Kurt Angle left TNA’s European tour to return to the United States over the weekend after doctors were forced to induce labor on his fiancée, Giovanna Yannotti.
Late last week, Angle served as the special guest referee for the Jeff Jarrett and Matt Hardy vs. Shannon Moore and Mark Haskins match in Lyon, France. The 1996 Olympic gold medalist received a phone call shortly after the event that his 25-year-old pregnant fiance was forced into emergency labor due to health complications.
Angle wrote about the situation on Twitter over the weekend:
“To my fans, especially in Europe. Sorry I had to pull from the tour. Giovanna, my fiance’, had complications with her labor. I came home To be with her and my beautiful new daughter Giuliana is doing fantastic.
“I will be staying at the hospital until Giovanna is able to leave. She won’t be able to leave until the doctors clear her condition. Thank u all for ur support.
According to Slam Wrestling, Yannotti was found passed out and was taken to the hospital, where it was determined that her blood pressure was dangerously high and both her and and the baby’s lives were at risk.
The baby, Giuliana Marie Angle, was born prematurely Saturday at 5.5 pounds and 18 inches long. This is Kurt Angle’s third child, with the first two coming from his previous marriage to Karen Jarrett.
Last Thursday on TNA iMPACT!, Amazing Red’s “little” brother (officially known as “Crimson”) put Abyss in a chokehold backstage and delivered a cryptic message to him: “They are coming.”
“They” will mark the return of the Main Event Mafia and will consist of Kurt Angle and Scott Steiner, and possibly Sting, Kevin Nash and Booker T.
Steiner returned to TNA at last Wednesday’s iMPACT! taping and participated in a cliff hanger ending. He donned a suit reminiscent of his time in the Main Event Mafia. Angle is penciled in for the group, and many within the organization expect Sting to be too.
Many in TNA presume that Nash is on board for the group. However, he adamantly said last week on Twitter that he is not because he is retired. Internally, many believe Nash is kayfabing his absence from TNA, but those close to him indicate he’s legitimately retired.
Booker T’s status remains unknown at this point, other than he wasn’t believed to have signed as of last week. Some were pleased with his departure from the organization in October 2009 as there were complaints about his performance, attitude, refusal to put over Matt Morgan in a match, and his own admission that he was using the company as a way to audition for acting roles.
Bobby Lashley has been mentioned by those in TNA as a possible member of the group. However, those affiliated with the mixed martial artist don’t believe he’s returning to the wrestling organization. Lashley is currently a free agent as his contract with Strikeforce expired following his loss to Chad Griggs in August. The only thing of note he has done since then is work a wrestling match for the Japanese promotion Inoki Genome Federation (IGF) in September. He is not tentatively not scheduled for any upcoming shows.
“They” would initially feud with Immortal and Fortune. The angle begins on the Feb. 3 iMPACT!.
TNA star Kurt Angle appeared on a recent episode of ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. The Olympic Gold medalist pays a visit to the new home gym of the Lampe family, whose house just got a major renovation as part of the show.
— Based on statements made by Moore County District Attorney Maureen Kruger, the person administrating Jeff Hardy’s current legal case, the expectation is that the TNA World Heavyweight Champion’s negotiated plea will result in the drug trafficking charge being dropped (which carries a mandatory prison sentence), but that he’ll plead guilty to possession. Should the drug trafficking charge be dropped, it is likely that he will face penalties via fines and probation since he’s a first-time drug offender, thus avoiding jail time.
The negotiated plea takes place Jan. 20.
— Kurt Angle appears on tonight’s episode of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, which airs at 8:00 p.m. on ABC. He gives a tour of an amateur wrestling facility that will be built as part of the home remodeling project.
A preview clip of Angle’s appearance is available here. No mention of TNA is made as he is introduced as a 1996 Olympic gold medalist and multi-time world champion wrestler.
— TNA World Heavyweight Champion Jeff Hardy is not backstage at tonight’s iMPACT! taping in Orlando, Florida, but will be appearing at tomorrow’s event. He missed last night’s show due to a court hearing in North Carolina.
— Today is 13-time World Champion Kurt Angle’s birthday, who turns 42 years old.
— TNA Knockout Tara took part in an interview with Little Rock, Arkansas based radio station 103.7 The Buzz and discussed her Final Resolution pay-per-view match against Mickie James and working a Steel Cage Match against the country musician that will air on tonight’s iMPACT!. To listen to the interview, click here.
