D-Von Dudley believes Paul Heyman’s habit of doing everything on his own was one of the reasons for the downfall of the original ECW.
The Attitude Era star who worked extensively with both Vince McMahon and Heyman during his career talked about the difference between the two in a video on his new YouTube channel.
While discussing the things he didn’t like about both the bosses, D-Von noted that Paul did not like asking for help even when he knew that he needed it:
“Paul had so much responsibility on his hands, he trusted nobody. Even though he knew he needed help, he was still going to carry the load all by himself. He didn’t care. I think that’s what burned him out.
Probably one of the things that I feel that probably closed the doors of ECW. You got to have that help. You got to be able to put your pride aside and go ‘Hey I need help. Can you help do this? Can you help do that?'”
According to the wrestling veteran, this is one of the reason for the failures of the original ECW as Heyman burnt himself up while trying to keep the brand going:
“When you’re trying to live up to the hype that ECW created, it’s hard to keep doing it on a regular basis when you don’t have any help. So that was one of the things I wish Paul could have done because maybe the company would have been around, who knows.
But that’s one of the things that I feel that Paul basically I didn’t like about it. I wanted to see ECW survive because it was my home. It was my first home and it was sad to me when it was gone.”
Paul Heyman took over the creative of ECW in 1993. He became the sole owner of the company in 1995 and started it off on the path that changed the wrestling world. The promotion folded due to financial difficulties in 2001, however, as Heyman failed to secure a new TV deal for it before WWE bought it in 2003.
D-Von Dudley faced racism the moment he joined WWE in 1999, the Hall of Famer revealed this week. Speaking on Maven’s YouTube channel, D-Von recounted experiencing discrimination due to his skin color from someone fans would “absolutely” recognize.
“They told Bubba ‘You’re a good guy, I like you a lot. But D-Von, I don’t know… He’s black.’ I remember balling up my fists and Bubba saw it and grabbed me.”
Understandably enraged by these comments, D-Von said he was “p*ssed” but chose not to retaliate, knowing that an altercation could jeopardize the Dudleys’ future in WWE. Reflecting on the incident, he admitted, “Had I reacted, we probably wouldn’t be sitting here talking now.”
D-Von also revealed that racism wasn’t limited to the roster; he encountered discrimination from “certain people in the office” in senior positions. However, he clarified that Vince McMahon, John Laurinaitis, and Michael Hayes were not among those who treated him unfairly because of his race.
D-Von’s comments bring new light to WWE’s often problematic nature with race, as several angles over the years have been accused of being racist. Nevertheless, these horrific comments at D-Von did not stop him from being one of the all-time greatest tag-team wrestlers of all time and a Hall of Famer in both WWE and TNA Wrestling.
WWE Hall of Famer D-Von Dudley recently addressed the possibility of stepping foot inside the squared circle for one more match.
During an appearance on The Wrestling Life podcast, D-Von Dudley revealed whether he wanted to make an in-ring return. The ECW legend said that fans continue to demand ‘one more match’ from him when he does one match. He highlighted the fact that the fans would want him to compete for a long time.
However, D-Von Dudley said that he is not ruling out the idea of returning but didn’t want to say “never.” He also dropped hints about some future opportunities in the United States or abroad in Japan. He said:
“Here’s what I’m gonna tell you: every time you do one match, you say ‘one more match,’ and then the fans are going ‘one more match’ after that. Listen, they’re not gonna stop until you’re in the grave. You know, but I don’t know, I’m not gonna say never. There are some talks about things happening, whether it’s here in the states or even abroad in Japan. So, nothing, it’s just talks, that’s it. Nothing is being set in stone or anything like that. I’m saying that there were rumblings and talks about it.”
D-Von Dudley’s return could take place soon but no plans have been locked in yet. He had competed at the Impact 1000 show last year and his last match took place at IWC Superstar Showdown V back in April this year.
