– WWE Champion The Miz called out Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers on his Twitter last night. Miz wrote:
“Aaron Rogers congrats on the super bowl. Saw Letterman, the title fits u well come to Wrestlemania and earn the right to wear it.”
Speaking of The Miz, he was courtside for Tuesday night’s Miami Heat vs. Indiana Pacers NBA basketball game.
– Former WWE writers Alex Greenfield, Chris DeJoseph and Court Bauer are working together on a new MMA reality TV show called Ungloved. It will feature Frank Shamrock working to get MMA legalized in the state of New York. (source: f4wonline.com)
– Former WWE star Ken Doane (Kenny Dykstra) responded to Bret Hart’s recent comments where he said today’s wrestlers are boring. Doane wrote on Twitter:
“love how the hitman calls todays wrestlers boring. LOL! this could be why i got fired. had too much fun. but he is right tho. i didnt meet the company standards i think. i drank ALOT of beers!”
The Wrestling Press recently spoke to Bret Hart in an hour long interview, where the WWE Hall of Famer spoke indepth about his tell-all book Hitman: My Real Life in the Cartoon World of Wrestling, his return to World Wrestling Entertainment last year after a long absence, his relationship with Vince McMahon, winning the United States Championship last May, and much more.
In regards to his return last year, he admits to worrying that WWE wouldn’t give his legacy or fans the justice it deserves.
“I thought maybe when I come back that I would look at it and think I should have left it, why did I do it?” he said in reference to the ‘Montreal Screwjob’. “For example if (Shawn Michaels) had been pompous to me or had blew me off then it would have bothered me a lot and then it could have ended up with round two. But Shawn was really sincere and very grateful for being able to bury the hatchet with me.
“For me that was real and (Vince McMahon) was real too me too, and I think in the end [my return] turned out to be a better idea than we thought it would be.
“I never had much in the ways of regret. WWE didn’t have to hire me if they didn’t like what I wrote about them in the book, but they accepted that I was honest and true.
“I always thought that the only thing stopping me from going back was my pride, and the main reason why I did return was that I needed a goal and to do something different. I like to think I am pretty secure in my life and my savings so that was never a deciding factor. It’s been great rubbing shoulders with the likes of Randy Orton and all of these young guys. I didn’t want to ride off into the sunset as an angry, bitter, damn you all to hell kind of guy, which I thought I was coming across as. In hindsight now that it is done, I have said what I have said and we should all move on. I don’t hate the company. I don’t hate Vince McMahon, I don’t blame him for Owen’s death, none of it. I wanted to take a negative and turn it into a positive and peace is always better than war.”
He also discussed the contrasts between the WWE locker room of his day and today.
“They are completely different, the wrestlers of today,” he said. “I don’t even know if I could hang around with them they are so boring. They are like a bunch from a choir, they play video games and listen to their headphones, drink energy drinks and keep themselves to themselves. There is no beer drinking, no hell raising at all.”
You can read the interactive version (including video) here or download the PDF here.
– There are rumors that Awesome Kong will make her WWE debut at Sunday’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view. One scenario that’s been discussed is for her to interfere during the Divas Title match between Natalya and LayCool.
– There are still people in WWE that believe Batista will return to the company this year. Big Dave is known to be a fan of the “good life” – enjoying the luxury lifestyle that being a top-drawing WWE superstar brings. Batista has been pursuing his acting career, as well as training for his professional mixed martial arts debut, but his best chance to make big money is still with WWE.
While company officials remain optimistic that Batista has not wrestled his last match, the fact that Mason Ryan was brought in last week without changing his look (which most see as very similar to Batista’s) indicates that WWE is moving on without him, for now.
— Bret Hart’s latest role in WWE is taking part in the “Legends Roundtable” series that airs on WWE’s Classics On Demand channel. Jim Ross noted on Twitter this week that he was at WWE headquarters this week with Bret Hart, Pat Patterson, Michael Hayes and Gene Okerlund working on new Legends Roundtable episodes.
— Bret Hart revealed to Right After Wrestling that John Morrison once apologized to him backstage for handing out his sunglasses to children before his matches.
