Bobby Lashley had a scary accident during his match with Drew McIntyre in Newcastle, England on Thursday.
During their bout, as both men hit the ropes, all four of the top turnbuckles of each ring post collapsed, bringing the top rope down as well. As a result, Lashley went flying out the ring, as this occurred while he was hitting the ropes. Lashley appeared to land badly on his head, but was able to get back up and finish the match.
Luckily, Lashley was able to finish the bout and leave the arena under his own power. He and McIntyre even teamed up after the match to beat down Sami Zayn.
Fair play to @FightBobby last night who styled out the broken ring rope and sent everybody home happy (with @DMcIntyreWWE hoofing @SamiZayn too!)
The fans also got to enjoy several other great matches on the card; including Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Sheamus, Gunther vs. Sami Zayn, and Sasha Banks vs. SmackDown Live Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair.
As for Bobby Lashley, he’s currently embroiled in a feud with Omos, who he defeated in singles action at WrestleMania 38. MVP then turned on Lashley, aligning himself with Omos, and the two men will rematch at the upcoming WrestleMania Backlash event on May 8.
Cody Rhodes is set to join Steve Austin on the newest episode of Broken Skull Sessions.
WWE has announced that “The American Nightmare” will be WWE Hall Of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin’s latest guest on Broken Skull Sessions next week, Friday May 6, 2022, on Peacock. Rhodes certainly has no shortage of stories to tell, and his road back to WWE will give Austin a plethora in regards to questions to ask about.
Rhodes departed from WWE in 2016, establishing himself as “The American Nightmare” while working for promotions such as Ring Of Honor (ROH), New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW), and All Elite Wrestling (AEW) – the latter of which Rhodes played an instrumental part in helping startup.
After his contract with AEW was up earlier this year, Rhodes decided to return to WWE, finally re-appearing as Seth Rollins’ mystery opponent at WrestleMania 38. Rhodes picked up the win in that contest, and followed that up with an excellent promo the following night on Monday Night RAW.
In the promo, Rhodes declared his intentions to challenge for a World Championship now that he’s with WWE. Currently, Rhodes is continuing his rivalry with Rollins as the pair are set to rematch at WrestleMania Backlash.
It will be interesting to see if Rhodes can eventually find his way into the World Title picture in the next few months with Roman Reigns, who reigns as both WWE Champion and WWE Universal Champion, seemingly working both RAW and SmackDown Live.
All of this, and more, is likely to be covered between Steve Austin and Cody Rhodes on Broken Skull Sessions. Will you be tuning in? Let us know in the comments!
Former WWE star Big Cass has touted Hall Of Famer Diamond Dallas Page as an instrumental figure in his battle with alcoholism.
Recently, Cass, real name William Morrissey, was a guest on Renee Paquette’s podcast, The Sessions. Morrissey opened up about his battle with alcoholism, being released from WWE, and how Dallas Page helped him get back on his feet.
He first noted that the drinking got out of hand in 2017 just before his WWE release. Morrissey admitted that everyone knew he was having a drinking problem, and he didn’t care at the time. However, looking back, he now views the situation as “sad.”
“Like in 2017, the drinking was really out of hand. It was easy to hide, because alcoholics are very good at hiding their alcoholism. So I was hiding it from a lot of people.
“I got injured and when I came back, I was just in a bad place mentally, and not to blame it on taking medications that I definitely shouldn’t be drinking with, but I guess I just kept drinking and kept fuc*ing up. The drinking, yeah, it got completely out of hand to the point where everybody was noticing.
“There was no hiding it anymore. Everybody knew. It’s sad to say looking back, but at the time, I knew everybody knew and I still didn’t give a fu*k. I was like, I didn’t care.
“I don’t know what switch flipped in my head, but I really gave up spiritually. At that point, I was done.”
Morrissey then talked about having his seizure at the House Of Hardcore event in Philadelphia. He revealed that, shortly after the incident, Diamond Dallas Page reached out to him. Page offered his help and the pair finally linked up in Atlanta in 2019. Morrissey touted Page as “instrumental” in getting him through rehab the first time.
“After I had that first seizure in Philadelphia back in 2018, he got in touch with me. He said, ‘You know if you’re ever ready to come down here and visit Atlanta, I’d really like to help you.’
“I guess in May of 2019 is when I went down to Atlanta to link up with him just hanging out, working out, and talking. We developed a relationship and a bond.”
Adam Cole still thinks Pat McAfee is a “dirtbag” – but gives the SmackDown Live commentator props for his performance at WrestleMania 38.
Cole was recently interviewed by Stephanie Chase and was asked about his former NXT rival’s performance on “The Grandest Stage Of Them All.” McAfee went one-on-one with Austin Theory in Dallas, Texas and managed to come out on top.
Still playing up to their old storyline, Cole said McAfee is still a “dirtbag,” but admits McAfee’s performance was one of the highlights of the entire weekend.
“As a person, he’s a dirtbag, can’t stand him,” Adam Cole said. “But if I will look objectively and talk about how much potential he has, Pat McAfee blows my mind. He’s so athletically gifted, as far as the wrestling part he’s done great.
