– AJ Lee, who has not competed since being appointed General Manager of Raw, addressed her lack of ring time during an interview published in the November 2012 issue of WWE Magazine.
“I actually do miss the ring,” said Lee in response to whether she misses grappling. “I think the funny part is that I’ve always thought I would be wrestling the ring and didn’t believe I’d be useful in any other capacity. I just never saw myself in any different way. It’s hilarious to me what I’m most known for these days! There are so many layers to this business than just getting in the ring. I spent a year performing at live events, but I didn’t get much time on television. I think I’ll use it to my advantage. Hopefully, I’ll have a very long career, and time for that—and I’ll be able to surprise people.”
– Wolfie D, who appeared for the World Wrestling Federation as a member of the Nation of Domination, has opened a wrestling school in Nashville, Tennessee, Training will take place Monday and Wednesday from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. Training is $200 per month, plus a $50 one-time fee. Manager, valet and referee training is $100 per month, plus a $50 one-time fee. Contact WolfieD@WolfieDsHOC.com for more information.
– Former WWE Diva Stacy Keibler turns 33-years-old Sunday. Also celebrating birthdays are WWE Hall of Famer Blackjack Lanza (77) and Dan Spivey (60).
– WWE Superstar JTG did a Q&A with fans on Twitter over weekend and says he was punished by WWE for ranting about being held back and WWE’s young talent not getting the opportunities they deserve. After his Twitter rant, JTG says WWE “punished” him by having him get squashed by Ryback the next week on RAW.
– Speaking of Ryback, his big push continues. Ryback wrestled his first Lumberjack Match at last night’s WWE SmackDown live event in Anaheim, California, defeating Jinder Mahal. At one point in the match, many of the heel lumberjacks attacked him, but he was able to throw them all off of him. After the match, Ryback hit his finisher on several of those heel lumberjacks.
– WWE has quietly dropped the storyline where General Managers AJ Lee and Booker T are depicted as incompetent, leading chief Vince McMahon to fire them both and have both shows overseen by one individual. Some people desired that Ric Flair being place in the role, but the company’s current lawsuit with TNA Wrestling over business practices had made that possibility feasible at this time.
The company also quietly dropped the storyline where announcer Josh Mathews threatened to sue both General Managers for an unsafe working environment.
– WWE chief Vince McMahon has nixed the idea of holding a thirty-minute “UFC-style” countdown show just prior to the Royal Rumble on January 27, 2013. He is, however, interested in holding such a show for WrestleMania XXIX.
– Independent wrestlers Ethan HD and Jorel Nelson both received tryouts at WWE’s talent evaluation session in Tampa, Florida earlier this week.
– Brittney Savage, who has competed for numerous Northeast-based independent wrestling promotions, was among those trying out for WWE at an evaluation session in Tampa, Florida over the weekend. She has appeared for WWE in the past as an enhancement wrestler as she lost to Beth Phoenix on the November 6, 2009 episode of SmackDown. She also competed in a tag team with AJ Lee when the now-popular Diva was an independent wrestler. The Raw General Manager wished Savage well in her tryout, tweeting, “Go kick some ass.”
– THQ has released a 30-second television commercial for WWE ’13, slated for release in North America on Oct. 30. WWE Champion CM Punk is featured in the spot as he proclaims that “The revolution is coming.”
– Tonight’s WWE SmackDown tapings will take place from the First Niagara Center in Buffalo, New York. Randy Orton, who is currently filming “12 Rounds: Reloaded” for WWE, is flying in from Vancouver to wrestle in the main event against the Big Show. Local ads continue to tease whether Dolph Ziggler will cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase.
The advertised dark match main event is World Heavyweight champion Sheamus vs. Dolph Ziggler.
– RAW General Manager AJ Lee tweeted this after Monday’s RAW – continuing her storyline with CM Punk and teasing that the WWE Champion likes to … cuddle:
Hey @CMPunk are you sure you want to expose the details of our personal life? I can play that game too. #someonesacuddler
– At Sunday’s Raw live event in Worcester, Massachusetts, WWE Champion CM Punk made an obscure reference to a TNA Wrestling talent.