“He came up to me, John Morrison did, and he apologized to me, he said he felt bad and made references to stealing my gimmick,” Hart said.
“But the fact that he even addressed it was flattering to me. I don’t think it’s any different than Rey Mysterio giving stuff to the kids. It’s gotta keep moving on, and if there’s any kind of connection between his giving the sunglasses away and my giving the sunglasses away years ago, between an old fan and a young fan, I think that’s beautiful, I have no problem with it at all.”
— A SmackDown brand match pitting Trent Barreta against Tyler Reks was taped last night in Cincinnati, Ohio for this week’s episode of WWE Superstars.
— The Nexus has changed their Twitter handle to @NewNexusWWE.
– Tonight’s episode of WWE RAW from the Joe Louis arena in Detroit, Michigan will feature a blockbuster Champion vs. Champion main event. WWE Champion The Miz will take on World Heavyweight Champion Edge.
– Cody Rhodes wore a nose guard at this weekend’s SmackDown live event to sell the angle with Rey Mysterio from Friday’s SmackDown. Before his match with Percy Watson, Cody brought a WWE doctor to the ring and said his nose was broken from SmackDown. Their match ended when The Corre ran down and attacked Percy while Cody ran off.
– Even though he’s featured on the cover art of the upcoming WWE All Stars video game, there had been some rumors that Hulk Hogan had been removed from the game. After checking with a source, we’ve heard that Hogan will remain in the game because his deal with TNA allows for him to do outside licensing deals. Ric Flair, however, will not be appearing in the game.
– Chris Jericho noted on Twitter that he’s been working on a new Fozzy album. He wrote:
“Been writing lyrics over the last few months for the new Fozzy record. Got some REALLY cool stuff! Bunch of diff subjects and another epic!”
– Bret Hart dropped the puck at this weekend’s Toronto Marlies hockey game in Canada. After the game, Bret also signed autographs for fans.
– WWE Intercontinental Champion Kofi Kingston will be appearing today at KMart on Beechmont Avenue in Cincinnati, Ohio from 6pm. There is a wristband policy in effect for the first 300 customers. WWE did a signing with The Miz at KMart in Youngstown, Ohio this weekend where the wristbands were sold out well ahead of time.
WWE Hall of Famer Bret “The Hitman” Hart was a guest on Sunday night’s Live Audio Wrestling radio show on Sirius XM. Among the topics discussed was the announcement that Shawn Michaels will be joining him in the Hall of Fame during WrestleMania weekend in April. Hart says despite the long standing issues he and Shawn had in the past, they buried the hatchet last year when he returned to WWE television on January 4th and remain friends to this day. When asked whether he would induct Shawn into the Hall of Fame, Bret responded:
“I wouldn’t have any problem inducting Shawn. The truth is Shawn was a great wrestler and I had a lot of great matches with him. I’m proud of some of the great memories I had with Shawn and I would be happy to induct him into the Hall of Fame if they asked me to,” Hart told John Pollock of the Fight Network for an interview on Sunday’s Live Audio Wrestling show.
Regarding his future with WWE and whether he’d be open to working this year’s WrestleMania and future storylines, Bret said:
“I’m not expecting to be involved in WrestleMania, but at the same time, I could get a call tomorrow to ask me to play some sort of part. I would be happy to be involved with WrestleMania or something that comes up the next few months.”
The Hitman also spoke about concussions in wrestling, saying that the lingering effects of concussions suffered during his career are more of an issue for him today than the career-ending stroke he suffered several years ago.
Visit TheFightNetwork.com to download an MP3 of Bret’s appearance on the LAW show.
WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart has a new blog on his Facebook page where he reflects on his eventful 2010. Here are some highlights of what Bret said about:
His Return To WWE in January 2010:
“There was some great television moments I had with both Shawn Michaels and Vince McMahon. Coming back and doing Monday Night Raw was such a blast from my supposed broken leg by the limo on the ramp to my sister Alison storming out to be a lumberjack at Wrestlemania in Phoenix. It was great returning to WWE and some of my favorite wrestling cities from Austin to Boston and everything in between. To have had the thrill of being in the ring cutting promos with Stone Cold, Undertaker, Shawn, and even Vince again was a dream come true as much for myself as it was for my fans around the world.”
