Monday, October 5th marked 23 years since the death of wrestling legend Brian Pillman. The “Loose Cannon” famously once convinced Eric Bischoff to legitimately release him from his WCW contract as part of a groundbreaking ‘worked shoot’ storyline back in 1996. Pillman would use the opportunity of being a free agent to sign a big contract with WWE.
Brian Pillman signs with the World Wrestling Federation
During a recent episode of the 83 Weeks podcast, Bischoff spoke about his memories of Brian Pillman. Co-host Conrad Thompson asked Bischoff about his reaction upon finding out that Pillman has passed away.
“My own personal reaction, I was – devastated might be too strong a word, Brian and I weren’t that close and I don’t want to suggest that we were – but I was really saddened by it, obviously,” Bischoff said. “Brian was someone who I considered a friend regardless of the business issues that we may or may not have had from time to time.”
“Beyond those issues, Brian was just someone that I dug being around,” Bischoff continued. “He was a guy that I got to know a little bit in WCW prior to getting into management. Spent a little bit of time with him on a European tour and had quite a bit of fun.”
Bischoff continued by saying that he and much of the WCW locker room were devastated by his passing. As tragic has his death was, Bischoff says that he and others were not entirely surprised at Pillman’s demise due to the lifestyle he was living at the time.
“It was, I would say, shocking but not surprising, is unfortunately probably the most accurate way to state most people’s reactions. Regardless of what was going on in Brian’s personal life, he was a very well-liked individual.”
In a controversial move, WWE is set to assume ownership of Twitch and Cameo accounts belonging to members of its roster soon.
Many WWE stars, such as Paige, Zelina Vega, Dakota Kai, and more have successful video game streaming accounts on Twitch and have been vocal about WWE’s new policy regarding 3rd party deals.
Paige teased on social media that she’s learned a lot about “unionism” recently on Monday. Fellow WWE Superstar Zelina Vega publicly acknowledged the tweet.
While no one on the WWE roster has come right out and spoken against the policy, many have issued comments on why they started their Twitch channels.
“Twitch is MY place what I built with my wonderful fans. A place where people can go and feel some positivity and little bit of normalcy. Fun. Interactive. Non judgemental. Charitable place. I’m proud of what I built with my fan base,” Paige Tweeted.
Starting Twitch up again was purely for three reasons; to have fun as a gamer, communicate with y’all during a difficult year and to give as much possible back to different charities.
Andrew Yang has been quite vocal about his opposition to WWE’s policy of classifying talent as independent contractors. He has been especially outspoken on the matter lately due to the new policy on 3rd party agreements.
“A lot of it is that wrestlers are afraid to speak out, and I’ve had wrestlers past and present reach out to me and say that Vince has been getting away with exploitation of wrestlers calling them independent contractors while controlling their activities for years and years,” Yang said in an interview with Wrestling Inc. “A lot of it is just that they are a quasi-monopoly, and wrestlers fear that if they do try and unionize or organize in any way that Vince doesn’t like, that it will never work again.”
Jeff Jarrett’s lawsuit against Anthem Sports and Entertainment continues to drag through the Tennessee court system. The suit is related to the failed merger of Jarrett’s Global Force Wrestling and Impact. He first filed the lawsuit in the summer of 2018.
The case was originally declared a mistrial this August. This was due to “cumulative errors by both the Court and counsel resulted in neither party receiving a fair trial”. The two parties have also been ordered into remediation but do not believe a settlement can be agreed upon.
Hearings for the case hit another snag this summer. The Tennessee courts closed to pay respect to the passing of Judge Pamela Reeves causing further delays.
According to an update from PW Insider, Jarrett’s team has recently filed a motion for another trial.
“Plaintiffs Global Force Entertainment, Inc. and Jeffrey Jarrett respectfully request the Court set a date for re-trial,” reads Jarrett’s legal team’s filings. “Although the parties have a private mediation scheduled for November 3, 2020, Plaintiffs do not believe there is any realistic chance of settlement in this case without a settlement conference before a judicial officer given the parties’ positions on the likely outcomes (and causes of such outcomes) at re-trial.”
News broke yesterday that the hit Netflix series GLOW will not return for a 4th season. The next season was set to be the final one for the series but showrunners made the decision to cancel it due to the pandemic. The show not returning will hit former Knockouts Champion, Taya Valkyrie, particularly hard as she was set to join the cast for the 4th and final season.
