Former WWE Superstar Brian Christopher has passed away at 46 years old, according to multiple reports. Christopher was best known for his role as “Grandmaster Sexay” during the Attitude Era. Along with tag team partner Scotty 2 Hotty, the “Too Cool” – along with Rikishi – were one of the hottest acts during a wild time in WWE. He was also the son of WWE Hall Of Famer Jerry “The King” Lawler. SEScoops extends our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Brian Christopher.

Christopher was arrested this past week in Memphis and charged with DUI and attempting to evade police. The 46-year-old was reportedly speeding and swerving around at 1 A.M. on July 7th. Cops attempted to pull Christopher over, but he refused. Police say Lawler told them he initially refused to pull over was because he was trying to get home.

One police pulled him over, they smelled alcohol in the vehicle and found an open container in the center console. Christopher was arrested immediately. He was booked on DUI and evading police. Bail was set at $40,000. Last month, Christopher was arrested for [allegedly] attempting to run out on a hotel bill in Memphis.

Remembering Brian Christopher

Some of Brian Christopher’s former colleagues and other members of the pro wrestling community have commented on his untimely passing.

Praying for the families of the departed now. Brian was special to me at a really special time in my life. Nikolai and my dad were good friends. Brickhouse and my late brother Brad were close. #RIPBROTHERS God bless the families!

— Brian G. James (@BrianRDJames) July 29, 2018

RIP Brian Christopher. I think I had every piece of Too Cool merch in 2000.

— Matt Cardona (@TheMattCardona) July 29, 2018

I only met Brian Christopher once, last year at an indy show in Kentucky. He was very friendly and just genuinely happy to be a part of the show, the life of the party. I almost left before introducing myself to him last minute. I'm glad I did. Rest in Peace Brother ?

— King (@LexisKingWWE) July 29, 2018

Sadly, Nicolai, Brickhouse Brown & Brian Christopher all have passed. Unimaginable pain for @JerryLawler My heart goes out to him. Very sad day for the business I love. ?

— ? Frankie Kazarian ? (@FrankieKazarian) July 29, 2018

https://twitter.com/mitchellpwtorch/status/1023616338173022208

Vince McMahon doesn’t appear on WWE TV as often as he used to.

“The Chairman Of The Board” was prominently featured on weekly WWE programming during the ’90s to mid/late ‘2000s. Today, McMahon primarily runs the show from backstage while Triple H and Stephanie McMahon appear regularly on TV instead.

Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez recently discussed this on Wrestling Observer Radio. Alvarez pointed out that McMahon is looking very old these days. Meltzer responded by revealing that’s the reason McMahon doesn’t wan’t to be on TV so much.

Instead, Triple H and Stephanie McMahon have been made the new faces of the company. In fact, Vince McMahon wasn’t heavily involved in the negotiations for WWE’s new TV deal. That was handled by “The Game” and Stephanie. Meltzer described the ordeal as a “transition.”

McMahon On WWE TV

In recent months McMahon has been featured a bit more on WWE TV, but not regularly. He was briefly involved in Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar’s WrestleMania 34 build. McMahon also was attacked by Kevin Owens last year on SmackDown Live.

McMahon was on TV for the WWE’s Greatest Royal Rumble trophy presentation and the announcement of WWE Evolution on last week’s Monday Night RAW – but said very little.

Discussion: How do you feel about Vince not being on TV as regularly as he used to be? Is it time to hand the reigns over to Triple H and Stephanie?

WWE Hall Of Famer Nikolai Volkoff (real name Josip Nikolai Peruzovi?) has sadly passed away.

PWInsider has confirmed the news. Volkoff was 70-years-old. He had been hospitalized in Maryland several days before his passing. Volkoff was being treated for dehydration in addition to some other issues.

Volkoff made his professional wrestling debut back in 1967. He did work for the NWA in addition to having several WWE runs. After a run with AWA, Volkoff returned to WWE. He portrayed an evil Russian who teamed up with The Iron Sheik. The pair captured the Tag Team Titles in 1985.

In 2005 Volkoff was inducted into the WWE Hall Of Fame by Jim Ross. It is one of the most star-studded HOF classes of all time; as it also included Hulk Hogan, Roddy Piper, “Cowboy” Bob Orton, Jimmy Hart, Paul Orndorff and The Iron Sheik.

