Maxwell Jacob Friedman (MJF) says there will be a bidding war for his services when his AEW contract expires in 2024. He’s not bluffing.
The Long Island loudmouth has teased the “bidding war of the century.”
MJF still under contract for almost 3 more years. However, in what has become somewhat of a self-fulfilling prophecy, MJF has gotten attention of TV executives from the Fox and NBC Universal (USA Network). They want WWE to make a play for him.
According to Andrew Zarian of the We’re Live, Pal podcast, MJF’s talk a 2024 bidding war has ‘got people buzzing.’
”It almost worked the corporate side of stuff on USA and even Fox,” said Zarian. “It perked their ears like ‘hey, this guy is really good. Is his contract ending in 2024? Is that true? There have been conversations and I know WWE is very interested in him.”
WWE and its television partners realize they need to invest in young talent. MJF is with AEW for the foreseeable future, but WWE could make a play for him in a few years.
Zarian’s comments can be heard in the player below:
Tony Khan Comments On An MJF Bidding War In 2024
Tony Khan appeared on Busted Open Radio shortly after MJF made the comment about a bidding war in 2024. The AEW President is fine with the idea that he could be bidding for MJF’s services come that time.
“I have no problem with it,” Khan said. “I signed him to a five year contract two years ago, he has three years left. I’m totally fine. There may be a bidding war in 2024, I’m fine with that.”
The feud between Hangman Page and the graphics team has been one of the most unique yet entertaining parts of his journey to the AEW world championship. The lower third graphics of Page’s entrance have never failed to get a laugh out of people and they have frequently been a topic of discussion among fans online. Though according to the AEW champion himself, he is not very happy with it.
The cowboy recently appeared on Oral Sessions with Renée Paquette. When asked if the lines are something he comes up with himself, Hangman Page claimed that it’s not the case. According to him, he has been trying to catch the culprit behind it as well:
“I guess someone at the graphics truck who does all those? They clown on me all the time. I’m so pissed off about it. I’ve tried to get snitches from the truck. I’ve planted spies in the truck. I’m not sure that’s in the truck and not like back in the studio in Nashville or something like that. I can’t figure out who it is. And I’m fed up about it.”
“I Am The Champion And I Can’t Get It Fixed”: Hangman Page
The story with Hangman’s lower third graphic came full circle at Full Gear
Hangman Page continued by expressing his displeasure at not being able to get it fixed despite being the top champion of the company. Though he vowed to catch whoever is behind it and said that if the graphics start being nice, then fans should know that he has found the culprit:
“Yeah, I don’t know. At this point, I don’t know what to do about it. I’m the champion and I can’t get it fixed. So I guess they’re just probably gonna keep clowning on me for the foreseeable future. But if I stop having lower thirds altogether, or they start being nice to me or normal, then you’ll know that I got ’em.”
Hangman Page also discussed his storyline with the Dark Order and revealed if there were any plans for him to feud with Brodie Lee before his passing. You can check out the story below:
If you use any quotes from the article please credit SEScoops with an H/t for transcription
The Hardy Family office has suffered another blow as after The Butcher, another one of their stars have been sidelined with an injury.
According to reports from Fightful Select, one-half of the Private Party, Marq Quen is currently out of action due to an undisclosed injury.
The AEW star hasn’t wrestled since October 12. He worked NEW’s Better Than You event back then, where he teamed up with his Hardy Family Office teammates Matt Hardy and Isiah Kassidy for a six men tag team match.
Quen’s last AEW match was an eight men tag team match during the October 11 episode of Dark: Elevation. The Private Party had teamed with The Butcher and The Blade for that match.
Another member of the Hardy Family Office, The Butcher suffered a torn bicep. He has been out of action since the post Full Gear edition of Dynamite on November 17.
The injury, which he suffered during a tag team match with Blade against Orange Cassidy & Tomohiro Ishii is expected to keep him out of action for at least 3-4 months.
The report doesn’t provide a lot of details regarding the health of Marq Quen. So it’s hard to say how long he will stay out of action. We will keep you posted on his status.
The new ROH champion Jonathan Gresham recently said that he would like to defend his title against people like Bryan Danielson and CM Punk and Danielson is all for it.
The AEW star recently had an interview with Dallas News. He discussed things such as his dream scenario in AEW, why he doesn’t want to name his Mt Rushmore of wrestling, and more.
When asked about the comments from the new ROH champion, Bryan admitted that he likes Gresham’s style and he would love to get in the ring with him:
“I’d love to wrestle Jonathan Gresham. I love his style. He’s got a great mat-wrestling style. I think he’s one of the guys who have really carried on the tradition of real ‘technical wrestling’ wrestling, and I think that match would be a lot of fun.”
Apart from this, Bryan Danielson also talked about ROH’s announcement of going dark for the first quarter of 2022 to reimagine the company.
