AEW is the closest competition WWE has seen in the past 2
decades since the demise of WCW and people have their opinion on whether or not
the upstart promotion can ever dethrone WWE and become the #1 wrestling company
in the world.
During a recent interview with Súper Luchas, former TNA star
Hernandez opened up about his time with the company now known as Impact
Wrestling and he also talked about the new player in the game.
However, when asked if All Elite Wrestling can take over WWE
in future, the former champion said that the Vince McMahon owned promotion will
always be number one:
“WWE will always be number one worldwide, it’s not to
say an AEW or another brand do extremely successful as a solid number
two.”
Hernandez also talked about his early days in TNA and how Jim Cornette played an important role in getting him a push in the company.
However, he recalled how Cornette quit the company over creative differences when he was still in the middle of his push and this resulted in his run being halted by the company.
Apart from this, the former TNA star opened up about the company officials’ poor treatment of him when he injured his neck in 2009, being sent to work in Mexico and more. You can check out his full interview here.
The security video above was filmed Saturday night backstage before a Texas All-Star Wrestling show in Cypress, TX. Shawn Hernandez is seen in the top left corner approaching indy wrestler Brent McKenzie, who was sitting down. Hernandez is seen throwing a kick at the seated McKenzie, who gets up and hits Hernandez with a right hand that staggers him back into a table. A couple more blows were thrown, then they grabbed onto each other. Hernandez reportedly left bleeding from his mouth and the side of his head.
The scuffle was broken up quickly by other wrestlers. MECW wrestler Byron Wilcott was one of the wrestlers who broke it up, and says he saw Hernandez trying to bully McKenzie. Hernandez reportedly had a brief shouting match with Wilcott after he broke it up, then the former TNA Tag Team Champ left the building before the show started.
Lucha Underground has recently been given the green light for a second season and the company have just sent out a press release stating that they have released Shawn Hernandez
During his run on Lucha Underground Hernandez also begun working for TNA after telling them that he had already been given his released.
This wasn’t the case and Lucha Underground enforced their contractual rights which left TNA with no other choice but to scrap any segments they had planned for him on TV.
Lucha Undergroundsent the following:
‘LUCHA UNDERGROUND’ PARTS WAYS WITH SHAWN HERNANDEZ
Los Angeles, CA (September 25, 2015) – Lucha Underground, the Lucha Libre wrestling franchise from United Artists Media Group and FactoryMade Ventures, has released Shawn Hernandez from his contract and they have amicably parted ways.
“Lucha Underground” is produced by United Artists Media Group in association with FactoryMade Ventures for El Rey Network. Executive producers are Mark Burnett, Eric Van Wagenen (also showrunner) and Brian Edwards of United Artists Media Group; Dorian Roldán from Lucha Libre AAA; Alejandro Garcia and Antonio Cué Sánchez-Navarro; El Rey Network co-founder Robert Rodriguez; and FactoryMade Ventures and El Rey Network co-founders John Fogelman and Cristina Patwa. The series airs on El Rey Network and is distributed internationally by United Artists Media Group.
Posted September 25th, 2015 in News. Tagged: Hernandez.
TNA has released Hernandez from the company and scrapped several already-taped segments of upcoming Impact Wrestling episodes after being found in a legally actionable position at the hands of Lucha Underground. The promotion was forced to make the changes after bringing Hernandez back on board, despite the fact that he was still under contract to Lucha Underground.
According to PWInsider.com, Hernandez informed the company that he was contractually free and clear to sign with them which led to a deal being agreed upon. Hernandez was then introduced on television and became part of the Beatdown Clan, but after the appearances at TNA’s television tapings, Lucha Underground approached the company and said that Hernandez was still under contract to them and had not yet been released, so he could not legally appear on TNA television.
TNA attempted to resolve the issue and offered to pay Lucha Underground for the appearances Hernandez made with them, however Lucha Underground ultimately turned down the offers. This left TNA unable to use the footage and the company decided to pull anything involving the Beatdown Clan from their television. All of the storylines are done and TNA will be replacing that material with existing material, including matches from this year’s Slammiversary pay-per-view.
