Nick Gage certainly had an eventful debut in AEW. He was the 2nd Labor of Jericho and created one of the most notable moments of accidental product placement in wrestling history. Gage appeared on Sean Waltman’s “Pro Wrestling 4 Life” podcast and spoke about his experience.

“I was fired up. I was born for that moment. The AEW locker room is awesome. The boys are great. I never felt like I was unwelcome or anything, so that was cool. I was able to focus on what I wanted to do. Then, they were able to let me be…I’m gonna be Nick Gage. They brought me in to be Nick Gage. If you don’t want me to be Nick Gage, I’m going to leave. I felt great and I was fired up. That match was great. Shoutout to Chris Jericho for being a tough dude. It was awesome,” he said (transcriptions via Fightful). 

Gage then spoke about what Tony Khan said to him backstage.

“Tony came up to me all fired up. As soon as I got to the back, he came up to me, I looked that man dead in his eyes and I said, ‘You’ve got something awesome going here. Thank you for making me feel at home.’ I was fired up. He said, ‘Thank you, what an awesome match.’ He showed me nothing but love.”

The following day, Gage carving up Jericho in picture-in-picture during an ad for Dominos made a lot of headlines. Gage said he wasn’t even aware of the situation until much later. When he did find out he thought it was a funny coincidence.

The 3rd Labor of Jericho will take place tonight on Dynamite. Jericho will take on his old rival from WCW, Juventud Guerrera.

Cassie Lee (FKA Peyton Royce) was recently interviewed by Chris Van Vliet. She spoke on a variety of subjects including how she is doing and how she feels about wrestling since being released by WWE earlier this year.

“Since the draft, since they split Jess and I up it’s been rough. But I am doing well, every day I’m feeling happier and I’m just excited for the future,” she said.

“Then I have my moments where I just get sad that it didn’t work out but I really truly believe that everything happens for a reason and there’s something bigger out there for me.”

She continued to say that she is not finished with wrestling but she also wants to get into acting more. Her release from WWE hurt her, however, and she still gets emotional about it.

“Being let go really broke my heart and it kind of stole my love of wrestling and I would love to get that back and not move on with my life with this bitter feeling about wrestling. I still get emotional about it,” she continued.

“Literally every decision I made in my life was for the purpose that it would get me one step closer to WWE. And those are things like picking my subjects in high school.”

Peyton spoke about taking acting classes and being excited for future opportunities.

When Jessie and Cassie Get Together, They Are The Iiconics

Another interesting comment Peyton made during the discussion, is how similar Cassie and Jessie are to their on-screen personas when they are together.

“When Cassie and Jess are together, those two people are exactly the same as Peyton and Billie. But Cassie, I’m really shy and I don’t like to be in crowds of people, I get anxious. So when I’m by myself I’m very shy, I’m inside my shell but if I’m with her, there is no shell, I’m completely fine.”

It Was Peyton’s Idea To Break Up The Iiconics

Peyton also spoke about how it was actually her decision for the Iiconics to break up. She had told Billie in January that she wanted to have a run as a singles wrestler. Then one week when Billie was off, she had a singles match and Vince McMahon liked it, leading to her brief run as a singles wrestler.

“I wanted to go singles, there was just things I wanted to tick off my bucket list as a singles competitor,” she said.

“I feel like it’s my fault because I wanted to push myself and see what I was capable of but that might have been the worst decision I made because nothing ever happened,” she continued.

AEW President Tony Khan has reacted to the controversy surrounding Max Caster’s latest rap on Tuesday’s AEW Dark.

Caster and AEW faced strong pushback after his rap referenced the mental health of US Olympic gymnast Simone Biles and the 2006 sexual assault criminal case involving members of the Duke University lacrosse team.

Caster rapped, “The Acclaimed kicking ass for miles, make you claim mental health like Simone Biles. The Sydals gonna pay the cost, I’m gonna treat those bitches like Duke lacrosse. The Blondes say they the best but those dudes are faker than a PCR test. And what’s that smell here in North Carolina, oh wait that’s Julia’s …”

Tony Khan Reacts To Max Caster Controversy

During his weekly appearance on Busted Open Radio, Tony Khan announced he is taking over editing duties of AEW Dark and AEW Dark: Elevation. Khan called the situation “terrible” and said the controversial comments never should have made it to air.

