– Mark Henry is expected to be back on television soon, which has been the case for a while now. Henry has dropped a lot of weight since his last appearance on WWE television.
– The severe stomach virus that Rey Mysterio was recently battling was due to a bad case of food poisoning. Mysterio is currently on very good terms with WWE, with the company giving him a lighter live events schedule to minimize the wear and tear on his body.
WWE is also very pleased with Mysterio’s efforts to help get Sin Cara over.
– Chris Jericho will be joining Diamond Dallas Page for the next Yoga For Guys DVD. Jericho has been a strong supporter of DDP’s program since he began using it during his stint on “Dancing with the Stars.”
Sidelined WWE Superstar Mark Henry served as a pallbearer at actor Michael Clarke Duncan’s funeral service on Monday at Forest Lawn Memorial-Park and Mortuaries in the Hollywood Hills section of Los Angeles, California.
Here’s a picture of Mark Henry and former WWE Summerslam main eventer Tiny “Zeus” Lister carrying the casket:
– Sin Cara defeated Michael McGillicutty on this weekend’s Saturday Morning Slam show.
– Friday’s WWE Smackdown had a Trendrr.tv social media score of only 77,771, down 20% from the previous week. Smackdown ranked #2 on cable TV Friday night, trailing “Stand Up 2 Cancer” coverage.
– WWE’s Chief Financial Officer, George A. Barrios, will participate in the Credit Suisse 3rd Annual Small & Mid Cap Conference, on September 21, 2012, in New York, NY. Presentation materials can be accessed at Corporate.wwe.com/investors on September 21st.
– Mark Henry continues to train for his eventual return to the ring. Henry, who has lost a lot of weight in the past few months, noted on Twitter over the weekend that he’s now lifting weights again. Check out a recent photo of Mark Henry looking skinny.
– WWE Champion CM Punk’s appearance two weeks ago at the Chicago Comic Con impressed Wizard World officials since he drew a larger audience than fellow WWE Superstar John Cena has in the past. Cena did not draw nearly what the event’s organizers expected the few times they have used him.
– This week on WWE Inbox, Superstars answer questions on what they do during their downtime to relax and whether they had an imaginary friend as a child. On the topic of downtime, The Miz says his father asked him a question about taking a vacation, which Miz said is going home and sitting on his couch in-between traveling. Additional respondents are Antonio Cesaro, Drew McIntyre, Natalya and Tyler Reks.
– Mark Henry and Eve are scheduled to appear at the Alaska State Fair in Palmer, Alaska on Thursday afternoon from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. (Event Information)
– Mark Henry is currently looking to return to action in late fall. Henry has been recovering from shoulder surgery earlier this year and has been dropping a lot of weight in his time away from WWE. Henry has told people that he would retire if he can’t return at 100%, but he’s expected to be back around Survivor Series.
Earlier this week, Henry posted a video on Tout telling fans that Triple H can’t done with WWE – because he has “plans” for him.
– Ignatius, the person that is in charge of Damien Sandow’s official Twitter account, wrote this week that Sandow is filing a police report against Brodus Clay for the assault that took place after their match on Monday’s RAW.
– Olympian Diana Lopez is interested in becoming a WWE Diva. The Sugarland, Texas native competed at this summer’s games from London in Tae Kwon Do (at 125 pounds). She won a bronze medal back in 2008 but didn’t medal this year.
– WWE will hold a ticket pre-sale on Wednesday for the WWE Live Event at Madison Square Garden on 12/27. The pre-sale code is WWEMSG. As previously reported, the main event for that show will see WWE champion CM Punk defend against John Cena.
– Mark Henry says for those who think Triple H is done wrestling because he had one brutal match, they’re mistaken. Henry has plans for Triple H when he returns to WWE:
Arda Ocal (@arda_ocal) of theScore is at SummerSlam Axxess this weekend and got exclusive video interviews with a number of WWE Superstars and Divas. Here are a few more clips he sent in:
The Miz feels critics are wrong when they say the IC title lacks prestige and it’s a step down to hold it at this point in his career (after having won the WWE title and main evented WrestleMania):
Mark Henry is at peace with the idea that his WWE career may be over and his latest World Heavyweight title run might have been his last hoorah. He also talks Olympians that he scouted for WWE while in London:
Reks and Hawkins joke about finally being done working Ryback and Reks getting pink eye during their matches. Hawkins also talks about working with The Rock, helping him get back into ring shape, prior to WrestleMania 28:
During his time away from WWE, Mark Henry is working on dropping weight. He noted over the summer that he was down to 404 pounds and from the looks of these pictures, is well under 400 now. Henry is looking thinner than we’ve seen him in years and could be a new man by the time he returns to WWE television:
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(Pictures from Mark Henry’s Twitter page @TheMarkHenry)
– WWE’s flagship program Raw SuperShow will celebrate its 1000th episode this coming Monday. During her near seven-year run, Trish Stratus participated in 160 matches-the most of any female-and created many memorable moments along the way. The legendary grappler is recalling the memories on her official website, TrishStratus.com, as she ranks her top five moments and top five matches. The quintessential Diva also offers an inside look with comments on each one of these Stratusfy-ing appearances. She ranks her match against Lita on the Dec. 6, 2004 episode of Raw, the first time in history that the Divas were solely featured in the show’s main event, as her top match.
