Nikki Bella and Ronda Rousey continue to promote their upcoming clash at WWE Evolution. The pay-per-view (PPV) will be the WWE’s first all-female show in history. It all goes down from the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York on October 28th. Recently, Bella revealed that she and Rousey’s match at Evolution will headline the PPV.

Rousey will defend her RAW Women’s Title against the longtime WWE star. Initially, Rousey and The Bella Twins were allies on WWE TV. They even teamed up to defeat The Riott Squad at WWE Super Show-Down in Australia. However, on the following episode of Monday Night RAW, Nikki and Brie attacked “The Rowdy One.” It was later announced that the former UFC champ would face Nikki at Evolution.

Recently, Rousey took to social media and called Nikki and Brie “DoNothingBellas” in an Instagram post:

“No exaggeration these pictures were taken only minutes apart. That was my mistake. I should have known better than to trust the backstabbing Bellas….

“Don’t miss #RAW tonight cause @thenikkibella and @thebriebella are gunna learn betraying me was the stupidest thing they ever could have done. And considering their extensive record of idiocy, that’s really saying something. #DoNothingBellas”

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bo9kga6BJtj/?utm_source=ig_embed

Bella Responds

Bella didn’t take too kindly to this, posting a lengthy response to Rousey’s not too long after. Here’s what she had to say:

“In response to your post @rondarousey You may think I’m a “DNB” but that’s because you been here for what maybe 20 RAW’s? I’ve been here for almost 12 years. Since day one I have wanted change for the women at WWE.

“This “DNB” has been in the ring with Victoria, Natalya, Krissy Vaine, Shantelle Malawski, Taryn Terrell, Brooke Adams, Michelle McCool, Layla, Vickie Guerrero, Melina, Mickie James, Maria, Katie Lea, Jillian Hall, Maryse, Alicia Fox, Gail Kim, Candice Michelle, Beth Phoenix, Rosa Mendes, Eve Torres, Kelly Kelly, Awesome Kong, Naomi, Cameron, Eva Marie, Jojo, Summer Rae, Kaitlyn, Tamina, AJ Lee, Paige, Charlotte, Sasha Banks, Becky Lynch, Carmella, Alexa Bliss, Asuka, Riott Squad and more.

“I defended a championship for 301 days, I have executive produced and starred in two reality shows, one about women’s wrestling, while on the road wrestling, I even broke my neck for this business. So if you want to talk about a “DNB” look at yourself, because in this Evolution of women’s wrestling, you’re the “DNB” #bellalution #evolution video edit by @xoxocharlotteflairxoxo”

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bo9taVBhvh9/?utm_source=ig_embed

What do you think about Bella’s response to Rousey?

Matt Riddle has signed with WWE, and there are some high expectations for his career with the company. Even from Riddle himself. Riddle was an indy darling for several years, making the transition to professional wrestling from mixed martial arts (MMA). After working for some of the top promotions around the world, WWE inked Riddle to a deal earlier this summer.

Riddle is now competing on NXT, and fans are expecting to see him on the main roster sooner than most young talents. Recently, Riddle was interviewed on “The Ariel Helwani MMA Show” to discuss his journey in wrestling. During the interview, Riddle was asked about his expectations for his run with WWE. Riddle offered up a very interesting answer.

He noted he’d like to win the NXT Championship three months from now. After that, he’d like to be called up to the main roster, with his sights set on Brock Lesnar. Not only does Riddle want to headline WrestleMania with “The Beast” for the Universal Title, but he wants to end Lesnar’s professional wrestling career:

“In my perfect world I’m champion in like, three months,” Riddle said. “And then I’m on the main roster and I’m challenging Brock Lesnar. And I want to retire Brock Lesnar. That’s the perfect world. Maybe Brock Lesnar, main event WrestleMania for the Universal Title, and if he loses he retires.”

Up next on #HelwaniShow: Very excited to speak to @SuperKingofBros about his rise to wrestling stardom and life after MMA

Watch live: https://t.co/7XuKPHzxSZ

— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) October 15, 2018

What do you make of Riddle’s comments about retiring Lesnar?

The hype between a potential match-up between Kenny Omega and Seth Rollins has really picked up over the past 24 hours. It all started yesterday when Rollins mentioned the IWGP heavyweight champ during his appearance at the ACE Comic Con in Chicago, Illinois. A fan asked Rollins who he’d like to wrestle with that isn’t currently signed to WWE. “The Architect” named Omega as his desired opponent.