D-Von Dudley also recently made an appearance on NXT 2300 which was held on November 6th at the famous 2300 Arena and the night featured return of several ECW originals. He reunited with Dudley Boyz teammate Bubba Ray Dudley, who had teamed up with Trick Williams to face Ridge Holland and “All Ego” Ethan Page. Following the match, Ridge and Ethan attacked Trick, but Bubba helped fight them off. The duo then hit some classic Dudley Boyz moves with D-Von Dudley returning with a table.
Matt Cardona has been making his name ever since his release from WWE, and now the ‘Indy God’ had his name mentioned during the Emmy Awards.
The 75th annual Emmy Awards took place this week from the Peacock Theater in Downtown Los Angeles, California. The awards covered programming from June 2022 to May 2023, with nominations announced in July of 2023.
Paul Walter Hauser took home the award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for his role as Larry Hall in Apple TV+’s Black Bird.
Hauser’s acceptance speech included several name-drops and references from the world of pro wrestling, including Matt Cardona and ‘get the tables!’
Paul Walter Hauser brings pro wrestling to the Emmy’s
If Hauser’s name sounds familiar, it’s because had a match for Pro Wrestling REVOLVER last November.
During his acceptance speech, Hauser name-dropped Matt Cardona, saying he’s going to beat the ‘Indy God’ at the upcoming Ready or Not event on March 16.
Kota Ibushi and Matt Cardona shoutouts during the Emmys by Paul Walter Hauser. Incredible.pic.twitter.com/JYhFMdfLqB
It wasn’t just Matt Cardona that Hauser referenced during his rap-based acceptance speech. The actor also gave a shoutout to Kota Ibushi and referred to the ‘Wolfpac’, a nod to the NWO off-shoot faction.
WWE Hall of Famer ‘Diamond’ Dallas Page was among the lengthy list of people that Hauser wished to thank. Hauser ended his speech with a “get the tables”, a nod to the legendary tag team the Dudley Boyz.
Paul Walter Hauser won his Emmy award in a category that also included Murray Bartlett (Welcome to Chippendales, Nick De Noia), Richard Jenkins (Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, Lionel Dahmer), Joseph Lee (Beef, George Nakai), Ray Liotta (Black Burd, James ‘Big Jim’ Keener), Young Mazino (Beef, Paul Cho), and Jesse Plemons (Love and Death, Allan Gore).
Last time Paul Walter Hauser was in an @PWRevolver ring… He K!LLED a man!
The Dudley family has grown by one this week, as D-Von Dudley has welcomed a new baby boy into the fold.
Taking to Facebook this week, D-Von, real name Devon Hughes, announced the birth of DJ, who was born on December 19th and weighed in at 6lbs and 11 oz. D-Von added that the mother and baby are doing great and thanked fans for their well-wishes.
D-Von has quite a large family, and prior to the arrival of DJ, already has four sons and two daughters. Terrell and Terrence were both in February 1995 and have followed their father into the ring. The twins have made appearances for AEW in the past. Matthew was both in November 2001 and Preston was born in June 2008. After marrying his current wife Taylor, the couple welcomed Taliyah into the world in August 2019 and Amiyah in January 2020.
D-Von Dudley, real name Devon Hughes, has announced that he is no longer with WWE.
Following a run with Bubba Ray Dudley from 2015-2016 in WWE, D-Von retired from in-ring action to start working as a producer for WWE and later as an NXT trainer.
As part of The Dudley Boyz tag team, he wrestled for ECW from 1995 to 1999 and WWE from 1999 to 2005 as D-Von Dudley and Reverend D-Von. He performed for TNA from 2005 to 2014 as Brother Devon and Devon.
