of people and the desire of independent artists to create their own work, this resurgence of wrestling has come up and it’s reinvigorating for me.”

“Now the bathtub of wrestling that we’re trying to fill up to the brim with water,” Sydal continued. “It has a WWE faucet. It’s got a New Japan faucet. IMPACT Wrestling, some of these hotter indies, WWN, Evolve, Progress.”

Joanna Jedrzejczyk is teasing she could be the next MMA fighter to make the move to WWE. According to a post from Instagram, Jedrzejczyk has a luchador character she wants to take to WWE as well.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BtOT4hEA2Bq/

MMA/UFC Stars To Pro-Wrestling

With not only Ronda’s success, but the success of Shayna Baszler, Jessamyn Duke, and Marina Shafir as well, there are likely other fighters considering making a jump as well. While Joanna’s sincerity in moving to pro-wrestling is questionable, numerous other fighters have expressed a desire to make the jump.

Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino was recently spotted at the WWE Performance Center. UFC heavyweight champion, Daniel Cormier, has also been linked to a potential commentary job with WWE recently. He had the following to say regarding having to delay an audition with WWE last fall.

“If I didn’t have this fight, I have been talking to the WWE because they wanted me to go in and do an audition as a member of the commentary team,” Cormier revealed. “But because of the fight, I had to push it back.

“There may be some DC and WWE s **t coming. After the fight, I’ll go down to Orlando and do my tryout.”

Cormier worked commentary for Fox’s UFC broadcasts. He could potentially be involved with the production of Smackdown once the shows makes the move to the Network in October.

Paige VanZant is another fighter who has expressed interest in possibly going to WWE. She drew interest from the promotion after drawing high-ratings for her appearance on Dancing with the Stars in

“Yeah, definitely. Even before my career’s over, I’d love to make an appearance in WWE,” PVZ said. “I love the organization and it’s such a different form of athleticism, I think I’d have a great crossover because of my Dancing With The Stars Experience, and MMA experience, and athletic background.”

Chris Jericho let off some steam and spoke his mind on social media in the early hours of Monday morning. Jericho took shots at Brock Lesnar and other rivals of his new home promotion, All Elite Wrestling.

At Sunday night’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view from Phoenix, Arizona, Brock Lesnar successfully retained the Universal Championship against Finn Balor. The match took place deep into the marathon show. Jericho apparently was not impressed with Brock Lesnar. Jericho implied Lesnar’s aura is all smoke and mirrors and that it’s time for WWE’s top star to “pull up his pants and lose the gut.”

https://twitter.com/IAmJericho/status/1089799963012403201

With All Elite Wrestling ramping up this year, many fans have been speculating if AEW will try to poach talent from WWE, Ring of Honor and Impact Wrestling. Jericho said WWE is full of ‘random’ talent and there’s only 6-8 wrestlers from those 3 companies AEW would be interested in.

https://twitter.com/IAmJericho/status/1089795887197577216

Jericho also commented on whether or not AEW would be interested in underutilized WWE talent. A fan on Twitter specifically referenced Zack Ryder or Tyler Breeze as guys who might fare better in AEW. Jericho’s not interested.

https://twitter.com/IAmJericho/status/1089853348470288384

Chris Jericho and Brock Lesnar Backstage Incident

Jericho and Lesnar do have a bit of history together.  They are said to have gotten into a backstage conflict at SummerSlam 2016. Lesnar defeated Orton that night but left him in a bloody mess, the result of trying to open him up “the hard way”.

Jericho addressed what happened on Chael Sonnen’s podcast.

“Not to get into specifics … it was basically between me and Brock, but we did have a little bit of a brouhaha, shall we say,” Jericho said. “I just thought the finish of that match was very brutal and very violent, and I just didn’t know if Randy was OK. I was checking on Randy, my friend. We’ve always been pretty close.”

