SEScoops

Category: WWE

  • Another Wrestler Quits WWE, Follow J.R. On Twitter, More

    — This managed to fall under the radar, but just before the holidays, developmental wrestler Dylan Klein handed in his notice to World Wrestling Entertainment.

    In a blog post dated Thursday, December 24, 2009, Klein released the following statement:

    This week I gave my notice to WWE

    This week I gave my notice to WWE. It was a really tough thing for me to do, as this has always been my passion, my goal, a dream to me. I want to say thank you to everybody who has supported me along the way, I’ve had a lot of fun entertaining all of you. Best wishes & follow your dreams.
    Sincerely,
    “The trend setting…, Attention getting, One of a kind”
    Dylan Klein

    His picture has since been removed from the FCW talent page.

    — Eve Torres and former ROH World Champion Bryan Danielson will be taking part in a meet-and-greet autograph session prior next Thursday’s Florida Championship Wrestling television taping at the FCW Arena in Tampa. Eve will be participating in another meet-and-greet the very next day at the Fort Myers Harborside Event Center. Visit www.fcwwrestling.info for more details.

    — Jim Ross has begun tweeting. You can keep up with “good ol’” J.R. at twitter.com/JRsBBQ.

  • DJ Gabriel Comments On His Release From WWE

    As reported late last night, Steve Lewington (a.k.a. DJ Gabriel) has been released by World Wrestling Entertainment. The former ECW performer posted a blog on his MySpace account this afternoon commenting on his departure from the organization. Here is his statement in its entirety:

    WWE

    The word has spread so I wanted to take the time to update and blog to all of you. My tenure within the WWE is no more. I was with the company for almost five years and enjoyed every minute of it. I was honored to be with the largest professional wrestling company in the world from start to finish.

    Although my tenure within the WWE is now over, I won’t get depressed over it. I’ll be the first to admit that I knew it was coming sooner rather than later. I didn’t know when, but I knew it was getting closer. Today starts a new chapter in my life and in my career. I’m not going to look back, complain, and berate the WWE because I have nothing but good things to say about them. They gave me an opportunity to live in the spotlight, and whether whatever character I portrayed or how long it lasted, I still got that opportunity.

    I had a blast working in the WWE, there are so many matches and memories that will always put a smile on my face. Kenny Bolin, Jim Cornette, and the McMahon family were big inspirations on my career. I have nothing but good things to say about all of them. They helped me incredibly the entire time I was with the WWE and I am honored to have come to know them.

    There’s a lot of buzz about what’s next for me. Let me just say this, it doesn’t matter where I go, I will perform and always entertain people. I thrive to be at my best and show everyone what I’ve got. And now that this is a new chapter in my life I feel that I can perform better than I ever have. I feel greater and stronger than ever mentally and physically and I know that I’m at the top of my game. Will you see me in ROH or TNA? You never know. Will you see me overseas? It’s a possibility. Will you see me in WWE again? Another possibility. It doesn’t matter if I’m performing for 30 people in a school or performing for thousands in an arena, I’ll showcase my passion and skills to everybody.

    I want to take the time to thank everyone that has ever supported me, whether its been since my debut or even to today. You’re the reason I thrive to be a part of professional wrestling because I love to entertain you. I wouldn’t be who I am without any of you and I wouldn’t have ever had a chance without your support. I also want to thank Noe and everybody who helps out with this website, you guys are simply amazing and such caring people.

    Also, you can always stay updated on me at www.DJ-Gabriel.com, www.myspace.com/stevelewington, and www.twitter.com/UKLewington. I just joined back onto Twitter to stay connected with all of you, and as some can tell, I tried reopening the old Twitter page (www.twitter.com/wwedjgabriel) which it did, but it has some serious log in troubles.

