Son of former WWE Superstar Billy Gun, Austin Gunn, recently did his first-ever wrestling interview with WSVN-TV’s Chris Van Vliet while at Wrestling For Warriors in Florida. Austin first opened up about dealing with the backlash at school from his dad’s Billy & Chuck gimmick on TV:

“He kind of sat us down when that whole thing was getting really hot and he was like ‘Listen, your dad’s not really gay and this is a whole gimmick.’ But at school they’d be all like ‘Oh, your dad’s gay.

“Your dad’s kissing another dude.’ I’d be like ‘That’s not my dad. I have a mom. What do you mean?’ and I’d be trying to put the pieces together. I understood the business enough back then to know my dad wasn’t really gay. But I got a little heat for that.”

Austin is ready to begin his professional wrestling career after recently finishing college. He explained why he wants to follow in his father’s footsteps and get into the business:

“Growing up and just being around the business, I met The Rock and Stone Cold and it was all normal to me at the time. In school kids would be like ‘What, your dad’s a wrestler?’ and it was just like an everyday thing for me.

“Growing up I kind of got a better understanding of the business and kind of how it worked and I was like ‘Maybe I’ll be kind of good at this.’ My parents said I couldn’t do it until I went to college and graduated first and that’s understandable. I just graduated this past Mother’s Day and I’m ready to get into it.”

As far as what his goals are in wrestling, Austin wants to establish his own name rather than ‘backpacking’ off his father’s gimmick:

“I think right now I just want to take it all in and be able to remember this experience. Remember coming here and having my first interview and having my first match and what that really meant to me and kind of establish a name for myself instead of backpacking off my dad’s gimmick.

“I don’t want to be known for that 100%, I want to make a name for myself so that other people know that I really want to do this and not just because my dad’s a wrestler. I really want to do this and I’m really passionate about it and I think I’m fairly good at it so I’m excited to see where it goes.

Austin then commented on whether or not he plans to use his “Gunn” name in wrestling:

“I have no idea because I’m not really in it yet. The ideas were flowing a little bit at first and obviously my father is Billy Gunn. I don’t know what my character is supposed to be yet because I’m not at that developmental stage yet in my wrestling career.

“Just to dip my feet in the water a little bit we had our first tag team match which was my first match just to kind of get into it and then I had a solo match and I had to go by something. So I was like my first name is Austin and I want people to know who I am at least just so they get an idea until I start taking that path.”

WWE Stars Seemingly Voice Frustrations On Twitter

Both WWE Superstars Tyler Breeze and Scott Dawson recently posted some interesting Tweets on social media, likely voicing their frustrations with their current positions in the company. Breeze Tweeted out the following, which led to an exchange with a fan:

They say the cream rises to the top……. does anyone have some balloons or a life vest?

— Breeze (@MmmGorgeous) June 5, 2018

Funny characters don’t get main event status. Risk it all or stay complacent.

— Moondog (@MoondogAlpha) June 5, 2018

Rock wasn’t funny? Austin? Angle? You’re dumb https://t.co/8euw7sYgqp

— Breeze (@MmmGorgeous) June 5, 2018

Scott Dawson then Tweeted out in response to a WWE video, asking for an opportunity to prove that he and Dash Wilder are the best to ever do it:

https://twitter.com/ScottDawsonWWE/status/1004195137717768194?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Get in line pal https://t.co/DYKfNzVo8o

— Breeze (@MmmGorgeous) June 6, 2018

Cody Rhodes & The Young Bucks Hype Upcoming Matches

One-half of The Young Bucks, Matt Jackson, recently took to Twitter to hype he and Nick’s upcoming Tag Team match at Dominion. The Young Bucks will take on Los Ingobernables de Japon (Sanada and Evil) for the IWGP Tag Team Titles:

https://twitter.com/MattJackson13/status/1004407588337750016?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mandatory.com%2Fwrestlezone%2Fnews%2F961903-matt-jackson-hypes-njpw-dominion-match-wwe-takes-a-look-at-money-in-the-bank-veterans

Ring Of Honor (ROH) also posted a video in which Cody Rhodes hypes his upcoming Triple Threat match against Dalton Castle and Marty Scurll for the ROH World Title at the Best In The World pay-per-view (PPV) on June 29th in Baltimore:

#DaddyEatsFirst – @CodyRhodes #ROH World Championship Match at #ROHBITW!

Fri June 29 – LIVE on PPV and for #HonorClub VIP
@UMBCEventCenter in #ROHBaltimore

Tickets: https://t.co/l7s3rREu4X
Info: https://t.co/3CSMIp8ZMD pic.twitter.com/VeKhWAEpJ4

— ROH – Ring of Honor Wrestling (@ringofhonor) June 6, 2018

Who Has The Most MITB Appearances?