“I would like to face Kenny Omega,” said Rollins. “I am the best wrestler in the world, and would like to prove that.”

This would certainly be a dream match for professional wrestling fans. Omega and Rollins are currently killing it with their respective brands.

On Saturday morning, Omega spotted the headline in which Rollins called him out. He took to Twitter to issue out a response to a potential match with Rollins. Omega seems interested in the “historic clash,” but believes it requires an “appropriate venue” for such a occasion. “An exciting proposal…Now if only there were an appropriate venue for such a historic clash…”

An exciting proposal…Now if only there were an appropriate venue for such a historic clash… ? https://t.co/zOxFKGAqk4

— Kenny Omega (@KennyOmegamanX) October 13, 2018

WWE could very well scoop up Omega next year. Omega’s current deal with New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) is up in January of 2019. When the Canadian hits the free agency market, it’s expected WWE makes a big push to sign him to their roster.

WWE certainly has the funds, especially after their broadcast deals from earlier this year, and the profits from their Saudi Arabia shows.

What do you think about Omega’s response to Rollins?

Since the innovation of WWE NXT, the professional wrestling juggernaut’s developmental system has really thrived. The program has produced several top stars on WWE’s main roster such as Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, Braun Strowman, Bray Wyatt, and so many more. Not to mention that WWE continuously scoops up the best talent available from around the world.

WWE COO Triple H is largely credited with the brand’s success, as he calls the shots when it comes to NXT and its programming. His success with the brand has really made professional wrestling fans feel optimistic about the inevitable day when “The Game” will take the creative reigns of WWE. It’s hard not to think that WWE CEO Vince McMahon is just as impressed as anyone else.

During a recent media call in London, however, “The Game” shared a rather interesting bit of information. He said he’s not sure McMahon has ever seen a full episode of NXT from start to finish. “The Chairman Of The Board” may simply be too busy:

“I don’t know that he’s ever even watched a full episode of NXT start to finish. He’s busy.”

After catching wind of this, former WWE writer Tom Casiello took to Twitter to clear things up a bit:

“I know I shouldn’t even respond to this kind of garbage, but I’ve literally been in gorilla with Vince during an NXT show. This is completely false.”

I know I shouldn't even respond to this kind of garbage, but I've literally been in gorilla with Vince during an NXT show. This is completely false. https://t.co/rRjvm8RS0E

— Tom Casiello (@tommiecas) October 12, 2018

Do you think Vince McMahon has ever seen a full episode of NXT?

Former WWE Champion Batista has worked with many legends of the professional wrestling industry during his time. However, nobody has ever seemed to captivate “The Animal” the way he was when he shared the ring with The Undertaker. Batista and “The Deadman” have shared the WWE ring several times before.

In fact, the pair worked together at WrestleMania 23 where Taker defeated Batista for the WWE World Heavyweight Title. To share the ring with The Undertaker is becoming more of a rarity as the years roll on. The 53-year-old is still competing semi-regularly for WWE, however, it’s clear his in-ring career is in its final stages.

Recently, on the heels of SmackDown 1000, WWE released a never before seen interview with Batista. He discussed some of his favorite moments in SmackDown history. During the interview, Batista talked about what it was like working with The Undertaker. Here’s what he had to say:

“When Undertaker decided he wanted to go, there was nobody who could do it better. He would always say for 15 minutes out of the day he was the baddest son of b—- on the planet, and I would back that up 100 percent. I mean, that dude can go.

“He’s very intimidating, you know he’s in charge, but it’s also very comforting because this dude has just seen and done it all. It’s almost like one of those things when you get in [the ring] with him you know you’re going to have a good match.”

What do you make of Batista’s comments about The Undertaker?

H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

UFC heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier has remained adamant that he has two fights left in his mixed martial arts (MMA) career. Brock Lesnar may no longer be a part of those plans. Recently, it was announced Cormier would be headlining the UFC’s upcoming card from Madison Square Garden.

The event goes down next month on November 3rd. Cormier will defend his heavyweight title against Derrick Lewis in the main event. Initially it was expected the final two fights of Cormier’s career would be against Brock Lesnar and Jon Jones. Lesnar confronted Cormier after his UFC 226 win this past summer. Even UFC President Dana White confirmed that was the fight he was attempting to make.

With Lewis fighting Cormier next, however, that means “DC” only has one fight left in him, as he tells ESPN:

“Counting the Lewis fight, I think I’m down to two fights left,” Cormier said.“Maybe this will be a blessing in disguise, the fact that I don’t have a crazy, long fight camp to beat myself down.