Last night at the Royal Rumble, Brock Lesnar defeated Finn Balor to retain the Universal Championship. The match appeared to be going Balor’s way after he rammed the champion’s midsection into the corner of the announce table. Lesnar was able to secure the submission and the victory, however, after locking in a Kimura after kicking out of the Coup de Grace.

Paul Heyman was asked in the backstage area if he was ever worried Lesnar was going to win the match.

“Tonight, you and the entire WWE universe got to witness history,” Heyman said. “My client, the reigning, defending, undisputed, Universal heayvweight champion, Brock Lesnar revised, re-wrote, re-imagined the bible itself,” Heyman said. “And if you, the WWE Universe, the God or the Devil has a problem with it then take it up with Brock Lesnar.”

Brock Lesnar Universal Championship Reign

Brock Lesnar is in the midst of his second reign as WWE Universal Champion. He first won the title at WrestleMania 33 from Bill Goldberg. He would defend the title 6x over the course of his 503-day reign with the belt. Lesnar then dropped the title to Roman Reigns at SummerSlam this year. He would regain it at Crown Jewel on November 2nd, however, when he defeated Braun Strowman for the title Reigns was forced to vacate earlier.

WWE has announced the return of Halftime Heat yesterday at the Royal Rumble. The promotion will stream a 6-person NXT tag-team match during halftime of “the Big Game.”

“WWE Halftime Heat is back! For the first time in 20 years — and streaming live for the first time ever across all WWE digital platforms,” A WWE press release reads. “WWE Halftime Heat will take place during halftime of next Sunday’s Big Game between the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Rams.”

Aleister Black, Ricochet, and Velveteen Dream will face Tommaso Ciampa, Johnny Gargano, and the Undisputed Era’s Adam Cole. The match was set up in the moments after NXT TakeOver: Phoenix went off the air:

Halftime Heat 20 Year Anniversary

It was 20-years ago when Mankind and the Rock clashed in the first ever Halftime Heat. On January 31st, 1999 Mankind defeated the Rock in an Empty Arena match to win the WWE Championship for the 2nd time in his career. The Rock had just defeated Mankind 2 days earlier at the Royal Rumble to win the WWE Championship for the second time in his career.

At this point in his career, the Rock had just won the WWE Championship for the first time at Survivor Series, dropped it to Mankind on the 12/28/98 Raw, won it back at the Royal Rumble, lost it to Mankind at Halftime Heat and then won it back on the 2/15/99 Raw.

A fan sitting ringside at Sunday’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view from Phoenix, Arizona was forced to remove his All Elite Wrestling (AEW) t-shirt. Another fan captured the incident on camera and posted it online. You can view that footage below.

Nick and Matt Jackson of the Young Bucks saw the video and assured fans that this is not how AEW will conduct business. Nick Jackson said, “Let it be known that if you wanna wear a WWE shirt at Double Or Nothing or any AEW related event we won’t do this to you.”

Matt added, “Bummer to see this. Hopefully he still has a good time tonight.”

• 7 Takeaways From Royal Rumble 2019

Here’s video of someone being forced to take off his AEW shirt by WWE.
Video courtesy of @m4rvelgirl. #RoyalRumble #AEW pic.twitter.com/Fy3whGzXYp

— Scrump_1 (@scrump_1) January 28, 2019

AEW Rally In Jacksonville 1/8, Smackdown From Jacksonville 1/8

Similar concerns were raised regarding the January 8th episode of Smackdown. AEW announced the signings of PAC and Chris Jericho at a rally held in the same city just hours prior. Fans at the event are reported to have been made to leave if they were wearing AEW merchandise.

“I’ve heard from several fans with issues at Smackdown tonight regarding the AEW merchandise they had on. One of them told me he was removed from the building and not given option to buy a WWE shirt,” stated journalist, John Pollock regarding the 1/8 show from Jacksonville.

“According to this fan, he offered to buy a WWE shirt to replace the AEW one, but his offer was declined. He left the building and changed in his car and was able to get back into the arena for Smackdown.”

