Tenille Dashwood (better known as Emma in WWE) recently did an interview with Chuck Carroll of CBS Local Sports to talk about several professional wrestling topics. Here are some of the highlights:

Are you surprised that Daniel Bryan got the clearance to return and maybe slightly disappointed that it doesn’t appear, at this point, that he’ll be in an ROH ring any time soon?

“Well, he’s obviously under contract with the WWE, so that stops that part of it with Ring of Honor. I guess we always thought that he would never wrestle again, so to hear this is amazing news. … As a wrestler myself, to think that you could never wrestler again when you love something like that … I can’t imagine how hard it has been for him and for Brie and the family. I was so excited and just so happy for them when I heard that he could wrestle again. I don’t know what the circumstances are as far as being cleared or anything, but I’m just very happy for them and excited. To be able to do that again is very special.”

How did you get into contact with the company? Was that through Cody or Brandi Rhodes, or did they reach out to you, did you reach out to them?

“It was a bit of everything. I think there was a number of people that I had worked with in the past that had reached out to them, saying ‘Tenille’s available now.’ And then vice versa, I’m using a booking agent, and I think they reached out to him and they spoke as well.”

This is your second time being part of the women’s movement. … Can you compare your experience with this women’s movement with your previous experience?

“I was with WWE for about six years, and NXT was a big part of that. … When wrestling started being showcased as main events on the NXT Arrival, women from then on started to have bigger matches, more opportunities, and were showcased in main events and started to get chances they hadn’t had before. It feels like a similar thing is happening now [in Ring of Honor], and it’s a chance for me to be a part of that again, and to elevate the women and to showcase that to the world.”

You can ready Dashwood’s full interview with CBS Local Sports by clicking this link here.

This past weekend in New Orleans former UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey made her in-ring WWE debut at WrestleMania 34. The Rowdy One teamed up with Kurt Angle to pick up a win over Triple H and Stephanie McMahon in Mixed Tag Team action.

Despite fans’ initial expectations, Rousey actually did very well for herself inside the ring and wound up picking up the win for her team after locking in an armbar on McMahon. WWE Hall Of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin took to his podcast, The Steve Austin Show, to grade Rousey’s performance.

The Texas Rattlesnake said he “absolutely loved” the match and found it very entertaining:

“This was such an entertaining match and I was really wondering how Ronda would handle the moment. Some people have questioned some of her interview skills, and she’s not used to being on an RF mic in front of 20,000 people in these arenas. Mostly it’s trash-talk, and soundbites, and stuff like that and a shoot aspect, and not following storyline stuff, I was wondering, ‘would the moment be too great for her?’ And this match was so damn entertaining.

“There were so many twists and turns, and submission-type moves, and right when you thought, ‘well, here’s the finish,’ they extended it – that wasn’t the finish. And the crowd bought into this. It started off a tad slow. People were wondering, I think, just like I did, but boom! They set the hook there, mister. And, damn near from the bell, it was on. That crowd, everybody there was into that match.”

Austin then broke down Rousey’s body language during the performance, specifically noting how The Rowdy One was smiling from ear to ear when she made her way to the ring:

“When she came out smiling, she looked like a million bucks.” Austin recalled, “I liked the plaid skirt and she came out. She had her gear on and then it was time. She got her game face on at the point, but I know where that came from. I’ll guarantee you that was straight out of the old man. ‘Go out there and smile’ because we know she’s a badass. We know she [has] got that mean mug face when it’s time to go out there and do business.

“And there were plenty of opportunities, and that did happen during the course of the match, but it felt a little weird to me, too, but, I think that he wanted her to smile just to be accessible, maybe to calm the nerves or maybe she’s more free when she’s focused, that laser-focus that she has. But I didn’t expect her to smile.

“But it was her first big performance in front of 78,000 people. Some people were knocking her on it. I could go either way on it, but I do know that when the bell rang, I was watching her body language and hang onto that tag rope.”

With all that being said, taking into account Rousey’s overall performance on The Grandest Stage Of Them All, Austin gave Rousey an A+ – and offered the same grade to the match as well:

“Obviously, they put a lot of time into this, she’s obviously a very talented person, and you had three hands in there with Kurt, Steph, and Triple H being able to go out there and help along with the referee,” Austin explained. “So all of the pieces were set in place for this thing to be, and this thing was built to make all of them shine, but specifically Ronda and help get her over.

“And yeah, this one, I thought they knocked a grand slam, the bases were loaded, and they knocked it out of the park. And so, we’ll see what happens in the future when she starts moving into single’s endeavors, tag team endeavors. Yeah, this was great and they pulled it off. So she still has work to do, but as far as her performance goes, I give her an A+. And I give the match an A+ because that’s how entertained I was by it.”

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

H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions 

One of the key storylines heading into WrestleMania 34 was who would be Braun Strowman’s tag team partner for his RAW Tag Team Title opportunity against The Bar (Sheamus and Cesaro).

Speculation ran rampant from fans as to who the partner could be; with predictions such as The Big Show, Rey Mysterio, Bobby Lashley, Hulk Hogan, and many more being tossed around by fans.

When it came down to it, however, Braun Strowman’s partner was none other than – Nicholas. Strowman selected the 10-year-old elementary school student from the crowd, who just so happened to be WWE referee John Cone’s son.

The decision received a mixed review from fans – with some being happy for the child for getting to participate in such an amazing moment, and others being angered by the call as it devalues the RAW Tag Team Titles and both Sheamus and Cesaro as well.