The following are highlights of a new v2 Wrestling Podcast interview with Hernandez:
On Chavo Guerrero using Eddie Guerrero’s mannerisms to get himself over: “TNA wanted him to do that. You know damn well when he was in WWE he wasn’t doing that crap. Why else would he do it? The guy’s been wrestling twenty years, he’s not retarded. He’s an excellent wrestler. Why would you want to be a novelty act? They didn’t even give us a team name because they wanted to sell Guerrero t-shirts.”
On his departure from TNA: “The only way I know that I’m not on the show no more is I don’t get a cheque no more. The last time I got a call from TNA was the end of November 2013; my contract ended May 12th (2014), which is awkward because I thought it was the 14th of May. I wake up on the 12th, and it was all over social media, Impact wrestling unfollowed me on Twitter… I text Mrs Carter the day after my contract expired saying “thanks for the eight years”; I’m still waiting for a response. It is the most bush league thing I’ve ever heard of.”
On the main problem with TNA: “As long as the Carters have billions of dollars, that company will never go away. I just think the infrastructure just needs, you know, how you snake a toilet? They have Jeff Hardy, you had Sting, Kurt Angle, the best up and coming talent (like) Austin Aries, Roode, Styles, all these guys that could do anything, and you let every former WWE employee that served coffee to Vince McMahon try to be the boss time after time after time.”
On LAX: “The reason why you saw LAX being so good and so strong on TV was because Konnan literally had to threaten to quit and take his bag and roll into the parking lot every time they came up with some corny ass idea for LAX.”
On whether he would return to TNA: “Of course not. You wrestle somewhere eight years, you do every stupid semi-racist vignette. I know how a Mexican looks, acts and talks. I don’t need a fifty year old white man telling me I’m not being Mexican enough. At the beginning of Mexican America I was doing all the talking, but because I wasn’t saying essa and orale I magically became the non-speaker. I told them I wouldn’t talk like that because I live in Houston and I’m not gonna get my ass kicked because I’m making fun of my own people.”
Hernandez also revealed that he has signed on to wrestle for Lucha Underground.
The following are highlights of a new Between The Ropes interview with Hernandez:
On why he is no longer with TNA Wrestling with his contract expiring in May: “Maybe you can tell me. I’ll be very honest with you. The last time I was on TNA was November when I had that Feast or Fired match and believe it or not, that is the last time I’ve spoken to anyone in the office. And I’m not even joking. I would send those 365 videos to (Jeremy) Borash every now and then I would get Bob Ryder approval for my indy dates and that’s it. I did not hear anything from anybody since I saw them in Orlando in November.”
On how strange that was: “To be honest, I knew I was still a part of the roster and my check came every month. Periodically I would check the Impact website to see if I was still on there. (laughs) It was definitely a head scratcher right there. Not an email. text, phone call … nothing. In fact, my contract was up May 12th but I thought it was up May 14th. So I woke up May 12th and my timeline was flooded on Twitter that my contract had expired. I looked at my contract and I looked on the (TNA) website and they pulled me off the website, they already unfollowed me on Twitter. (laughs) It was like bizarro world, brother.”
On how difficult it was for him after returning to TNA Wrestling after working in Mexico for nine months and being promised a singles push but instead being paired with Anarquia in Mexican America: “It was very difficult for me because you were blatantly lied to. This wasn’t no miscommunication. I don’t go down to Mexico for nine months of my life and it’s a miscommunication that I’m coming back to a tag deal. When I left, I was a tag champion with Matt Morgan. So, there’s no miscommunication there at all about ‘oh, you’re going to do down there and come back as a tag’. There was no miscommunication, at least on my part. So, of course, there was a lot of animosity on what was going down.”
– Former TNA tag team champion Hernandez is the latest high-profile wrestler to leave the company. After months of being off television, TNA decided not to renew his contract. Hernandez’s superstar bio has been removed from the active roster page and is now in their ‘alumni’ section.
Aside from Hernandez, other top names who have left the company in the past year include Hulk Hogan, Sting, AJ Styles, Chris Sabin, Christopher Daniels, Frankie Kazarian, Devon, Chavo Guerrero, Matt Morgan, Mickie James, Tara and Lei’d Tapa.