Later this month (June 17, 2018) WWE will holds its Money In The Bank (MITB) Ladder match in Rosemont, Illinois. Braun Strowman, Finn Balor, The Miz, Rusev, Bobby Roode, Kevin Owens, Samoa Joe and a member of The New Day.

WWE recently posted an Instagram photo showing which of these competitors has been in a MITB Ladder match the most. The Miz leads the way with three, Kevin Owens has two, and if Kofi Kingston is the New Day member selected to participate he’ll lead the way with six:

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

WWE Star Teases Brand Switch

TJP has been teasing a brand switch lately after recently working an enhancement talent on 205 Live before cutting a promo on General Manager Drake Maverick. TJP has teased a possible move to SmackDown Live or Monday Night RAW as he feels Maverick doesn’t appreciate him. Check it out here:

Colt Cabana On Funny Moment During WWE Trial

During the trial between CM Punk & Colt Cabana vs. WWE Dr. Chris Amann, a lot of information came to light. At one point in the trial, Tweets were read aloud that were directed towards Amann on Twitter.

WrestleZone recently reported that a hashtag of #FireDrAmann was Tweeted by a user who’s name was Mike Litoris. Many in the courtroom begun to chuckle at the joke. Now that the trial is over, and was ruled in favor of Punk and Cabana, Colt took to Twitter to comment on Mr. Litoris’ Tweet:

Dear Mr Litoris,

You say whatever your little heart desires.

A Friend

— Colt Cabana? (@ColtCabana) June 6, 2018

Velveteen Dream Takes Credit For NXT Call-Up

As we’ve noted, Lio Rush is expected to be making his 205 Live debut soon. Rush had some run-ins with Velveteen Dream in NXT previously, and now Dream believes that because he gave Rush the “rub from The Dream,” he’s responsible for the call-up.

He also teased his NXT TakeOver: Chicago opponent, Ricochet, that he can do the same for him too:

https://twitter.com/VelveteenWWE/status/1004251452871725057?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ringsidenews.com%2F2018%2F06%2F06%2Fvelveteen-dream-takes-credit-latest-nxt-call%2F

CM Punk is currently gearing up to compete in his second mixed martial arts (MMA) fight this weekend on the main card of the UFC 225 pay-per-view (PPV) in his hometown of Chicago, Illinois.

The former WWE Champion will be taking on MMA journalist Mike Jackson, who holds an 0-1 record himself. Jackson and Punk both lost to the same man, Mickey Gall, in their professional fighting careers.

Jackson lost first in under a minute, and as a result Gall won the opportunity to welcome Punk into the UFC. Several months later, Punk fought Gall and lost via first round submission after two minutes.

Now, two years later, Punk is seeking his first victory of his fighting career. Punk is currently in the middle of his weight-cut, as he must weigh 171 pounds or less come fight night, and he isn’t looking great:

Punk looks extremely tired and sucked in here, but this isn’t uncommon for fighters in the middle of a weight cut.

Discussion: What are you expecting from Punk inside the Octagon this weekend? Will you be watching?

Former mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter-turned-professional wrestler, Stephan Bonnar, recently did an interview with Sportskeeda to talk about several professional wrestling topics. Bonnar first talked about making the transition from fighting to wrestling, and how its been:

“I mean yeah, I can’t complain. Since I stepped foot in a pro wrestling gym I’ve done House of Glory, a big show up in New York City, IWS up in Montreal, and Impact where I ran that angle that ended with a match with me and Moose against Lashley and King Mo in a steel cage.

“Then I’ve got PCW where I’ve got my debut this Friday, so my goal was to stick to solid indie shows and that’s what I’m doing. I’ve been talking to the guys at MLW, so yeah, it’s going good.”

As far as how much the training between the two sports differs, Bonnar says pro wrestling training doesn’t come close to how grueling it is to prepare for a fight:

“It’s not even close to how miserable it is training for an MMA fight. When you do MMA it’s an obvious kind of fun, but when you have to get ready for a fight, you literally go through hell every day and you have trouble getting out of bed.

“That’s really hard. So, for pro wrestling it’s been more of a hobby. I go in there once or twice a week, and I’m trying to learn maybe one or two more moves a day.”

Bonnar feels good right now physically, but his body was taking quite the toll when he was still competing in MMA:

“My body, honestly, feels the best it has in so long. My main problem, in terms of MMA, is that it was taking a toll on me. Every day my knees would swell up and it’d be ice baths and cortisone injections.

“In pro wrestling, you take bumps and falls, and it’s like taking breakfalls in judo. It’s very similar, and that’s pretty much the extent of it. I feel good.”