Taya took to Twitter to release a statement on GLOW’s cancellation:
“To say I’m disappointed would be an understatement. This past February I was cast on @GLOWnetflix S4. This was finally my chance to be seen as an actress, to work with some of the most talented women behind and in front of the camera.”
“I’m heartbroken that the work we did will never be seen and that we didn’t get to finish what had been started. Thank you to everyone that was so nice to me and supportive on set. I guess I’ll just have to wait longer to meet ya Hollywood.”
A Netflix spokesperson spoke with Deadline regarding the decision to cancel the show.
“We’ve made the difficult decision not to do a fourth season of GLOW due to COVID, which makes shooting this physically intimate show with its large ensemble cast especially challenging,” A Netflix spokesperson told Deadline. “We are so grateful to creators Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch, Jenji Kohan and all the writers, cast and crew for sharing this story about the incredible women of GLOW with us and the world.”
Dominik and Rey Mysterio have commented in several interviews that they hope one day Dominik will wear a mask and use the name “Prince Mysterio”. During a recent interview, Dominik spoke about having future plans to be a masked luchador like his father.
“There’s still talks about it,” Dominik said when asked if there was talk about putting a mask on him in WWE. “We would like to eventually get into the tradition of Lucha Libre, which would be putting a mask on me and taking on the name but I think that’s all down the line in the future.”
“Everyone kind of knows my face and what I look like and the idea of wearing a mask is to hide your identity to be able to go out to places and stuff like that,” he continued. “But I think I could find a unique way of bringing a mask into my character.”
He continued to say that he would be known as “Prince Mysterio” as “Rey” means “King” in Spanish.
“My long goal would be Prince Mysterio, for me, since “Rey” in Spanish is “King”. So for my character, it would be Prince Mysterio.”
A former WWE backstage producer was recently arrested in Vanderburgh County, Indiana. According to a report from PW Insider, Sarah Stock was arrested early Sunday morning and charged with aggravated battery, public intoxication, disorderly conduct, and resisting law enforcement.
She was booked and released early Sunday morning by the Vandenburgh Sheriff’s Department.
Stock had been with WWE since 2015 but was furloughed this spring and later released due to the ongoing global pandemic. She wrestled as Sarita in TNA Wrestling from 2009 to 2013. She has also competed for companies such as Shimmer as well as CMLL in Mexico. Stock had previously wrestled under the names Dark Angel and Canadian Dark Angel as well.
While in TNA, Stock won the promotion’s women’s tag-team championships twice. She won the inaugural titles in 2009 with Taylor Wilde. They would hold the belts for 106 days before dropping them to Awesome Kong and Hamada.
Stock would team with Zelina Vega in 2011 and again win the belts. This time her team defeated Angelina Love and Winter to gain the championships. They would hold the titles for 129 days until dropping them to Brooke Tessmacher and Tara. Her 2 reigns and 227 combined days spent with 1/2 of the women’s tag belts ranks her 5th all-time in the promotion.
Impact Wrestling presented Victory Road last night on the Impact Plus streaming service. The event was headlined by an Impact World Championship match between Eric Young and Eddie Edwards. Heath also made his in-ring debut for the promotion and teamed with his former partner, Rhino.
Young retained his Impact World Championship over Eddie Edwards. After the match, he looked to continue the assault until Rich Swann made the save. Swann and Young will face each other at Bound for Glory on October 24th.
Heath and Rhino teamed up for the first time in Impact Wrestling. In storyline, Heath still hasn’t signed a contract with Impact but after this match, Scott D’Amore said they would offer him a deal this Tuesday night.
Impact Wrestling Victory Road Quick Results:
The Rascalz (Dez & Wentz) defeated XXXL (Acey Romero & Larry D)
Brian Myers defeated Tommy Dreamer
X-Division Championship Willie Mack defeated Rohit Raju (c) by Countout
Impact Wrestling’s ratings on AXS TV are staying steady just under the 200,000 viewers mark. According to a recent report from Wrestlenomics, the promotion’s ratings have stayed consistent for the most part lately but saw a big increase for a show at the end of the September headlined by Jordynne Grave vs Tenille Dashwood.
Impact did not fair well up against NXT when WWE’s developmental brand presented two Super Tuesday shows last month, however.