The former world champion discussed how wrestling is a hard industry to be profitable in with AEW and WWE taking up the majority of the mental space of fans. You can check out his full comments on the matter here.
Ring Of Honor helped build many of the top stars of the current generation. This list includes the current AEW star Bryan Danielson who was part of the very first ROH show in 2002.
The former WWE champion recently had an interview with Dallas News. He discussed things such as his upcoming match against Adam Page and more.
“As far as the future, who knows? I don’t even know what they’re thinking or how they’re going to restructure or anything like that. The wrestling industry is a hard industry to be profitable in, and especially with WWE and AEW already taking up so much of the wrestling fans’ mental space.”
He continued, “You know, it’s interesting to see where a company like Ring of Honor fits in. … I hope the best for them. especially because of how much they meant for my career.”
The American Dragon mentioned how ROH gave him a ton of exposure and opportunity. It was a platform to work against some of the best wrestlers of the time.
He feels the ROH fanbase that preferred a more wrestling-based product as opposed to the soap opera style of entertainment is now served by AEW.
The Briscoe Brothers have called out Tony Khan and FTR ahead of this Wednesday’s Winter Is Coming special of Dynamite from the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland, TX.
The current ROH tag team champions posted a video message earlier today on Twitter. They told FTR that they made a mistake by confronting them at Final Battle.
The duo then called out AEW president Tony Khan as well to send them plane tickets, and told the AEW stars that they don’t know the danger they have put themselves in:
The Briscoe Brothers defeated Matt Taven and Mike Bennett at the Final Battle PPV this past Saturday to become the new ROH tag team champions.
After the match, they picked up the mics and laid out a challenge for any tag team in the world. In response, FTR made their ROH debuts and confronted the newly crowned champions.
The AEW stars picked up the ROH tag team titles. They then got out of the ring to brawl with The Briscoes to end the segment.
Tony Khan has teased new AEW debuts in the coming weeks. After this latest promo, the only question that remains is when exactly we will see The Briscoe Brothers making their AEW debut.
Eddie Kingston has shared what led to him signing with All Elite Wrestling and turning down WWE’s offer. Kingston credits Low Ki, Cody Rhodes, and his mother for helping him secure the biggest break of his wrestling career.
Kingston appeared on the Swerve City Podcast with Shane “Swerve” Stickland and Monteasy Jones to discuss his journey to AEW. In the interview, Kingston shared that he had an opportunity to be a developmental coach for WWE in the past but turned it down. He also shared that Low Ki helped him change his lifestyle and deal with personal issues last year.
“…The pandemic made me mature. It made me deal with issues that I did not deal with. That I shoved down,” said Kingston. He continued, “…During the pandemic, I dealt with a lot of things. I dealt with me being lazy. I dealt with me not being fully focused. You know what I mean? At the time, my boy Low Ki was there with me, and people can say whatever they want to say about him, but he helped me focus.”
During the pandemic, Kingston lived with Low ki. He shared before the pandemic, he went to the United Kingdom and had a hard time getting back to the United States. He ended up staying with Low Ki in Orlando, Florida. However, it’s unclear how long it lasted.
When speaking on Low Ki’s advice, Kingston said, “He was like, ‘what are you doing with your life. Now that you have this time off, what are you doing in your life.’ He just asked me that, and I was like, huh. It just clear as day came to me. It was like, okay, I want to do this, this, and this. He was like, ‘All right, get to work. You have time now.’ And I got to work.”
Eddie Kingston Calling out Cody Rhodes
Kingston refocused on his wrestling career after taking Low Ki’s advice and dealing with his issues. He revealed that he got his opportunity to wrestle for AEW after calling out Rhodes during Internet Championship Wrestling- No Holds Barred Volume 3:Deathmatch Drive-In 2 on July 4, 2020. After his call out, a representative from AEW asked if he wanted to come to do a match with Rhodes. However, Kingston didn’t view the opportunity as more than just a match and just wanted to get paid. At the time, he was selling his wrestling gear for money and had problems with paying off his mortgage. Kingston impressed AEW and fans when he made his first AEW appearance on July 22, 2020.
His Debut Match with Cody Rhodes
Kingston revealed that the aired promo before his match was his second attempt. He mentioned Rhodes as Cody Rhodes in the first promo, and AEW President Tony Khan told Kingston that he had to do it over. Rhodes couldn’t use his wrestling name during that time and was going by Cody. Regardless, AEW liked his debut, and he credits Rhodes as a good opponent.
“…They can say whatever they want to say about Cody, but that man danced with me that night. Cody could’ve been one of these old school vets that sat there and said, Oh, this guy likes to talk Sh*t. I’m on national TV; you get nothing,” said Kingston. He continued, “…But he didn’t. He went and there and worked with me, and I guess that match went well because I got a job like two weeks later.”
Kingston Choosing AEW Over WWE
After the match, people in AEW told Kingston he earned a job with the company. He also had WWE that wanted to sign Kingston. However, he listened to his mother’s advice and signed with AEW.