The show opened with Punk and Raw General Manager AJ Lee discussing the night’s main event since Punk’s originally scheduled opponent, John Cena, was unable to appear due to injury. During the verbal exchange, Punk referred to Lee as “Allen Jones,” the real name of AJ Styles.
Lee announced Big Show as Punk’s replacement opponent and that it would be a Lumberjack Match. Big Show performed as a babyface and won the match via disqualification after Punk struck him with a chair. Following the match, Punk assaulted Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara. As he was celebrating, Big Show struck him with the WMD to end the show on a high note.
– WWE developmental wrestler Dean Ambrose faced Michael McGillicutty at all three Raw live events this weekend. McGillicutty beat Ambrose cleanly in all three bouts.
– The late Big Bossman is featured in today’s “Superstar Spotlight” on WWE.com.
– WWE.com has released a video playlist highlighting the biggest WWE Superstar “Dream Teams” of all-time, including Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage, The Undertaker and The Rock, Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels, The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels, Trish Stratus and Lita, and more.
– RAW General Manager AJ Lee tweeted the following about Booker T’s appearance on Monday’s RAW to announce Sheamus will be stripped of the World Heavyweight title if he uses the Brogue Kick:
Hey @BookerT5x next time you want to appear on RAW, my show, ask first. I could have handled @WWESheamus without your help.
– WWE’s pay-per-view schedule will be changing once again in 2013, according to a DVD release schedule on WWE.com.
WWE Over The Limit, which typically takes place in the spring, has been moved to the fall. The show that used to be Over The Limit is now listed as “PPV TBD” – a sign that WWE will be introducing a new PPV next year.
– On this week’s “Backstage Fallout” for Raw, Dolph Ziggler rips WWE Champion CM Punk for walking out on him during their tag team match before vowing to defeat Randy Orton this Sunday at Night of Champions. Cody Rhodes rips The Miz, with The Awesome One responding in a separate interview that Rhodes is jealous. Plus, Eve leaves WWE Divas Champion Layla and Kaitlyn dumbfounded with her encouraging remarks.
– Monday on Raw, Sheamus’ use of the prohibited Brogue Kick prompted a response from Raw General Manager AJ Lee who, in turn, was interrupted by SmackDown General Manager Booker T. Since the World Heavyweight Championship falls under T’s jurisdiction, he decreed that if Sheamus uses the kick again, he will be stripped of the title.
Lee posted a Twitter message furthering the storyline. She wrote to T, “Hey @BookerT5x next time you want to appear on RAW, my show, ask first. I could have handled @WWESheamus without your help.”
– WWE.com has released a video playlist highlighting the biggest WWE Superstar “Dream Teams” of all-time. Video clips of some of the biggest WWE stars of all time teaming up to do battle include The Undertaker and The Rock, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels, The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels, Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage, Trish Stratus and Lita, and more.
– Reports surfaced online this week stating that WWE officials pulled Christian from television since he’s expected to appear at next month’s TNA Hall of Fame ceremony in Phoenix, Arizona as part of an agreement the rival wrestling organizations reached to allow Ric Flair to appear at Wrestlemania XXVIII. According to PWInsider.com, the reports are incorrect.
Multiple WWE sources state that Christian requested time off from the road since there were no major storylines planned for him and to also rest his ankle. He is still having trouble with his ankle, which sidelined him late last year and at the start of the year.
It is not known when he will return to the ring although he was at one point scheduled for next week’s television events in Canada.
– Following her latest dramatic episode on Monday’s Raw, General Manager AJ Lee addressed her mental state before announcing that WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart will be returning to Raw in Montreal for the first time in 15 years, this Monday at 8/7 CT.
– WWE is currently running storylines where both RAW and SmackDown’s General Managers are having major problems with their jobs. AJ Lee’s angle is that she’s unstable and incompetent, while Booker T is being sued by one of his announcers. There is speculation that the General Managers being unable to handle their brands will lead to Vince McMahon firing them both and bringing in a big name to both shows.