You can read Bonnar’s full interview with Sportskeeda by clicking this link here

Check out an interview with Bonnar’s former Tag Team partner, Phil Baroni, who explains how Bonnar ruined the sport of MMA, here.

For the best MMA coverage available, please visit our sister site at MMANews.com

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

The last time Austin Aries saw the inside of a WWE ring, he suffered an extremely disappointing loss to Neville in a Submission match for the Cruiserweight Title at the Extreme Rules pay-per-view (PPV) in June of last year.

Less than a month later, WWE handed Aries his walking papers and was on a 90-day non-compete clause that ended this past October. Since then, Aries has done work for several promotions such as IMPACT Wrestling, Ring Of Honor (ROH) and many more.

A fan took to Twitter and posted a GIF of Aries after his Extreme Rules loss to Neville, noting it was one year since his last WWE match. Aries responded with this:

“And life was never the same… Dejected, almost amused at my repeated failure, who’d have known this moment here would be the catalyst for so much future success. And to my victorious opponent…I’d love to do it again, shackles off, whenever you’re done serving your time…”

https://twitter.com/TheYearOfBliss/status/1003725579261079552

And life was never the same…

Dejected, almost amused at my repeated failure, who’d have known this moment here would be the catalyst for so much future success.

And to my victorious opponent…I’d love to do it again, shackles off, whenever you’re done serving your time… https://t.co/mbxmwY1wUV

— Daniel Healy (@AustinAries) June 4, 2018

With the XFL set to kickoff play in 2020, the league has finally made a major decision in the league’s future. It was announced that former NFL and NCAA executive Oliver Luck is the new commissioner of the XFL. You can check out the official announcement, featuring comments from owner Vince McMahon, here below:

We are proud to announce that former #NFL and #NCAA executive and quarterback @OliverLuckXFL has been named the #XFL Commissioner & CEO. pic.twitter.com/ROzr027Bld

— United Football League (@TheUFL) June 5, 2018

Stamford, Conn., June 5, 2018 – The XFL today announced that former NFL and NCAA executive and quarterback Oliver Luck has been named the league’s Commissioner & CEO. The new XFL kicks off in early 2020 and will deliver a fan-centric, innovative experience, including fast-paced games and a family-friendly environment, complemented by cross-platform viewing options and real-time fan engagement.

“Oliver and I share the same vision and passion for reimagining the game of football,” said Vince McMahon, XFL Founder and Chairman. “His experience as both an athlete and executive will ensure the long-term success of the XFL.”

“Football has always been a constant in my life and I’m excited about the unique opportunity to present America’s favorite sport to fans in a new way,” said Oliver Luck. “The XFL will create first-class organizations that local cities across the country will be proud of.”

Earlier in his career, Luck served as President of NFL Europe and General Manager of the league’s Frankfurt Galaxy and Rhein Fire. Most recently Luck was the NCAA’s Executive Vice President of Regulatory Affairs and Strategic Partnerships where he oversaw all NCAA regulatory functions including enforcement, academic and membership affairs, and the Eligibility Center.

Prior to the NCAA, Luck spent four years as the Director of Athletics at his alma mater, West Virginia University, where he presided over the school’s transition into the Big 12 Conference. He was also the first President and General Manager of Major League Soccer’s Houston Dynamo, and led the organization to two MLS Cup titles.

A Rhodes Scholarship finalist, Luck graduated from West Virginia University where he was a three-year starting quarterback, two-time Academic All-American, two-time team MVP and currently ranks sixth on the school’s all-time list for both passing yards and touchdowns. Luck was selected in the second round of the 1982 NFL draft by the Houston Oilers where he played until 1986.

Luck earned his J.D. from the University of Texas at Austin School of Law, graduating cum laude in 1987. He’s a member of the West Virginia University Sports Hall of Fame and CoSIDA Academic All-America Hall of Fame.

Plans for the XFL at launch include eight teams, 40-man active rosters and a 10-week regular season schedule, with a postseason consisting of two semifinal playoff games and a championship game.

Click here to see a video message from XFL Commissioner & CEO Oliver Luck.

ABOUT THE XFL

The new XFL will reimagine football for the 21st century when it kicks off in early 2020.

Football is America’s favorite sport boasting over 85 million fans but the traditional season is just too short. Seeing a tremendous opportunity to fill the void, Vince McMahon, XFL Founder and Chairman announced on January 25, 2018, the launch of a new league, which he is personally funding. McMahon is building the XFL with the same commitment and resolve that he has demonstrated building WWE into a global media and sports entertainment powerhouse.

Delivering authentic, high energy football for the whole family at an affordable price, the XFL will offer fast-paced games with fewer play stoppages and simpler rules. The league will launch with eight teams, 40-man active rosters, and a 10-week regular season schedule, with a postseason consisting of two semifinal playoff games and a championship game. Each contest will be a high profile event with tens of thousands of fans, featuring innovative elements that bring them closer to the players and the game they love. The XFL will also establish a health, wellness and safety program that meets the needs of today’s athletes.