To ensure something like this does not happen again, Khan will be taking over editing duties for the show in order to prevent something like this happening again.

“Last night on Dark, Max Caster’s rap was terrible. I was not out there in the moment when he did it, it was not during Dynamite,” Khan said. “I had not heard it until last night, truthfully. In the editing process, it should have been caught. We deleted the episode and re-posted it with that edited out but it shouldn’t have aired.”

“This would never have happened (on Dynamite) because Max’s raps, I have always gone over them with him,” he continued. “I don’t script or write wrestler’s promos, but the bullet points I give. In this case, it shouldn’t have happened and what will happen going forward is I will take over the editing of Dark and Elevation myself.”

Khan was praised on social media for his handling of the situation.

A reference to Simone Biles was also made on WWE RAW this week. Charlotte Flair mentioned the gymnast in her promo this week regarding Nikki ASH.

The Acclaimed are currently ranked #2 in the AEW top-5 tag-team rankings.

Malakai Black appeared as Chris Jericho’s guest on Talk is Jericho recently. During the discussion, Black spoke about advice he received from Shawn Michaels while in NXT. Black says that advice he got from Michaels and Terry Taylor really had an impact on him. Both Taylor and Michaels were criticized for doing too many flashy moves in their day, and Black says they taught him how to wrestle in a way where those moves make sense.

“Shawn was always considered a smaller guy but he revolutionized the business,” Black said on the show. Black then spoke about how guys like Shawn Michaels and Terry Taylor used to be criticized in their days for just doing flashy moves.

“It was funny to hear that guys like (Terry Taylor) and (Shawn) Michaels, guys from two different eras, would get the same criticism that a lot of us get now. But, he was one of those guys (who told us) to make it okay but find a way to do it, find a way for it to make sense.”

“You’re never ever going to convince everyone and your goal is not to convince everyone. Your goal is to progress the business in the way that the business is installed in 2021 by also maintaining the old school and maintaining what is relevant and keeping an ear on the ground to look at pop culture and what is current, and Shawn was great at that.”

Malakai Black on Terry Taylor’s Influence

Black continued to talk about how Terry Taylor has influenced his career and wrestling style.

“I love Terry Taylor. I owe so much to Terry, I speak to him every week,” Black said. “Him and me got real personal in my time in NXT. I love that man like my father, I really do. He was the one that guided guys like Hunter and Shawn in that era too, so all his teachings came through Shawn to me.”

“Terry just made me aware of what good solid work was,” Black continued.

The former members of Ever-Rise in WWE are set to make their AEW debuts on Dynamite this week. Now known as Matt Lee & Jeff Parker (FKA Chase Parker and Matt Martel) they will team with Daniel Garcia to take on Jon Moxley, Eddie Kingston and Darby Allin on Dynamite this week.

“Free agency tastes real good! 2.0 in the AEW but you know what you gotta do when you’re the new kids in the neighbourhood? You have to find someone to watch your back!”

The 3 then decided they were going to call out the 3 “baddest dudes” in the promotion. Tony Khan later sanctioned the match for this week’s Dynamite.

The members of Ever Rise spoke to WhatCulture about their release from WWE earlier this year.

“Yeah, [we were] surprised to say the least,” Martel said. “Surprised to say the least. It seemed to us that we had our whole careers in front of us in WWE. We were on TV every week doing what we wanted to do.”

“Since, like, the month of October, we were doing something every week. Especially on NXT, finally getting, like, those… fleshing out those characters, which was always the idea, but it was a slow start.”

Chris Jericho’s book “The Complete List of Jericho” is available now and runs down every match Le Champion had in his first 30 years of wrestling. During an interview with Inside the Ropes, Jericho spoke about a match he had against Daniel Bryan in 2010 as rumors of Bryan heading to AEW shortly continue.

