Next year, WWE WrestleMania 39 will return to California, in what is expected to be one of the biggest events WWE has put on in some time.
Like the past three WrestleManias, the 39th iteration of WWE’s flagship show will be a two-night event and will take place on Saturday, April 1, and Sunday, April 2, from SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
It wasn’t just WWE Superstars who appeared at the WrestleMania 39 ticket launch event, as dancer/singer/YouTuber Jojo Siwa also made an appearance.
The 19-year-old performer was the guest on an edition of Miz TV, but introduced SmackDown Women’s Champion Liv Morgan.
Siwa, who wore a Liv hoodie, alongside Morgan poked fun at the alleged size of Miz’s ‘balls’ which the two-time former WWE Champion insisted are “wonderful.”
Snoop Dogg makes it rain during his appearance at the WrestleMania 39 Tickets launch party.
WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg also attended the WrestleMania 39 Tickets launch event and hyped up WWE’s two-night Premium Live Event.
The rap legend was presented with his own custom WWE Championship title and proceeded to ‘make it rain’ with Lynch and Belair on stage.
Snoop’s involvement is interesting, as he is the cousin of WWE Superstar Sasha Banks, who many believe will return to WWE TV soon in this post-Vince McMahon era of the company.
Tickets for WrestleMania 39 can be purchased here.
Bret Hart has weighed in on Vince McMahon resigning from WWE amid the hush money scandals.
It was first reported in June that the WWE board was investigating McMahon for a secret $3 million settlement he allegedly agreed to pay a former WWE employee with whom he allegedly had an affair. A second report came out last month noting agreed to pay more than $12 million to four women to “suppress allegations of sexual misconduct and infidelity” over a 16-year period.
Later that month, McMahon announced he was retiring, later clarified in an SEC filing that he resigned after already stepping back from his duties as WWE Chairman and CEO for the duration of the investigation.
While speaking with Sportskeeda Wrestling, Hart was asked about McMahon’s retirement.
“Like everybody else, I’m mostly just kinda surprised. I don’t think anybody’s ever made as big a footprint as Vince McMahon. I feel kinda sad about it, actually. I know people probably think I would be gloating or happy to see him go through what he’s going, but I don’t. I feel bad that it happened, or whatever’s happened. I think his loss or his absence from the business will be sorely missed,” he said.
Although Hart and McMahon were once bitter enemies after the infamous Montreal Screwjob in 1997, they later buried the hatchet.
Since coming to WWE, Bianca Belair has become one of the biggest stars of the promotion’s women’s division.
In her first WrestleMania match, Belair headlined Night One of WrestleMania 37, defeating Sasha Banks to capture the SmackDown Women’s Championship.
Just one year later, Belair would repeat her success, dethroning Becky Lynch to win the Raw Women’s Championship, becoming the first person to beat ‘The Man’ for a title in nearly three years.
Her Inner Struggle
Belair isn’t just a fighter in the ring, but has been fighting a much different battle within herself.
Sitting down with Ariel Helwani, the reigning Raw Women’s Champion spoke about her struggles with mental health, which dated back to her freshman year at the University of South Carolina.
“My freshman year, I just struggled so much mentally. I was struggling with an eating disorder secretly in high school, so when I got to college I told myself ‘okay I’m not going to do this anymore. I’m gonna be healthy.”
“I had a very unhealthy relationship with food… Mentally or physically, I just wasn’t able to get back to where I was.”
Bianca Belair on the eating disorder she struggled during high scholl and college.
Belair said that after her freshman year, she transferred to Texas A&M, where she continued to struggle with her mental health.
The Raw Women’s Champion mentioned her coach at the time Vince Anderson for being an enormous help when she was struggling.
“I was put into a psychiatric hospital. It got that low… That’s when everyone found out. He [Anderson] was the one, once I got out, who said ‘you can’t come back.’ He made me go see a psychiatrist. He was like ‘you have to get yourself together mentally because that’s what is more important.’
“I was put into a psychiatric hospital. It got that low.”
Bianca Belair on her struggles with mental health during her athletics career.
After Texas A&M, Belair transferred again to the University of Tennessee, where she was not allowed to compete.
“I wasn’t allowed to compete for the team. But she [UofT coach Heather Van Norman] told me ‘I’ll train you for a whole year, even if you can’t contribute to the team.’ And she’s the person who really got me back on my feet.”
Over the past month, the wrestling world has been rocked as two of the most influential men in WWE have left the company.