– Matches for today’s WWE Superstars include:
* Layla vs. Natalya
* US Champion Antonio Cesaro vs. Justin Gabriel
* Damien Sandow vs. Alex Riley
* Tag Team Champions Kofi Kingston & R-Truth vs. Primo & Epico.
– With Devon parting ways with TNA and expressing interest in returning to WWE, sources are not optimistic that he’ll get signed as a wrestler. WWE management was very fond of Devon back when he was one of the Dudley Boyz (more so than Bully Ray), but he has a much better chance of getting brought in as an agent or a trainer at developmental. Devon and Ray’s Team 3D wrestling academy has produced several promising young talents, so that will only help his chances of working behind the scenes.
– NBC has decided against going forward with its commitment to a drama pilot about 1980s professional wrestling involving Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as an executive producer and Jerry Bruckheimer’s production company, reports PWInsider.com. The option for the series was not renewed last month. Since NBC purchased the series and guaranteed a pilot episode would air, the network is believed to have paid a penalty for dropping the project.
– Former WWE Superstar Paul London, a working actor, recently filmed a television commercial for Domino’s Pizza that will air regionally on the West Coast. London and his brother have been pitching a “sword and sorcery” style project in Hollywood.
– WWE.com has published an article asking whether AJ Lee is fit to rule Raw following her in-ring meltdown on Monday’s show.
The article notes, “Although Vickie was clearly in the wrong for taking advantage of AJ’s vulnerability and striking Ms. Lee knowing full well there would be no retaliation, the Raw GM’s resultant in-ring meltdown no doubt raised more than a few eyebrows among members of both the WWE Universe and the WWE Board. Upon examining AJ Lee’s savage, chair-throwing tantrum, WWE.com asks the question: Is AJ truly the right choice to serve as Raw General Manager?”
– Shelly Martinez has launched an eStore at www.ShellyMartinezShop.com. It features shirts, DVDs and soon, limited edition photos.
– In Thursday’s birthdays, WWE Hall of Famer Wendi Richter turns 51-years-old, one-time WWE Divas Champion Jillian Hall turns 32, and Low Ki, winner of the second season of WWE NXT, turns 33.
– With Vickie Guerrero pushing hard for RAW General Manager AJ Lee to be removed from power, WWE is asking fans what the Board of Directors should do about the situation. FAns can post their messages on Twitter and Tout with the hashtag #DearWWEBoard.
The segment on RAW with Vickie Guerrero talking to an empty chair (pretending AJ Lee was sitting there) was a parody of Clint Eastwood’s speech at last week’s Republican National Convention.
WWE.com cameras caught up with Vickie Guerrero after she slapped AJ Lee on RAW. Vickie said there will be no repercussions for her actions and that AJ won’t be able to forget that slap for a long time.
– Former WWE star Tyler Reks has published an unreleased video of his [discontinued] animated web series, Midcard Mafia.
“After the show was cancelled, I created this in case we ever decided to bring back the show. We never did, and we never will. So consider this one of the DVD extras.”
The show was initially cancelled after WWE officials discovered the show and told Reks to shut it down.
– Cameron, who was arrested and charged with driving under the influence on Aug. 24 in N. Hillsborough County, Florida, did not appear at Friday’s Raw live event in Sydney, Australia nor Saturday’s show in Melbourne after appearing at the first show in Brisbane. Brodus Clay was only accompanied by Naomi at the final two shows.
After cops took her into custody, the police report says Cameron offered one of the officers $10,000 to “let her go because she would lose her job.” According to F4WOnline.com, many people within WWE feel her bribery attempt will cost her her job.
– After recently being offered a five-year contract extension with WWE, sources within the organization have indicated that she has not signed a new deal at this time.
– An upcoming issue of WWE Magazine will feature an interview with AJ Lee.