Below are the promotion’s television ratings since late July:
9/29/20: 168,000 viewers (54,000 in 18-49 demo)
9/22/20: 200,000 viewers (51,000 in 18-49 demo)
9/15/20: 170,000 viewers (43,000 in 18-49 demo)
9/8/20: 78,000 viewers (22,000 in 18-49 demo) (opposed by NXT)
9/1/20: 102,000 viewers (31,000 in 18-49 demo) (opposed by NXT)
8/25/20: 171,000 viewers (45,000 in 18-49 key demo)
8/18/20: 147,000 viewers (31,000 in 18-49 key demo)
8/11/20: 182,000 viewers (54,000 in 18-49 key demo)
8/4/20: 134,000 viewers (33,000 in 18-49 key demo)
7/28/20: 157,000 viewers (46,000 in 18-49 in key demo)
Information on Impact’s ratings before July 28th, 2020 can be found here.
Additionally, Impact has several international distribution deals. They are also a key component of the Fight Network which is a specialty channel on many cable and satellite packages outside the United States.
I've gotten a hold of weekly Impact Wrestling viewership on AXS TV.
Little was previously known about Impact viewership. It doesn't get reported on Showbuzzdaily. Some data has been reported by PWTorch. I've previously tweeted monthly data. pic.twitter.com/RiW4lUqwcO
Chris Jericho says his confrontation with Mike Tyson on AEW Dynamite this past spring was supposed to culminate in a match at September’s All Out pay-per-view. Jericho made the revelation on his latest Saturday Night Special YouTube show.
“Originally, I was supposed to work with Tyson at the September PPV, All Out II, and we just couldn’t get it done in time,” Jericho said.
“The second match I had with Orange [Cassidy] was originally going to be the Mimosa Mayhem Match but we moved it to the rubber match position.”
Jericho had the following to say to ESPN shortly after Tyson’s appearance on Dynamite this May.
“Whatever it is that we decide to do as we move forward, it’ll be great. You have one of the most iconic boxers—and most iconic personalities—of all time against one of the greatest pro wrestlers and personalities of all time. It writes itself.”
Tyson’s return to boxing likely played a role in negotiations between him and AEW breaking down for All Out II. “Iron Mike” is scheduled to face Roy Jones Jr. in a charity fight on November 28th, 2020. It will be Tyson’s first fight since 2005. The 54-year-old former Heavyweight Champion has a professional record of 50.
You can watch the latest Chris Jericho’s Saturday Night Special in the player below:
WWE has provided a first look at the new Capitol Wrestling Center, the newly redesigned live wrestling venue at the Performance Center in Orlando. The name is an homage to the Capitol Wrestling Corporation founded by Jess McMahon in 1953.
“It’s a historic callback to where this all began,” Triple H said to SI.com. “We gutted the Performance Center and it’s now rebuilt, so it feels like we’re going back to the beginning. To me, it feels like we’re going back to 1953. Just like then, we’re doing something different and new, taking the business to a whole new level.”
Much like the WWE Thunderdome, the Capitol Wrestling Center has LED boards surrounding the ring area with virtual fans. WWE is stating the look will be distinct to the NXT brand, however. Some select family and friends will also be permitted attendance to tonight’s show. Groups will be behind plexiglass, will have taken and passed a PCR test, and be wearing masks.
Triple H added that the new-look Performance Center will feature the high-tech bells and whistles of the ThunderDome, but with an edgier, darker look that he equated to the ‘ultimate heavy metal soundstage.’
“The Capitol Wrestling Center captures the feel and the vibe of NXT. We will have all the bells and whistles of the ThunderDome, but we’ll keep that NXT feel. It’s edgier, darker and raw—you’re walking into the ultimate heavy metal soundstage.”
“The building is a throwback to Capitol Wrestling, a business that caused a shift in wrestling. That is exactly what we’re planning on doing again, starting today in NXT.”
An email from Vince McMahon to talent on the WWE roster has reportedly been leaked. According to a report from Fightful Select, the below email was sent from Vince McMahon to the roster. The email is regarding 3rd party deals with companies such as Twitch or Cameo. The alleged leaked email reads as follows:
“Just a friendly reminder that this Friday, October 2 is the deadline for severing any unauthorized business relationships with 3rd parties. As was mentioned in my September 3 message, continued violations beyond this deadline will results in fines and may result in suspension of termination. If you need further details, please contact our EVP of Operations, Brad Blum. Thank you. Vince.”
Shortly after news first broke regarding the policy, it was later reported that talent would only have to use their real names for such accounts. Now it appears, that WWE is set to assume control of all accounts belonging to members of its roster.
