– WWE Hall of Famer Booker T will be returning to the ring on 8/6 for the upcoming House of Hardcore 16 show from Pasadena, TX. The event is being co-promoted with Booker’s Reality of Wrestling promotion. Booker will be teaming with Tommy Dreamer that night. Dreamer was originally scheduled to team with Mickie James to face Pepper Parks and Cherry Bomb, who are now in TNA.
Also confirmed for the 8/6 ROW – HOH show is Billy Gunn vs. Lance Hoyt and appearances by Vickie Guerrero, MVP, Carlito and more. Now can you dig that?!
– Chris Jericho missed last night’s RAW as he’s on vacation with his family in Hawaii. Jericho will likely be back on TV next week as he’s booked for this weekend’s house shows. As noted, Jericho will interview Randy Orton on The Highlight Reel at the 7/24 Battleground PPV.
– The full WWE Cruiserweight Classic Bracketology special with Daniel Bryan and Mauro Ranallo can be seen below. The episode begins at the 22 minute mark.
– Dolph Ziggler and Paige go on blind dates in this new WWE Swerved clip. As noted, the second season will be released after RAW tonight.
– Sheamus interviews TMNT co-stars Stephen Amell, Will Arnett and Tyler Perry in this new clip:
– Booker T announced this weekend that his Reality of Wrestling group will be partnering with Tommy Dreamer’s House of Hardcore show a show on 8/6. Booker posted this video to Instagram:
On Saturday, May 14th from Texas City, WWE Hall of Famer Booker T’s Reality of Wrestling promotion made history. Working with Diamondview Studios, the 360° Crixeo camera captured a Fatal 4-Way match between Terrale Tempo, Mysterious Q, Bryan Keith and champion Rex Andrews for the ROW Television title.
For those unfamiliar with 360° video, here are the viewing instructions, courtesy of Crixeo:
To watch 360° videos on your computer, you need the latest version of Chrome, Opera, Firefox or Internet Explorer. Then you can click and drag to move the camera around.
On mobile devices, use the latest version of the YouTube app for Android or iOS. You can tilt and rotate your mobile device or use your finger to drag the camera to the action you want to see.
– The next installment of “Legends with JBL” will be a two-part special with WWE Hall of Famer Booker T. They will begin airing on the WWE Network later this month.
– Dolph Ziggler will be appearing on FOX Business program “Kennedy” this Thursday night.
– David Otunga is filming a new project with Tyler Perry for the Oprah Winfrey Network, as seen in this photo:
Medallion Press sent in a press release earlier today that their Crixeo Magazine has partnered with Booker T’s Texas-based Reality of Wrestling promotion to film a match in 360° for the first time ever. Here’s the official announcement:
Crixeo Magazine and Reality of Wrestling Partner to Bring Fans a 360° View!
Chicago, IL—April 2016—Crixeo magazine, a subsidiary of Medallion Press, Inc., has partnered with Booker T’s Reality of Wrestling (ROW) to bring fans the first-ever 360° video shot from inside a wrestling ring.
On May 14, 2016, at Booker T’s World Gym Arena in Houston, TX, wrestling fans will be able to see what it’s like to be in the middle of the Reality of Wrestling as the action unfolds around them. The 360° Crixeo Camera will place fans in the center of the ring during a Fatal 4-Way match with four of ROW’s hottest stars.
The 360° Crixeo Camera will allow wrestling fans to have total control over how they want to view the match, giving them unprecedented access to all the hard-hitting action delivered by the shining stars of ROW.
The 360° video will be available on June 1, 2016 at Crixeo.com. Just watch the video on your personal device and tilt the camera to be in full control of what you see.
At a couple different points tonight, the official WWE Games Twitter account tweeted these animated GIFs to hype Tuesday’s release of the Hall of Fame downloadable content pack for WWE 2K16, which is out this Tuesday:
It was already known that 1991 versions of Ric Flair and Tatsumi Fujinami plus a relevant match replay mode were in the Hall of Fame pack, but they had two matches that year. It seemed like it made more sense for 2K to base it off their match from Superbrawl in St. Petersburg, Florida, but from the above footage, it looks like they didn’t. Instead, 2K picked the OTHER Flair-Fujinami match, from the NJPW Tokyo Dome show that year, which is known as both WCW Japan Supershow and NJPW Starrcade ’91 In The Tokyo Dome. So that means that the arena that comes in the pack is an ersatz Tokyo Dome, faithfully recreated by 2K Sports. They can’t call it that (and I don’t believe WWE games ever name real venues), but 2K does a great job with the presentation of the arenas and this should be no exception.
Here’s the full lineup for the DLC pack, which, if this is any indication, should also include at least two more WCW arenas and some early ’90s WWF arenas along with period appropriate versions of the wrestlers:
“Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. Jake “The Snake” Roberts
Rikishi vs. The Rock
Alundra Blayze vs. Paige
Larry Zbyszko and Arn Anderson vs. Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat and Dustin Rhodes
Tatsumi Fujinami vs. Ric Flair
The Bushwhackers (Butch Miller and Luke Williams) vs. The Natural Disasters (Typhoon and Earthquake)
The Outsiders (Kevin Nash and Scott Hall) vs. Harlem Heat (Booker T and Stevie Ray)
– Xavier Woods is rumored to be missing tonight’s WWE Hell In A Cell pay-per-view, as he is scheduled to get married this weekend. Bubba Ray Dudley tweeted the following regarding tonight’s pay-per-view, adding a “get well soon” message to Woods. Below is what Bubba wrote, as well as a response from The New Day’s Kofi Kingston.
