During an episode of the Live Audio Wrestling (available here) radio show last week, Kevin Nash revealed that longtime friend Scott Hall has once again entered a rehabilitation program to address his ongoing substance abuse issues.
The ESPN E:60 feature on Scott Hall airs this Wednesday night on ESPN and will chronicle “Hall’s descent from wrestling superstar to a broken man battling alcoholism and drug addiction.”
Stephanie McMahon is among the industry insiders that were interviewed for the piece – and she revealed that WWE has spent “six figures” (over $100,000) sending Hall to rehab multiple times.
“It’s the most amount of money we’ve spent on anyone,” McMahon said. “I just want Scott to get help and to decide for himself that he needs help. It makes me sad. I don’t want anybody to pass away prematurely or otherwise really. Scott was an incredibly talented performer, larger than life, charismatic. He’s a father, he’s a friend. I’m sure he means a lot to a lot of people and it would be a shame for him to pass away.”
Hulk Hogan and Cody Rhodes are also interviewed for the piece. Hogan talks about how different the pro wrestling culture was back in the 1970s, 80s and 90s, while WWE Intercontinental champion Cody Rhodes is used as an example of a superstar from today’s generation.
For more on the E:60 episode that will air tomorrow night (including quotes from Hogan and Rhodes), head over to ESPN.com.
According to f4wonline.com, after WWE announced the Mask vs. Mask match for Friday’s SmackDown, there was a lot of second guessing as to whether the match should air on television. The match is expected to air – and we’ve got the footage.
Check out this video of Black Sin Cara losing his mask at the tapings:
Chad Dukes of 106.7 The Fan DC’s Lavar Arrington Show with Chad Dukes does a wrestling show (The Chad Dukes Wrestling Show) on Friday nights. Last Friday, Dukes conducted an interview with Kevin Nash; during the interview Nash answered questions on the initial confrontation between himself and Punk, if his health was an obstacle in returning to the WWE and if we would see a reprisal of the Punk/Nash clashes. Here are links to the interview and the entire show. Highlights from the interview are as follows:
On CM Punk/Kevin Nash promo:
Chad Dukes: They had the whole thing with you where they you were being kind of disrespected by him, and they were blurring the lines between what was a shoot and what was a promo…How much…I know you said you didn’t want to work with a script, but did they give you a rough outline of what you to say? Were you okay with everything that was said back to you? Because you’re a guy that did do the things you said; you established a pay scale, you made it so wrestlers could get paid more than they ever had before. You brought that credibility and I felt there was so me disrespect there. How much of that were you okay with and how much of that was actually a shoot?
Nash: Well the thing was I understood what my job was. Going in, my job wasn’t to bury a baby face and come across more witty than he was or anything else. That wasn’t what I was brought in to do. The old Kevin Nash, would at anyone’s cost, would have gotten over. As you get older, and your best friend is very much in charge of the day to day process, and he looks at you and asks you to do something that’s just kind of like ‘Wow, they’ve really got me hog-tied on this one.”
After question on health:
Nash: CM Punk has on the back of his t-shirt “Best in the World.” Ya know? And I said to myself, I said to a bunch of other people ya know, his shirt says best in the world. He’s going to have to prove it if he is going to drag my 52 year old carcass through 14 minutes of a match.
On future of a CM Punk vs. Kevin Nash match:
Chad Dukes: Do you think we’ll get that match with you and Punk? I think a lot of people would still like to see that come to fruition even though he is kind of doing the baby face thing with Hunter right now…You think we’ll ever see that match?
Arda Ocal caught up with WWE Hall of Famer Bret “The Hitman” Hart, who discussed WWE’s upcoming Greatest Rivalries – Shawn Michaels vs. Bret Hart DVD, his relationship with Earl Hebner following the “Montreal Screwjob,” his time in World Championship Wrestling, and more. Highlights from the interview are as follows:
Where he ranks his time in WCW
“Where would I rank my time in WCW? Right in the toilet. It was a waste of time. There were so few highlights.”
Has Bret made peace with Earl Hebner and thoughts on his “Damn Right I Did” T-shirt referencing the “Montreal Screwjob”
“I don’t have any hard feelings towards Earl, but if I was in his shoes I wouldn’t have done what they did.”