Winning The US Title & One Last WWE Title Run?
“I think back to what a thrill it was winning the US Title in Toronto and the wild after hours party with Jericho and Dibiase, Steph and Beans, old pal Don Kolov and his “Russian Mafia” in the wings. The decision to forfeit the US Title came to me that night; the celebrating nearly killed me.
Today, when I see the Miz as the newly crowned WWE champion, the thought doesn’t escape me that if I technically beat him to win the US title last spring, could I not come back and try one last time against all odds and somehow take that WWE world title back again? Ahh, that’s the beauty of pro wrestling. Never stop dreaming; anything is possible.”
Working With The Hart Dynasty & Other Great Memories:
“I smile at the memory of the Hart Dynasty winning the tag titles in April and Natalya fullfilling her childhood dream of winning the Divas title. Summerslam 2010, Madison Square Garden tagging up with the Hart Dynasty against Nexus being cheered on by my granddaughter Kyra, oldest daughter Jade, her boyfriend Kyle, and my lovely wife Steph, for me this was one of 2010 real highlights. I thank everyone in New York who came, especially WWE, for this night in particular. I’d also like to thank all of the wrestlers for letting me join them on the tours in Europe this year.”
— WWE posted a video on YouTube ranking the top 10 greatest WWE submission Superstars of all time. The ranking is as follows:
10. Tazz
9. William Regal
8. Sgt. Slaughter
7. Daniel Bryan
6. Dean Malenko
5. Chris Jericho
4. Ric Flair
3. Bob Backlund
2. Kurt Angle
1. Bret Hart
Daniel Bryan criticized Flair’s Figure Four finishing maneuver by saying he didn’t win a lot of matches with it and therefore wouldn’t rate at the top.
— It was reported that last Tuesday’s live SmackDown episode on the USA Network drew a 2.5 cable rating. According to television industry sources, the show actually drew a 2.2 overall cable rating, with 3,812,000 viewers.
— Wednesday’s Tribute to the Troops broadcast on the USA Network drew a 1.8 cable rating over the course of two hours, with 3,013,000 viewers. The show did hours of 1.8 and 1.7.
WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart was recently interviewed by the UK’s Daily Mirror publication. You can watch a video of their interview with the Hitman at this link. Here are some highlights of what he said about:
Wrestling With Tyson Kidd, DH Smith & Natalya Neidhart At MSG:
Bret said working with them was incredibly rewarding. The Hart Dynasty wanted to be wrestlers their entire lives and working with them was one of the major things that brought him back to WWE. He wanted to give back to the younger generation and show them their hard work paid off. He thinks if Owen Hart and Davey Boy Smith were around today, they would have wanted him to work with Natalya, DH Smith and Tyson Kidd.
“I personally think that their story has not evolved enough yet. There’s a real human interest story about their childhoods and growing up with wrestling that doesn’t need to be rushed.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised if the timing is a little quick and – I don’t have any idea if this rift they have right now is going to be a permanent rift or going to lead to a huge storyline. Who knows, maybe it will tie me in somehow.”
TNA Wrestling, Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff:
“I’m so unfamiliar with TNA. I don’t know what they’re doing. More so than ever, when they’ve tied themselves in with the genius of Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff, I immediately focus on something else. I’ve been there, done that. I know between the two of them, they don’t have a good idea in their head about wrestling.”
For those wondering about the status of WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart, we can report that his WWE contract recently expired.
The feeling within WWE is that it does not make sense to use Hart unless there is something “major” for him to do, so don’t expect him to appear on WWE television any time soon. If something does come up, there is always the option of signing him to another short-term deal.
Hart remains on very good terms with WWE and him not appearing on television is not a sign that the two sides are on bad terms.
Bret Hart will also continue to make occasional appearances when WWE holds live events in markets where Hart remains very popular. Hart appeared at live WWE events in New York City, Calgary and on WWE’s most recent European tour.
Hart was married over the summer and is enjoying life with his new wife.
— Bret Hart returned to the ring Friday at WWE’s SmackDown live event in Cologne, Germany. “The Hitman” teamed with David Hart Smith and Tyson Kidd to defeat Husky Harris, Heath Slater and David Otunga. The match concluded when Slater tapped out to Hart’s Sharpshooter.