    Thanks to everyone who reads this and I’ll always appreciate the love and support. I’m hoping to add some things to the website to interact with all of you, but we’ll get to that later. I’ll be back with another blog and I can guarantee that you will see me soon…

    Steve

    He also made the following status update: “After nearly 5 years, I am free once again…”

  • Another Rumored Name For The WWE HOF, Candice Update

    — The latest rumored name for induction into this year’s WWE Hall of Fame class comes in the form of “The Million Dollar Man.” Ted DiBiase is heavily rumored to be inducted this year, though nothing has been confirmed. (source: WrestlingFigs.com)

    — Candice Michelle noted on her Twitter account yesterday she’s taking breastfeeding classes. The former WWE Women’s Champion recently announced she will be giving birth to a baby girl in May.

    — Lilian Garcia is auctioning off a few bikinis she wore for photo shoots during her time in WWE, as well as a pair of boots. You can view the auctions at the following link.

    — In today’s wrestling birthday, former WCW cruiserweight wrestler Silver King turns 41 years old. In yesterday’s birthdays, former WWE Women’s Champion Bull Nakano turned 42 years old while Bushwhacker Luke turned 62.

  • Identity Of Fan CM Punk “Saved”, Another Possible Release

    — As seen last night on SmackDown, CM Punk followed up on his promise to “save” a member of the WWE Universe. A fan identified only as James was the chosen one. Assuaging James of his fears, the “Straightedge Savior” shaved his head, initiating him into the straightedge society. The identity of the fan is OVW star Ted “The Trailor” McNailer. Click here for more information on this young grappler.

    — The official website of Florida Championship Wrestling has removed WWE developmental wrestler Lift Sawyer from its talent page — the lone modification to the section.

    However, it should be noted that he may not have necessarily been released as he could be getting repackaged, or considering he has very little wrestling experience, perhaps getting more seasoning for an eventual return to the roster. Though he was listed on the FCW talent page, he sparingly competed at live events.

    Sawyer, whose real name is Aaron Reed, is a 6 foot 8 inch, 295 pound former bodybuilder the company signed to a developmental contract this past June. He is based out of Las Vegas.

    — WWE Executive Vice President of Talent Relations John Laurinaitis’ proposed trip to Ohio Valley Wrestling this past week to scout prospective talent ended up being canceled. They did, however, sign OVW wrestler Asher Knight to a developmental contract at Tuesday’s SmackDown/ECW tapings in Louisville, reports f4wonline.com. He’ll be heading to Florida soon.

  • WWE Couple Reportedly Engaged, The Miz Gets Misinterpreted?

    — ECW General Manager Tiffany (Taryn Terrell) and Intercontinental Champion Drew McIntyre (Drew Galloway) are officially engaged, reports PWInsider.com. Terrell and Galloway plan to wed in May.

    — The Miz may have been misinterpreted as according to FreeTranslation.com, the French to English translation of “Je suis gai, tu me veux” — what he said to Maryse this past Monday night on Raw — is “I am cheerful, you want me.” It’s been noted that he said, “I am gay, you want me.” With that being said, this is likely a case of a word having multiple connotations. (Thanks to Peter Nieto)

    — InsideCostaRica.com has an article on Rosa Mendes returning to her Costa Rican roots when WWE tours the country next month. (Wrestling Diva Returns To Her Costa Rican Roots)

  • Stephanie Profiled, WWE Releasing New Entrance Theme Album

    — The latest issue of Continental magazine has a feature article on WWE being run by a few women, particularly Donna Goldsmith, chief operating officer; Michelle Wilson, executive vice president of marketing; and Stephanie McMahon, executive vice president of creative development and operation. According to the article, they are “the day-to-day drivers behind this $500 million-plus marketing engine” that is World Wrestling Entertainment.

    It’s also worth nothing that WWE wants everyone to know that what they do is not “wrestling,” but rather, “entertainment” — according to the article. Secondly, talent are to be referred to as “Superstars” and “Divas,” not wrestlers.

    To read the article in its entirety, click here.