Jericho and Bryan have faced each other in singles action 3 times. The first took place in 2010 when Jericho was World Heavyweight Champion and Bryan was one of the rookies on the old format of NXT. Jericho spoke to Inside the Ropes about the match.

“I didn’t want to have that match. I just thought, ‘Why is the WWE Champion having a match against some guy that’s just coming in for NXT?’ I remember it was Undertaker that was like, ‘Go out there and show them why you’re the champion.”

The match ended with Jericho winning in just under 6 minutes.

“I don’t think I wrestled Daniel many more times, maybe two or three times, but none of them memorable. That one was the one that was memorable and who would have thought it at the time? But here we are, you know, ten years later and people still talk about it because it was such a monumental match and the first meeting between two guys that, you know, are still doing it pretty much at the top of our games ten years later.”

Jericho and Bryan have only wrestled two other singles matches, with Jericho winning both. The next match came 7 months later at a house show. Then in 2013, Jericho defeated Bryan in a singles match on RAW.

Last week at Fight for the Fallen, HIKULEO came out for his IWGP United States Championship match against Lance Archer along with his father, Haku. Chris Jericho took to Instagram recently to praise the legend.

“It was great to see #KingHaku….my Sempai & one of my favorite people on Earth…in Charlotte last week!! From 1993-1995, I travelled the world with #Tonga and we had many amazing adventures together….some of them were even sober!!” Jericho wrote.

“Whether it was taking on the entire security team in the #MexicoCity Airport, drinking coconut rum right from a coconut (that Tonga scaled a tree to grab) or doing Mezcal fueled aerobics in a gym surrounded by futbol moms at 7am, we always had a blast! He’s also such a kind hearted & gracious man…you don’t hear that much, but it’s true. And of course he’s tough as f**k!! Malo e lelei Tonga!!”

Chris Jericho’s Haku Stories

During an appearance on Stone Cold Steve Austin’s podcast earlier this year, Jericho told the story of him and Haku getting in a brawl at an airport. Jericho was being surrounded by security agents when Haku sprung to the rescue.

“He threw guys out of the way to get over to me. They were starting to get like, it was a fight and dude was like Old Western back to back, kind of pushing guys and throwing guys around. I remember he had a guy like Darth Vader, he just picked the guy up by his collars and had him in the air, and then out came the guns.”

AEW presented the Blood & Guts double steel cage match on the May 5th edition of Dynamite. The finish saw Maxwell Jacob Friedman throw Chris Jericho off the cage. Jericho landed on padding, which some fans criticized as appearing “too safe.”

WWE Superstar Shotzi Blackheart joined in on the mockery, tweeting out this GIF of someone falling gently onto a comfortable bed.

Le Champion wasn’t pleased. He addressed Shotzi Blackheart’s apparent sign of disrespect on his Talk is Jericho podcast.

“Best of luck to anybody in our business, and anybody that bags on somebody who’s taking a chance and putting their bodies on the line can really f*** off,” Jericho said. “Especially people in the business. I could say some names.” 

“There’s a couple of chicks in WWE who said some stuff and they should probably not have said that. They probably weren’t trained any better, and in 6 months they’ll probably be asking us for a job anyways and I’ll remember that, so we’ll leave it at that.”

Take A Joke, Bud!

During a recent interview with Alex McCarthy for TalkSport, Shotzi Blackheart responded to Jericho getting salty about her playful GIF.

“I meant no offence to Chris Jericho,” Shotzi stated. “I thought, honestly, the match was great. But, you know what… like, take a joke, Take a joke, bud! [laughs].” 

“It’s just a GIF. Laugh at it and move on. It’s live TV. Things happen, it’s pro wrestling. Don’t take life too seriously is all I have to say.”

You can see her comments about Chris Jericho here:

Back in 2019, when Fox first began airing episodes of Smackdown, executives from the network reportedly really wanted Bray Wyatt on their brand. Wyatt had just returned to WWE that summer as the Fiend. Wyatt would be drafted back to RAW the following year, however. Now, nobody gets Wyatt as he had been released from the company altogether.