Talent will still earn revenue from Twitch and Cameo but it will count toward their downside guarantee in their WWE contract. This may be part of a larger strategy WWE eventually rolls out regarding both Twitch and Cameo.
WWE is reportedly set to assume ownership of the Twitch accounts created by several members of its roster. The talent will still earn revenue from their Twitch accounts but it will count toward the downside guarantee in their contract with WWE.
Several WWE Superstars who have accounts on the video game streaming platform have issued a public statement regarding their relationship with Twitch.
Dakota Kai posted the following:
Starting Twitch up again was purely for three reasons; to have fun as a gamer, communicate with y’all during a difficult year and to give as much possible back to different charities.
“And host charities for people and animals in need. Yesterday we raised enough money to help someone get their cat the surgery they needed to survive. We love what we built and worked hard for,” Vega added.
Mia Yim has done charity streams on Twitch to raise money for people who need medical procedures and other causes. She posted the following regarding her relationship with Twitch:
Gaming has been my escape from reality and a way to interact with friends and fans throughout this difficult few months.
The community that I gained on twitch also help me raise funds for a friends burial expense and a friend’s kidney transplant.
“Twitch is MY place what I built with my wonderful fans. A place where people can go and feel some positivity and little bit of normalcy. Fun. Interactive. Non judgemental. Charitable place. I’m proud of what I built with my fan base,” Paige Tweeted.
Kyle O’Reilly will headline Takeover 31 tomorrow night against NXT champion Finn Balor. The Undisputed Era member lives with Type 1 diabetes and spoke to the NY Post recently about the challenges that come from living with the condition while being a pro-wrestler.
“That’s the thing about Type 1 diabetes, it is a daily grind, a daily challenge,” O’Reilly said. “But it’s a challenge and fight I can win on a daily basis, too. I know it keeps me accountable for my own health, my own well-being. I take it into my own hands. I do what I have to do to be the best performer and the best healthy human being I can possibly be.”
O’Reilly continued to talk about the challenges associated with having Type 1 diabetes and being a professional athlete.
“It’s not without its challenges, but it’s something I’ve dealt with my entire career since I was 18 years old. It’s something I’ve dealt with for a long time. I’ve always had a good grasp of it. I’ve looked at it as a blessing in disguise because it does sort of keep me accountable for my own health. I have no excuse to let things slide or to get lazy with my own health.”
It also appears as though some members of the UE are turning babyface. O’Reilly spoke about this as well during the interview.
“Pretty much all of my singles success in the past has come with me being a babyface, so it’s something I’m comfortable doing. It’s something I think I can be good at.”
O’Reilly won a gauntlet elimination match on NXT recently to earn the right to face Balor. The full interview can be read here.
It was reported recently that WWE is planning on assuming ownership of several Twitch accounts operated by talent on its roster. Paige, Dakota Kai, Mia Yim, and several others have successful accounts on the video game streaming platform.
Former US Presidential candidate Andrew Yang hopes to be in a cabinet position following the next election. He has publicly stated he plans to take action on WWE’s independent contractor policy when/if he is in a position to do.
According to Yang, he has heard from WWE Superstars that the company is asking them to sign new contracts that specifically mention Twitch.
Hearing from talent that WWE is forcing performers to sign new contracts that include twitch. Streaming on twitch will become a work obligation and if talent doesn’t stream they will forego earnings, be suspended or face penalties. Doesn’t sound like independent contractors.
WWE will reportedly be rolling out a new Twitch strategy, with streaming on the platform becoming part of a talent’s regular work schedule. Money earned from streaming on Twitch would count toward that talent’s downside guarantee.
Yang had the following to say regarding the Twitch deal recently when speaking to Wrestling Inc.
“A lot of it is that wrestlers are afraid to speak out, and I’ve had wrestlers past and present reach out to me and say that Vince has been getting away with exploitation of wrestlers calling them independent contractors while controlling their activities for years and years,” Yang said. “A lot of it is just that they are a quasi-monopoly, and wrestlers fear that if they do try and unionize or organize in any way that Vince doesn’t like, that it will never work again.”
It has been previously reported that Joey Ryan has launched two separate lawsuits against groups of people who publicly accused him of sexual misconduct. These allegations were made as part of the #SpeakingOut movement. Ryan subsequently was released from Impact Wrestling shortly after the allegations surfaced.