She says of the bout, “What an amazing feeling for Lita and I to be given the trust and confidence to close out our flagship show in the main event of Monday Night Raw. Plus, a true testament to the hard work of the women’s division as a whole.”
– Sidelined SmackDown Superstar Mark Henry stated during a radio interview this week that he’s going to London, England to watch the 2012 Summer Olympics kicking off next Sunday. He participated in the 1992 and 1996 Games as a member of the United States weightlifting team.
– Japanese wrestler Shinjiro Ohtani, the first WCW Cruiserweight Champion, turns 40 years old on Saturday.
– Mark Henry tweeted this week that he’s been losing weight during his time away from WWE and is now down to 405. He’s looking to drop another 30 pounds.
– Former WWE personality Mike Adamle has taken “personal time” off from his job as a newscaster for NBC’s Chicago affiliate. He’s been off the air since May 14th and nobody has heard from him since. Adamle disappeared for months several years ago and later revealed he was getting psychiatric help during his time away.
– In the following video, WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels talks about his hunting show, his upcoming WWE RAW appearances and more:
– Rey Mysterio was backstage at Monday’s Raw SuperShow in Laredo, Texas but not used. His television return, as well as Mark Henry’s, is scheduled to take place on the historic 1000th episode of Raw on July 23.
Henry, who has been sidelined since May due to shoulder surgery, tweeted an update on his health Tuesday morning: “Twitter family I’m good! Healing at a fast rate. Not out of the woods yet!”
– WWE.com is conducting a poll asking fans what is the most shocking thing AJ has done recently. The options are A) Shoving CM Punk through a table B) Kissing Kane C) Wearing Kane’s mask D) Kissing CM Punk.
– Former WWE Women’s and Divas Champion Melina is today’s spotlighted Superstar on WWE.com. She continues to compete independently following her release from the sports entertainment promotion last year.
– Several new wrestlers started at Florida Championship Wrestling on Monday, according to FCW head trainer Bill DeMott.
– WWE Hall of Famer Roddy Piper will be launching his “Rod Pod” podcast soon after hyping it for several months. Piper tweeted that the postcast will be “NO RULES!!!”
– WWE released the following comedy video promote RAW’s expansion to 3 hours starting July 23rd:
– Local advertisements for next week’s RAW Supershow are stating that John Laurinaitis has a new role – “Assistant to the WWE Board of Directors.” This could be a sign that John Cena will defeat Big Show at No Way Out this Sunday, since Laurinaitis will be fired as General Manager if Big Show does not win the match.
– Injured WWE superstar Mark Henry will be in Harlem, New York today to film footage for WWE’s Outside the Ring Youtube show. He tweeted on Tuesday morning:
“#wwe I will be doing the day in the life today in Harlem. Show called Outside the ring. Starting at 125th Lenox got to get my coffee.”
Henry confirmed that his recent surgery was on his shoulder (not his knee or groin) – and that his recovery is going well.
– On last night’s RAW, Vince McMahon rode John Laurinaitis’ scooter from the ringside area to the entrance ramp – and then pushed it off the stage. According to a report at f4wonline.com, Vince’s spot with the scooter was not in the script and nobody knew he was going to do it in advance.
– WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart will be conducting his first wrestling seminar for the Crossfire wrestling promotion on August 4th at Tennessee’s Nashville Fairgrounds. Former TNA and WWE developmental talent Cassidy Riley will be working with the students in the ring.