“Everyone knows he can talk for hours, and he’s super compelling and interesting. Pat knocked it out of the park, he did an amazing, amazing job. So, as far as the potential of where he could go, and what he could do in the pro wrestling industry, I think he could go as far as he wants to, seriously.
“To me, it was one of the highlights of the entire weekend was Pat’s match. He’s a terrible person, but a lot of potential.”
McAfee had a big WrestleMania weekend in Dallas. First, got to make his in-ring WrestleMania debut against Austin Theory. The ex-NFL punter impressed with his in-ring ability, and even managed to pull out the win over the WWE Superstar. However, what came next was, arguably, even bigger.
Vince McMahon, sitting ringside to support Theory, came into the ring and demanded an impromptu match between himself and McAfee. McAfee, already beaten and tired from his first match, eventually fell to McMahon for the three count.
While McMahon and Theory celebrated, WWE Hall Of Fame Stone Cold Steve Austin hit the ring, stunning both Theory and McMahon to make the save. McAfee actually got to partake in a beer bash celebration with Austin, before “The Rattlesnake” hit McAfee with a stunner as well.
For McAfee, it was a dream-come-true for the longtime professional wrestling fan, and his performance inside the ring alone was impressive on its own.
It looks like the recent COVID-19 contractions have crept into WWE as well.
Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio reports that several WWE stars have been missing shows due to COVID-19. No names were listed as to who actually got the virus, but it was specified that there are several who have fallen ill.
As of this writing, WWE has not made any official announcement, and no Superstars have gone public with the news either. Now that COVID-19 isn’t as widespread as it once was, WWE is no longer regularly testing their athletes for the virus.
However, when talents do test positive, they’re kept off shows to prevent spread. Prior to this week’s episode of AEW Dynamite it was revealed that AEW World Champion Adam “Hangman” Page was kept off the show due to contracting COVID.
It was also reported that AEW had to do a lot of rewriting as a result. Although he wasn’t at the show, it was still announced that he’d be defending his title against CM Punk at Double Or Nothing.
Several professional wrestling stars have already dealt with the virus in the past; including Roman Reigns, Randy Orton, Jeff Hardy, Goldberg, Matt Jackson of the Young Bucks, Will Ospreay, KENTA, Jake Roberts, Carmela, Nyla Rose and Pat McAfee.
SEScoops wishes the everyone currently affected a quick and full recovery.
The WWE is planning to run a lot more stadium shows in 2023.
According to a report from Wrestling Observer Newsletter’s Andrew Zarian, WWE President & Chief Revenue Officer Nick Khan has pressed forward the idea of running more stadium events moving forward. As of this writing, the WWE has eight stadium shows in total for 2022.
As Zarian mentions, there are some meaningful benefits to running stadium shows, even if it’s not a sell out of 50k+.
“The scalability of large stadiums is very beneficial when it comes to having live attendance over 15k. The event doesn’t have to be a sell-out of 50k+ but now you have room to do 20-35k shows more often leading to much higher revenue & higher level of excitement for the event.”
The scalability of large stadiums is very beneficial when it comes to having live attendance over 15k.
The event doesn't have to be a sell-out of 50k+ but now you have room to do 20-35k shows more often leading to much higher revenue & higher level of excitement for the event.
So far, WWE has run four stadium shows this year. The first being the Royal Rumble from The Dome at America’s Center in St. Louis. Next up was Elimination Chamber from the Jeddah Super Dome in Saudi Arabia. Finally, Night One and Night Two of WrestleMania 38 took place from AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
Next up will be Money In the Bank from Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on July 2; followed by SummerSlam from the Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee on July 30; then WWE UK PLE from the Principality Stadium in Cardiff on September 3 – which might already have a big match set for the card soon. Finally, the promotion will return to Saudi Arabia, for what’s believed to be TLC, some time between September and November.
2023 already has two stadiums shows lined up in WrestleMania 39, Night One and Night Two, from SoFi Stadium in Hollywood, California.
WWE almost ran a storyline about The Undertaker having a son – but it was apparently nixed after some comments from Triple H.
Recently, former WWE writer Freddy Prinze Jr. took to his podcast, Wrestling With Freddie, to talk abut his time in the WWE writer’s room. Prinze talked about a time when the creative team was tasked with setting up an opponent for The Undertaker to run through before starting a program with Edge.
Undertaker’s initial opponent was sidelined with an injury, so the creative team was scrambling to find a meaningful replacement. Several ideas were kicked around, before someone suggested bringing up an FCW talent for Undertaker to “smash,” but threw in adding that the opponent was “The Deadman’s” son in a “supernatural sense.”
Prinze said he got a passive approval of “Yeah, whatever” from Michael Hayes and went on to explain the plans for introducing Undertaker’s son, Hadrian.
“We write this promo and he’s sort of hacking into the network feed. So we started hacking the feed on Thursday night SmackDown back then, and they would be kind of grainy pictures. They look kind of like 80s grainy and he had these messages for The Undertaker that he would come in with, ‘His (Undertaker’s) time is nearing and now it’s going to be my time.
“I have anger and love for you.’ He was a British guy. His name was Hadrian. What a great name, Hadrian. I think it was Hadrian Howard. He had this accent and he sounded smooth when he spoke. He had a shaved head and a bit of a beard. He looked real cool, but he definitely was a smaller guy, smaller than me.