On a recent edition of the Triple Threat Podcast, “The Franchise” Shane Douglas weighed in on WWE’s decision to have Strowman win the titles with Nicholas. He explained why it was a worse call than having David Arquette win the WCW World Heavyweight Title back in 2000:

“My understanding and from the guys in my entourage (that attended WrestleMania) were saying that the audience kind of died after that match and you could kind of felt the energy leave the room. But we’ve heard for eighteen years that Vince Russo is the worst thing ever to wrestling because he put the belt on David Arquette. As much as I disagree with that decision that was better than putting a belt on a ten year old kid. My thought as soon as I heard this was what about Cesaro and Sheamus?

“They’ve got to go out and do a job to one guy that has a ten year old kid as his sidekick. The only way that could have worked and this may sound terrible but if you think it through it is the only way that could have worked and that is if they had a kid that was a Make-A-Wish kid or a kid that had been sick or something and you bring him in and do something to pop the crowd. It would have still been up-roared by wrestling purists but you would have seen some kind of some light at the end of the tunnel with it.

Braun Strowman (Photo: Instagram @WWE)

“Vince Russo has been vilified for eighteen years over the David Arquette thing and now we have this. But to be fair and let’s throw some stuff in there from WrestleMania weekend. There was a show that shall go unnamed (but you can find it I’m sure if you looked) where they had The Invisible Man come out and win a battle royal. I go back to Bill Watts and I tell Bill Watts specifically about that and his mouth dropped open when I said it. To me, it reeks of and it seems that nobody has respect for the industry or their own work in the industry anymore.

“If everything is a spoof and everything is a Saturday Night Live skit where does it end? You mentioned in your lead in that Vince Russo has been vilified in this industry to this day and look at the feedback you guys got off of the interview you had with David Arquette. To me, that is so much more plausible as implausible and that was so much more plausible than having a ten year old kid come out of the audience and win the World Tag Team Titles.

“It speaks to all of what is wrong with our business today and this is what everybody hears me say in any interview and that this is the difference of sports entertainment to professional wrestling. There is a very stark difference. Nothing against the kid and I am happy that he lived a dream that he will have the rest of his life and remember forever but that is not what WrestleMania is supposed to be about and that is not what the product is supposed to be about.

“It just underscores to me just how far off the track our industry has gone. After eighteen years of vilification of Vince Russo of that (David Arquette) decision we now get this. In light of and at the same time we get The Invisible Man winning battle royals, we get freeze-frames, we get pretend hand grenades and all of this crazy stuff that has nothing to do with wrestling.”

Who Will Be At RAW For The Superstar Shake-Up?

WWE will kick off its Superstar Shake-Up next week, a two-day event starting with Monday Night RAW and ending on SmackDown Live the following night.

PWInsider is reporting that all top stars from SmackDown Live are expected to be at Monday’s RAW in Hartford, Connecticut for night one of the Shake-Up. There will be no SmackDown live event that night in order to allow the brand’s top stars to be on RAW for the show.

Behind-The-Scenes At WrestleMania 34

WWE took to YouTube to post the following behind-the-scenes video from WrestleMania 34 in New Orleans this past weekend. The footage features the likes of The Undertaker, Ronda Rousey, Roman Reigns, Brock Lesnar, Daniel Bryan, and more. Check it out here:

Shayna Baszler Gets Custom NXT Women’s Title Plates

Over the weekend a new queen was crowned in NXT’s Women’s Division at NXT TakeOver: New Orleans, as Shayna Baszler defeated Ember Moon to capture the title. Baszler posted a photo of her custom title plates on her Instagram story. Here’s a screenshot:

WWE NXT Superstar Johnny Gargano was recently interviewed on the In This Corner podcast to talk about several professional wrestling topics. Gargano was asked about the comparisons between Tommaso Ciampa turning on him to Shawn Michaels turning on Marty Jannetty in the “Barber Shop Window” segment:

“That’s crazy you say that. As a part of my childhood, ‘Barber Shop Window’ was such a huge, monumental moment. Do I think about things that way? I am one of those people that I do something, and then years down the line I’m like ‘oh that was pretty cool!’ When I’m in the moment, I don’t think it’s special.

“I don’t think it’s probably even good. I’m not a fan of any of my own matches, my own work; I’m my own worst critic, but when people say that to me, it’s wild. All of this is still so—I’ve been wrestling for over 13 years—all of this is still so new to me. Coming around [Wrestlemania] Axxess and seeing The Undertaker, Randy Orton and Triple H, and Shawn Michaels, and then there’s a picture of me hanging up with them?

“That doesn’t make sense to me at all! Little Johnny Gargano, like little eight year old Johnny Gargano, he should be here as a fan, but I’m here as a performer. It’s mindblowing. That stuff isn’t lost on me.”

Gargano is one of the most popular and beloved stars on NXT right now. When asked what he attributes this to, Gargano responded by saying he’s simply being himself:

“I’m just real. I’m me. There’s nothing fake about anything I say or anything I do. I think about me as I know what it’s like to be a wrestling fan. I remember the little things, I remember things that as a fan would make me react, would make me go ‘oh, that’s really cool.’ That’s why whenever I see fans waiting at airports or fans waiting outside, I always make sure to go up and say hi to them.

“I know as a fan that would have meant the world to me. I think—I’m an undersized guy, undersized for this business—people see me and they see the ultimate underdog. I think it helps that I’ve been wrestling for thirteen years. A lot of these fans, a lot of these NXT fans, have been along with me on this journey.