— Kurt Angle noted on Twitter that he is looking to film a “good vs. evil” movie alongside fellow TNA star Rob Van Dam. He also commented on the state of his former employer, World Wrestling Entertainment.
“I truly look a wwe and it’s not the same without shawn, HHH, rock, austin and me. They have incredible talent like ‘Taker, kane and others. I thank GOD vince game me a chance, but any talent won’t be is HUGE as we were. I’m not trying to benefit Tna. I love Tna. But wwe needs upper talent. I hope they do it, but when I was in wwe, the talent was incredible. Rey mysterio, cena and orton picked up the slack. But is wwe like it was? Tna has Awesome talent. I Pray we can compete up against the Monster wwe someday. I will do my very best. I loved wwe when I was there-but tna is better for me. I Pray we both succeed incredibly. Kurt.”
— AAA star Zorro noted in an interview with miluchalibre.com that he has been offered a two-year contract by TNA Wrestling. The deal would allow him to continue working for AAA as well. The Mexican wrestling promotion have given him permission to accept the offer.
— Eric Young is accepting bookings via Bill Behrens at showbis@aol.com. They are, however, subject to approval by TNA Wrestling.
— TNA Superstar Kurt Angle said “anything is possible” today on his Facebook account in regards to a possible return to WWE.
“A lot of you want me back in WWE. I appreciate your kind words. I love TNA but anything is possible,” he wrote. “Dixie Carter has been wonderful to me. She cares about my well being. That means more to me than anything. So I would never count out WWE, but TNA is my loyalty right now.”
— The seating chart for WrestleMania XXVII has been released online. To view it, click here.
The event is being held on April 3, 2011 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia.
— The Nov. 6 episode of A.M. Raw drew a 0.52 cable rating, with 646,000 viewers. The rating is way down from the previous week’s 1.04 figure.
— There was much bickering amongst the TNA Wrestling locker room at last week’s television tapings over TMZ.com’s report that Jersey Shore star Jenni “Jwoww” Farley was paid $15,000 for her appearance on iMPACT!. Others, however, are skeptical that the price tag noted to TMZ is legitimate.
Meanwhile, a company source was okay with the company’s publicity stunt, even if the $15,000 figure is legitimate.
“If you get TMZ to put it up and other people pick it up, then it’s worth $15,000.
— Hulk Hogan earned a lot of respect from the locker room for appearing at last week’s television in spite of his ongoing back issues. That said, he was in great pain and unable to stand for long periods of time while backstage. The wrestling legend largely kept to himself, but was accompanied by longtime friends Ed Leslie (a/k/a Brutus Beefcake) and Jimmy Hart.
— Kurt Angle is taking a vacation to Thailand since he has time off and no movie projects.
(Partial credit to Pro Wrestling Torch for some of the info used in this report)
– Hulk Hogan was visibly in pain backstage at Bound For Glory, moving around slowly after having back surgery just a few days ago.
– TNA President Dixie Carter posted a reaction to what happened last night at Bound For Glory .. She wrote on Twitter that the revelation of “They” was simply “Unbelievable.”
– TNA star Kurt Angle says he was injured during the main event of Bound For Glory and says “Screw Hogan” for playing politics in TNA … Angle wrote on Twitter:
“Despite re-dislocating my ribs and getting stiched up the match was awesome tonight!”
“But…I am the best wrestler in the world and I don’t do politics. If Hogan doesn’t want the best I’m done.”
“I proved I am the best.Screw hogan! Politics will effect wrestling.Why would hogan pick a kid like jeff?I eat sleep and sh#t wrestling. B.S.”
— It was reported earlier that Kurt Angle was upset with Abyss over the monster wrestler dropping him on his head during their Steel Cage Match on last Thursday’s iMPACT!. To add further details, Angle leapt off the top of the cage and Abyss attempted to perform the Black Hole Slam. However, Abyss dropped Angle awkwardly on his back during the sequence. While Angle wasn’t super hot at Abyss, he was very concerned with his own safety. (source: Pro Wrestling Torch)
— TNA Wrestling will be holding several events over the next few days besides Sunday’s Bound for Glory pay-per-view at the Daytona Beach Ocean Center. For a complete schedule of events, click here.
— Yesterday was TNA President Dixie Carter’s birthday. She turned 46 years old.
– As evidenced by Monday’s RAW rating jumping around 22% from the previous week, there appears to be strong interest in the John Cena – Nexus storyline.