“That may prolong it for me, but right now, I think I have this one and maybe one more. I can still fight in March and hit my retirement date.”

In regards to fighting either Jones or Lesnar, “DC” admits a fight with Jones would mean more to him:

“The one opponent that would matter to me most is Jones, because he’s beaten me twice.”

What do you think will be Lesnar’s return fight to the UFC?

Monday Night RAW earlier this week featured the return of WWE Hall Of Famer Kurt Angle. Several weeks ago, RAW Commissioner Stephanie McMahon placed Angle on a forced “vacation.” There was no given timeframe to when Angle was to be expected back. However, he made his highly-anticipated return to qualify for the WWE World Cup.

Angle was dressed up in a Conquistador costume for a Battle Royal that featured several indy wrestlers with different gimmicks. Corbin inserted himself into the match, but was last eliminated by Angle, who unmasked himself after his victory. Now Angle will participate in the WWE World Cup at the “Crown Jewel” even in Saudi Arabia.

Per a report from PWInsider, Angle will be a part of Monday Night RAW next week. He will also be a regular character going forward. It’s likely they’ll be moving forward with the feud between Angle and Corbin. There have been rumors that Angle and Corbin could face off in a Survivor Series match to determine who will be RAW’s General Manager.

Angle has been training hard for his in-ring return to WWE. Many believe he could finally get his long-awaited singles match at WrestleMania next year in New Jersey.

What do you think will be Angle’s role on RAW in the coming weeks?

WWE Intercontinental Champion Seth Rollins is undoubtedly one of the best professional wrestlers on the planet right now. However, across the pond, there’s another man who rivals him in that department. That man is current IWGP heavyweight champion Kenny Omega. “The Cleaner” has been the face of New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) for quite some time.

With his contract coming up soon, however, Omega could possibly hit the free agency market. That would make him ripe for the plucking for WWE. WWE will be able to offer Omega a contract that likely no other promotion can match. Especially with the money they’ve made from their recent broadcast deals and shows in Saudi Arabia. The professional wrestling juggernaut is expected to make big moves once several top stars’ contracts expire in January of 2019.

Rollins hopes that this is the case. Appearing at the ACE Comic Con in Chicago, Illinois earlier today (Fri. October 12, 2018), Rollins answered some questions from fans. One fan asked “The Architect” who he’d like to share the ring with that isn’t signed to WWE right now. Unsurprisingly, Rollins named Omega:

“I would like to face Kenny Omega,” said Rollins with playful authority. “I am the best wrestler in the world, and would like to prove that.”

What do you think about Rollins wanting to wrestle Omega?

H/T WrestleZone for the transcriptions

It looks like David Arquette will be a part of IMPACT Wrestling’s “One Night Only” pay-per-view (PPV). The former WCW World Heavyweight Champion has reentered the professional wrestling world in recent months. He recently teamed up with RJ City at a Border City Wrestling event. In fact, it was Border City Wrestling’s 25th-anniversary show from Windsor, Ontario, Canada.

The show took place at the St. Clair College Gymnasium last weekend. Arquette and RJ took on “Halal Beefcake” Joe Coleman and Idris Abraham in a Tag Team match. Arquette and City picked up the win, in a match professional wrestling fans will now get to witness next month.

It looks like IMPACT Wrestling will air the match during their “One Night Only” PPV on Friday, November 9th on the Global Wrestling Network. It’s unknown as of this writing if Arquette has come to any sort of agreement with the promotion.

However, it should be known that he has been working the indy scene a lot lately. He also recently visited WWE headquarters for unknown reasons. It’s believed he was likely filming material for the WWE Network. TMZ Sports was able to get some video of Arquette and RJ City’s match in Windsor. Check out a clip of Arquette hitting a flying maneuver during the bout here:

What do you think about IMPACT airing one of Arquette’s matches?

WWE Hall Of Famers Lita and Trish Stratus will return to the ring later this month (Sun. October 28th, 2018). The pair will be involved in the first-ever all-female pay-per-view (PPV) in WWE history. They will team up against the duo of Alexa Bliss and Mickie James.

Initially, Trish and Lita were scheduled to have their own singles matches on the card. Trish was to have a one-on-one match with Bliss, while Lita was booked for a singles match with James. However, as the storyline progressed on WWE TV, it was revealed on RAW this week that the match would instead be a Tag Team bout.