— Shawn Michaels and Triple H were at the Georgia Dome Thursday before the Atlanta Falcons vs. Baltimore Ravens game. They briefly discussed WrestleMania XXVII before doing the signature ‘Are You Ready’ bit. HBK explained they had to say ‘Rise Up’ instead of a certain catchphrase because it’s the Falcons slogan this year, and also because they don’t want to get in trouble.
— Bret Hart noted on his Facebook account Friday that his ring jacket and sunglasses were stolen at Thursday’s SmackDown live event in Nuremberg, Germany.
“Just a quick update for everyone. The tour’s going well but, unfortunately, somebody stole my ring jacket and sunglasses at the Nurnberg, Germany show last night. Any help would be appreciated. May they wear it in shame knowing they stole it!”
— As of Thursday afternoon, the first four rows on all four sides of the ring for WrestleMania XXVII at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia were sold out, including all of the $1,000 seats.
— During commentary on this week’s episode of WWE Superstars, Michael Cole pondered if “Vince” would be commentating during the “Old School” episode of Raw. Josh Matthews said “the guy’s in a coma,” to which Cole replied, “Oh well then. His commentary won’t be any worse than it was 20 years ago.”
— Today marks the fifth anniversary of the passing of former WWE Champion Eddie Guerrero, who was found dead in a hotel room in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart was interviewed this week by Brian Fritz of Fanhouse.com to promote the new SmackDown vs. RAW 2011 video game.
Hart had some pretty harsh words about TNA Wrestling, saying it’s run by people who don’t know anything about the wrestling business and feature dinosaurs on television that take time away from the company’s real stars. Here are some highlights of what Bret said about:
Hogan, Bischoff & Russo Together Again In TNA:
“Well, I’ll be honest. After being in WCW and being around them, you start to realize that these guys — Bischoff in particular — never understood or knew anything about wrestling. They just struck me as guys that didn’t understand wrestling. To see them working with another company now, to me, I think you’ll eventually see that they don’t know anything. They didn’t know anything then and they don’t know anything now. They’re not going to make a difference anywhere they go.”
TNA’s Young Talent Getting Smothered By Dinosaurs:
“Yeah, competition is always good. I have a lot of respect for the young wrestlers there like AJ Styles and Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe, Abyss, different guys. I know they’ve got a lot of talent there and guys that I consider good friends of mine including RVD (Rob Van Dam). I wish them all the best and I hope the younger stars get a chance to show what they’ve got rather than coming back to the old dinosaurs like Hulk Hogan or Eric Bischoff with the same old certain babble that he’s been doing for 10 years when he’ll babble about nothing. He somehow positions himself to be a star on the show and I think there’s real stars that need to get that light and not him.”
WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart was interviewed this week by Brian Fritz of AOL Fanhouse.
You can read the entire WWE interview at Fanhouse.com.
Here are some highlights of what Bret Hart said about:
His WWE Future: “I have every intention of working with them for the next couple of years. They’ve been pretty good to me and I’ve been pretty happy with how they’re treating me. We’re kind of just waiting for the next step in the steady progression of Bret “The Hitman” Hart returning to the WWE. I’m not quite sure where they go from here but I still expect to be part of things for quite a while.”
Bret Hart Appreciation Night at MSG: “It’s the biggest thing I’ve done since my comeback. I always wanted to wrestle in Madison Square Garden one more time. I used to tell Vince McMahon long before I ever worked with him again, before I came back to the company and buried the hatchet, but I always told him … He wanted me to do WrestleMania in Toronto for example and I think they wanted me to do something else at one of the other WrestleManias after that, it might have been the one in LA and he called me up to be a part of it and I said nah. I’m really just waiting for you to have something at the Garden. If you ever have anything in New York. I always felt that my strongest U.S., American fan base was in New York and that’s where they kind of loved me the most and I almost felt that I owed it to them to come back one time. When they brought it up to me a few months ago that they were going to do something with me in New York, I thought that’s going to be a magical moment for me that I’ll never forget. And it was great. I loved every bit of it. Even now, I still sort of pinch myself and ask myself if it really happened, did I wrestle in New York. I thought I had pretty good match there too. I thought the whole thing was a very special night for me.”
