SEScoops

Category: AEW

  • Maki Itoh’s Wrestling Future is Unclear Despite Record Merchandise Sales

    Maki Itoh’s Wrestling Future is Unclear Despite Record Merchandise Sales

    Wrestling is a money-making business. Look back at the biggest stars of the industry. Bret Hart, The Rock, Stone Cold, Hulk Hogan. They were big draw names that put bums in seats and shirts over shoulders. The ability to generate revenue makes a wrestler invaluable to an organization. However, for Japanese star Maki Itoh.

    Itoh made several appearances for AEW earlier this year catching the attention of many in the process. Her quirky style and unique approach to wrestling made her a real character to watch both in the ring, and out.

    This international appeal helped boost her popularity, with Itoh herself confirming that for a period of time, last week, she was the top seller on Pro Wrestling Tees.

    However, despite this, and reported interest from both AEW and WWE for her services, no contract offers have been forthcoming.

    Currently, Itoh is wrestling in her native Japan for TJPW where she is trying to capture their Princess of Princess title. She was last seen wrestling in America for AEW in March. Shortly after her time in AEW expired, Maji Itoh made it very clear that she wanted to return to American again.

    https://twitter.com/maki_itoh/status/1371650824825303042

    During her time in AEW, and despite her rising popularity, she played the clownish heel role to great effect. There is nobody quite like her in the AEW women’s division, and should she get a contract with them, it’s a valid role for her to fill.

    Kenny Omega, one of the AEW EVPs has long since made it clear that he wants to put a focus on the Joshi wrestlers, and has stayed true to his word. Many AEW fans will be hoping he manages to get Maki Itoh back in an AEW ring soon.

    https://twitter.com/SonnyTheJobber/status/1411739158591180803
  • Eddie Kingston Rips Into The Young Bucks Before Tag Title Match

    Eddie Kingston Rips Into The Young Bucks Before Tag Title Match

    AEW star Eddie Kingston recently spoke to Dominic DeAngelo of WrestleZone ahead of this Wednesday’s AEW: Road Rager event where he and Penta El Zero M will be challenging for the AEW Tag Team Championships.

    Kingston discussed a number of topics during the interview, as well as making some scathing in kayfabe comments towards the AEW Tag Team Title holders, The Young Bucks.

    “They’re the best tag team in the world, the Young Bucks are and that’s proven by being the World Tag Team Champions. That’s it, it proves it” Kingston began, before laying into Matt and Nick Jackson.

    Eddie Kingston on The Young Bucks

    “Have they done it not in their normal ‘hooray’ way? No, my biggest problem with them is because they’re both children, childs, babies” Kingston added, starting to move into a more kayfabe rant on the duo.

    “Not because of what they do in the ring and all that other stuff that people want to bash on them. It’s because ‘being the EVP’ was too hard for them. That kind of annoys me, man” Eddie Kingston continued.

    “People look up to them in the locker room and people look at them as the example of them doing it your way, you know what I mean?”

    EDDIE KINGSTON on THE YOUNG BUCKS

    “And then they’re going to come out here and ‘Oh, it’s too hard so we’re go start burying people’ and ‘oh now we’re just gonna start acting like a**holes and Don Callis, and us and Kenny, we’re the original club, and Bullet…’ and I don’t even know any of that stuff” the former IMPACT star concluded.

    Here’s the full card for AEW Dynamite Road Rager that takes place this Wednesday on TNT:

    • AEW World Tag Team Championship Match – The Young Bucks (c) w/ Brandon Cutler vs Penta El Zero Miedo & Eddie Kingston w/ Alex Abrahantes
    • South Beach Strap Match – Cody Rhodes vs QT Marshall
    • Andrade El Idolo vs Matt Sydal
    • Orange Cassidy & Kris Statlander vs The Blade & The Bunny
    • Inner Circle (Santana, Ortiz & Jake Hager) w/ Konnan vs Pinnacle (Dax Harwood, Cash Wheeler & Wardlow) w/ Tully Blanchard
    • Chris Jericho & MJF face to face standoff
  • Anthony Ogogo’s AEW Career On Hold After Tenth Eye Surgery

    Anthony Ogogo’s AEW Career On Hold After Tenth Eye Surgery

    AEW star Anthony Ogogo is a man wrestling on borrowed time. The former Olympic boxer has not hidden the fact that he struggles with his left eye. After years of damage in the boxing ring, his career was cut short before he really got a chance in the professional ranks.

    Now, sadly, it looks like his wrestling career could also be on the ropes. The news has just been confirmed that Anthony Ogogo is on the injured list after undergoing his tenth eye surgery.

    However, despite the risk of the surgery, and the fact that Ogogo is already registered as blind in that eye, he refused to let that stop him. Remaining in character all the way to the operating room, he cut a promo that many wrestlers would love to give.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CQ1LbPBB-wm/

    “Billy Gunn, you’re so lucky that I’m not in America right now. Because I would rip you limb from limb. I’d break every bone in your face and make your life not worth living.”