It looks like this could be just the first of many Tag Teams between Trish and Lita. PWInsider reports that WWE is planning to have the two stick around after Evolution. The plan would be to have them appear on “major shows” as a team moving forward.

It wasn’t specifically mentioned which shows WWE is hoping for, however, obvious candidates such as Survivor Series and WrestleMania come to mind. This is also very interesting considering the rumors surrounding possible Women’s Tag Team Titles coming to WWE.

What do you think about Trish and Lita sticking around WWE as a team?

John Cena is a very busy man. “The Leader Of The Cenation” has been in China for the past several months filming his new movie, “Project X” with Jackie Chan. While in the country, Cena has been reinventing himself physically. That’s largely thanks to the use of Chan’s personal training facility.

Cena made his return to WWE TV over the weekend at the Super Show-Down pay-per-view (PPV) from Melbourne, Australia. He teamed up with Bobby Lashley to defeat the team of Elias and Kevin Owens. Cena picked up the win for his team by hitting Elias with his “Sixth Move Of Doom.”

We also got to see Cena use the “Sixth Move Of Doom” during a recent appearance on “The Tonight Show” with Jimmy Fallon. Cena appeared on the show to promote his new children’s book, “Elbow Grease.” Cena talked about his new hairdo, working in China, and returning to the ring in Melbourne.

The topic of Cena’s “Sixth Move Of Doom” came up. Cena then demonstrated it on Fallon. Check out the clip here:

What do you think of Cena’s “Sixth Move Of Doom?”

Earlier this year, one-half of The Bludgeon Brothers, Erick Rowan, suffered a bicep injury during SummerSlam. Rowan and Luke Harper successfully retained their SmackDown Live Tag Team Titles against The New Day. Due to Rowan’s injury, however, they were forced to drop the titles two days later on SmackDown Live.

The Bludgeon Brothers lost a No Disqualification match to The New Day. Rowan was praised for working the grueling match while hurt. Nonetheless, he soon underwent surgery to repair the injury. He was initially given a timeframe of four to six months for his return to the ring.

PWInsider now reports that Rowan is in Birmingham, Alabama and will meet with doctors for a post-surgery check-up. No further details were given on when fans can expect him back. We’re left with the initial four to six months timeframe given. Once healthy, however, it will be interesting to see if WWE retains Rowan and Harper as The Bludgeon Brothers.

Perhaps WWE will have something different in mind for them instead.

What do you want to see from Rowan upon his return to WWE?

SmackDown Live General Manager Paige can’t compete inside a WWE ring. The 26-year-old has been medically suspended from ever competing for the professional wrestling juggernaut inside the ring again. She suffered a neck injury that could have serious ramifications on her longterm health if aggravated. For now, she retains a regular WWE TV role as General Manager of Tuesday nights.

Despite the disappointment of not being able to compete in the ring, Paige still holds out a bit of hope. This hope comes from seeing the amazing journey of current SDL star Daniel Bryan. Bryan was once in a very similar position to Paige. He was medically barred from competing inside the WWE ring as well. Up until earlier this year, he also served as SDL General Manager.

Upon Bryan’s resignation to return to full-time Superstar status, Paige was given the role. She spoke about being inspired by Bryan during a recent interview with TV Insider. Here’s what she had to say:

“His injury was a bit different, but he is still a superstar to me. Here is a guy who did not give up. It took three years since the last time he was in the ring. It gives me hope. I know it probably won’t happen for me because of the prognosis. But I just want a miracle to happen.  Bryan is definitely an inspiration and would want to walk in his footsteps.”

What do you think about Paige drawing inspiration from Bryan’s WWE comeback?

Current SmackDown Live Tag Team Champions The New Day are arguably the best trio in professional wrestling today. The squad consisting of Big E, Kofi Kingston, and Xavier Woods have proven dominant over the past several years. The New Day have faced the best tag teams WWE has to offer.

However, there’s one team that sits above all that the three men have yet to share the ring with. That team being New Japan Pro Wrestling and Ring Of Honor’s The Elite (The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega). The two teams had a run-in with one another at E3 earlier this year. Their chemistry as entertainers got fans excited about a possible professional wrestling program.

New Day member Kofi Kingston spoke about this on a recent media call to promote tonight’s episode of SmackDown Live. Here’s what he had to say:

“It would be The Elite. It would be The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega. I think it’s something that from the moment we came out, people were like, ‘Oh, is this going to happen? I mean, The Young Bucks and Kenny, and The New Day, there are three of you’.