“I’m six one right now, like 185. So he’s cutting these promos and he’s doing a good job. So we get the story approved by Freebird, and then we get it approved by Vince. We start shooting these little segments and they’re airing on television.
“It’s an ongoing thing. He’s not calling out The Undertaker, but he’s speaking about The Undertaker, and you’re just waiting to figure out what the reason for it is. It was this father-son thing. So we’re building up, I think we get two weeks of TV out of it.”
Prinze went on to explain how the angle got killed during a production meeting. Triple H walked in and made a comment about the talent that was going to be used for the storyline, saying “He looks like he cuts my grass.” After that, McMahon killed the angle.
“So we’re in the production meeting and everyone’s putting their segments through. Here comes our segment and nobody said boo the last two weeks or even three weeks of TV that we got out of it. Not one agent. Not Kevin Dunn. Not Vince. Not anybody.
“All of a sudden out of nowhere, Hunter [Triple H] says ‘Are we seriously going with this guy?’ Remember, this is not a Pay-Per-View match. This is not a guy that would get any sort of offense on The Undertaker.
“It would be just a build up for The Undertaker to have something to do so he could smash this guy and then get rolling over to Edge. He says, ‘Are we really going to go with this guy?’ Vince goes, ‘What do you mean? What’s the problem?’
“He says, ‘He looks like he cuts my grass, man’, and Vince laughed. Literally all the air went out of the room. Like you could just feel it.”
As if having all that hard work thrown out the window all of a sudden wasn’t enough, Prinze also said one of the daunting parts of it all was having to break it to the young talent that his high-profile storyline introduction to the WWE main roster, with a Superstar the caliber of The Undertaker, was now nixed. Prinze described the ordeal as “sickening.”
It appears that a WWE Hall Of Famer is backstage for tonight’s episode of WWE NXT 2.0 in Orlando, Florida.
Per a report from PWInsider, Rick Steiner is backstage for tonight’s episode of WWE NXT. He is likely there to further the storyline between Joe Gacy and his son, WWE NXT Champion Bron Breakker. A few weeks back, WWE did an angle where Gacy kidnapped Rick Steiner and put him in a shark tank.
The Hall Of Famer hasn’t been on WWE NXT TV since, but Gacy did return Steiner’s Hall Of Fame ring to Breakker last week, before pushing him off a platform. Both Rick and his brother Scott Steiner were inducted into the Hall Of Fame earlier this month prior to WrestleMania 38.
Rick’s son, Bron Breakker, currently reigns as NXT Champion and is expected to make his next title defense against Gacy at NXT Spring Breakin’ next year.
Check out the updated card for tonight’s episode of WWE NXT 2.0 below:
Solo Sikoa vs. Trick Williams
Fallon Henley, Josh Briggs & Brooks Jensen vs. Legado del Fantasma (Elektra Lopez, Cruz Del Toro & Joaquin Wilde)
Nikkita Lyons vs. Lash Legend
Nathan Frazer makes his NXT 2.0 debut
Katana Chance & Kayden Carter vs. Yulisa Leon & Valentina Feroz
Drew McIntyre sees a lot of similarities between he and Cody Rhodes’ journeys back to WWE.
Back in 2014 McIntyre was released from the WWE, forcing him to return to the independent scene; additionally working for promotions such as Evolve, IMPACT Wrestling, Pro Wrestling Guerilla (PWG), and so many more. In 2017 he was brought back to WWE after proving himself away from the company, eventually earning himself a WWE Title win over Brock Lesnar.
His former Tag Team Championship partner, Cody Rhodes, has had a very similar path. Rhodes left WWE in 2016 and went on to develop his “American Nightmare” gimmick after working for promotions such as IMPACT, New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) and the then-newly developed All Elite Wrestling (AEW).
Now, Rhodes has returned to WWE and has his eyes locked on a World Championship. Rhodes and Drew McIntyre have walked very similar paths in terms of leaving WWE, and returning proven commodities.
For Rhodes’ sake, hopefully he has the same results as McIntyre, earning a World Championship run. Speaking to Cultaholic, McIntyre discussed the similarities between he and Rhodes’ paths, praising his former tag team partner’s growth.
“Personally I’m happy to see him back, and there’s a few of us that have been around for a few years now that are excited to see Cody back just because we’re buddies with him and with his talent he adds to the show, 100%,” said McIntyre.
“And it’s cool to see how much he’s grown as a performer and as a person, much like myself. When I was gone from the company, I had to kinda go find who I was as a performer, kinda grow up as a man, and Cody’s done the exactly the same. And it’s cool. And I’d seen him before he came back and was aware of that. But it’s cool just to see him back in WWE.”
Currently, Rhodes is in the midst of a feud with Seth Rollins on Monday Night RAW. “The American Nightmare” made his WWE return against Rollins as his surprise opponent at WrestleMania 38.
Rhodes came out on top in the matchup, and now the pair will rematch at WrestleMania Backlash on May 8 from the Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island.
When Kevin Owens first joined WWE, he knew right away he did not want to end up like Dolph Ziggler.
Ziggler has accomplished quite a bit under the WWE’s banner; including two World Heavyweight Title wins, six Intercontinental Title runs, two United States Title victories, a Money In The Bank ladder match win, and so much more. However, despite all his accolades, Ziggler, along with many others, believe he was underutilized.
