— Big Show and David Otunga, along with WWE Executive Vice President of Creative Stephanie McMahon, spoke out against bullying at a be a STAR Alliance rally Thursday in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The trio rallied a group of 850 students at Luis Munoz Marin School as Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch and State Representative Andres Ayala Jr. presented McMahon with a citation for the organization’s fight against bullying.
“Kids define themselves. Other people’s hurtful words don’t define them,” said the wife of WWE Superstar Triple H. She then encouraged the students to help stop bullying and learn to show tolerance and respect for each other.
When asked if there is any bullying in WWE, Big Show replied no! “We don’t tolerate bullying in WWE!” the SmackDown Superstar stated.
— SmackDown ring announcer Lilian Garcia will be performing at the Key Club in West Hollywood, California (located on 9039 Sunset Boulevard) this Saturday at 7:00 p.m. Tickets are available at liliangarcia.eventbrite.com.
— Sid Vicious appears for Canadian Wrestling’s Elite on April 19 at Cowboy’s Roadhouse in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The former WWE Champion will partner with Nate Hardy in a tag team match against The Axe and Zack Mercury. (Event Details)
– Tonight’s SmackDown tapings will take place from the Ntionwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. As announced on RAW, Christian will host the Peep Show with special guests Teddy Long and John Laurinaitis. We’ll have live spoilers on the site later tonight.
– Among the WWE-related topics that trended on Twitter on Monday night:
CM Drunk, John Cena, Vanilla Ice, Teletubby, The Rock Concert, Dolph Ziggler, Brodus Clay, Beth Phoenix, James Roday, Mark Henry, and Vickie Guerrero.
– Hornswoggle tweeted the following message on Monday night regarding The Rock and John Cena. Clearly,
“Glad @TheRock needs to sing karaoke to get his $hit in. @JohnCena will always be a true professional, doesn’t need scripted lines, bullet points, or #stupidsrxualinuendos like @TheRock”
– As seen on RAW, WWE aired a vignette for The Law Offices of David Otunga. Otunga posted on Twitter:
“The Law offices of @DavidOtunga are now open. Have you have been wronged? Tweet me. You can trust me, I went to Harvard. @WWE #RAW”
— WWE e-mailed a general schedule to people attending WrestleMania Axxess and former WWE Diva Lita will be among the stars on hand for the festivities. The former WWE Women’s Champion is advertised to appear at the event on WrestleMania XXVIII morning at 8:00 a.m.
— Matches taped Tuesday night at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut for this week’s episode of WWE Superstars are as follows:
* Heath Slater vs. Justin Gabriel
* Jinder Mahal vs. Ted DiBiase
— On behalf of ‘be a STAR,’ the anti-bullying alliance co-founded by WWE and The Creative Coalition, David Otunga spoke at an anti-bullying rally in Springfield, Massachusetts on Monday.
“Most people know me as being a WWE superstar in this larger than life character with muscles, larger than life, even arrogant character, but they don’t know that when I was a kid I was just like them,” Otunga told www.wwlp.com. “I was insecure, I was short I was picked on, I had thick glasses and I was smart, that didn’t help, because everyone called me a nerd.”
— With SmackDown General Manager Theodore Long taking control of Raw Supershow Monday night, he announced last Friday on SmackDown that David Otunga would face The Great Khali in a singles match. The match did not take place despite his announcement and being advertised on WWE.com. Instead, Otunga accompanied John Laurinaitis ringside for the United States Championship Match between Jack Swagger and Santino Marella while Khali squashed Curt Hawkins in a pre-show dark match.
— The Miz debuted a new T-Shirt on Monday’s Raw SuperShow prior to his encounter with Big Show. The shirt, which is labeled The Miz Onslaught of Awesomeness Augmented Reality Authentic T-Shirt, is available for purchase on WWEShop.com.
— WWE.com has published a photo gallery highlighting Lex Luger’s career with World Championship Wrestling.
— Former WWF star Killer Khan turns 65 years old Tuesday while former WCW United States Heavyweight Champion David Flair turns 33.