According to a report from PW Insider, Ryan has filed a 3rd lawsuit. This suit involves one accuser of Ryan’s that is based in Canada. The name of the accuser is being redacted to protect their identity.
This lawsuit features similar wording as to the previous two. Ryan is seeking to recoup losses that he has incurred as a result of damage to his public reputation. In addition to being fired from Impact Wrestling, the venue that hosted his Bar Wrestling also cut ties with him.
Additionally, this suit specifically mentions Dolph Ziggler’s brother Ryan Nemeth’s social media activity. His Tweets are alleged to have “encouraged violence to be committed on Plaintiff” according to documents filed.
“On information and belief, both [name redacted] Defamatory Statement and Nemeth’s response are available to view by any person interested or who happens upon [redacted]’s Twitter timeline. Also, no statement retracting [name redacted] Defamatory Statement or denouncing Nemeth’s statement has been made by [redacted.] In fact, more threats of violence upon Plaintiff in social networking sites have been made directly or indirectly to Plaintiff.”
Kevin Owens may once again have his opportunity to jump off the pirate ship at Raymond James Stadium.
News is coming in today that WWE is tentatively planning to move WrestleMania 37 from its planned venue of SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California to the originally planned WrestleMania 36 location of Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Bay, Florida. The NFL’s SuperBowl LV will be held in the same venue on February 7th, 2021.
Florida-based reporter Jon Alba and Inside the Ropes’ Garry Cassidy have been Tweeting about the news.
I was just about to run this within the hour but wanted to give #WWE a chance to comment and was waiting for a response. Multiple sources have told me as well WrestleMania may be on the move to Tampa, about a month after the Super Bowl is held at the same venue. https://t.co/vFjnxM0iry
WWE was forced to move WrestleMania 36 from Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Bay, Florida to their WWE Performance Center in Orlando. The event was originally scheduled for April 5th but WWE changed the show to a 2-night event.
This happened just weeks after other sporting leagues began shutting down due to the global pandemic.
Due to not having live fans in attendance for the first time in WrestleMania history, the event featured multiple “Cinematic Matches”. These included the Undertaker and AJ Styles’ Boneyard Match. Bray Wyatt and John Cena also met in a FireFly Fun House match on the show.
WWE’s NXT brand has been filming shows in their longtime home of Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida. According to a report from John Pollock of POST Wrestling, however, the brand will now be moving into the WWE Performance Center for the foreseeable future.
The change will begin with this weekend’s NXT Takeover 31. Triple H noted on a media call to promote the show that beginning with this weekend’s show NXT “will have a unique look and feel, something totally different that hasn’t been done, so far.” He would continue to refer to the new look as “game-changing.”
Following Takeover, NXT will stay in the Performance Center as will episodes of 205 Live. Whatever new look Triple H referred to on the conference call will likely apply to episodes of those two shows moving forward as well.
NXT Takeover 31 Lineup
Confirmed matches scheduled to take place on this weekend’s Takeover 31 include:
NXT Championship Finn Balor (c) vs Kyle O’Reilly
NXT Women’s Championship Io Shirai (c) vs Candice LeRae
NXT North American Championship Damian Priest vs Johnny Gargano
NXT Cruiserweight Championship Santos Escobar (c) vs Isiah “Swerve” Scott
Last month, reports circulated that WWE had issued a ban on its talent working with 3rd parties such as Twitch and YouTube. A later statement from the company, however, indicated that WWE Superstars would be able to keep their 3rd party deals provided they did not use their gimmick/screen names.
WWE was also looking to crack down on 3rd party VIP meet-and-greets involving their talent. SEScoops exclusivelyreported on how some in WWE were making a small fortune with such deals.
Now, a new report is stating WWE plans on assuming control of all Twitch accounts run by WWE talent.
According to a report by Wrestling Inc and confirmed by other sources, WWE issued a statement to talent that the company will be taking over all Twitch accounts. WWE will own the accounts but the talent will receive royalties from it that count towards their downside guarantee in their WWE contract.
Andrew Yang vs WWE’s Independent Contractor Policy
Former Presidential candidate Andrew Yang is hoping to be in a cabinet position following next month’s election. He has stated that if he is in a position to do so that he will take action on WWE’s policy involving talent under independent contractor agreements.