Upon joining WWE in 2014, Owens spotted how frustrated Ziggler was with his position in the company, and knew immediately he did not want to end up in the same boat. “KO” explained during a recent interview with Corey Graves on “WWE After The Bell.”
“He’s a guy I respect a ton, and I don’t think I’ve ever told him this but he’s one of the guys that I would look at and be like, ‘I don’t want to be like Dolph,’” Owens said. “In the sense that he’s so good and I would see him so frustrated because he’s so good and he feels like he should be doing more, and he was right.
“I remember thinking, man, I don’t want to be like that. This was when I was first [in WWE] in 2014-15, I was like, I don’t want to be like that, I want to come to work and I don’t want to be frustrated all the time.
Owens went on to explain that he’s not a fan of the “you’re in the wrong business” line, finding it too cliche. Instead, he believes some people just have different perspectives, and with enough hard work and persistence, it will all pay off. It certainly did for Ziggler, who found himself winning the NXT Championship not too long ago.
“But guess what, when you’re passionate and hungry and know you’re good, which is what he is, it’s inevitable. It’s going to happen to everybody.
“If you don’t go through that at one point, I’m not going to say you’re in the wrong business because that’s cliche and I don’t believe that, maybe you just have a different perspective, but the hunger to do more and to be able to contribute to the show as much as you think you should or could, that’s normal.
“But it’s important to eventually find that perspective to enjoy it because that’s my thing. I was like, man, Dolph never really seems to enjoy himself. And then that shifted, I’ve seen him now completely differently.”
Ziggler eventually dropped the NXT Championship the night after WrestleMania 38 on Monday Night RAW. He hasn’t wrestled a match on TV since. As for Owens, he’s coming hot off an epic No Holds Barred match with WWE Hall Of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin at WrestleMania.
Owens welcomed Austin back to the ring for the first time in over 19 years. Now, after suffering a loss to “The Texas Rattlesnake,” Kevin Owens is in the midst of a program with Elias’ new persona, Ezekiel.
Eric Bischoff is not expecting to be invited back to an All Elite Wrestling (AEW) show anytime soon.
The former WCW president has been honest in his assessment of AEW in recent weeks, irking AEW president Tony Khan and causing a riff in the pair’s relationship. Bischoff has argued that the product has “flatlined” ratings-wise and doesn’t think the promotion is focusing enough on storytelling.
Also, Bischoff added that their lack of growth has resulted in an an equal lack of licensing deals. Speaking on the MackMania podcast, Bischoff dove deeper in to his comments and the repercussions they may have had in regards to his relationship with AEW.
Bischoff noted he’s sure he wont’ be invited to an AEW show again, and he’s actually a little sad about that.
“I have been beating this drum, and this is one of the reasons why Tony probably thinks I am a pain in his ass at this point. I’ll never get invited to another AEW event, which is okay.
“I am a little sad about that, but I get it, I don’t take it personally,” Eric Bischoff said. “But I’ve been saying for over a year now when it comes to AEW. And this is why I am concerned about their dirt sheet booking approach, booking for the internet if you will. Is that if you’re not growing, you’re dying.”
In regards to Khan and AEW, they have certainly been keeping busy as of late. With massive signings such as CM Punk, Samoa Joe, Adam Cole, and more, AEW has assembled, arguably, the best roster in professional wrestling.
It was also recently announced that AEW will team up with New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) for the AEWxNJPW: Forbidden Door pay-per-view (PPV). Both promotions will bring their respective rosters together for a massive event that will see a promotion vs. promotion-like showcase take center stage.
AEWxNJPW: Forbidden Door goes down live on PPV from the United Center in Chicago, Illinois on Jun 26, 2022.
Recently, Ray and Henry took to Busted Open Radio to talk about a variety of professional wrestling topics, including the current feud between Flair and Ronda Rousey.
Current SmackDown Live Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair is so good that WWE Hall Of Famers Bully Ray and Mark Henry want her to wrestle men.
Flair successfully retained her title against Rousey at WrestleMania 38 in Dallas, Texas earlier this month. Now, they’ll run things back in an “I Quit” match at WrestleMania Backlash on May 8.
In the build-up to the bout, Flair actually put Drew Gulak in the Figure Eight, forcing him to yell “I Quit” several times. Ray and Henry both loved the segment, and it even generated some interest in them wanting to see “The Queen” work against men in the ring.
Henry went as far as saying that Charlotte Flair has the potential to eclipse her father, two-time WWE Hall Of Famer Ric Flair.
“She has the potential to eclipse Ric if she’s allowed to wrestle men and have a run doing that and then going back to women’s wrestling and being the ultimate heel, like, ‘I left y’all because y’all beneath me.’
“That can be, you know, another 10 years of her dominance that can make people only think that when you hear the name ‘Flair’ that you think Charlotte.”
As for Ray, he agrees that Flair should be working against men as well, and even suggested she put more men in the Figure Eight heading into WrestleMania Backlash to build up the submission hold.
“I love the fact that she put the figure eight on a man [Drew Gulak] last night. I want Charlotte to wrestle men. As the matter of fact moving into this match, you know, put the figure eight on two more guys, three more guys, have guys tapping out left and right.”