He labeled the departure a mutual decision and thanked Vince McMahon, Paul Levesque, and Stephanie McMahon. You can read his statement below:
The Statement
“The company (WWE) and I have decided to parted ways, and feel this is the best Decision for all parties it’s been a pleasure and an honor to work with the young talent when bubba as well as everyone over in NXT. As well as working with some of the best producers in the world. would mike to thank Vince , Paul (HHH), Stephanie, and my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for the Opportunity that was given. I’m very excited to see where God brings me next, Oh my brother……. TESTIFY!!!!”
His sons Terrence and Tyrell have worked on the AEW YouTube shows and on the independent wrestling scene. He had publicly hoped to have them join NXT one day to wrestle.
WWE pulled D-Von Dudley from making a scheduled appearance at an ECW tribute event over the weekend.
The WWE Hall Of Famer was slated to appear at the Battleground Championship Wrestling’s “A Tribute to the Extreme” show at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia on Saturday night.
The promotion stated they had received a legal letter from WWE, according to Pwinsider.com.
The Report
D-Von Dudley. Image Credit: WWE.com
The report noted that “D-Von was then pulled from the show, despite, according to the promotion, personally reaching out to WWE Chief Content Officer Paul Levesque to get the edict reversed, which was not successful.”
Dudley, who works for WWE as an NXT coach and producer, was also removed from the Icons of Wrestling convention that was being held in conjunction with the show.
Dudley was supposed to appear during a match between Bully Ray and Matt Cardona at the show. Last Friday, Icons of Wrestling wrote about the situation:
“Here we go: Due to circumstances beyond my control D-Von will no longer be at Icons & Battleground. D-von is beyond devastated by this and I want everyone to know that this turn of events had absolutely NOTHING to due with D-von. Currently I’m hesitant to put the reasoning in writing but I will have zero hesitation telling the entire wrestling world why this happened inside the ring. To those who made this decision you will not deter us. You will not stop us. You may think you have control but rest assured you do not. All Dudley boy presales will be refunded first thing Monday Morning. The Dudleys platinum VIP will be replaced by 3 guests of your choosing. One final message to those responsible, I’ll see you in the ring and we shall let the people be the judge & jury.”
The Dudley Boyz were inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2018.
A WWE Hall of Famer is back to work for the first time since undergoing spinal surgery.
The wrestling business can be grueling. Even years after a performer has had one final match, there are likely to be lingering effects. In the case of one tag team legend, it led to him undergoing back surgery.
Luckily, everything seems to be in order now and this legend is back working behind the scenes in WWE for the first time since the operation.
D-Von Dudley Returns
D-Von Dudley
Legendary tag team wrestler D-Von Dudley has revealed on his Twitter account that he is now back to work in WWE for the first time since the fall of 2021.
This pass Tuesday night was the first time back at work since my back surgery that took me out last October. Feeling great and Glad to be back, but even more glad to be back in my new role in NXT. Love working with the new talent now. I thank God for this opportunity.
“This past Tuesday night was the first time back at work since my back surgery that took me out last October,” said D-Von.
“Feeling great and Glad to be back, but even more glad to be back in my new role in NXT. Love working with the new talent now. I thank God for this opportunity.”
On the last episode of D-Von’s Table Talk podcast, he revealed that he will be moving from a producer to a coaching position in NXT. He will begin his new role in NXT on June 15.
Due to the chance of D-Von’s schedule and the schedule of his co-hosts, Table Talk has come to an end for now.
D-Von’s Spinal Fusion Surgery
Back in February, Dudley underwent spinal fusion surgery. He recently announced that he would be returning to work. As a part of the 2018 class, The Dudley Boyz (D-Von and Bubba Ray Dudley) were inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.
D-Von may be one of the most decorated and highly regarded tag team wrestlers in history, but he hasn’t wrestled since 2016. He did once joke about returning and making an appearance in the WWE Royal Rumble.
Bully Ray has looked back on the time D-Von felt he was above a run in ROH.
Bully and D-Von were a legendary tag team as The Dudley Boyz. They made their mark in ECW, WWE, and TNA Wrestling. Eventually, the team split apart and Bully found himself going solo in ROH.