    “You have no idea the pain I’m in right now, but you will do. I promise you, Billy Gunn, you will do. I’m going to make your life a living misery. I’m going to hurt you, Billy. There is no pain like watching your children get punished and pulverized in front of your face. You can do nothing about it. So, Billy Gunn, be lucky that I’m not there right now. Enjoy what time you have left with your boys because when I’m back soon, that time is numbered.” Anthony Ogogo declared, making it clear that he has plenty of unfinished business in AEW.

    “I am Anthony Ogogo, The Guv’nor of AEW, and I am the hardest b—–d you’ll ever set eyes on.”

    Heavy Surgery Won’t Slow Anthony Ogogo Down

    The surgery is no simple procedure for Ogogo, and it remains to be seen if he will be cleared to wrestle again. Talking about the extent of work he needed, Ogogo explained. This is the 10th eye surgery because I’ve got so much scar tissue around my eye socket. They had to go through my nasal cavity, correct my septum, which was deviated when you smashed my face off the steel barricade. They had to fix the orbit and the medial section, and the orbital flaw, through my nose.”

    Ogogo lacks experience in the wrestling ring but recently feuded with Cody Rhodes, trained at his Nightmare Factory before making his debut, and is now locked in a feud with Hall of Famer Billy Gunn.

    Hopefully, it will not be too long before we see Anthony ‘the Guv’nor’ Ogogo back in an AEW ring.

  • Chris Jericho On His Dream Feuds, Favorite Tag Team Partner

    Chris Jericho On His Dream Feuds, Favorite Tag Team Partner

    Wrestling veteran Chris Jericho recently spoke to Gresh and Keefe while promoting his new book dubbed The Complete List of Jericho where he talked about a number of things.

    The wrestling veteran has feuded with many Hall Of Famers In his long and illustrated career. The long list of his iconic rivalries includes people like Shawn Michaels, Edge and more.

    When asked which stars he would have liked to have a feud with, Jericho picked the Hart Brothers. He also said that he would have loved to be part of an extended feud with The Undertaker:

    “I think the Hart brothers for sure. I’m talking about Bret Hart or Owen Hart. Both of those guys I never got to wrestle. Owen passed away before I got into WWE, and I wasn’t at the level to wrestle Bret before he got injured, before his career was done.

    The other one is The Undertaker. I worked him a few times and we always had great matches, but we just never really had a long feud.”

    Chris Jericho Reveals His Favorite Tag Team Partner

    Chris was also asked which is his favorite tag team partner. Replying to it, Y2J who has won tag team championships with people like The Rock and Edge, picked The Big Show aka Paul Wight as his favorite:

    “My favorite tag team partner of all-time — and you can see that in The Complete List of Jericho, I have my top ten tag team partners, etc — is always the Big Show,”

    Chris Jericho explained how he had a great time teaming with Wight during their WWE days. He recalled how the two were like an old married couple who argued with each other but still had great chemistry.

    The former AEW champion teamed with Big Show as part of the Jeri-Show tag team in 2009-2010. The two won the tag team titles a couple of times and also won the 2009 Slammy Awards for tag team of the year.

  • Lana Reveals She Has Been Helping Miro With AEW Character Development

    Lana Reveals She Has Been Helping Miro With AEW Character Development

    Former WWE Superstar Lana/CJ Perry recently appeared on the Talk Is Jericho with ‘Le Champion’ Chris Jericho. The former on-screen manager of Rusev/Miro discussed a number of topics during the interview with Jericho, including a reveal of how much she has been helping Miro behind the scenes.

    “I think I played a big part in his success behind closed doors in AEW” Lana began on the podcast with Jericho. “I can talk about that now.”

    Lana on Helping Miro

    “A big turn for him was when we really started talking about ‘let’s make your message more clear over there’” Lana noted, talking about the new on-screen direction of the TNT Champion. “So it’s reassuring to me that I do grasp storytelling. I do grasp storytelling in wrestling as well.”

    Miro has had a huge character change since the initial ‘best man’ gimmick that he joined the company with. The Bulgarian Brute has been stellar in-ring, dominating opponents and showing that he is a true monster heel on the AEW roster who can go toe to toe with anyone.

    The former Rusev has also been improving massively on the microphone since he changed his character on-screen. “I’m god’s favorite Champion” and “I thank god for making me strong and making my hot wife flexible” being some of the best moments from his recent run on top of the TNT Championship division.

  • Update On Kenny Omega’s Health

    Update On Kenny Omega’s Health

    Recent reports of Kenny Omega dealing with multiple nagging injuries and working hurt made fans worried about him. The latest reports thankfully provide a positive update on the situation.