– Kurt Angle is one of many wrestlers in Los Angeles, California this weekend, the site of tonight’s WWE Hell In A Cell pay-per-view. Below is a photo of Angle catching up with Booker T in L.A. this weekend.
– The legendary nine-time World Tag-Team Champion Dudley Boyz are the guests on the latest edition of Chris Jericho’s “Talk Is Jericho” podcast, which just dropped today. You can download and listen to Jericho’s interview with Bubba Ray and Devon Dudley at PodcastOne.com.
– Tuesday would have marked the 89th birthday of WWE Hall Of Famer Walter “Killer” Kowalski. Triple H wrote the following on Twitter about Kowalski, who was his mentor when he first got into the business:
Today would have been Walter "Killer" Kowalski's 89th birthday. Had he never laced up his boots…I wouldn't have. pic.twitter.com/z7R94c5EOC
– Below is the latest edition of Booker T’s “Reality Of Wrestling” television show, which features Devon Dudley, Stevie Ray and Booker T’s wife, Sharmell, among the other ROW talent.
Well, it looks like Kane and Chris Jericho aren’t the only guests backstage at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas, the site of tonight’s WWE Night Of Champions pay-per-view event.
According to PWInsider.com, former TNA star MVP is backstage at the venue in Houston, where he lives. Additionally, Stevie Ray, former Harlem Heat tag-team partner of Booker T, who also lives in the Houston area, is backstage as well.
As noted earlier this evening, Jericho is rumored to be the mystery partner for Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose in their six-man tag-team match against The Wyatt Family, however that is strictly a rumor at this point.
WWE Hall Of Famer Booker T recently appeared as a guest on the Wrestling Compadre Slamcast. During the interview, Booker spoke about his thoughts on the latest season of WWE Tough Enough, which he was part of.
While Booker T said he hopes the show comes back for another season, he did mention that he hopes the voting process is changed so that the fans can vote on the bottom three contestants instead of voting the contestant that gets kicked off of the show every week.
“Let the host or whoever the judges [are] actually vote the guy off because we are actually looking for the next Tough Enough winner, not the next reality [show] superstar,” said Booker.
“I hope Giorgia gets a chance to make it back [to WWE]. She should have been the one. She was the overall winner as far as the girls go as far as I’m concerned,” Booker T said. “Patrick is the guy I hope I see come back. He’s an independent wrestler. He’s still out there doing his thing out there on the independent circuit trying to make his way to the big time, so hopefully the hard work for him will actually pay off.”
NXT announcer Rich Brennan has been promoted to the lead announcer position for WWE SmackDown. Now that WWE Tough Enough is over, it looks like Booker T, who was on hiatus due to the show, will be headed to Thursday nights in two weeks while Byron Saxton will permanently replace him on RAW.
WWE RAW on Monday nights will be called by Michael Cole, JBL and Saxton while SmackDown will feature Brennan, Jerry Lawler and Booker T.
Booker T and Rich Brennan recently had the following exchange on social media.
Congrats to @RichBrennanWWE, enjoy the ride! #SmackDown
– Following the episode with Dave Scherer that drops this evening, Jim Ross’ next “Ross Report” guest will be former UFC Heavyweight Champion and New Japan Pro Wrestling’s AXS TV announcer Josh Barnett. The show will be available on Tuesday, September 1st at PodcastOne.com.
– On Tuesday, The Rock tweeted the following in response to a WWE Network link to a Rock vs. Brock Lesnar match from SummerSlam 2002, where Lesnar defeated Rock to become the youngest WWE Champion in history.
We poured blood & sweat around the world together. The fun we had. Pleasure "Doin' the honors" for my boy & the biz. https://t.co/S4R0WguSO9
After dropping hints earlier this week, Booker T finally revealed the “huge announcement” related to his Reality Of Wrestling independent promotion in Texas.
Booker T announced on social media that his R.O.W. promotion out of Houston, Texas has landed a television deal with CW channel 39 in Houston. Their show will begin airing on Sunday, September 20th at 11am.
Booker and Bruce Prichard posted the following on Twitter to announce the news.
– In the Tough Enough Digital Extra video shown above the cameras catch Billy Gunn losing his cool with the competitors and in particular ZZ over their in-ring performance at this stage in the competition.
On the Tough Enough Twitter account, a short video was also shared showing ZZ in the ring with Booker T and NXT’s Jason Jordan also reacting:
– As noted yesterday Darren Young and Titus O’Neil (The Prime Time Players) were confirmed as the guests for next week’s show and were photographed on the back of a fire truck.