    — WWE announced on its Twitter account that next week, WWE.com will be releasing exclusive news concerning the release of the company’s next compilation album, WWE: The Music Vol. 10.

  • What The Miz Said On Raw, Maryse Battling The Flu, Melina

    — This past Monday night on Raw, United States Champion The Miz spoke to Maryse in French following her match with Brie Bella. He said, “Je suis gai, tu me veux,” which according to www.f4wonline.com translates to “I am gay, you want me.”

    — Maryse noted on her Twitter account she’s battling the flu.

    “On my way to Boston, awww will miss L.A. warm weather, better not be freezing over there! I have the flu AGAIN. What’s the best medicine?” She continued, “Well Nebraska is white, I’m so looking forward to a hot chocolate! Used a box of Kleenex and two packs of Halls already, nose is like rudolf!”

    — Melina will be appearing at the Dallas Market Center in Dallas, Texas on Friday, February 19nd from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.

    — ECW General Manager Tiffany will be appearing on behalf of Comcast today from noon to 2:00 p.m. at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center, located in San Jose, California.

  • Rumble Participants To Be Announced, Elimination Chamber

    — World Wrestling Entertainment will begin announcing participants for the twenty-third annual Royal Rumble next week on Monday Night Raw as well as on the company website.

    — WWE’s second pay-per-view of the year, Elimination Chamber, will go head-to-head with an United States vs. Canada Olympic hockey game on February 22nd. The feeling is this will significantly affect pay-per-view buys in Canada.

    — This week’s episode of WWE Superstars on WGN America scored an 0.8 cable rating.

  • Batista Appearing In Upcoming Movie, Hall of Fame Ticket Info

    — Dave Batista will be taking part in the independent film Blood Out, which is slated to begin filming next month in Baton Rogue, Louisiana.

    According to a report on 2theadvocate.com, the film is described as an action/western focused on “a small-town sheriff who goes undercover to avenge his brother’s death.”

    The film is being directed by Jason Hewitt, who worked as a producer on Wrong Side of Town, which features Batista as well as former WWE performers Rob Van Dam and Nelson Frazier (a.k.a. Big Daddy V).

    According to IMDB.com, Batista will be playing the role of Michael King in the movie.

    — Tickets for the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony go on sale next Saturday at 10 a.m. MST/noon ET. Tickets cost $55. For more information, click here.

    — Alicia Fox is today’s “Daily Diva” on WWE.com while John Cena is the “Superstar of the Day.”

  • WWE Releases Former ECW Star

    source: PWInsider.com

    World Wrestling Entertainment released former ECW performer Steve Lewington (a.k.a. DJ Gabriel) today.

    Lewington was split from Alicia Fox last April as a result of the 2009 Supplemental Draft, leaving the English grappler to fend for himself. Creative apparently had nothing for him considering he was soon shipped off to developmental. He never returned to the main roster.

    Lewington had been under contract to WWE since April 2006.

    There may have a few other releases in developmental today, but they have yet to be confirmed.

  • Big Show Says WWE’s Young Talent Has To Step Up

    In an interview with the UK Sun, WWE’s Big Show says that with all the talk of young talent being elevated in WWE, it’s not going to be handed to them.

    “I want to let you know flat out there’s not anybody good enough to take my position,” Show said. “And I’m certainly not going to give my position up just because I’ve been on top for a while, and nor would anyone else.

    He  added, “If there’s another giant that can walk in and take my position, then good for him. He can run with it and I’ll retire. Until then I’m going to work on top as long as I can, make as much money as I can and entertain the fans as much as I can. It’s up to the younger generation to come to the locker room, step up and be leaders.”

    Big show singled out John Cena for his tremendous work ethic, saying that one of the the reasons he’s the face of WWE is because of how bad he wants it. He also named Sheamus, Kofi Kingston, Ted DiBiase, Cody Rhodes and The Miz as stars of the future — adding, “Talent will get you so far, but work ethic is the key. That’s the thing that the guys on top have. We don’t complain about flights. We don’t complain about not going home. We don’t complain about having an hour’s sleep and then doing interviews at 5am.”