– Suspended WWE superstar Chris Jericho was in Atlanta over the weekend prepping for Fozzy’s upcoming performances in the UK. Fozzy will play the at Download Festival this weekend, Saturday, June 9th. Jericho said Fozzy will debut their new song at the Download Festival and tweeted this picture of them rehearsing in Atlanta:
— Washington Redskins defensive end Adam Carriker was asked during his wrestling radio show 4th & Pain whether he could beat Mark Henry in an arm wrestling contest.
“Me,” he says when asked who would reign supreme. “I mean, Mark Henry has claimed to be the World’s Strongest Man for like two decades now. Is he really the World’s Strongest Man still or is that just some title he won’t relinquish. At some point I’ve got to think you’re not the World’s Strongest Man anymore. I’ve got to think at some point age has caught up with him. He’s been in the business a while… I’m still a young stud. In all honesty, the man is ridiculously strong. But I think I’ve got the fulcrum points, I’ve got the leverage part. I think I can take him.”
— Mick Foley addressed his involvement with THQ’s WWE ’13 video game via Twitter, writing, “”Fired up to be part of @WWE 13. I re-create some of my best known moments from the Attitude era. Cool stuff to be part of.”
He also stated that will be signing copies of his WWE produced children’s book “A Most Miz-erable Christmas” on December 1 at Santa’s Village in Jefferson, New Hampshire.
– Mark Henry recently announced on Twitter that he was undergoing surgery and would retire if he could not return to action at 100%. There was a lot of speculation that Henry’s surgery was for his nagging groin injury, but it was actually his shoulder that was operated on. If his physical therapy and recovery go as planned, Henry is expected to be back in action this summer.
– Justin Gabriel returned from injury on last night’s episode of WWE NXT. He teamed with Derrick Bateman and Percy Watson to defeat JTG, Michael McGillicutty and Johnny Curtis. Gabriel used a leaping tornado DDT as his finisher and looked to be in great shape in his return match.
– WWE employee Joey Styles is now taking independent bookings for personal appearances through WrestlingMarx.com.
– WWE officials have been impressed with the Rotunda brothers, Taylor and Windham, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Taylor Rotunda worked the recent NXT tapings from Full Sail University as Bo Dallas while he former Husky Harris worked the tapings using his new religious gimmick, Bray Wyatt.
– There’s no word yet on how Mark Henry’s recent surgery went, but he’s not expected to return to action until late June. Henry had been working through knee and groin problems over the past few months and tweeted on Wednesday night:
“What up twitter nation I’m healing well,no complaining from me I man up.”
– After recently being released by WWE, Goldust announced on Twitter that he’s getting married soon. He is taking independent bookings and might travel to Japan to wrestle, but made it clear that he’s not interested in doing radio appearances. He tweeted, “Im not bitter so go ask someone else.”
– With the news of John Cena’s divorce becoming public last week, there are those who believe it’s going to get ugly – and ugly fast. John Cena’s wife signed a very restrictive prenuptial agreement back in 2009 and recently turned down a financial settlement offer. Don’t be shocked to see Cena’s ex to “make some noise” (talking to TMZ, writing a tell-all book) in hopes of getting paid off to go away.
– Despite his “firing” on Monday’s RAW, Big Show is currently advertised for WWE’s upcoming tour of Mexico and all SmackDown tapings and live events in June.
– Mark Henry announced on Twitter this week that he was undergoing Surgery on Tuesday and would retire if he could no longer compete at his best. No word yet on how the procedure went, but it’s worth noting that Henry is not advertised for any WWE live events until RAW on June 25th.
Mark Henry revealed on Twitter on Monday night that he will be undergoing surgery today – and he plans to retire from WWE if he can’t get back to 100% physically:
“[Tuesday] I go under the knife. When I return I will be the fire breathing, pain inflicting,face melting better than ever Mark Henry!
Listen up! IF NOT! I will walk away. I have to much PRIDE to not deface any one in the WWE. The Hall of Pain is open for business!”
While this isn’t confirmed, word going around is that he’s having surgery for the groin injury that he suffered a while back that led to him dropping the World Heavyweight title and the end of his ‘unstoppable monster’ push in late 2011.
Henry has stated in recent interviews that he plans to retire if he is unable to come back from the injury at 100%. There was talk earlier this year before WrestleMania that Henry felt his career was winding down, so we might have seen the last of the World’s Strongest Man.
– According to ABC News, WWE CEO Vince McMahon has donated $2,500 to U.S. presidential candidate Mitt Romney.
– THQ announced yesterday that Daniel Bryan, Mark Henry, Edge, Eddie Guerrero and Curt Hennig have been added to the WrestleFest mobile game. A new RAW is WAR arena has also been added.