WWE RAW General Manager AJ Lee was interviewed by Canada’s Slam Wrestling to promote the upcoming episode of RAW from Montreal on September 10th. Here are some highlights of what AJ said about:
Dressing & Acting Professionally As RAW GM: “Yeah, I mean, I think you have to grow up in the situation in which you are placed and with the responsibilities, you need to look the part. But I still wear bracelets and I don’t wear high heels, because that would be an injury waiting to happen! So it’s a little bit of both. I like to think that I can combine both worlds together,”
Wanting To Wrestle At WM29: “I’m so torn, I want this position [RAW GM] to last long, it’s so much more fun and it’s amazing to have all that power and I’d like to stretch it as long as I can. Being part of Wrestlemania is amazing to me. There’s a little 13-year-old inside of me that was a wrestling fan and the idea of wrestling at home, minutes away is so amazing. So if I was really selfish, I would do both, I would book myself in a match!””
Her Role In WWE’s Scooby Doo Movie: “There’s definitely a checklist of amazing life experience milestone and being immortalize in a cartoon character is certainly bizarre. We did the voiceovers and I hit on Scooby and Shaggy, so this is the most bizarre moment of my life!”
– It was announced at Monday’s RAW that WWE will return to Milwaukee, Wisconsin on Sunday, March 10th, 2013 for a RAW live event at 5pm. The pre-sale begins today with the password CHAMP.
– The WWE RAW crew is headed down under for a short tour of Australia this weekend. WWE will be in Brisbane, Australia on Thursday, Sydney on Friday and Melbourne on Saturday.
– Cody Rhodes noted on Twitter that he and Hornswoggle are doing local media in Green Bay this morning to promote tonight’s SmackDown tapings.
– Raw General Manager AJ Lee announced prior to Monday’s Raw main event that CM Punk will defend the WWE Championship against John Cena at Night of Champions. Also announced for the pay-per-view event taking place Sept. 16 at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts is Sheamus defending the World Heavyweight Championship against Alberto Del Rio.
– After Dolph Ziggler ended Chris Jericho’s WWE career last week on Raw, “The Showoff” appeared on-stage Monday to the former WWE Superstar’s entrance music and proclaimed that he will never be seen again. Jericho reacted to Ziggler’s move via Twitter, writing, “Heard Dilph used my music tonight. Well it’s about time he got a good ring song, as that “I Am Perfection” tune is crap #JustAnotherWannabe.”
– After being viciously attacked by Raw General Manager AJ Lee on Raw, Vickie Guerrero noted on Twitter, “Im making alot of calls to the board of directors….too busy to go support @HEELZiggler He will do great tonight. #nodoubts.”
– Ricky Reyes turns 34-years old Tuesday while Christina Von Eerie turns 23-years-old.
– WWE RAW General Manager AJ Lee recently spoke to Wisoncin’s JSOnline.com to hype Monday’s RAW from the BMO Harris Bradley Center in Milwaukee. The article looks at AJ’s meteoric rise to fame and how she wasn’t even on the WWE roster two years ago and now she’s in charge of Monday Night RAW. An interesting note is that AJ might not have ever gotten into wrestling if she hadn’t run into financial problems while attending New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts in New York City.
“I ran into financial problems and couldn’t afford (school) anymore, so I dropped out. I’ve always wanted to entertain people, and when I was in school I was interested in creative writing, but wrestling was always there,” she said. “When I ran into financial problems I just figured when life gives you lemons, you have to make lemonade.”
AJ took all her savings, signed up for wrestling school and the rest is history.
– Here is this week’s episode of the WWE Youtube show, “Are You Serious?” Josh Matthews and the Road Dogg are back with more #GarbageJuice for your viewing enjoyment, including footage of Chris Jericho’s former assistant Ralphus, Waylon Mercy, the Red Rooster and Mantaur.
Posted August 26th, 2012 in News, WWE. Tagged: AJ Lee.
– WWE.com updated its roster page this week to reflect recent storyline developments.