  • Bryan Danielson Headed To WWE Developmental

    Back in the fall, WWE signed one of the top free agents around, former Ring of Honor champion “American Dragon” Bryan Danielson. At the time, it was widely reported that Danielson, a seasoned performer, would bypass WWE’s developmental system and be called up straight to television. Months have passed and we’ve yet to see Danielson’s debut.

    At Thursday night’s Florida Championship Wrestling event in Tampa, Florida, it was announced that “International Superstar” Bryan Danielson will make his FCW debut at next week’s TV taping. According to PWInsider, Danielson is actually the one who requested some time in WWE Developmental.

    Danielson wrestled a dark match before Monday’s RAW from Dayton, Ohio, reportedly felt some ring rust and wants to sharpen up his timing before moving onto RAW, SmackDown or ECW.

  • Survivor Series Buyrate Down 30% From 2008 – OUCH

    WWE’s corporate website has released some new financial information for the fall and the disturbing trend of pay-per-view buyrates dropping continues.

    Survivor Series 2009 back in November drew only 225,000 buys, down a sharp 29.5% from Survivor Series 2008, which did  319,000 buys. Compared to 2007 (when the event drew 341,000 buys), this year’s show is down a whopping 34%.

    Survivor Series 2009 was headlined by two triple-threat matches, Cena vs. HBK vs. HHH and Undertaker vs. Jericho vs. Big Show. The buildup for the PPV was lackluster to say the least, with Triple H and Shawn Michaels even joking in promos leading up to the PPV that they were not taking the match seriously.

  • Why The Rock Can’t Host RAW, Steamboat Jr. At Developmental

    – As previously reported, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson turned down an offer from WWE to host the January 11th edition of RAW due to a scheduling conflict. Johnson will be in Mexico next week promoting his new movie, “The Tooth Fairy.” There are still hopes within WWE that he’ll come in to host some time before WrestleMania.

    While he has been using The Rock name in advertising for the movie, he said it’s not because he’s going back to the name but because there is a line in the movie trailers that says, “Get ready to be rocked” and they are using The Rock name as a play on words. Johnson says it doesn’t matter to him one way or the other if The Rock name is used. He will be appearing on several shows over the next few weeks to promote Tooth Fairy including Jay Leno, Jimmy Kimmel, David Letterman, Good Morning America, Today, Regis & Kelly, ESPN, BET and the NFL Network.

    – Ricky Steamboat Jr. arrived in Tampa this week and will be starting with WWE’s developmental territory FCW shortly.

    – WWE Hall of Famer Roddy Piper will be shooting an episode of CBS show Cold Case later this month. The episode will have a pro wrestling theme and air in February or March.

    – Michelle McCool hasn’t been wrestling that much as of late because she is still having problems with her knee.

  • Royal Rumble Plans: Surprise Entrants, Matches & More

    2010 WWE Royal Rumble
    2010 WWE Royal Rumble

    WWE’s next pay-per-view event is the 2010 Royal Rumbe on January 31st. Here are a few news items heading into the annual winter classic:

    – It’s likely that John Cena vs. Sheamus will be a match at the Royal Rumble as reported yesterday.

    – Next week’s ECW on SyFy will see the ECW Homecoming Over-The-Top-Rope Challenge with the winner receiving a shot at Christian’s ECW Title at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view. The participants will be CM Punk, Shelton Benjamin, Evan Bourne, Matt Hardy, Kane, Vance Archer, Ezekiel Jackson and Yoshi Tatsu.

    WARNING: The following contains a potential *SPOILERS* for the Rumble match:

    – There are tentative plans for Shawn Michaels and Triple H to be the last two participants in the Rumble match. It would certainly be an interesting twist but hasn’t been confirmed yet. Michaels’ has of course challenged The Undertaker to a WrestleMania re-match, while there was also previous talk of a Shawn Michaels vs. Triple H match at the pay-per-view.

