— The official Twitter account of WWE Magazine announced that the Divas Championship will be on the line in the first match of tonight’s “Power to the People” edition of Monday Night Raw.

Brie Bella will defend her title against (A) Eve, (B) Kelly Kelly, or (C) Beth Phoenix. Viewers can vote by texting A, B or C to 46993. Standard texting rates apply.

— The June 17 episode of WWE SmackDown scored a 1.71 cable rating, down from 1.77 the prior two weeks.

SmackDown averaged 2.71 million viewers, approximately the same as the previous week. This extends the program’s streak of less than 3.0 million viewers to seven consecutive weeks.

It is the lowest rated episode of 2011. The previous low was set on May 6 with a 1.73 cable rating.

— John Cena and The Rock are featured on the cover of the latest issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated.

— Former ROH World Tag Team Champions Chris Hero and Claudio Castagnoli were on hand for this week’s WWE television tapings in New York and Rhode Island. Both worked out in the ring in front of officials before each show.

Castagnoli signed a developmental contract with WWE in November 2006 but was released a short while later for reasons that have yet to be publicly disclosed.

— WWE has released a commercial ad promoting SummerSlam, which takes place August 14, 2011 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. It is branded as “The Biggest Event of the Summer.”

The commercial features The Miz, Chris Masters, John Morrison, Kofi Kingston, Eve Torres, Alicia Fox and The Bella Twins emerging from the ocean and scurrying to a beach house to watch SummerSlam.

The commercial is available here.

— Damage starring Steve Austin airs tonight on Spike TV at 11:00 p.m.

source: PWInsider.com

– Actor Kelci Jones, who played the character of “Big Jimmy” on RAW during the crowd segment featuring R-Truth, wrote the following on Facebook about his RAW appearance:

“Got to get sweated by R-Truth and be in the ring with Cena. And Vince McMahon likes my swagger…uh yeah life is good!!!”

– Maryse and Eve Torres took to Twitter and commented on Kharma’s announcement on RAW that she is pregnant and will be off WWE television until next year. Eve wrote:

“Didn’t expect that one! I respect @Kharma for BeliEVEing & following her dreams. Just not when it involved planting my face into the ground.”

Maryse had the following heel remarks for Kharma:

“I volunteer to give @Kharma a treadmill…its my baby gift to her”

“Btw for all haters, stop hating im a HUGE @kharma fan myself, ill buy the baby some awesome gap onesie… And also maybe some baby louis vuitton flats…”

— The Raw crew concludes their near two-week long international tour today and tomorrow in Qatar. The shows, however, will be without the “Sexy, Smart and Powerful” WWE Divas as they are prohibited from wearing clothing that doesn’t cover their legs or shoulders in public. Qatar is an Islamic country with strict dress laws.

Eve Torres and The Bella Twins, among others, have already flown back to the United States.

— Michael Cole had his Extreme Rules tag team partner, Jack Swagger, join him as a woman, who looked vaguely like the Queen of England, enter the ring and knight him on this week’s episode of Raw. The entire segment was cut from the encore telecast on Sky Sports in the UK, as well as most references to it.

This was not the only segment cut from the replay as R-Truth smoking a cigarette was also edited out.

— Donald Moore (a/k/a Dr. Cable Jones), who was released from his developmental contract with WWE in November, is considering resuming his wrestling career on the independent scene after undergoing major shoulder surgery. (Thanks to Don Tintle)

source: PWInsider.com

— Shawn Michaels is scheduled to appear ringside during The Undertaker vs. Triple H match at WrestleMania XXVII.

— “WrestleMania Week” kicked off today in Atlanta, Georgia as Turner Field hosted “WWE Night.” WWE talent John Morrison, Mark Henry, Eve and Melina participated in an autograph signing prior to an Atlanta Braves spring training game.

Morrison was named honorary team captain while Henry tossed the “first pitch of the year.” The Divas exclaimed “Play ball!” to start the game.

The signing drew approximately 100 fans.

— Kevin Nash announced on his Twitter account that he will be on hand for this weekend’s WrestleMania Axxess festivities at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, Georgia. He appears at the event Saturday from 3 to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to noon.

sources: F4WOnline.com, Pro Wrestling Torch

— CM Punk and Buffalo Bills linebacker Shawne Merriman engaged in a war of words yesterday on Twitter in regards to the NFL star encountering some WWE Divas during the Raw brand’s stay in Costa Rica. When reached for comment, The Straight Edge Superstar explained the matter to the Chicago Sun-Times.