“They saw me when I was wrestling in front of 50 people, they saw me when I was wrestling in front of 250 people, and now they’re going to see me wrestling in front of 18,000 people. I was the guy that always dreamed of being WWE, but you’d always see him and go ‘ahh, but he’s not quite big enough, but I’d really like to see Johnny get a shot.’ Johnny got his shot, Johnny’s here, and they feel like ‘we’re going to push him through that door.’”

Photo Credit: @totaldivaseps On Twitter

Having already achieved his dream of making it to WWE, Gargano also offered some advice to current indy talents working the independent scene:

“I love independent wrestling; I always have and I always will, but I know as a child I grew up watching WWE. The moments and the memories that WWE created is what I remember the most as a wrestling fan. My dream, obviously, is to be a part of Wrestlemania, and to be a part of Wrestlemania weekend.

“Yes, you can do that, and I’ve done that multiple years on the indies, but to be here at Axxess and be a part of this company—I know I sound like a real great ‘rah rah’ company guy—this is the best company in the world. NXT has the best talent roster in the world.

“It blows my mind mind how good everyone actually is. Like I said, it’s guys like me who have been traveling the world for a very, very long time, who finally get the shot to work for this company. When I wrestled on the indies— if I could say anything to fellow indie wrestlers, guys like that who are undecided—my goal was to go the ‘Daniel Bryan’ route, the CM Punk route.

“Where you do everything you possibly could on the indies, and then when you feel like you’re fulfilled, you’ve done everything you can, then you come here. That was my goal, I felt like I accomplished a lot, I wrestled on the indies for over ten years, and now I want to be a part of this company. I can’t wait to walk around the Axxess Superstore and look at all of the merchandise; it’s just bigger than all of us and it’s so cool to be a part of.”

You can listen to Jax’s full interview on the In This Corner podcast by clicking this link here.

WWE RAW Women’s Champion Nia Jax made an appearance on the In This Corner podcast prior to her match with Alexa Bliss at WrestleMania 34 this past Sunday. Jax first discussed finding herself as a character in WWE and the company not having anyone like her before:

“When I grew up, I always watched the amazing women, and you’re right— I didn’t just have anyone to kind of be like ‘I want to be exactly like her’ —but I think right now within the company and with NXT, I was able to grow and figure out myself.

“I’m still, Nia Jax is still finding herself, but it’s cool because I love to show all kinds of boys, girls, men, women, you should always embrace who you are. Never allow astigmatism, or the popular thing to define you. So I’m really excited that I get to create something different and new, and hopefully continue to evolve.”

Despite their current relationship on WWE TV, Jax and Alexa Bliss are actually very good friends behind-the-scenes. She talked about being a “homegrown” WWE talent and coming up alongside Bliss in WWE:

“It’s crazy because I didn’t even think of it that way. I don’t know if you heard, but [Alexa Bliss] worked my tryout, so that’s where I first met her and we instantly connected, or I harassed her until she became my friend. [laughs]

“It’s really cool because when you walk into something so big— the [WWE] Performance Center is outstanding, you know if you haven’t been there, and I’m sure you’ve seen videos of it—it is so cool. It is an honor to walk through those doors, and when you take your first bump or do your first flip, you’re just thinking like ‘oh my gosh, how am I going to get to a full match or for ten minutes, let alone 30 minutes?

“You’re right because we are an exact product of NXT and WWE. That’s actually something that when I had tried out—I was originally going to go work with the Wild Samoans, with Afa—my cousin had said ‘you need to go actually try out for WWE because they have their own way.’ So when I did, thankfully they liked me, and the rest is kind of history now.”

Photo Credit: WWE.com

Currently Jax and Bliss are embroiled in a feud with one another on WWE TV, and a large part of that storyline involves Little Miss Bliss poking fun at Jax’s size. Jax believes the reason the feud has done so well is because it’s such a relatable story:

“I appreciate the love and the reactions that they give me. When you’re initially a heel, it’s easier to be a heel. I’d rather people hate me than try to get them to love me. I’m the same way, if someone tries to force me or anything, I’m like ‘no, back up’. I love the fact that the fans have reacted so well to this story because it is such a relatable story.

“Everybody at one point in their time has experienced it on either end. I feel like this is why people are relating to it better and reacting to it and having such a —it’s funny because a lot of young kids are like ‘thank you so much for actually telling this story, because this is what I’m going through.’ They get to see me face my bully.”

Jax was then asked about her “relationship” with WWE commentator Byron Saxton. Saxton has quite the infatuation with Jax, as has been profiled on WWE Network shows such as “Ride Along.”:

“Byron Saxton is creepy. He has a relationship between me and him going on in his head. I’m not included in this personally, like I am but I’m not. He has a weird fetish with my feet, he loves to call me different kinds of names like ‘Samoan Sweetcake’ and ‘Twinkle Toes’. It goes on from there.

“I can’t respond to him, I barely open up his messages. He creeps me out.”

You can listen to Jax’s full interview on the In This Corner podcast by clicking this link here.

H/T WrestleZone for the transcriptions

WWE Files For Interesting New Trademark

WWE continues to apply for interesting new trademarks. PWInsider reports that the company has now applied to trademark the term “Global Localization.” WWE applied for the trademark on April 7th, 2018, and the description for the filing can be found below:

“Entertainment services, namely, a show about professional wrestling; entertainment services, namely, the production and exhibition of professional wrestling events rendered live and through broadcast media including television and radio, and via the internet or commercial online service; providing wrestling news and information via a global computer network; providing information in the fields of sports and entertainment via an online community portal; providing a website in the field of sports entertainment; fan club services, namely, organizing and staging events with wrestling fan club members; providing online newsletters in the field of sports entertainment; online journals, namely, blogs in the fields of sports entertainment; business development; entertainment services, namely, development and distribution of talent and content”

It should be noted that this trademark comes on the heels of rumors that WWE is looking to revamp its “Global Warning” pay-per-view (PPV) event in Australia later this year at a 100,000 seat arena. WWE originally held the event in Australia back in 2002.