This would be infuriating to me if I had spent time building up my social media channels only to have WWE take them over from their ‘independent contractors.’ People are angry and rightfully so. https://t.co/Xa2WVsgWU3
Andrew Yang spoke to Wrestling Inc about WWE’s independent contractor policy:
“A lot of it is that wrestlers are afraid to speak out, and I’ve had wrestlers past and present reach out to me and say that Vince has been getting away with exploitation of wrestlers calling them independent contractors while controlling their activities for years and years,” Yang said. “A lot of it is just that they are a quasi-monopoly, and wrestlers fear that if they do try and unionize or organize in any way that Vince doesn’t like, that it will never work again.”
Stephanie McMahon has been listed as the #2 most influential marketing officer in the world by Forbes. The famous magazine posted its annual list today.
McMahon finished 2nd behind only Apple’s Phil Schiller.
“McMahon is an outspoken and highly visible executive at WWE, a company in an industry often mired in controversy,” the magazine wrote of McMahon. “The daughter of WWE CEO Vince McMahon, she is a former WWE Superstar herself, and she’s a big proponent of WWE Superstars growing their own brands via social media. She has also championed women’s equality in the WWE.”
The 44-year-old mother of 3 has been an outspoken proponent of women in sport and business. She’s also been a key driver of several of WWE’s charitable efforts, including Conor’s Cure.
“This year she spoke out about making the events that went on during the pandemic safe for fans and Superstars. In June she also reportedly shared what she and the company are doing to eliminate racial inequality on The Female Quotient—and partnered with FQ founder Shelley Zalis to create a discussion series called “Women in the Business of Sports,” Forbes’ report continued.
Alexa Bliss recently opened up about her upbringing during an interview with Metro UK. The multi-time WWE Women’s Champion spoke about her parents not allowing her to date when she was younger and other
‘I wasn’t allowed to date growing up, I just wasn’t allowed. My parents didn’t let me date really,” Bliss said. “I didn’t have my first boyfriend until senior year of high school.”
“I didn’t really go on dates. When you’re a senior in high school, where are you gonna go? We’d all go to the movies with our friends but I don’t really having any embarrassing one on one dates,” she continued.
Bliss also detailed a time in her childhood when she embarrassed herself in front of a crush.
“I would buy Pokemon cards because he had Pokemon cards, and I learned to skateboard because he skateboarded. Silly little things,” Bliss said about a neighborhood boy she developed a crush on.
“One time, I was riding my bike, right. ‘And I saw Cory skateboarding next door, and I looked over at him and as I was waving I ran my bike into my dad’s parked car and just ate it! Not my best moment, but it definitely happened.”
Bliss asked fans to share their “uncool” moments with her:
Share your uncool high school /teen moments using the #uncoolwithalexa !!!
The National Wrestling Alliance is currently promoting joint PPVs along with David Marquez’s United Wrestling Network. All 3 major NWA singles titles have been defended on the first 3 PPVs. Recently, however, NWA owner William Patrick Corgan announced that the company is working on bringing back NWA Powerrr soon as well.
“One year ago, we shot our first episode of NWA Powerrr,” Corgan wrote. “Suffice to say it’s been a crazy ride ever since. From trending #1 world wide on our debut to successful PPV’s to having to stop many plans (including the Crockett Cup) due to the plague, to Rosa appearing with the NWA Women’s Championship on @allelitewrestling to now adding our voice to the collective that is Prime Time Live on the @unitedwrestlingnetwork, I can only say to our great fans ‘hang in there.'”
Corgan continued to detail his plans for NWA Powerrr to return soon.
“We are currently talking about brining back POWERRR very soon, even if it means we can’t have fans in the stands because we just want to get back to work. But it’s nice to see our friend and former champion Tim Storm here. If anyone can lead us out of this, it’s a man or woman like him: who gives it all he or she’s got even when the chips are done. That sounds more grim than I mean it, ’cause yeah: still here, still kicking, and ready to get ready to rock…”
The NWA was forced to cancel its planned “Crockett Cup” PPV in March due to the ongoing pandemic.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is the new part-owner of the XFL along with Dany Garcia and Redbird Capital. The league was folded earlier this year following the onset of the global pandemic. It was announced in August that the Rock and an ownership group had purchased the rights to the league.
The Rock took to Twitter recently to announce when the league will return. The XFL’s 3rd incarnation will begin in the spring of 2022.
XFL returns SPRING 2022 ?
As owners, we’re proud to champion our XFL players, coaches, cities and fans into an electrifying 2022 season!
It’s an uphill battle – but we’re hungry, humble and no one will outwork us.