The Tough Enough Twitter account has since shared a number of photos showing the challenge the competitors faced with the Orange County Fire & Rescue Department in Florida:
This morning the news broke that Hulk Hogan had been removed from the WWE’s website, Shop and Tough Enough site following alleged racist comments.
Several hours later and a transcript of the comments made by Hulk Hogan were released online (seen at this link) and WWE released a statement confirming they had terminated his contract.
Booker T, who featured in a video several years ago where he used the “N” word took to Twitter to share his thoughts on Hogan and what was said:
20 years ago I made a huge mistake by saying something I shouldn't have on National TV.
– The latest edition of Chris Jericho’s “Talk Is Jericho” podcast, which is available right now, features an interview with actor Scott Baio. You can download the show at PodcastOne.com.
– WWE Tough Enough coaches Booker T, Lita and Billy Gunn break down week two of the show in the video featured below.
– WWE Hall Of Famer Trish Stratus carried the torch for the Pan Am Games in Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada last week. Below are some photos of Trish at the event.
– WWE Network has a one-hour Money In The Bank “Kickoff Show” scheduled to begin at 7pm EST. next Sunday night. The “Kickoff Show” panel will consist of Renee Young, Byron Saxton, Corey Graves and Booker T.
– WWE Hall Of Famer Mick Foley is celebrating a milestone birthday today, as the Hardcore Legend turns 50 years old. Foley was born on June 7, 1965. Also celebrating birthdays today are Howard Finkel (65) and former TNA Knockout Taeler Hendrix (26).
– WWE recently posted the following video of Superstars and Divas playing with puppies.
– The hosts for the panel on Sunday’s WWE Elimination Chamber “Kickoff Show” on the WWE Network will be Renee Young, Byron Saxton, Corey Graves and Booker T. The preview special is scheduled to begin on the WWE Network at 7pm EST., leading into the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view, which begins at 8pm EST. and ends at 11pm EST.
– The official Entertainment Weekly website has a list of the best and worst performances by pro wrestlers in movies. Of course part-time WWE performer Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson tops the list. You can check out the full list at EW.com.
– WWE Hall Of Famer Bret “The Hitman” Hart will be the guest on the next edition of Jim Ross’ weekly “Ross Report” podcast. The show is scheduled to drop at PodcastOne.com on Tuesday, June 2nd at 9pm EST.
The format of the returning WWE Tough Enough reality show is going to be completely revamped compared to past seasons.
There will be training and in-house footage shot during the week, which will air on the Tuesday show. So when you watch an episode, the training and drama in the house we see will be from the previous week, very similar to The Ultimate Fighter season that they tried to do semi-live, as well as the UFC Primetime and “Embedded” specials which they try to keep up-to-date.
The television show will air each Tuesday, with footage shot during the week as well as a live show in front of a studio audience.
While Chris Jericho is scheduled to be the host of the show, it’s said that he will have somewhat of a “Ryan Seacrest role,” and won’t be hosting the show in the style that WWE had “Stone Cold” Steve Austin do several years ago.
As far as the rest of the cast, Hulk Hogan, Paige and Daniel Bryan will serve as panelists, mentors and judges, while Booker T, Billy Gunn and Lita will serve as the actual trainers for the contestants. Each week on the show there will be a judges vote and an audience vote to decide who goes home.
WWE has reportedly gone out of their way to recruit certain people to be cast members on the show, including Tessa Blanchard, daughter of WWE Hall Of Famer Tully Blanchard. It’s also said that they badly wanted Moose on the show.
Apparently WWE is telling people that they are recruiting to be on the program that they will be guaranteed a spot on the show, however the actual winner of the season will not be pre-determined and will be completely legitimate based on the fan voting.
Chris Jericho announced on Thursday that he will be hosting the new season of WWE Tough Enough, which premieres on the USA Network on Tuesday, June 23rd.
WWE also issued a press release giving tons more information about the new season, including details on judges, trainers and more.
– Hulk Hogan, Daniel Bryan and Paige will be judges on the series.
– Booker T, Lita and Billy Gunn will be the trainers.
– Tough Enough will be filmed out of the WWE Performance Center and Full Sail University, home of NXT.
– The official Tough Enough app will be launching on May 25th.
– There will be a lot of fan interaction, including the ability to vote via the Tough Enough app and texting to interact with various live elements
– Contestants in the series will “come face to face” with Vince McMahon, Triple H, Stephanie McMahon and John Cena over the course of the series.
– CBS Radio announced today that Booker T’s “Heated Conversations” podcast has been picked up by the Play.IT network, the same company that broadcasts Taz’s podcast.
– WWE has announced a second NXT live event for Philadelphia on Friday, May 15th due to overwhelming demand for the first live event the previous night.
Due to OVERWHELMING demand, a 2nd NXT Live! in #NXTPhilly has been added on Fri. May 15! Tix go on sale Fri. at 10AM! pic.twitter.com/fNbc8u6bOh
– WWE Hall of Famer Ricky Steamboat recently spoke with Title Match Wrestling about Randy Savage’s WWE Hall of Fame induction, their legendary WrestleMania match, feuding with Ric Flair and more.