Eve and Curt Hawkins are now official members of the SmackDown roster. On last week’s episode of SmackDown, Eve defeated Kaitlyn to become the SmackDown Assistant General Manager to Booker T. Hawkins appeared on the show with Tyler Reks as they debuted male stripper characters. Reks was briefly listed on the page before he was granted his contract release on Tuesday.
AJ Lee is officially a member of the Raw roster after being named Raw General Manager by WWE chief Vince McMahon on Raw 1,000. Despite controlling the program, she continued to be listed as a SmackDown Diva.
– This week’s episode of WWE Superstars is headlined by Justin Gabriel vs. Cody Rhodes. Also featured are Yoshi Tatsu vs. Damien Sandow, Santino Marella vs. Jack Swagger and Alex Riley vs. Drew McIntyre. (Watch)
– Jim Ross, who will commentate matches at tonight’s WWE NXT tapings at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida, tweeted prior to the event, “I have plenty of time 4 any NXT talent who wants to be great. To be physical & smart. To work diligently to improve. To the others, nothing.”
CM Punk, AJ & Sin Cara Invade NYC at Ringside Fest 2012!
WWE® Champion CM Punk Returns Due To Popular Demand!
NEW YORK, NY – RINGSIDE COLLECTIBLES, INC. presents the 9th annual RINGSIDE FEST, scheduled for Saturday, October 20th at Carolines on Broadway in Times Square, New York City.
This blockbuster event includes appearances by WWE® Superstar CM Punk® (appearing at 11:30am), WWE® Diva AJ™ (appearing at 9:15am) & WWE® Superstar Sin Cara™(appearing at 9:15am)!
Tickets are required for autographs and photo opportunities. Availability is limited. Advanced purchase is suggested, – please visit www.RingsideFest.com for more information!
Do not miss the RINGSIDE FEST Exclusive Mattel WWE® Elite Flashback “Texas Rattlesnake” Stone Cold Steve Austin figure that will be available for sale starting at RINGSIDE FEST.
Mattel’s design team will also be on hand with the latest WWE® Action Figures on display and answering questions from fans!
– Raw General Manager AJ Lee announced on Twitter Monday night that Daniel Bryan will attend anger management classes beginning next week. “Starting next week, I’ve decided to help Daniel Bryan out with his anger issues, by sending him to anger management therapy classes,” she tweeted.
Bryan vehemently opposes her decision. He sent out a Tout where he angrily states, “I don’t belong in anger management! I do not belong in anger management! That Big Red Monster, he does! Do I? Look at my new T-Shirt! No! No! No! The new General Manager is nuts.”
– WWE Diva Eve Torres turns 28-years-old on Tuesday.
– EOnline.com has published an article on Khloé Kardashian Odom serving as Social Media Ambassador to Raw Monday.
“Divas Battle Royal!! This is what it was like growing up with my sisters! JK!,” she joked on Twitter at one point. She also noted, “I bet Sin Cara is gorgeous under his mask, probably better looking than @CodyRhodesWWE.”
– Brad Maddox, who had been competing in WWE’s developmental promotion, has been promoted to the main roster as a referee. He officiated the No. 1 Contender’s Battle Royal on Raw won by Kaitlyn. His profile has been removed from FCWWrestling.info, which further indicates that he will no longer be used in a wrestler capacity.
Maddox had reigned as FCW Tag Team Champion and FCW 15 Champion when the titles were deactivated last week due to Florida Championship Wrestling being renamed NXT Wrestling.
– Raw General Manager AJ Lee congratulated Kaitlyn, her former tag team partner, for winning the No. 1 Contender’s Battle Royal on Raw. She wrote, “I know we’ve had some small issues in the past @KaitlynWWE , but I’m so happy for you. Look at how far we’ve come. #chickbusters4life.”
Kaitlyn responded, “ummm thanks @WWEAJLee ?? Water under the bridge I guess… Don’t expect me to hug you though.”
In the spring, Lee assaulted Kaitlyn on two occasions for trying to comfort her in her break-up from Daniel Bryan.