“All I did was observe him walking around poolside, back and fourth, around in circles. I had no clue who he was, just knew that this guy was obviously trying to get noticed. When that didn’t work, he sent his publicist after the girls, which is the most lacking of testicles thing ever. That’s how we found out who he was.

“When THAT didn’t work I watched him run after them as they tried to leave. Dude clowned himself and all I did was report the facts and laugh about it. On the road, the WWE is a family. The divas are my sisters, and like any big brother, I don’t want creeps around my little sisters.”

— According to WWE.com’s results for tonight’s episode of Raw, Brie Bella won the Diva Battle Royal. Therefore, she is the No. 1 Contender to Eve’s Divas Championship.

— The February 25 episode of WWE SmackDown scored a 2.31 cable rating, the program’s highest mark on Syfy. The episode topped the 2.03 rating the show drew the previous week. Smackdown averaged 3.5 million viewers over the course of two hours.

The show’s previous Syfy high occurred on January 21 with a 2.07 rating.

— The Bella Twins have taken their on-screen feud with Eve Torres to Twitter as they posted a message tonight mocking the Divas Champion.

They wrote: “Wow @EveMarieTorres looks super tired backstage. Guess she couldn’t handle South America! We beliEVE homegirl needs some makeup! BESOS BeliEVErs!”

source: prowrestling.net

WWE Divas Champion Eve Torres spoke with The Miami Herald at this week’s WrestleMania 28 press conference. Here are some highlights:

Winning the Divas Title again: “It’s kind of like the first time you really don’t know how much it means to you, until you lose it. When it is the first time, you almost don’t know how to make the most out of it and to truly fight for it. I think any time you get the chance to represent the title and to earn the title, you learn how to represent it in the best way.

You learn how to wear it with honor, fight for it with honor and really become the face of WWE for the divas. It’s an amazing opportunity. You have to be ready for those opportunities when they come. Otherwise what is the point of having those opportunities? I have mine and plan on making it last. I plan on getting the most out of it.”

Why she’s Champion: “All of the divas are given opportunities. It’s kind of the way you go after them and what you do with them. I feel like I was able to cease the opportunity I was given, and now I am divas champion. You are representing the entire company. I think it shows the company has faith in you, and we have faith in ourselves.”

Her jiu-jitsu training: “Jiu-jitsu is something I absolutely love. I never planned on going into MMA or anything like that. I literally do it for fun and for my own self defense. I think it’s important for women to learn that. I think it’s very empowering and has helped with my confidence inside and outside the ring. I think that is why it’s so meaningful for me.”

— Vince McMahon opened tonight’s Raw to announce that on next week’s show, the host of WrestleMania XXVII will be revealed.

McMahon’s announcement wasn’t written into the script for tonight’s Raw. It was merely labeled as a McMahon segment.

— Michael Cole noted over commentary tonight on Raw that Natalya will receive a shot at Eve’s Divas Championship on next week’s show.

The third-generation wrestler lost the title in a Fatal 4-Way Match at the Royal Rumble without being pinned.

source: PWInsider.com

— Melina claimed last night on Twitter that her account was hacked and that she and John Morrison are still a couple.

She wrote, “Peeps, I’m still in Vegas. Jomo & I R 2together, doing great! Hackers suck BizzALLS!

“All the supportive Tweets & Love. You guys R truly like family to me. My heart is so grateful. You have no idea. Thank u 4 being so caring.”

Messages were posted Saturday morning via Twitter for iPhone and text message (applications she has used within the past two weeks) indicating that she was dumped by Morrison on New Year’s Day and that he had left her for a man.

— Eve Torres said yesterday on Twitter that she filmed a project for her female fans.

“Was filming for 13 hours straight today!” Torres wrote. “Something good for the female Believers is in the works!”

— The newsstand edition of the January 2011 issue of WWE Magazine features a hologram cover. John Cena is pictured.

— Video has surfaced online of Vince McMahon, Big Show, Kelly Kelly and Eve Torres visiting U.S. troops stationed in Kandaha, Afghanistan. McMahon is briefly interviewed, as he discusses WWE’s annual visit overseas.

The video can be accessed here.

Eve Torres noted of the trip on Twitter: “What a truly amazing trip. A strong reminder of how much I appreciate our country & our daily luxuries (like indoor toilets!) Thnk u troops!”

— Due to an injury suffered by Wes Brisco at the Nov. 20 Florida Championship Wrestling live event in Punta Gorda, he and Xavier Woods were stripped of the FCW Tag Team Championship Thursday. Titus O’Neil and Damien Sandow were determined as the new champions the following night in Plant City, Florida.

— Goldust is scheduled to undergo an MRI on his shoulder tomorrow.