“They are so talented, and they’ve been able to do so many cool things all over the world, especially in Japan, which are… the way they’ve been able to do those cool things. I think it’s kind of a fantasy match-up that people have been waiting with bated breath to see.

“But, you never know what’s going to happen in the WWE. Never say never, and I hope that it does happen at some point in time, but I guess we will have to wait and find out.”

What do you think about a potential New Day vs. Elite match?

H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

It doesn’t work out in the WWE for everybody. Just ask former WWE Mae Young Classic competitor Zeda Zhang. Zhang participated in the first-ever Mae Young Classic tournament in 2017. She was recruited by WWE and trained in their Performance Center while making appearances on NXT.

Zhang is an extremely talented athlete. As a former mixed martial artist, she’s trained in disciplines such as boxing, jiu-jitsu, judo, muay thai, and more. She’s also a former model and singer, giving her a ton to work with when it comes to developing a character in WWE. However, Zhang found it very difficult to develop a gimmick while with the company. She explained the situation during her appearance on the “Women’s Wrestling Weekly” podcast:

“I don’t have the freedom of what kind of character I want to be. I can’t really test it out. They tell you when you wrestle and when you get to try things out, and they just tell you, “be yourself”. But the thing is everything that makes me is my background – my modelling, singing, dancing, music and MMA – and me just being Chinese in general.

“That’s what I am but when I was there, I can’t do the MMA thing because someone else has it, I can’t do the singing thing because someone else has it, can’t do the dancing thing cause someone else has it, can’t do the modelling thing because someone else has it, so I’m left with nothing.

“I can’t be Chinese either, they told me, I wasn’t allowed to be billed from China because it’s not true so because of that I was left with this heart gimmick.”

What do you make of Zhang’s comments?

David Arquette is back in the fold of the professional wrestling world. Arquette is a former WCW World Heavyweight Champion. He was brought in by WCW to participate in storylines in 2000, following his role in the “Ready To Rumble” film. Arquette’s title win was seen as a huge slap in the face to the professional wrestling industry. The embarrassment is still joked about today by the likes of WWE Hall Of Famer Bully Ray.

Shortly after Arquette’s title reign, WCW went out of business and was shut down after being bought by WWE. Now, almost 20 years later, Arquette has been wrestling indy shows and establishing himself within the business. Arquette hopes to soften the blow his WCW Title reign had on his career by legitimizing himself.

While doing that, Arquette’s fame outside wrestling could earn him some big opportunities. Perhaps even a run with WWE? Arquette was asked about this during an interview on “The WINCLY.” Arquette said he’s a huge fan of WWE, but doesn’t want to ruffle any feathers there by doing anything he doesn’t deserve:

“I’m a huge fan of WWE and I have the utmost respect for what they’ve done in the business over there. I love NXT, what they’re doing is incredible,” he said. “I don’t know, if anything made sense, I also don’t want to ruffle any feathers in that world – I don’t want to do anything I don’t deserve. You know what I’m saying?”

What do you think about Arquette possibly getting an opportunity in WWE?

H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

Two weeks ago on Monday Night RAW, Liv Morgan suffered a nasty injury on live WWE TV. During a match between The Bella Twins & Natalya against The Riott Squadd, Morgan was knocked unconscious. Brie Bella hit Morgan in the face with a “YES! Kick” and Morgan crumbled over and knocked out.

Morgan was dragged to her corner and tagged out of the match. She jumped back in and participated in a Triple Suplex before being taken to the back and undergoing medical attention. SmackDown Live General Manager Paige took to former WWE ring announcer Lilian Garcia’s podcast, Chasing Glory, to offer her thoughts. The former Divas Champion doesn’t think Brie would ever intentionally hurt anyone:

“I feel so bad for Brie,” Paige said. “She’s never hurt anyone, it’s the first time she hurt some and she gets blamed for it? Come on dude, it’s an accident. Liv doesn’t blame her. The thing I didn’t like about it is the fact her teammates brought her back in the ring to do a suplex when everyone knew she was knocked out. That’s the thing I don’t like.”

Paige then criticized The Riott Squad for not taking care of their partner better:

“Ruby and Sarah, take care of your teammate. You see that she got hurt, don’t let her back in the ring again. Referee, don’t let her back in the ring again.”

Liv Morgan then took to Twitter, seemingly responding to Paige’s podcast comments and firing back at her:

?????

— LIV Morgan (@YaOnlyLivvOnce) October 8, 2018

I’m so happy I haven’t done a podcast.