WWE RAW General Manager AJ Lee was interviewed by Esquire.com over the weekend in Los Angeles. Here are some highlights of what AJ said about:
Being RAW General Manager: “I’m the boss! I run our flagship program, and it’s a huge weight to carry. It’s hilarious that the tiniest person has the most power. It came completely out of left field. I had no idea that they were looking for a general manager for a really long time. They felt that it would be really surprising and unpredictable. So, you know, I book matches. I’m the boss of all the guys. It’s fun because a lot of them have wronged me.”
Sticking To Her Tomboy Roots & Not Being A Typical Diva: “I heard a million times to clean up, but not be too much of a tomboy. I heard, ‘This is what you have to convert to, this is the formula,’ A.J. said. “And you know, it’s wrong. There was something in me where I knew that people wanted someone that they could relate to. I was able to show that I was goofy and dorky, and right away, people embraced that. The company noticed and they were like, ‘Let’s just go with that.'”
Posted August 20th, 2012 in News, WWE. Tagged: AJ Lee.
WWE RAW General Manager AJ Lee spoke to IGN.com this week to promote WWE’s new Scooby Doo animated movie and Sunday’s WWE SummerSlam 2012 PPV. Here are some highlights of what AJ said about:
Being Animated In A Movie: “Yes, yes! And I knew that, and so that’s why I was like, “Oh, I like it…” But yeah, I’m so excited. We actually did all the voices today. And that was hilarious because all of us were in the same room, so you can imagine the hijinks — no pun intended. But it was so much fun. Going into it, I didn’t realize how much… I thought maybe, “Oh, we’re kind of sprinkled in this Scooby-Doo movie.” I can’t really reveal what’s going on – I’m not sure what I’m allowed to! But we are so involved in it. It’s just this big, fun [story]. John Cena, Kane, Brodus, Miz, myself… You know, I’m trying to see if we can get something with me and Velma at the same time. That way, the universe implodes.”
Getting Back In The Ring: “The cool thing is that, technically, I can put myself into matches if I need to, but I’m very aware that in the position of power now, it’s good to let other people get chances. Also, I have the rest of my career for that, so I’m just enjoying what I doing right now, and I’m just trying to be the best that I can at this. I guess we’ll hold off on it until I really need to. Maybe we’ll have Team AJ vs. Team Booker at WrestleMania! I don’t know!”
What She’s Looking Forward To At SummerSlam: “I think as a fan I’m really looking forward to Brock and Triple H. I remember when Brock has his match with Cena, all of us backstage – and it takes a lot to make us go, “[Gasp!]” – but we were looking at the monitors, and all us were kind of glued to it. It was such a brutal match that we were kind of blown away. And I think Triple H also brings that and he might even bring it a step higher, especially with how personal it’s gotten. That, I’m looking forward to. It might be the match of the night. And I’m also really excited to see the matches that I’ve made and to see what happens to Daniel Bryan. How bad Kane treats him. [Laughs] But yeah, I’m really proud that I’ve gotten to make matches on the show.
Posted August 18th, 2012 in News, WWE. Tagged: AJ Lee.
Deadline.com has announced a partnership between Warner Bros. Home Video and WWE Studios to co-produce a Scooby-Doo animated feature that will find Scooby and the gang solving a mystery at WrestleMania.
WWE Superstars Triple H, John Cena, Kane, The Miz, Brodus Clay, Santino Marella, Sin Cara, AJ Lee and chief Vince McMahon are slated to appear in animated format and provide voiceovers for the film.
WWE.com summarizes the film’s plot: “When Shaggy and Scooby win tickets to WrestleMania, the entire gang travels in the Mystery Machine to WWE City to attend the epic event. However, when a mysterious ghostly bear appears and threatens to ruin the show, Scooby, Shaggy, Velma, Daphne and Fred work with WWE Superstars to solve the case.”
Warner Bros Home Entertainment will distribute the film via Blu-ray, DVD, VOD and digital download while WWE will use its considerable resources to promote the title, said WWE Studios President Michael Luisi.