    Dave Meltzer talked about the AEW world champion on the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. He revealed that some recent treatments have helped the wrestling star and he is now feeling much better:

    “Omega was feeling a lot better and you could tell in the Jungle Boy match. The biggest issue was an athletic hernia and stem cell treatment and PRP therapy have helped a lot.” wrote Meltzer, “He said it wasn’t night and day, but he felt it made a world of difference.”

    The former NJPW star was dealing with multiple nagging injuries. Apart from the athletic hernia, he had problems with his knees. He suffered from a stomach virus for a period and had a deep bone bruise near his tailbone too.

    Kenny Omega also sliced up his hand during a spot involving the AEW world title while defending his championship against Pac and Orange Cassidy at the Double Or Nothing PPV. It required him to get seven stitches.

    He was heard telling people before the show that there are days when he wonders if he’s close to retirement because of all the issues. So this update is a relieving news for the fans.

  • Orange Cassidy On If He Ever Saw Himself Becoming A Big Star

    Orange Cassidy On If He Ever Saw Himself Becoming A Big Star

    The group of Chuck Taylor, Kris Statlander, Orange Cassidy, and Trent joined the latest episode of Busted Open Radio. The AEW stars talked about a wide variety of topics during their appearance.

    The King Of Sloth Style has become an internet sensation since joining AEW. His unique wrestling style and persona has made him one of the most beloved babyfaces of the industry.

    When asked if he ever saw himself getting this level of success in the wrestling world, Cassidy admitted that he didn’t imagine it when he first got started:

    “To answer your question without getting too much into it, no, never ever. I just put a denim jacket on and started wrestling. You know, whatever happened, happened.”

    Orange Cassidy On Their Return To Road

    Orange Cassidy was then asked how he feels about AEW’s return to the road next week and getting to work in front of fans again. Replying to it, he said that he is looking forward to doing more of what he wants to do:

    “I had to wrestle more, which I wasn’t a fan of, but luckily during that time, a bunch of people like Chris Jericho and the great Brodie Lee, they pissed me off hard enough to make me actually wrestle. Now that the people are back I can, you know, get back to doing what I want to do, which is more of nothing.”

    During the interview, Chuck Taylor mentioned how many people believe Orange Cassidy to be an overnight success. In reality, he has worked on indies for many years before joining the promotion.

  • Shaquille O’Neal Teases Paul Wight Match In AEW, Wight Responds

    Shaquille O’Neal Teases Paul Wight Match In AEW, Wight Responds

    Fans have been wanting to see a proper pro wrestling match between NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal and Paul Wight (Big Show) for years. It appears that we might finally get to see this bout soon.

    The former basketball player recently had an interview with PopCulture. He was asked about some recent comments from the former WWE star and replying to it, he teased a confrontation between the two for near future:

    “I hear Paul Wight’s still talking trash, so I’m going to work out really hard this summer,” said Shaq, “And maybe we could do something very, very soon,”

    A match between the two was rumored in WWE for a while but they ended up only having a brief confrontation during the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 32.

    Discussing why their rivalry couldn’t culminate in a one on one fight at the time, Shaquille O’Neal claimed that it was because of a lot of bureaucracy and red tape:

    “Shouldn’t be any problems for us getting together now. Last time it was lot of bureaucracy and red tape, now there is no red tape. So, I’m going to go on because I’m still kind of sore from the table, so I’m going to go for it this summer, pump these muscles up here. I’ll be waiting for you, Mr. Paul.”

    Shaquille O’Neal made his in-ring debut for AEW back in March. He teamed up with Jade Cargill to defeat the team of Cody Rhodes and Red Velvet in a well-received mixed tag match on Dynamite.

    Paul Wight made his debut for the promotion on the same night. He has signed a deal to work as both a commentator and wrestler. The former world champion hasn’t made his in ring debut for the promotion yet and we will have to see if Shaquille O’Neal ends up being his debut opponent.

    Update: Paul Wight seems to have taken note of Shaquille O’Neal’s for a match. The heavyweight star responded to the comments from the giant on Twitter and claimed that is not hard to find:

  • Jim Ross Makes Unfortunate Error on Dynamite Commentary

    Jim Ross Makes Unfortunate Error on Dynamite Commentary

    Jim Ross is the voice of wrestling, for many fans. He has been there for many iconic moments for several different organizations through the years. However, being a veteran of anything does not make you immune to errors.

    Since making the move over to AEW, Jim Ross has made a couple of blunders, but none quite so large as at the end of this week’s AEW Dynamite. JR accidentally referred to the show by the wrong company moniker just as they were going off the air.

    As the show was going off the air Good ‘ol JR said “Tickets available at AEWtix.com. Folks, there’s nothing in your life that will top seeing a live WWE Dynamite,”

    It is an easy mistake to make, especially for a man who has been in the business for so long. Especially when thinking about how many years he spent in WWE before joining AEW.