“…Did I entertain other possibilities? I entertained them, but again momma’s boy. My mother being my best friend. When I told her, hey, mom, I’m getting interest from a lot of people all of a sudden. She goes go to AEW. You won’t be happy at WWE,” said Kingston.
He explained, “… ‘She said yeah go there Papi, go there. You deserve to have fun.’ She said you deserve to have fun. I said okay, and that was it. It was a wrap from that point.”
Kingston has a win/loss record in AEW at 35-13. He is currently in a feud with Daniel Garcia and 2Point0.
On last week’s edition of AEW Dynamite, a fan can be heard yelling a homophobic slur at the Acclaimed’s Anthony Bowens during his match. The Acclaimed teamed with 2.0 in a losing effort to the Varsity Blondes and Jurassic Express on the show.
Bowens recently spoke to TMZ about the incident.
“Unfortunately that kind of stuff comes with the territory, being an out LGBTQ athlete,” Bowens said.
“This is actually the first time that I’ve audibly heard something like that during a performance or during television.”
Bowens also responded to a Tweet featuring a video of the fan yelling the slur.
This is why I posted that photo the other day. Stuff like this unfortunately still exists. Not phased, I’ll just keep fighting against stuff like this til the day I die. ? https://t.co/OI29dCeNU2
Bowens continued to say that when he started a YouTube channel with his boyfriend, the comments they received were quite hateful.
“I have really thick skin, I’m kind of used to it from my boyfriend Michaeland I,” Bowens said. “We have our YouTube channel and when we first started that the comments were brutal.”
Bowens would continue to say, however, that the comment is not indicative of AEW fans at all.
“This is not indicative of the AEW fans at all,” Bowens said. “Any interactions I’ve had with them since starting the company have all been positive.”
Bowens also spoke about how when he first arrived in AEW, he was happy to see LGTB wrestlers such as Nyla Rose and Sonny Kissfreely being themselves. His full comments are available in the player below:
Adam Page had several interactions with Brodie Lee and the Dark Order in 2020. Many fans wondered if AEW was building to a feud between the Hangman and the Exalted One prior to Lee’s untimely passing in December 2020.
When asked if there were any plans for him to feud with Brodie Lee, Page said that it’s something that he wanted. He tries to plant storyline “seeds” on Being The Elite, because Tony Khan watches the show closely and has picked up several angles from the web series.
“I wanted to,” Paige said about feuding with Brodie Lee. “A lot of times in AEW it feels like what I’m thinking I would like to work towards might not be what that person’s thinking. It might not be what Tony’s thinking. But [I go] ‘Oh, I’ll do a BTE scene and plant a seed for it to see what kind of reaction it gets.’ And almost, 99 out of 100 cases, I’m pretty confident and the seeds that I would plant, what reaction they’re going to get.” said Adam Page, “And then I know that’s going to drive where the story goes on TV as well. When there’s a built-in reaction to something you go with it.
He continued, “And that’s what this company does. Let’s be honest. AEW exists because of something like Being The Elite where we could have just these stupid ass storylines that in Ring of Honor and New Japan started influencing the actual wrestling shows. Or in a lot of cases, were more popular than the wrestling shows. I remember I’d be wrestling in Ring of Honor and people were chanting stuff from our little stupid BTE storyline. That’s why they were there. That’s why AEW exists because of those kinds of things.”
Adam Page Was Planting Seeds For A Brodie Lee Feud
Adam Page continued by explaining that he was planting seeds for a future rivalry with the former TNT champion. When Lee was away, there were times that made Page consider stopping the storyline. Though according to him, he felt like it would have been a disservice to Brodie and the members of the Dark Order, so he kept going:
“So, I was planting seeds to do something with Brodie because I really wanted to and when he was ill and was gone, we didn’t know what was going on. I guess there were points where I thought ‘I don’t know, should I keep going [in] this direction? I don’t know. I don’t know what to do.’ But I felt it would have been a disservice to him and to all of the Dark Order who are incredible people to not keep going the only way that made sense, regardless of where we would end up with it. I’m very glad we did that.”
If you use any quotes from the article please credit SEScoops with an H/t for transcription
AEW World Champion Hangman Page will make his first title defense this Wednesday against Bryan Danielson. His ascent to the world title has been lauded as an example of long-term booking but Page doesn’t feel it was. He recently appeared on Oral Sessions with Renee Paquette and spoke about his AEW career thus far.
“I wouldn’t even talk about, at least my journey, to the AEW World Championship, as like some kind of grand scheme that was hatched on day one, or something like that, because it never was. At least to me, it was never that way,” Page said.
He continued to talk about how he was booked in the first ever AEW World Title match but at the time, he didn’t feel the fans saw him as a main event guy.