— With SmackDown General Manager Theodore Long taking control of Monday’s Raw Supershow, he announced on Friday’s SmackDown that David Otunga will face The Great Khali in a singles match.
— A.J. confirmed via Twitter that she does not have a Facebook account—there are dozens of pages portraying the WWE Diva.
“I do not have a Facebook. If you think you’re talking to me on FB, you’re just talking to a 40 year old man who wears women’s underwear,” she wrote.
— WWE is still filming content for their upcoming CM Punk video release. The title is scheduled for release in the fall.
— Sheamus will appear at Big W Bankstown in Bankstown, Australia on Saturday, March 17 at 3:00 p.m.
— WWELiveTour.com is advertising Brodus Clay for tonight’s Raw SuperShow event at the Rose Garden in Portland, Oregon.
The Funkasaurus returned to action at this past weekend’s Raw live event tour; he squashed David Otunga in the opening contest of all three shows. The Wrestling Observer reports he was removed from television due to Vince McMahon’s unhappiness with his ring work.
— WWE.com has published an article on actor George Clooney arriving and leaving the 84th Academy Awards show with a “gold, statuesque beauty” in girlfriend and former WWE Diva Stacy Keibler.
WWE.com writes, “The long-legged former Diva dropped jaws and widened eyes on Hollywood’s biggest night. Even as Clooney would briefly leave her side for an interview or to greet fellow stars, the cameras couldn’t keep their lenses off the always-stunning Stacy. During the red carpet events before the 84th Annual Academy Awards show, her gold Marchesa gown drew the praise of fashion critics and established that the former Diva is as stylish as she is gorgeous.”
In stark contrast from a few years ago, WWE has profiled the former grappler numerous times online since her relationship with Clooney became public knowledge last August. During a 2009 interview with Baltimore Sun, Keibler said she offered to guest host the November 30, 2009 Raw emanating from her hometown of Baltimore, Maryland, but her request was ignored.
“No one has contacted me,” Keibler said if she heard back from WWE regarding her request. “I actually had my management contact them, and nobody ever got back to us [laughs]. So I guess they’re not interested.”
Verne “Mini-Me” Troyer ended up hosting the show.
— Former WWE Women’s Champion Melina has been announced for The Big Event 2 taking place March 10 at the LaGuardia Courtyard Marriott 9010 Ditmars Blvd East Elmhurst, New York,
— WWE’s Executive Vice President of Talent Relations and Interim General Manager of Raw John Laurinaitis’s campaign to not only become the permanent Raw General Manager, but take over Theodore Long’s job as General Manager of SmackDown is expected to culminate with a winner takes all match at WrestleMania XXVIII in Miami, Florida.
The Wrestling Observer reports that a Laurinaitis captained team of heel WWE stars will likely face a babyface team captained by Long at the pay-per-view extravaganza with the winning captain becoming General Manager of both Raw and SmackDown. There is also talk that the bout would replace the Money in the Bank Ladder Match.
— On behalf of ‘be a STAR,’ the anti-bullying alliance co-founded by WWE and The Creative Coalition, David Otunga paid a visit to German Valley Elementary outside Rockford, Illinois today to speak with students about the dangers of bullying.
– Alberto Del Rio appeared at this weekend’s SmackDown live events – but did not wrestle either night. Del Rio called out Sheamus and told the live crowds that he’s not ready to wrestle yet, but challenged the 2012 Royal Rumble winner to an arm wrestling contest – which Sheamus won. This led to a brawl between the two before Del Rio ran off, leaving Ricardo Rodriguez to take a Brogue Kick from Sheamus.
Del Rio is scheduled to return to WWE television tonight on RAW.
– WWE Superstar David Otunga was backstage at the Grammys last night with his fiancee Jennifer Hudson, who sang a moving tribute to Whitney Houston.
– An announcement on the WrestleMania 29 location is expected this week. New York Giants player Jake Ballard was asked on Twitter if he’s excited about WrestleMania coming to the MetLife Stadium next year. He replied, ” yes it’s going to be awesome!”