— LIV Morgan (@YaOnlyLivvOnce) October 8, 2018

What do you make of Paige’s comments and Morgan’s response?

Major League Wrestling (MLW) picked up a hot prospect tonight (Thurs. October 4, 2018). Longtime Mexican professional wrestling star Rush was announced to make his debut for the promotion during “MLW: Fury Road.” The event took place from the Melrose Ballroom in Queens, New York. Mid-way through the show, MLW played a video package hyping Rush’s debut. A date or location was not given. We’re told that Rush is coming into MLW strong and will be in the mix for the next few months.

https://twitter.com/courtbauer/status/1048036393556086784

Rush has been in the professional wrestling business since 2008 when he debuted for International Wrestling Revolution Group (IWRG) in October. He performed under the name “Latino” for several months, sticking around the mid-card before leaving in June of 2009. Rush then signed with top Mexican professional wrestling promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) in the summer of 2009.

He has remained there for the past nine years and is a member of the famed Los Ingobernables faction. During his time in CMLL, Rush has been extremely successful. He is a former CMLL World Light Heavyweight Champion, a two-time and current World Tag Team Champion, and former Mexican National Trios Champion.

Rush was named the number 131 best (out of 500) wrestler in the PWI 500 list back in 2013. Most recently, he was awarded “Best Gimmick” by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter in 2017 as a member of Los Ingobernables.

Vince McMahon picked the perfect time for the relaunch of the XFL. There’s currently a ton of controversy within the NFL over the National Anthem. Several years ago, former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick began to kneel during the playing of the National Anthem.

Kaepernick began the silent protest to shed light on what he believes to be an epidemic of injustice against people of color at the hands of police within the United States. The topic has attracted mainstream attention and has divided the United States even further. While some sympathize with the protest, others believe the playing of the Anthem is nor the place or time.

Vince McMahon is part of the latter. During the announcement of the XFL’s relaunch, McMahon called the playing of the anthem before sporting events, “a time-honored tradition.” He made it very clear that players in the XFL would be required to stand during the anthem being played.

XFL And The Anthem

XFL CEO and commissioner Oliver Luck dove further into the topic. He appeared on former Green Bay Packers linebacker AJ Hawk’s podcast, The HawkCast. Here’s what he had to say on the matter:

“Vince feels strongly about that, so that will be one of those things that will differentiate us from the NFL. Remember, unlike the NFL we will not have a union when we start. There won’t be collective bargaining….we could say to a player, ‘Hey there is a clause in the contract that says I hereby agree to stand for the National Anthem.’

“Period. End of story. That won’t have to be collectively bargained. My position would be as long as a player knows beforehand that that’s part of the contract then that’s a workplace rule and we can enforce that workplace rule.

“If you go into a contractual situation, knowing what the workplace rules are, you’re obligated to follow those rules, otherwise there will be consequences.”

H/T WrestleZone for the transcriptions

There’s no doubt Sting is one of the greatest professional wrestlers to ever step in between the ropes. The WWE Hall Of Famer began his WCW tenure back in 1987 with Jim Crockett Promotions. He was a staple in the company’s history, winning several World Titles under their banner.

Sting is a former NWA World Champion, a six-time WCW World Champion, and a two-time WCW United States Champion – to name only a few. Of course, WWE eventually bought out WCW and signed a few of their stars in the process. Sting, however, was not one of those stars.

He’d instead briefly work with World Wrestling All-Stars before signing with Jeff Jarrett’s new promotion, TNA in 2003. Speaking on the Apter Chat podcast recently, Sting revealed Vince McMahon’s reaction to him deciding to sign with TNA:

“I’ll never forget that conversation I had with Vince. He’s on the phone with me and he says: ‘You know Sting, I find this hard to believe. The legacy that you leave behind and the thought of you going to TNA… it just bleh!”

“So you fast forward to you know coming back to do WrestleMania I had set out a text to Vince and Triple H that just said, ‘have you guys turned the page on Sting yet?’ And I honestly did know? Did they turn the page? Are they done? Or would they consider a run up there?”

Sting would leave TNA in 2014 after over a decade with the company. That same year he’d make his WWE TV debut and begin the build to his WrestleMania match with Triple H. He was inducted into the WWE Hall Of Fame in 2016.

Do you think Sting should’ve gone straight to WWE?

H/T Wrestling News Source for the transcriptions

Kofi Kingston has etched himself into the WWE record books. The New Day member broke WWE’s record for most days as a Tag Team Champion in history recently. He passed up Billy Gunn after racking up over 954 days reigning as a Tag Team Champion.