According to Andrew Zarian of the Mat Men podcast, television executives are reportedly quite concerned that WWE has been releasing top stars like Wyatt.

“Bray’s released is really disappointing and a little scary that top stars are being let go,” a source reportedly said on the situation.

“Yeah regardless of what the internet thinks Bray is a major star with a lot of money put into him,” Zarian said in response to someone who questioned whether Wyatt is a top star.

Zarian would continue to give some details as to who is source within the networks is.

“I don’t want to detail it but one is a high up executive that I get drinks with weekly. It’s perception more than anything else. Remember they are not fans like us. They read and see the names,” he Tweeted.

Recently, it was also reported that Wyatt had been out of action due to a medical issue.

“He’d been out for medical reasons, and he had just gotten cleared,” said Dave Meltzer. “I guess when he got cleared they evaluated the situation and he was told that due to budgetary reasons that he is being cut.”

Ric Flair was reportedly released from his WWE contract recently. There are conflicting reports regarding the reason why he was released, however. Initial reports suggested that Flair was unhappy and asked WWE to be released. According to comments on Wrestling Observer Radio, however, Flair did not ask WWE to be let out of his contract. Rather, it was solely Vince McMahon’s decision to let him go.

“He had sent a message, I think it was a text message, but he sent a message to Vince McMahon and it was basically complaining about Charlotte’s booking, her situation, and now he’s gone,” said Dave Meltzer.

“Now, I’ve seen it said that it was his decision to leave and I just know from people who I know who are closer to this situation than I am that say that it was Vince’s decision,” Meltzer continued.

As far as Flair possibly ending up in AEW, Meltzer noted that him and Tony Khan are friends.

“Ric had a great contract with WWE, it was exceptional. Ric Flair is also friends with Tony Khan, I mean they’ve been friends for years,” Meltzer continued to say.

The 72-year-old Flair recently posted this picture of what appears to be a new boat:

Fans expecting to see Becky Lynch back in WWE as soon as SummerSlam might be in for a bit of a disappointment. According to a report from PW Insider, Lynch is not expected to be at SummerSlam and the word going around backstage in WWE is that she won’t be back until the fall. October was discussed as when she may be back.

Lynch has not wrestled a match since WrestleMania 36. She successfully defended the RAW Women’s Championship against Shayna Baszler on that show. Lynch would later vacate the title, giving it to 2020 Money in the Bank winner Asuka.

Lynch gave birth to her and Seth Rollins’ first child Roux in December. The pair got married on June 29th, 2021.

In WWE, Lynch is a 4x World Champion. She’s held the Smackdown Women’s Championship on 3 occasions. Lynch became the inaugural holder of the belt at Backlash in 2016. She ranks in at #2 in terms of days spent with the Smackdown Women’s title behind only Bayley. Lynch is also a 1x RAW Women’s Champion. Her title reign beginning from WrestleMania 35 all the way to the night after Money in the Bank 2020 was the longest single reign with the belt in history at 373 days.

Lynch has teased returning at the Royal Rumble, WrestleMania, and Money in the Bank so far this year.

AEW’s “First Dance” event on Friday August 20th inside Chicago’s United Center has sold out. Over 12,000 tickets were sold during the presale last Friday. Tickets went on sale to the general public today and the rest sold quickly. In total, 13, 654 tickets have been distributed to the event.

Just under 5000 seats in the venue will likely be behind the stage or camera setup. It’s possible more tickets open up closer to the date of the show.

It’s a big next month for wrestling in Chicago. Tonight’s episode of WWE RAW will emanate from the Allstate Arena in the city. The show is a near sellout of over 12,000.

AEW First Dance will technically be the second ever episode of Rampage. The first edition of the show will be on Friday, August 13th, in Pittsburgh.

Other Event Ticket Sales

NJPW has just over 2000 tickets distributed for NJPW Resurgence from the LA Coliseum on August 14th.

The NWA 73rd Anniversary show in St. Louis at the end of the month is almost sold out. Capacity for the show is just under 900.

WWE SummerSlam has just under 45,000 tickets distributed.