According to a reliable source, WWE creative is planning to book the angle in a similar way to the classic Million Dollar Man – Virgle relationship from 1990. The idea is that Cena will reluctantly serve under Nexus leader Wade Barrett – with hopes that WWE’s live audiences will be cheering Cena to stand up for himself and fight back against Barrett (as Virgil did with Ted DiBiase). Creative has done some longterm planning for this storyline and has a definitive finish in mind, but will be booking on a week-to-week basis until they get to the finish.
– WWE has announced that John Cena will be in the corner of Wade Barrett at WWE’s Bragging Rights pay-per-view. Barrett will challenge Randy Orton for the WWE Championship, with WWE teasing that Cena will be subservient to his leader and give Barrett the advantage.
– Kurt Angle just signed a 1-year contract extension with TNA Wrestling, but the Olympic gold medalist says he’s open to returning to WWE after that. Angle appeared on the Right After Wrestling radio show on Monday night and said:
“There comes a time when everybody has to hang it up. I’m coming to the close of my career whether it be a year or two or three. I know it won’t be full-time after this year. I would like to stay in TNA, but if I my option goes to WWE, I will. I want to stay in TNA, no doubt about it.”
TNA sent out this press release hyping a special preview of Kurt Angle’s new movie “Beyond the Mat” for fans in Daytona, Florida this weekend for Bound For Glory this weekend:
BOUND FOR GLORY WEEKEND: ATTEND AN EXCLUSIVE SCREENING OF KURT ANGLE’S NEW MOVIE
TNA Wrestling and Catch 22 Entertainment have teamed up to kick off “Bound for Glory 2010” weekend with an exclusive midnight screening to Kurt Angle’s new movie “Beyond the Mat” Friday, October 8 at the R/C Ocean Walk 10 in Daytona, Florida.
Fans will have one exclusive chance to see “Beyond The Mat” before its national theatrical release scheduled for early 2011, with purchase of the TNA “Bound For Glory 2010” VIP Weekend Package. Only fans who have purchased the “Bound For Glory 2010” VIP Weekend Package will be granted admission to this screening.
Set against the backdrop of a high school varsity wrestling team, “Beyond the Mat” is the coming-of-age tale of Aaron Miller, whose friendship is put on the line when his best friend robs Aaron of his spot on the varsity wrestling team in order to stage a rematch with a cross-town rival. Aaron is torn between his loyalty to his friend and his commitment to his sport. Fueled by the desire to succeed and the need to prove himself, Aaron embarks on a journey of self-discovery.
Kurt Angle gives a punishing performance as Coach Kamen. Angle predicts the film, which he says portrays the sport with authenticity, will resonate with the wrestling community and introduce that world to a wider audience. What’s more, “it has a great story that goes beyond wrestling itself,” notes Angle.
The “Bound For Glory 2010 VIP Weekend Package” is $199 and available for purchase exclusively at www.ShopTNA.com. In addition to entrance into the “Beyond the Mat” screening, the VIP Weekend Package includes admission to “TNA Bound For Glory Fan InterAction,”where fans can meet over 40 TNA Superstars, as well as private, meet-and-greet and signing events with “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair, “The Icon” Sting, and “The Charismatic Enigma” Jeff Hardy, as well as a special “Night Before The Glory Luau” on Saturday night, special gifts from TNA personality Don West and much, much more!
— TNA president Dixie Carter’s most recent teased talent acquisition failed to generate much buzz amongst the locker room.
“Nobody talked about it because nobody cared,” a TNA source told the Pro Wrestling Torch. “No one is big enough to make a splash in our ratings.”
Others in the company echoed similar thoughts as the general feeling is that it will take a creative overhaul to make a significant change, not a talent acquisition.
— Kurt Angle recently confirmed on Twitter that he has an account on Facebook. His page can be reached here.
— Today is TNA Spanish color commentator Hector Guerrero’s birthday. He turns 56 years old.
— Kurt Angle’s fiance, actress Giovanna Yannotti, announced on her Twitter account that she and Kurt are expecting a child. Yannotti is 24 years old, 17 years younger than Angle. They met on the set of one of Angle’s movies, “End Game.” You can see some of Yanotti’s modeling pictures here.
— Hernandez has not been on hand for TNA events in recent months because he is on loan to the Mexican based AAA promotion due to a talent exchange. Management has lost faith in pushing him as a singles star because his ring work has not progressed at the rate they feel it should. (source: Pro Wrestling Torch)
— TNA Wrestling has announced that Bound For Glory, scheduled for Sunday, October 10, will be available in high-definition via DIRECTV’s satellite system.