We here at SEScoops offer our thoughts and prayers to Peruzovi?’s family during this difficult time.

Kenny Omega and Roman Reigns connect with professional wrestling fans very differently.

Both “The Cleaner” and “The Big Dog” spoke with Mel Magazine to offer their philosophies on how they connect with their audiences. Reigns noted that he likes to project an image of self-confidence when he’s in the ring:

“That’s what makes me appealing— that I’m confident, I believe in myself and I think everybody can relate to that,” Reigns said.

“That’s something everybody should relate to. It’s called self-esteem for a reason. You can’t get it from anybody else.

“If I project that, if I portray that, it’s empowering to so many people who are a little insecure, who get nervous.”

The IWGP Heavyweight Champion heard Reigns’ comments and rebutted. Omega said Reigns’ style of projection isn’t true. He himself prefers to put himself in a position to feel pain with his audience:

“[Laughs] It also doesn’t seem true, either,” Omega said. “People go through [heartbreak] in all walks of life, regardless of age, sex, religion or whatever.

“There are times you break up with a loved one, a friend or whatever. You feel alone. It’s a very easy feeling to understand—the feeling of loss, heartache and pain.

“So I’ve put myself in a position to feel pain alongside with the fans.”

In the end, Omega doesn’t put Reigns at full fault. He understands that WWE has a philosophy of keeping things as simple as necessary – so “The Big Dog” can’t take all the blame:

“[WWE] keeps it simple, because they feel as simple as possible is best. It’s the easiest to book for television as well,” Omega said. “You can micromanage things to the second that way.

“If there’s real emotion you can’t. … Even if you can’t really understand what’s going on [as a child], you can feel, and as long as you can feel something, it’s better than coming out of it and feeling nothing.”

One WWE married couple you don’t hear too much about is Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae on NXT.

The couple married in September of 2016 and met each other on the indies. Gargano recently spoke to AZ Central and told the story of how he met LeRae backstage at a show in California:

“I remember [Candice] brought her cousin to the back, and they were just hanging out talking, and I decided I was going to try to get to [Candice] by talking to her cousin about her cellphone. It didn’t really work that well, but we developed a friendship.”

Check out Gargano’s full interview with AZ Central, where he discusses NXT drawing hardcore wrestling fans and being a true nerd, here.

Gargano In WWE

Gargano began working with WWE in 2015. He and former tag team partner Tommaso Ciampa were standouts in NXT’s tag team division under the name DIY. DIY won the NXT Tag Team Titles from The Revival at NXT TakeOver: Toronto in 2016.

They dropped the straps in January of 2017 at NXT TakeOver: San Antonio to The Authors Of Pain. At NXT TakeOver: Chicago several months later DIY failed to recapture the NXT Tag Team throne. After the match Ciampa turned on Gargano, sparking the beginning of an epic rivalry.

The WWE is always looking for talent to add to their already stacked roster.

It looks like they may finally get their hands on a prospect they have been chasing for years. 31-year-old former Lucha Underground Champion Angelico is currently up for grabs. He recently announced his departure from the promotion this past April.

WWE has been speaking to Angelico on-and-off for the past several years, per Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. The only hold up has been his deal with Lucha Undergorund – but that’s no longer an issue.

The South African began his career back in 2007 for WWE Hall Of Famer Booker T’s now-defunct Pro Wrestling Alliance: Africa promotion. In the years following he has worked for promotions such as Lucha Underground, AAA, Westside Xtreme Wrestling, PWG and more.

In his last match he was defeated by Mike Bailey at the OTT That Ring Really Tied The Room Together show in Ireland on July 7th. He is a former two-time Lucha Underground Trios Champion and a three-time AAA World Tag Team Champion.

If there was ever a better time for CM Punk to return to professional wrestling, it’s now.

The former WWE Champion’s mixed martial arts (MMA) career is currently on the decline. Punk recently suffered his second consecutive loss under the UFC’s banner in June. After the loss there has been a ton of speculation that he could return to wrestling.