AEW has signed a deal with Eurosport India to broadcast episodes of AEW Dynamite and AEW Rampage. According to a report from Sportskeeda, the first broadcast will be on Sunday August 15th, 2021 which happens to be Independence Day in the country.

Eurosport India also broadcasts episodes of Impact Wrestling and NJPW. WWE is broadcast on Sony Sports India.

Tony Khan was quoted in a press release announcing the news.

“In less then two years since launching AEW DYNAMITE, we’ve started a professional wrestling revolution,” said Tony Khan, CEO, GM and Head of Creative of AEW. “Through our partnership with Eurosport India, we’re looking forward to showcasing the best professional wrestling that fans in India demand and deserve.”

“We were an instant success in the U.S., and now fans across the world are discovering AEW, feeling refreshed and excited about professional wrestling again. We can’t wait for fans in India to experience our dynamic storytelling, high-flying action and incredible roster of global stars and homegrown talent on a weekly basis.”

The deal comes just as AEW is getting ready to begin airing its 2nd show. AEW Rampage will debut a week from Friday on August 13th, 2021 from Pittsburgh.

JoJo Offerman, the wife of the recently released Bray Wyatt, is no longer with WWE either. According to a report from PW Insider, Offerman was released from the company approximately 5-6 months ago. She had been with the company since 2013.

The daughter of former MLB player Jose Offerman, JoJo joined WWE following her time on Total Divas. From 2013-15, Offerman was the ring announcer for NXT. In 2015, she began doing ring announcing duties on the main roster as well.

Wyatt and Offerman have two children together. They welcomed their first son, Knash Sixx Rotunda, into the world on May 18, 2019. Their second child, Hyrie Von Rotunda, was born on May 28th, 2020.

Did Bray Wyatt Predict His Own Release?

A fan on Twitter recently noted that Wyatt’s last edition of the FireFly FunHouse may have predicted his own release.

“We will always have each other. As a matter of fact, I feel great. I think it’s going to be a brand new start for all of us. A new season, new friends, and a brand new me!” Wyatt says in segment. “I feel reborn! I feel reborn!”

Wyatt responded to this theory in the Tweet below:

This week on AEW Dynamite, the 3rd “Labor of Jericho” match will take place. Chris Jericho will face his old rival from WCW, Juventud Guerrera. Ahead of the match, Juvi posted a promo to social media directed at the former AEW World Champion.

“I want to dedicate this match to my mentor and best friend, Eddie Guerrero. So, I want everybody to be there next Wednesday and start chanting the Juice’s name! Juvi Juvi! Let’s get juicy!” he says in the video.

“MJF, I got this my friend. Chris Jericho, you took my mask but I will take your soul. Because when the Juice says so, the Juice makes so. And this is the proof, I see you Wednesday!”

AEW Dynamite Preview

The 1st Labor of Jericho saw Jericho face Shawn Spears in a match where chairs were legal for Spears but not for Jericho. Last week, the 2nd Labor of Jericho saw him take on Nick Gage in a deathmatch.

5 matches have been confirmed for the August 4th edition of Dynamite.

1. Malakai Black vs. Cody Rhodes
2. TNT Championship
   Miro (c) vs. Lee Johnson (w/Dustin Rhodes)
3. Christian Cage (w/Jungle Boy) vs. The Blade (w/Matt Hardy)
4. NWA World Women’s Title Eliminator Match
   The Bunny vs. Leyla Hirsch
5. 3rd Labor of Jericho
   Chris Jericho vs Juventud Guerrera

Bray Wyatt was released by WWE yesterday after having been with the company for 12 years. According to a report from Wrestling Observer Radio, Wyatt had been out of action with a medical issue and had just gotten cleared to return.

“He’d been out for medical reasons, and he had just gotten cleared,” said Dave Meltzer. “I guess when he got cleared they evaluated the situation and he was told that due to budgetary reasons that he is being cut. The basic gist is he’s another high-contract guy. Whether it’s because of concern over the medical reasons is the real reason or they did not come up with a reason to justify his salary, I don’t know which of that it is but that is the basic deal with him.”