In July, Vince McMahon announced his retirement from the promotion, a month after stepping down as CEO and Chairman.
McMahon stepped down from the roles due to the ongoing investigation into him over allegations of misconduct with female employees.
More recently, it was reported that John Laurinaitis, who is alleged to have participated in the McMahon scandal, had been terminated from WWE, ending his 21-year tenure with the promotion.
RVD & Laurinaitis’ Relationship
The same year that Laurinaitis joined WWE (2001), Rob Van Dam signed with the promotion following the collapse of ECW.
A former WWE and ECW Champion, Van Dam worked closely with both McMahon and Laurinaitis.
During an interview with SEScoops correspondent Steve Fall, RVD addressed the departure of Laurinaitis, calling the former WWE Head of Talent Relations his ‘guy.’
“he was my guy. I know a lot of people didn’t get along with him. I was wrestling him in Japan in ‘93… I could relate to him in a lot of ways.”
Rob Van Dam on the release of John Laurinaitis.
Addressing McMahon’s departure from WWE, Van Dam wasn’t pleased with the former Chairman’s retirement, but tried to see the positive side.
“I don’t like Vince being gone, but if it’s better for business, then that’s awesome.”
RVD on Vince McMahon’s retirement.
Neither Laurinaitis or McMahon have appeared publicly since their departures from WWE.
Injured WWE star Cody Rhodes is being advertised for an upcoming episode of Monday Night RAW.
Rhodes injured his pectoral muscle back in June, which sidelined him for several months after requiring surgery. Initial expectations had Rhodes out for nine months, meaning he wouldn’t be expected back until March of 2023.
Rhodes tore his pectoral muscle in the midst of his feud with Rollins on RAW. Despite having already torn his pectoral, he still competed against Rollins inside Hell In A Cell back in June, winning the match and seemingly closing the chapter on his rivalry with Rollins.
However, the following night on Monday Night RAW, Rollins attacked Rhodes after faking a compromise, attacking Rhodes’ injured area to seemingly help write him off TV. Rhodes was being positioned as the top babyface over on Monday Night RAW.
The timing of his injury couldn’t have been worst. However, many expect Rhodes to return at the Royal Rumble in January, potentially winning the match and going on to WrestleMania 39 to challenge Roman Reigns for the WWE Undisputed Championship.
With Rhodes now being advertised for a match on August 22, it certainly makes things interesting.
WWE Hall Of Famer Mick Foley has revealed what he didn’t like about Vince McMahon’s booking.
Taking to his “Foley Is Pod” podcast, Foley offered up his thoughts on the recent creative changes within WWE, with Vince McMahon stepping down. During that segment, Foley actually touched on what he doesn’t like about McMahon’s booking style.
Foley noted that he isn’t a fan of always having guys lose in their hometown for the sake of heat. He’d rather see those respective stars go over in their hometowns.
“There is a part of Vince that genuinely likes to make dreams come true. He likes to do that for his audience. I think you could argue that he puts them through an unnecessary ringer sometimes, you know?
“Like I’m not a fan of having people lose and get embarrassed in their hometowns. I guess he thinks, you know, it’s good heat. I would rather have seen, you know, Charlotte [Flair] go over in Charlotte and Sasha [Banks] go over in Boston instead of vice versa.”
Mick Foley
McMahon was the head of WWE’s front office and creative decisions for decades. However, after some sexual misconduct allegations surfaced, McMahon was forced to step down as WWE CEO, leaving his daughter Stephanie McMahon and Nick Kahn to step in as co-CEOs.
Soon after, when investigations into these allegations began, McMahon then decided to retire altogether, stepping down as head of WWE creative. His son-in-law and multiple time WWE World Champion Triple H ascended to the throne, assuming creative control in McMahon’s absence.
There’s sure to be a massive difference in style with Triple H at the helm rather than McMahon. It will be interesting to see how the landscape of WWE changes over the next few weeks under “The Game.”
All Elite Wrestling (AEW) president Tony Khan has revealed how often he watches WWE.
Recently, Khan was interviewed by DAZN, where he was asked about the competition over in WWE. During the interview, Khan divulged that he watches WWE pretty often, and believes the product has improved recently since Triple H assumed control of creative.
“Now the competition changing, I think that’s a good thing in some ways. If you like good wrestling, you’re just more likely to want to see it because our competitor has been doing better shows recently than they had been doing, I think.