People TV’s Profile On Stephanie McMahon

People TV recently did a profile on WWE CBO and Monday Night RAW Commissioner Stephanie McMahon. McMahon took to Twitter to react to the feature and noted that it focuses on her personal life as a mom of three, as well as her responsibilities in WWE:

Thank you @peopletv for sharing a glimpse into my life. I’ve never shared so much about my life at home. From being a mom to 3 amazing girls, to CBO of @WWE, to Wrestling @RondaRousey in her debut match at #WrestleMania! Check it out at #PeopleFeatures https://t.co/nbHp32hLvI

— Stephanie McMahon (@StephMcMahon) April 13, 2018

WWE continues to scout the globe for the absolute best talent in the professional wrestling world, and put their world-class Performance Center in Florida to good use.

According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, WWE was scouting at a Shimmer event during WrestleMania weekend, and Tessa Blanchard was said to be a stand-out performer. Blanchard is the daughter of Four Horsemen alum Tully Blanchard and the step-daughter of Magnum TA.

Recently there have been rumors floating around that Blanchard’s attitude backstage is an issue, however, she cut a promo at an indy show a few months back and addressed this. The 22-year-old has some experience working with WWE in the past.

She lost an opening round match to eventual tournament winner Kairi Sane in the Mae Young Classic. Sane and Blanchard put on a great bout that was very well received from the tournament’s audience.

We’ll keep you updated as we learn more on the situation…

E!’s Total Divas recently wrapped up its seventh season this past January. The show has been in production since 2013 and has been airing for the past five years.

In the past several seasons we have seen Divas come and go from the show, with new stars being added recently such as Carmella, Alexa Bliss, and Nia Jax. Wrestling Observer Newsletter’s Dave Meltzer reports that both Paige and Sonya Deville are cast for next season.

Liv Morgan of SmackDown Live could also be added to the show as she was recently filming an episode with Lana during WrestleMania 34 weekend. Deville is one-half of the Absolution tag team on RAW, alongside Mandy Rose – who is also showcased on Total Divas.

Deville is one of the first openly gay female athletes on WWE’s roster. As for Morgan, she is one-third of The Riott Squad on SmackDown Live alongside Ruby Riott and Sarah Logan. It should be interesting to see how these young main roster call-ups interact with veterans backstage.

– Bray Wyatt seems to be “Woken,” and that means he’s going to be a lot more vocal with fans on Twitter. One fan teased Wyatt’s relationship with RAW ring announcer JoJo Offerman, saying that she was an attractive and wealthy woman who is with a “fat neckbeard” like Wyatt – not for the money, but because she likes his personality.

Wyatt responded by listing out his accomplishments, before posting a photo of the fan attacking him and captioning it “You are this…..”:

https://twitter.com/EmperorBigD/status/984144178962751488?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

https://twitter.com/WWEBrayWyatt/status/984149825129275393?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

https://twitter.com/WWEBrayWyatt/status/984151275637035013?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

The fan responded by saying he was trying to put Wyatt over, and The Eater Of Worlds responded by saying he just made the fan famous:

https://twitter.com/EmperorBigD/status/984155228009390080

https://twitter.com/WWEBrayWyatt/status/984155809054711809

https://twitter.com/EmperorBigD/status/984156639799513088

– Relevant Magazine recently published an interview with WWE Champion AJ Styles. In the article, Styles talks about his love for Christian rap – as his faith is something that’s very important to him.

The Phenomenal One named Tedashii, Trip Lee and NF as some artists that he enjoys – but named Lecrae at the top of his list.

– Back in December Roman Reigns claimed in a WWE Network special interview with Corey Graves that he was the best in-ring performer in the world today. A month later, New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) star Kenny Omega responded:

“It is what it is, and I understand that it’s a fun thing for fans to generate interest in the product,” Omega said. “I take absolutely zero offense in him saying it. Especially, since it’s quite clear that the fact of the matter is much, much different.”

It seems The Cleaner has taken the time to respond to WWE’s Big Dog yet again. Reigns recently Tweeted out the following statement:

Any show.
Any city.
Any country.
Any opponent.

I’ll fight. #B2R pic.twitter.com/Skgobxjkva

— Roman Reigns (@WWERomanReigns) April 10, 2018

Omega responded with one word and a smirky emoji:

Really??

— Kenny Omega (@KennyOmegamanX) April 11, 2018

If Reigns and Omega want any shot at having a match, it’d have to be in NJPW as The Cleaner has been very vocal about not wanting to leave his current promotion.

Discussion: Do you think this could lead to anything between Omega and Reigns in the future? What are the odds The Cleaner makes his way to WWE when his current deal in Japan is up? Do you even want to see Omega in WWE?

– WWE posted the following video of Daniel Bryan watching his first televised match with the company against Chris Jericho. The match happened on NXT, when the show was still a competition series, and Bryan wound up losing to Y2J via submission. Check it out here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXQ2pQ54HWw&feature=youtu.be

– Liv Morgan made a big mistake by posting a photo on her Instagram story earlier today. Morgan posted a photo of herself without realizing the run sheet for tonight’s NXT tapings was in the background.