Bully Ray Claims D-Von Wasn’t Sold On ROH
During an episode of SiriusXM’s Busted Open Radio, Bully Ray made quite the claim that D-Von felt ROH was beneath him.
“I’ll never forget the first day I was there. They asked me, ‘Hey man, what do you wanna do?’ I said, ‘I wanna work with The Briscoes.’
“That was the big deal for me, I wanted to work with The Briscoes. Me and D-Von when we had left the WWE for the second time actually had a deal in place from Ring of Honor to work with The Briscoes.
“It was supposed to be The Dudleyz vs. The Briscoes. D-Von felt that Ring of Honor was beneath him. I completely disagreed so we never got Dudleyz vs. Briscoes.
“I went there and I made sure I got to do something with them because I had a lot of respect for those two guys.”
Bully ended up winning the ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship with Jay and Mark Briscoe. The Briscoes are heavily rumored to be making their way to AEW soon. The team has already been feuding with FTR.
Please H/T SEScoops with a link if you use any quotes from this article
D-Von Dudley has now settled into his backstage role as a producer in WWE but he didn’t like the position at first because he didn’t want to stop wrestling.
The Hall of Famer recently appeared on The Cut Pro Wrestling podcast. He discussed the Dudley Boyz’ 2015 return to the company and explained that the run ended because his partner Bubba Ray was reluctant to sign a contract extension.
Dudley then claimed that he wanted to continue wrestling but WWE didn’t want him as a singles competitor. He explained that he now enjoys the backstage position that was offered to him instead, but it took him some time to embrace it:
“Just for the record, I never wanted to stop wrestling. I never wanted to be a producer backstage for WWE, I enjoy it now but it took me some years to actually embrace it and like it.”
D-Von Dudley Has Grown Into His New Role
D-Von Dudley continued his explanation mentioning how he has produced matches for the teams he once had great bouts with himself:
“I hated it at first, I didn’t like it. Now, I’ve grown into it, working with guys like the Usos, the New Day, even Rey and Dominik, the Viking Raiders, The Bludgeon [Brothers],
I had great matches with those guys in the ring with them as well as producing their matches. I felt that I was wrong again and not getting the opportunity to wrestle continuously, but you know it is what it is.”
Former WWE Superstar and Hall of Famer Bully Ray recently appeared on Stories with Brisco and Bradshaw. The Dudley Boy discussed several topics during the show, including when he returned to WWE in 2015.
When Bully and D-Von made their return, they hadn’t been in the company since 2006, so it was a culture shock for the ECW legend when he saw how different the industry was.
“When D-Von and I left in 2006, I remember what WWE was like,” Bully Ray began. “So when we went back in 2015, I remember feeling so stifled as a performer. Because you had to run almost everything by the agent, and being told that two guys don’t bump and feed for a comeback anymore, or that you can’t do this behind the ref’s back.
Bully Ray on WWE Culture
“Everything that worked in the Attitude Era that made all of us a lot of money, now you couldn’t do anymore” Bully added. “And there was not really a good reason why they didn’t want it done anymore. It’s just that they’d not want it done.
“I remember dealing with an agent one time where I came up with something different and I felt passionate about it. I asked my agent to please go run it by Vince. My agent said, ‘Okay, I will’” Bully recalled.
“Then I followed my agent for an hour, he never spoke with Vince, then he came back and said, ‘Yeah, Vince doesn’t want to do that’. I lose all the respect in the world for you. So I would much rather you tell me to my face, ‘You know what, Bubba? I don’t want to talk with Vince right now. You go do it’.”
A WWE producer has weighed in on the much-talked-about match between Charlotte and Nia Jax.
On the Aug. 30 edition of Monday Night Raw, Charlotte and Jax went one-on-one. Jax ended up getting the three-count but the match appeared to go off the rails. There was miscommunication in the ring and at some point, it looked as if both Charlotte and Jax were taking legit shots at each other before finally settling on the finish.
