WWE World Heavyweight champion Jack Swagger recently spoke to Mike Mooneyham of South Carolina’s Post and Courrier newspaper. Here are some highlights of what Swagger said about:

Being World Champion: “It’s been unbelievable, it’s such an incredible honor. I don’t think it’s completely sunk in yet. This last month or so has been so surreal. I’ve tried to enjoy it a much as I can.”

His Current role: “Right now I think what you see is the respect I have for the championship. It’s the top of the game and there’s nothing bigger. I need to carry myself in such a way of a world champion because it is such an honor. Other than that I wouldn’t read too much into the character. I’m just portraying a champion.”

His Dream Feud: “A dual program with The Undertaker, who I think is the greatest wrestler ever, and Rey Mysterio. It would be Jack Swagger vs. Rey Mysterio vs. The Undertaker for the world heavyweight title. That would be great.”

Visit PostandCourrier.com to read the full interview.

Related: Pictures of Jack Swagger’s hot new wife, Catalina White

Tonight’s episode of WWE RAW take place from the Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida. Here’s an early preview for the show:

– Actor and comedian Wayne Brady will be tonight’s Guest Host. Brady, who currently hosts the synidcated “Let’s Make a Deal” game show, posted the following on Twitter over the weekend:

“Going to Orlando for my mom’s 79th then on to Jacksonville for some WWE RAW action baby! Hell yeah! Emmys and Grammys are cool but nothing beats rasslin’,”

– No matches have been announced as of Monday morning.

– Expect to see appearances from some of the superstars who were drafted to RAW last week – including Chris Jericho, Edge, John Morrison, R-Truth, Goldust and the Hart Dynasty.

– John Cena vs. Batista is being advertised as the dark match main event.

Check back later for an updated preview.

Solomonster Sounds Off

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Solomonster Sounds Off (Episode 108)
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Est. Runtime: 64 minutes

Thoughts on the (pointless) 2010 Draft, Impact’s epic fail, WWE making a huge mistake with Jim Ross, Tara leaving TNA, Batista the Thespian and my unexpected debut for WuW at their “Spring May Survival” show. Hint: it involves a duck.

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Visit The Solomonster on Twitter @ twitter.com/solomonster

Jim Ross has updated his blog at JRsBarBQ.com with another update on his WWE status:

“This matter is much more simple than many perceive. My WWE ‘talent contract’ has ended after a 17+ year run with the company. However, I am still a WWE employee handling the same talent relations functions that I have executed for the company for the past few years including since moving to Oklahoma. I simply do not have a ‘talent contract’ as WWE has no plans to utilize me as an on air talent at this time.

“The WWE engaged in talks with me on Thursday of this week to discuss a new job description that would include what I am now doing along with other talent relations oriented matters. I am considering this offer and I trust that a decision will be made soon regarding this opportunity. In the meantime, I am still interested in a variety of projects and opportunities.”

Visit JRsBarBQ.com for more from Jim Ross on the subject.

— WWE will not be having a celebrity guest host for the three-hour Apr. 26 edition of Raw, which will feature the annual roster draft. Company officials won’t be having a host for the show in order to keep the focus on the draft itself. This will be the first episode of Raw not to feature a guest host since the inception of the concept last June.

Following the draft and throughout the summer, WWE is expected to continue working with movie studios to feature more guest hosts promoting summer films. (source: Pro Wrestling Torch)

— There has been talk of ceasing WWE Kids Magazine following this year as a result of poor sales.

— The SmackDown house show on June 12th, 2010 will be held at the Show Place Arena in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. Tickets go on sale May 8th, 2010. (Thanks to Devin Cutting)

— WWE officials are reportedly looking to book golfer Tiger Woods to host the Jun. 7 Monday Night Raw taking place in Miami, Florida. However, few believe he will accept the offer. (source: Wrestling Observer Newletter)

— On Wednesday, May 19th, Florida Championship Wrestling will hold a meet and greet autograph session with the one and only Undertaker. Those who purchase a Gold Ringside ticket for the evening’s event will have a chance to meet “The Deadman” himself, as well as FCW talent and Chris Hovan of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Click here for more information. Those interested should act now as tickets are very limited.