    – Booker T may return to WWE as a surprise entrant in this month’s Royal Rumble match at the pay-per-view.The former World Heavyweight Champion has had discussions with WWE officials in recent weeks regarding a return to the company.

    (Credit to F4Wonline.com & the PWTorch Newsletter for the information used in this report)

  • WWE Management Change: New Head Of WWE International

    WWE sent out the following press release this morning.

    WWE(R) Promotes Whitaker to Head WWE International

    STAMFORD, Conn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. today announced that Andrew Whitaker will take on additional responsibilities and head up WWE International effective immediately.

    In his new role as Executive Vice President, Whitaker will be responsible for determining the strategic direction for WWE’s business outside of the U.S. across all revenue streams. He will report directly to WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon and has been named an Executive Officer of the company. Whitaker will relocate back to WWE’s global headquarters in Stamford.

    Whitaker joined WWE in 1987 as part of the team delivering television syndication and developing WWE’s pay-per-view business. He moved to WWE’s international division in 1991, working in live events, international television and the pay-per-view business from WWE’s London office, where Whitaker negotiated the largest international television contracts in the company’s history. In November 2007, Whitaker began managing several of WWE’s regional business units internationally and his role was expanded in January 2009 to include all areas outside of the U.S.

    “Andrew has been instrumental to WWE’s international growth. We are confident that he will continue to expand the breadth and depth of opportunities for WWE internationally,” said Vince McMahon.

    Whitaker commenced his career at NBC in New York, working on shows that include NBC News, Late Night with David Letterman, The Today Show, Saturday Night Live and The Cosby Show. He sits on the international program advisory board for the Banff World Television Festival and nextMedia, International Interactive Media Festival and is also a member of the International Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.

    About WWE

    World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., a publicly traded company (NYSE: WWE), is an integrated media organization and recognized leader in global entertainment. The company consists of a portfolio of businesses that create and deliver original content 52 weeks a year to a global audience. WWE is committed to family-friendly, PG content across all of its platforms including television programming, pay-per-view, digital media and publishing. WWE programming is broadcast in more than 145 countries and 30 languages and reaches more than 500 million homes worldwide. The company is headquartered in Stamford, Conn., with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, London, Shanghai, Tokyo, Toronto and Sydney.

    Additional information on World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE: WWE) can be found at corporate.wwe.com. For information on our global activities, go to https://www.wwe.com/worldwide/.

  • Update On The Rock & Steve Austin Hosting RAW

    WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has udpated his JRsBarBQ.com blog with his thoughts on whether WWE legends Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Stone Cold Steve Austin would return for a night to guest host an episode of RAW.

    Regarding Johnson, Jim Ross said he was under the impression that The Rock was going to guest-host an episode of Raw in January, but scheduling conflicts “eliminated that opportunity.” Johnson’s new “Toothfairy” movie comes out this month, which would have been the promotional tie-in for Johnson to guest-host. Commercials for Johnson’s “Tooth Fairy” movie have been seen during all WWE shows over the past two weeks.

    Johnson said two months ago that he was working on a TV project with WWE beyond just guest hosting RAW for 1 week. Johnson has yet to provide an update on the status of the project.

    As for Steve Austin, JR also said he “assumes” Steve Austin will guest host RAW, possibly in March to help promote Austin’s new straight-to-DVD film “Damage” (and of course, WrestleMania).

  • Edge Update: Will He Be Healty To Return By WrestleMania?

    WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross updated his blog, which you can read in its entirety at JRsBarBQ.com. Here’s what JR said about the health of Edge and whether he’ll be ready to return in time for WrestleMania:

    “Received a nice text from Edge during the holidays from his mountain retreat in the Carolinas and it is my understanding that Edge is still questionable as it relates to him being physically ready to compete at WM26.”