The sheet lists out three matches that are scheduled for the program, as well as which Superstars are involved in various segments. WWE Hall Of Famer Shawn Michaels was listed as producing a few segments as well as two matches featuring Aleister Black.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BhdQgY0ANTT/

– As we’ve noted, RAW General Manager Kurt Angle name-dropped TNA on this past Monday’s episode during a segment with Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn. Owens and Zayn, who are out of a job at SmackDown Live following their WrestleMania loss to Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon, came to RAW in hopes of finding a spot on the roster.

Angle told the pair that his tag team division was full, but he hears that TNA is hiring. Fans went nuts for the line. IMPACT even responded to the name-drop on their Twitter account shortly after. Now, several days later, IMPACT has again referenced their name being mentioned on WWE TV.

The account joked that someone came into their offices with donuts and a resume, before saying they’re the company everyone wants to work for:

Somebody just showed up at our offices with some donuts and their resume. Looks like we're the company everybody wants to work for these days. #WeAreIMPACT pic.twitter.com/iaxXIZwCkA

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 10, 2018

This past weekend in New Orleans at WrestleMania 34, Universal Champion Brock Lesnar successfully defended his title against Roman Reigns, contrary to popular belief that The Big Dog would be going over.

24 hours later it was announced that The Beast had signed a new deal with WWE, however, the details of the new contract remain unclear. Lesnar has been confirmed to be defending his title against Reigns yet again, however, this time it will be in a Steel Cage match at the Greatest Royal Rumble event in Saudi Arabia.

Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio reports that WWE and Lesnar agreed to a new deal the Monday prior to WrestleMania. The contract wasn’t signed until the day of WrestleMania in New Orleans.

It was noted that the contract was a new deal, and not an extension of his previous one. Lesnar will also be receiving a higher rate than his last deal, and Meltzer noted that he’s not sure if it’s a one-match contract or not.

The agreement was reportedly kept quiet and very few people knew about it. Roman Reigns wasn’t alerted of this until the day of WrestleMania, and believed he was going to be winning the title from The Beast up until that point. Their original finish to the match was supposed to be Reigns countering the F5 into a spear and pinning Lesnar for the win.

It was then changed to Lesnar F5’ing Reigns for a sixth time and retaining. Nobody went off-script in the match.

It seems that a fan from the U.K. who traveled to New Orleans for WrestleMania weekend has been hospitalized with the measles.

The tourist reportedly attended the 2018 Hall Of Fame Ceremony the Friday before WrestleMania 34, per a report from FOX 8 New Orleans.

He was hospitalized the following night on Saturday and other attendees at the Hall Of Fame are being contacted by the Louisiana Health Department now.

It also appears that, as of this writing, there is no further information on any other events the fan might have attended while infected. It was noted, however, that those who were two rows within the tourist have been emailed and urged to contact the health department:

BREAKING: The UK tourist hospitalized with measles was at the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony Friday before being hospitalized on Saturday. Attendees are receiving notifications from @LADeptHealth now. We’ll have more on @FOX8NOLA.

— Allen Henry (@AllenMN) April 12, 2018

Not yet. A few attendees of HOF got an email saying they were seated within two rows of the infected man and to call health dept. Still waiting for official details from them.

— Allen Henry (@AllenMN) April 12, 2018

Another fan on Twitter noted that they received an email saying they were on the same plane as the infected tourist on the way over to New Orleans. The Louisiana Health Department has already concluded that the tourist was already infected before arriving to the U.S.

It was noted that an infected person can take between 10 days to three weeks to show symptoms of measles. We’ll keep you updated….

It has been a great past weekend for former UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey. She made her professional wrestling debut at WrestleMania 34 in New Orleans, teaming with Kurt Angle to defeat Triple H and Stephanie McMahon in a Mixed Tag Team match.

This comes after a dark period in Rousey’s life, in which she suffered the first back-to-back losses in her mixed martial arts (MMA) career. Rousey told The Ellen Degeneres Show that after her loss to Holly Holm at UFC 193 she struggled with depression and even contemplated suicide (via ESPN):

“Honestly, my thought in the medical room, I was sitting in the corner and was like, ‘What am I anymore if I’m not this?'” said Rousey. “Literally sitting there thinking about killing myself. In that exact second, I’m like, ‘I’m nothing. What do I do anymore? No one gives a s— about me anymore without this.'”

Rousey was recently on E!’s Hollywood Medium with Tyler Henry, which airs tonight at 9 P.M. EDT on E!. During that appearance Rousey opened up about her own father’s suicide when she was young:

“My dad, he had broke his back, and he happened to have a really rare blood disorder that kept him from healing, similar to hemophilia and it doesn’t allow you to clot your blood,” said Rousey.

“And so, for years, he was getting platelet transfusions and trying to put rods in his back, everything. Eventually [the doctors] said you’re gonna be a paraplegic and then a quadriplegic and then you’re gonna die and there’s nothing we can do about it.

“And so, my dad decided to take matters into his own hands because he was in a huge amount of pain every day. He couldn’t work anymore, he felt like he was just a drag on the family and he was very much like a person who takes care of everyone. And he drove his car out and he put a hose in the exhaust. I was eight years old.

“I remember that what he passed, I would just try to tell myself that he was on a business trip and he’d be back. And that was my way to cope with it,” Rousey said. “But, I wouldn’t be crying unless he was awesome. He was the best.”

H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcribed quotes

– Former WWE Champion-turned-UFC welterweight CM Punk took to Twitter and defended the WrestleMania 34 crowd for chanting his name during the show, and playing with beach balls as well. Former 2011 Tough Enough competitor AJ Kirsch ripped fans for their antics during the show.

Punk responded with the following in defense of the crowd:

I wonder how much those fans spent to throw beach balls and chant @CMPunk's name.

I mean…tickets to the show, flights, hotels, food, and probably drinks and maybe merch.

That's a lot of money to spend just to show everyone you're an asshole.

— A.J. Kirsch (@AJKirsch) April 10, 2018

Or you could just let everyone know you're an asshole for free by telling them what to do with their own money. https://t.co/vEOWqJo6hC

— player/coach (@CMPunk) April 10, 2018

https://twitter.com/AJKirsch/status/983837659809267712?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.givemesport.com%2F1292273-cm-punk-blasts-former-tough-enough-contestant-on-twitter&tfw_creator=GiveMeSport&tfw_site=GiveMeSport

– HBO posted the following clip on their YouTube channel of an interview with “Andre The Giant” documentary director Jason Hehir. Hehir described what it was like seeing Andre in the ring for the first time:

“When I was seven or eight years old, WWF – at the time – was on at eleven A.M. every morning in Boston. My brothers were huge fans, my older brothers, I wasn’t quite old enough to be that into it. But I vividly remember them coming and finding me and saying, “After the commercial break, this guy Andre The Giant is gonna be on, you have to see him!”

“I said, “Is he an actual giant? What’s the deal?” And I’ll never forget, watching him walk through the crowd and up into the ring in this moment of – you know I’m seven years old and I’m just coming off of reading fairy tales and these fictional, larger than life stories.

“And this guy is the physical embodiment of some of the characters who are in those fairytales, so I was immediately hooked seeing him as to who the guy was – I wanna know more about him: where he’s from, how big is his bed, what does he eat. Is this a real person? How is a giant walking around amidst these other larger-than-life wrestling characters.”

– Rusev is probably one of the most over talents on the WWE’s roster right now thanks to his “Rusev Day” gimmick. He was added to the Fatal-Four Way United States Championship match at WrestleMania this past weekend, but was the one who got pinned in the match to Jinder Mahal.

He got his shot at redemption last night on SmackDown Live, as he was part of a Triple Threat match against Randy Orton and Bobby Roode to determine the No. 1-contender for Mahal’s title. Unfortunately Rusev was neither able to win that match.

As a result of his recent slump, Rusev took to Twitter to tease some “change” that could be coming for himself. Perhaps this means the end of Rusev Day? Or he could simply be referring to the upcoming Superstar Shake-up, teasing a move to RAW:

Enough is enough….. maybe it’s time for a change.

— Miro (@ToBeMiro) April 11, 2018

– On last night’s episode of SmackDown Live, Commissioner Shane McMahon announced that Daniel Bryan has returned to being a full-time WWE talent, and resigned from his role as General Manager.

With that being said, McMahon announced Paige – who recently announced her retirement as a WWE in-ring competitor due to injury – as the new General Manager of Tuesday nights. McMahon took to Twitter to congratulate Paige on her new role:

#SDLive has been and always will be the land of opportunities and second chances. It was my PRIVILEGE to name @RealPaigeWWE as the new General Manager.
This is her house now. pic.twitter.com/3xXGMDEEIV

— Shane McMahon (@shanemcmahon) April 11, 2018

https://twitter.com/RealPaigeWWE/status/983867100602257408?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

WWE Hall Of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin has released a new episode of his podcast, The Steve Austin Show, in which he breaks down this past weekend’s WrestleMania 34 event. One match in particular Austin discussed was Undertaker’s squash match over John Cena.

Austin explained that WWE didn’t advertise the match so that it could be viewed as a bonus for fans at the event:

“It was a little shocking to me with Cena calling him out for so long.” Austin explained, “basically, it was an unadvertised match. I mean, Cena’s trying to call out [Undertaker] and I kept thinking, ‘there’s no way, no way that he’s going to get an acceptance on the day-of,’ so, yeah, it was teased and they paid off the tease, but it wasn’t really advertised. So nonetheless, the crowd felt like they got a bonus, but in that bonus was a very short match and Cena got squashed.”

The former WWE Champion believes that the match would’ve been a lot more effective had The Leader Of The Cenation gotten in a bit more offense against Taker:

“I’ve got nothing but respect for both guys,” Austin prefaced. “Undertaker has been around forever. He has had one of the best runs in the history of the [pro wrestling] business, so has John Cena.

“And, man, had it been a 15-minute bing, bang, boom kind of thing, I don’t know that that’s what they needed, but it just seems like maybe if Cena got in just a little bit more offense into that Tombstone, then, do the favors, maybe it would have been a little bit more effective.”

With all that being said, Austin said he respects Cena, arguably the greatest WWE Superstar of all time, for accepting the match and his willingness to lose the way he did at WrestleMania:

“It was what it was and I don’t know how Undertaker’s feeling on a physical level.” Austin continued, “he looked phenomenal and he’s one of the toughest guys, I think, in the business.

“But Cena’s probably moving on to do other things with movies, and series, and endorsements, and stuff like that. But he continues to be an ambassador for the company, and [has] a great attitude, and it not afraid to put somebody over. I respect him for that.”

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

H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

– Earlier this month, Bullet Club leader Cody noted that he’d love to recruit a female member to the group. Cody’s wife, Brandi Rhodes, responded to him on Twitter and said she deserves to join the club since she took a V-Trigger for him from Kenny Omega at Supercard of Honor XII.