The possibility of Punk returning to the squared circle has drawn interest from Ring Of Honor (ROH). The promotion is reportedly interested in booking Punk for their upcoming Madison Square Garden joint-show with New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) in April.

Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio reports that the chances of Punk returning for ROH are “slim.” It appears those close to Punk say he currently has no interest in participating in pro wrestling.

Punk’s Recent History

Punk departed from WWE back in January of 2014. The UFC inked Punk to a multi-fight deal just several months later. The former WWE Champ made his Octagon debut in September of 2016.

He succumbed to the jiu-jitsu skills of Mickey Gall in the first round. Punk trained for two more years before taking another fight. He squared off with former Houston Golden Gloves winner Mike Jackson this past June.

Although Punk went the distance with Jackson, he was defeated in a lopsided decision. Now with an 0-2 record in fighting Punk’s MMA career looks unclear. Many professional wrestling fans would love to see him return to the ring, but Punk seems to have no interest.

Only time will tell if Punk ever wrestles again.

Scott Hall Teases NWO Reunion

Recently reinstated WWE Hall Of Famer Hulk Hogan took to Twitter today to celebrate Flashback Friday. Hogan Tweeted an old photo of himself with fellow NWO members Scott Hall and Kevin Nash.

Scott Hall retweeted Hogan’s photo, and added in an interesting comment. Hall asked if the trio should reunite soon. Not only did he ask, but he actually dared “The Third Man”:

https://twitter.com/SCOTTHALLNWO/status/1022961448979456000?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1022961448979456000&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mandatory.com%2Fwrestlezone%2Fnews%2F980579-scott-hall-teases-possible-nwo-reunion-with-hulk-hogan

Tommaso Ciampa Rips Candice LeRae’s Niece

NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa is absolutely relentless – inside and out of the ring.

Ciampa’s rival and former tag team partner, Johnny Gargano, recently Tweeted out a photo of a sign his wife Candice LeRae’s niece made. The sign also contained the following poem:

“Roses are red, your eyes are blue. We have five fingers. One is for you.”

Ciampa ran across this on his timeline and let LeRae’s little niece have it:

https://twitter.com/ProjectCiampa/status/1022961771986833408?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1022961771986833408&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mandatory.com%2Fwrestlezone%2Fnews%2F980575-tommaso-ciampa-lashes-out-at-candice-leraes-niece-claims-to-be-sole-reason-for-nxts-recent-success

Earlier in the day “Blackheart” also put himself over in a big way. He noted that NXT TakeOver: New Orleans and NXT TakeOver: Chicago were the two he two highest grossing and most viewed TakeOvers in NXT history.

He also pointed out that Wednesday’s episode of NXT, which featured Ciampa’s NXT Title win, was the most viewed episode in NXT history. What do they all have in common? Tommaso Ciampa:

https://twitter.com/ProjectCiampa/status/1022897695327846400?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1022897695327846400&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mandatory.com%2Fwrestlezone%2Fnews%2F980575-tommaso-ciampa-lashes-out-at-candice-leraes-niece-claims-to-be-sole-reason-for-nxts-recent-success

We have some more details on WWE’s Evolution plans.

Dave Meltzer explained on Wrestling Observer Radio that all of the women on WWE’s main roster will compete on the pay-per-view (PPV). The majority of the female talent on NXT will compete as well.

Meltzer also speculated that a Battle Royal, Tag Team Battle Royal or Royal Rumble match could take place. He then pointed out a rather interesting aspect about the timing of the PPV.

WWE will be returning to Saudi Arabia in November. If you remember, at the Greatest Royal Rumble event in the country earlier this year there were no females on the card. This was due to the culture in Saudi Arabia.

Meltzer noted that Evolution’s October 28th date probably isn’t a coincidence. The PPV will also have some stiff competition on TV. NFL Sunday Night Football and the MLB Playoffs will be taking place on the same night.

The Beginning

WWE has been heavily pushing their Women’s Revolution for the past several years. Women have been competing in their first ever Hell In A Cell, Tables Ladders and Chairs (TLC), Money In The Bank (MITB) matches and more.

As a result; several top female stars have emerged such as Charlotte Flair, Alexa Bliss, Becky Lynch and Sasha Banks. Not to mention the acquisition of, arguably, the biggest name in female sports, Ronda Rousey.