Charlotte Flair and Ronda Rousey will compete for the SmackDown Live Women’s Title at WrestleMania Backlash in an “I Quit” match from the Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island on May 8, 2022.
Earlier this week it was reported that WWE had loosened its policy on marijuana use, and WWE Hall of Famer Booker T has offered up his reaction.
It was reported by Fightful this week that WWE hasn’t fined or suspended talents in “years” for marijuana use. In the past, the promotion would issue out fines of $2,500 for those who tested positive for marijuana. However, it was noted that talents are still tested for “everything.”
Booker T took to his podcast, “The Hall Of Fame,” to offer up his take on the news. He noted that the move is “long overdue” and thinks it could be a huge benefit for talents dealing with lingering pain and injuries.
“It’s a long time overdue, I think – marijuana policy being lifted,” Booker T said. “Just because, like, science approved what marijuana can do for so many different types of ailments, especially pain management. And one thing about the professional wrestling game, the opioid problem got huge at one point in time. You know, guys trying to self-medicate and we lost a lot of guys due to that.
“So for me, I’ve been somewhat of an advocate, you know, not as outspoken as (Rob Van Dam). I’m sure he’d be proud right now. I’m sure he’d be happy. I’m sure he’s jumping for joy. I’m sure he’s celebrating, you know what I mean? But definitely, I’ve always been something that believed that shouldn’t be something that was on the banned list.”
It was reported that current WWE RAW Tag Team Champion Randy Orton was actually a big advocate for the change. His tag team partner, Matt Riddle, has been an open advocate for marijuana use since his days in NXT. Going even further back to the 90s, WWE Hall of Famer and former WWE Champion Bret Hart was also a pro-marijuana advocate.
Hart mentioned it gave athletes a better alternative to the dangerous methods commonly used amongst professional wrestlers to deal with pain.
The Cavinder Twins, Haley and Hanna Cavinder, have announced a transfer from Fresno State, over to The University of Miami – far closer to the WWE Performance Center.
Both young ladies are big stars in women’s college basketball, as well as social media after the massive following they’ve garnered. Back in December of 2021 the Cavinder Twins were signed to WWE as part of their Next In Line (NIL) program, allowing them to sign WWE deals once their college athletic eligibility is up.
The Cavinder Twins, along with Gable Steveson, were just a few of several big names inked to the WWE’s program. Thanks to the NCAA’s new Name, Image, and Likeness rule, allowing college athletes to monetize their likenesses, the Cavinder Twins will have an even better opportunity to bolster their NIL possibilities playing in the ACC. Including WWE, the duo already have deals with the likes of Boost Mobile and Champs Six Star Nutrition.
However, speaking to Front Office Sports, Haley Cavinder claims the NIL potential had little to do with their decision.
“Honestly, it did not [factor in] at all,” Haley said. “I know that a lot of people can assume it could be about NIL,” Hanna added, saying she and her sister looked for a program where they could win and “have the best opportunity to get to the March Madness tournament.” Haley did add she and her sister are “really excited for future business opportunities” that Miami presents.
Haley and Hanna have a combined social media presence of over 5 million followers. Per Time, the duo were nearing $1 million in sponsorship income late last year. And it’s all certainly well deserved if their on-court performances are any indication. Haley led Fresno State with 19.8 points per game last season. Hanna was right behind her at 14.6 points per game.
Haley also led the team in rebounds with 9.4 points-per-game, with Haley at third with 3.8. The twins held the two top spots in minutes played for the Fresno team as well. Haley took home All-Mountain West honors for the third year in a row for 2021-2022, and Hanna was a selection for the 2020 and ’21 All-Mountain West team.’
With all their elite college athletic experience, and a WWE opportunity already on the table, these two certainly have the makings for a bright future in professional wrestling. In fact, could they be the next Bella twins?
The celebrity match at WrestleMania 38 between Sami Zayn and Johnny Knoxville worked out so well that even Kevin Owens wants in on the fun.
Earlier this month in Dallas, Knoxville topped Zayn in a No Disqualification match at “The Showcase Of The Immortals,” and it actually ended up being one of the more entertaining matches of the entire weekend. That wasn’t the only celebrity performance from WrestleMania that weekend. Logan Paul also stepped into the ring, teaming up with The Miz to defeat Rey and Dominik Mysterio in tag team action.
Paul actually greatly impressed the professional wrestling community with his performance throughout the bout. During an appearance on Corey Graves’ “WWE After The Bell” podcast, Kevin Owens discussed the possibility of participating in a celebrity match of his own.
Owens named his favorite actor, Matthew McConaughey, as his desired celebrity opponent. “KO” said he saw McConaughey backstage at a WWE event once, and got the feeling that he’s the kind of guy that would want to step into the squared circle and do things the right way.
“I did interviews before WrestleMania and people were asking me ‘if you could pick a celebrity to have a match with, like Sami’s doing this weekend, who would it be?’ He’s my favorite actor, which happens to be a coincidence but a few years ago Matthew McConaughey came to a show and he was backstage.
“I didn’t get to meet him because there was a lineup of people waiting to talk to him so I didn’t get to see him. I remember not long after that he talked about how he’d love to do something in WWE. I don’t know him, I don’t know him at all but to me he seems like the kind of guy who would be coming in to do it right and have a blast. People like that to me are welcome in our industry any time.”