If these reports turn out to be true, Axxess and other WrestleMania-week events would be held in the New York City area.
It would also be a sign that WWE is breaking with the tradition of holding WrestleMania at Madison Square Garden every 10 years, as it’s unlikely New York City would get the event two years in a row.
– WWE superstar David Otunga dusted off the old Harvard Law degree on Thursday and returned to the court room as a defense attorney. According to TMZ.com, Otunga represented a man who believes he was wrongfully terminated and denied unemployment benefits. This was the man’s appeal to the NY State Department of Labor. The judge heard from witnesses and then arguments from both sides, and Otunga told TMZ that he, “smoked the witness during cross examination.” Otunga’s client won the appeal and will now get unemployment benefits.
Otunga was quoted saying that he keeps his legal skills sharp and:
“If the outcome of the case is any indication of how I’ll do in the Royal Rumble this weekend, then it looks like I’ll be the winner.”
– Stephanie McMahon recently told Entertainment Weekly that WWE has 16 writers, plus Vince McMahon – who has final say on everything.
“Vince is very open to listening and discussing different ideas, but once he makes his final decision, he’s the boss.”
She added that she has a one-on-one meeting with Vince each week.
She also stated that WWE is looking at ways to develop new programming for their original content partnership with YouTube.
— WWE.com has announced a match pitting World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan against Kofi Kingston for tonight’s Raw SuperShow.
After Kingston questioned Bryan’s victories over Big Show, the SmackDown Superstar challenged the WWE Tag Team Champion to a match. Bryan added, “Obviously non-title, of course.”
Video of the backstage exchange is available here.
— There is a story in the latest issue of the the National Enquirer claiming that Jennifer Hudson wants fiancée David Otunga to quit professional wrestling.
— WWE Hall of Famer “Rowdy” Roddy Piper, who is confirmed for WWE Network’s upcoming Legends’ House reality series, commented on theD show on Twitter. “LEGENDS HOUSE. BOTTOM LINE, “I SLEEP ALONE!!” he wrote.
— As reported earlier, former WWE talent Amy Dumas (a/k/a Lita) was arrested Friday in Columbia County, Georgia on charges of speeding in excess of maximum limits and driving with a suspended license. She was released on $2,200 bond and has already poked fun at the matter.
She tweeted Saturday afternoon, “You guys make a Team Extreme jailbird graphic yet? Get to work! #slackers.”
— A DUI charge against WWE talent Jonathan Fatu (a/k/a Jimmy Uso) has been continued until January.
The SmackDown star was arrested on September 29, 2011 in Tampa, Florida on suspicion of driving under the influence. An officer observed Fatu at approximately 3:00 a.m. that day driving the wrong way down a one-way street in a silver Mustang.
— David Otunga appears at the Cricket Communications Store at the Brickyard Mall 2650 N. Narragansett, Chicago, Illinois on December 26 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
– While in Mexico this week, John Cena granted several “wishes” for sick children through the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
– Several wrestlers from Mexico’s CMLL promotion (we’ve heard as many as 7) received WWE tryouts over the weekend.
– The never-ending season of WWE NXT: Redemption will finally be coming to an end soon.
– As we covered her in the site earlier this month, David Otunga’s wedding to Hollywood star Jennifer Hudson has been put on hold. The National Enquirer has picked up the story – and says the main reason for the couple taking a step backwards is that Otunga refuses a prenuptial agreement. The Enquirer states that Jennifer Hudson is worth around $15 million – which does explain why she is looking to protect her assets before getting married.
– Tommy Dreamer is set to debut some sort of new show this week. Dreamer tweeted on Sunday:
“Spoke to my producer. The show is finished. Tommorrow it will debut. Let the fun begin.”
— The official website of Florida Championship Wrestling has added Jake Carter to their roster page. He is Jesse White, son of former WWE star Vader. He signed a developmental contract with WWE in April following a tryout at the organization’s developmental facility in Tampa, Florida.