This past Monday on RAW Stephanie McMahon made the historic announcement about October’s Evolution event. The entire RAW roster and the women of SmackDown Live were all on the entrance ramp for the segment.

When these women clash with the female WWE stars of the past at Evolution – such as Lita and Trish Stratus – it will certainly be an interesting sight to see.

WWE Evolution could become an annual event, according to Triple H.

Triple H spoke with Sky Sports to discuss WWE’s groundbreaking decision to present an all-women’s pay-per-view on October 28th. Triple H was asked about the possibility of Evolution becoming a mainstay of WWE’s PPV calendar. The success of WWE evolution will most likely determine what happens next year.

“It’s a question to be answered down the road, said Triple H. “Do we need to have a women’s only event? No – just like we don’t need a men’s only event or anything else. I think that the opportunity is there whoever is the best, the most prominent box office attraction that is the main event.

It doesn’t matter if that’s Raw, Smackdown, NXT, Wrestlemania. So can they have their own event? Can it be a mainstay? Yes, and if our fans want it and it’s the right thing then we’ll give it to them. The WWE universe will dictate to us what the approach is.”

WWE Evolution

Monday’s RAW kicked off with Stephanie McMahon (joined by Triple H and father Vince McMahon) making the historic announcement. Women from WWE’s past (legends), present and future (NXT) will be part of the show.

Mickie James has already expressed interest in working with Trish Stratus at the show. Trish made a surprise return to WWE back in January during the first-ever Women’s Royal Rumble match. If Trish does work the show, revisiting this classic rivalry is sure to garner fan interest.

The cast of Total Divas is “All In.”

Not to be confused with the self-funded professional wrestling event being put on by Cody Rhodes and The Young Bucks. A recent promo for the new season of Total Divas on E! has professional wrestling fans scratching their heads.

The promo continuously referenced the phrase “All In.” Watch the video here and see for yourself:

It’s unknown if this was a jab by WWE at the upcoming Chicago show. Perhaps this was simply an unintentional mistake by those at E!. Whether or not it was intentional, professional wrestling fans are certainly talking about it.

The Exchange

As a result of the frenzy, this urged Matt Jackson of The Young Bucks to recently respond to the promo on Twitter. He used a GIF of Cody Rhodes motioning to his ear:

https://twitter.com/MattJackson13/status/1022505267873832961?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

This prompted a response from Nikki Bella, who admitted to Jackson that “we” were just as confused when they saw the promo:

Lol we all felt the same when we saw it too! ? N

— Nikki & Brie (@NikkiAndBrie) July 26, 2018

https://twitter.com/MattJackson13/status/1022610019731165190?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

“All In” will go down live on September first from the Sears Centre Arena in Hoffman Estates, Illinois on September 1, 2018.

Former mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter turned pro wrestler Marina Shafir made her NXT debut at Thursday’s live event from Largo, Florida. Shafir teamed up with Nikki Cross to defeat the team of Aliyah and Rhea Ripley.

https://twitter.com/FLWrestlingFan/status/1022695424325545984?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Marina Shafir & The MMA Horsewomen

Marina Shafir, wife of NXT Tag Team Campion Roderick Strong, is a member of Ronda Rousey’s ‘MMA Horsewomen’ faction. The stable consists of Ronda Rousey, NXT Women’s Champion Shayna Baszler, Jessamyn Duke and Shafir.

Shafir’s debut brings us one step closer to all 4 members of the MMA Horsewomen being active competitors in WWE.

Jessamyn Duke, another Horsewoman, was also expected to debut at the NXT Largo show. Earlier this week, Duke tweeted that she would be making her debut alongside Jessamyn Duke, but she did not appear and later deleted the tweet.

R-Truth has shared a graphic photo of his injured shoulder.

The former United States Champion has missed a lot of ring time over the past year. Last August, R-Truth was injured during a match against Elias. He underwent two shoulder surgeries as a result.

The shoulder injury kept him out of the ring until until WrestleMania 34, when he returned and wrestled in the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal.

R-Truth returned to the ring on Tuesday’s SmackDown Live and was defeated by Samoa Joe. Despite coming up short, the 46-year-old showed that he can still go with one of WWE’s top Superstars.