D-Von Dudley made an appearance on the “Table Talk” podcast and he addressed what went wrong.
“A lot of people suspect Nia and Charlotte got into it heavy. I even heard some reports that they were beating each other up in the back. Number one, they weren’t beating each other up in the back. Something happened in the ring, they handled it the way they handled it and they got over it. It’s as simple as that. They got over it.
“Were things done in the ring? I think it’s obvious. No dirtsheet writer can put me on blast and go, ‘Well, D-Von said…’ No, everybody saw what happened this past Monday. It got a little rough. It happens. It’s not the first time it happened, but of course, everyone is making a big deal out of it.”
D-Von went on to say that the one good thing that can come out of the incident is that more eyeballs will be on their next meeting. D-Von feels a well-built match can lead to good business for WWE.
The discussion that stemmed from the recent comments of The Undertaker about the current generation of wrestlers is still going on and now D-Von Dudley has shared another interesting opinion about the new generation of stars.
The Attitude Era star recently appeared on the Table Talk podcast where he was interviewed along with former WWE star Fred Rosser aka Darren Young.
During the discussion, Dudley noted how Rosser is one of the great talents which isn’t always the case with the younger generation. According to D-Von, many of the young guys who are brought up in the business are disrespectful and rude:
“You’ve got to understand nowadays in this business the young guys that are brought up in this business, they’re disrespectful, they’re rude. Generation X, which is my generation, the Attitude Era, and all of that. Yes, we had attitude we had problems,
But there was one thing I will say about my generation is that we respect those who came before us.” said D-Von Dudley, “And that’s one of the problems that we have with a lot of young talent.”
The former champion did not name any talents who have been disrespectful to him but he did list some of the young guys who have respect for older talents.
D-Von Dudley said that people like Drew McIntyre, Rusev, and Sheamus always came in to pick their brains and it was great being in the locker room with them. You can check out the Hall Of Famer’s comment marked in the video below:
One half of the celebrated tag team The Dudley Boyz and current WWE producer D-Von Dudley is dealing with some health issues, the retired star has revealed.
The former wrestler talked about his health on the latest episode of his Table Talk podcast. He confirmed that he has had some issues but the former champion claimed that he is ‘hanging in there’:
“Hanging in there, I’ve had some health issues but I’m hanging in there. I miss you guys. Hopefully, I’ll be back soon.” said Dudley, “I gotta see what the doctors say but, it’s been a little rough, but I’ve been hanging in there, doing what I can.”
In an update, Pwinsider revealed that the WWE producer has been absent from the TV tapings in the last several weeks as well.
The 48 year old star is a wrestling veteran who has competed for many promotions and has had long stints with both WWE and TNA.
D-Von Dudley is one half of the iconic Attitude Era tag team The Dudley Boyz which is considered to be one of the most successful and recognizable teams in the history of professional wrestling.
There aren’t many details available regarding the issues he is dealing with. So it’s hard to say how long it will take the former champion to recover but we’ll keep you posted on his status.
D-Von Dudley will be tuning in to watch this week’s episode of AEW Dark as his sons will be working a tag team match.
All Elite Wrestling released the card for this Tuesday’s episode that will air on YouTube. Terrence and Terrell Hughes will make their AEW in-ring debuts when they face Chaos Project (Serpentico and Luther). They’ll be going by the tag team name of TNT.
The 25 year old twins are the sons of the WWE Hall of Famer and current WWE producer. Some fans might recall them appearing on a previous episode of Impact Wrestling a few years ago.
There are 8 other matches featured on the card that will air at 7pm ET.