Was just turned away from attending Smackdown for wearing @AEWrestling merchandise. Was told I would NOT be allowed in or to purchase a ticket per @WWE. @MattJackson13 @NickJacksonYB @CodyRhodes you guys wouldn’t turn me away from an AEW show would you?

— Scrump_1 (@scrump_1) January 8, 2019

While the Young Bucks didn’t join them, two members of All Elite Wrestling showed up at a NorthEast Wrestling event in Waterbury last night. Cody and Hangman Page made an unadvertised appearance at the event.

https://twitter.com/M1k3Murphy13/status/1089429935293456384

We keep just showing up…

Thrilled to drop-in on @newwrestling1 tonight! ?? NEW #BeingTheElite https://t.co/lCJ53NSxIg

— Cody Rhodes (@CodyRhodes) January 27, 2019

Cody and Hangman Page Tease Appearance In Waterbury

Similar to what they did for events in the Los Angeles and Seattle areas, the Elite teased beforehand they would be showing up at the event. Cody Tweeted out several pictures of water and Hangman Page posted several Tweets related to the word “bury”.

https://twitter.com/theAdamPage/status/1089251861406863360

All Elite Wrestling Rally

AEW has planned another rally for February 7th from the MGM Grand Garden Arena (by the Talent Pool). Brandi Rhodes has hinted she will bring some newly signed female wrestlers to the rally.

• AEW Sign Jungle Boy, Announce Rally For February 7th

AEW also recently signed 21-year-old Nate Coy was signed to AEW recently. The Californian based wrestler has recently gained exposure competing for promotions such as PWG and Game Changer Wrestling. He is also the son of the famous actor, Luke Perry (Beverly Hills 90210, OZ).

Cody said the following regarding AEW’s roster to the Breaking Kayfabe podcast recently:

“Roster size has been something that’s been debated,” said Cody. “I signed four guys right before we got on the phone. The entire roster will probably not be present at Double or Nothing. We’ve got our summer show in Jacksonville lined up and we’ll be debuting new faces there. I don’t want to get into a situation where we have so much that you can’t honor somebody’s skillset. We’re looking at about 30 contracted performers at the moment.”

Triple H discussed the possibility of The Rock’s daughter, Simone, pursuing a WWE career last night on the post-NXT TakeOver: Phoenix media call. It seems he is optimistic she’ll choose sports entertainment as her career path.

“I know she has ‘the bug’ of the business. She caught the love of it from her father,” Triple H said at the post-NXT TakeOver: Phoenix media call. Simone Garcia Johnson is still only 17 years old, however.

“If it’s something that she wants to pursue – I know that he is big, like I am, on continuing education and doing everything the right way,” Triple H continued. “I know he believes it’s a wonderful business. I know he would be proud to have her be a part of (the business). Will you see more of her in the future? It would be hard not to see her in the future.”

• Simone Garcia Johnson discusses Hollywood and WWE

Simone Johnson Training At WWE Performance Center

Zelina Vega mentioned on Lillian Garcia’s podcast that Simone currently trains at the Performance Center.

“His daughter Simone and I have become so close,” Vega said. “She’s training now at the Performance Center. She’s like, ‘I want to learn from you.’ She said, ‘I knew that I wanted to start wrestling for sure when I saw you at “Raw” doing the movie (“Fighting with my Family”).'”

Dolph Ziggler hasn’t been on Raw since he lost a steel cage match to Drew McIntyre on the 12/28 show. He has been wrestling on WWE live events, however, usually wrestling against Finn Balor and Drew McIntyre in triple threat matches. His last match at a live event was on 1/20.

During an interview with Chris Van Vliet, however, Ziggler is on hiatus from WWE. He specifically stated he will not be in the Royal Rumble match.