Here’s a fan-shot video from Bret Hart’s recent return to Madison Square Garden for Bret Hart Appreciation Night:
His Favorite WWE Superstars: “I’ve been really impressed with (John) Morrison who is amazing to me. Kofi (Kingston) is another guy who has some amazing stuff. Some of these guys today can really move like Evan Bourne who really impresses me with his wrestling style. Even Jack Swagger and some of these other bigger guys are quite impressive. I’ve always been a big fan of Rey Mysterio, he’s one of my favorites. I love how he seems to give 100 percent every night and pull off these five-star matches all the time. He’s an innovator that comes up with moves and does things that people have never seen before which is so hard to do in wrestling. Everything has been done or seems like everything has been done before so when somebody comes up with something that is totally new it always impresses me. The girls in wrestling are also quite impressive. The lady wrestlers of today are a billion miles ahead of the lady wrestlers of 20, 30 years ago. They’ve really taken it up a notch. Melina and so many of these young girls are such fantastic performers and hard workers.”
– Bret Hart is advertised locally for this Monday’s Raw, which takes place in his hometown of Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
— The Hartford Courant had a front page story this week about drug issues in WWE and Linda McMahon’s Senatorial campaign.WWE’s Medical Director Dr. Joseph Maroon is quoted in the article, saying, “We have no talent now on steroids.”
— The latest Quinnipiac poll, taken before Tuesday’s debate, showed Richard Blumenthal’s lead over Linda up to 54-43%.
— The New York Times today endorsed Blumenthal and said that he’s apologized for his Vietnam falsity, but that McMahon is not ready to take on matters like the war, the economy and other major issues.
— A Texas steroids-education group had a conference call on Wednesday blasting WWE for their track record.
– TMZ.com caught up with The Rock this week, who talks about the time he hit Mick Foley with 14 chairshots to the head in front of his kids. They showed the clip from King of the Ring back in the late 90s and the shots are brutal. You can check out the video here.
— This past Saturday, WWE hosted “Bret Hart Appreciation Night” at Madison Square Garden as part of its Smackdown World Tour. Bret “The Hitman” Hart returned to New York City after 13 years and fans got to experience a variety of matches including the Six-Man Tag Team Match, Diva Tag Team Match, and a New York Street Fight Match, among others. Wrestlers featured on the card included The Undertaker, Kane, The Big Show, CM Punk, Kelly Kelly and Michelle McCool.
MSG.com had a chance to talk with “The Hitman” himself to discover more about Bret the Wrestler, Bret the Romantic, and Bret the hockey player. Find out what he had to say in their exclusive video interview here:
Still Surreal .. HBK & Bret Make Peace After 12 Long Years
WWE’s Hart Dynasty – David Hart Smith, Tyson Kidd, and Natalya – appeared on Monday’s Right After Wrestling radio show. Among the topics discussed was Bret Hart’s return to WWE on January 4th and his in-ring reconciliation with longtime rival Shawn Michaels.
“You could feel the weight being lifted off of them after that night,” Natalya said. “To have that kind of history, over a decade of holding onto that, it was a great release for both off them.
“Before Bret had come to WWE, Shawn Michaels had helped mentor a lot of the younger talent, Triple H as well, so we saw a completely different side of these guys than Bret had remembered during the time of the Montreal Screwjob.”
Other topics included more on Bret’s return to WWE, the pride Natalya takes in Trish Stratus naming her the current Diva she’d most like to work with, backstage ribs and thoughts on the WWE tag division.
To listen to the full interview, visit Radio.TheScore.com.
– Tonight is a special night for WWE, as the company presents its 900th episode of Monday Night RAW live from the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. Stars from RAW and SmackDown are booked for the show. WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart will also be there.
No matches have been announced for tonight but Randy Orton vs. John Cena vs. Sheamus in a cage match for the WWE Title is being advertised locally as the dark match main event.