White, 25, originally committed to the University of Oklahoma and was touted for the National Football League, but retired following a hip injury. He then followed his dad’s footsteps to the world of professional wrestling.
— Theodore Long kicked off Friday’s SmackDown by announcing that the first match of the night would feature 41 Superstars in the largest Battle Royal in WWE history. Interim Raw General Manager John Laurinaitis then revealed the winner would earn a title match against the champion of his choosing.
Randy Orton won the 41-Man No. 1 Contender’s Battle Royal, last eliminating The Miz. Battle Royal elimination order is as follows: 1. Cody Rhodes, 2. Johnny Curtis, 3. JTG, 4. Michael McGillicutty, 5. Derrick Bateman, 6. Yoshi Tatsu, 7. Titus O’Neil, 8. Matt Striker, 9. William Regal, 10. Percy Watson, 11. John Morrison, 12. Dolph Ziggler, 13. Trent Barreta, 14. Jey Uso, 15. Ted DiBiase, 16. Tyson Kidd, 17. Daniel Bryan, 18. Tyler Reks, 19. Curt Hawkins, 20. Drew McIntrye, 21. Justin Gabriel, 22. Mason Ryan, 23. Primo, 24. Santino Marella, 25. Alex Riley, 26. Kofi Kingston, 27. Zack Ryder, 28. David Otunga, 29. Jimmy Uso, 30. Ezekiel Jackson, 31. Heath Slater, 32. Sin Cara (Negro), 33. Christian, 34. R-Truth , 35. CM Punk, 36. Sheamus, 37. Wade Barrett, 38. Jack Swagger, 39. Jinder Mahal, 40. The Miz.
Mediatakeout.com is reporting that WWE superstar David Otunga’s wedding to entertainer Jennifer Hudson has been put on hold – and a prenuptial agreement could be the reason.
According to their source (one of Jennifer Hudson’s family members):
“[David] didn’t want to sign a prenup, and so they put the wedding on hold.”
From our experience a few stories we’ve come across from Media Takeout have turned out to be inaccurate (“Shocking Rumor: Eminem to Join WWE”), so we’ll look into this story and post an update when we have more information.
Check out these pictures of David Otunga and Jennifer Hudson:
— The official Twitter feed of WWE has announced a 12-Man Tag Team Match for tonight’s Raw SuperShow.
John Cena, CM Punk, Sheamus, Air Boom and Mason Ryan will face Alberto Del Rio, Christian, Cody Rhodes, Dolph Ziggler, Jack Swagger and David Otunga.
— Shelly Martinez has posted a blog and photos of her appearance this past Saturday at Sign of the Times at the Marriott Los Angeles Airport. She caught up with former WWE Divas Ashley Massaro, Maria Kanellis and Angela Fong, as well as TNA stars Velvet Sky and Christopher Daniels.
— WWE Hall of Famer Jimmy Snuka has been added to The Big Event, which takes place November 11 and 12 at the Courtyard Marriott 9010 Ditmars Blvd. East Elmhurst, New York. Visit tmartpromotions.com for more information.
— John Cena appeared in studio on The Johnny Dare Morning Show today to promote tonight’s Raw SuperShow at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri.
Cena teased during the interview that a cage would hang above the ring at the venue. He also discussed films, cars and the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Cena stated that he does not want to turn bad because seeing the Make-A-Wish kids with his merchandise makes his day.
Meanwhile, the female sidekick auditioning for the morning show said she was former WWE announcer Jonathan Coachman’s roommate in college. She also claimed to have one night stands with former WWE talent John “Bradshaw” Layfield and Al Snow.
— The Miz and R-Truth “invaded” this past weekend’s Raw live events. The same scenario took place at all three shows; the heel duo would jump WWE Tag Team Champions Kofi Kingston and Evan Bourne immediately following their victory over David Otunga and Michael McGillicutty. Company personnel would then escort the “fired” wrestlers away.
Ring announcer Justin Roberts announced at the start of all three shows that The Miz and R-Truth wouldn’t be on hand due to Triple H’s ruling last Monday on Raw.