The XFL will embrace the latest on and off-field technology, providing live game coverage, content and real-time engagement across multiple platforms, giving fans greater access than ever before. We will build strong grassroots relationships with local organizations in our Host Cities through social responsibility partnerships, and the XFL will enjoy the support of WWE’s many extraordinary resources and promotional capabilities.

Media Contact: Lou D’Ermilio – LOUD Communications lou@loudcommllc.com or 917-601-6898

WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross recently took to his podcast, The Ross Report, to talk about the current goings on in the world, as well as a few professional wrestling topics as well. Ross first discussed his thoughts on the current situation between Roseanne Barr and the ABC Network:

“She got cancelled by ABC, as many of you know.” Ross said, “her show was getting great ratings. It premiered with 18 million viewers. It looked like [ABC] found a goldmine. I heard the estimate of how much money it was going to lose in the cancellation for advertising was around $35 and $50 million dollars that ABC cut loose from and it also cost a lot of talented people their jobs.

“That’s what’s really irking to me. But she made a late night racist Twitter post that will not be repeated here. I liked the show, as a matter of fact. It kind of reminded me of the old days. And Roseanne’s like a dozen women that I’ve met in my lifetime, very outspoken, very strong. But you can’t let this pass.

“It cost a lot of people their jobs, as I mentioned. It’s just total lack of judgment. Maybe we should have sensed that when she married Tom Arnold, for God’s sake. How smart was that? In any event, nobody’s bulletproof, ladies and gentlemen, not even Roseanne.

“I can tell you this: I was a 10-year Ambien user. I was a 10-year, decade-long Ambien abuser.” Ross continued, “and since my wife saw me through these troubling waters, it was no more Ambien and no more Xanax, so therefore I’m not mixing it with alcohol.

“But Ambien can make you do some funny, funny things. If you look up Ambien in the medical dictionary, it is a temporary medicine for insomnia. ‘Temporary’ is the key word here, not 10 years, J.R. ‘Oh, it can’t hurt me. I’m tough. It can’t hurt me.’ Well, it made Roseanne do some funny things. It could make you too, so be leery of that. There are meds out there that are not opioids, that are not habit-forming, that’ll help you sleep. Trust me. This I know.”

Ross then revealed that he was the one who came up with King Kong Bundy’s famous “Five Count” gimmick:

“I gave Bundy that five-count deal, his gimmick.” Ross recalled, “[Bill] Watts was going to bring him in and wants to do something different. I said, ‘why don’t you have him where he’s so powerful, he’s so strong, he’s so confident, he’s so huge, that he’ll beat people with a five-count, not a three-count?

“He’s really going to put them away.’ So the five, he’d do the five. Watts liked that idea and I think it worked. I think King Kong Bundy still uses that to this day when you see him in the ring from time-to-time.

Finally, Ross listed off who he thinks are the best heels of all time:

“I think the best villain of ‘The Attitude Era’ was Vince McMahon. Mr. McMahon was an ass-kicker. He was absolutely amazing. Ric Flair. How do you leave Ric Flair off of any list of any villains? My God! Triple H, hell of a villain. JBL did a hell of a job. John ‘Bradshaw’ Layfield made it easy for the fans to dislike him.

“He could conjure up that personality, that big, loudmouth, Dick Murdoch-like Texan, and draw money. Johnny did a good job with that for us. Eric Bischoff, a hell of a heel. No doubt about that. I think Chris Jericho doing great as a heel.” Ross added, “and I worked firsthand with some great heels myself. Jerry Lawler, Paul Heyman, Terry Funk, Bobby ‘The Brain’ [Heenan]. So those are some of the guys that I look at that have to be on that list.”

You can listen to The Ross Report by clicking this link here.

H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

Both Stephanie McMahon and Triple H weren’t present for last night’s episode of Monday Night RAW from Houston, Texas. While it’s not unusual for them to be missing on-screen, they’re both typically backstage working behind-the-scenes.

As for why the pair missed last night, PWInsider reports that Stephanie and The Game are in Los Angeles as WWE will be hosting a “For Your Consideration” panel discussion on Wednesday. This is apparently in attempt to get the WWE nominated for an Emmy Award.

The event is a private one and won’t be open to the public. Television Academy National Active members are the only personnel allowed to attend the event. It’ll all take place from the Wolf Theatre at Saban Media Center in North Hollywood. Other notable names scheduled to appear include Shawn Michaels, Ronda Rousey, Roman Reigns and the Bella Twins.