– Kurt Angle announced on Twitter this evening that he has signed a new 1-year contract with TNA Wrestling Angle wrote:
“I am there for a while! Unless I lose at BFG. Then I will retire.”
– After going nuts on Twitter earlier this month and sounding like he was ready to leave TNA, Kevin Nash seems to have smoothed things over with the company. Nash was asked on Twitter when he was going to call Triple H and beg for a job with WWE. Nash responded:
just had a great conversation with Terry Taylor .I would not or ever will beg for food to feed my family to many guns to beg”
– Former WWE & TNA star Sean “X-Pac” Waltman’s drug charges stemming from his airport arrest for marijuana earlier this month have been reduced. Waltman wrote on Twitter today:
“My charges were reduced to ‘wandering around looking for drugs’. $200 fine. Thanks to the prosecutor & judge in Newark, NJ.”
– A woman named Maggie who serves as Scott Hall’s webmaster and online spokesperson wrote the following on Twitter yesterday updating Hall’s status:
“Talked to Scott.. he says he’s doing much better.. Thanks for all the prayers and well wishes..(Maggie)”
Sean Waltman noted on Twitter that Hall is back in Texas.
– TNA fans who attend the upcoming live event at the Oklahoma State Fair this Thursday will be treated to a special main event – with Kurt Angle facing Ric Flair. Other matches advertised include Samoa Joe vs. AJ Styles, Beer Money vs. Motor City Machineguns and Velvet Sky vs. Madison Rayne.
– Last Thursday’s episode of TNA iMPACT on Spike TV scored a 1.12 cable rating with 1,472,000 viewers. Reaction at 11pm scored an 0.71 rating with 939,000 viewers.
– TNA will be returning to The Asylum in Nashville, Tennessee on Friday, November 12th for a big “homecoming” live event.
– In a video he posted on YouTube over the weekend, TNA star Jeff Hardy commented on his brother Matt’s current situation and announced that he’s getting new entrance music, which will debut at TNA Bound For Glory. Check it out:
– TNA star Jeff Hardy will return to court this Thursday, September 9th. He will report to The Superior Court of Moore County in Carthage, NC, and faces the following charges from almost a year ago…
* Felony possession of cocaine.
* Felony drug trafficking of opium
* Felony possession with intent to redistribute a Schedule III drug (two counts).
* Maintaining a dwelling for drug use and/or distribution.
* Possession of drug paraphernalia. (misdemeanor)
– TNA star Kurt Angle was injured at last night’s No Surrender pay-per-view. Jeremy Borash posted the following on his Twitter after the show went off the air:
“With Kurt Angle right now backstage. He suffered a dislocated rib on the @JEFFHARDYBRAND swanton to the floor. The amazing Dr. Tim Adair, who works for TNA backstage, has put Kurt’s rib back in place. Angle says he is good to go. What a machine.”
Borash also posted a photo of Kurt backstage with an ice pack on his ribs, which you can see here:
Kurt Angle says he’s going to continue wrestling full-time until his TNA deal expires in a year, but after that, he’ll have to evaluate his future.
In an interview with Kevin Eck of the Baltimore Sun, Angle said, “I believe that you’re not going to see much more of Kurt Angle.”
“Financially, I’m fine,” he said.. “The hard part about leaving wrestling is I’ll miss it. I have a couple of food companies now and I’m doing movies. If I do retire, I think it’ll be a retirement match, and then a part-time schedule. It’s so hard for wrestlers to leave the ring. It’s difficult and I’ve given it thought. I have one year left on my contract with TNA and then I will evaluate from there.”
Angle says his knees, lower back, and neck are “always stiff,” but he hasn’t felt this good in a decade.
“I think this is probably the best I’ve felt, and it has a lot to do with the reduced work schedule in TNA where they’re not using me at every house show,” Angle said. “So having that lighter schedule has allowed my body to recuperate more.”
Angle needs to scale back the physicality of his in-ring style if he wants to continue wrestling, but he doesn’t know if he’s capable of that.
“Many people have told me, including Vince McMahon himself, that my work style is too intense; too aggressive. I don’t know if I can ‘work smarter,’ if you want to put it that way,” he said. “I learned from wrestlers like Eddie Guerrero and Chris Benoit, who were under-sized, to make up for that by working with much more intensity.”
Angle also talked about his movie career, which stars in TNA he thinks have what it takes to carry the company into the future and more.