While Owens would love to wrestle a celebrity, he certainly had the experience of a lifetime in his own WrestleMania match this year, welcoming WWE Hall Of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin back to the ring for the first time in over 19 years.
Owens and Austin battled it out in a No Holds Barred match to close out Night One. However, when it was all said and done, “The Texas Rattlesnake” left Texas victorious with a stunner.
Punk and Dustin Rhodes opened up the program with a great match. Punk ultimately came out on top before having an intense stare-down with AEW World Champion Adam Page at the top of the ramp after the match.
Punk wore pink and black ring gear and used of Hart’s moves throughout the match. Most of Punk’s Hitman moves were actually from Hart’s match with Rhodes (Goldust) on an episode of Monday Night RAW in 1997.
As captured below by Twitter user @PromoJoe, the videos below showcase Punk’s tribute to Bret Hart’s 1997 match against Goldust:
Punk is currently chasing an AEW World Championship opportunity, and might just get it after continuing to impress inside the AEW ring. If his staredown with Page is any indication, he might just get his wish sooner than he thinks. However, Punk might have another big match to look forward to, as it was also announced on Dynamite yesterday that AEW and New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) will be teaming up for a joint pay-per-view (PPV).
AEWxNJPW: Forbidden Door is set to go down on PPV from the United Center in Chicago, Illinois on June 26. Both promotions will surely be putting their top stars on the card, so we can expect Punk to have a strong presence at the event. Perhaps he might even have AEW gold around his waist by the summer show.
New Japan Pro Wrestling star KENTA has thrown out the challenge to All Elite Wrestling’s CM Punk for a match at the upcoming AEWxNJPW: Forbidden Door PPV.
On this week’s episode of AEW Dynamite, president Tony Khan and NJPW president Takami Ohbari announced the joint promotional PPV for the United Center in Chicago, Illinois on June 26. Shortly after the announcement, KENTA took to Twitter to challenge CM Punk to a match at the event, selling it as “G2SvsGTS.”
Punk and KENTA pair have been linked to each other for several years for using the same finisher inside the ring. Punk has admitted to taking the move from KENTA after switching his finisher from the Anaconda Vise submission hold. Punk has yet to respond to KENTA’s challenge as of this writing.
As for The Forbidden Door, no matches have been announced for the PPV yet. Fans shouldn’t expect any match announcements until after AEW’s Double or Nothing event in May. However, fans should expect an unforgettable show at The Forbidden Door, as the biggest stars from both AEW and NJPW will finally collide.
There has already been speculation about the involvement of stars such as Kenny Omega and Kazuchika Okada and their involvement in the show. For now, fans will have to be patient until the card begins to take shape for the blockbuster event this summer in Chicago.
Let us know some of the matches you’d like to see go down at The Forbidden Door PPV event this June in the comments below! Is Punk vs. KENTA one of them?
Pat McAfee is a very busy man, and he might be getting even busier quite soon.
The New York Post is reporting that McAfee is currently in talks to join Amazon and their Thursday Night Football coverage which is set to kick off this fall. Also, the discussions have included the possibility of airing McAfee’s “The Pat McAfee Show” on Amazon Prime Video. “The Pat McAfee Show” currently airs live on YouTube and SiriusXM, and is sponsored by FanDuel.
The report adds that nothing has been finalized. Andrew Marchand of The Post has reported that both Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit have been hired by Amazon to do commentary for Thursday Night Football. As for McAfee, he has been open in the past about not wanting to do color commentary for football due to the big commitment.
(WWE)
Pat McAfee already does weekly commentary live and on-location every Friday night for SmackDown Live. In fact, he recently showed off his in-ring talents when he wrestled Austin Theory at WrestleMania 38 in Dallas, Texas earlier this month. After the match, which McAfee won, he also had an impromptu match with Vince McMahon that he ultimately lost.
It was a very eventful WrestleMania week for the former NFL punter, who got to end it on a happy note, taking a stunner from WWE Hall Of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin after sharing a beer bash celebration with him. There’s currently no word on how a potential Amazon deal would affect McAfee’s WWE commitment.
WWE Hall Of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin was once part of one of the most memorable segments in Monday Night RAW history.
In March of 1999, Steve Austin hit the ring with a beer truck, smashing into the ring; with Vince McMahon, The Rock, and Shane McMahon in it. He then proceeded to hose the three down with beer on the heels of WrestleMania 15 the following weekend, where Austin would challenge The Rock for the WWF Title. “The Rattlesnake” won the No Disqualification match, which was refereed by WWE Hall Of Famer Mick Foley.
Recently, Austin appeared on the BrewBound podcast to discuss his famed professional wrestling career, and opened up about the beer truck segment. Austin first talked about when the angle was first presented to him, and then revealed that most of what was being sprayed was actually water, despite the first few gallons being real beer.
Stone Cold’s Beer Bash
“Well, you know, living on the road back in those days was a pretty wild time. A lot of times you got creative the day of. I remember arriving in the building, Vince or somebody is saying, ‘hey man, you’re going to drive a beer truck into the arena, and hose down The Rock.’