AEW Dark Card
TNT (Terrence and Terrell Hughes) vs. Chaos Project (Serpentico and Luther)
Lucha Bros (Penta El Zero M and Rey Fenix) vs. David Ali and Ashton Starr
Jurassic Express (Luchasaurus and Jungle Boy) vs. Sonny Kiss and Joey Janela
“5” Alan Angels of The Dark Order vs. Fuego del Sol
The Acclaimed (Anthony Bowens and Max Caster) vs. Justin Blax and Louis Valee
Ivelisse and Diamante vs. Jennacide and Dreamgirl Ellie
Leva Bates vs. Dani Jordyn
Top Flight (Angel Dorado and Air Wolf) vs. Frankie Thomas and Baron Black
TheHybrid2 (Angelico and Jack Evans) vs. Shawn Dean and Adam Priest
After his three-decades-long illustrated career in the wrestling business, Attitude Era star D-Von Dudley has finally decided to hang his boots and he has announced his retirement from active competition. The former champion made the announcement on the latest episode of his Table Talk podcast.
He first noted that he was a little frustrated on not being able to wrestle for one more year as he wanted. However, Dudley continued by saying that he is extremely happy being a producer now and while he may do occasional appearances; he is done with wrestling:
“Even though I was a little frustrated about not continuing to wrestle for that one more year that I wanted, I’m extremely happy now being a producer and not wrestling. I have officially hung it up, I’m done. Except for different appearances that they may want me to do on the show, but no more wrestling.
No more fighting for the titles. None of that anymore. I’m done. I’m officially done.” said D-Von Dudley. “I’ve had my fifteen minutes of fame and it was a good ride. It really was. The old-timers used to tell me don’t blink, because when you do it’s over. It goes that fast. And it did feel like it went really, really fast.”
The wrestling veteran started training in 1991 and made his debut in 1992. He first made his name when he joined the original ECW in 1996 where he also met his partner Bubba Ray Dudley. Both the stars left the company in 1999 to join WWE. Their battles with the Hardy Boys and Edge and Christian during the time are now part of the history.
D-Von Dudley had a lengthy stint with TNA from 2005 to 2014 as well and he won multiple titles during his time in the company. He returned to WWE in 2015 and the former Champion has been working as a producer for the company since 2016.
D-Von Dudley reflected on the impact of the TLC matchup between the Dudleyz, The Hardyz and Edge and Christian during a recent interview. Speaking with The Outlaws Radio Show, D-Von noted how they were treated like “rock stars” following the match up.
“We really couldn’t go anywhere without having to shut things down. My 15 minutes of fame I’m happy to say that it was worth it with all the abuse that I took over the years from ECW, the WWE and of course unfortunately I’d like to say sometimes TNA…Aces and Eights, that was greatest thing that came out of that, but for the most part, we had fun.”
He continued, “We did what we did and we had fun. We created history and if wasn’t for us, Edge & Christian, The Hardyz and The Dudleyz there would be no PPV called TLC and if it wasn’t for ECW and what we did, there would be no Attitude Era.”
D-Von On Changing The Business Forever
D-Von explained how their TLC match led to a resurgence in tag team wrestling. He also noted how tag team wrestling is “somewhat of a lost art nowadays” on WWE’s product. He argued how WWE has always been a “singles man competition” before listing notable teams throughout the decades. D-Von stated how teams had to fight to earn a position in WWE and get respect.
“You had to be somebody and I think when the Hogan and Andre era was gone, I think people thought that tag team wrestling was really a lost art until six guys that were unknown came in and changed the face of tag team wrestling and that’s exactly what we did.”
The first-ever TLC matchup took place at SummerSlam back in 2000. Edge and Christian would emerge victorious after their famous Triple Threat match with The Hardyz and Dudleyz.
There are several brother tag-teams performing at a high-level in wrestling today. Last night, the Briscoe Brothers faced Matt and Nick Jackson for Ring of Honor. Jimmy and Jey Uso are one the best teams in the world. The Hardy Boyz have done fairly well for themselves as well throughout their lengthy careers.
While the Dudley Boyz don’t count as a real-life family combination, the 23-year-old twin sons of D-Von Dudley do. They both received tryouts at the WWE Performance Center recently.