R-Truth’s Injury Photos

Truth posted a photo on Instagram this week showing exactly what he was dealing with during his time away from WWE. He shared several graphic photos of the ‘floating bone’ in his shoulder. He also expressed his love for the business and proclaimed, “I’m back.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/Blq1oxDHicH/

WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross recently spoke about Hulk Hogan returning to WWE on a recent episode of his Jim Ross Report podcast.

Hogan was backstage at Extreme Rules earlier this month to offer an apology to the entire WWE roster regarding the racist comments that led to his suspension 3 years ago. Jim Ross said that he’s not sure what Hogan’s punishment should be, but he’s happy that Hulk Hogan is back in the fold.

“It’s not a surprise,” Ross argued. “Hey look, what Hogan did is just so sad, and unnecessary, and what a major mistake,” Ross said. “I think he knows that. Now, somewhere down this journey of healing, if we find out that Hogan [has] got a different agenda, well, shame on him. I don’t believe that to be true. But I believe I’m willing to stand back and let this whole process play out and see how it works at the end of the day.

“I don’t know how long we’re supposed to punish somebody for doing something so stupid. It was stupidity and ignorance. How long do you get penalized for stupidity and ignorance? It’s different now than doing bodily harm to somebody. Hey, I watch enough [Law & Order: SVU] with Mariska Hargitay to understand that. So we hope that Hogan has a nice reentry. But congratulations. I’m glad he’s back.

“Now make me proud that you’re back and do great things. He has an amazing opportunity with his influence and name identity, does Hogan, to leave lasting positive impressions on everybody, no matter their ethnicity.”

As for what kind of role Hogan could have for WWE going forward, he said he believes it will be more of a PR role and doesn’t expect the former WWE Champion to be wrestling:

“Without sounding like an asshole, [Hogan]’ll probably have a [WWE] Hall Of Fame role.” Ross explained, “PR, he [has] got a lot of ground to cover. He [has] got some fences to mend, some bridges to repair, but that could be done. I don’t see him wrestling again. He’s 65 years old. Now, I’m not knocking the guy. It’s not. ‘J.R., look at you!’

“I’m not Hulk Hogan. I never even played him on television. Could Hogan have a one-off somewhere? Of course he could! ‘Well, where do you do that?’ Hell, you do that in New York City at WrestleMania. That’s what you do! But is that what you really need to do? He’s 100 [%]. He’s got a bad back.

“He’s a warhorse, man. He’s been battered and beat up. So I think it’ll be more of a PR role. I’m glad that he’s back and it give him more motivation to make himself better, without a doubt.”

H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

Former WCW President Eric Bischoff recently spoke in-depth about the Hollywood Blondes tag team on a recent episode of his 83 Weeks podcast. Bischoff discussed why Steve Austin and Brian Pillman were not kept together as long as some fans would have hoped.

Bischoff admitted that it was more of a financial decision than a booking one, as Steve Austin and Brian Pillman were pulling in too much on their own:

“What had happened with Brian and Steve wasn’t so much of a booking decision about them being together as a tag team as it was a financial decision,” Bischoff said. “I could tell you this for sure — later on, when I did have creative control over wrestling operations around 1994-1995 I was not a big fan of tag team wrestling. Not because I didn’t enjoy watching it as a fan, but from an economic point of view.

“If you look at a tag team, and each one of them is breaking close to $200,000 a year and they are in the ring with those of equal value, now you have a million dollars worth of talent for a seven or eight-minute segment, so from an economic point of view to have two high profile guys in a tag team match and you start looking at the economics of it, you look at it like, wait a minute, I can have two separate stories here at two separate segments to fill my content requirements with for the same amount of money that I am spending on one.”

Bischoff also explained that The Hollywood Blondes would’ve needed opponents on their level, but that would’ve been too costly to maintain:

“To have equal value or status with guys like Steve Austin and Brian Pillman at the time, you had to have other high-dollar guys with to tell stories with. Being limited in what you can do in singles matches and your storytelling for all of the content that you had to fill and put a real premium price tag on the talent that was involved in a six or seven-minute match, or one match for a pay per view.