    Naturally, fans were quick to jump on the error, many raising questions as to whether Jim Ross would face repercussions for his faux pas. Not one to hide from things, Jim Ross took to Twitter to address his slip of the tongue.

    There were also those that came to JR’s defence, including Busted Open Radio host David LaGreca, who also took to social media to voice his support for the legendary voice of wrestling.

    Jim Ross has been with AEW since its inception and is widely regarded as being the best commentator in the business. Usually flanked on commentary by Tony Schiavone and Excalibur, he has seen AEW through the pandemic era and back out onto the road.

    Mistakes in the commentary booth are common, with all of the different AEW team members making them frequently. However, they do seem to stick longer when uttered by Jim Ross.

  • AEW Faced Many Roster Changes During Daily’s Place Residency

    AEW Faced Many Roster Changes During Daily’s Place Residency

    AEW is close to finishing up residency at Daily’s Place, and their roster has changed drastically since first arriving at the start of the pandemic.

    As noted by William R. Washington of the RBR Wrestling Podcast, AEW has lost and gained many notable roster members during the company’s ‘residency’ at the amphitheater in downtown Jacksonville.

    Since housing weekly shows at Daily’s Place, AEW has lost Awesome Kong, Bea Priestley, CIMA, Jimmy Havoc, Sadie Gibbs, and Shanna from their roster.

    The promotion added many more wrestlers to the roster during their time at Daily’s Place, however. Over 25 wrestlers were added, including The Acclaimed, Anna Jay, Eddie Kingston, Ethan Page, and wrestling legends like Christian Cage, Matt Hardy, and Sting.

    AEW Fight For the Fallen in July 2019 was AEW’s first event at Daily’s Place, and the promotion made it a regular home starting in March 2020. Since last March, AEW has held 165 events at the arena, including annual events All Out, Full Gear, and Revolution.

    The company made the decision to house their weekly shows at the location after traveling during the COVID pandemic became impossible. Originally, shows were taped with no audience, but after health restrictions loosened, AEW added fans and live shows to their schedule.

    AEW will finish its residency at Daily’s Place and return to live show tours in mid-July. The company has stated they will return to the arena in the future to hold events.

    Catch the RBR Weekly Wrestling Talk Podcast at FanoffMedia.com.

  • Andrade El Idolo On Adding Nakamura And Charlotte To Los Ingobernables

    Andrade El Idolo is looking to expand Los Ingobernables to include two of his favorite WWE wrestlers.

    During an interview with Hugo Savinovich of Lucha Libre Online, newly-signed AEW roster member Andrade El Idolo expressed interest in working with Charlotte Flair and Shinsuke Nakamura as new members of Los Ingobernables.

    “It’s a wonderful pitch,” said Andrade. “Nakamura is a great talent, so are RUSH and Charlotte. I have never been with my fiancé [Charlotte Flair] on TV, so it would be a dream to be with her, whether that be in this faction or not.”

    Andrade continued by stating, “I also have never been on TV with Ric [Flair], who is always a great person with me, so it would be very cool to make a faction with my friend, RUSH, with my fiancé and my father-in-law, and with [Shinsuke] Nakamura, who has treated me well since Japan and is always a great person. This group would be wonderful, and I think we would make history. I hope this dream becomes a reality in a not-so-distant future.”

    Los Ingobernables, which as a stable has not competed since 2019, has featured members La Sombra (Andrade El Idolo), RUSH, La Mascara, La Bestia Del Ring, El Terrible, Tetsuya Naito, Marco Corleone, and Rey Escorpion, competing primarily in CMLL. In New Japan Pro Wrestling, the stable Los Ingobernables de Japon consists of member Naito, EVIL, BUSHI, SANADA, Hiromu Takahashi, and Shingo Takagi.

    Watch the entire interview with Andrade El Idolo from Lucha Libre Online below, where he also speaks on potentially reuniting with former manager Zelina Vega.

    https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=308601527619769

    (h/t Fightful, translation credit to Luis Pulido)

  • Darby Allin Denies He Is Appearing In ‘Jackass Forever’ Movie

    Darby Allin Denies He Is Appearing In ‘Jackass Forever’ Movie

    AEW star Darby Allin denies he’s appearing in the upcoming movie Jackass Forever, due out October 22nd.

    Multiple outlets have listed Allin as a cast member, but the former TNT Champion says that’s not the case.

    The Jackass movies are a continuation of the popular MTV series Jackass (2000-2002), which featured a group of friends performing a variety of dangerous (and disgusting) stunts.

    Jackass 4 will reunite the Jackass gang one more time, including Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, Chris Pontius, Jason ‘Wee Man’ Acuña, Chris Raab, Ehren McGhehey, Dave England, and Preston Lacy.