Wyatt had been expected to return in August and had been booked on some shows.

“Dave Meltzer reported that Wyatt was told by John Laurinaitis that his release was due to budget cuts. He was preparing to return in August and was booked on some shows,” wrote Josh Nason from WON. 

“One source pointed the finger squarely at WWE President Nick Khan and CFO Kristina Salen, stating that they are so “obsessed” with the company not being even one iota in the red on the financial ledgers,” PW Insider’s Mike Johnson wrote.

Serena Deeb posted a video on Instagram updating fans on her current injury status. Deeb missed all of March and April with a knee injury. In her recent video, Deeb reveals her knee has been giving her problems in matches lately.

“Recently, I hit a roadblock and I wanted to address it and be honest. I see everything. ‘Serena should be on Dynamite more. Serena should be on pay-per-view more. Serena is the best.’ You’re right. The truth is, right now, I’m hurt. I’m injured. My knee has been playing up for a while and bothering me in matches. I tried to fight through the pain.”

“Yes, right now, I’m injured and I’m hurt,” Deeb continued. “But I will be back to AEW and I will be back to once again be champion and I will remind each and everyone one of you that not only am I the best women’s wrestler in the world, I’m the best wrestler in the world. I am Serena Deeb, the woman of a thousand holds.”

Deeb wrestled six times after returning from injury in May. She defined the NWA Women’s title twice in AEW. She defeated Red Velvet on Dynamite and then Riho at Double or Nothing’s Buy-In event. Deeb then lost the NWA title to Kamille at the When Our Shadows Fall PPV. She would team with Kylie Rae and defeated Skye Blue and Thunder Rosa on NWA Powerrr after the PPV. Deeb defeated Tesha Price on Dark Elevation at the end of June. Her last match in AEW came on Dark Elevation as well when she teamed with Tay Conti and defeated Jazmin Allure & Vertvixen.

Transcriptions via Fightful

All Elite Wrestling filed to trademark the term “King of Harts” on July 28th with the US Patent and Trademark Office.

Martha Hart began selling Owen Hart merchandise on Pro Wrestling Tees not long after the Dark Side of the Ring documentary aired on Vice. Many of the items available have the “King of Harts” nickname on it. Sales of the merchandise go to benefit the Owen Hart Foundation.

Chris Jericho spoke about AEW possibly doing something to honor Owen in an interview with Sportkeeda last year.

“I think the family realises there’s other places to go other than WWE, there’s a lot of other Halls of Fame and a lot of other places where Owen could get some of the accolades that he deserves, 21 years later.”

“I’d love to see (Martha) do something with AEW. I think the spirit of Owen Hart lives on in AEW for sure.”

Owen Hart Wins 1994 King of the Ring

Owen Hart began using the nickname shortly after winning the 1994 King of the Ring tournament. His brother Bret Hart had won the tournament the previous two years. Just a few months earlier, Owen had defeated Bret in the opening match of WrestleMania 10. Bret then defeated Yokozuna in the main event of that same show to win the WWF Championship, however. Bret and Owen would then face each other at SummerSlam 94 inside a steel cage.

The states purposes of the trademark are listed as:

“Entertainment services, namely, wrestling exhibitions and performances by a professional wrestler and entertainer rendered live and through broadcast media including television and radio, and via the internet or commercial online service; providing wrestling news and information via a global computer network; information in the fields of sports and entertainment via an online community portal; a website in the field of sports entertainment information; fan club services, namely, organizing sporting events in the field of wrestling for wrestling fan club members; organizing social entertainment events for entertainment purposes for wrestling fan club members; providing online newsletters in the fields of sports entertainment; online journals, namely blogs, in the field of sports entertainment.”

Bray Wyatt’s release from WWE is being considered surprising to many within the wrestling industry. It is also being reported that this is not a case of him having asked for his release.

Both PW Insider and the Wrestling Observer have stated that the reason for Wyatt’s release was “budget cuts” similar to the other recent roster cuts. According to the Wrestling Observer, there were plans for Wyatt to return in August.