Thoughts on the Survivor Series match format
“In truth I never liked the Survivor Series format, I thought it was a waste of time.”
— Alex Riley stated on Twitter that he underwent an MRI on his hip today following WWE’s tour of Mexico.
He wrote, “Just got back from Mexico, had MRI on hip today nothin serious will be back at it in a couple of days. In the meantime, Rest, Weight Room, Ice, Stretching, Tape Review, GamePlanning… and Creative Thinking.”
— Former WWE star Bobby Lashley has signed a multi-picture deal with Shawn Cain Films, which includes a role in Josh Turner’s epic reality sequel The Indy Wrestler 2. Shooting begins December 10 in Rosman, North Carolina.
— Former WCW talent Melissa Bellin (a/k/a Nitro Girl Spice) has been added to WrestleReunion, which takes place January 27-29 at the Los Angeles Airport Westin Hotel in Los Angeles, California. She will also be participating in a bikini photo shoot at the event.
Tonight’s RAW SuperShow was taped on Saturday night, the first-ever RAW taping from Mexico. Here’s a spoiler-free preview for tonight’s show, followed a by a link to spoiler results:
Randy Orton, Sheamus & John Morrison vs. Mark Henry, Cody Rhodes & Christian
Eve Torres vs. Natalya
CM Punk vs. The Miz
Zack Ryder vs. Jack Swagger
Dolph Ziggler vs. Mason Ryan
John Cena and Jim Ross vs. Alberto Del Rio and Michael Cole
WWE is asking fans to help name a program starring the craziest, most colorful Legends for their soon to be launched WWE Network.
WWE.com describes the program as “a reality series featuring many of your favorite WWE Legends, all forced to live under one roof. See what happens when the most colorful and combustive personalities in WWE history shack up, break bread, and bruise egos.”
Poll options include:
WWE House of Fame
WWE Old Timer Acres
WWE Retired and Rowdy Roommates
WWE Old School Yard
WWE Legends House
You can vote online here.
COMMENT BELOW: Which legends do YOU want to see living in a WWE Legends house?!
WWE has suspended Heath Slater for 30 days for violating the Wellness Policy. It was his first violation.
The official statement from the WWE website reads:
“In accordance with its Talent Wellness Program, WWE has suspended Heath Miller (Heath Slater) for 30 days effective immediately for his first violation of the company’s policy.”
– While in Mexico this week, John Cena granted several “wishes” for sick children through the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
– Several wrestlers from Mexico’s CMLL promotion (we’ve heard as many as 7) received WWE tryouts over the weekend.
– The never-ending season of WWE NXT: Redemption will finally be coming to an end soon.
– As we covered her in the site earlier this month, David Otunga’s wedding to Hollywood star Jennifer Hudson has been put on hold. The National Enquirer has picked up the story – and says the main reason for the couple taking a step backwards is that Otunga refuses a prenuptial agreement. The Enquirer states that Jennifer Hudson is worth around $15 million – which does explain why she is looking to protect her assets before getting married.
– Tommy Dreamer is set to debut some sort of new show this week. Dreamer tweeted on Sunday:
“Spoke to my producer. The show is finished. Tommorrow it will debut. Let the fun begin.”
CM Punk recently turned down a WWE Studios movie role, according to an interview he gave in Australia last week. This past summer when Punk was considering leaving WWE and negotiating a new contract, Stephanie McMahon offered him the lead role in the movie “No One Lives.”
Punk stated that Stephanie thought he was perfect for one of the characters, described as a “30-something scumbag with dirtbag good looks and soulless eyes.” Punk said he considered the role, but decided to pass on it because he thought he might be finishing with WWE at the time.
As previously reported, WWE is very high on CM Punk at the moment and has big plans to get behind him later this year. Aside from his character getting a big push on television (and a rumored WWE title run), WWE is looking to introduce lots of new CM Punk merchandise and feature him in a WWE Studios project at some point.
(Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
Posted October 17th, 2011 in News, WWE. Tagged: CM Punk.