“Technically I am still under contract, yes, but I am not scheduled to be at the Royal Rumble.,” Ziggler said. “For now I am on a hiatus with WWE. It took me like 10 years to get a weekend off and this is it. So we’ll see where it goes from here. Like I said we have a handshake agreement which is different from what’s on paper. I’ve given everything and we’ll see if there is more for me to give, I’ll be happy to be a part of it.”

• Update on Dolph Ziggler’s WWE status

Ziggler also commented on possibly signing with the new promotion, All Elite Wrestling.

“I wouldn’t say I would be the next big signing, I’d say I would be the big signing I would have to say. But I have some other things going on at the moment but that should always be an option for anybody especially someone like me who has been around for a long time and as Drew McIntyre says, maybe I was riding his coattails and I gotta get the hell out of here. So you never know.”

He continued, I think it would be great, I think it would be a great addition to that company which seems to be for true wrestlers who love the sport and the business. It’s a great idea.”

Watch Dolph Ziggler’s comments about WWE and AEW here:

Impact Wrestling was back on Pursuit and Twitch last night. The promotion presented the first show from their most recent tapings in Mexico City from Jan. 11-12th.

7 Takeaways From Impact Wrestling:

Brian Cage Broke Up Killer Kross’ Title Match Against Johnny Impact

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWA2TnWI-i4

Brian Cage said he would be in Mexico City this week and he was. He showed up in the night’s main event and broke up the match between Kross and Johnny Impact for the title. This did not sit over well with Kross or Moose, who attacked both men. It seems as though Cage won’t stop until he gets his rematch.

LAX vs Lucha Bros Next Week

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K05j9AnsMt0

Last week, LAX antagonized the Lucha Bros, much to Konnan’s dismay. This week, Konnan announced he was bringing in 2 luchadors, one to team with LAX next week and the other to team with the Lucha Bros as the two sides go head-to-head. LAX and the Lucha Bros look like they are headed down the path to a Homecoming rematch.

“Vera Loca” Taya Valkyrie Returns To Mexico

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpdWiKIBa1o

Taya Valkyrie returned to Mexico as Knockouts champion this week. She defeated Keyra in the 2nd match on the show. After the match, Taya cut a promo thanking the fans in Mexico for making her who she is.

Taya held the Reina de Reinas championship for 945 days from 2014-2017 while wrestling in AAA, the longest reign in the title’s lineage. She also said she would be waiting for Tessa Blanchard for whenever her suspension is up and would be ready for any of the Knockouts in the meantime.

Sami Callihan Says He Saved Rich Swann

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNaK7-wN9aE

Sami Callihan told Rich Swann if it wasn’t for him, he’d be dead in Baltimore somewhere. The leader of OVE came to the ring after Swann had just defeated El Hijo Del Vikingo in the opener.

Callihan revealed the two of them are close outside of the wrestling ring and that Callihan supported him during hard times. Despite this, Swann did not accept Callihan’s offer to join his faction. While he did not specifically say “no”, Swann told Sami he didn’t think he was a good fit for the group.

Scarlett Bordeaux Trains For Her In-Ring Debut

Scarlett Bordeaux will debut as a member of the Knockouts division in 3 weeks. This week she demonstrated a rather interesting training regimen she is running herself through. It’s easy to see how she won her own talent search.

Rosemary Tells Kiera Hogan & Jordynne Grace “This Is Not Your Fight”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nkd00SUYuMU

The lights flickered and a message scrawled on the screen while the debuting Melissa Santos interviewed Kiera Hogan & Jordynne Grace thi week. The message read “the darkness will take you too. This is not your fight. R.”

While this is speculation, it seems Hogan & Grace will both move back into the non-underworld portion of the Knockouts division. It turns out this was bad speculation as the promotion just announced Hogan & Grace will face Su Yung & Dark Allie next week.

The Rascalz Go 2-0

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

The Rascalz picked up two wins this week and Zachary demonstrated he can speak perfect subtitled Spanish in a backstage segment. Zach and Wentz picked up a win over the Desi Hit Squad in tag-team action while Trey Miguel picked up a win in the X-Division by defeating Ethan Page.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYv-R706hoE

Quick Results:

1. Rich Swann defeated El Hijo Del Vikingo
2. Taya Valkyrie defeated Keyra
3. Zachary Wentz & Dezmond Xavier defeated the Desi Hit Squad
4. Trey Miguel defeated Ethan Page
5. Impact World Championship
   Johnny Impact (c) vs Killer Kross – No Contest

Next week:

• Kiera Hogan & Jordynne Grace vs Dark Allie & Su Yung
• Psycho Clown vs Fallah Bah

Last week, Chris Jericho released a podcast where he detailed the timeline of his involvement with All Elite Wrestling. During the show, he mentioned he received one of the greatest payday’s of his career for his appearance at the Greatest Royal Rumble.

According to a report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Jericho made $100,000 for the Greatest Royal Rumble, the same amount he made per match as part of his deal with NJPW.

“The belief is Jericho got $100,000 for the Saudi show, the same as his New Japan per-match deal,” Dave Meltzer wrote.

Chris Jericho/NJPW/All Elite Wrestling

Jericho’s podcast from last week revealed plenty of previously unknown information. He revealed that Tony Khan’s private jet flew him from a Fozzy concert to All In on September 1st. Jericho also spoke about meeting with Tony Khan a few weeks later when Fozzy played a show in Jacksonville.

“We happened to have a Fozzy gig in Jacksonville, FL around that same time (September 26th),” Jericho said. “That was when I had a meeting with Tony Khan for four hours and really had a chance to get to know this guy.”

“That’s when I realized this guy really wants to do this,” Jericho continued.

Daniel Bryan turned heel just before Survivor Series last year. Bryan kicked Styles low, won the WWE Championship, and went on to face Brock Lesnar at the PPV. Now, Bryan says he wants to be the most hated man in WWE and that means being more hated than Brock Lesnar.

Daniel Bryan On Wanting To Be The Most Hated Guy In WWE

“I want to be more hated than Brock Lesnar,” Bryan recently told Newsweek. “Some people want to cheer for the bad guy. I don’t want them to cheer, I want to be hated. So far I’ve had two jumpers at live events [laughs] and that’s an old school kind of mentality. You don’t want those guys to jump but you want them to hate you. You want them to pay to see you get beat. Or pay to see you get beat up or at the very least enjoy seeing you get beat up. That’s my thing.”

Bryan also told the news outlet he wanted to wrestle Lesnar for some time and was glad he finally had the chance at Survivor Series.

“What an incredible performer that guy is,” Bryan said of Lesnar. “I’ve been wanting to do the Brock Lesnar match for a long time and I was very satisfied.”

Bryan also spoke about his heel turn and facing AJ Styles in a baseball stadium on Sunday.

“I really like being the WWE Champion [laughs] and I really like being able to change my attitude and persona,” Bryan said. “I’ve had a lot of fun doing that. I’ve also got to wrestle some incredible wrestlers. Like Brock Lesnar at Survivor Series and now AJ Styles, who when I was out I kept watching and said ‘man, this guy might be the best guy in the world.’”

“And now I get to face him at the Royal Rumble in Chase Stadium,” Bryan continued. “Which is a baseball stadium, in front of 40,000-plus people there. Wrestling AJ Styles on that kind of stage it gets me really pumped.

You can read the full interview here.

NXT held a live event in Rey Mysterio’s hometown of San Diego, CA last night. Mysterio made an unadvertised appearance at the event.

Kona Reeves was cutting a promo when Mysterio’s music hit. NXT posted the following video of his appearance to their social media channels:

Note to self @KonaReevesWWE… don’t disrespect the 619 when @reymysterio is in the vicinity. #NXTSanDiego pic.twitter.com/PnXLt42KAP

— WWE NXT (@WWENXT) January 25, 2019

NXT San Diego Live Event 1/24 – Viejas Arena