    “I do understand that Edge is healing well from Achilles tendon surgery but it has always been a photo finish as to whether or not Edge will be able to wrestle at the end of March. I hope so and would hope that it would be Edge vs. Jericho. I’m certainly not counting Edge out of WM26 but Mother Nature has more to say about this matter than any one else.

    “Edge returning prematurely and not being 100% would make no sense.”

  • WWE Not Happy With RAW Rating, WWE vs. UFC Next week

    WWE officials are unhappy with this week’s Raw rating. Though TNA provided competition, they felt Bret Hart’s return to the company would have garnered at least a 4.0.

    The show finished with a 3.6 cable rating, the same number as last week. The show drew hours of 3.51 and 3.73 with the first hour scoring 5,441,000 viewers and hour two pulling in 5,773,000. Raw averaged 5,600,000 for the broadcast.

    Despite talk that Bret Hart was only brought in to help World Wrestling Entertainment for the “Monday Night Wars”, there was talk between Hart and WWE long before Hulk Hogan signed with TNA. Whether Hogan had joined TNA or not, the Bret Hart hosting RAW gig and angle leading into this year’s WrestleMania would still have happened.

    However, the move to secure Mike Tyson for next week’s RAW, which goes against UFC, is a much more direct move on WWE’s part. The idea that the company wasn’t concerned against competition couldn’t be further from the truth. The situation with Charlie Haas demonstrated WWE’s reaction to any competition. He was of course offered an improved contract amid speculation he may leave for TNA, even though the company had no creative plans for him.

  • UFC President Calls Vince McMahon A “F*cking Animal”

    Following this past weekend’s UFC event, President Dana White was asked about UFC’s Fight Night special going head-to-head with WWE RAW next Monday night.White claims that Vince McMahon is overreacting by bringing in Mike Tyson as the Guest Host of Raw and is a “fucking animal” when it comes to playing fair with his “competition.” White said:

    “I mean we’re not trying to go against him. That night is the night Spike wanted the fight. Spike wanted the fight that night, so that’s the night they called for it and Vince goes into (expletive) war mode. He’s calling up (Mike) Tyson. He’s bringing this guy back and the Rock might come back. I love it. He’s a (expletive) animal. You’ve never heard me say we’re going to kick the (expletive) out of Monday Night Raw. You’ve never heard me say that. I think we’re two totally different, pro wrestling is totally different than the UFC and mixed martial arts. And I respect this guy. I like Vince McMahon. I’ve had breakfast with him. He’s a good guy, but he is a (expletive) animal. I’m not trying to beat him on Monday night. I don’t think we would beat them. Those guys pull killer ratings. It’s been like the highest rated show on television forever. We’re just putting a fight on Monday night because Spike wants us to.”

  • Sound Off 96: Ratings & Thoughts From Monday’s “Skirmish”

    Solomonster Sounds Off

    DOWNLOAD THE PODCAST HERE:
    Solomonster Sounds Off (Episode 96)
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    Est. Runtime: 47 minutes

    | The ratings are in and TNA should be feeling really happy right about now

    | Thoughts on Bret Hart’s return, Jeff Hardy’s shocking defection, Ric Flair and MORE!

    Want your question on the air? Send feedback to THESOLOMONSTER@gmail.com.

    Wanna subscribe to the Sound Off via iTunes? CLICK HERE!

    Visit The Solomonster on Twitter @ twitter.com/solomonster

  • RATINGS for WWE RAW Featuring Bret Hart

    Monday’s WWE RAW featuring the return of Bret Hart drew a 3.4 rating with an average of about 5.6 million viewers.

    With TNA iMPACT!’s drawing a healthy 1.5, it looks like TNA took a chunk out of WWE’s audience and offset the return of Bret Hart.

    More soon.