“So it just didn’t make economic sense, which was the reason, from what I can remember early on was that if we can’t afford it we can’t afford it. Let’s get a two for one here. If we have two great guys with lots of talent it made a lot more sense from a business point of view for them to be singles then for them to be a tag team.”

Listen to Eric Bischoff & Conrad Thompson talk Brian Pillman on 83 Weeks:

H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

WWE Superstar Bobby Lashley recently took part in a media conference call. Alex McCarthy of GiveMeSport was on the call and has provided some details on what Lashley said about a wide range of topics, including his return to WWE earlier this year, Roman Reigns and more.

Lashley was asked which WWE Superstars have impressed him the most in his latest run with the company. The former ECW champion called Roman Reigns “phenomenal” and also said guys like Elias, Braun Strowman and Finn Balor have caught his eye.

As for Reigns, in regards to the division on him amongst the WWE Universe, Bobby Lashley doesn’t really understand it. “It kills me to be out in the ring with somebody of his level and the crowd be divided as to whether or not he deserves to be in the position he is – and I don’t get it. He has the look, he’s a great athlete and he’s a great in-ring performer.”

Lashley said he thinks Apollo Crews is underrated and hopes WWE finds a meaningful role for him. “I hope they find something for Apollo because h has so much untapped potential.”

After a 10 year hiatus where he proved that he can work with virtually anyone, he is determined to capture another world championship in WWE.

He also had some very brief comments regarding Hulk Hogan being reinstated by WWE after a 3-year suspension. Lashley said simply, “If he’s in, he’s in. Nothing to do with me.”

As of this writing, Bobby Lashley does not have an opponent for next month’s SummerSlam pay-per-view. He lost to Roman Reigns on Raw in a number one contender’s match to determine the next challenger to Universal Champion Brock Lesnar.

Former WWE and IMPACT Wrestling star Chris Masters was recently interviewed by WSVN-TV Entertainment Reporter Chris Van Vliet during That Wrestling Event in Orlando. Masters first opened up on why he asked for his release from IMPACT Wrestling back in January.

Masters was initially with WWE from 2003 to 2007 when he was released from his contract. He had a two year run on the independent circuit before making a return to the company in 2009. That run lasted two years until he was released from his deal again in August of 2011.

He went on to work for TNA in 2015 and returned in 2017 to IMPACT Wrestling. That run only lasted several months before Masters requested his release from the promotion in January of 2018, and it was subsequently granted:

“I like that group and I had a lot of fun there with those guys. It just came down to in the end that it wasn’t really enough money once they started cutting the budget for me to really show up to work. That’s all it was. I like Eli Drake but I didn’t favor the way they had me booked as his cheerleader unless it turned out into something we could do with a program and work with him and it eventually led to him being a babyface and me a heel.

“If we would have done that, it would have worked out great but I would have also wanted to be paid adequately. It just came down to those facts and obviously I just ended up quitting. I literally just after two days at the taping, booked a flight back to Toronto and just decided I wasn’t coming back. I reached out to them when I landed in Toronto and told them I wouldn’t be coming into work and that was it. It was as simple as that.

“My 35th birthday came around and something in my head just popped in and I said I’m not going to do anything that doesn’t make me feel good or that I don’t want to do at this point and that was one of the starts.”

Masters also talked about his days working as a bouncer at a bar, named the strongest wrestler he has ever worked with, reveals how often he watches wrestling now and much more in the full interview. You can check it out below:

Matt Hardy Issues Cryptic Tweet

There has been some speculation going around regarding Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt’s current tag team, and that it could be coming to an end soon.

The Deleters Of Worlds recently came up short against The B Team (Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel) on RAW to recapture the Tag Team Titles. Hardy recently took to Twitter and issued out a cryptic message, saying the single word “DONE.”:

DONE. https://t.co/rFP6jjctDX

— MATT HARDY (@MATTHARDYBRAND) July 24, 2018

Elias’ New Album Hits iTunes’ Top Ten

As we’ve noted, WWE Superstar Elias has released his new album “Walk With Elias.” The new album has actually been doing very well on iTunes. Prior to Monday’s episode of RAW it had reached number 16 on the iTunes charts.