We already knew that Asuka can kick hard, but this takes things to a completely new level. At a recent WWE live event Asuka took on Lana and hit her with a kick so hard that her hair extensions popped out.

You can check out the video here below:

SOME BODY GON GET THEY HEAD KICKED
SOME BODY GON GET THEY WIG SPLIT pic.twitter.com/k06WVEMhs0

— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) June 5, 2018

Asuka is gearing up to challenge for the SmackDown Live Women’s Title when she takes on Carmella at the Money In The Bank pay-per-view (PPV) on June 17th from the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois.

Lana will be a part of the Women’s Money In The Bank Ladder match alongside Ember Moon, Charlotte Flair, Alexa Bliss, Becky Lynch, Natalya, Naomi and Sasha Banks.

Shane Helms Teases ROH Appearance

Former WWE Cruiserweight Champion Shane Helms (a.k.a. Hurricane) took to Twitter to tease a possible Ring Of Honor (ROH) appearance. Helms is in his Hurricane gear staring down the ROH logo with the following caption: “Thru howling winds and pouring rain. All evil shall fear … THE HURRICANE!” Check it out here:

“Thru howling winds and pouring rain.

All evil shall fear … THE HURRICANE!” #CurrentLegend #IKnowAGuy #JunRaqan pic.twitter.com/cR6MlxRKXD

— Hurricane Helms (@ShaneHelmsCom) June 5, 2018

James Storm On Beer Money Reunion

The Miami Herald’s Scott Fishman took to Twitter and said that he wants Beer Money to reunite on Monday Night RAW:

Bring back Beer Money. #WWE #Raw

— Scott Fishman (@smFISHMAN) June 5, 2018

The tag team was made up of Bobby Roode and James Storm during their time in TNA back in 2008. They would split in 2011 but briefly reunited 2016. Storm is currently a free agent while Roode is working in the WWE on RAW.

Storm responded to Fishman’s Tweet and said a reunion would result a lot of merchandise sales:

https://twitter.com/JamesStormBrand/status/1003810822022451201?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2F411mania.com%2Fwrestling%2Fjames-storm-beer-money-reunion%2F

Discussion: Would you like to see Beer Money reunite in WWE?

First Look At John Cena In Bumblebee (Video)

The first look at the upcoming Bumblebee video has been released, and it features brief footage of WWE’s John Cena in the movie. Cena can be seen holding a large weapon, looking to be a member of the military. He appears at the 1:46 mark of the video below:

TMZ Sports recently uploaded a new interview with WWE Superstar John Cena. The interviewer asked some questions about if Cena had reconciled with Nikki Bella, but he didn’t answer them.

When asked if he wanted to marry Nikki, Cena responded by saying “It’s something I would like if the situation is right.” When asked about whether or not he wanted to have kids, Cena admitted that he know would love to be a dad:

“Of course, I would love to be a dad. And by the way, that’s an about-face for me and I realize very much that I have been steadfast in saying that I don’t want children,” Cena said.

“But I’m a little older now, a little wiser. At age 18 we say things different than age 25 and 35. I would love, only because I dedicated my life to my work and now I’m realizing there’s life and it exists and it is beautiful. I think part of that is being a parent and we’ll see. Is that good enough for you?”

Cena was then asked if he’d allow his children to become professional wrestlers. The Leader Of The Cenation said he’d support his children in anything they wanted to do with their lives if they were following their dreams:

“My God, I don’t know what I would do with my life if my parents hadn’t supported my career. So, would I allow my child to chase their dream, essentially is what you’re asking me? I think that’s what life is all about.”

Check out the interview here:

H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

WWE COO Triple H recently did an interview with Mike Johnson of PWInsider to talk about several professional wrestling topics. One such topic was the future of NXT and whether or not fans could expect to see it air on a major network such as FOX or USA, in turn leaving the WWE Network.

After SmackDown Live landed a billion dollar TV deal with FOX, there has been speculation WWE could shop NXT’s broadcasting rights. The Game admitted that he doesn’t know if that’s in the future for the WWE’s developmental program, but wouldn’t rule the possibility out:

“As far as where NXT ends up, as that brand continues to grow, never say never, I guess.  For the value of the Network, NXT is a valuable part of the WWE Network.   Where it ends up, I don’t know.

“Obviously, that’s a decision that Vince [McMahon] will make and the team here will make strategically as to where everything sits, just as we do everything else in our ecosystem as far as where we put content.  It’s a constantly challenging question for us.  Good problem to have, right?”

You can read Triple H’s full interview with PWInsider by clicking this link here.

Despite WWE’s best attempts, fans will likely never forget about Big Cass’ former association with Enzo Amore.

Amore was released from WWE earlier this year after learning of some sexual assault allegations that were brought against him (which have since been dropped). Since his departure, Big Cass has been pushed as a top heel on WWE TV.