Garcia, The Rock, and XFL President and COO Jeffrey Pollack were quoted in a release about the league’s return.
“For the love of football and for the safety of our players and fans, we’ll be back on the field in 2022,” said Jeffrey Pollack, XFL President and COO. “The opportunity in front of us, with our new ownership, is simply too big to rush back. We want to do this properly with care and thought for everyone who loves football, especially our players, coaches, partners and fans.”
“The XFL represents the idea of ultimate opportunity; it’s a league of soul and culture, anchored by the pursuit of dreams and love for the game, that we couldn’t be more proud to lead,” said Garcia and Johnson. “Every XFL player, coach, city and fan is our top priority and we couldn’t be more excited to champion them in an electrifying 2022 season. We are the new XFL—hungry, humble and no one will outwork us.”
Two big heavyweights will collide next week on Dynamite with the FTW title on the line. Brian Cage will look to defend his championship against Will Hobbs. The two big men brawled at ringside during the Darby Allin vs Ricky Starks match this week and AEW officials scheduled them to go one-on-one next week.
This bout between two of the largest athletes in AEW has fans discussing potential ways the FTW title can be used in the promotion. Many fans have been commenting on the title possibly being used as a “Hoss” championship competed for by top heavyweights.
— “The MONSTAR” Will Hobbs (@TrueWillieHobbs) October 1, 2020
FTW Title History
Although the title is not officially recognized by AEW, this will be Brian Cage’s second title defence in the promotion. He defeated Brian Pillman Jr. with the belt on the line on an episode of Dark in July.
Cage is one of only three men to ever hold the title. Taz introduced the belt in 1998 and briefly lost it to Sabu in 1999. The title was abandoned after Taz defeated Sabu in a title vs title match at Living Dangerously 1999.
A new series is being produced by NBC on the early life of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. The Rock announced today that production had begun on the show’s first season and the main cast is set.
Rock noted that actor Bradley Constant will play the role of a young Dwayne Johnson.
“Bradley Constant will take the reigns of playing me at 15 and clearly kicking puberty’s ass,” Rock wrote on Instagram.
2 other actors will also play the Rock on the show. Adrian Groulx will play the Rock as a 10-year-old. Uli Latukefu will portray the Rock from ages 18 to 20.
“A series based on my wild and unpredictable childhood and formative years growing up,” Rock described the series in his post.
The Rock described the series in a video posted to social media shortly after the series was confirmed.
“We’re going to find the Rock wreaking havoc in the streets of Hawaii getting arrested,” Rock said. “We were forced to leave the island and move to all places, Nashville, Tennessee. Those were the years that were very formative and helped shape me. The confluence of wild personalities that came in and out of my life during these times are just fascinating.”
AEW World Champion Jon Moxley says he doesn’t want to be the next John Cena or the Rock. He has no aspirations to conquer Hollywood but if he was offered a role in a movie franchise he enjoys, he’d jump at the opportunity, provided he wouldn’t have to take time away from wrestling.
“‘I don’t have any aspirations to take over Hollywood or be the next Rock or John Cena,” Moxley said in a recent interview with the Bleacher Report. “That being said, if Marvel called and said ‘Do you want to be in the next Avengers or be Batman,’ I would be like ‘Hell yeah, sign me up.’ It’s fun, it’s a challenge and it’s a different craft. Unless it was some huge once–in–a–lifetime opportunity, if you offer me a role that requires me to take nine months off where I can’t wrestle, I am not going to do it.’”
Moxley continued to talk about how he was trained to always play to the person in the last row. He noted that with the fans in Daily’s Place so far away and spread out, that training has come in handy recently.
“‘I was trained in the Thatcher way,’” said Moxley. “It was old school. You over exaggerate and play to the last fan in the cheap seats. Now, everybody is in the cheap seats, so that training paid off. I am more worried about the people in the cheap seats than I am about the camera because they bought tickets and came with their family. It’s important to me that they have a good show.’”
Moxley Loves Wrestling For The Adrenaline Rush
Moxley also spoke about how he doesn’t wrestle for the fame or the money, he loves the rush from the crowd and the feeling he gets after a great match.
“I’m blessed to be able to make a living, but I don’t do this for money. My goal is not to get more famous. I’ve had a taste of fame and I could take it or leave it. I do this for that feeling at the end of the night when I am all bloody and sweaty thinking, “That was awesome.” That adrenaline rush of being on live TV, telling a story and feeling the fans going on a ride with you is why I do it.’”