    Jeff Tremaine will return to direct the fourth Jackass movie, with Tremaine, Spike Jones, Knoxville, and Steve-O serving as producers.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CGi5TSLJavX/?utm_source=ig_embed&ig_rid=208b8936-2009-4d1d-8c02-2593d9016750

    Guest appearances by extreme sports legends Tony Hawk and Matt Hoffman, comedian Eric Andre, UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou and basketball great (and AEW part-timer) Shaquille O’Neil.

    Jackass is rooted in skateboard culture and Darby Allin’s love of skating is well-documented. The former TNT Champion is friends with members of the extended Jackass family, with Steve-O and Tony Hawk both appearing on AEW Dynamite in some of Allin’ segments.

  • Kenny Omega, Others React To Jungle Boy & Anna Jay Make-Out Photo

    Kenny Omega, Others React To Jungle Boy & Anna Jay Make-Out Photo

    Yesterday, Jungle Boy Tweeted out a photo that showed him and the Dark Order’s Anna Jay in an embrace. Kenny Omega was not impressed. He took to Twitter to voice his dismay.

    “Oh geez Louise…,” Omega Tweeted. “Is this the part where some loser out there tells me, “there are things in the world more important than titles”??

    More People Respond To Jungle Boy and Anna Jay

    The rather aesthetically gifted couple drew reactions from others online as well.

    The Dark Order’s Colt Cabana was impressed with the new recruitment tactics the faction is using.

    Tay Conti offered up the following reaction:

    Then there was this response from MJF’s scarf:

    Big Swole meanwhile, offered up several thoughts.

    https://twitter.com/SwoleWorld/status/1409587078250205188

    She continued to then debate with some fans about the PG-level of the pic.

    https://twitter.com/SwoleWorld/status/1409596595335729153

    “Dah! Put an asterisk on it cuz it’s still PG to me. Pending…” she continued.

    Stu Grayson wants people to stop tagging him in the picture.

    Evil Uno doesn’t understand it’s not Grayson in the picture with Anna.

    NXT’s Jake Atlas offered up the following:

    https://twitter.com/JakeAtlas_/status/1409619035101204486

    Kenny Omega Title Defences

    The win for Omega was his 5th successful title defence after winning the title at Winter is Coming on December 2nd, 2020. Omega has defeated Rey Fenix, Jon Moxley, Rich Swann (title for title in Impact), Orange Cassidy and PAC (Triple Threat), and now Jungle Boy.

  • Chris Jericho Returning to AEW Commentary Booth

    Chris Jericho Returning to AEW Commentary Booth

    It has been announced that Chris Jericho is returning to the commentary booth this week on AEW Dynamite. The leader of the Inner Circle is no stranger to the commentary booth, having filled in on numerous occasions in the past.

    Chris Jericho broke the news on his Instagram channel. He drew particular attention to the scheduled match between his Inner Circle protégé Sammy Guevara and Pinnacle frontman MJF.

    “I’m returning to the commentary desk this Wednesday for the entire duration of #AEWDynamite!! And I’m very Excited to have a front row seat for @sammyguevara vs @the_mjf!! Im expecting this to be one of the most heated…and best…matches in @allelitewrestling history!!,

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CQrUV4wDuWo/

    Chris Jericho Has Proven Himself on Commentary

    There is no denying that Chris Jericho is one of the greatest wrestlers on the mic. His promos are some of the best in the business, as demonstrated during his recent feud with MJF. It’s not surprising therefore that Jericho has proven himself to be a natural in the commentary booth.

    The character of Chris Jericho is a natural at both heel and face characters. Again, his journey in AEW has shown this, as he moved from the most hated to the most loved character on the show. This skill means Jericho could easily apply himself as the heel or face commentator depending on who is he paired with.

    Father Time catches up with us all, and Chris Jericho’s time in the ring is reaching its end. Yet wrestling is in Jericho’s blood, and it looks almost certain a post-career in the commentary booth is in his future.

    AEW has already said that one of the commentator’s for AEW Rampage will be an existing member of the AEW team. AEW could do a lot worse than having Chris Jericho fill that position.

  • More AEW Stars Announced for AAA TripleMania XXIX

    More AEW Stars Announced for AAA TripleMania XXIX

    AAA has confirmed that All Elite Wrestling stars Penta El Zero M and Rey Fenix will return at TripleMania XXIX to defend their AAA World Tag Team Titles.

    In today’s TripleMania press conference, the company confirmed that the Lucha Bros will be defending their belts in a triple threat tag team match against Laredo Kid & Hijo del Vikingo, plus Black Taurus with a mystery partner.

    Penta El Zero M and Rey Fenix won the AAA World Tag Team Titles back in June 2019, where they defeated current AEW Tag Champs The Young Bucks. The Lucha Bros have defended the titles on three occasions since the win, twice in 2019 and in December 2020 at TripleMania XXVIII.