“I watch them pretty often, and I think they’ve been better,” Tony Khan said. “It seems like that’s the consensus among people who watch them. I do think in general, if it’s gonna get more people watching wrestling, that’s probably not gonna hurt any wrestling company.
“And we stand to gain the most in many ways because if you’re a big wrestling fan, and if you’ve been away and you like good wrestling, you might be saying, ‘Where are Chris Jericho and Bryan Danielson? CM Punk’s back?’
“So as we get to an exciting point of a lot of people coming back to the company, but a lot of new fans also, I think hopefully they want to embrace the new wrestlers in AEW and also a lot of the big names in AEW that you’ll be able to see on a regular basis, people that are on the show every week and have been going all summer like Chris Jericho and Jon Moxley.
“Then again, whenever CM Punk is back, there’s a big setup for an undisputed championship to be crowned. I think if you’re a fan of good wrestling, it’d be a great time to step back in and check it out because right now, there’s a lot of good wrestling on TV, including Wednesday’s on TBS and Fridays on TNT.”
(via AEW)
Longtime WWE front-man Vince McMahon was forced to step down as WWE CEO after allegations of sexual misconduct surfaced. This left his daughter Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan to step up as the new co-CEOs of WWE.
Soon after, investigations into McMahon’s misconduct sparked, then forcing McMahon to make the decision to retire as head of creative in WWE. His son-in-law and ex-WWE Champion Triple H has since stepped up to the plate.
Since taking over, the new creative regime under Triple H has been positively received. It’s also involved the return of former NXT talents now getting their shot on the main roster. It will be interesting to see how prominent changes under Triple H will be moving forward.
WWE has named the 14 athletes that were signed by the company at the WWE SummerSlam tryouts.
ESPN first reported that 14 athletes were signed by the company during the tryouts, which were open to current and recently graduated college athletes.
WWE’s Newest Recruits
The following athletes were offered a contract:
Kennedy Cummins
University of Minnesota Cheerleader
Gabrielle Dunn
Trains in karate
Won Women’s Adult Forms Overall Grand Champion at the US Capitol Classics.
Rickssen Opont
Track & Field athlete
Alivia Ash
Track & Field athlete from Louisville and Rutgers
Harleigh White
Track & Field athlete from Clemson
Chukwusom Enekwechi
Track and Field athlete from East Michigan
Jade Gentile
Soccer player from WVU
Anna Keefer
Track & Field athlete from North Carolina
Breanna Ruggiero
Former Cheerleader at Sacramento State Cheer
Beau Morris
Offensive lineman from SMU
Franki Strefling
Volleyball player from Eastern Michigan University
Bobby Lashley has now revealed that he believes he has another WWE Championship run in him, and that he’s attempting to elevate the United States Championship with his star power.
Lashley’s Recent WWE Run
On the March 1 episode of Raw, Lashley defeated The Miz in a lumberjack match to win the WWE Championship for the first time. Lashley would go on to successfully defend the WWE Championship against Drew McIntyre at WrestleMania 37, and at WrestleMania Backlash in a triple threat match also including Braun Strowman, and at Hell in a Cell in a Last Chance Hell in a Cell match. At SummerSlam, Lashley retained the WWE Championship due to referee stoppage after Goldberg could no longer continue.
On the September 13 episode of Raw, after successfully defending the title against Randy Orton, Lashley lost the WWE Championship to Big E who cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase, ending his reign at 196 days. On September 27 on Raw, Lashley faced Big E for the WWE Championship but the match ended in disqualification after Shelton Benjamin and Cedric Alexander helped Lashley fight off The New Day, seemingly reuniting The Hurt Business. A rematch then took place in a steel cage, where Big E defeated Lashley.
Since then, on the March 28 episode of Raw, Lashley made his return from injury and started a feud with Omos. This set up a match between the two at WrestleMania 38, with Lashley turning face for the first time since October 2018. Following Hell in a Cell, Lashley began a feud with United States Champion Theory, culminating at Money in the Bank, where Lashley defeated Theory to win his third United States Championship. At SummerSlam, Lashley retained the title against Theory in a rematch.
Lashley Has Another World Title Run In His Future?
The current United States Champion spoke with Rick Ucchino of the Bleav in Pro Wrestling Podcast about his current US Title reign and the possibility of another WWE World Title run.