– WWE has confirmed that their return to Madison Square Garden on September 25th with a SmackDown show will be Bret Hart Appreciation Night. This will be Bret’s first time at MSG in thirteen years. Bret is scheduled to team with The Hart Dynasty to take on three members of Nexus. Other matches confirmed for the show include:
* Kane vs. Undertaker
* Cristian vs. Matt Hardy vs. Dolph Ziggler
* Big Show vs. Jack Swagger
* Kofi Kingston vs. CM Punk
* MVP vs. Cody Rhodes
* LyCool vs. Kelly Kelly & Rosa
– R-Truth noted on Twitter recently that he’s still working on a new CD.
WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart has updated his Facebook blog with his thoughts about working the main event at WWE SummerSlam against Nexus. Here’s what Bret wrote about his experience:
Summerslam has come and gone and, in so many ways, it all seems like a crazy dream. Tagging up with John Cena was a personal pleasure and it was more than a treat to sit down with him before the match and watch him lay down the strategies of our team from start to finish. Despite my so-called bout with Vince McMahon at WrestleMania, this scenario at Summerslam would be much closer to the types of matches I had 12 years ago.
Luckily, six other wrestlers on my team would be doing the brunt of the work. It was great for me to sit in with my team and listen to Cena methodically lay down our strategy: to hit ‘em hard and to hit em’ first. I was more than impressed with how he dissected different moments like a true ring general, reminding me of how I used to do the same. He gave every one of us a broad overview on exactly how we would overwhelm Nexus once and for all. All I can say is what a rush! The match seemed surreal right from the start and I can’t help but smile at the memory at both Chris Jericho and Edge on the apron battling together with the rest of us, Cena, to me, clearly stood out as our biggest asset and, despite Team WWE, eliminating two Nexus wrestlers, they rallied right back and evened things out.
Nexus soon found out what a tough scrapper Jericho is when he’s pushed into a corner when he came off the second rope with a punishing dropkick right square in the kisser of a Nexus goon and then it all just slows down for me like a movie in slow motion. Jericho gives me the hot tag, I haven’t made a good wrestling comeback in at least 12 years. As I feel the slap of skin, ducking through the ropes my head feels lightheaded; the fiery redheaded Heath Slater has tagged and coming right at me. Then like a blast of technicolor, I block his punch and begin my pounding of my big rubber hammers off his head. Hard thumps to his ribcage, he falls back into a corner and, like days of old, I pull myself up to the second rope and begin a barrage of fat-fisted carnage. As this punk from Nexus finds out the hard way that you can take the Hitman out of the fight but you can never take the fight out of the Hitman. I got him reeling as I fire him crisply into the ropes. He stumbles off wondering if it’ll be a Goldberg kick or an elbow, but at the last second, I step aside and place a meaty fist right into his gut taking his breath away. I pull myself up but I feel my energy slipping. I snatch him quick and hoist him up and dropping him with a vicious front ass-bump, popping him up in time to club him down with a Hitman clothesline.
My tank is holding steady as I hold him by the heels and step through for my coup-de-grace, the Sharpshooter. He’s done for. I glanced down in time to see Nexus leader, Wade Barrett, slide a steel chair underneath the bottom rope. At this point I decide to go seal-hunter on him, only to intercept the bald musclehead Skip Sheffield with no time to spare. I had to protect myself. With a bash in the guts, I bent the big meathead over and smash the chair over his backside. The smash feels electrifying and so does the crowd. The Staples Center goes bananas. The ref frantically waves me out, I’m disqualified. I can’t believe it. Barrett brought the damn chair in. My L.A. fans chant and I remember my stroke and my wheelchair, I picture my mom sighing in relief, Stu with Owen and Davey close by as I high-five some beaming and exasperated kids. Luckily, Cena would eventually pull this one of the fire for Team WWE. As for me, my heart would fill up on the moment. Slaps on the back at the Gorilla position, grins bigger than mine. I made it back to Summerslam and held my own. Anything is possible as the Hitman makes everyone believers one more time, even himself. Next dream will be Madison Square Garden on September 25th. Can’t wait!
– Bret Hart was not at last night’s double RAW taping from the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas as he is in Hawaii on his honeymoon with his new wife Stephanie that he married this past Saturday in Calgary. It was announced last night that Hart will team with John Cena to face Edge and Chris Jericho with The Nexus as lumberjacks on the 8/9 edition of WWE RAW from ARCO Arena in Sacramento, California.
– WWE is searching for new Divas. The company has issued a request for agents and talent managers to submit female actresses to casting director Kristin Prouty. The new Diva hires would replace several of the current Divas on the roster. WWE has shown over the years that no Diva is too important to be replaced, letting go Mickie James and Maria Kanellis earlier this year. No word yet on who is at risk – but you can bet Michelle McCool’s spot is safe.
The casting will take place in October in various cities across the United States, including New York, Los Angeles and Las Vegas WWE will then offer developmental deals to some of the women with deals that will be negotiated “specific to each woman.†The casting request is seeking women of all ethnicities.
-WWE’s marketing deparment was told a few weeks ago that Vince McMahon does not want any usage of things related to the image of Shawn Michaels. Those close to Michaels say he is mentally done with wrestling and, in his mind right now, he will never come back in ANY form. Not sure what happened, but Michaels was quite vocal many weeks back about his displeasure with his former student, Daniel Bryan, being released by the company.
-Bret Hart will be married to girlfriend Stephanie Washington this Saturday in Calgary. He was scheduled to go to Hawaii on his honeymoon, so unless plans have changed, he will likely not be on Raw this Monday.
After thirteen years, WWE Hall of Famer Bret “The Hitman” Hart is returning to Madison Square Garden.
In what is being billed as Bret “The Hitman” Hart Appreciation Night, the official MSG website has announced that Hart will team up with The Hart Dynasty to wrestle three unspecified members of Nexus in a Six Man Tag Team Match at the September 25 SmackDown live event.
The match will mark as Hart’s first appearance at Madison Square Garden since a September 1997 Monday Night Raw taping, which saw him work a dark match against Shawn Michaels and The Undertaker.
The rest of the announced card is as follows:
* Rey Mysterio vs. Kane vs. Jack Swagger – Triple Threat Match for the World Heavyweight Championship
* Kofi Kingston vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Christian vs. Matt Hardy – Fatal Four Way Match for the Intercontinental Championship
* Big Show vs. CM Punk*
* MVP vs. Cody Rhodes
* Kelly Kelly and Tiffany vs. Michelle McCool and Layla
— As reported earlier, WWE Hall of Famer Ricky Steamboat was hospitalized Wednesday night after suffering a brain aneurysm. He is reportedly in stable condition. His son, WWE developmental wrestler Richie Steamboat, recently opened an account on Twitter and has posted numerous messages concerning his father’s health.
He wrote yesterday afternoon, “Please keep my dad in your thoughts & prayers. The issues are worse than expected but he could be worse. God will help him through it!!!” Then added today, “Thanks again everyone for the prayers & msgs. Dad is fine right now. God & you guys have helped us & things will get better as time passes.”
— Today is WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart’s birthday. He turns 53 years old.
— WWE canceled it entire Fourth of July weekend tour due to poor ticket sales and a result, performers and personnel have a rare weekend off. The events have been rescheduled for December.
— The search term “WWE Undertaker Marries” was among AOL.com’s “Top Searches” today.
WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart has written a blog entry responding to Martha Hart’s lawsuit against World Wrestling Entertainment over using the likeness and footage of Owen Hart.
“I feel that it’s ridiculous for anyone to think they are serving the best interests of Owen’s memory or his children to pretend he wasn’t a wrestler,” Hart stated. “Not only was he a wrestler, he was a great one and proud of it. I personally believe Martha Hart has done nothing to keep his memory alive and sadly, he fades from view a little more every year. I do suspect this lawsuit is more about publicity, ego, and small-mindedness than it is about pro-wrestling and all of those that are in it.
“I know Owen was always proud of his body of work. His fans have never forgotten him and most of today’s WWE wrestlers and hundreds of employees have never forgotten him. They speak endlessly of loving memories that speak volumes on what kind of person he was. I saw Owen on TV a few weeks ago against a young Matt Hardy and it put me in such a good mood all day long. Why would anyone want to prevent that? Martha needs to accept the sad truth that he’s gone, but we all deserve to be able to salute and honor him for being the great man and the great wrestler that he was.”