Cody responded by saying he’s against nepotism but will consider her in his search:

BRAND NEW threads at the store https://t.co/i97frjV0fw

Including the new "Bullet Club recruiting men and women" shirt going live later tonight! pic.twitter.com/KXHIxD0j93

— Cody Rhodes (@CodyRhodes) April 10, 2018

Hi. I’m YOUR WIFE. I’ve been really helpful. I took a V-Trigger for you. My back STILL hurts: LET ME IN THE MUFUGGIN’ CLUB! Please ?? https://t.co/gid6uilSeh

— Brandi Rhodes (@TheBrandiRhodes) April 11, 2018

That would be nepotism…

something I'm adamantlt against in the Wrestling business. You are definitely being considered! I'm rooting for you love. ?? https://t.co/x5N2CadWAb

— Cody Rhodes (@CodyRhodes) April 11, 2018

This some bullshit right here.

— Brandi Rhodes (@TheBrandiRhodes) April 11, 2018

– Ring Of Honor (ROH) has announced that New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) stable Los Ingobernables de Japon are set to join their War of the Worlds tour. The tour will hit Lowell, Massachusetts on May 9th, Toronto, Ontario May 11th, Royal Oak, Michigan on May 12th, and Chicago, Illinois on May 13th. Matches have yet to be announced.

– On last night’s episode of SmackDown Live, the first since WrestleMania 34, Charlotte Flair came out to the ring to celebrate her victory over Asuka in New Orleans – ending the Japanese star’s undefeated streak of over 900 days.

Just as Flair was cutting her promo, NXT call-ups Billie Kay and Peyton Royce, The Iconic Duo, made their main roster debuts to confront The Queen. They proceeded to make a statement by attacking the then-SmackDown Live Women’s Champion.

Kay took to Twitter to react to she and Royce’s debut, and said she couldn’t be more proud of it:

I’m able to now take a breathe & soak in what happened tonight… The #IIconics have arrived at #SDLive & I couldn’t be more damn proud of us right now ??

— Jessica McKay (@JessicaMcKay) April 11, 2018

– Speaking of Kay and Royce’s debut, their beatdown on Flair led to Mrs. Money In The Bank Carmella cashing in her briefcase and winning the SmackDown Live Women’s Championship. This morning Carmella took to Twitter to issue a message to her “haters.”

She seemingly took a shot at those who bought reports that said she was going to have an unsuccessful cash-in at WrestleMania this past Sunday:

Good morning, haters! Remember when y’all said I would fail my cash in, never be champ or have a successful career? Well, EAT YOUR HEARTS OUT! MELLA IS MONEY, BABY! ? pic.twitter.com/O92PIyMm5F

— Mella Is Money ? (@CarmellaWWE) April 11, 2018

– WWE Superstar Ronda Rousey had a great weekend in New Orleans. The former UFC women’s bantamweight champion made her professional wrestling debut in a Mixed Tag Team match at WrestleMania 34, teaming up with Kurt Angle to defeat Triple H and Stephanie McMahon.

The Rowdy One completely blew fans’ expectations for her wrestling ability out of the water. With all that now behind her, Rousey is now set to make an appearance on E!’s “Hollywood Medium with Tyler Henry” tonight at 9pm EST. Here’s the official statement:

Ronda Rousey to appear on E!’s “Hollywood Medium with Tyler Henry”

Following her memorable in-ring debut at WrestleMania 34, The Baddest Woman on the Planet, Ronda Rousey, will appear on E!’s “Hollywood Medium with Tyler Henry.”

Rousey’s enlightening experience with the renowned Tyler Henry airs Wednesday, April 11, at 9/8 C.

– New SmackDown Live General Manager Paige took to Twitter to react to a big first day on the job. NXT call-ups The Iconic Duo, Billie Kay and Peyton Royce, made their main roster debut by attacking Charlotte Flair.

Soon after, Ms. Money In The Bank Carmella cashed in her briefcase and became the new SmackDown Live Women’s Champion by pinning The Queen. Here’s what Paige had to say about the two events:

https://twitter.com/RealPaigeWWE/status/983881191282626560?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

https://twitter.com/RealPaigeWWE/status/983878508186361856?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

– On last night’s episode of SmackDown Live, Commissioner Shane McMahon announced a new General Manager for Tuesday nights. Daniel Bryan is now back to being a full-time in-ring competitor, leaving the General Manager position open.

McMahon announced that former WWE Divas Champion Paige, who recently announced her retirement from in-ring competition, will now be the new General Manager for SmackDown Live.

Former WWE Superstar Lance Storm recently took to Twitter shortly after the announcement, and presented an interesting idea for SmackDown Live now that Paige is at the helm. Storm suggested SmackDown become an all-female show run by Paige, with the addition of a tag team division as well:

https://twitter.com/LanceStorm/status/983864684158713856?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.iwnerd.com%2Flance-storm-has-an-interesting-idea-for-smackdown-live-now-that-paige-is-general-manager%2F&tfw_creator=innern3rd&tfw_site=innern3rd

Storm did note that WWE probably shouldn’t do this, but it’s still a fun idea to ponder regardless. What are your thoughts?

– 205 Live might not be the most exciting professional wrestling show available to fans, but one guy in the audience took things to a whole different level. After a long WrestleMania week, a photo surfaced of a fan falling asleep during 205 Live in the crowd.