??“I’m the champion of the United States. I think that’s a huge honor. Everything that I win and everything that I do is just, it’s a dream come true. I’m living the dream man. I’m able to come back and wrestle right now, at my age, and I’m still able to do it. I still feel great. I’m still winning titles. I’m still able to advance with the business and everything is just going great for me right now.
This title is something that is very important to me, because it gives me an opportunity to kind of help raise the roster and help elevate some of the other guys that are on the roster. Do I have another World title run in my future? 100 percent, but right now there’s a lot of things going on,” Lashley said.
How He’s Adjusted Since Returning To WWE
The night after WrestleMania 34 on Raw, Lashley made his return to WWE after a ten-year absence, becoming a member of the Raw brand once again. During his return, he confronted Elias and attacked him with a chair. The first month of Lashley’s return saw him in a number of tag-team matches, teaming with the likes of Braun Strowman, Bobby Roode, Finn Bálor, Seth Rollins, and Roman Reigns, all being in victorious efforts against the likes of Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, Jinder Mahal, The Miz, Curtis Axel, and Bo Dallas.
“It’s amazing. And I think the reason why is people really started to understand. When I first came in, it was like reintroducing me to whole new crowd, a new fan base. And over time I think people have really seen me go through some hard times. They’ve seen me stick in there and just kind of persevere. And I think that people are behind me right now, because they know what I’m capable of doing,” he said.
Lashley’s Advice For Future Wrestlers
Lashley has been in the wrestling business for 16 years, and he is now being to pass down some of his knowledge. Lashley spoke about his experiences speaking and working with hopeful future WWE Superstars.
The former WWE Champion said:
“I’m talking to some people that want to get into wrestling business. They already know what their nickname is. They already know what their signature move is. I was like, you don’t even know how to run the ropes.
You haven’t even taken one bump, but you know what your signature move is gonna be. You know what your entrance is gonna be, you already have all this stuff. I’m like, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Let’s take a step back and just learn.”
Bobby Touts Hard Work & Paitence
The US Champion reflected on his early years and what it was like for him when he began to pursue professional wrestling. Lashley touts his hard work and attention to basics as a big part of his success.
Bobby said, “When it came to the point of actually thinking about what to do for an entrance and all this other stuff, that that was like way down the road. I wasn’t even thinking about that. I was just thinking about grassroots. I’m the type of person that tries to take it from day one and try to learn.
I mean, when I started boxing, I wasn’t throwing 18 punches. I was throwing a jab, I worked two hours on just a jab and that’s how I deal with everything. That’s how you develop a good foundation, is to really take your time to learn the basics before you get up to the big step.”
Going off the images Drew shared, it appears that he is working on some kind of promotional video ahead of Clash at the Castle.
Is Drew the One?
Roman Reigns has dominated as Champion for over 700 days, but some have suggested that McIntyre will be the one to dethrone the Tribal Chief.
Not only is McIntyre one of the few Superstars WWE has pushed as on a similar level to Reigns, but many fans have said that WWE’s desire for a big moment at their first UK Premium Live Event since 1992, will see a new champion be crowned.
Others have suggested that Reigns most lose the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship ahead of WrestleMania 39, if the plan is for him to face his cousin The Rock.
The belief is that a Reigns-Rock match would not need a title involved, and it would only spoil that Reigns would win, as Rock’s busy movie schedule would keep him away from the ring.
No Triple Threat
On last week’s SmackDown, Karrion Kross returned to WWE, attacking Drew McIntyre.
After the attack, Kross stared down Reigns, making it clear he desires the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship.
Despite speculation that this will lead to a Triple Threat at Clash at the Castle, it’s been reported that WWE remains focussed on a singles match to headline the Cardiff show.
WWE Hall Of Famer Kevin Nash seems to have zero interest in wrestling again at this point in his life.
Hall recently took to his podcast, “Kliq This,” to discuss a variety of professional wrestling topics. One such topic being the Last Match of two-time WWE Hall Of Famer Ric Flair. Nash noted that he wasn’t live at the show, but did watch Flair’s match from home.
The Hall Of Famer actually was at the event before the show started doing meet and greets, but didn’t stick around for the actual match alongside the likes of The Undertaker and Mick Foley. Nash admitted that he didn’t want to stick around in case something physically happened to Flair.
He then addressed the possibility of himself getting back into the ring again. Nash doubled down that he has no interest in competing inside of the ring at this point in his life. He even went as far as saying WWE Saudi Arabia show money wouldn’t be enough to get him back in the squared circle.