“When AEW started, and I, you know, realized, I was going to be suddenly… I was just a guy losing all the Bullet Club multi-man matches. I wasn’t nobody, but I certainly wasn’t the main event guy, who was suddenly going to be main eventing the first-ever title match in AEW. Like, I knew people wouldn’t buy it and it didn’t matter what i said, it didn’t matter what I did, it was too fast, too soon. I knew people, they might be forgiving, but I knew deep down they wouldn’t buy it.”
Hangman Page Said His AEW Career Got Off On The Wrong Foot
Page felt like he got off on the wrong foot by challenging Chris Jericho to determine the first-ever AEW World Champion.
“I felt like I got off on the wrong foot and I wanted to rectify that. I felt like the only way you can is to be vulnerable to let that loss and that disappointment come out over a long time. and every week, we’d get to tv and it wasn’t like some grand scheme of ‘how we get back to Adam Page winning the world title.’ I just think, how do I feel about this? What would I feel about this? Then ok, let’s do that this week.”
Page’s full appearance on the show is available below:
If you use any of the above quotes please credit Oral Sessions with Renee Paquette with a H/T to SEScoops for the transcriptions.
QT Marshall trained Shaquille O’Neal for his match along with Jade Cargill against Cody Rhodes and Red Velvet earlier this year. Shaq and Cargill were victorious in the match that took place at “AEW Cross Rhodes” on March 3rd, 2021.
Marshall recently discussed training Shaq during an appearance on My Mom’s Basement with Robbie Fox for Barstool Sports.
“I was like, I could teach you how to do this in 10 days,” said Marshall. “For what I think we’re looking to do, 100%.’ He got in there and I suplexed him, right, with a crash pad. Then he was like, ‘Alright, let’s move the crash pads’ and I suplexed him again. He was saying, ‘That’s not too bad.’ He’s like, ‘It hurts, but it’s not that bad.’ I said, ‘When the adrenaline’s going, you don’t feel anything.’”
Marshall continued to say that they tried to hold off the match for as long as possible due to the pandemic. Eventually, the decision was made to go forward with it, however.
QT Marshall on Training Shaquille O’Neal
“We were trying to hold off as long as we could, because of, you know, the pandemic, and the crowd, all that stuff. But then one thing led to another, but like I said, he was there all the time and really paying attention to what I was saying. I mean, he powerbombed by me the first time and he dropped me right in my head. I was like, ‘Hey, you’re really tall. So if you don’t squat down with this, you’re gonna dump everyone on their head, and you can’t do that to Cody.’ So, yeah, he was really dedicated. Also, he was having fun.”
The match was officially the 2nd of Shaq’s pro-wrestling career. In 2016, he also appeared in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 32.
His appearance in the match looked as though it was going to lead to a match against the Big Show (Paul Wight). The match never materialized, however.
The full interview with QT Marshall can be viewed in the player below:
Before becoming an AEW star, Ricky Starks spent a good amount of time in the independent circuit working for various promotions. He also worked for WWE numerous times as an enhancement talent.
The FTW World Champion recently had an interview with Brandon Walker of Rasslin. Among other things, he also told the story of one such time when he was called in to work as an extra on Raw.
Starks played the role of a US Marshall sent in to arrest the tribal chief. He detailed how things went and what Roman Reigns told him after the segment:
“I went there, talked to Roman, put these cuffs on and they were really tight. He goes, ‘I can’t do anything while I have my hands cuffed, so, sorry ahead of time.’
I went to grand him and he [double axe handles me].” recalled Ricky Starks, “We get to the corner and he starts stomping the shit out of me. He’s a really great guy because afterward he apologized,”
The current champion made his pro wrestling debut in 2012. He officially signed with AEW in June 2020, after a two-year-long stint with NWA.
He made several other appearances for WWE apart from this and wrestled matches against people like Jinder Mahal and Kane. You can check out the Raw appearance from 2018 Stark discussed in the video below:
AEW presents a special Winter is Coming edition of Dynamite this Wednesday night on TNT.
Last year’s installment saw Kenny Omega capture the AEW World Championship from Jon Moxley and the surprise debut of Sting. This Wednesday, Adam Page defends that same title against Bryan Danielson. Some fans are expecting another big debut to keep that tradition going as well.
AEW President Tony Khan knows that fans are on high alert for more debuts. According to TK, fans should stay tuned to AEW programming over the next several weeks for some big surprises.
These Next Few Weeks…
Tony Khan spoke with DAZN this week and addressed the rich free agent market. He hinted at having a few tricks up his sleeve in the weeks ahead.
“I’m more than aware that there’s a number of free agents out there,” said Khan. “Wrestlers I admire, too. But I’ve got to say, you’ve just have to keep watching over these next few weeks — and not just, ‘Winter is Coming.’”
In addition To Winter is Coming, AEW has a few more special hows taking place over the next month. AEW Dynamite moves to TBS on Wednesday, January 5th. You can be sure that AEW will pull out all the stops to ensure that’s a memorable broadcast.