– TNA star Kurt Angle has launched a new Youtube channel, which you can subscribe to here. Below is the first video:
As Kurt Angle starts his road to recovery from ACL surgery last week, he wants to make sure that his friends, family, and fans can keep up with his progress. Kurt has created this video journal on YouTube and will be posting regularly to this channel. Please make sure to subscribe and keep up his comeback!
– In a battle of former TNA World Tag Team Champions, Bad Influence square off against Chavo Guerrero and Hernandez on this week’s edition of TNA Xplosion.
– TNA Wrestling is throwing a Christmas party for fans in the United Kingdom, the company announced on Facebook.
The event will take place in London, England on Sunday, December 22 from 3:00 to 7:00 p.m. with Magnus and Rockstar Spud in attendance. The party is being hosted by Jeremy Borash and will be filmed for broadcast on Challenge TV.
Admission is free but solely limited to those who have purchased tickets for next month’s TNA Maximum Impact VI Tour. Additional details are available here.
– Hulk Hogan currently has no plans to return to TNA Wrestling following the expiration of his contract last month.
Saturday night on Twitter, the WWE Hall of Famer responded to a fan question asking whether he will be returning to the company with the following: “yo Peri,I’m sorry I won’t be coming back. HH.”
– TNA Wrestling has announced that they will be publishing a “News & Notes” column on ImpactWrestling.com, which may run every Saturday. In one interesting tidbit, the column states that some familiar faces are expected to return to the promotion soon.
The column also notes that more matches will be announced in the coming days for One Night Only: Hardcore Justice (Dec. 29 in Lowell, Massachusetts at Lowell Memorial Auditorium) and One Night Only: #OldSchool (Dec. 30 in Poughkeepsie, New York at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center), and that an “Ask The Professor” feature hosted by Mike Tenay will be launched in the future. To read the full column, click here.
– In this “#IMPACT365” video, seven-time tag team champion Hernandez shows off his home workout.
-There will be a nWo reunion of sorts this coming weekend in San Antonio, Texas, as Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, Sean Waltman, Scott Steiner, Buff Bagwell, Scott Norton and Virgil will all be appearing at the Alamo City Comic Con on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Also appearing is WWE Hall Of Famer Bret “The Hitman” Hart and TNA Impact Wrestling star Hernandez. For more information, visit AlamoCityComicCon.com.
-WWE Diva Kaitlyn recently posted a new tweet on her Twitter account to show off her new look to her fans. Below is the tweet:
TNA star Hernandez was recently interviewed by Houston Wrestling Radio. Here are some highlights from the interview.
On what made him became a fan of pro wrestling:
It was the Paul Boesch Houston Wrestling in the 80s. There you could see the Guerreros, “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan, Butch Reed, One Man Gang, you name it. All of the biggest stars were there back in the early 80s. It was awesome!
On getting his start in the south Texas indy scene: I got trained by Tugboat Taylor and his son, Chaz in the late 90s and I started with Texas All-Star Wrestling around 1999. Back then, everything was hot. WWE, WCW and ECW was really hot. And it all trickled down. We would be drawing 500 to 800 people. Back then I was “Hot Stuff” Hernandez and I wrestled this young man named Necro Butcher. We would draw 500 people for “Hot Stuff” vs Necro in a hardcore match.
On his pre-wrestling relationship with Necro Butcher: Before I was making a living in wrestling, from about 1995 til 2001, I was an impound manager for the Houston Police Department. If you got a DWI or got your car towed for warrants, they would tow your car to a lot and you would have to come to me. I worked my way up from the night shift to manager. So I needed a night manager. The one who got the job was Necro Butcher; So he was my night manager. So if you were drunk in a club and had your car towed for illegally parking and you were talking all kinds of crap on the phone saying you would beat us up and then you would come to get your car, and then there’s this big 6”5? white hippie waiting for you. It was a sight to behold sometimes. We would get lots of cars that were illegally parked from the Houston Rodeo too. We would have to deal with a hundred drunk cowboys a night! And they all want to fight over the phone until they see us in person. Everybody’s tough behind a phone or behind a keyboard.
On how he broke into TNA: I basically took chances. I was the top draw in Houston for two or three years. My pockets weren’t getting any bigger. And unfortunately for pro-wrestling, it’s not a team sport. If you want to make it, you have to go out there and take chances. Necro Butcher taught me that first-hand. He left Houston. He made his name on the east coast doing hardcore stuff. I did it the hard way. I went to Japan three or four times, I went to Mexico. I wrestled there with a mask when TNA called me.