When the show finished, it was already in the top ten and jumped up to number six. If you’d like to check Elias’ album out, you can do so on iTunes or Spotify.

Cody Rhodes doesn’t have a bad thing to say about Randy Orton.

Rhodes worked with Orton as a member of the Legacy stable in WWE from 2008 to 2010. Soon after he went on a nice singles run that included a pair of Intercontinental Title wins. In 2016, however, the son of WWE Hall Of Famer Dusty Rhodes decided to venture out into the independent circuit and left the company.

Orton remains in WWE today, and cut an interesting promo on SmackDown Live last night (Tues. July 24, 2108) about “indy darlings.” He poked fun at The Bullet Club stealing the old Kliq “Too Sweet” hand gesture as well. One fan on Twitter seemed to take issue with this and asked Rhodes to “go off” on Orton.

Rhodes responded by saying “The Viper” could call him “a rat piece of sh!&” and he wouldn’t care. He credits Orton for his early success in the business and says he learned a lot from the former multiple time World Champ:

https://twitter.com/moaningreigns_/status/1021912319876624385?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1021912319876624385&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mandatory.com%2Fwrestlezone%2Fnews%2F979541-cody-rhodes-asked-to-go-off-on-orton-defends-the-viper

https://twitter.com/CodyRhodes/status/1021918150424711168?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1021918150424711168&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mandatory.com%2Fwrestlezone%2Fnews%2F979541-cody-rhodes-asked-to-go-off-on-orton-defends-the-viper

Earlier this week (Mon. July 23, 2018) on Monday Night RAW, the trio of Stephanie McMahon, Vince McMahon and Triple H opened up the show.

After some comments from Vince and “The Game,” Stephanie McMahon announced the first ever all female WWE pay-per-view (PPV) entitled “Evolution” which will take place in October. The entire RAW roster and the women from SmackDown Live were on the stage for the announcement.

When the segment wrapped up, the cameras cut back to the RAW commentary team of Jonathan Coachman, Michael Cole and Corey Graves. In the background, however, Stephanie McMahon, Triple H and Vince McMahon could all be seen making their way out of the ring.

Stephanie McMahon exited the ring first as Triple H held the bottom rope open for her. “The Game” continued to hold the rope open and jokingly signaled for Vince McMahon to go next. Vince McMahon grinned and pretended to kick Triple H. He then exited the ring soon after Triple H did. Check out the video here:

https://twitter.com/A_mac_25/status/1021549551851917312?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1021549551851917312&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.iwnerd.com%2Fwatch-funny-moment-between-triple-h-and-vince-mcmahon-caught-during-raw%2F

Vince McMahon has created an empire of professional wrestling that will likely never be rivaled in years to come.

From purchasing the WWE from his late father back in 1982, to helping create household names such as The Rock, Hulk Hogan, Stone Cold Steve Austin and John Cena. He was also the mastermind behind professional wrestling’s biggest show of the year, WrestleMania.

Vince McMahon works tirelessly to ensure that the WWE remains at the forefront of the professional wrestling world, and it looks like his efforts have recently been recognized by Adweek.

“The Chairman Of The Board” was named 70th on Adweek’s List Of 100 Most Cutting-Edge CEOs. His daughter, Stephanie McMahon, recently took to Twitter to congratulate her father on the honor and credited him for making WWE’s WrestleMania the #6 most valuable sports event brands in the world:

“From creating @WrestleMania, @Forbes‘ #6 most valuable sports event brands in the world, to driving record revenues year-over-year, @VinceMcMahon has made @WWE a global media powerhouse.”

From creating @WrestleMania, @Forbes' #6 most valuable sports event brands in the world, to driving record revenues year-over-year, @VinceMcMahon has made @WWE a global media powerhouse. @Adweek #Power100List https://t.co/2S6pqwBLGT

— Stephanie McMahon (@StephMcMahon) July 25, 2018

Last night’s (Tues. July 24, 2018) episode of SmackDown Live featured some great moments. Andrade “Cien” Almas was in action against Rusev, The New Day collided with Sanity once again and Samoa Joe emerged as the next opponent for AJ Styles’ WWE Title.