    The TripleMania XXVIII match was also a triple threat; with the Lucha Bros defending successfully against Myzteziz Jr. and Octagon Jr., and Rey Escorpion and Texano Jr.

    Here’s the currently confirmed card for TripleMania XXVIII on Saturday, August 14 from Arena Ciudad de México in Mexico City, Mexico:

    • Mask vs. Hair Match – Psycho Clown vs. Rey Escorpión
    • AAA Mega Championship Match – Kenny Omega (c) vs Andrade El Idolo
    • Champion vs. Champion Match – IMPACT Knockouts Champion Deonna Purrazzo vs. AAA Reina de Reinas Champion Faby Apache
    • AAA World Tag Team Championship Match – Hijo del Vikingo and Laredo Kid vs. Black Taurus and a partner TBA vs. Rey Fenix and Penta El Zero M (c)
    • Murder Clown, Chessman and Pagano vs. Puma King and two partners TBA
    • Copa Bardahl – Drago, Mamba, Mr. Iguana and other competitors TBA
    • Marvel’s Lucha Libre Exhibition – Participants and characters TBA
  • Jungle Boy Posts Photo Making Out With Anna Jay

    Jungle Boy Posts Photo Making Out With Anna Jay

    AEW stars Jungle Boy and Anna Jay of the Dark Order appear to be more than “just friends.”

    Jungle Boy had an impressive showing against AEW World Champion Kenny Omega this past weekend on Saturday Night Dynamite. Omega retained the gold, but Jack Perry showed once again that he can hang in the main events.

    On Monday, Jungle Boy posted this photo of himself making out with Anna Jay outside Jacksonville’s TIAA Bank Field stadium.

    Colt Cabana replied to the tweet and jokingly asked Anna Jay if this was her way of trying to recruit Jungle Boy to the Dark Order.

    Anna Jay’s Road Back To AEW

    Anna Jay has been out of action since February dealing with a shoulder injury that required surgery. At the time, AEW announced that she’s expected to miss 6-12 months of action.

    Anna Jay recently tweeted that she “can’t wait to get back in the ring.” Late July would be 6-months from the time of her injury, so she could be back in action as early as next month.

  • Chris Jericho Responds To WWE Talent Critical Of Blood & Guts Bump

    Chris Jericho Responds To WWE Talent Critical Of Blood & Guts Bump

    At the conclusion of the Blood & Guts match between the Pinnacle and Inner Circle last month, MJF threw Chris Jericho off the top of the cage. Shortly following the match, fans and a couple of wrestlers from WWE were critical of this or made fun of it online. Jericho addressed two wrestlers from WWE who were critical of the bump during his Saturday night live stream.

    “Best of luck to anybody in our business, and anybody that bags on somebody who’s taking a chance and putting their bodies on the line can really f*** off,” Jericho said. “Especially people in the business. I could say some names.”

    Jericho then mentioned there were some women from WWE who took shots at the bump.

    “There’s a couple of chicks in WWE who said some stuff and they should probably not have said that. They probably weren’t trained any better, and in 6 months they’ll probably be asking us for a job anyways and I’ll remember that, so we’ll leave it at that.” 

    Shayna Baszler and Shotzi Blackheart each posted about the bump from Blood & Guts. Blackheart posted the following the night of the match:

    https://twitter.com/ShotziWWE/status/1390124361357660163

    Baszler posted the following the day after the match:

    Jericho’s Saturday Night live stream can be viewed in the player below:

    H/T To Fightful for the transcriptions.

  • Eddie Kingston Says That He Would Return To ROH

    Eddie Kingston Says That He Would Return To ROH

    AEW star Eddie Kingston recently revealed that he would be open to the idea of returning to Ring of Honor, specifically to ‘help’ his friend Homicide. Speaking on a Pro Wrestling Junkies Q&A, Kingston said that he would go over to ROH as part of the ongoing ‘Forbidden Door’ angle that has seen AEW, IMPACT, NWA and New Japan all work together over the past year.

    “Me and Homicide got to Ring of Honor, they asked us what we wanted to do and of course, we have the same attitude and if we’re going to do something, it might as well be for a championship or getting a title shot” Kingston began, discussing when he and Homicide became a tag team in 2013 for Ring of Honor.

    Eddie Kingston on Ring of Honor

    “We didn’t get along with Bobby and Kyle, surprise, we don’t get along with other people” Kingston added, referring to NXT Superstars Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly, the ROH Champions at the time who Homicide and Eddie Kingston attacked on their first night back in the promotion. “They know that and they don’t like us either.”

    “God bless them, I’m happy for both of them and don’t want to knock anybody’s hustle. Competition is competition. We had the match, it was fun. I didn’t like it and then we got suspended” Eddie Kingston continued.