His response to the question of who he would have liked to work with but hasn’t: I’m very blessed. The wrestlers I’ve wanted to work with so far, I’ve worked. I’ve got to work a singles match with Sting. I’ve worked with Kurt Angle. I’ve got to work with AJ Styles and Austin Aries. Those two, as far as putting matches together and working the crowd… and Bobby Roode, those three are the best in TNA. I had a match with Jeff Hardy. I’m a huge fan of lucha. I’ve had matches with Dr. Wagner, La Parka, Cibernetico, guys from AAA. Another guy I was really a fan of, some people like him, some people don’t like him, Mike Awesome from ECW. I got a chance to tag with him in Japan. My bucket list is pretty much done.
If he prefers wrestling singles or tag matches: When I first got into wrestling, I used to love singles because it’s just you verses one man and a ref. It’s just three guys to make one match. But then when I got on television I almost wrestled exclusively tag matches. And me and my brother, well we’re not brothers but he might as well be my brother, Homicide, We meshed so well that I’d rather tag with him than wrestle any other type of match.
On what are his favorite matches of his career: Bound For Glory 2006, me and Homicide and Konnan versus AJ Styles and Christopher Daniels. We won the tag belts back in the cage. That match put us on the map. And then in 2011 with me and Homicide there was a match that wasn’t seen by a lot. Ring of Honor made a special deal to have me go over there for one night only to wrestle Chris Hero and Claudio Castagnoli. It was at Manhattan Mayhem in March of 2011. We tore the house down. Nothing is better and nothing more rabid than being in front of that Ring of Honor crowd.
On his upcoming appearance for the Clutch City Productions Sports and Celebrity SuperShow on August 31st: I’ll be there from 10:00am to 2:00pm. I’ll be autographing pictures. I’ll be autographing whatever you have, I’ll also be having “SuperMex” t-shirts. You can’t miss it. It’ll be one of the few times in South Texas that’ll you get to see the backbone of nWo. Hall, Nash and X-Pac will be there. I’ll be there. Robbie E will be there. Tessmacher will be there. But just for the fact that Hall, Nash and X-Pac are there, you should go.
Posted August 20th, 2013 in News. Tagged: Hernandez.
– Thursday’s episode of Impact Wrestling featured the return of Suicide to TNA as he defeated Joey Ryan and Petey Williams to earn a spot in Ultimate X Match at Slammiversary for the X Division Championship against titleholder Kenny King and Chris Sabin. The character was portrayed by TJ Perkins, who participated in tryout match for the organization last September shortly after requesting a contract release from Ring of Honor.
In the past, Suicide has been portrayed by Christopher Daniels, Kazarian and Kiyoshi. The character was initially introduced in 2008 to promote the TNA iMPACT! video game.
– Shark Boy returned to action Thursday after resurfacing on Impact Wrestling to convince “Cowboy” James Storm to select him as his tag team partner for the World Tag Team Championship Match against Chavo Guerrero and Hernandez at Slammiversary—the spot went to Gunner. Following the broadcast, he faced Robbie E in a match taped for an upcoming episode of TNA Xplosion.
Another Xplosion match was taped as TNA World Tag Team Champions Chavo Guerrero and Hernandez faced Aces and Eights members D.O.C. and Knux.
In a dark match result, a wrestler announced as Amish Abe defeated veteran independent wrestler Jason Static.
– Alex Shelley, who parted ways with TNA Wrestling one year ago this week, turned 30-years-old on Thursday. He is currently working for New Japan Pro Wrestling, where he is a former two-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champion.
– Following the departure of Sarita from TNA Wrestling this week after the organization elected not to renew her contract, Rosita may be gone as well.
According to PWInsider.com, multiple TNA sources say the New York native is gone from the promotion. The same website, however, says she has not been released, according to another source. Unlike Sarita, her profile remains on the company website.
Rosita, whose real name is Thea Trinidad, has yet to confirm whether she has parted ways with TNA. Rather, she posted the following on Twitter after rumors of her departure surfaced online, “Wow.. The love and support I’ve received from you all is so heartwarming ? thank you! So grateful to have such passionate fans! #TEAMTMT.”