— Justin Gabriel has posted his first video blog. He discusses Tuesday’s Talk the Talk Challenge, feeling he could have done much better.

– Since his match at WrestleMania with Batista, WWE Champion John Cena has been suffering from back and knee problems.

– In addition to the neck problems Triple H is suffering from right now, one of The Game’s surgically repaired quads is giving him trouble. Right now, Triple H is scheduled to work only television and PPV events. He was kept off WWE’s European tour to rest up for his Street Fight with Sheamus at Extreme Rules.

– Rey Mysterio had to be assisted leaving Tuesday’s television taping in London, England following his show closer dark match with CM Punk.

– John Morrison may have suffered an injury during the company’s ongoing tour as he did not work Tuesday’s SmackDown taping. However, it should be noted that it is not 100% confirmed.

— WWE.com confirmed this week that Ezekiel Jackson underwent successful surgery to repair his torn quadriceps. According to WWE, the recovery process could sideline the final ECW Champion for up to six months. Tough break for the young star.

— Injuries continue to mount for WWE as Rey Mysterio had to be assisted leaving last night’s television taping in London, England following his show closer dark match with CM Punk. Meanwhile, John Morrison may have suffered an injury during the company’s ongoing tour as he did not work last night’s SmackDown taping. However, it should be noted that it is not 100% confirmed.

— It has been confirmed that Beverly Mullins, who briefly appeared as a backstage announcer for ECW under the name Courtney Taylor, has been released from her WWE developmental contract. Her image was quietly removed from the official website of Florida Championship Wrestling last week, which often indicates that a performer has parted ways with WWE.

Mullins took time off following her debut on ECW and never returned to the main roster as Savannah ended up in her former role.

— The WWE Raw house show on November 10th, 2010 will be held at the Municipal Hall in Graz, Austria. Tickets go on sale April 30th, 2010.

source: PWInsider.com

On Twitter, multi-time champion Melina posted a few strongly worded messages concerning Eve Torres’ Divas title opportunity on Monday’s Raw. Notably, Melina said she didn’t want to see the title “get lost on someone who can’t bring attention or validity to it.” While initially she didn’t mention Eve by name, she specified the 2007 Diva Search winner following her championship victory on Monday, adding that she got cheated out of the special moment one consumes after taking time to reach such a noted accomplishment.

Here is what Melina wrote:

* “My 984th Tweet will be about Maryse. Other reasons I want her to win. Not only is she the most experienced out of the two but she is the most charismatic one. She is entertaining in her own right and puts focus on the championship. The title will get lost on someone who can’t bring attention or validity to it. She is a good heel. She can sneak or cheat to win. Her ways of winning the title without earning it makes it worth something bcuz it shows that the championship is so important a person is willing to lie, cheat and steal!!! In turn it makes you want to see a babyface knock her teeth in and win it the way you should, by wrestling!!! You earn that championship, by Maryse constantly cheating or finaggling her way to retain it, she makes a Baby fight for it and in a different way, earn it. Good for her. Make that title mean something girl! Please!”

* “I still stand by what I say. Back in the Trish/Lita/Jazz era, the women earned the title and fought for it. It meant so much. Women looked at them and wanted to be as great as them. It shouldn’t be about taking turns on who gets to put in on this week. It should be about who earned it and who brings credibility to it. I still wish it could have been Jillian, Katie or Gail to have that opportunity. All I wanted was to start a new era. To make those women proud to see we were keeping it alive.”

* “Just to make sure everyone understands, I think Eve is an up and coming talent. She has potential like many of our Divas. Like many of our Divas, they deserve a better title moment than that. With a good chase and a good build up. Maybe you need to be a wrestler to know that feeling but, it’s an incredible feeling when you have reached such an honor. Where it took time and you invested so much to reach that moment/ that level. She got cheated out of that. No one understands that. Good for her. Be good to your heels, they make you who you are… As a former heel, I know. Do your thing chica.”