The Voice of Wrestling returned live last night from 7-8 EST with hosts, Chris Cash and Nick Paglino. Chris Masters – who was just released this past Friday from the WWE – joined Chris and Nick to discuss his recent departure, his future and much more. Other topics include SummerSlam this weekend, TNA’s Hard Justice pay per view, Gail Kim quitting and much more.
Chris Masters Interview Highlights
On being surprised about his WWE release: “If somebody on the outside was watching me, they wouldn’t be surprised because they hadn’t used me in any real storylines or anything. They just had me dittering on Superstars. But the thing is, for the last year and a half on Superstars, it really gave me time to develop my craft and really put some time into matches and through that I just really started taking a passion in the art of professional wrestling and through time it started to really translate. I came along a lot.”
On the rumors of Chris being in line to get a big push: “You know, the reports on the internet were actually a surprise to me because I hadn’t really told anybody. I don’t know if that came from one of the writers to the dirt sheets, but the extent of what I was told was..back around January of this year after Hunter [and Vince] had seen some of my matches, Hunter pulled me aside and was telling me, ‘Hey, we’ve noticed you’ve gotten really good and we’re just trying now to figure out exactly what to do with you. Maybe we need to take you off tv for a few months and give you a fresh coat of paint or a repackaging’, so we kind of left it at that. He had definitely come up and given me props a couple of times.
You know, I was kind of under the impression that they were going to figure something out for me and I was also trying to think of some suggestions for myself and you know, that’s probably why it was a surprise because of the fact I did feel like I had good things coming. I felt like this was going to be my year.”
On his reaction to the news: “Yeah, I’m pissed. I’m not going to deny that at all. This is the thing…the first time I got released, I brought it upon myself, so I accepted it. There’s a lot of things I didn’t do right the first time. I was also motivated coming back to the company and for it to turn out this way is upsetting because it’s not like I failed a drug test. I did things right and I was getting really good in the ring, so it is a lot more upsetting the second time around than it is the first time around.”
On going to TNA: “Well, it’s funny because I sat in my car about two weeks ago and really thinking to myself, ‘they need babyfaces now and if they’re not going to do something with me or invest in me right now, they’re never gonna do it. So I was already thinking to myself, maybe I need to start reaching out and seeing what else is out there – let’s just be frank. But I didn’t do it. And it’s funny because then you fast forward to weeks later and then this happened. Obviously, I’m taking bookings, but yeah, I’ve reached out to some people over at TNA and we’ll just see what happens with that. There’s of course the 90 day thing with WWE, but I’m not really going to rule out anything this time around”.
Chris Masters also talked about the reported changes in WWE, his two strikes against him in terms of the Wellness Policy and whether he thinks that potentially hurt their plans for him, what he was doing the moment he got the dreaded phone call from Johnny Ace, the influx of talent coming into the WWE and whether that’s a good or bad thing for the company, and Chris responds to his critics.
Masters also feels a number of wrestlers don’t belong in WWE, and specifically names David Otunga. “You think David Otunga’s ready for TV?” he asks the hosts. When asked why the Raw Superstar should have been fired before him, Masters replies, “Well, he’s got two left feet. C’mon, just watch him walk around the ring for five minutes.”
Masters, however, then says in defense of Otunga that the Tag Team Champion is a product of WWE’s system—wrestlers being called up to television prematurely.
— WWE’s creative team has broached putting Zack Ryder in a new faction with David Otunga and Michael McGillicutty.
— Alberto Del Rio’s 23-year-old brother Memo Rodriguez is now living in South Florida and has began training with former ECW talent Pablo Marquez. Marquez briefly appeared in WWE as Tiger Ali Singh’s manservant Babu.
— Former WWE Superstar Finlay is advertised to wrestle at a Top Catch event, which takes place August 29 in Dinslaken, Germany at the Dintrab Arena. He will facing former WWE developmental talent Chris “The Bambikiller” Raaber.