Cass has been working a program with Daniel Bryan over on SmackDown Live. Ringside News reports that yesterday (Sun. June 3, 2018) during a live event in Waco, Texas, fans begun chanting “We want Enzo” at Big Cass as they were disappointed with his match against Bryan.

Initially, Daniel Bryan vs. The Miz was advertised for that event. Instead, Miz took part in a Fatal Five-Way match for the United States Title, and Bryan worked against Cass in the main event.

Fans reportedly weren’t interested in the match at all until they got the opportunity to do the “YES!” chant. Bryan emerged victorious in the match to send the crowd home happy.

It seems like the release of former WWE Cruiserweight Champion Enzo Amore could have been influenced by more than the now-dropped sexual assault allegations against him.

Mike Johnson of PWInsider reports on Insider Elite that several people in WWE tell him Amore’s release was based on much more than the allegations, as that was viewed as more of a ‘last straw’ situation.

Apparently Amore had rubbed many people the wrong way as he would say things he wasn’t supposed to say and also carried himself in a manner that was unfavorable. When the allegations were brought to light, WWE had finally had enough of his shenanigans and decided to cut ties with him.

Since the allegations have been dropped, Amore has begun his career as a rapper and released a song in which he disses his accuser. He also has some subtle WWE references in his song as well.

Discussion: What are your thoughts on the entire situation between Amore and WWE? Will he ever be back?

Former WWE commentator Taz recently took to his show, The Taz Show, to offer his thoughts on the current goings on in NXT. One such topic was the success of current NXT Champion Aleister Black.

Taz believes Black has all the tools to be a major star for the company, but admitted that the NXT Champ’s promo skills lose him a bit:

“His promo work needs some work, in my opinion,” said Taz. “The only reason why I say it needs some work is because he’s got a very awesome look. His physique, all the ink he has, his facial hair, his hair on his head, the way his face looks, the way he moves in the ring.

“His athleticism in the ring, his body of work as a pro wrestler, all the years he’s got in the business. The martial arts feel he has to his work and his kicks and his strikes, and all this jazz. It’s all an awesome potpourri of a very unique talent, hence his success in NXT.

“And I do think once he’s on the main roster, he will be a big, big star, and I really believe that. He should be. The thing is, just me being blunt, his promo work loses me a little bit. It loses the darkness. He’s gotta certain darkness about him, right?

“You get that when you see him, a certain darkness. I’m not saying he shouldn’t talk, but I think he needs a little guidance on his talking. His vocabulary is great, very intelligent, he doesn’t have like a heavy duty accent or anything like that. But to me, it loses the darkness.”

Taz also believes that there’s only one man who should be NXT Champion right now, and that’s EC3:

“It’s almost like a Bobby Roode feel, but different,” said Taz. “Like that type of feel, but as a heel. He’s veteran enough, he knows what he’s doing enough that he feels like a champ. He can cut a helluva promo. I think that’s who eventually has got to be the NXT Champion, in my opinion.”

You can listen to The Taz Show by clicking this link here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cSZ3Vsugso

H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

Ricochet Responds To Velveteen Dream

For the past few days, Velveteen Dream has been firing shots at his NXT TakeOver: Chicago opponent, Ricochet, on Twitter. Ricochet has finally responded, reminding Dream of his past appearance on Tough Enough when he was eliminated halfway through the show.

He then wrote “the result will be the same at Takeover: Chicago.”:

https://twitter.com/KingRicochet/status/1003325236488613890?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

https://twitter.com/VelveteenWWE/status/1000376453261856768?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

https://twitter.com/VelveteenWWE/status/1003102327950249985?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Earl Hebner Is “All In”

September 1st’s “All In” event, self-funded by Cody Rhodes and The Young Bucks, just continues to get bigger as it adds the biggest names in professional wrestling today. All In’s Twitter page has confirmed that former WWE and TNA referee Earl Hebner will be working the show.

He joins a cast of referees that includes the likes of Paul Turner, Rick Knox, Todd Sinclair, and Jerry Lynn:

https://twitter.com/ALL_IN_2018/status/1003350674183282688?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Back in March of 2017 former IWGP Tag Team Champion Tomoaki Honma suffered a career-threatening injury after taking a draping DDT by Jado in the middle of a Six-Man Tag Team match.

After the move, Honma was unable to move anything from the neck down. As a result, the match was stopped. Later reports revealed that Honma had suffered a cervical vertebrae injury and was hospitalized for nearly four months.

New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) later announced that his in-ring return was “tentative” and he forfeited his shot at the IWGP Tag Team Championships. Nikkan Sports would later report that Honma was able to regain function enough to “grasp objects on the upper extremities.”