Following WWE’s RAW and SmackDown tapings from Mexico City over the weekend, there have been several changes made to the card for Vengeance. The previously scheduled tag team title match with Air Boom vs. Ziggler & Swagger has apparently been scrapped, with Dolph Ziggler now set to defend the United States title against Zack Ryder. Teddy Long also announced Sheamus will wrestle Christian.
With those matches set, here’s the updated card for WWE Vengeance on Sunday, October 23rd:
Last Man Standing Match for the WWE Title
John Cena vs. Alberto Del Rio
World Heavyweight Title Match
Big Show vs. Mark Henry
CM Punk and Triple H vs. The Miz and R-Truth
WWE United States Title Match
Zack Ryder vs. Dolph Ziggler
According to the Super Lucha Magazine, Mexican wrestling legend Mil Mascaras will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame next year during Wrestlemania XXVIII weekend in Miami, Florida. Mascaras in the real-life uncle of WWE Champion Alberto Del Rio.
The official announcement on the WWE website reads:
“MEXICO CITY — Triple H has announced that Mil Mascaras will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame’s 2012 class in Miami in April! The announcement was made in Mil Mascaras’ native country in front of the WWE Universe in Mexico City Sunday night. Mil Mascaras was the first masked luchador to compete in Madison Square Garden. The Mexican squared circle legend also competed in the 1997 Royal Rumble.”
Mil Mascaras was at Sunday night’s WWE SmackDown tapings from Mexico City, where Triple H made the official announcement in front of the live audience:
Jim Ross posted several pseudo-shoot remarks this morning on Twitter after being summoned to last night’s Raw SuperShow in Mexico City, Mexico. He says quitting WWE is not an option for him and that play-by-play announcing in WWE is dead.
“Found out about mexico city late Thursday. Not happy to miss OU game but EVP talent & Co could care less. Nice way 2 go out on wk’ly TV.”
“I’m under contract to wwe. Well paid by team I helped build. Quitting for me not an option. Those that suggest such I feel for.”
“Do I like Raw GM silliness? No. If inclined could I handle that role? Sure. Am I interested? Nope.”
“Leaving Mexico City. Mon’s Raw could well be my last but who really knows? John L & his higher ups know. Hope u tune into Raw Mon nite.”
“4 the record, play by play in WWE’s dead. Funkhauser,the GM, enforces ‘story telling’ on Raw. Holds don’t exist. WWE board needs counseling.”
“If Laurinaitis & his corporate cronies feel Cole is the ‘voice of Raw’ then they are more out of touch than I thought. Fans want wrestling.”
“Funkhauser/ Raw GM is available for speaking engagement for schools for the hearing impaired. Contact @CMPunk 4 more info. This is too easy.”
“When announcers speak of something. TOTALLY unrelated 2 what viewers are seeing on TV screen it’s disconnect. Does GM&cronies not get that?”
“The naive fan thinks some announcers can solve perceived WWE broadcast issues. News flash…THEY CAN’T. Announcers being ‘Funkhausered’.”
“Note to Laurinaitis & peer hungry cronies: over mgmt of all broadcasters akin to putting a bit in a horse’s mouth. It’s all about control.”
“Funkhauser, hello. Doing English speaking, in ring promos to Spanish speaking audience=no reaction. Duh. Oh, wait my bad, WWE’s ‘global.’
“My financial status isn’t anyones business. I know the drill for me in OKC. I’m a big boy & realistic. Raw is a tv show not my life.”
“I can assure anyone who cares or thinks they need to know the dirt. I have zero booking ahead for WWE weekly or PPVs. Believe what u choose.”
— WWE.com has posted an interview with Jim Ross backstage at Saturday’s Raw television taping in Mexico City, Mexico furthering his on-screen feud with interim Raw General Manager John Laurinaitis. He says Laurinaitis has changed a great deal since the “jobless guy” that he hired when WCW went belly up and that he’s disappointed in the human being he’s turned out to be.
Regarding his return to Raw, he thought that when he received a call from Laurinaitis’ office to appear at the show, he would be returning to announce, but instead found out he would be wrestling.