– WWE’s website has a new article up with SmackDown’s Damien Sandow, looking at the top 10 ignoramuses in WWE history. He listed Steve Austin, Mankind, Santino Marella, Ultimate Warrior, Zack Ryder, Dusty Rhodes, Brodus Clay, Brooklyn Brawler, Booker T and CM Punk.
– The latest episode of WWE’s Outside of the Ring features Mark Henry visiting the Arnold Schwarzenegger museum in Austria. Henry was not at last weekend’s RAW live events or this week’s RAW & SmackDown TV tapings, so he was apparently overseas:
— Sheamus will defend the World Heavyweight Championship against Alberto Del Rio on May 20 at Over the Limit. The Mexican grappler’s victory over Sheamus on the April 6 SmackDown guaranteed him a future World Heavyweight Championship Match.
Other matches scheduled for the event include John Cena vs. John Laurinaitis and WWE Champion CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan.
— Today marks the ten year anniversary of “WWE.” On May 5, 2002, Vince McMahon’s sports entertainment organization launched a “Get The F Out” marketing campaign and changed all references on its website from “WWF” to “WWE,” while switching the URL from WWF.com to WWE.com. The next day, a press release was issued announcing the official name change from World Wrestling Federation Entertainment, Inc. to World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., or WWE, and the change was publicized later that evening during Raw.
The name change stemmed from an abbreviation dispute with the World Wide Fund for Nature. In 2000, the environmental organization sued the World Wrestling Federation for unfair trade practices, claiming the wrestling company had violated a 1994 agreement regarding international use of the WWF initials. On August 10, 2001, an English court ruled in favor of the World Wide Fund for Nature.
— As reported earlier, Mark Henry was removed from advertising for this week’s Raw brand house show tour in Tennessee; he was slated to wrestle John Cena and WWE Champion CM Punk. Dolph Ziggler will take Henry’s place in Cena’s matches.
— WWE referee Chad Patton turns 36 years old today.
— WWE’s Executive Vice President of Creative Stephanie McMahon was joined by Sheamus, Mark Henry, Eve and Alberto Del Rio at a be a STAR Alliance rally Friday morning in the South Bronx as they stressed the importance of putting an end to bullying.
“It’s the most important initiative of WWE right now,” said Stephanie. “I’m incredibly proud to be a part of the be a STAR Alliance.” She then asked the pre-teens how many of them had been bullied; more than half of the crowd raised their hands.
“You’re not alone. That’s why WWE and The Creative Coalition have partnered together for the be a STAR initiative,” she said.
— Marcus “Buff” Bagwell is at home recovering after being involved in a serious car accident last week while traveling near his hometown of Marietta, Georgia. Former WCW colleague Marc Mero wrote Friday on Facebook, “A Miracle! My friend and Pro wrestler Marcus “Buff” Bagwell is home and recovering from a near life ending accident. I can’t thank you enough for your prayers. I believe God has a greater purpose for his life. We are texting each other as he can’t talk right now due to his injuries. His wife Judy said he will have a full recovery! I can’t wait to see him again!”
— Buff Bagwell underwent surgery on his jaw on Thursday, which had been wired shut, and is now walking. Indy promotion UCW, which Bagwell had been wrestling for prior to his accident, tweeted the following update on his condition:
“Buff Bagwell released after surgery. Buff is recovering after having surgery on his jaw , which is wired. Buff has 4 plates in his face from surgery. Under his eye, across the face / nose. Is walking..but has some tingling in his arms and hands.”
— WWE’s stock price increased by over 13% on Thursday, a sign that Wall Street was very satisfied by the company’s first quarter earnings report released earlier in the day. The stock closed at $8.90 per share after it had bottomed out around $7.75 three times in the past two weeks.
— Mark Henry has been pulled from advertising for this week’s RAW brand live events. He had been scheduled to wrestle John Cena and WWE Champion CM Punk this weekend.
— In a rematch from Monday’s Raw SuperShow, World Heavyweight Champion Sheamus will face Mark Henry this Friday on SmackDown. Also, Michael Cole will conduct an interview with Randy Orton to get his thoughts for his match against Kane at Extreme Rules.
— Matches taped Monday night in Detroit, Michigan for this week’s episode of WWE Superstars were Kelly Kelly vs. Maxine and Alex Riley vs. The Miz.
Antonio Cesaro beat JTG in a dark match at the show.
— The announced attendance for Monday’s Raw Supershow the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan was a sellout crowd of 16,122.