Just a few days later, All Elite Wrestling presents Battle of the Belts, a 2-hour Saturday night event on TNT (Saturday, January 8th).
There is no shortage of big names that could appear on AEW television at any time. Although nothing is certain, potential AEW debuts in the weeks ahead could include Wyndham Rotunda (Bray Wyatt), Johnny Gargano, Kyle O’Reilly or even new ROH World Champion Jonathan Gresham.
One caring fan has taken Jim Ross to task over smoking cigarettes again.
Back in October, JR revealed that he has been diagnosed with skin cancer. The voice of AEW is taking time off in order to keep up with his treatment schedule. He expects to be fine once he’s undergone all of his treatments.
Fan Gives Jim Ross Tough Love
During an episode of his Grilling JR podcast, Jim Ross answered some fan questions. One fan was quite concerned over the fact that JR smokes cigarettes despite his cancer diagnosis.
Fan: “I’ve got a little bit of a bone to pick with you. You kinda pissed me off and I’m gonna tell you why but it’s out of love that I’m pissed off at ya. So, are you still smoking?”
JR: “I’m not smoking this very moment but yes. Is that your bone?”
Fan: “What the hell man? I need you to live for another at least 30 years and if you’re smoking that ain’t gonna happen. Especially, you got cancer, right? Why?”
JR: “Thanks for reminding me [laughs].”
Fan: “Hell, if you’re smoking you’re not making it any better. I need you around, man. I love you.”
JR: “Thank you very much. I love you too.”
Ross went on to explain why he picked up smoking again after quitting for 20 years.
“It’s a bad habit and I’m not gonna try to defend it. Look, I quit for 20 years and when Jan [JR’s wife] got killed followed by the freaking COVID, those are my two excuses. The stress of her dying had me pick up cigarettes again. I’m glad I didn’t pick up anything heavier, so I didn’t. But nonetheless, they’re poor reasons. They’re not reasons, they’re excuses but nonetheless, I appreciate your concern.”
Back in 2017, Jan Ross was struck by a car as she was riding her Vespa in Oklahoma. Jan passed away due to her injuries.
Despite being off AEW TV temporarily, JR is still very much active on his podcast. He’s also in the midst of starting his own cannabis company.
Ross may be battling skin cancer now but this isn’t the first time. He underwent a skin procedure back in 2016 and had the cancer removed from his shoulder two years later.
Please H/T SEScoops with a link if you use any quotes from this article
Jeff Hardy was released from WWE last week after being sent home from a recent WWE live event tour. Booker T doesn’t believe that Hardy should be thinking about going to AEW right now. Rather, Booker believes Hardy should be getting the help he needs. He spoke on the subject recently on his Hall of Fame podcast with Brad Gilmore.
“I know people gonna be calling for him to be going to AEW and whatnot. I’m sure that’s already the talk out there, but I think that’s the last place he needs to be right now. From a monetary perspective, you’ll always be ‘checking,’ okay? So that right there can motivate you to go do work when you really don’t need to. My thing is, hopefully he gets the help he needs.”
Booker continued to say that Jeff and his brother Matt have a long history in WWE and likely would have had a job there forever.
“Jeff Hardy, Matt Hardy, those guys are ‘WWF’ originals. Those guys were literally created through the WWE in that brand, for so many many years. I’m sure a guy like Jeff Hardy, as well as Matt Hardy would’ve had a job there forever doing something.”
WWE reportedly released Hardy after he refused to go to rehab. There was concern regarding Hardy’s performance at a house show event where fans noted he looked sluggish. Hardy also left through the crowd after tagging out during the match.
Footage of Hardy at the house show is available below:
The world lost Jon Huber (aka Brodie Lee) on December 26th, 2020. Coming up on the 1-year anniversary of his passing, Brodie’s wife Amanda has penned a column for the Players Tribune about her husband.
“I know there’s a tendency, after someone passes, to want to sugarcoat things — to tell the ‘easy’ version of the story. But that’s not something I’m interested in doing with the story of me and Jon. It just wouldn’t feel right. Our love was never perfect….. but it was always real,” Huber wrote.
Amanda continued to write about the early parts of their relationship, when both were on the independent wrestling scene. She also spoke about her efforts to make it in wrestling back during this time.
“But I won’t lie: I still get sad, sometimes, when I think about the wrestling business of a decade ago, the wrestling business that I tried to make it in. Because the truth is….. that business chewed me up and then spit me out, pretty much.”
“Too many years of being around types of behavior that we didn’t even have words for yet.”
The article continues to detail Jon’s career in WWE and their marriage. Eventually, Amanda covers Jon getting sick and the very difficult conversations she had to have with her kids.
“Today would have been our tenth anniversary. December 13th, 2011 — that’s the day we got married. It was a Tuesday (and you know what that means). Counting everything….. I guess we knew each other for about 18 years. Funny how that seems both so long and so short.”