Despite this, he was still deep in the recovery process and any return to wrestling was described as “undetermined.” The following November, Honma was able to return to training and began taking bumps in hopes of getting back in the ring soon.

15 months later, Honma has fully recovered and is scheduled to appear at the the NJPW Best Of The Super Juniors block final. He and tag team partner Togi Makabe have issued an open challenge to anyone willing to face them at the Kizuna Road show on June 23rd in Yamagata.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iq68r_v_raQ

Carmella & Asuka Exchange Words

SmackDown Live Women’s Champion Carmella is expected to defend her title against Asuka at the Money In The Bank pay-per-view (PPV) on June 17th from the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois.

The pair recently exchanged some words with one another on Twitter ahead of their match-up. Here’s what they had to say:

Who is Asuka?
Empress of Yesterday.
Stoppable.
Beatable.
She used to be what I am today.
Nobody is ready for Mella. #MITB

— Mella Is Money ? (@CarmellaWWE) June 2, 2018

Her saving grace was her sense of humor, but It’s a pity that she has no sense of humor…??Hahaha https://t.co/o9mN1QFWgL

— ASUKA / ??? (@WWEAsuka) June 3, 2018

R-Truth Drops New Hip-Hop Single

WWE Superstar R-Truth has released a new hip-hop single, “That’z Endurance,” which is streaming on WeOnRadio.com. A preview for the song can be found below, which features Mannish Mania and is produced by J-Trx:

#NowPlaying Thatz Endurance by @RonKillings on https://t.co/0oNEoAIv34 #hearingisbelieving pic.twitter.com/JMS5hDiQFI

— 91.8 WeOnRadio (@weonradio) June 3, 2018

Coming Soon! pic.twitter.com/xjk6vuMtab

— Ron Killings (@RonKillings) May 17, 2018

Despite being drafted to SmackDown Live in the Superstar Shake-Up, Truth has been out-of-action for the past several months due to a shoulder injury. There is currently no news on when he might be ready go get back into the ring.

Lesnar’s Creative Freedom

There’s no doubt that current WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar is one of the more favored performers in the company at the moment, but one fan on Twitter threw a very interesting question Dave Meltzer’s way recently.

The fan asked how much creative control The Beast is given as opposed to the average talent. Meltzer responded by saying that if Lesnar and/or Paul Heyman have any suggestions Vince McMahon will listen and take them under advisement.

Make no mistake about it though, McMahon is always calling the final shots:

https://twitter.com/Illustrious_x0/status/1002428332577886208?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.iwnerd.com%2Fhow-much-creative-freedom-brock-lesnar-has-in-wwe%2F

Don't think anything is in his contract, but Vince listens to him and Paul and takes their ideas under advisement, but make no mistake, it is Vince's call whatever happens. https://t.co/kxzzS9KAQt

— Dave Meltzer (@davemeltzerWON) June 1, 2018

Video: Aiden English Remixes The Usos’ Theme

It has been announced that on tomorrow’s episode of SmackDown Live, Aiden English will team up with Lana to take on the team of Jimmy Uso and Naomi in a Mixed Tag Team match.

In honor of this news, English has taken to Twitter and uploaded a video in which he remixes The Usos’ WWE theme. Check it out here:

This Tuesday.#SDLive
Welcome to the #RusevDay Penitentiary.

@LanaWWE @RusevBUL

@NaomiWWE @WWEUsos pic.twitter.com/q1lCqYw2oy

— Matthew Rehwoldt (@DramaKingMatt) June 3, 2018

Former WWE creative team member Jason Allen, who served as a writing assistant on Monday Night RAW, was recently a guest on The Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Podcast to talk about his time with the company.

During the interview, Allen discussed his first ever interaction with The Boss’ Daughter, Stephanie McMahon. Here’s what he had to say:

“I went in to meet Stephanie because she wasn’t there when I first started, or when I came up with the interview. Stephanie is 7-8 months pregnant at this point with her first child and she comes up to me and she’s just so sweet and so nice and she’s like, ‘Oh hi, it’s so nice to meet you.

“Look, I swear I’m not a diva and I’m not like this; but, I need a blueberry muffin right now.’ So that was my first official task, was to run myself to the donut shop and get Stephanie a blueberry muffin.”

Allen also talked about his first time meeting former WWE Champion JBL, and the hilarious thing the future Hall Of Famer did when he first saw Allen:

“My first day at TV, JBL takes out his cell phone and takes a picture of me. He’s like, ‘You know why I’m doing that?’ I said, ‘No I don’t.’ He said, ‘It’s so I could remember your face when you’re gone next month.’ You could tell it was quite the revolving door.”

You can listen to The Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Podcast by clicking this link here.