John Laurinitis is said to be the one who called Wyatt today and informed him. The reason Wyatt was given for his release was budget cuts.

“Dave Meltzer reported that Wyatt was told by John Laurinaitis that his release was due to budget cuts. He was preparing to return in August and was booked on some shows,” wrote Josh Nason from WON.

“One source pointed the finger squarely at WWE President Nick Khan and CFO Kristina Salen, stating that they are so “obsessed” with the company not being even one iota in the red on the financial ledgers,” PW Insider’s Mike Johnson wrote.

According to the report from PW Insider, people backstage in the company were shocked by the release based on how well Wyatt’s merchandise tends to sell. Johnson also wrote that one source had said to him that Vince McMahon and Bray Wyatt’s relationship could run hot and cold at times as well.

News of Bray Wyatt’s release from WWE is drawing strong reactions from across the wrestling world. Numerous wrestlers, including Wyatt’s former family member Braun Strowman, Alexa Bliss and Matt Hardy have all commented.

Alexa Bliss has turned her Twitter private today. The FITE app caught a screen grab of her comments regarding Wyatt before she did so, however.

Mickie James Reacts To Bray Wyatt’s Release

Mickie James offered the following comments regarding Bray Wyatt’s release from WWE.

“I think what you meant to say was: “Thank you so much for coming up with such an incredible gimmick(time & time again)one so cool & over, we really didn’t know how to book it right. So we just gave it to someone else so we can still make ALL the money off of it & let you go”

James then clarified her comments should not be taken as anything negative against Alexa Bliss.

“This isn’t against Alexa. I love her. She’s an incredible performer who is killing it in a role she was given. She always does. We as artists take every role we’re given & turn it into gold. He, she, they both did that. Like it/not. Facts are facts. So sorry if that offends you.”

“Machine Gun” Karl Anderson and Tama Tonga are 2 of the original 4 members of Bullet Club. Anderson left NJPW in 2016 for WWE, however, setting the stage for the Guerrillas of Destiny to take over as the faction’s top heavyweight tag team.

Now, however, Anderson is in the Elite with former Bullet Club members Kenny Omega, Doc Gallows, and the Young Bucks. On Impact Wrestling recently, Jay White aid he was not allowing Anderson and Gallows back in the group. Don Callis then noted that it should be White asking for permission to join the Elite. So, tension has been brewing between the two stables.

The rivalry brewing between the Elite and Bullet Club spilled over onto Twitter recently. Anderson Tweeted out a photo “The Elite Squad” from Fight for the Fallen leading to the exchange with Tama.

This led to Tama Tonga responding with the following:

“I would argue with you, but we’re past that. Your good brother philosophy is shallow deep. The day is coming,” Tonga Tweeted.

Anderson then responded, asking Tonga to not make him “Kill what I created.”

“Don’t do this Tama.. I’ve been holdin off on Killin the Bullet Club for good. Please don’t make me kill what I created. I’m beggin u”

Nick Gage’s recent performances in GCW and AEW have gotten a lot of people talking. One of those people is Booker T. He mentioned on his Hall of Fame show recently that if more wrestlers were like Nick Gage, the industry would be better off for it.

“I’ll tell you this. Nick Gage, I have never met this dude before in my life. But I’ll tell you, if everyone in this business had the same thought process as a Nick Gage, the business would be in a much, much better place,” Booker said.

“This guy, Nick Gage, you pull up photos of this guy, and you’ll never gonna see him smiling in any of them. He’s got the same look on his face in every photo, in every picture I have ever seen him in. There is not a picture of him being happy. It’s a picture of a guy who’s getting ready to go into a deathmatch, each and every night. He’s the real deal.”

Booker T Praises Nick Gage

40-year-old Nick Gage is a 21-year pro, having first made his debut in February of 1999. He was trained by the CZW school and John Zandig. Gage is a 4x CZW World Champion and was inducted into the CZW Hall of Fame in 2009.

“The guys in WWE, Impact Wrestling, AEW – they can learn a whole lot from Nick Gage, and that’s just my opinion. I don’t know a lot about him, but when someone sees something different about you in this business, it’s uncanny.”