“No, I don’t. The f**king thought of my f**king rickety ass body hitting that f**king wood. Like nah man and not even for f**king Saudi money.
“You come with me the half a million bucks let me take two bumps, f**k you. What am I gonna do with that? Let me put that in the bank with the rest of my f**king money I don’t spend.”
Nash hasn’t wrestled in an official match since August of 2018. He defeated Flex Armstrong for the Big Time Wrestling Heavyweight Championship. Nash would officially announce his retirement from in-ring competition two years later in January of 2020.
The former WWE Champion is a two-time Hall Of Famer; inducted first in 2015 individually as Diesel, and again in 2020 as a member of the New World Order (NWO).
Charlotte Flair is the next guest appearing on Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Sessions.
Broken Skull Sessions features WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin having candid conversations with some of the industry’s biggest stars. Recent guests have included Sami Zayn, Jeff Jarrett, Cody Rhodes and Bubba Ray Dudley.
Episode 30 with Charlotte Flair premieres on Peacock next Friday, August 19th.
WWE has curated this playlist of “unforgettable” stories from Broken Skull Sessions:
Charlotte Flair’s Hiatus from WWE
Charlotte Flair has been out of action since May. Her last match took place at WrestleMania Backlash, when she dropped the SmackDown Women’s Championship to Ronda Rousey.
After the match, WWE announced that Charlotte Flair would be “out of action indefinitely” due to “injuries” she sustained during the match at WrestleMania Backlash.
During this week’s WWE Monday Night Raw, one of the most interesting parts of the show was what was happening in the background.
During several segments, a crashed car could be seen in the background of shots, with WWE Superstars, including Doudrop and Nikki A.S.H checking out the damage.
The crashed car wouldn’t come up until the final moments of Raw, when it was revealed that Dexter Lumis had returned to WWE, appearing in the crowd and starting a program with AJ Styles.
Rikishi Denies Involvement
Before Lumis’ return, many speculated as to who was behind the crashed car on Raw, and whether it was part of the broadcast or something had really happened.
When WWE’s official Twitter account shared an image of the car being towed, WWE Hall of Famer Rikishi was quick to deny any involvement.
With Rikishi not appearing in WWE since November 2020, it may seem odd that some considered him a suspect in the car crash.
Rikishi’s claim of innocence is a reference to his infamous Attitude Era heel turn, after Stone Cold Steve Austin was run down during Survivor Series 1999.
Austin, who had been dealing with severe injuries, was written off of TV for close to a year, before it was revealed that Rikishi had been the one who ran him down.
What was supposed to be the start of a monster heel turn for Rikishi quickly faltered, as Austin would squash the superheavyweight at the No Mercy 2000 Pay Per View.
WWE re-wrote the story, saying that Rikishi had been the driver, but was doing the bidding of established top-heel Triple H.
WWE announced today in an SEC filing that it has uncovered an additional $5 million in unrecorded payments directly connected to Vince McMahon.
Because of this, they will be delaying filing their quarterly financial report. The payments were made in 2007 and 2009.
WWE previously announced that they had to file for $14.6 million in unrecorded expenses made by McMahon from 2006-2022. They would also have to re-do previous quarterly financial reports going back several years.
“Since that time, the Company has determined that two additional payments totaling $5.0 million, unrelated to the allegations that led to the Special Committee investigation, that Mr. McMahon made in 2007 and 2009 should have been recorded in the Company’s consolidated financial statements,” the filing stated.
“Together, these unrecorded expenses total $19.6 million (the ‘Unrecorded Expenses’). The Company has evaluated the Unrecorded Expenses and has determined that such amounts should have been recorded as expenses in each of the periods in which they became probable and estimable. All payments underlying the Unrecorded Expenses were or will be paid by Mr. McMahon personally. The Special Committee investigation remains ongoing.”
The payments previously discovered were directly linked to the accusations against McMahon for paying multiple former female employees to keep alleged sexual misconduct quiet.
Despite McMahon resigning, he is still being actively investigated by the WWE Board of Directors.
John Cena has given an update for his status at WWE Clash At The Castle.
Cena recently took part in the 2022 Wales Comic Con, where he held a Q&A. One such question was whether or not Cena would be appearing at the upcoming WWE Clash At The Castle premium event in Cardiff.
The 16-time WWE World Champion admitted that he will not be appearing at the event, but he expects it to be a great show for fans to enjoy.
“I’ve been coming to Cardiff to fight for 15-plus years, and every time, it’s exciting and amazing. I’m not going to be at Clash (At The Castle).”
Cena hasn’t wrestled since SummerSlam of last year when he challenged Roman Reigns for the WWE Universal Championship. However, it’s almost certainly not going to be his last.
WWE.com
While appearing on RAW in June, celebrating 20 years since making his main roster debut, Cena promised that he’ll have another match. He didn’t specify when or where, but he was adamant about wrestling again.
Cena also specified that he expects to wrestle several more matches, not just one. It’s certainly an exciting prospect, especially since Cena is just one World Title win away from breaking the current record he and Ric Flair are tied for.
Both Cena and Flair are tied for most World Title wins ever at 16. Regardless, whatever the situation when Cena finally returns to the ring, it will certainly be a big affair.
The great Mike “Rocky Jones” Masters has passed away.
The former pro-wrestling star was battling throat cancer and had been admitted to the hospital prior to his passing. He was 68.
Masters worked for WWE (WWWF) back in the late 70s and early 80s, but made a name for himself working in several territories throughout his career. He wrestled for New Japan Pro Wrestling, was very popular in the Portland area, as well as East Coast Pro Wrestling which he co-founded with Gino Caruso.
One of Masters most famous matchups was against Ken Patera for the Intercontinental title in the fall of 1979. He also clashed with Hulk Hogan in 1980 for All Star Wrestling. You can watch that match below.
Aside from competing Masters worked as a trainer, with one of his students being Little Guido, better known as Nunzio.
Sescoops would like to send our condolences to the friends, family, and loved ones of Masters. May he rest in peace.
WWE Hall Of Famer Mark Henry has revealed the true reason he can’t compete inside the ring.
Henry joined “Busted Open Radio” with Bully Ray, as they welcomed Lex Lugar on the program to discuss him being featured in the latest “WWE Legends” on A&E. Henry was inspired by Lugar’s uplifting attitude despite being confined to a wheelchair.
In the interview, Henry was inspired to open up about his own injury issues. Henry took the opportunity to reveal that he’s suffering from nerve damage – that being the reason he can’t wrestle inside the ring.
Henry also revealed he suffers from “power surges” where he collapses and needs the use of a wheelchair.
Mark Henry (Photo: AEW)
This is certainly unfortunate, as Henry is one of the most iconic big men professional wrestling has ever seen. A veteran of the business for nearly thirty years, Henry had a stint with WWE lasting from 1996 all the way up until 2021.
That time resulted in runs with the World Heavyweight Championship, ECW Title, and European Title. Henry was eventually inducted into the WWE Hall Of Fame in 2018.
In May of 2021, Henry signed with All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he currently serves as a commentator, as well as coach for talent.
Damian Priest has refuted a longstanding report about Edge’s departure from The Judgement Day.
Shortly after WWE Hall Of Famer Edge was kicked out of The Judgement Day when he was attacked by Finn Balor and Priest, reports began to circulate regarding the situation. Given that Edge had formed the faction only a few weeks before, many found it strange he was kicked out so soon.
Initial reports suggest that there were creative differences between Edge and Vince McMahon over the direction of the faction. Edge apparently didn’t want the stable to go the supernatural route.
In an interview with Stephanie Chase of Digital Spy, Priest addressed these rumors, shooting them down as inaccurate.
“I guess I understand why people thought that,” Priest said. “I don’t know where the actual rumor came from that that’s what was planned, because it never was.
“If anything, we had conversations of how we didn’t want that and that included Vince [McMahon] himself, who did not want the group to be supernatural-based. We were all in agreement.
“We did some things that seemed that way, I know I did a thing with lightning one night, and the idea wasn’t about supernatural, but it came off that way and then we immediately went, ‘OK, let’s not revisit that because it came off that way’.”
Currently, Priest and Balor seem to be leading The Judgement Day together. On this week’s episode of Monday Night RAW, Priest actually challenged Edge to a singles bout in two weeks.
This is because RAW will be in Edge’s hometown of Toronto, and Priest said he wants to beat the Hall Of Famer in front of his friends and family. Edge has seemingly aligned himself with The Mysterios against The Judgement Day.
It will be interesting to see what creative direction The Judgment Day goes in now that Triple H has assumed creative control within WWE.
Fans of the WWE 2K video game series have reason to be optimistic about the franchise’s future.
WWE 2K22, released back in March, promised to “hit different” after WWE 2K20 was so buggy that the following year’s installment was scrapped entirely. Thankfully, it lived up to the hype and was well-received by critics and gamers alike.
WWE 2K20 on PS4 had an aggregate critic score of 43/100 (via Metacritic), while the PS5 edition of WWE 2K22 earned a 77/100.
The fate of the WWE 2K franchise hinged on the success of this year’s game. According to Take-Two Interactive, WWE 2K23 is already in the works.
Take-Two Interactive released its fiscal 2023 first quarter earnings report earlier this week. It cited WWE 2K22 as one of its best-selling games for the quarter, contributing to the company’s healthy sales figures and net revenue:
“The largest contributors to GAAP net revenue were NBA® 2K22; Grand Theft Auto® Online and Grand Theft Auto V; Red Dead Redemption® 2 and Red Dead Online; Empires & Puzzles™; Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands®; WWE® 2K22; Rollic’s hyper-casual portfolio; Toon Blast™; The Quarry®;and Top Eleven®.“
More importantly, Take-Two Interactive lists WWE 2K23 as one of the games scheduled to be released by the end of its fiscal 2023 calendar.
Take-Two’s fiscal year ends March 31, 2023, so it looks like WWE will be sticking with the format of releasing the new video game at the height of WrestleMania season.
We’ll keep you posted as more details become available regarding WWE 2K23.
WWE 2K23 is not not the only wrestling video game in development. As we’ve been covering, All Elite Wrestling is also working on its first console video game, titled AEW Fight Forever.
AEW has yet to confirm the release date, but Fight Forever is due out some time before the end of this year. Instead of directly competing with WWE’s simulation-style offering, Fight Forever looks to be more of an arcade-style game that fans can pick up and play.
Jay White has been pulled from upcoming New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) events.
NJPW made an official announcement, revealing that White has been removed from the promotion’s upcoming shows on August 9 and 10. White is apparently suffering from “heat stroke like symptoms” and his removal is a precautionary matter.
“Jay White, who was scheduled to wrestle in Hiroshima Sun Plaza Hall this evening, has been affected by heat stroke like symptoms and as a result will be removed from August 9 and 10 cards due to an abundance of caution.
“As an additional precautionary measure, White has undertaken COVID antigen testing, which has returned negative.
“We apologise to fans who were looking forward to seeing White wrestle, and appreciate your understanding.”
White has been competing for NJPW for the past several years, making a name for himself as the head of The Bullet Club. He currently reigns as the IWGP World Heavyweight Champion.
(WWE)
He’s also won several other titles during his time with NJPW; including the IWGP Heavyweight Title, IWGP United States Heavyweight Title, and many more. White recently began making appearances for All Elite Wrestling (AEW) back in February.
He was able to retain his IWGP World Heavyweight Title at the AEWxNJPW Forbidden Door pay-per-view (PPV) in June.
WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels has apparently been tasked with bringing the former NXT champion Johnny Gargano back in the company.
The former DIY member has been in news lately with speculations about his next move. He teased a return to the industry just recently.
Fightful Select provided some update on his potential return to WWE. They noted that shortly after the change in WWE management, Michaels was tasked with reaching out to Johnny Gargano.
There is no word on how the conversation between the wrestling veteran and the former NXT star went, but it’s clear HBK was the one who was to be in contact with him.
Johnny Gargano was one of the top stars of NXT during its rise to popularity. He first made his name as part of the DIY tag team with Tommaso Ciampa and later went on to become a successful singles star.
During his 6 year long run with the development brand, the former WWE star became a one time tag team champion, a three-time North American champion and one time NXT champion. These accolades are proof of how highly Triple H thinks of him.
Gargano took a break from wrestling last December after the birth of his son. With recent returns such as Dexter Lumis and Karrion Kross, it seems to be the perfect time for the former champion to make his comeback as well.
In 2004, WWE debuted Nick Dinsmore on the main roster as the envelope-pushing character Eugene.
The on-screen nephew of then-Monday Night Raw General Manager Eric Bischoff, Eugene had learning difficulties, which was referred to on WWE TV as being ‘special.’
The character would often imitate wrestling moves from legends such as ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin and Hulk Hogan, with the reasoning being that Eugene learned the moves watching TV.
Eugene Palermo
The Eugene character was brought to life by Dinsmore but was partly based on the real-life Eugene Palermo.
Sadly, Palermo died this week aged 57, and his cause of death is not public knowledge at this time.
Palermo lived with Down’s Syndrome his entire life and worked as a WWF Ring Boy, helping to construct and deconstruct the ring during his life.
Eugene’s father Bucky worked as a wrestling referee in the in the Pittsburgh area for 30 years, and officiated at several WWE events.
It was through his father that Palermo would get involved in the business of professional wrestling.
On Twitter, Nick Dinsmore said he was thinking about the Palermo family, and shared a picture of himself with the real Eugene.
In 1995, after three years with the WWF, Lex Luger returned to WCW, appearing on the debut episode of WCW Monday Nitro.
On the show’s 100th episode, Luger would capture the WCW World Championship, dethroning ‘Hollywood’ Hulk Hogan.
As a huge star, Luger worked with several people in WCW but did not impress Eric Bischoff.
Bischoff Comments
When Luger returned to WCW, Bischoff was running the show and continues to have a negative opinion about the former World Champion.
During the Busted Open podcast, Bischoff said that Luger didn’t treat those around him with respect and focused solely on himself (via Sportskeeda):
“I watched how he carried himself, number one, and how he treated other people, and that’s what turned me off because he was just so focused on himself. That was my perception because I didn’t know Lex.
“I just thought, man, this cat’s a jack*ss!”
Eric Bischoff on working with Lex Luger in WCW
“So you only know what you see, which is, you know, something I’m working on every single day, not to judge people by my first impressions. But I didn’t have that frame of mind at the time, so I just thought, man, this cat’s a jack*ss!”
Bischoff added that he doesn’t ever want to do anything again with Luger, but admitted that ‘The Narcissist’ was “never unprofessional.
Luger stayed with WCW until the company folded in 2001 and the WWF chose not to sign him.
John Cena has followed in the footsteps of The Rock and built a successful career for himself in Hollywood. The Cenation Leader credits The Great One for not only giving him inspiration but one of the best pieces of advice he has ever received as well.
The 16-time world champion recently took part in a Q&A at Comic-Con Wales. He was asked if he has ever received any advice from The People’s champion. Replying to it, Cena revealed a very simple piece of advice that did wonders for him.
“He is one of the reasons I have life outside the WWE. He gave me some of the best advice I’ve ever been given. I remember I got an audition for a small part in a movie called Train Wreck.” recalled John Cena, “There was a pretty thorough audition process, and I was very nervous. Because I’ve never been through that before.”
The Rock’s Advice
John Cena was looking to follow in The Rock’s footsteps by crossing over from WWE to Hollywood. The Rock, who is currently one of the biggest movie stars in the world, told Cena to look within himself for the key to success.
“I was able to ask him, ‘Hey man, do you have any advice?’ He said, ‘They asked you there for a reason dude, just be yourself.’ He, in that one sentence, allowed me to calm down. Allowed me to be myself, which I’m really a goofball. And they allowed me to do that on screen. Naked. He’s the reason I’m here.”
Apart from this, John Cena also talked about things such as his Mt Rushmore of wrestling and more. You can check out his full Q&A below:
This week, news broke that John Laurinaitis has been terminated from his role with WWE, ending a 21-year tenure with the company.
Laurinaitis had worked as WWE’s Head of Talent Relations and was an on-screen character from 2011 to 2012 where he appeared as a heel authority figure.
PW Insider was the first to break the news of Laurinaitis’ termination, which comes weeks after Vince McMahon’s retirement.
Laurinaitis is accused of participating and aiding Vince McMahon’s alleged affairs with several female employees in WWE, resulting in over $12 million being paid out in Non-Disclosure Agreements.
The Update
In an update from Fightful Select, it is reported that Laurinaitis was still being sent company e-mails, even after being placed on administrative leave.
The former General Manager of Raw and SmackDown was removed from this mailing list when Triple H was appointed the new Head of Talent Relations.
The e-mails Laurinatitis received are said to have contained sensitive information related to creative and personnel matters, and he was briefly removed during the July 22, episode of SmackDown.
He was later re-added to the mailing list, before being pulled once again after Triple H’s announcement.
Laurinaitis’ name was also added to an internal termination list, which supposedly also included Vince McMahon’s name.
Several WWE Superstars are said to be extremely happy about Laurinaitis being fired, with one branding the former employee as a “snake” in the company.
Fightful Select also corroborated PW Insider’s report that Laurinaitis was let go by the company within the last week or so.