— Kurt Angle announced on his Twitter account that he has landed two movies roles: “Death from Above” and “Madman Marz.”
— California based women’s wrestler Christina Von Eerie is scheduled for a tryout match at this week’s set of TNA iMPACT! tapings. She has worked in Mexico for the past year with AAA.
— TNA Wrestling will release HardCORE Justice on DVD on Nov. 2. It will feature a post-show Q&A session with Tommy Dreamer and Mick Foley as well as other extras, according to PWInsider.com.
TNA star Kurt Angle is engaged to 24-year-old model Giovanna Yannotti. Angle met Yannotti, who is 17 years younger than him, on the set of End Game and the couple dated for several months before becoming engaged.
Yanotti has been at a lot of the TNA shows lately and believe it or not, her and Karen have been hanging out, even traveling together to shows together.
Here are some modeling pictures of Kurt Angle’s fiance, Giovanna Yannotti:
TNA star Kurt Angle posted a few messages on Twitter.com/anglefoods1 comparing his new movie “Beyond the Mat” to WWE star John Cena’s “Legendary.” Both are about amateur wrestling, but Angle says Cena’s movie lacks realism.
“I heard that “Beyond the Mat” comes out in Jan. Legendary comes out next month. The difference is realism. Legendary is not true to real wrestling. Beyond the Mat, it has me, Ken Shamrock- all world class athletes who know how to succeed.”
His next comment got cut off, but said the “dark horse” movie would be the movie of 2011.
12-hours later, Angle followed up by complimenting Cena’s work on Legendary and says Cena’s movie is good for the sport:
“But I heard Cena did a great job in Legendary. Thanks for pushing the sport of amateur wrestling John. It’s great for the sport.”
Angle plays an amateur wrestling coach in “Beyond the Mat”, which will be in theaters February 2011.
Angle also said he’s got two more movie projects this year. He’s currently shooting “Death From Above” and will begin working on “Madman Marz” in a few months.
TNA star Kurt Angle posted the following message Twitter this morning, putting Hulk Hogan over in a big way:
“Hulk hogan could be one of the best human beings I ever knew. I have wrestled him. Now I work for him. I love you hulkster. Kurt.”
While this is just speculation … We reported yesterday that Hulk Hogan is looking to become the next big “infomercial king” (TV product pitchman) and is already making moves within the industry to reach that goal.
– Kurt Angle’s body is still pretty banged up and he’s taking a few more weeks off to let his body heal. If he’s able to return in time for Victory Road on July 11th, he will wrestle against either Samoa Joe or The Pope as part of his mission to beat all of TNA’s “Top 10 Contenders.”
– After parting ways with TNA just a few weeks ago, there is talk within the company that Lisa Marie Varon (Knockout Tara) will be back soon.
– Several different ideas are being discussed for the ECW originals angle, including the idea of creating a new “hardcore” spinoff brand with its own television show on Spike TV. Spike has given the green light for TNA to feature more violence on its shows, so we’ll see how this plays out.
– TNA officials are very happy with Jay Lethal and he’s in line for a big push this summer.
– Vince Russo is looking to become Executive Producer of TNA iMPACT, if he leaves the creative team. This is similar to the job that Kevin Dunn holds on WWE’s RAW brand.
– Despite returning to the ring already, Kurt Angle is still banged up from the Lockdown match with Mr. Anderson. Angle hurt his ribs again at the May 21st TNA live event.
– Speaking of busted ribs, Homicide is also nursing some soreness after working in a bad ring on the independent scene a few weeks back. Homicide aggrivated the injury even worse during a match with Japanese legend Jushin Lisger at the May 22nd for Jersey All Pro show.
– As previously reported, the reason TNA did the storyline with taking Mick Foley off TV was because he was running out of dates on his contract. Foley recently pitched an idea to TNA officials that he’d return this summer with a new stable. It’s been speculated in the past that Foley would team up with a group of ECW Originals.
— TNA officials have reportedly cut a few performers since yesterday. While a few names have begun circulating, they have not yet been 100% confirmed. (source: pwinsider.com)
— Regarding Impact’s move back to Thursdays, an upset Kurt Angle commented with the following:
“I was upset that TNA is going back to Thursday nights. I know in time we could have had the Monday Night Wars. I have mixed feelings about this. I can’t wait to come back. The Monday Night Wars were one sided, and rightfully so. But TNA deserves an applause for trying. Maybe it was too early, but TNA tried, and TNA will try again when the time is right. Remember WWE wasn’t built over night and in time TNA will be right up there.”