– TNA Wrestling has released a video previewing tomorrow night’s Genesis match featuring “The Icon” Sting vs. D.O.C. from Aces and Eights.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1MI_tICuvuo
– A match for an upcoming episode of TNA Xplosion was taped following Thursday’s live Impact Wrestling as TNA World Tag Team Champions Chavo Guerrero and Hernandez faced Joey Ryan and Matt Morgan.
– Kurt Angle, who suffered a groin injury Sunday at Final Resolution, offered an update on his health status Wednesday.
“Injury Will take a few Weeks,” Angle noted of his recovery time from the injury to a follower. He later wrote, “Hey my friends. Got a little Injury. But, I Will Be Back Very Soon. Thanks for Your tweets. Much Love. TNA! God Bless.”
– Official Knockouts referee Taryn Terrell is now officiating matches featuring men. This week’s featured match on TNA Xplosion features the former WWE Diva as the referee for match pitting Hernandez against Joey Ryan.
– TNA Wrestling has released a video previewing this Thursday’s live Impact Wrestling on SpikeTV.
Two new matches were announced for TNA Wrestling’s Final Resolution pay-per-view event during Thursday’s Impact Wrestling broadcast.
Chavo Guerrero and Hernandez will defend the TNA World Tag Team Championship against Joey Ryan and Matt Morgan. Plus, Bully Ray will do battle with Austin Aries.
Here is the updated card for Final Resolution, which takes place December 9 in Orlando, Florida.
* TNA World Heavyweight Championship Match – Jeff Hardy (c) vs. Bobby Roode
* Bully Ray vs. Austin Aries
* AJ Styles vs. Christopher Daniels
* TNA World Tag Team Championship Match – Chavo Guerrero and Hernandez (c) vs. Joey Ryan and Matt Morgan
* TNA Women’s Knockout Championship Match – Tara (c) vs. Mickie James
– Former WWE talent Shawn Spears competed in a dark match following Thursday’s live Impact Wrestling episode, as he lost to Joey Ryan. Spears briefly competed on WWE’s ECW brand in 2008 as Gavin Spears.
In a match taped for an upcoming episode of TNA Xplosion, TNA World Tag Team Champions Chavo Guerrero and Hernandez faced Robbie E and Robbie T.
– European bookmaker Paddy Power have launched a new “Hulkamania” licensed online slot machine. Hulk Hogan had previously given his image to American land-based casinos but this marks Hogan’s first online casino venture. If you’re in a country where gambling is legal, you can check it out here here.
– Spike TV cameras were on hand for Wednesday night’s Ohio Valley Wrestling television taping in Louisville, Kentucky as footage of King Mo training and watch action from ringside was shot. The footage will air on an upcoming Spike TV special centered on the combatant.
– Promoting ShopTNA.com, zombified TNA Wrestling stars go after ring announcer Christy Hemme in this newly released commercial.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FgQSbU23YH4
– Mickie James noted on Twitter that she underwent surgery last week. However, she did not detail the nature of the procedure. She says she’s “getting better everyday.”
The surgery will not keep her out of the ring as she is scheduled to face Taeler Hendrix at USA Championship Wrestling’s “Tennessee Homecoming 2012” event this Saturday at the Old Burns Gym in Burns, Tennessee.
– This week’s featured match on TNA Xplosion on Challenge is Hernandez vs. Christopher Daniels.
Monday Night Mayhem with Chavo Guerrero and Hernandez Hosts: The Big Mosh and Todd Vincent Recap by Kahlil Thomas
How the situation presented itself for Chavo to become part of the TNA roster and why the company has indeed lived up to his personal and professional expectations thus far: “To be honest, I didn’t really know if I was going to TNA, or if I was gonna stop wrestling, or what I really was going to do. I knew I was going to take some time off, and regroup, and regain some of my sanity after going 12 years in the WWE. Sometimes you have to do that. We just started talking back and forth a bit, me and TNA, over a two-month period, and we decided that would be a good fit. We tried, and it has been working really, really good. I’m just so happy to be there. It’s just nice to have people really appreciate your work, because sometimes people just expect that and never thank you, so it’s a good thing.”