  • What You Didn’t See On RAW: Bret Hart Celebration (VIDEO)

    WWE Hall of Famer Bret "The Hitman" Hart
    WWE Hall of Famer Bret "The Hitman" Hart

    After Monday’s Raw went off the air, Bret Hart’s music played as the entire Raw roster (except for Triple H, Shawn Michaels and Hornswoggle) came to the ring to cheer for Bret. The Hart Dynasty was a part of the celebration.

    Hart was put on their shoulders and paraded around the ring. The roster returned to the stage, leaving Hart in the ring alone Hart took his time going around to ringside fans before waving goodbye and exiting up the ramp.

    UPDATE:  VIDEO of the Celebration at WWE.com

  • Steve Austin Broke Sylvester Stallone’s Neck On Movie Set

    Sylvester Stallone on the set of "The Expendibles"
    Sylvester Stallone on the set of "The Expendables"

    A crazy story in the entertainment industry today is Hollywood star Sylvester Stallone revealing that WWE Hall of Famer Steve Austin broke his neck while filming a fight scene for the upcoming “Expendables” movie.

    The movie features a loaded mega-star cast that includes Stallone, Austin, “The Wrestler” star Mickey Rourke, UFC fighter Randy Couture, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis, Jet Li, Jason Statham, and Dolph Lundgren, among others. It also stars Brittany Murphy, who died in December of a heart attack.

    “Man, it was seven guys, kicking each other’s ass, one guy tougher than the next. No joke, our stunt guys were begging for mercy,” Stallone tells FHM Magazine.

    “Actually, my fight with Stone Cold Steve Austin was so vicious that I ended up getting a hairline fracture in my neck. I’m not joking. I haven’t told anyone this, but I had to have a very serious operation afterwards. I now have a metal plate in my neck.”

    Our lesson of the day: Play nice with the Rattlesnake.

    Filming took place last spring in Brazil. The movie is scheduled to be released on August 20, 2010.

  • JR Blog: Hardy & Flair In TNA, Bret’s Return, Angle-Styles

    WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross
    WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross

    Jim Ross is back with another blog at JRsBarBQ.com with thoughts on last night’s RAW and iMPACT. Here are some highlights:

    Bret Hart & HBK: “The dialog between HBK and the Hitman sounded so natural that I thought I was eavesdropping on two old rivals’ conversation. They were simply being themselves. Their handshake made the night complete for me but remember that I lived through the debacle of ’97 and was just a little immersed in it and spent many, many hours “talking wrestlers off the ledge” so to speak for hours after the controversial incident.”

    Bret Hart & Vince McMahon: “The McMahon-Bret confrontation was well done especially planting the seed early and keeping me hooked until the end of the show for the payoff plus adding some spice to the dish in between. The Mr. McMahon persona is so easy to dislike and the Chairman got the last word and the final act of physicality in the exchange with his longstanding adversary and left me wanting to see more and wondering how Bret will respond next Monday night? Or will he? This issue has new, fresh legs.”

    Jeff Hardy in TNA: “It surprised me to see Jeff Hardy on Spike TV Monday night which I am sure will get some fans talking and critics/pundits asking a great deal of questions. I’m a Jeff Hardy fan and I wish him well. Jeff had a great tenure in WWE and considering that I signed him and his brother Matt to their first WWE contracts I will always consider the Hardy brothers as being special. As Hall of Fame Coach Barry Switzer once told me, “Once you recruit a player you recruit them for life.”

    Ric Flair in TNA: “Knowing how much Ric Flair still enjoys wrestling I was not shocked to see Ric on another channel Monday night. The WWE gave Ric the greatest send-off/retirement presentation that I have ever witnessed but nonetheless “Naitch” has wrestling running through his veins and he’s going lace ’em up until he simply can’t do it any longer. Ric Flair has been my friend for about 30 years and I wish him well in what ever he does in his career.”

    AJ Styles vs. Kurt Angle: “Former WWE Champion Kurt Angle, another one of the guys that I signed to their first WWE contract, and A.J. Styles had a truly excellent wrestling match that I got glimpses of Monday night.”