After SmackDown Live went off-air WWE held its tapings of 205 Live as well. When the Cruiserweights wrapped up their show, WWE put on a big Six-Man Tag Team dark match featuring some of SmackDown Live’s biggest stars.

WWE Champion AJ Styles, Daniel Bryan and Jeff Hardy took on the team of United States Champion Shinsuke Nakamura and The Bar (Sheamus and Cesaro). “The Phenomenal One,” Bryan and Hardy picked up the victory and sent the crowd come happy:

https://twitter.com/AStayAtHomeRad/status/1021952488306561024?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1021952488306561024&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.iwnerd.com%2Fstar-studded-dark-match-happens-after-smackdown-goes-off-the-air-photo%2F

The SmackDown Live roster has been snubbed from the latest poster for next month’s SummerSlam pay-per-view (PPV) – including WWE Champion AJ Styles.

Instead, the poster only features four Superstars, all from Monday Night RAW, those being: Ronda Rousey, WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar, Roman Reigns and RAW Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss.

Some notable snubs from the blue brand include the aforementioned WWE Champion AJ Styles and SmackDown Live Women’s title holder Carmella.

Updated SummerSlam Card

WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns

WWE RAW Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss vs. Ronda Rousey

WWE Champion AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe

WWE Intercontinental Champion Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins

Kevin Owens vs. Braun Strowman – if Owens wins then he gets the MITB contract

SummerSlam goes down live on PPV from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York on August 19, 2018.

On the latest episode of Bruce Prichard and Conrad Thompson’s Something To Wrestle podcast, the guys dug deep into WWE’s 2001 Invasion pay-per-view. It was the culmination of WWE purchasing WCW & ECW and injecting what was left of both brands into television storylines.

WWE had a ton of dream matches that they wanted to make, but a certain contractual issue prevented that form happening. After the WCW sale stars were still being paid by Turner Broadcasting from guaranteed contracts. Some of them decided to continue collecting guaranteed money instead of signing a deal with WWE.

Two big matches that were impacted by this were Goldberg vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin and Sting vs. The Undertaker:

“I think again without all the particulars, the first match that comes to mind was Austin vs. Goldberg. To have that matchup at some point. To be able to build to it. Same thing with Undertaker and Sting. There was thinking, ‘okay do you bring back Hall and Nash and put them back into the fold?’ There were a lot of what if’s.

“It all becomes mental masturbation at that point. Because with the exception of JR, I don’t think there was anyone who had really dealt with Goldberg and Goldberg showed zero desire, nil, zilch to come in. He had his deal [with Turner] and was going to be paid out. He didn’t want to come in so the fact that he didn’t want to come in — we sure as hell wasn’t gonna go after him. We didn’t want anybody that didn’t want to be here.”

Listen to the Invasion episode of Something to Wrestle with Bruce Prichard & Conrad Thompson:

H/T to WrestlingINC for the transcribed quotes

Its been quite some time since Mike and Maria Kanellis have been on WWE TV together as a duo.

Last September Kanellis was taken off the road when she became pregnant with she and Mike’s first child. Their daughter, Fredrica “Freddie” Moon Bennett, was born on April 3rd, 2018. Maria will report to the WWE Performance Center in Orlando next week.

Mike Kanellis has still been working sporadically since Maria was sent home, but mostly on Main Event tapings and hasn’t been prominently featured on WWE TV. Maria recently took to Twitter to update fans on her status, and said right now she’s focused on getting back into shape after her pregnancy.

She also offered her thoughts on the WWE’s recent announcement of their first ever all-female PPV event, Evolution. Maria noted it’s what her generation of female talent was fighting for from 2004 – 2010.

A fan asked Maria if she’d be able to return in time for the Evolution PPV, and she said she’s ready to return right now:

To all the amazing women, I worked with during my first run in WWE, this is what we fought so hard for. As did, the women before me and the current roster. No one knows or understands the… https://t.co/6hogdvixDk

— MariaKanellisBennett (@MariaLKanellis) July 24, 2018

https://twitter.com/FutureInTheWWE/status/1021562747073585152?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

I’m ready now. Heading down to the performance center next week. https://t.co/JzpitdrcvC

— MariaKanellisBennett (@MariaLKanellis) July 24, 2018