— Matches taking place on tomorrow night’s episode of WWE Superstars are as follows:

* Christian vs. Chavo Guerrero
* Ted DiBiase vs. MVP
* Carlito vs. Matt Hardy

— The Miz appeared on Blue Peter yesterday, a children’s television program which airs on BBC. You can view a clip of his appearance on the show here. The entire episode is available here.

— Chris Jericho is featured on the cover of the latest issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated. You can view the cover here.

— In addition to issues with his neck, Triple H is also dealing with issues to his quadriceps, reports Figure Four Weekly Online. Hence, he’s being taken off house shows for the time being, though he will continue to work television. John Cena vs. Sheamus headlined most of the Raw live events this past week in Europe in with Cena going over after a referee bump and a three-count by outside-the-ring enforcer Bret Hart.

— The New York Times is reporting that WWE’s deal with Syfy to broadcast Friday Night SmackDown is for two years, with an option for a third year. WWE also confirmed to The Times that they’re shopping around NXT in anticipation of the show being bumped from Syfy in the fall. It’s also noted that WWE has had “informal talks” with NBC Universal to help launch a WWE-branded cable channel next year.

— John Cena is being advertised for an appearance on NBC’s Today tomorrow morning during the 7:00 p.m. hour.

sources: www.f4wonline.com, pwinsider.com

The ratings are in for the April 12th episodes of WWE RAW, TNA iMPACT! & TNA Reaction

– WWE RAW from the UK drew a 3.2 rating and averaged 4.7 million viewers. The first hour drew  a 3.0 rating with 4.4 million viewers while the second unopposed hour did a 3.4 rating with 5 million viewers. Despite the fact that Monday’s RAW was taped earlier in the day, the rating was the same from last week.

– The debut episode of the TNA Reaction, which aired on Spike right before iMPACT!, did a 0.3 rating with around 280,000 viewers.

– TNA iMPACT! did a 0.8 rating and averaged 1.1 million viewers. The hourly ratings were 0.82 and 0.78. Overall viewership was down around 10% from last week.

— As reported earlier, WWE SmackDown moving to the SyFy Channel this fall will spell the end of the company’s new NXT show on the cable network. While there was talk that the series was “canceled,” WWE is reportedly not ready to pull the plug yet and is currently seeking a new home for the show. According to sources, WWE has had preliminary discussions with the Bravo cable network, which is also part of the NBC Universal family (along with USA Network & SyFy.) There’s also the possibility of airing the show on WWE.com.

— With Friday Night Smackdown‘s planned move to Syfy this fall, sister station Universal HD will begin airing weekly replays alongside Raw and NXT on Saturday evenings.

— WWE World Heavyweight champion pulled double duty on Monday, wrestling on a SmackDown live event in Nottingham, England and then traveled  two and a half hours to London so he could appear in the final segment of WWE RAW, which was taped from London. (Source: PWTorh.com)

– Bret Hart will be appearing on next week’s live RAW broadcast to participate more in the angle with The Miz, Big Show and The Hart Dynasty. According to Miz, Bret is supposed to be announcing that ShowMiz is the greatest WWE tag team of all time.

– Former WWE Diva Maria’s album “Sevin Sins” is officially released today.

– As we saw on RAW, Eve Torres defeated Maryse to capture the WWE Divas championship. She wrote the following on Twitter last night regarding her first title win:

“I am still on a high! Thank you for believing in me! That is how I got my win tonight. I aim to bring pride and honor to the WWE Diva’s Championship. So much to say… I’ll be writing a blog for WWE Universe tonight.”

Here’s the updated card for WWE’s Extreme Rules pay-per-view, coming out of tonight’s RAW:

Last Man Standing Match for the WWE Title
John Cena (c) vs. Batista

Extreme Rules Match for the World Heavyweight Title
Jack Swagger (c) vs. Randy Orton

Street Fight
Sheamus vs. Triple H

CM Punk’s Hair on the Line
CM Punk Rey Mysterio

Source: Los Angeles Times

After over a decade on network television, WWE’s Friday night SmackDown franchise is moving to cable this October.

Later this week, it will be announced that SmackDown will be joining NXT on the SyFy Channel, an affiliate of WWE’s longtime cable partner, USA Network (both under the NBC Universal umbrella.)