— WWE Hall of Famer Jerry “The King” Lawler is advertised to appear at a Legends Of Wrestling event in Harrison, Arkansas on August 20, 2011. Butch Reed and “Beautiful” Bobby Eaton are also slated to appear. Click here for event information.
— One night after Big Show and Kane retained the WWE Tag Team Championship against CM Punk and Mason Ryan at Over the Limit, the colossal due dropped the straps to other two members of Nexus, David Otunga and Michael McGillicutty.
WWE then coordinated an injury angle for Big Show which would indicate that he’s taking time off. Frustrated, he ran into the garage parking lot where he his leg was run over by a car driven by Alberto Del Rio’s personal ring announcer, Ricardo Rodriguez.
— Matches taped Monday night in Portland, Oregon for this week’s episode of WWE Superstars are as follows:
* Santino Marella vs. Zack Ryder
* JTG vs. Curt Hawkins
— In a rare occurrence, no dark match took place at last night’s Raw taping.
— John Morrison is not shying away from online reports that he has heat within the WWE locker room. On Monday afternoon, he made light of Trish Stratus alleging during an interview last Friday that he cold-shouldered her following their contest at WrestleMania. Trish suggested Morrison was “not smart” for the way he handled himself at the big event.
“American Airlines is not smart RT @RealMelina: Our bags took over an hour to get to baggage claim.”
“Raw in Bridgeport today- Lookout @HEELZiggler… I got a mean punch, a furious kick, and a cold shoulder!”
Morrison tweeted the following remark on Friday shortly after Stratus’ allegations surfaced online:
“If you don’t have enemies, you don’t have character.”
— David Otunga has launched a Facebook page. He confirmed the page last week on Twitter.
— WWE Hall of Famer Tony Atlas no-showed the K&S Wrestlefest “Super Saturday” event in Essington, Pennsylvania, in addition to former WWE Diva Ashley Massaro.
— A really badass desktop wallpaper of Triple H from the new WWE All Stars video game has been posted online in various resolutions – check ’em out below:
— Maryse said a homophobic remark late last night on Twitter, writing, “Ur sooo gay…….”
It appears the WWE Diva blundered sending a private message as it was directed to no one in particular on her timeline. The tweet was deleted a short while later.
WWE has come under fire from the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) in recent weeks, which took issue with ‘homophobic taunts’ John Cena directed towards Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson on the February 28 episode of Monday Night Raw, as well as a homophobic slur Michael Cole tweeted to Josh Mathews on March 26. Cena’s unsavory verbiage prompted WWE to issue an apology and form a partnership with the organization on an anti-bullying campaign. WWE addressed Cole’s conduct by alerting GLAAD of the situation and announcing that he would partake in a training session.
— Santino Marella vs. Ted DiBiase is advertised for tonight’s episode of WWE Superstars, which marks as the final broadcast on WGN America. The show is expected to continue as an internet property due to the company’s overseas television commitments. However, no official announcement has been made.
Other matches scheduled to take place include Tyson Kidd vs. Yoshi Tatsu and Drew McIntyre vs. JTG.
— David Otunga celebrates his 31st birthday today.
— The source code on the front page of WWE.com reveals an Eight-Man Tag Team Match taking place at WrestleMania XXVII with The Corre going up against Big Show, Kane, Kofi Kingston and Christian.
The URL in question is located here. The page, however, has not been published as it presently reads “Access Denied.”
— WWE Superstar David Otunga is none too pleased with fiancé Jennifer Hudson’s significant weight loss, who has lost a grand total of 80 pounds.
The recording artist, actress and Weight Watchers spokesperson appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on Friday where she was asked “What does your fiancé think, does he like the new svelte you?”
J-Hud responded, “He’s getting adjusted to it. He’s not really into change that much so he fusses at me like, “Why do you have to have to get all dressed up to go out and why can’t you just go out like you used to?” And I’m like “I’m a walking billboard now honey.”
— John Cena and Randy Orton defeated CM Punk and The Miz in a tag team contest following Monday’s Raw broadcast.
— CM Punk broke his nose during the opening segment of Raw.