“I have to get an MRI on my shoulder Thursday, so please say prayers that nothing is too terribly wrong,” he wrote on Twitter.

— Eve Torres missed Monday’s Raw because she was preparing to leave the United States Tuesday for Afghanistan. She, Kelly Kelly, Big Show and Vince McMahon are heading overseas to pay a visit to troops stationed in the country. Footage from the trip will air during WWE’s Tribute to the Troops special airing later this month on NBC.

— The Thanksgiving Day episode of WWE Superstars on WGN America drew a 0.48 cable rating, with 516,000 viewers. The midnight replay garnered a 0.14 rating, with 150,000 viewers.

source: PWInsider.com

— The current Diva-exclusive season of NXT — coupled with an ongoing recruitment drive by WWE officials to hire more models, which it can train as professional wrestlers — indicate that cuts will be made to the female roster in due time.

According to the UK based wrestling magazine, Power Slam, the list of females whose jobs are considered safe in the company is limited to Michelle McCool, Layla, Beth Phoenix, Maryse, Kelly Kelly, Melina, and “possibly” Natalya and Eve Torres.

Those not listed are considered expendable by officials.

— Maxine, who was eliminated from NXT on Tuesday’s show, commented on why she believes she was expelled from the contest in an interview with nxt.wwe.com.

“The WWE Universe doesn’t always warm up to the bad girl. I think it’s much easier to really like somebody that’s overly perky and nice,” she stated. “I feel like I’m more of a leader, I’m not a follower. I make my own path and I think that’s the way to go.”

— Besides a few people who viewed the script for Monday’s Raw, former talent Lita’s surprise appearance was kept a secret until she walked into the Nassau Coliseum. (source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

— The cover art for WWE’s Goldust autobiography, Cross Rhodes: Goldust, Out of the Darkness, has been released. Click here to view it.

The 256 page book will be released in paperback form on December 14, 2010.

— Eve Torres was backstage at last night’s Raw taping in Wichita, Kansas, but wasn’t used. She posted the following photo on Twitter of herself with Raw guest star Johnny Knoxville.

— WWE Diva Eve Torres wrote last night on Twitter that she was attacked by a giant squid. She enclosed a gruesome photo of her back, which is littered with red marks.

To view the photo, click here.

While the marks are legit, she said today that she was merely joking about being attacked by a giant squid. She said the marks are from a Chinese healing procedure called Cupping.

— Matt Hardy was removed from the opening SmackDown montage on Friday’s show. He remains listed on the company website’s SmackDown roster page.

— Putting a rumor to rest, TNA star Jay Lethal wrote on his Twitter account that he is not dating NXT Rookie Diva AJ Lee — after being asked. He did, however, note that they were a couple at one point.

— The entire WWE talent roster will be on hand for next Monday’s “Raw 900th Episode Celebration” in Boston, Massachusetts. It should be noted that the episode is scheduled for two hours.

— John Cena appears in a new episode of Hannah Montana Forever, premiering Sunday, September 12 (8:00-8:30 p.m., ET/PT) on Disney Channel. The WWE Superstar guest stars as himself to provide Miley’s brother Jackson with some real life motivation.

— Jimmy and Jey Uso celebrated birthdays Sunday as the twin sons of WWE alum Rikishi turned 25 years old.

— Eve Torres celebrated her 26th birthday Saturday.

sources: www.f4wonline.com, PWInsider.com

— Monday’s Raw saw Eve Torres become the No. 1 contender to Alicia Fox’s Divas Championship as a result of her victory over Maryse. Immediately following the bout, Howard Finkel expressed his displeasure with the Raw Divas division, but more specifically, Torres.

“I have had it with the Raw Diva division,” the WWE Hall of Famer remarked during the live Raw chat on WWEUniverse.com. He added, “I DO NOT hate Divas…..I am not a fan of who is the # 1 contender.”

— At the July 6 Friday Night SmackDown television taping, WWE ran a vignette before the Atlanta crowd introducing a new Diva by the name of AJ Lee. The vignette, however, was cut from the broadcast. According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, a decision was made to introduce one new character at a time — currently Alberto Del Rio — thus explaining why vignettes introducing Lee have yet to surface. Once Del Rio makes his official debut in WWE, the promotion of Lee will commence.

Lee, who’s real name is believed to be April Jeanette, is 23 years old and has been under contract to World Wrestling Entertainment since May 2009. At 5 foot 2 and 99 pounds, she is the smallest female performer affiliated with either major wrestling organization. Prior to joining WWE, Lee worked independent wrestling shows throughout the Northeast. She has been competing professionally since September 2007.