Their initial thoughts when they found out they were going to team up together and why their tag team is “a completely different dynamic” from Los Guerreros or The LAX: (Hernandez): “When Chavo came to TNA, everyone talked about the family heritage and experience, but what they don’t realize is that this guy is reinventing himself. Every match, he’s breaking out something you haven’t seen before, or he hasn’t done in a while.”
(Chavo): “Don’t confuse our tag team with Hernandez’s previous tag team partners. Much respect to Homicide. He’s my boy. And with Konnan, the only thing we have in common is that we are Latinos. We are not LAX. They are not just plugging me in as ‘the new Mexican guy.’ It’s a completely different dynamic. This is not Los Guerreros or LAX. It’s completely different.”
Why they are looking forward to their three-way Match (vs. Kurt Angle/”The Phenomenal AJ Styles and “The Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels/Kazarian) for the TNA World Tag Team Titles at Bound For Glory: (Hernandez): “Kurt Angle, in my opinion, is hands down the best performer in the world right now. That’s just how it goes. AJ is AJ. He is the man. This guy truly is phenomenal. He could do anything his body lets him do it’s just crazy. It’s going to take all of my power and everything Chavo can come up with to become (TNA World) Tag Team Champions.”
(Chavo): “Kazarian and Daniels are the champs, and they are both really good. They both know how to hold onto those Tag Team belts. I think we match really well against them, because one thing they don’t have is the power. I’m just looking forward to getting to Bound for Glory and facing them.”
– Thursday’s “Open Fight Night” episode of Impact Wrestling on Spike TV posted a 1.01 cable rating. The figure is up from last week’s show, which garnered a 0.97 rating.
The program averaged 1.340 million viewers over the course of two hours, an increase of 100,000 viewers from the previous two weeks.
– TNA Wrestling has released footage of NBA great Shaquille O’Neal’s appearance on Impact Wrestling Thursday. During a backstage encounter with Hulk Hogan, Shaq says he has back in his battle with Aces and 8s.
http://youtu.be/V-BnWzpZwY9kQ
– Crimson and Hernandez have been announced to appear at The Big Event 3 taking place Saturday, October 6 at the Courtyard Marriott LaGuardia Airport 9010 Ditmars Blvd. East Elmhurst, New York.
– Chavo Guerrero spoke out after being attacked by Gunner and Kid Kash on Thursday’s Impact Wrestling broadcast on Spike TV.
http://youtu.be/BEC3KojwTz0
– Impact Wrestling senior official Earl Hebner posted an inappropriate message on his Twitter account Thursday night—likely meant as a private message to a user he is following.
The message stated, “I Will take ur blow j when u are ready 2 give it 2 me.”
Though the post was hastily deleted, it was noted by multiple users on the website.
– Despite her departure from TNA Wrestling in April, Traci Brooks is still featured on the company website’s Knockouts page.
– Tonight’s live Impact Wrestling will feature Tag Team Champions Kurt Angle and AJ Styles vs. Daniels and Kazarian.
The show will also feature more Bound For Glory Series matches and another Gutcheck segment with an evaluation of independent women’s wrestler, Taeler Hendrix.
– Speaking Hendrix, management was not very pleased with her match against Tara last week or her look. Al Snow has some heat on him for selecting Hendrix as the latest Gutcheck contestant.
– TNA President Dixie Carter announced on Twitter this week that Bound For Glory Series matches will begin airing next week exclusively on Xplosion in the UK and Australia.
– There is talk behind the scenes in TNA that Hernandez has signed a new contract.
– During the Joseph Park vs. Bully Ray match at Slammiversary, there was spot where Joseph Park went under the ring, Abyss appeared and chokeslammed Bully Ray through a table before disappearing under the ring again. While many were under the impression that Joseph Park changed under the ring and was the man who portrayed Abyss – that was not the case. The man who played Abyss was actually a student from Team 3D’s wrestling school in Florida named Lance.
– The Hernandez vs. Kid Kash match at Slammiversary was designed to get over the strength and power of Hernandez. TNA is happy that Hernandez has gotten himself into great physical shape and they are firmly behind establishing him as a top babyface contender.
– The reason behind Brooke Tessmacher’s recent name change TNA that Hulk Hogan did not want two Brookes in the company. Moving forward, it’s expected that TNA’s new Knockouts champion will be known as “Tess.”