— Despite being advertised, Amy Dumas (a/k/a Lita), Tully Blanchard, Buddy Landell, Baby Doll and Tommy Rich did not appear on Awesome Wrestling Entertainment’s Night of Legends pay-per-view event Saturday night.
— Triple H is featured on the cover of the latest issue of Power Slam.
— Jim Ross is at tonight’s Raw SuperShow in Mexico City, Mexico, but not to announce. The official Twitter feed of the WWE Insider says Jim Ross will compete in a tag team match with John Cena against Alberto Del Rio and Michael Cole. The match airs this Monday night at 9/8 CT on the USA Network.
The account reported earlier this evening that Ross was spotted at the Palacio De Los Deportes. A tweet from John Laurinaitis’ account confirmed that the WWE Hall of Fame announcer was invited by WWE to take part in the event.
On Monday, Ross was fired by Laurinaitis for his lack of loyalty during the Superstars’ walkout against WWE Chief Operating Officer Triple H the previous week.
— Matches taped tonight in Mexico City, Mexico for next week’s episode of WWE Superstars were Justin Gabriel vs. Tyson Kidd, Heath Slater vs. Santino Marella.
— The ongoing rift between the two Sin Caras continued on Friday’s SmackDown as Sin Cara (Negro) brutally attacked Sin Cara (Azul) in the backstage area, ripped off his blue mask and put it on himself. Later, he kept the blue mask on and wore it during his match with Justin Gabriel, who he defeated with a leap from the top rope.
WWE has announced that Sin Cara (Azul) will face Sin Cara (Negro) in a Mask vs. Mask Match at Sunday’s SmackDown taping in Mexico City, Mexico.
— Scott Hall trended Saturday night on Yahoo.com (behind NCAA football, The Big Year and Hayden Panettiere) after news surfaced that the former WWE Superstar’s struggles with alcoholism and drug addiction would be profiled on next Wednesday’s episode of E:60 on ESPN.
— Chris Jericho’s heavy metal band Fozzy plays tonight at 11:00 p.m. at the House of Blues at the Mandalay Bay Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The official Twitter feed of the WWE Insider, the behind-the-scenes reporter for WWE.com and WWE Magazine, says Jim Ross is at tonight’s Raw taping in Mexico City, Mexico.
The statement reads: “BREAKING NEWS: Just spotted @JRsBBQ at the #Raw taping in Mexico City. But is he here to make amends with @WWERawGM, or confront him?”
Interim Raw General Manager John Laurinaitis, who fired Ross on Monday for walking out on Triple H the week before, added: “The rumors are true: @JRsBBQ will be part of #Raw in Mexico. And no, I didn’t ask him back to fire him again. But how great would that be?”
Talk within WWE earlier this week was that Ross would not be brought back to television following his on-screen dismissal. Organization officials, however, reacted to the show’s feedback and the ratings decline.
— Alberto Del Rio’s victory over Sheamus on last night’s episode of SmackDown snapped the Celtic Warrior’s 14-match televised winning streak. He had not lost since SummerSlam, to Mark Henry.
— Vickie Guerrero remarked the following on Twitter regarding her appearance at tonight’s Raw SuperShow taping in Mexico City, Mexico: “20 yrs ago, I cheered Eddie on at Palacio de Los Deportes in the crowd. Tonight I’m on the stage and I feel honored and missing him so much.”
— Triple H is featured on the cover of the latest issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated.
Jim Ross stated on Twitter that he will in Stamford, Connecticut next Wednesday to tape episodes of WWE Classics On Demand’s roundtable discussion show, Legends of Wrestling. He will be joined by “Rowdy” Roddy Piper, Diamond Dallas Page, Michael Hayes and host “Mean” Gene Okerlund.
“One show will address many of the rogues, outlaws, mavericks, etc that have dotted the pro wrestling landscape over the years. Men and women who were strong, independent thinkers and who, at times, were major a pain in the ass for promoters,” Ross added on his official website.
“The second topic is scheduled to be the impact that athletes and celebrities from outside the world of wrestling have played in the business. The celeb card has been played for decades including guys like Joe Louis and Rocky Marciano being special referees. I’ve tried to forget Jay Leno ‘wrestling’ once upon a time but I will have plenty to say about that hideous idea.”