Of course, he later woke up and resumed enjoying the show. Check it out:

https://twitter.com/Redman8619/status/983898645601947648?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.iwnerd.com%2Fwatch-fan-falls-asleep-during-205-live-video-photo%2F&tfw_creator=innern3rd&tfw_site=innern3rd

HE'S NOT DEAD! #205Live pic.twitter.com/CpXuh1h2OG

— Catch au Quotidien (@OfficielCAQ) April 11, 2018

WWE fans are absolutely crazy.

TMZ Sports has published a video of WWE Superstar Mojo Rawley hanging out in a bar, when a fan (wearing a duck hat) approaches the former Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal winner and asks him to slap his chest.

Rawley laughs at him a bit before the fan, who is most likely intoxicated, shoves Rawley playfully. This seems to pump Rawley up a bit, who then overhand slaps the fan right on the chest.

The fan didn’t seem to be in too much pain, instead flexing and screaming after the slap. Another fan approached Rawley asking for the same. This fan, however, only got Rawley to play with his chest before laughing and waving for the cameras.

Check out the video here:

If you’re drunk and approach a WWE wrestler to slap your chest, Rawley probably shouldn’t be at the top of your list. Before joining WWE’s developmental program in NXT back in 2012, Rawley played professional football as a defensive lineman in the NFL for both the Green Bay Packers and the Arizona Cardinals.

Six years into his training as a professional wrestler; Rawley is on the main roster as a member of SmackDown Live, a former Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal winner, and is currently chasing his first singles title of his career.

Discussion: What are your thoughts on Rawley’s professional wrestling career? How long until he finally gets his hands on a singles title?

WrestleMania 34’s main event left a lot of people scratching their heads – and rightfully so.

WWE has been planning this Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns storyline for the past four years. It all kicked off at WrestleMania 30 in New Orleans when Lesnar became the first person to ever defeat The Undertaker at The Show Of Shows.

Lesnar would go on to win the WWE Title while Roman Reigns continued to climb the ranks within the company. Last year at WrestleMania 33 Reigns picked up the biggest win of his career when he became the second person to defeat The Undertaker at the event.

Now the stage was set for the only two men to have ever defeated The Undertaker at WrestleMania to clash themselves at the event for the Universal Championship. Fans expected WrestleMania 34 to be the event in which Reigns finally dethroned The Beast and took his place atop the WWE mountain.

Instead, Lesnar bloodied Reigns terribly with some legitimate elbows to the skull before hitting a sixth F5 to end the night. The following day news broke that Lesnar had signed a new deal with WWE.

There are conflicting reports as to how long that deal is – some reporting a multi-year deal and others reporting a short-term one. Bleacher Report’s Jeremy Botter reports a very interesting twist to the situation.

Botter reports that Lesnar has signed on for one more match in WWE, that match being his Universal Title defense against Roman Reigns inside a Steel Cage in Saudi Arabia later this month. Vince McMahon reportedly called an audible during the Lesnar and Reings match at WrestleMania and changed the finish because he didn’t like the reaction Reigns was receiving.

The plan is to have Lesnar lose the title in front of a more “conductive” audience. Botter did note that we will see Lesnar in WWE again after the match, but likely not for a long time and much less than we’re used to seeing him.

Brock reportedly wants to put all of his effort into the UFC at this time, as he will likely take on the winner of Daniel Cormier vs. Stipe Miocic for the heavyweight title at the end of this year. Botter also noted that Lesnar could return for an appearance at WrestleMania 35 next year:

https://twitter.com/jeremybotter/status/983459073826881540?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2F411mania.com%2Fwrestling%2Fnote-rumored-winner-universal-title-match-greatest-royal-rumble%2F&tfw_creator=411mania&tfw_site=411mania

https://twitter.com/jeremybotter/status/983459350613233664?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2F411mania.com%2Fwrestling%2Fnote-rumored-winner-universal-title-match-greatest-royal-rumble%2F&tfw_creator=411mania&tfw_site=411mania

https://twitter.com/jeremybotter/status/983460861741330433?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2F411mania.com%2Fwrestling%2Fnote-rumored-winner-universal-title-match-greatest-royal-rumble%2F&tfw_creator=411mania&tfw_site=411mania

https://twitter.com/jeremybotter/status/983461377548353536?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2F411mania.com%2Fwrestling%2Fnote-rumored-winner-universal-title-match-greatest-royal-rumble%2F&tfw_creator=411mania&tfw_site=411mania

https://twitter.com/jeremybotter/status/983462238232117248?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2F411mania.com%2Fwrestling%2Fnote-rumored-winner-universal-title-match-greatest-royal-rumble%2F&tfw_creator=411mania&tfw_site=411mania

It looks like Brock Lesnar isn’t the only one who just signed a new deal with WWE on WrestleMania week.

The word going around backstage at the Monday Night RAW after Sunday’s WrestleMania 34 was that Paul Heyman has also signed a new contract, per a report from PWInsider. F4WOnline is reporting that Heyman did in fact sign a new deal, and it’s a short-term agreement as well.

It was also noted that Brock Lesnar’s new deal with WWE would’ve included nearly everything he wants, including Heyman continuing to serve as his manager. There are no financial details for either contract as of this writing.

As for Lesnar, his deal is rumored to be a short-term one as well and he will also defend his Universal Championship against Roman Reigns in a Steel Cage match at the Greatest Royal Rumble event in Saudi Arabia on April 27th.

Perhaps Heyman’s new deal also presents the possibility of him working with other talents as well. He has spoke highly of both Ronda Rousey and Roman Reigns recently in the lead up to WrestleMania.