“I bumped the ring with it, and the first 30 gallons that came out was actually beer, and then it turned into water. When you show up, and you hear all the crazy sh*t they’ve had me do, whether it was Zambonis, beer trucks, driving cement trucks, filling in a corvette with cement, just totaling a brand new corvette, you know.
“We were able to do so much fun things, it’s those moments that people will never forget, and that beer truck was one of them.”
Austin recently made his return to in-ring action for the first time in over 19 years. He headlined Night One of WrestleMania 38 in Dallas, Texas against Kevin Owens. “KO” initially invited Austin onto the “KO Show” as a special guest.
However, he eventually challenged him to an impromptu No Holds Barred match, which Austin accepted. When it was all said and done, Austin emerged victorious after hitting his signature stunner. He even returned the following night once more to deliver a few more stunners to the likes of Vince McMahon, Austin Theory, and Pat McAfee.
Samoa Joe is All Elite. But just earlier this year he was still signed to WWE before being released from his contract.
Joe signed with WWE back in 2015, quickly becoming one of the biggest stars on the NXT brand. After two runs as NXT Champion, Joe was called up to the main roster where he would feud with the likes of Brock Lesnar, Roman Reigns, AJ Styles, and more. His run on the main roster resulted in three reigns as the United States Champion.
Injuries plagued Joe’s run on the main roster, however, and he was briefly released in April of 2021, but was quickly resigned two months later after it was reported that Triple H was unhappy with his release. He eventually returned to NXT to win the brand’s World Title for the third time, before being forced to relinquish the title after contracting COVID-19. Upon his return, Joe was assigned to NXT as a trainer before being released earlier this year in January.
Samoa Joe on Leaving WWE
Speaking to the New York Post, Joe discussed his WWE release, stating that he doesn’t dwell on it, and is more so focused on what’s ahead of him with AEW.
“I wasn’t overly frustrated with everything. I mean, things like that happen. It worked out at times and sometimes it didn’t and that’s how it goes. I don’t really sit here and dwell on things and punish myself over things that I cannot change or never will be changed. I’m squarely focused on what’s ahead of me and not behind.”
Samoa Joe eventually signed with AEW earlier this month; joining an already stacked roster that includes the likes of Kenny Omega, CM Punk, Adam Cole, The Hardy Boyz, and so many more.
One of New Japan Pro Wrestling’s (NJPW) biggest stars, Kazuchika Okada, might not be available for the promotion’s upcoming joint pay-per-view (PPV) with All Elite Wrestling (AEW), The Forbidden Door, this summer.
It was announced on yesterday’s AEW Dynamite that NJPW and AEW would be hosting the join PPV event from the United Center in Chicago, Illinois on June 26. Shortly after the announcement there was a huge buzz on Twitter about Okada appearing on the show, and who he could potentially compete against. Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio recently reported on this.
Meltzer noted that the show was just now brought up to Okada as it was announced in Japan. However, his wife’s birthday is on the 28th of June, and that is June 27th in the United States. With that being said, it would be difficult for Okada to make the show and be back in time for his wife’s birthday.
While Meltzer did note that Okada “kind of” said he wasn’t doing the show, he could have been kidding. He then speculated that if Okada was a part of the show, it would be a perfect opportunity to re-introduce Kenny Omega and build up to a potential match – likely in September.
Omega and Okada have extraordinary chemistry with each other inside the ring, having competed three times in singles action against one another under the NJPW banner. Currently, Omega has a 2-1 lead in the rivalry, a number Kazuchika Okada is hoping to make even in a potential rematch.
Former WWE Champion Randy Orton has certainly come a long way in his 20-year career on the WWE main roster.
Over the course of his career Orton has become one of the industry’s most respected veteran’s and biggest stars. This year, Orton celebrates 20 years on the WWE’s main roster since making his debut on SmackDown in 2002 against Hardcore Holly. The rest, as they say, is history. Orton is a 14-time WWE World Champion and a sure-fire future Hall Of Famer.
“The Viper” is also a two-time Royal Rumble winner and a former Money In The Bank winner. He has had some legendary feuds throughout his run, but Orton hasn’t had more programs with anyone else when it comes to his rivalries with John Cena. Cena no longer runs with WWE full-time as Orton does, but that didn’t stop Cena from taking to Twitter to pay homage to Orton on his 20-year WWE anniversary.
Here’s what Cena had to say:
“For 20 years @RandyOrton has cemented his legacy as 1 of the greatest @WWE Superstars ever. I have the utmost respect for every achievement he’s earned & CONTINUES to earn. But my genuine love & admiration for him is in his maturity & growth as a human being. Here’s to RKO!”
For 20 years @RandyOrton has cemented his legacy as 1 of the greatest @WWE Superstars ever. I have the utmost respect for every achievement he’s earned & CONTINUES to earn. But my genuine love & admiration for him is in his maturity & growth as a human being. Here’s to RKO! ?
Orton is currently in the midst of a Tag Team feud alongside Matt Riddle – as the pair reign as RAW Tag Team Champions. RK-Bro will attempt to unify their tag titles with SmackDown Live Tag Team Champions The Usos, who they’ve been feuding with the past several weeks, at WrestleMania Backlash.
Former WCW president Eric Bischoff was recently a guest on “Strictly Business” to talk about several professional wrestling topics.