This is including all of Kingston’s combined days as ever holding Tag Team Titles. Over the years, Kingston has had partners such as The New Day, R-Truth, Evan Bourne, and CM Punk. Kingston spoke to ESPN recently to get his reaction to his record-breaking accomplishment.

“Never in my wildest dreams did I set the goal to be the longest-reigning tag-team champion,” Kingston said. “I’m lucky and blessed to have so many tag-team championships.”

More specifically, Kingston was asked about his days teaming with CM Punk. Punk is on the outs with WWE since walking out on the company back in 2014. He has since embarked on several new career paths, such as mixed martial arts (MMA), acting, and comic book writing.

In regards to what he was able to learn from Punk, Kingston said the former WWE Champion was a good example of how to be a star:

“I learned so much from him,” Kingston said. “Learned so much about what it takes to be a star.”

Its been a very successful year for Madison Rayne. Rayne was a participant in the 2018 WWE Mae Young Classic tournament. Rayne, going under the name Ashley Rayne, was eliminated in the first round of the tournament by Mercedes Martinez. Despite the first round exit, the opportunity to appear on WWE TV doesn’t come around every day.

Rayne was also a part of history earlier this month. She was one of four women to compete at All In on September 1st. Rayne was part of a Fatal Four-Way match, the only women’s match on the card. And finally, to top it all off, Rayne signed a one-year contract with Ring Of Honor (ROH). She made the announcement earlier this month during an appearance on The Taz Show.

Having been wrestling since 2005, Rayne, 32, has had quite a career. She has worked for promotions such as Ohio Championship Wrestling (OCW), SHIMMER, and TNA. Her tenure with TNA was very decorated. Rayne is a five-time TNA Knockouts Champion and a two-time Knockouts Tag Team Champion.

Madison Rayne Almost Retired

With all the success she has had in 2018, it’s hard to think Rayne ever considered retiring. But that’s exactly what she was doing not too long ago. She described the rough period of her career during a recent media call (via The Mirror UK):

“It was roughly a year ago that I sat down on my couch in my living room with my husband and had a really tough conversation, where we tried to discuss if maybe my career was coming to a close and what that was going to look like, or if I was going to take any frustrations I had and any bit of second-guessing myself that I was doing and I was going to flip that on its head, make it a positive, totally change who I was and make a drastic turn in my career path.

“I think in moments like that, where you’re questioning what’s next, is where you really dig deep to find yourself and figure out what you want and what you’re still able to provide to the business. I am so glad that I was able to do that, that I got to that point mentally where I thought for a second that maybe I was to look towards retirement, because I very quickly realized that I wanted to do the complete opposite.

“And I think that’s been probably the most contributing factor in my insanely successful 2018, because then I made that decision to change myself and elevate my game, that’s when opportunities started coming left and right.

“I’m not just saying this because of the position that I’m in now, but I knew early on when I was being given all of these opportunities, I was going to take them all and be grateful for all of them and do everything I could with them… but for the better part of a year in my heart, I kinda knew where I was going to end up was in Ring of Honor.”

What do you make of Rayne nearly retiring?

Wade Barrett was miserable for a long while before leaving WWE. Barrett had begun his professional wrestling career back in 2004. WWE signed him to a deal in 2006 and he’d subsequently go through two of their developmental territories. Those two territories being Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) and Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW).

Upon his call-up to the main roster, Barrett led a memorable “Nexus” faction and had a rather successful singles career. The Englishman captured five Intercontinental Titles and won the 2015 King Of The Ring tournament. He was subsequently released from the company in May of 2016 after refusing to re-sign with the company.

Despite taking a step back in wrestling, Barrett has done work for both Defiant Wrestling and World Of Sport since leaving WWE. Speaking recently on The Sam Roberts’ Podcast, Barrett revealed that he was “miserable” for a long time before finally leaving WWE:

“I was miserable for a long time for the last few years I was in WWE,” Barrett said. “I have no beef or hate for them, but it was just how I was feeling at the time.

“Once upon a time if you go back to the early 2000s all the way to 2014 all I cared about in life was being a wrestler, going on the road, performing in front of crowds, getting big, climbing the ladder. But then at some point around 2015 it took a giant U-turn and thought to myself, ‘wait a minute? What am I doing here? This isn’t the direction that I want.’”