SyFy will be paying close to $30 million a year for the SmackDown franchise, up 50% from the $20 million WWE has been getting from MyNetwork TV.

Smackdown will continue to air on Friday nights when it moves to Syfy. As of late, the show has been averaging 3.5 million viewers a week and does well with the important 18-34 demographic.

– SmackDown star Ezekiel Jackson posted a note on Twitter updating fans on the leg injury he suffered during amatch with Kane over the weekend. “Out 3 to 6 months,” Jackson wrote.

– Matt Hardy was also injured on the overseas tour. He posted the following picture on Twtitter with the caption, “Ouch! Keep your fingers crossed for me.. Hopefully not torn..”

WWE is taping tonight’s RAW this afternoon from London, England.

Dark Match:

– William Regal beat Dos Caras Jr. Caras cut a promo before the match in Spanish, the crowd was heavily supporting Regal.

RAW, Airing Tonight:

– David Hasselhoff cuts a promo saying there will be a Baywatch inspired match later on. He also announces Orton as the new Number One Contender to Swagger’s title at Extreme Rules.

– Eve Torres then beat Maryse to win the Divas Championship.

– Show-Miz come out followed by Bret Hart and they debate who is the best Tag Team in the WWE. Hart Dynasty come out and it’s announced that Smith will take on The Miz there and then. If Harts won they’d get a title shot but Miz won meaning Bret has to announce them as the greatest tage team ever next week.

– Really good HBK Montage is shown to a huge response, lots of loud HBK chants!

– Later in the show John Cena will face The A-List David Otunga.

– Evan Bourne beat Carlito.

– John Cena defeated  David Otunga via submission while Batista sat and watched the action. Batista had a stare-doiwn with Cena after the match.

– Triple H Vs Sheamus in a Street Fight is announced for the upcoming Extreme Rules PPV.

– Kofi Kingston Beat Sheamus via DQ and then got seriously beat down by the Celtic Warrior.

– Baywatch Babes Match – Kelly Kelly & Gail Kim Vs Rosa Mendez & Jillian Vs The Bellas with Santino as special guest referee (Hoff is in a lifeguards seat!) is won by the Bella’s. Hornswoggle is also out there doing a skit & ‘revives’ Santino after the match but gets a ‘Frogpole splash’ on him.

– Orton vs Batista ended in a DQ when Swagger interfered. Cena came down and made Batista tap out and wouldn’t let go. Bret came out and announced a Cena/Batista re-match (this is possibly a post-show dark match!) which Cena then went on to win. The show ended with a little kid from the audience on the ramp with Cena!

– Triple H is currently suffering from a neck injury and is only booked for WWE television and pay-per-view events for the next few months.

– Ted DiBiase was busted open at last night’s RAW live event in Ireland during a match with Randy Orton and Cody Rhodes. DiBiase ended up receiving several staples in his head to close the wound.

– The latest on Ezekiel Jackson’s injury from over the weekend is that it might be a torn quad, which would keep him out of action for a while. Jim Ross acknowledged the injury in his latest blog, writing, “Ugh.”

– The Undertaker is currently working a reduced, part-time schedule. While he was booked at last Tuesday’s SmackDown tapings and was the focal point of promoting the tapings, he did not appear.

(Partial credit toF4Wonline.com)

WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has updated his blog at JRsBarBQ.com with his thoughts about:

Shawn Michaels’ Career: “Did I think that in 1996 that HBK would eventually wind up his career as arguably the greatest in ring performer of his generation? Honestly, no. Shawn’s life style was rather controversial at that time and did not lend itself to having a long, illustrious career. Thank goodness that Shawn made dynamic and distinctive changes in his life which then propelled him to the rarefied air of greatness in the pro wrestling biz. More importantly than re-establishing himself as one of wrestling’s greats of all time, Shawn Michaels became a much better man which is more important that being anyone’s show stopper.”

WWE RAW vs. TNA iMPACT!: “Will TNA ever become a TV ratings threat to WWE? What is the definition of a ratings threat? Does it mean, will TNA ever beat Raw on Monday nights? If that’s the question, then my guess is ‘No’ but I don’t think that’s TNA’s goal. The USA Network provides Raw with a great advantage on cable TV in exposure and over all network ratings considering that USA is generally the No. 1 rated cable network.”