— Former TNA personality Jonny Fairplay congratulated fellow reality television alum Mike “The Miz” Mizanin on winning Raw’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match in a Facebook post Sunday night. He followed up his post Monday morning with a remark TNA Wrestling official Jeff Jarrett made a few years ago concerning The Miz.

“Is remembering back to 2004 when Jeff Jarrett told me there was no money in The Miz,” Fairplay wrote. “Thanks, Jeff.”

At the time, Mizanin was working independent wrestling shows in California for Ultimate Pro Wrestling (UPW). He would catch a break a few months later when he landed a spot on the fourth season of Tough Enough. Despite losing the reality based contest to Daniel Puder, Mizanin piqued the interest of WWE officials and was eventually offered a developmental contract.

— Chris Jericho’s rock band Fozzy has released a music video for the song “Let the Madness Begin.” The video can be viewed here.

— John Morrison and Eve are advertised to appear at the Daytona Lagoon Water Park in Daytona Beach, Florida on Saturday, July 31. The meet-and-greet begins at 3:00 p.m.

— WWE newcomer Alberto Del Rio has already developed a bad reputation among those in the locker room, reports the Pro Wrestling Torch. He has complained to fellow wrestlers about the company’s decision to remove the mask he donned while working in Mexico. Many feel he should be thrilled with the push WWE officials have given him thus far rather than moaning.

— Eve Torres has opened a fan page on Facebook, which you can view at the following link. The WWE Diva also has plans to open an official website in the near future.

— Eliminated NXT Rookie Titus O’Neil (real name Thaddeus Bullard) said he chose his ring name because of its Biblical reference as Servant to God, not to mention that he’s a fan of NBA Superstar Shaquille O’Neal.

During an interview with Jon Waldman of SLAM! Wrestling, revealed her hopefulness for WWE’s higher ups to debut a female edition of NXT at some point.

“When they told all of us about the idea of NXT, for the Divas that was our first question — will there be women on the show?” Torres said. “[There’s] a lot of value that could add because we’re always pushing for more with the Divas and bring the Divas to the next level. People don’t really get to know as much as the other superstars because of the amount of time you see us on TV. So having something show what it means to be a Diva… I think that’s what NXT is about — what it means to be a superstar — and I think a female version would be awesome because it could help communicate that to the world.”

Regarding her development as a wrestler, Torres says that the mixed martial arts’ training she received from the famed Gracie family has helped a lot, though not necessarily in the way that would first spring to mind.

“It helped a lot — not so much with the actual techniques and moves though they can be applied — it’s more about learning how bodies move; how to be athletic, awareness of your own body and what we’re working with in the ring,” she says. “It’s really helped me with being athletic and moving well.”

Torres also pinpoints the time when she felt she had really made herself known in wrestling; she feels, however, that there’s still much to be seen.

“When I started working with Maryse is when I really felt like people can start to see what I stand for and who I am. They’ve seen other sides — the interviewer side and as a manager — that was all fun and I enjoyed that, but they didn’t get to see who I am. I still believe that the WWE Universe still doesn’t truly know who I am and I can’t wait for them to really find out. I think there’s a lot more to come and more layers that can be revealed and I’m excited to do that.”

— On Twitter, Melina indicated she has two months of physical therapy left before she can return to the ring. She also asked her fans what the “latest gossip” is on her comeback, to which they replied she was being advertised for the Jun. 5 Monday Night Raw taping in Miami. She said she was unaware of any such appearance as no one in WWE told her about it, writing:

“You never know, maybe I can be there for that Raw show… I surely can walk, talk and slap some people. :D I could still be there! But I haven’t heard from anyone though. :( so who knows if I’m supposed to be in Raw or SD. I’m in the dark like all of you. Maybe more so :p”

– Though Layla and Michelle McCool came to the ring wearing matching Women’s Titles on Friday’s episode of SmackDown, according to WWE.com, they are merely “self-proclaimed” co-Women’s Champions. Officially, Layla is the WWE Women’s Champion. McCool is not an official holder of the belt.

– Speaking of Melina, she will be appearing on tonight’s Over The Limit live chat on WWEUniverse.com. Tonight is “Divas Night” as the winner of the Divas Championship Match between Eve Torres and Maryse will appear during the session. Also scheduled to appear is former Women’s Champion Beth Phoenix. Click here for more information.