    Kingston would finish by then stating that he would now return to ROH if it would help out his friend and former LAX member Homicide. “I have nothing but love for Ring of Honor. When I broke in, it was the place to be. I’m happy for them now. Homicide is back there. It’s all about a forbidden door, if I could, I would go back over there and help Homicide out”

  • Joey Janela Dealing With A Concussion

    Joey Janela Dealing With A Concussion

    Joey Janela has been on the shelf since wrestling Hangman Page on the go-home episode of Dynamite before Double or Nothing. Page defeated Janela on the show before then defeating Brian Cage on the PPV.

    Janela appeared recently on the Wrestling Perspectives podcast and spoke about dealing with a concussion.

    “I’ll be coming back soon. I’m dealing with an injury right now, a little concussion deal. S**t happens, everyone knows that, it’s wrestling. All sports, everyone gets concussions. I’ll be cleared from that in the coming weeks, maybe the coming weekend. I’ll be good and hopefully doing AEW stuff soon. Things were about to pick up for me right before [the concussion].” (transcriptions via Fightful).

    Not long after his match with Page on Dynamite, Janela posted a video to Twitter noting that he will have to miss his bookings in June.

    https://twitter.com/JANELABABY/status/1399495805921288194

    Joey Janela In AEW

    Before getting injured, Janela and Sonny Kiss appeared to be building an angle. Janela’s character seems like it might be going heel as he was making excuses for not coming out to help his tag-team partner. In the below backstage segment from Dark 2 weeks ago, Kiss seems to be done with their team. Janela then tried to blame Alex Marvez for his recent actions.

  • Britt Baker Responds To Critics Of AEW Women’s Division

    Britt Baker Responds To Critics Of AEW Women’s Division

    AEW Women’s Champion Britt Baker was recently interviewed by Sporting News. During the discussion, Baker spoke about the improvement seen in AEW’s women’s division as of late.

    Baker was asked about fans who are critical of how AEW has handled its women’s division.

    “The match that I had with Thunder Rosa we put everything we had out there. We had the women’s eliminator tournament, we have so much to look forward to. We have so many talented females on our roster: myself, Hikaru Shida, Tay Conti, Red Velvet, Jade, Thunder Rosa, Anna Jay. It’s not something you can just turn a blind eye to anymore. We’ve improved so much, we’re putting out great content,” Baker responded.

    Baker then continued to say that perhaps some of the division’s critics simply don’t want to like it.

    “So, at some point you have to really look at yourself in the mirror and say: Do you not like the women’s division, or do you just not want yourself to like the women’s division?” Baker continued to ask.

    Baker was also asked if she could shed any light on the 10th dentist who actually doesn’t recommend flossing.

    “I do, but I’m sworn to secrecy,” the dentist answered.

    Baker has a match coming up this Wednesday on Dynamite. She’ll team with Rebel to face Nyla Rose and Vickie Guerrero.

  • Eddie Kingston Shoots on WWE Following This Week’s AEW Dynamite

    Eddie Kingston Shoots on WWE Following This Week’s AEW Dynamite

    AEW star Eddie Kingston had some choice words for WWE when speaking to fans following this week’s episode of Dynamite. The former IMPACT/PROGRESS star referred to the ‘other channel’ whilst cutting a ‘shoot’ promo after cameras stopped rolling for the crowd inside Daily’s Place.

    “The competition sometimes doesn’t want to hear their fans” Eddie Kingston began when speaking to the fans. “Oh, I guess I’m burning another bridge — surprise. Ladies and gentlemen, AEW cares about their fans.”

    “Because we are not here just to get ourselves a paycheck” Kingston admitted. “We’re here every week  — with you people, without you people — and we come out here and we bust our asses. We love professional wrestling!”

    Eddie Kingston on WWE

    “You saw a match between Kenny Omega and my dude, Jungle Boy, that you will not see on the other channel. And you will not see legends who are respected on the other channel. You will not see people like me and my best friend (Penta) on the other channel” Kingston stated.

    “And you will not see the heart that everybody in that locker room has on the other channel. Ladies and gentlemen, I’m was supposed to send you home happy, but I’m speaking from my heart. The bottom line is this: We are AEW. We will see you Wednesday, and we want to hear you!” Eddie Kingston then concluded.

    You can check out the full promo below via Cassidy Haynes of Bodyslam.net:

  • MJF: “Video Games Are For Virgins, But Wrestling Video Games, That’s For Winners”

    MJF: “Video Games Are For Virgins, But Wrestling Video Games, That’s For Winners”

    Leader of AEW’s The Pinnacle group MJF recently appeared on the Game Marks podcast. Game Marks is a show based around classic pro wrestling video games including interviews with wrestling personalities discussing some of their favorite games from past generations or current.

    MJF would reveal that he did play games such as Day of Reckoning 2 when he was younger, although he now doesn’t have time for video games as they’re for ‘virgins.’