Bischoff discussed the state of the professional wrestling industry, offering his thoughts on promotions such as IMPACT Wrestling and All Elite Wrestling (AEW). He first started off by offering his thoughts on IMPACT – and Bischoff didn’t hold back. The former WCW head said he can get more people to watch him cooking a burger on a Saturday afternoon than to watch IMPACT.
He also claimed that IMPACT Wrestling shouldn’t be in the conversation when it comes to discussing licensing and merchandising because they’re “not in the wrestling business.” Bischoff added it had nothing to do with the talent, as he believes IMPACT has great talent, but including IMPACT in the conversation for televised wrestling is “silly.”
When discussing AEW, Eric Bischoff stated that the promotion is currently in a position where their long-term potential is more intriguing than anything else going on currently. He also touched on AEW’s lack of licensing deals and how he doesn’t see that changing anytime soon since the promotion is kind of “flatlining” right now ratings-wise.
“But that doesn’t happen overnight, it didn’t happen overnight in WCW,” Bischoff said. “Providing AEW continues to grow, which arguably they’re not, they’re kind of flatlining at a million viewers a week, but if they can grow that industry in such a way that it gives confidence to manufacturers and distributors to go ahead and invest money in that licensing in hopes to increase sales off their products, that’s when you’ll start to see real growth in AEW.
“It’s not a knock against them, you can’t do that overnight. No one is going to take that risk until you’ve established yourself in the marketplace.”
AEW has certainly been doing as much as possible to stand out to professional wrestling fans. In the past year they’ve made a ton of huge signings; such as CM Punk, Samoa Joe, Adam Cole, and more. Also, on this week’s episode of AEW Dynamite, president Tony Khan announced a joint pay-per-view (PPV) with New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) titled “The Forbidden Door.”
For years there has been a group of fans who believe the Montreal Screwjob could’ve actually been a work, and WWE Hall Of Famer Road Dogg might be a part of that group.
In 1997 at Survivor Series, Vince McMahon decided to “screw” WWE Hall Of Famer Bret Hart, smartening referee Earl Hebner up prior to his match with Shawn Michaels for the WWF Title to call for the bell while Michaels had Hart in his own signature sharpshooter submission hold.
This was in effort to force the title off Hart as he was on his way to WCW. McMahon didn’t want Hart showing up on WCW with the WWF Title, similar to how Madusa did with the WWF Women’s Title, throwing it in the trash on an episode of WCW Nitro a few years prior.
Road Dogg recently took to his podcast, “Oh…You Didn’t Know” to reflect on Survivor Series ’97 and what he remembers from that day. The DX member said he remembers seeing everyone rush to the monitors once everything went down inside the ring. He then recalled the “loogie” Hart hawked at Vince McMahon, and seeing McMahon come out of the locker room with a red/purple eye after taking a punch from Hart.
The former WWE Tag Team Champ added that, from what he heard, McMahon let Hart swing on him because he deserved it. However, he noted that he’s still not 100 percent sure if the entire thing wasn’t a big work or not.
“I’m still not 100% sure it was all real and that’s just me being honest with you, I know I’m cynical because I’m a wrestler and I’m one of the boys and I think everything’s a work.”
If the entire ordeal was a work, nobody involved has cracked and revealed the truth yet, from what Road Dogg has heard. Despite the fact that everyone involved is adamant that it was real, Dogg is still skeptical.
“I’m still not 100% sure it was all real and that’s just me being honest with you, I know I’m cynical because I’m a wrestler and I’m one of the boys and I think everything’s a work.”
Kevin Owens got the opportunity of a lifetime at WrestleMania 38 earlier this month.
Owens headlined Night One of WrestleMania 38 in Dallas, Texas against WWE Hall Of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin. The match was Austin’s first-ever match since retiring after WrestleMania 19 in Seattle over 19 years ago. Initially, the match was advertised as a special “KO Show” segment. Instead, Owens ended up challenging Austin to a No Holds Barred match on the spot – which Austin accepted.
The pair battled all over the arena before Austin ultimately pulled out the win with a stunner. It was an incredibly nostalgic way to end the first night of “The Showcase Of The Immortals.” Recently, Owens was interviewed by Metro News and discussed his reaction to finding out about the match in Vince McMahon’s office.
Owens admitted he dropped a few expletives in front of the boss when he first heard the news.
“Vince told me a little while ago. My reaction was quiet jubilation because I was in Vince’s office, but I may have said a few swear words to him – positively [swearing]! It was really surreal,” Owens said.
“It’s funny, ’cause I was a fan of his from the start. He came in as the Ringmaster, and even he would probably say it wasn’t a great time in his career. I loved him as The Ringmaster! And then he became Stone Cold and he was on another level.
“KO” added that he understands there are a ton of other Superstars that WWE and Austin could’ve chosen for this opportunity, and he’s honored to have been selected.
“To get to be the one to do it, there’s a lot of very talented and competent WWE superstars out there. For me to be the one in this situation, it’s a huge honor and I don’t take it lightly.”
While Owens’ feud with Austin seems to have come to an end, the former WWE Universal Champion is now locked in a feud with Ezekiel, who he is likely to go one-on-one with at WrestleMania Backlash.