Booker continued to say he’s not actually seen Gage wrestle, but that doesn’t impact his opinion. Gage feels different, serious and real, and that is what is appealing about him to Booker.

“I’ve never watched one match. But I know when you look at this dude, he isn’t the guy you’re gonna walk up on and say, ‘What about that wrestling stuff ya’ll do?’ Because he might hit you. He’s the real deal. If everybody walked along that same line and took it as serious as this guy does, it would be a much better place.”

H/T transcriptions via 411 Mania

New Japan Pro Wrestling posted to Twitter that they received a message from Jon Moxley regarding NJPW Resurgence. The former IWGP United States Champion has challenged Karl Anderson & Doc Gallows to a tag match on the show. Moxley says he has a mystery partner for the event.

“I just want to send a little message real quick after that match to New Japan Pro Wrestling,” Moxley begins in the video message. “Wherever my travels in this sport take me you can be sure of one damn thing, I will settle scores that need settling whether it takes months, weeks, days, hours, years, I will eventually get you. I will settle the score. I’ve got a little business with these Bullet Club type guys you know and I was just thinking on the 14th I’ve got a buddy of mine I’m meeting in LA for some beers, so why don’t we make it a 2 for 1?”

“Good Brothers, Gallows, Anderson, you meet me at Resurgence in LA and I’ll have a surprise for you,” Moxley continued.

Matches confirmed for the show on August 14thin include Jay White vs David Finlay, and Lance Archer vs Hiroshi Tanahashi.

Moxley’s comments can be heard in the Tweet below:

Former WWE Superstar Braun Strowman (Adam Scherr) recently revealed on Instagram that he has 15% paralysis in his left leg.

“Awe my big dear lifting days are a lil behind me since my back injury in 2015. My left leg is around 15% paralyzed,” he wrote.

Strowman’s First Post-WWE Booking Revealed

Strowman’s first booking since being released by WWE has also been announced. According to a report on Lucha Libre Online, Strowman will be taking part in an event in Qatar on February 26th. The QPW Super Slam 3 event has numerous top names in the industry booked already. Also set to appear include Bret Hart, Sting, Eric Bischoff, Booker T, Jon Moxley, and the reunion of former Nation of Domination members Mark Henry, Ron Simmons, and the Godfather.

There have also been reports that WWE is interested in bringing back Strowman. In last week’s edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer wrote that WWE had interest in bringing him back following the rumors of CM Punk and Daniel Bryan heading to AEW.

Strowman had an 8-year run with WWE after signing in 2013. He is a 1x Universal Champion, 1x Intercontinental Champion, 2x tag team champion (1x with Seth Rollins, 1x with Nicholas). Strowman won the Money in the Bank in 2018, The Greatest Royal Rumble in Saudi Arabia that same year, and the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal in 2019.

Harry Smith (aka Davey Boy Smith Jr. & DH Smith) returned to WWE recently in a Dark match taped before Smackdown on July 16th. He teamed with Austin Theory and defeated Odyssey Jones & Xyon Quinn. According to a report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Smith signed with WWE in April but his return has been kept quiet.

“Harry Smith, who has been working dark matches as a tag team with Austin Theory, actually signed with the company in April but everyone was told to keep it quiet until he debuted,” wrote Dave Meltzer.

Smith’s last indy appearance was at the GCW Bloodsport show on April 8th, 2021. John Laurinaitis was said to have been behind recruiting him back into the company.

The original plan had been for Smith to debut as a babyface on NXT UK. A program with WALTER over the NXT UK title was on the table but Vince McMahon reportedly wanted Smith for the Smackdown brand.

“Laurinaitis pushed hard for him to be on the main roster and Vince wanted him on Smackdown,” Meltzer continued.

In his first run with WWE, Smith won tag team gold along with Tyson Kidd twice. He held the IWGP Heavyweight tag titles along with Lance Archer 3x in NJPW. Smith, Teddy Hart, and Brian Pillman Jr. also held the tag titles in MLW.