H/T WrestleZone for the transcriptions

Stone Cold Steve Austin may have played the biggest badass in WWE TV history, but behind-the-scenes, he’s regarded as one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet.

So imagine the shock backstage several years ago when Austin lost his cool and yelled at the Big Boss Man backstage for missing his spot in an angle they were supposed to run. Boss Man was supposed to hit the ring and assault Austin with a steel chair.

Instead, Boss Man was nowhere to be found and old-timer Jerry Brisco made his way to the ring to do the job. Brisco comes from a generation that doesn’t hit hard with objects such as steel chairs, and Austin was disappointed with the presentation of the segment.

On the latest episode of his podcast, The Steve Austin Show, the WWE Hall Of Famer described what exactly happened when he lost his cool backstage for one of a very few times:

“The hottest I ever got in professional wrestling was when we was working the Keel Center in St. Louis, Missouri, and we was working an angle and I don’t remember who I was working with; but, Big Boss Man was supposed to run out there and hit me with a chair to cause me to lose the match. We get in the spot. It’s at the end of the match.

“There’s no Big Boss Man. He’s nowhere to be found. That big bastard’s supposed to run out there and cause me to lose the match so we can get off and start working an angle together, so here comes Jerry Brisco. Jerry Brisco was one of the great shooters out of Oklahoma State.

“Those old school guys weren’t really good with chairs because they didn’t really use chairs in their generation and they didn’t sling ’em like we would sling ’em in the Attitude Era…so he comes out there and hits me with this weak ass chair shot. I got to go down. I get beat. I really wanted him to kill me with that chair so I look better; but, anyway as I’m getting to the back, I’m like, ‘Where is he?’ Here comes Ray [Big Boss Man].

“He had been in the back talking to Undertaker while the match was going on. I guess Undertaker was in the main event or had already wrestled and man, I lit into Big Boss Man. It was the loudest cuss job I’d probably ever done in the history of the business and I never ever lose my cool like that, never in a million years….

“I really uncorked on Ray [Big Boss Man] because I was really upset he wasn’t there. Not only did he mess up the match…but that nullified our angle that we were supposed to work and I was looking forward to working with Ray [Big Boss Man]. He was such a great guy and a great big man.”

You can listen to The Steve Austin Show by clicking this link here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlJA1X-9tqc

H/T WrestleZone for the transcriptions

Former WWE Intercontinental Champion The Miz recently did an interview with SPORTbible to talk about several professional wrestling topics. Miz first talked about how fans make too big a deal out of WWE records:

“I feel like I have done so much in WWE that we just make up stuff now! It’s like, ‘I’ve had more combined days than every superstar besides one to be the Intercontinental champion!’ Is it cool? Sure. Do we make a bigger deal of it now, with social media? Absolutely.

“I wouldn’t even be able to tell you unless people tell me on the internet, ‘Hey, guess what – you have x amount of combined days until you are beating Pedro Morales for the longest-reigning Intercontinental champion, or, ‘You need one more reign to tie Chris Jericho!’ I think you guys care about it a little bit more than I do.”

Miz then offered his thoughts on how current Intercontinental Champion Seth Rollins is doing as the strap’s holder:

“I think Seth is doing a fantastic job with the Intercontinental championship. He’s had it for maybe a month and has probably defended it more times than I have in the past year! He’s on a hot-streak right now.

“His song says ‘Burn it down!’ and every time he goes out there that’s exactly what he tries to do. He elevates superstars every time they are in the ring; I saw a match with Mojo Rawley and it was the best match I have ever seen Mojo in, in his entire career.

“That just shows you not only how good Mojo is, he was able to showcase, but how good Seth Rollins really is. I don’t think he can elevate it any more than I already have but I think he’ll keep it at that same level.”

You can read The Miz’s full interview with SPORTbible by clicking this link here.

WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar is currently not scheduled to defend his title at the Money In The Bank (MITB) or Extreme Rules pay-per-view (PPV). The Beast hasn’t been seen since retaining his title against Roman Reigns inside a Steel Cage in Saudi Arabia at the Greatest Royal Rumble.

Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Newsletter reports that the current plans is to have Lesnar defend his title at SummerSlam next on August 19th in Brooklyn. He is currently scheduled to headline the event, but that’s not set in stone. It’ also unknown who his opponent will be.

As for his pending return to the UFC, there’s an interesting way of finding out what the status of his future in mixed martial arts (MMA) will be. If Lesnar were to return to the UFC, a fight at the promotion’s New Year’s Eve event would be the target date.

Lesnar would have to re-enter the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) drug testing pool by June 30th for this to be possible. If he hasn’t re-entered the drug testing pool by then, a return to the UFC anytime soon is unlikely.

The Beast must provide six months worth of clean testing before being allowed to return to the Octagon. We’ll keep you updated as we learn more…

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