— Goldust (a/k/a Dustin Rhodes) was backstage at Raw.
— Former WWE Cruiserweight Champion Nunzio refereed a dark match between Zack Ryder and Percy Watson.
— Before David Otunga could hit the ring to face King Sheamus, Mark Henry’s music hit as “The World’s Strongest Man” stormed the ring. Otunga’s scheduled bout with Otunga was ruled a No Contest. Otunga was not injured as creative plans called for him to not actually wrestle.
— A number of people backstage were cracking up at R-Truth saying the wrong city by his mistake prior to his match with Mason Ryan.
— John Cena and CM Punk had a “battle rap” during one of the show’s commercial breaks.
Former WWE star Shelton Benjamin was recently interviewed by Blackvoices.com. Here are some highlights of what Benjamin said about:
Why WWE Let Him Go:
“Honestly, I’m still wondering that myself. What I think it boils down to is that I’d been there for so long and they had such high hopes for me. For me to continue in the position that I was in I would have gotten to the point where family would have lost faith in me. I think while I’m still young every now and then you need to completely disassociate yourself from the company to freshen yourself up. It would be one thing for me to say I am gonna leave and take three months off and when I come back I’ll be fresh and new, but it’s a total other thing to disassociate yourself from the company completely. The point that they didn’t resign me doesn’t really bother me because I felt like I needed to go and near the end of my career work for me wasn’t fun.”
“I remember when I first started I could not wait to get to work. Near the end, I couldn’t stand when I had to wake up and go to the airport. It was one of those things where we were both in agreement that I needed to step away. Do I believe that’s a permanent departure? No. If you have watched the history of the WWE or if you have ever worked there and you were ever any good; you don’t have just one run with the WWE. The door is open for me to come back. We parted ways on good terms, but as far as a lot of the decisions they made with my career, I’m still dumbfounded.”
Which African American WWE Star Deserves To Be World Champion:
“The first person that comes to my mind is MVP. If you look at his career, at one point it looked like it was going that route. For whatever reason, it just stopped. I felt like fans were accepting him so he would be the first on my list. I believe Kofi Kingston is on the cusp. I won’t say he’s quite ready yet but people put the title on guys who aren’t ready all the time. Those two would be first on my list. Most of the other Black guys are just inexperienced right now and none of them have shown me anything that would validate putting the world title on them and that’s not to say they won’t be later. I forgot about Mark Henry and I don’t want to leave him out of there.”
People Saying David Otunga Is Getting Pushed Because Of His Famous Fiancé, Jennifer Hudson:
“No, I don’t think he’s very good. My guess would be probably, but at the same time whether he’s any good or not this is a show. Just by him being in the WWE makes news. People are gonna tune in just to see David Otunga – just to see if he’s good or bad. Jennifer Hudson’s husband is a pro wrestler. That’s gonna draw and it will be foolish on the part of WWE not to take advantage of that. Do I think him being married to Jennifer Hudson helps? Without a doubt. He still has to go in there and perform. Just because he has the job and they’re using him doesn’t mean that it’s gonna stay that way. No disrespect to David because he’s a great guy and I’ve worked with him. I expect him to improve, but if I was running a wrestling company and David Otunga was signed on my company, you’re dammed right I’m gonna put him in everyone’s face. That’s the proof for me.”
— Conspicuous by his absence tonight on Raw was that of Wade Barrett. Michael Cole continued in his role as mouthpiece for Raw’s still anonymous General Manager, announcing that the mystery GM will have a verdict on the season one NXT Rookies – who have taken to referring to themselves as The Nexus – on next week’s show. To explain Barrett’s absence, it was noted that he was conferencing with WWE officials to learn the fate of he and his group.
It should be noted that the season one NXT Rookies did run-ins during the main events of this past weekend’s Raw live events and Barrett was notably absent from the proceedings.
— Two WWE Superstars matches were taped prior tonight’s Raw broadcast in Philadelphia.
* Yoshi Tatsu and Goldust vs. Zack Ryder and Primo
* Nikki Bella vs. Jillian