Adam Cole would “love” the chance to reunite with Kyle O’Reilly. He’s also eager to work with Johnny Gargano once again.
Luckily for us, there’s a strong possibility we’ll get to see both scenarios play out in the near future.
Over the weekend, AEW held a Q&A panel at the Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo. Talent in attendance included Adam “Hangman” Page, CM Punk, Adam Cole, Ruby Riott, Billy Gunn and Christopher Daniels.
Cole was asked about the reuniting with former Undisputed Era partner Kyle O’Reilly. O’Reilly and Johnny Gargano’s WWE contracts expired last week. Both men are available to work anywhere, effective immediately.
Kyle O’Reilly & Johnny Gargano
Adam Cole has no idea what Kyle’s next move will be. “I’m not sure he even knows what he’s going to do,” he said. “But the idea of getting to reunite with Kyle as well as Bobby [Fish]? Hell yeah, I would love that. Hell yeah I would. Absolutely.”
Panel host Tony Schiavone joked that if you “heard on the Internet” that Kyle O’Reilly is a free agent, then it must be true.
Undisputed Era reuniting in AEW would be huge. However, Adam Cole looks equally excited to resume feuding with another top free agent from NXT.
Another audience member asked, “Who on the stage would be most interested in kicking Johnny Gargano’s ass?”
Adam Cole’s hand went up, which got a big pop from the crowd.
AEW’s Anthony Ogogo recently caused a stir online with some comments about Jonathan Gresham winning the ROH World Championship. Ogogo even tagged Gresham in his Tweet.
“Super cute that @TheJonGresham was the last ever ROH champ, kinda reminds me when Hornswoggle was the last ever cruiserweight champ. Congrats kiddo,” Ogogo Tweeted.
Super cute that @TheJonGresham was the last ever ROH champ, kinda reminds me when Hornswoggle was the last ever cruiserweight champ. Congrats kiddo.
Ogogo then responded to Grace claiming he does not know who she is.
“Sorry darling, who are you? Hammer locks are child’s play, that’s why Gresham can do them. I’m at the knocking mf’s out and becoming the best athlete turned wrestler there’s ever been, part!” He Tweeted.
Sorry darling, who are you?
Hammer locks are child’s play, that’s why Gresham can do them. I’m at the knocking mf’s out and becoming the best athlete turned wrestler there’s ever been, part!
“Damn bro, who pissed on your cornflakes? I was putting you, and Lil Bill, over. I was buzzing when you did your little thing off the top rope. But if you wanna compare lives, I’ve done a shit ton more in my life than you’ve done in your short life, kiddo. Cheers”
Damn bro, who pissed on your cornflakes? I was putting you, and Lil Bill, over. I was buzzing when you did your little thing off the top rope. But if you wanna compare lives, I’ve done a shit ton more in my life than you’ve done in your short life, kiddo. Cheers ?. https://t.co/CmSoWzU4cTpic.twitter.com/yATiLqVueD
Bro I used to be a fan, trust. I googled ur arse, you’re only 35, short life means you’re young af, I don’t give a f*ck about ur height. I’m sorry you’ve got the short end of the stick. Anyway I’ve got big boi shit to do with @AEW I’ve gotta go & get on my de plane, de plane! ? https://t.co/4da5O7XXWu
You two should should be celebrating the ‘big’ title win. Have fun, just don’t let Lil Bill chew bubblegum, ya know because he’s a 35 year old that wears braces ? ?. https://t.co/FH7MjuCAJQpic.twitter.com/LQwYATS0LK
Take all the shots you want at me or my career but to act like @TheJonGresham isn’t one of the best professional wrestlers in the world is what actually offends me. https://t.co/JtPV3kSmq2
Bryan Danielson is scheduled to appear at a pro wrestling event in Qatar this coming March, according to Lucha Libre Online.
Danielson has spoken publicly about his desire to wrestle around the world. This is one of the factors that convinced him to join AEW.
The American Dragon will reportedly appear at Qatar Pro Wrestling’s SuperSlam III event. SuperSlam III is scheduled will be held on March 18th and 19th, 2022.
This event will be available to stream internationally at Fite.tv.
Bryan Danielson in QPW
QPW President Ali Al-Marafi has confirmed the news. Lucha Libre Online states that AEW has already signed off on Danielson’s involvement.
Danielson’s opponent has not yet been announced yet, but the show will feature some of the top names in professional wrestling. He won’t be the only AEW star on the card.
Talent advertised for QPW’s SuperSlam III includes:
Jon Moxley
Hiroshi Tanahashi
Will Ospreay
Sammy Guevara
“The Titan” Adam Scherr
Killer Kross
EC3
Also appearing are Sting, Bret Hart, Booker T and Eric Bischoff.
Looking at the talent lineup, it’s exciting to think about Danielson mixing up with the likes of Ospreay, Tanahashi or Kross.