The pair has wrestled both under their real names of Terrence and Terrell Hughes, as well as with the surname Dudley.
You can check out video of the brothers competing at an indy event in late-2016 below:
Terrence and Terrell Hughes
The Hughes brothers were among the 40 WWE hopefuls at the Performance Center this week. Former Impact Wrestling stars, Robbie E and Chelsea Green were also in attendance.
WWE.com had this to say regarding the brothers:
“Terrell & Terrence Hughes, the 23-year-old twin sons of WWE Hall of Famer D-Von Dudley. Both men played football in high school, and Terrell qualified for regional and state competition in wrestling. Their sports-entertainment training began in 2012 at the Dudleys’ Team 3D Academy, and the Hughes brothers have held tag team titles on the independent circuit under the name TNT.”
The brothers have wrestled 36 professional matches on the independent circuit. They have also won several tag team championships already in their short careers.
Their father, D-Von Dudley, retired from in-ring action in 2016. He continues to work with WWE in a producer role, usually for tag-team matches. D-Von and Bubba Ray have been inducted into both the Impact Wrestling and WWE Hall of Fames. D-Von also has two younger sons as well, born 6 and 13 years after Terrell and Terrence.
NXT Head Trainer, Matt Bloom, and Mark Henry presided over the tryouts.
On a recent edition of the E&C’s Pod Of Awesomeness, former WWE Tag Team Champs Edge and Christian discussed being asked to induct The Dudley Boyz into the 2018 WWE Hall Of Fame class.
Edge discussed the news breaking that he and Christian would be inducting Bubba Ray and D-Von, which was Bubba announcing it on Busted Open Radio. The pair also discussed getting the calls to be asked to induct The Dudley Boyz:
“Actually, the news broke by Bubba Ray Dudley on Busted Open Radio with me as the guest. I didn’t know he was going to do it.
“He got the pop himself and it has now been officially confirmed by WWE today as we’re recording this that we will be inducting The Dudley Boyz. Yeah!”
“We were very honored that they asked us to do it, and, obviously, we’ve talked about it many times in the past,” Christian added.
“All three teams will always be linked. If you think of the Dudleys, you think of Edge and Christian and The Hardy Boyz, and vice versa with all those other teams.
“We helped to put each other on the map and the feud with us and the Hardys really took off when those guys showed up.
“My phone rings immediately after [Edge’s phone rang] and it says, ‘Melbourne, Florida’,” Christian recalled. “And I’m like, ‘do we know anybody in Melbourne?’ I’m like, ‘your phone rang and then mine did.
“Should I answer it?’ and [Edge] is like, ‘yeah, yeah, you should answer it!’ So I answered it. It was D-Von. We had a nice conversation and he said he tried to call [Edge], so I said, ‘oh, I’ll pass him to you. He didn’t want to talk to you earlier.'”
You can listen to E&C’s Pod Of Awesomeness by clicking this link here.
2018 WWE Hall Of Fame inductee D-Von Dudley was recently a guest on former WWE ring announcer Lilian Garcia’s podcast, Chasing Glory, to talk about several professional wrestling topics. During the interview Dudley discussed the influence both Vince McMahon and Paul Heyman had on The Dudley Boyz’s, D-Von and Bubba Ray, characters:
“All the promos we were able to shoot and to be good at it is all because of ‘Dr. Frankenstein.’ The Dr. Frankenstein I am referring to is Paul Heyman. He was the creator. We would like to say, Paul Heyman was the one that found and created us, but Vince McMahon molded us into the Superstars that we are today. We are grateful for both men, number one, ECW and Paul Heyman changed the face of Professional Wrestling and helped start the Attitude Era, and of course Vince McMahon, who is the master.