H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

The WWE Universe is glad to have Dean Ambrose back on TV. “The Lunatic Fringe” suffered a tricep injury in December that sidelined him for several months. The road back to the squared circle was a hard one for Ambrose. It took him nearly nine months to make his WWE TV return.

Following surgery, Ambrose went through extensive rehab to get himself back into shape. In fact, he put on a bit of muscle and looks better than ever upon making his return last month. Following his initial surgery in December, however, Ambrose encountered a big problem.

Ambrose’s Scary Health Issues

He suffered an infection from the surgery and needed to be operated on once again to clean it out. After that, Ambrose went through a grueling time and was forced to take antibiotics for months. His wife, Monday Night commentator Renee Young, detailed the “scary” ordeal during an appearance on WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross’ podcast, The Ross Report:

“He ended up having to go back in and having another surgery on his arm. He tore his tricep and went for surgery in December. And then, I remember him calling me New Year’s Day, we had a show in Miami [Florida]. RAW was in Miami and his arm was bleeding everywhere.

“He woke up and there was blood all over the bed and he was so confused by what happened, not being able to fully get a look at what happened to his arm. He kept bandaging it up to get it to reseal as quickly as possible this opening that happened in his arm.

“So he eventually had to go back to Birmingham [Alabama], which is where he had his surgery initially, just for a check in, and that’s when they realized his infection had escalated a lot.

“They had to go back in and clean it out. He was on antibiotics for months! It was really scary, just knowing the severity.” Young said. “It was really tough to see somebody that you love go through something like that, especially somebody like Dean who is this indestructible force and to see him down and out with something like that, it was… yeah, it was tough to go through.”

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

H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

Former WWE Champion Batista has enjoyed a nice career since departing WWE. “The Animal” began his professional wrestling career back in 2000 with WWE. After a few years in developmental, Batista was called up to the main roster. He started off as a henchman to WWE Hall Of Famer D-Von Dudley.

Batista would later break off into becoming one of WWE’s biggest stars. He was a member of the famed Evolution faction alongside Ric Flair, Triple H, and Randy Orton. Batista went on to win four World Heavyweight Championships and two WWE Titles. He’s also a three-time Tag Team Champion and a two-time Royal Rumble winner.

Following a successful career, Batista left WWE on a full-time basis in 2010. He began focusing on an acting career and returned in 2013 for a run that lasted several months. Batista has seen a lot of success on the big screen. He has landed roles in films such as “Riddick,” “Hotel Artemis,” and “Blade Runner.”

Batista has also become a staple in the Marvel film franchise “The Avengers.” This is due to his key role in the “Guardians Of The Galaxy” franchise. Before Batista saw immense success in the entertainment industry, he had a bit of a rough childhood.

He detailed his youth during an interview on the “Inside Of You” podcast. In fact, Batista shared a story about a crazy fight he got himself into in the late ’90s. Here’s how he described it:

“No, but I’ve had a few rough ones. I got into a fight with this kid, I didn’t want to—it happened so fast—it escalated so fast that I didn’t even know I was going to be in a fight. He hit me with this wet floor sign [laughs] that knocked me so silly. We got into this fight in a Fuddrucker’s [fast food restaurant].

“This guy was looking at my girlfriend, and I looked over at him. This was 199…5-6ish? Around there, but this kid’s looking at my girlfriend and I look over at him, and like ‘why is he being so disrespectful?’ and his friend says something to him [about how] I’m looking at him.

“And he goes ‘I don’t give a shit. I’ll punch him in his face three times before he hits me once.’ He was much smaller than me. And I was like, ‘what’d you say?’ and he walks up to me all aggressive and he said ‘you heard what the fuck I said’ so I just pushed him. He flies back and he goes ‘oh hell no! hell no!’ and he goes and picks up this wet floor sign, and I didn’t think he was going to do it, he whacks me on the head with it.

“Not only did I stumble, but he tackles me and we go flying back into the salad bar—I swear to God—we break the salad bar. We start fighting and I beat this kid’s ass, we end up outside and I’m choking him, and he finally goes ‘alright, alright, alright!’ So I let him go, and I’m just a disaster, my girlfriend’s crying, I’m going ‘what the hell’s going on?’ The restaurant is a disaster and I’m like ‘let’s just go.’

“Later the police came and arrested me. Apparently because I pushed him, I started it. They ended up dropping all of the charges, but they did arrest me for it, also because we left, we left the scene of a crime.”

What do you think of Batista’s crazy fight story?

H/T WrestleZone for the transcriptions