We’ll keep track of this story and provide updates when they become available.
While many believe CM Punk got off to a slow start in AEW, things have picked up since then. The straight edge star has gotten in a feud with MJF. As expected, the two have created an incredible buzz using their mic skills and their recent promo on Dynamite created a lot of headlines. Though if we believe Punk, then what we have seen is just the start. The former world champion was part of the AEW panel at C2E2. Among other things he was asked about his rivalry with the young star.
Replying to it, Punk mentioned how it’s the one matchup everybody wanted to see even when he hadn’t made his return. The wrestling veteran then admitted that MJF is somebody he wanted to share a ring with himself:
“I think that’s one matchup that everybody wanted to see. Before I even came back, I always heard about ‘oh, I want to see MJF and CM Punk go back and forth.’ A lot of people think I am off to a slow start and AEW doing certain things a certain way. But to me, just like Adam Cole just said, there’s five years worth of stuff with all these interchangeable characters and players. MJF is definitely somebody I wanted to share a ring with. I think now that we’re getting to it, people kind of can maybe see the bigger picture. And they can trust AEW as a whole for like the direction of where stuff goes.”
CM Punk also discussed how the fans want to know the behind the scene stuff. He claimed that everybody including himself is an armchair booker and it’s just human nature. However, he later mentioned how AEW enjoys giving fans what they want and making them happy. The former WWE star then teased an epic conclusion to his already extraordinary feud with MJF:
“The fans I understand they want to know the behind the scene stuff. They want to peel back the curtain. Everybody’s an armchair booker. I am. Everybody’s an armchair coach or quarterback or whatever. That’s human nature. You watch sports and you’re like, ‘ Oh come on, why did you put that guy in? Why is he in the bench? Why is this guy a healthy scratch? Why didn’t you do this? blah, blah, blah. And it’s no different than I think pro wrestling and the fans.
To me one of the best things about AEW is we enjoy payoffs. We like making the fans happy instead of just for some reason making them miserable. Doing stuff just to piss them off. Sometimes the happiest outcome is the most obvious one. We don’t really feel the need to beat anybody over the head with switching it just because they figured it out first, you know? I enjoy making the fans happy. The juice for being a pro wrestler is getting reactions out of the crowd. When it comes to me and him, without me trying to say anything too positive about him – you ain’t seen nothing yet.”
Christopher Daniels hasn’t wrestled on AEW TV since SCU lost their tag team titles match against The Young Bucks in May. The loss forced SCU to split up. Many have wondered if this was the last of Daniels’ we will get to see in AEW. The fallen angel was part of the AEW panel at C2E2. During the talk, he was asked about his in-ring future with the company.
Replying to it, the AEW executive mentioned how he decided to continue wrestling outside of AEW after that. Though he would be lying if he said he was happy not seeing his name on the AEW board:
“The last match I have for AEW television was the night that we wrestled against the Bucks and unfortunately, we lost and SCU had to split up. Since that time, I had sort of been weighing my future in the ring and I decided that I still wanted to give wrestling in the ring a go. Honestly, I would be lying if I said that I was happy going to AEW and not seeing my name on the board. I want to get back in the ring and do something with this roster.”
Christopher Daniels continued by mentioning how the AEW roster is very stacked right now. He claimed that maybe it’s not the best time for him to wrestle for the company. However, the former ROH champion said that he is still ready to go if the people in charge make that decision:
“But I also realize that AEW is not a vanity project, and maybe Christopher Daniels in the ring isn’t the best thing for AEW at this time with such a stacked card and so many young talents there. It’s not my call. I hope to get in the ring at some point soon, but if not, I also realize that I’m still contributing to AEW. And if the fates decide that my best contribution is behind the scenes, then so be it. But I’m still ready to go and the minute I see my name on the board, I’ll lace them up and bring it.”
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Hook has garnered a ton of buzz despite having just one match and one seasoned veteran believes that hype is here to stay.
AEW fans have been fascinated with Hook, the son of Taz, ever since he appeared on television. He had his first match on the Dec. 10 episode of Rampage, defeating Fuego Del Sol. Most are in agreement that Hook looked impressive in his debut.
Some are left wondering if the hoopla over Hook is a fad. Others are convinced that the young prospect is here to stay.
Mark Henry Thinks Hook Has Staying Power
Count Mark Henry as a believer in Hook. Here’s what he told Ryan McKinnell on an episode of Busted Open Radio.
“There’s some people guys, I hate to be a pessimist because normally you know I’m an optimist. You know I like the positive side but everybody’s not gonna make it.
“Everybody that you see that comes on, they’re not gonna stick. It’s just the nature of the business.
“From that first opening impression, I think Hook’s gonna stick, man. I think that he’s a guy that can evolve and that’s the thing in pro wrestling if you don’t evolve if you don’t change with the times you’re not gonna be around very long.
“I can see him in the next three years, as AEW grows, being one of AEW’s future stars. Like, I mean a legit bonafide star.”