    “I always thought that I was going to be this dark, brooding, black face paint around the eyes, Kane-like, Legion of Doom-esque character” MJF began on the podcast, describing the sort of CAW he would create and what he saw himself being as a pro wrestler when he finally got to live his dream.

    ‘Complete F*cking Losers’

    “The character name was Mad Max and I remember, I always gave my guy a red mohawk with long tights, black boots, and a skull with a big leather jacket” The Pinnacle leader would continue.”

    “Then, I grew out of being a complete f*cking loser and I realized I should just be myself and start making Maxwell Jacob Friedman, a fun-loving guy that everyone likes” MJF jokingly added.

    Maxwell Jacob Friedman would finish by taking a shot at video game players in general, saying “video games are for virgins, but wrestling video games — that’s for winners.”

    “Okay, I think anybody can agree on that” MJF noted. “But regular video games like ‘Zelda’, you know, or Cuck Central part two, or whatever the f**k people are playing nowadays, I don’t know, I’m not a simp.”

    AEW’s wrestling game for consoles is currently in development and will be released for the latest generation of consoles, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S.

  • Trent Shares Photo From Neck Fusion Surgery

    Trent Shares Photo From Neck Fusion Surgery

    Trent from the Best Friends took to Twitter today to share post-surgery photos. Evidently, the AEW star had neck fusion surgery recently. He’s been out of action for over 2 months. His last match was on April 21st when he faced Penta El Zero Miedo on Dynamite. There is currently no timetable for his return.

    Trent had actually only been back in action for a few weeks after missing 4 months due to a torn pec. He missed from December 16th to April 7th due to that injury.

    Trent and the Best Friends In AEW

    Mainly due to Trent’s injuries, the Best Friends have spent only 1 week in the AEW top-5 tag-team rankings this year. They were ranked on January 6th, 2021 but haven’t been back in the top-5 since. They’ve only wrestled two 2-on-2 tag matches and both were on Dark: Elevation. The last time the Best Friends challenged for the AEW tag-team titles was in October. They dropped a title match to FTR on the October 14th, 2020 Dynamite show.

    As for the other members of the Best Friends squad, Kris Statlander is currently ranked #4 in her division and has a match with the Bunny tonight on Dynamite. Niether Orange Cassidy or Chuck Taylor have matches upcoming on the schedule. Cassidy beat Cezar Bononi last week in singles competition and is currently ranked #3 in his division, however.

  • Kenny Omega and Andrade Trade Jabs On Twitter

    Kenny Omega and Andrade Trade Jabs On Twitter

    Kenny Omega and Andrade will face off for the AAA Mega Championship at TripleMania in August. Omega doesn’t feel Andrade has done enough to challenge for his AEW World Championship, however. Omega responded to a Tweet from AEW and noted that Andrade hasn’t done enough to earn a shot.

    “I checked the win/loss record. He ain’t even close. Wins and losses count here, brah,” Omega Tweeted.

    “I got tired of being in a company that only talks like you, I decided to resign to demonstrate my success in the ring, mr win….” Andrade responded.

    Kenny Omega vs Andrade

    Andrade made his first post-WWE appearances on June 12th and 13th for RGR Lucha Libre. On night 1, he teamed with El Idolo and Piloto Suicida to defeat the team of El Hijo del Santo, Misterioso & Rey Leon. On night 2, he teamed with Misterioso in a loss to El Hijo del Santo & Piloto Suicida.

    As for Omega, he’s been said to be dealing with multiple nagging injuries at the moment. His last match was for Impact at Against All Odds when he defeated Moose. His last match in AEW was the world title match at Double or Nothing on May 30th.

  • Dr Britt Baker Reveals Her Own ‘Role Models’ from WWE

    Dr Britt Baker Reveals Her Own ‘Role Models’ from WWE

    AEW Women’s Champion Dr Britt Baker D.M.D recently appeared at Steel City Comic Con. The pro wrestler and dentist discussed a number of topics during her time on panel, including a question regarding her own personal ‘role models’ in wrestling.

    Interestingly, Dr Baker chose two performers from WWE rather than some of the talent performers in All Elite Wrestling.

    “Probably Bayley or Sasha [Banks], it’d have to be one of them,” began during the panel. “Those are two of my role models that I watched when I was first training to be a wrestler.”

    Dr Britt Baker D.M.D on Sasha and Bayley

    “That was five years ago. When I was training, they were main eventing NXT TakeOver” Dr Britt Baker continued. “That was when the tides were turning and they kind of paved the way for my generation of wrestling. Even though they are still in my generation, they came before me.”

    The landscape of Women’s wrestling is constantly changing, with many of the best wrestlers in the world performing across different promotions.

    Triple H recently caused some stir when he said in a press conference that WWE had the “best Women’s talent in the world” and that all of the best wrestlers “want to work for WWE.” These comments drew the ire of the likes of Thunder Rosa, who is also a major player in the AEW Women’s division alongside Britt Baker.