“Small example but many hotels that I have stayed at over the years almost always have USA Network whereas few generally feature Spike. Point is that USA is a much stronger network than is Spike, no offense intended to Spike. My suggestion is that both WWE and TNA need to focus on what they do and build their own new stars that are involved in intriguing and compelling personal issues and let the chips fall where they may. TV wrestling is ‘star driven’ and ‘storyline fueled’ in which long term planning is a key component in order to facilitate, fun and easy to watch, episodic TV. It’s also WAY over thought in many circles.”

As always, visit JRsBarBQ.com for Jim Ross’ great line of BBQ products.

– Bret Hart worked as the special enforcer of a  triple threat match between Jack Swagger, Edge, Chris Jericho on Saturday night on WWE’s European tour. Like the night before, Swagger ended up in the Sharpshooter and Bret posed with Edge to end the show.

– Time to Shine by Saliva is the official theme song for WWE’s Extreme Rules pay-per-view.

– Cody Rhodes has been wearing amateur wrestling head gear during the WWE European tour, to go along with the punt kick he received from Randy Orton at WrestleMania.

– Shad Gaspard has new theme music now that Cryme Tyme has broken up.

— Triple H is tentatively booked for television and pay-per-view events due to lingering neck problems.

— While Ezekiel Jackson’s injury at yesterday’s SmackDown live event in Glasgow, Scotland has not yet been diagnosed, the early belief is that he suffered a torn quadriceps.

— Ted DiBiase was busted open hard way at yesterday’s Raw live event in Ireland during his bout with Randy Orton and Cody Rhodes, requiring several staples in his head to close the wound.

— Today is Dustin “Goldust” Runnels’ birthday as he turns 41 years old.

source: www.f4wonline.com

— It appears Mickie James will be appearing on this week’s episode of Friday Night SmackDown as she noted arriving to England yesterday on her Twitter account. The multi-time women’s champion has been confined to the sidelines in recent weeks due to being diagnosed with a staph infection on her right knee.

— A number of former WWE Superstars and Divas will be taking part in a convention taking place this November in Dublin, Ireland including Mick Foley, “The Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase, The Honky Tonk Man, Candice Michelle, Lilian Garcia, Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake, Rick Martel, Tito Santana, Greg “The Hammer” Valentine, The Genius and Virgil. The event will feature a meet and greet, photo opportunities with the wrestlers, chat, autographs, Q and A with all of the wrestlers, and more. Visit WrestlezoneIreland.com for more information.

— Undertaker is ranked No. 1 on this week’s edition of the POWER 25 on WWE.com. Meanwhile, World Heavyweight Champion Jack Swagger moves up to the No. 3 position after not even being ranked the week before.

— Former WWE star Paul Burchill has launched an official website at www.PaulBurchillOnline.com.

— Ezekiel Jackson was apparently injured at yesterday’s SmackDown house show in Glasgow, Scotland.

Competing against Kane, “The Big Red Machine” threw Jackson over the top rope within a few minutes into the match. When Jackson returned to the ring, he laid down and Kane covered him for the win.

A fan in attendance believes Jackson blew out his right knee. After Kane made his quick exit, company personnel came out to assist him to the back.

— Edge is featured on the cover of the May 2010 issue of WWE Magazine. He was also made the “guest editor” for its 4th annual guest editor issue.

— The Miz will be appearing on Blue Peter on BBC One this Tuesday at 4.35 p.m.

– As we’ve been covering this week, Triple H has not been wrestling on WWE’s European tour despite being advertised. The Game missed another show last night in Glasgow, UK. Dave Meltzer notes that Triple H is suffering from a neck injury which is likely why he isn’t on the current tour.

– The episode of NBC’s Chuck featuring Steve Austin will air again this coming Monday night.

– Trent Baretta and Caylen Croft are now using the name “The Dudebusters” on SmackDown. This is the same name they used with Curt Hawkins in Florida Championship Wrestling.