Hook garnered a ton of praise following his in-ring debut. He received support from the likes of MJF, Thunder Rosa, Dustin Rhodes, and AEW boss Tony Khan.
Hook is currently a member of Team Taz. His fellow stablemates are Ricky Starks, Powerhouse Hobbs, and of course Taz.
Do you think Hook will be a long-term star or a flash in the pan?
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Tony Khan is in awe of two top-tier AEW tag teams and their names likely won’t come as a surprise.
AEW has plenty of highly-regarded tag teams. There’s of course The Young Bucks, there is also Proud N’ Powerful, Men of the Year, Private Party, and many more.
For Khan, however, there are two AEW tag teams that he simply can’t take his eyes off of. They are the current AEW Tag Team Champions The Lucha Bros and FTR.
“The world tag team championship match is one of the biggest things we’ve ever put on Rampage.”
Khan went on to praise both teams for being able to click despite having different in-ring styles and personalities.
“They’ve built a great rivalry and I really honestly believe those are two of the great tag teams in recent history. They obviously have very different styles. They represent different things in a different company but in this case, they’ve both come to AEW and worked their way to the top.”
Lucha Bros ended up defeating FTR to retain the AEW Tag Team Championships. FTR still holds the AAA World Tag Team Titles.
FTR wasted little time picking a fight following the loss. They were joined by Tully Blanchard in attacking Sting and Darby Allin backstage at Rampage.
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Jonathan Gresham discussed his ROH Final Battle opponent Jay Lethal ahead of their match on the PPV card Saturday night.
Speaking to Scott Fishman of TV Insider, Gresham talked about Lethal leaving ROH and joining AEW, with Lethal being officially revealed at the AEW Full Gear 2021 PPV event.
Gresham was originally slated to face Bandido in a match for the Ring of Honor Championship, until Bandido was unable to take the event due to contracting COVID-19.
“Jay Lethal owed it to himself to depart from Ring of Honor, regardless of the company’s situation” Gresham began. “He accomplished everything.
Jonathan Gresham on Jay Lethal
“I’m very happy to see him go elsewhere to show the rest of the world what he is capable of” the former ROH Pure Champion continued. “Hopefully, he can become a champion in AEW.
“[But] Ring of Honor continues to be where the best wrestlers of the world have grown and been impacted by being there. Stylistically, Ring of Honor has influenced wrestling for the last 20 years. I wouldn’t be surprised if more people show up when they return from hiatus” Gresham concluded.
Here’s the full card for the PPV event tonight:
Jonathan Gresham vs Jay Lethal
ROH Tag Team Championships Match: The OGK vs The Briscoes
Ring of Honor Pure Championship Match: Josh Woods vs Brian Johnson
ROH TV Championship Match: Dalton Castle vs Rhett Titus vs Silas Young vs Joe Hendry
Ring of Honor Six-Man Tag Team Championships Match: Shane Taylor Promotions vs The Righteous
ROH Women’s Championship Match: Rok-C vs Willow
Fight Without Honor: Shane Taylor vs Kenny King
Homicide, Brody King & Tony Deppen vs Taylor Rust, Tracy Williams & Eli Isom
Dragon Lee vs Rey Horus
Chelsea Green and The Hex vs Miranda Alize and The Allure
AEW boss Tony Khan has revealed why it has taken him this long to showcase Hook inside the squared circle.
Hook has the internet wrestling community buzzing. Fans online can’t get enough of Hook and neither can live audiences.
The young prospect, who is the son of Taz, finally made his in-ring debut against Fuego Del Sol on the Dec. 10 episode of Rampage. The general consensus is that he did not disappoint, demonstrating solid mat skills and transitions.
In fact, he looked very much like his father at certain points. He even ended the match with a Tazmission, which he’s calling the “REDRUM.”
Why Was Hook’s In-Ring Debut Delayed?
It’s clear that Hook has some skills in the ring but Tony Khan says that patience is key. He told Dave LaGreca and Mark Henry on Busted Open Radio that the timing was finally right.
“It’s really important we haven’t rushed him. There’s been plenty of times where I thought Hook in training and in practice looked fantastic.
“He’s got every bit of the skill it would take to wrestle on Dynamite or Rampage but the reason I held off till tonight for Rampage on Long Island, I really felt like to give Hook this chance to debut tonight in front of the big audience, give him a chance to debut in his hometown [was ideal].
“I think people are gonna see the way the crowd reacts to Hook tonight and all the fans watching at home when Rampage and Dynamite come to their city, they’re gonna see how fans have reacted to Hook and that’s how they’re conditioned to see him as a star.
“I really wanted to give him a great debut. I think Hook is a great, great prospect and I’m really excited about his debut tonight.”
As you can tell, that interview was conducted hours before Rampage aired. Khan was quite pleased with Hook’s performance and has given him a full-time deal.
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