— Plans as of early last week was that the Drew McIntyre firing angle would be held off until after Sunday’s Over The Limit pay-per-view with Matt Hardy insisting Theodore Long rehire McIntyre so he could beat him up. It was also indicated that WWE would utilize Twitter with Hardy asking his fans to spread his message. (source: f4wonline.com)

— Goldust, Cody Rhodes and Dusty Rhodes were originally scheduled to team up for the first time together at a Florida Championship Wrestling live event on Jul. 9, but plans have changed. Instead, Goldust and Cody will team up together, with the WWE Hall of Famer accompanying his sons to the ring. All three will be taking part in a meet and greet before the show.

— Sunday’s Over The Limit live chat on WWEUniverse.com will be a “Divas Night” as the winner of the Divas Championship Match between champion Eve Torres and Maryse will appear during the session. Also scheduled to appear are former Women’s Champions Melina and Beth Phoenix. Click here for more information.

On Twitter, multi-time champion Melina posted a few strongly worded messages concerning Eve Torres’ Divas title opportunity on Monday’s Raw. Notably, Melina said she didn’t want to see the title “get lost on someone who can’t bring attention or validity to it.” While initially she didn’t mention Eve by name, she specified the 2007 Diva Search winner following her championship victory on Monday, adding that she got cheated out of the special moment one consumes after taking time to reach such a noted accomplishment.

Here is what Melina wrote:

* “My 984th Tweet will be about Maryse. Other reasons I want her to win. Not only is she the most experienced out of the two but she is the most charismatic one. She is entertaining in her own right and puts focus on the championship. The title will get lost on someone who can’t bring attention or validity to it. She is a good heel. She can sneak or cheat to win. Her ways of winning the title without earning it makes it worth something bcuz it shows that the championship is so important a person is willing to lie, cheat and steal!!! In turn it makes you want to see a babyface knock her teeth in and win it the way you should, by wrestling!!! You earn that championship, by Maryse constantly cheating or finaggling her way to retain it, she makes a Baby fight for it and in a different way, earn it. Good for her. Make that title mean something girl! Please!”

* “I still stand by what I say. Back in the Trish/Lita/Jazz era, the women earned the title and fought for it. It meant so much. Women looked at them and wanted to be as great as them. It shouldn’t be about taking turns on who gets to put in on this week. It should be about who earned it and who brings credibility to it. I still wish it could have been Jillian, Katie or Gail to have that opportunity. All I wanted was to start a new era. To make those women proud to see we were keeping it alive.”

* “Just to make sure everyone understands, I think Eve is an up and coming talent. She has potential like many of our Divas. Like many of our Divas, they deserve a better title moment than that. With a good chase and a good build up. Maybe you need to be a wrestler to know that feeling but, it’s an incredible feeling when you have reached such an honor. Where it took time and you invested so much to reach that moment/ that level. She got cheated out of that. No one understands that. Good for her. Be good to your heels, they make you who you are… As a former heel, I know. Do your thing chica.”

– Bret Hart will be appearing on next week’s live RAW broadcast to participate more in the angle with The Miz, Big Show and The Hart Dynasty. According to Miz, Bret is supposed to be announcing that ShowMiz is the greatest WWE tag team of all time.

– Former WWE Diva Maria’s album “Sevin Sins” is officially released today.

– As we saw on RAW, Eve Torres defeated Maryse to capture the WWE Divas championship. She wrote the following on Twitter last night regarding her first title win:

“I am still on a high! Thank you for believing in me! That is how I got my win tonight. I aim to bring pride and honor to the WWE Diva’s Championship. So much to say… I’ll be writing a blog for WWE Universe tonight.”

— Local advertising in the Richmond, Virginia area is promoting the Apr. 26 edition of Monday Night Raw at The Richmond Coliseum as a three-hour WWE Draft spectacular. The show will mark as the 2010 roster draft with Superstars from both Raw and SmackDown changing sides. Ticketmaster.com is running a pre-sale for the event through 10:00 p.m. tonight. The pre-sale code is DRAFT.

— Eve Torres and WWE Hall of Famer Howard Finkel are in Phoenix today doing media and making appearances to promote WrestleMania. Torres noted on her Twitter account that she will be throwing out the first pitch at today’s Los Angeles Dodgers spring training game at Camelback Ranch in Phoenix. She will also be taking part in an autograph signing with Finkel today at 2:30 p.m. at Food City (located 9020 W. Thomas Rd. Phoenix, Arizona). Finally, both Torres and Finkel will be on 101.5 JamZ tonight with the SuperSnake at 5:00 p.m.

— Daniel Bryan has been sparring with David Hart Smith as of late, working on European Catch-style takedowns. The Hart Dynasty member has been training this particular style in recent months. (source: PWInsider.com)

*SPOILER* on the 10th Money in the Bank participant ->