— The official website of Florida Championship Wrestling has added Jake Carter to their roster page. He is Jesse White, son of former WWE star Vader. He signed a developmental contract with WWE in April following a tryout at the organization’s developmental facility in Tampa, Florida.
White, 25, originally committed to the University of Oklahoma and was touted for the National Football League, but retired following a hip injury. He then followed his dad’s footsteps to the world of professional wrestling.
— Theodore Long kicked off Friday’s SmackDown by announcing that the first match of the night would feature 41 Superstars in the largest Battle Royal in WWE history. Interim Raw General Manager John Laurinaitis then revealed the winner would earn a title match against the champion of his choosing.
Randy Orton won the 41-Man No. 1 Contender’s Battle Royal, last eliminating The Miz. Battle Royal elimination order is as follows: 1. Cody Rhodes, 2. Johnny Curtis, 3. JTG, 4. Michael McGillicutty, 5. Derrick Bateman, 6. Yoshi Tatsu, 7. Titus O’Neil, 8. Matt Striker, 9. William Regal, 10. Percy Watson, 11. John Morrison, 12. Dolph Ziggler, 13. Trent Barreta, 14. Jey Uso, 15. Ted DiBiase, 16. Tyson Kidd, 17. Daniel Bryan, 18. Tyler Reks, 19. Curt Hawkins, 20. Drew McIntrye, 21. Justin Gabriel, 22. Mason Ryan, 23. Primo, 24. Santino Marella, 25. Alex Riley, 26. Kofi Kingston, 27. Zack Ryder, 28. David Otunga, 29. Jimmy Uso, 30. Ezekiel Jackson, 31. Heath Slater, 32. Sin Cara (Negro), 33. Christian, 34. R-Truth , 35. CM Punk, 36. Sheamus, 37. Wade Barrett, 38. Jack Swagger, 39. Jinder Mahal, 40. The Miz.
In her first free interview since parting ways with WWE, Gail Kim told SunSport that she has no plans on returning to the sports entertainment empire.
“I’ve experienced WWE twice now, and I know that I do not enjoy that place,” she says. “The second time I really had optimistic hopes and dreams, but I know I would never go back there.”
Kim informed WWE’s Executive Vice President of Talent Relations, John Laurinaitis that she was quitting the company ten minutes before the infamous battle royal in which she eliminated herself from the match.
“It was a very controversial thing,” she said. “A lot of people said that they lost respect for me because I was unprofessional. But unless anyone walks in your shoes they do not what you feel.
“I can admit that maybe it was a childish thing to do. But I would not take it back. I was disrespected many times by the company, and when you get disrespected that many times there is only so much you can take.
“I’m not one to just lay there and take it – at least not now – and they didn’t even notice.
“I was fed up that day.”
Now that she is free, many people believe Kim will return TNA Wrestling, where she achieved her greatest success. She feels that it is likely, but she is in no rush.
“Right now I’m on a little hiatus,” Kim said, “I told myself I’d take a little break. They didn’t let me quit so I was forced to take a break!
“I’m not retiring from wrestling, I can say that. I always said – I said it in my last interview with TNA on a Knockout’s DVD – that I always felt like I would return there one day. I’d love to finish up my career there.”
— Syfy and WWE announced Friday that the next WWE SuperSmackDown Live special will air Tuesday, November 29 at 8PM/ET.
The special, which takes place at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina, will re-air in Smackdown‘s regular time slot on Friday, December 2 from 8-10PM (ET/PT).
— Rey Mysterio, who recently underwent two surgical procedures to repair his badly damaged knee, posted an update on his health Friday. He wrote on Twitter:
“Stitches r out & therapy is going well! Slow healing procedure but want to make sure I come back strong!”
WWE.com is asking fans to help name a program starring the Sexy, Smart and Powerful Divas for the soon to be launched WWE Network.
WWE.com describes the program as “a reality show that welcomes you aboard the private Divas tour bus as it travels from venue to venue. Cameras will roll 24/7, capturing the unscripted bonds, battles, and behind-the-scenes drama that only our WWE Divas can deliver when their public and private lives merge on the open road.”