“He is the ‘Yoda’ of Professional Wrestling and Sports Entertainment. I am not just saying that because I still work for the man as a backstage Agent, but when you look at what he has done and where he has brought Professional Wrestling. Whether you like him or not, you see that he has changed Professional Wrestling. Pro Wrestling was that thing that you never talked about, if you did it was only among the selected few. Now, it is one of the biggest things out there and now everybody loves Professional Wrestling.”
Dudley also revealed that he once advised current SmackDown Live star and New Day member Xavier Woods to leave TNA:
“Xavier Woods was in an organization [TNA Wrestling] that I am not too keen on. This organization treated him bad, and Xavier told me that he may have a chance to go to WWE, but he may not and he doesn’t know what to do. We sat and talked for about 40 minutes; till this day he thanked me for making that phone call, and I believe it was Terry Taylor who was helping doing the hiring at the time, not sure who was in charge, but he basically thanked me for helping him make that decision in going to the WWE.
“I am not saying that there wouldn’t have been a New Day without Xavier Woods, but each individual brings something to the table, and I believe the success of all three of them with the charisma and personality is what made New Day who they are today. So, I was very happy when I came back to WWE and Woods was there. I had forgotten all about it until he reminded me that I was one of the reasons that made him go back and have that conversation with WWE.”
You can listen to Dudley’s interview on Chasing Glory by clicking this link here.
– A fan on Twitter recently asked 2018 WWE Hall Of Fame inductee Bully Ray who he’d like to have induct he and D-Von Dudley into the WWE Hall Of Fame this year. Ray responded by saying that if it were up to him he’d have everyone who was in the ECW Arena in February of 1997 – where he and D-Von hit their first 3D – induct them. However, since it’s a WWE Hall Of Fame he admitted names like Paul Heyman, Edge & Christian, or The Hardy Boyz would also be good options:
If it was totally up to me, I would want something completely different.
I would have every fan who was in the ECW Arena in Feb. ‘97 who saw me and Devon hit our first 3D induct us.
– Rusev has been training Lana hard ahead of their Mixed Match Challenge bout against the team of Elias and Bayley next week. WWE posted the following video of Rusev having Lana break boards in preparation for the match:
Former WWE Champion Batista recently spoke with Uproxx about various topics including coming up with his name in WWE, the storyline with D-Von Dudley, and more. Here are the highlights:
Reflecting on his Deacon Batista storyline with D-Von Dudley:
“Only in WWE. When I first came up, I did this character called Deacon Batista, so it was the same last name, but I was working with this guy named D-Von Dudley and he was doing this televangelist preacher type deal where he was collecting money and I held this big, goofy box and I was a security guard of his money box. So ridiculous. It was horrible.”
Receiving his ring name:
“I actually didn’t. All right, here’s the funny thing about that, because when I was …when I went up, when I was called up from OVW, which was our training facility, they changed my name and changed it to ‘Batista.’ I didn’t realized they changed the spelling of it. Well, I was told the reason they did that was so people would be able to pronounce it easier, and then I was told later by another wrestler, he said, ‘No, you dummy. They did that so they could own it. They just can’t own your name. They changed the spelling, now they own it.’ Which was true. I left WWE without my wrestling name, went back to my real name, and started over.”
– The opening segment for next Wednesday’s NXT episode will be new NXT Tag Team Champions DIY returning to Full Sail University as champions.
– There were complaints of offensive comments being directed at Andrade “Cien” Almas during Wednesday’s NXT tapings at Full Sail. At least one correspondent said the offensive chants were very quiet and not widespread, and another corredpondent did not hear them at all. It appears these two fans did hear the offensive comments:
– D-Von Dudley’s sons Terrence and Terrell are moving forward with their pro wrestling careers, seen in the video below from Conquer Pro Wrestling. D-Von tweeted about being proud of his sons, who are using the tag team name TNT.
– Kofi Kingston needed 9 stitches to close a cut on his forehead at last night’s RAW, following WWE Tag Team Champions The New Day’s win over Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson. Kofi posted this photo from backstage:
