Former WWE Raw tag-team champion, Nicholas, has become one of the most popular 4th graders in the world. Not only that, he is now the youngest person in history to wear WWE gold.
Unfortunately, Braun Strowman and Nicholas were forced to vacate the titles due to a scheduling conflict with Nicholas’ elementary school. Nicholas won’t be available to compete in WWE again for approximately 8-12 years depending on if he goes to college or not.
Despite Nicholas having to vacate the titles, WWE has released his unused entrance video and music. The link to the video on WWE.com is here and YouTube user Jessy Ryder has uploaded it below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LC0Bj31AVEg
WWE Raw Tag Team Championships
The Raw tag-team championships will now be up for grabs at the Greatest Royal Rumble on April 27th from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The Bar will face the winners of a match between the Revival and Bray Wyatt & Matt Hardy.
The winner of the 1st ever Women’s WrestleMania Battle Royal, Naomi, had to deal with some hateful messages on Twitter recently.
The Orlando-native has been with WWE since 2009, making her one of the most experienced women on the roster.
Recently, Naomi responded to some insensitive remarks on Twitter:
I deal with negativity and racism like this on a daily basis but I don’t allow it to bring me down I encourage others who are experiencing the same or any type of bullying to be strong stay positive & not let the actions of others change who you are ? #feeltheglowpic.twitter.com/2KyEWJHmUX
The 30-year-old Naomi might be in line for a bit of a push it appears. In addition to winning the Battle Royal at WrestleMania, Naomi defeated Natalya on Smackdown Tuesday night. With the upcoming Superstar Shakeup happening next week, it’s not clear which brand Naomi will be wrestling on in the coming months but regardless she should be pushed near the top of the division of either Raw or Smackdown depending on where she ends up.
The first 4 winners of the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal weren’t able to do much following their victory. Perhaps Noami will set a different trend for the women, however.
Chris Jericho is from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada and grew up a hockey fan. His dad was Ted Irvine, an NHL player during the 1960s and 1970s.
The city of Winnipeg originally lost their NHL franchise in 1996 but regained it in 2011. Since returning to the league, the Jets have never won a playoff game. They hosted just their 3rd playoff game since returning last night, and Chris Jericho was in attendance for the street party outside the arena. The Jets beat the Wild 3-2.
Jericho posted the following video on his Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BhczVCWFJxP/
Wrestlers from Winnipeg
The city of Winnipeg has produced some of the greatest wrestling talents ever. Although Roddy Piper would eventually make Arizona his home, he grew up in the city of Winnipeg. Kenny Omega, Chris Jericho, and Don Callis are all from Winnipeg and each played a role in organizing the Alpha vs Omega match on January 4th this year from the Tokyo Dome.
In addition to Omega, Piper, and Jericho, Courtney Rush (aka Rosemary) is also from the city.
Two members of Lucha Underground’s roster have announced they are leaving the company. Both luchadors had been with the promotion since the beginning.
Season 4 of Lucha Underground is set to begin airing in June. The promotion filmed episodes for the season from February to March this year.
Angelico and Jack Evans have announced they are leaving Lucha Underground. Both wrestlers had been apart of the “Worldwide Underground” stable along with Johnny Mundo.
I would like to announce that I have decided to part ways with Lucha Underground. I would also like to say thank you to everyone at the company for the pleasure of the last three seasons. Now it is time to take another leap of faith. pic.twitter.com/7Lp1iBRgJU
36-year-old Jack Evans and 30-year-old Angelico had been a popular tag-team in AAA before signing with Lucha Underground.
Evans has been wrestling with the Crash and AroLucha as of late whereas Angelico moved to the UK and has been wrestling primarily in Europe in 2018. He announced he was leaving Mexico to wrestle full-time in Europe last summer.
Both Evans and Angelico said they turned down offers from WWE in 2014 to sign with Lucha Underground. As they had been working for Dorian Roldan in Mexico at the time, they believed in the project and wanted to be a part of it. Evans and Angelico have each only had positive things to say regarding their experience with Lucha Underground but have not given a reason for their departures.
Rusev has the fight of his life coming up on April 27th when he faces The Undertaker in a Casket Match at the Greatest Royal Rumble event from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
TMZ Sports caught up with Rusev and Lana in Los Angeles, CA this week and asked the WWE power couple about the upcoming match. Rusev said The Undertaker is a legend, but so is he. They said The Undertaker is past his prime, while Rusev is the stronger, faster and overall better athlete.
When asked about the fact that WWE won’t be bringing any of the female performers to Saudi Arabia later this month, Rusev said Lana “has more important things to do” at home.
You can check out the ful linterview here:
The Greatest Royal Rumble
The event will air live from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, beginning at 12 noon EST on April 27th. 7 championship matches will be apart of the show as well as a special Triple H vs John Cena single’s match and the Rumble. With the addition of the Casket Match, the event now has 10 scheduled matches.
50-person Royal Rumble
Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns – steel cage – Universal Championship
Seth Rollins vs the Miz vs Finn Balor vs Samoa Joe – ladder match – Intercontinental Championship
WWE Championship Match TBA
United States Championship Match TBA
the Bar vs TBA – Raw Tag Team Championship Match
the Bludgeon Brothers vs the Usos – Smackdown Tag Team Championship
Just 3 weeks out from WrestleMania 34, Jerry Lawler apparently suffered a stroke. Lawler was in ICU for 3 days and was unable to speak before making a full recovery in time to appear at WrestleMania this weekend.
Lawler was engaging in sexual intercourse at the time of his stroke. He detailed the incident on an episode of his “Dinner with the King” podcast.
Lawler, who also suffered an on-air heart attack in 2012, made a full recovery following the stroke. Not only did Lawler appear at WrestleMania 34 but he participated in some pre-Mania festivities as well. During an independent show over the weekend, Lawler even shot a fireball at Joey Ryan’s genitals. At the time, Ryan was dressed up as Andy Kauffman, Lawler’s historic rival.
At WrestleMania 34, Lawler called the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal along with his broadcast partner, Jim Ross.
According to the King, only Kevin Dunn and Triple H knew about his medical scare before Mania.
NXT tonight will feature matches taped on Saturday from the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. Only two matches have been officially confirmed thus far.
NXT April 11th, 2018 Preview
Kairi Sane vs Lacey Evans
With the departures of Ember Moon, Peyton Royce, and Billie Kay, the NXT Women’s division is wide open.
With a win here, either of these two could bump themselves up into title contention.
Sane is 1-1 against current champion, Shayna Baszler, having defeated her in the Mae Young Classic finals but losing to her on NXT television.
Heavy Machinery vs Tino Sabbatelli and Riddock Moss
The NXT tag-team division is also wide open at the moment with the departures of the Authors of Pain, who had been perennial top contenders.
Whoever wins here could graduate from low-level tag-team to championship contenders.
Who Will Step up with Recent NXT Departures?
No Way Jose, the Authors of Pain, the Iconic Duo, and Ember Moon are all gone. Who is going to step up to take their place in NXT? Perhaps we will find out more tonight.
Last night on Smackdown, Carmella finally cashed in her Money in the Bank briefcase. She pinned Charlotte Flair after a beatdown from the Iconic Duo and won her first ever Smackdown Women’s Championship.
James Ellsworth, who played a key role in Carmella winning the MITB briefcase, had this to say about her victory last night:
Many Ring of Honor fans attempted to log in to their Honor Club accounts to watch Supercard of Honor XII this weekend. Unfortunately, the demand was so great that some fans were unable to login to their accounts during the live show.
ROH has sent out an apology to fans who experienced these issues and are offering discounts at their pro shop as a result.
Ring of Honor Streaming Issues
The company’s streaming service only launched earlier this year. While there were some launch day problems, the service has been generally well-reviewed. Not only are ROH PPVs available on Honor Club but all of the company’s non-televised shows as well.
“It is with regret that we continued to face issues with our stream at Supercard of Honor,” the company wrote on their website.
ROH also went into great detail regarding the cause of their streaming problems:
“The current belief is that a bug in the app caused certain IPs to infinitely and rapidly ping the servers with requests, leading to failure even as resources were added. This doesn’t change that it is ultimately our responsibility to deliver what you deserve and we will not stop improving until you get that and more.”
With the Mixed Match Challenge over and concluded, WWE’s Tuesday night schedule is back to just Smackdown and 205 Live. Tonight’s show will emanate from the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Smackdown Live Preview
No matches have been announced thus far for Smackdown. The following segments are believed to be scheduled, however:
AJ Styles Reacts to Shinsuke Nakamura’s WM Actions
Last night at WrestleMania, AJ Styles defeated Shinsuke Nakamura to retain his WWE Championship. Nakamura delivered a low-blow to Styles following the match.
How will AJ react to the dastardly attack from his WM opponent?
What’s Next for Daniel Bryan and Smackdown’s Leadership?
Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn are gone from Smackdown. Shane McMahon has also left for an indefinite leave of absence.
Now, Daniel Bryan is the only one left in charge of Smackdown and he just was cleared to return to the ring. Bryan will address the future of Smackdown’s leadership tonight.
Charlotte Flair Celebration
Charlotte Flair ended Asuka’s streak at WrestleMania but now what is next for her?
Naomi won the WM Women’s Battle Royal which could put her in line for a title shot. There is always Carmella and her MITB briefcase lurking in the wings, however.
Reign of the Bludgeon Brothers Begins
Harper and Rowen are the new Smackdown tag-team champions and we should find out what is next for them tonight.
New Surprise Call-Ups?
Ember Moon, No Way Jose, and Bobby Lashley all showed up on Raw last night. WWE.com is teasing there might be a few new faces to show on Smackdown tonight.
205 Live Preview
Drew Gulak vs Mark Andrews
in the only confirmed match for tonight, Drew Gulak will face Mark Andrews on 205 Live.
Cedric Alexander’s Championship Reign Begins
Cedric Alexander is the new Cruiserweight Champion but Drake Maverick already has challengers, such as Buddy Murphy, lined up for him. We’ll find out how the reign of Cedric Alexander begins tonight.
IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Kazuchika Okada, has also declared he will be at the event on September 1st, 2018.
Okada’s inclusion in the event is significant for a few reasons. He is NJPW’s top star and the event will be taking place not long after the annual G1 tournament. When it comes time for All-In, Okada might already be involved in his next big storyline rivalry.
Following the conclusion to WrestleMania 34 Sunday night, everything in WWE is now leading towards the Greatest Royal Rumble in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on April 27th.
In addition to the 50-person Royal Rumble match, 7 championship bouts will take place on the show. All of the confirmed matches thus far are posted below.
Greatest Royal Rumble Match Listing:
50-Person Royal Rumble
– Daniel Bryan, Bray Wyatt, Braun Strowman, Big Show, and Kane have been announced.
WWE Universal Championship Steel Cage
Brock Lesnar (c) vs Roman Reigns
Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match
Seth Rolins (c) vs Finn Balor vs Miz vs Samoa Joe
WWE Raw Tag Team Championship
the Bar (c) vs Wyatt/Hardy or the Revival
Ronda Rousey and Kurt Angle picked up the victory over Triple H and Stephanie McMahon last night at WrestleMania. Rousey made Stephanie McMahon tap in a match which went 20 minutes and 40 seconds.
WWE.com cameras recently caught up with both Ronda Rousey and Kurt Angle after the match. Angle was quick to praise his partner, who he reminds everyone just wrestled her first official match.
Ronda Rousey Glad She Lost in UFC Because it Led Her to WrestleMania
Ronda Rousey also spoke with ESPN following her victory last night. In the interview, she mentioned she was finally glad she lost her last two MMA fights because it led her to where she is now.
“Everything really does happen for a reason. I’m just so grateful. I thought I never would be [grateful] for [the losses], but time is a great teacher. I’m just really, really glad I gave it time instead of giving up and feeling it was the end of the world. There are so many people who encounter tragedies who feel like the world and time won’t heal it. But all I can say to those people is: Just give it time, even if you think time can’t heal it. You never know what will happen and where it will lead you. Every missed opportunity is a blessing in disguise. I really believe it now.”
Rousey also revealed to ESPN she thought the WWE fans would boo her when she first debuted. That she has received such a positive response since appears to have touched her.
“I owe the WWE universe an apology because I thought they were going to boo me out of the building from day one,” she said. “They really accepted me from day one. Hopefully, I satisfied a lot of skeptics tonight.”
“I underestimated how kind the WWE universe would be. I thought any outsiders would be shunned. I was expecting to get shunned and to have to battle to be accepted. I worked my ass off to pay respect to what’s so important to them, and hopefully, they saw that tonight. I’m just so grateful, man. I’m trying my best to deserve it.”
Matt Hardy believes he is able to communicate with Andre the Giant. In footage released following his victory last night, Hardy revealed that his strategy in the Battle Royal was dictated to him by Andre himself.
Hardy won the match following interference from Bray Wyatt.
Bray Wyatt Helps Matt Hardy Win Battle Royal
Bray Wyatt appeared in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal even though he was not officially entered in the match. Wyatt’s involvement contributed to Hardy winning and the two would embrace after Matt had been declared the winner.
Wyatt’s fall into the Lake of Reincarnation seems to have led to him being a follower of Matt Hardy’s. This storyline will likely be furthered in the coming weeks on Raw.
Braun Strowman told WWE.com shortly after defeating the Bar last night that he didn’t really have a plan for choosing a partner. He ended up going into the live crowd to choose a fan at random and ended up picking Nicholas. Nicholas is actually the son of WWE referee, John Cone, who officiated the match
Why Did Braun Choose a Kid?
Last night at WrestleMania 34, Strowman and Nicholas defeated Sheamus and Cesaro to win the Raw tag-team championships. Nicholas even tagged in at one point but never did mix it up with either of the Bar.
In the above video, Strowman explained to WWE.com reporters why he chose Nicholas.
“You know, honestly, I didn’t have a plan coming into WrestleMania. I did a lot of thinking and soul-searching in my time back out in the woods when I’m relaxing by myself and just something about the energy in the air here tonight in New Orleans… something in my heart told me this is what I needed to do. So I went out into the crowd and I found this young man and he helped me pull a victory for both of us tonight here at WrestleMania.”
Dolph Ziggler was reported to have signed a new WWE contract in mid-February but according to Ziggler himself, that’s not the case.
Reports were Ziggler had signed a 2-year deal with WWE worth $1.5 million. In a recent interview with Fox Sports, however, Ziggler says these reports simply aren’t true.
“I would love to get into that more but based on the internet, they told you I’d re-signed and I have not,” Ziggler said to Fox Sports.
Ziggler continued to say he is still negotiating with WWE on a new deal.
“I have a bunch of things going on and I don’t like taking days off and I don’t want to leave WWE but it’s great to have some options,” Ziggler said regarding what he wants to do.
“I’ve asked before to go away for a little while just so everyone can forget I lose 99 times out of 100 and it’s never really come through, so I might have to do it on my own and see what happens.”
It sounds as though Ziggler is leaning towards staying with WWE but would like to take some time away.
Dolph Ziggler’s WWE Contract
I’ve been able to track down the two sources which each claimed they had insider knowledge of Ziggler’s WWE deal. The first news of the contract was leaked by podcaster Bill “the Hacker” Hamin. The podcaster mentioned he had insider information that Ziggler had agreed to a deal after almost leaving the company. Hamin did not report the signing as fact, however, more just as something he had heard. Hacker Hamin Media has a series of podcasts and is also associated with Vince Russo’s the Brand.
Sports Illustrated’s weekly Extra Mustard column on wrestling by Justin Barrasso on February 14th, 2018 published news that Ziggler and WWE had reached an agreement.
“Ziggler, who opened and closed this week’s SmackDown, just signed a new two-year contract for a reported $1.5 million per year.” – Sports Illustrated Extra Mustard, February 14th, 2018.
Ziggler never mentioned during the interview why he never bothered to correct the rumors until now.
Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal Participants
In addition to the above mentioned names, the below 19 Superstars have also declared for the match:
Dash Wilder
Scott Dawson
Baron Corbin (previous winner)
Mojo Rawley (previous winner)
Tye Dillinger
Matt Hardy
Dolph Ziggler
Fandango
Tyler Breeze
Goldust
Heath Slater
Rhyno
Zack Ryder
Primo Colon
Kane
Curt Hawkins
Shelton Benjamin
Chad Gable
Aiden English
This will be the 5th Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. The tournament’s previous winners include: Cesaro, Big Show, Baron Corbin, and Mojo Rawley.
Paul Heyman only throws his name behind talent he sees something in and it’s evident he sees something in Tommaso Ciampa.
The 32-year-old Ciampa has been involved in a buzz-worthy rivalry with his former tag-team partner, Johnny Gargano, on NXT recently. Gargano was expelled from the brand due to his loss in a career vs title match with Andrade “Cien” Almas. Despite this, he has come back to haunt his rival, Ciampa on several occasions.
Gargano has stocked Ciampa in the NXT parking lot, at his home, and anywhere he can get his hands on him. In response, Ciampa requested an unsanctioned match with Gargano which will take place tonight at Takeover: New Orleans.
Ciampa’s social media game lately has included several taunting photos directed at Johnny Gargano as well as releasing t-shirt designs only to later reveal they will not be going on sale.
Paul Heyman and his Looking 4 Larry agency have recently signed a deal with Banca Studios to produce un-scripted content.
CM Punk and Batista were both at the C2E2 expo in Chicago recently. An interaction between the two former wrestlers involved Punk not wanting to eat chickpeas.
Punk and Batista’s careers have followed a somewhat similar pattern. Both were champion wrestlers who left the business to pursue other interests. Each of them has a professional MMA fight on their resume, tho Batista won his and Punk lost.
They’ve each been employed by Marvel as well as Punk has written an edition of the Thor graphic novels and Batista has a reoccurring role in the Guardians of the Galaxy movies. It does not appear they share the same interest in chickpeas, however.
A popular podcast hosted by Conrad Thompson (engaged to Ric Flair’s daughter, Meghan) and Bruce Pritchard (Brother Love) will be making its way to the WWE Network.
The “Something to Wrestle with Podcast” has gained a loyal following of listeners due to the often comical but always interesting content. Pritchard has a lot of insight into what went on inside WWE during the late 80s, 90s, and early 2000s.
— Something to Wrestle with Bruce Prichard (@PrichardShow) April 7, 2018
Pritchard’s WWE Firing in 2008
After spending 22 years with the company, WWE fired Pritchard in 2008. His firing was largely seen as a move made by Stephanie McMahon. It was reported at the time that Stephanie was not high on Pritchard and had called him out in front of others during several meetings.
Pritchard spent five years with TNA Wrestling in a backstage role before being officially released by the company in 2013. He would return to the company briefly in 2017.
Fans of the cult-hit show, Lucha Underground, will be excited to know they only have 67 sleeps left until the premiere of season 4. The promotion released a poster last night which featured the premiere date of June 13, 2018 for the next season.
Previously all that was known about a premiere date for the next season was that it would air in the summer of 2018.
Lucha Underground Season 4
While we will avoid posting spoilers, there are several hurdles which season 4 of Lucha Underground will have to get out of the way.
For starters, the end of season 4 saw Dario Cueto shot and bleeding in his office, though it was never clear if he had died. Lucha Underground has also announced season 4 will take place inside a different temple.
Filming for the season began in late February and continued throughout March. Earlier seasons of Lucha Underground are available on Netflix.
Hulk Hogan’s name has been mentioned quite a bit in wrestling circles as of late. The former WWE Champion attended the premiere of the HBO documentary on Andre the Giant and there have been confirmed talks between Hogan and WWE for the first time since leaked audio conversations led to his excommunication from the company.
In recent weeks, soon-to-be Hall of Famer, Mark Henry, appeared on the Busted Open radio program to say he doesn’t feel Hogan has done enough just yet to earn a second chance.
Today, former wrestler and World Karate Champion, Ernest Miller, is stating Hogan attempted to help him receive a major push in WCW.
Ernest Miller on Hulk Hogan
Miller appeared on the Pancakes and Powerslams Show recently and spoke about how Hogan once pitched an idea of him dropping the WCW World Title to Miller.
“You know what, Hogan wanted to lose the title to me one time to get me involved with the nWo. But then, if you noticed, we had so much little to nothing going on outside of the nWo.”
Miller talked further in regards to his relationship with Hogan.
“[I] may have been different from a lot of people. [Hulk Hogan] and I had a bond, he was really a good guy and easy to talk to,” Miller said. “I would run things past him, and he’ll give me some of his respects about the situation… Hulk Hogan was just another wrestler, tell me what to do and he was professional at it. Give me some advice, and I’ll take it and move on. I had a great experience with Hulk Hogan.”
WWE has released merchandise for their Hall of Fame Class of 2018. 7 new t-shirts have been added to WWE Shop, all of them featuring the class of Hall of Famers scheduled to be inducted tonight.
This year’s WWE Hall of Fame ceremony takes place tonight from the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana. The event will air live on the WWE Network.
Headline Inductee: Bill Goldberg (to be inducted by Paul Heyman)
the Dudley Boyz (to be inducted by Edge and Christian)
WWE kicked off WrestleMania weekend last night with a show from the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans.
The event featured the 1st round matches in the Axxess title tournaments. WWE is holding tournaments over WrestleMania weekend to crown new contenders in the NXT tag-team, North American, United Kingdom, and NXT Women’s divisions.
Additionally, NXT Superstar, Kassius Ohno, challenged Keith Lee for the WWN title.
Results from WrestleMania Axxess Night 1
WWN Title Match
Keith Lee (c) defeats Kassius Ohno
WWE NXT Tag Team Title Invitation First Round Match
Trent Seven & Tyler Bate defeat Riddick Moss & Tino Sabbatelli
WWE NXT North American Title Invitation First Round Match
Fabian Aichner defeats Jason Kincaid
WWE NXT Women’s Title Invitation First Round Match
Nikki Cross defeats Aliyah
WWE United Kingdom Title Invitation First Round Match
Lio Rush defeats Buddy Murphy
WWE NXT Tag Team Title Invitation First Round Match
Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins & Montez Ford) defeat Adrian Jaoude & Cezar Bononi
WWE United Kingdom Title Invitation First Round Match
Drew Gulak defeats Dan Matha
WWE NXT North American Title Invitation First Round Match
Akira Tozawa defeats Kona Reeves
WWE NXT Women’s Title Invitation First Round Match
Kairi Sane defeats Bianca Belair
Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler will be calling matches at WrestleMania 34. They won’t be the only additional commentators WWE brings in for the event as well.
WWE announced the guest commentary schedule for Sunday at the WrestleMania 34 Kickoff show yesterday
Guest Commentators at WrestleMania
Beth Phoenix, who participated in the 1st ever women’s Royal Rumble, will do commentary for the WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal.
Ross and Lawler will call the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal which is scheduled to take place on the Kickoff show along with the Women’s Battle Royal and Cruiserweight Championship match.
Additionally, Shawn Michaels was announced as joining Renee Young on the pre-show panel. WWE also hinted yesterday there would be some surprise guest commentators as well.
