— Matches taped Monday night at the Valley View Casino in San Diego, California are as follows:
* WWE United States Champion Jack Swagger vs. Mason Ryan
* Alex Riley and Santino Marella vs. WWE Tag Team Champions Epico and Primo (with Rosa Mendes)
Swagger’s match against Ryan is his third consecutive week on Superstars.
— Former WWE developmental talent Wes Brisco and independent wrestler J.D. Maverick were cast by the Alexa Modeling Agency for a financial intuition national television commercial being shot today and tomorrow.
— WWE has published the third episode of WWE Download. The synopsis reads: “Dolph Ziggler shares his hilarious insight on YouTube’s finest videos. Picking apart the digital disasters from an array of tools and fools who provide countless head-spinning moments for the world to share.”
– Wrestling Observer editor Dave Meltzer reports that Mason Ryan’s sizable push was halted weeks ago due to his inability to connect with the audience. Nonetheless, WWE creative plans on renewing his push in the near future as they feel he has great potential. The Welsh wrestler was ultimately kept off Sunday’s 30-Man Royal Rumble Match because they felt it would have done “nothing positive” for him.
Meltzer adds that Vince McMahon at least initially had an “infatuation” with Ryan, hence his fast track to the main roster last year and subsequent protection on television.
— Lance Storm stated Tuesday on Twitter that he will be attending the WWE Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in Miami, Florida to see longtime friend Edge’s enshrinement. He added that he does not know yet if he’ll stay for WrestleMania.
— A photo of The Rock face-to-face with John Cena is featured on the cover of the latest issue of The Wrestler.
— Kofi Kingston partnered with Mason Ryan against WWE Tag Team Champions Epico and Primo at Friday’s Raw live event in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Ryan took the pinfall following the Backstabber.
WWE announced Tuesday that Kingston’s “Air Boom” partner Evan Bourne would be suspended for 60 days for his second violation of the company’s Talent Wellness Program.
— Maryse Ouellet is selling clothes she worn during her time in WWE on eBay. To visit her page, click here.
— Shawn Michaels’ MacMillan River Adventures won an award won an award for Best Conservation at Thursday night’s Golden Moose Awards in Las Vegas, Nevada. The awards show will air on the Outdoor Channel in February.
— WWE will hold a SmackDown taping on April 10, 2012 at the Hampton Coliseum in Hampton, Virginia.
— Sean Waltman stated during a recent interview with the Pro Wrestling Torch that Faby Apache, who performs for Asistencia Asesoría y Administración, is the single best female wrestler he saw when he was in Mexico a few years ago. He recently recommended the veteran wrestler to WWE officials, but they declined.
“She is the best female worker I’ve seen in maybe the last ten years. It’s just that she’s a little bottom heavy like a lot of the girls down in Mexico that doesn’t fit in with the look WWE is looking for with the Divas division, unfortunately. In terms of in-ring talent, she can go with anyone. I put in a word for her, but they weren’t interested in her,” Waltman said.
— Mason Ryan spoke to LocalBozo.com to promote Survivor Series at Madison Square Garden in New York City. He discusses his start in professional wrestling, being discovered by WWE, his anticipation in performing at MSG for the first time, what he’d be doing if he was not wrestling, the energy Mick Foley and The Rock bring to the dressing room, transitioning to a fan favorite, who’s been most instrumental in helping him hone his character and ring work.
— The Bella Twins appear at Alexandria KIA Dealership 7416 Richmond Hwy. Alexandria, Virginia on December 29 from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. Call 888-430-7570 for more information.
In recent weeks, we’ve seen a babyface turn and renewed push for one of the most physically jacked-up wrestlers to appear on WWE television in years – Mason Ryan.
According to sources in the WWE locker room, there is a great deal of skepticism about WWE pushing a guy who has a physique that’s virtually impossible to maintain naturally. With WWE’s strict Wellness tests, the superstars know what they can get away with and what they can’t.
Mason Ryan has the body type that looks straight out of the late 80’s & early 90’s – and these days, the general feeling is that he wouldn’t even have a job with the company if he didn’t look the way he does, let alone get a huge push.
WWE went a long time without any Wellness suspensions – then we had Sin Cara, Mike Chioda, Darren Young and Heath Slater all get suspended for drug use. Many are questioning the decision to give a big push to a guy whose main selling point is his body.
— The official website of Florida Championship Wrestling has added Jake Carter to their roster page. He is Jesse White, son of former WWE star Vader. He signed a developmental contract with WWE in April following a tryout at the organization’s developmental facility in Tampa, Florida.
White, 25, originally committed to the University of Oklahoma and was touted for the National Football League, but retired following a hip injury. He then followed his dad’s footsteps to the world of professional wrestling.
— Theodore Long kicked off Friday’s SmackDown by announcing that the first match of the night would feature 41 Superstars in the largest Battle Royal in WWE history. Interim Raw General Manager John Laurinaitis then revealed the winner would earn a title match against the champion of his choosing.
Randy Orton won the 41-Man No. 1 Contender’s Battle Royal, last eliminating The Miz. Battle Royal elimination order is as follows: 1. Cody Rhodes, 2. Johnny Curtis, 3. JTG, 4. Michael McGillicutty, 5. Derrick Bateman, 6. Yoshi Tatsu, 7. Titus O’Neil, 8. Matt Striker, 9. William Regal, 10. Percy Watson, 11. John Morrison, 12. Dolph Ziggler, 13. Trent Barreta, 14. Jey Uso, 15. Ted DiBiase, 16. Tyson Kidd, 17. Daniel Bryan, 18. Tyler Reks, 19. Curt Hawkins, 20. Drew McIntrye, 21. Justin Gabriel, 22. Mason Ryan, 23. Primo, 24. Santino Marella, 25. Alex Riley, 26. Kofi Kingston, 27. Zack Ryder, 28. David Otunga, 29. Jimmy Uso, 30. Ezekiel Jackson, 31. Heath Slater, 32. Sin Cara (Negro), 33. Christian, 34. R-Truth , 35. CM Punk, 36. Sheamus, 37. Wade Barrett, 38. Jack Swagger, 39. Jinder Mahal, 40. The Miz.
— Different countries have different artwork for THQ’s upcoming WWE ’12 video game and the original Sin Cara has been chosen for the cover in Mexico.
— Matches have been announced for WWE’s upcoming tour of Japan. November 30, 2011 at Yokohama Arena will feature John Cena vs. Alberto del Rio for the WWE Championship, Dolph Ziggler vs. Kofi Kingston for the United States Championship, and Kelly Kelly vs. Beth Phoenix for the Divas Championship. December 1, 2011 at Yokohama Arena will feature John Cena and CM Punk vs. TBA, Big Show vs. Mason Ryan, and Dolph Ziggler vs. Evan Bourne for the United States Championship.
— The official Twitter feed of WWE has announced a 12-Man Tag Team Match for tonight’s Raw SuperShow.
John Cena, CM Punk, Sheamus, Air Boom and Mason Ryan will face Alberto Del Rio, Christian, Cody Rhodes, Dolph Ziggler, Jack Swagger and David Otunga.
— Shelly Martinez has posted a blog and photos of her appearance this past Saturday at Sign of the Times at the Marriott Los Angeles Airport. She caught up with former WWE Divas Ashley Massaro, Maria Kanellis and Angela Fong, as well as TNA stars Velvet Sky and Christopher Daniels.
— WWE Hall of Famer Jimmy Snuka has been added to The Big Event, which takes place November 11 and 12 at the Courtyard Marriott 9010 Ditmars Blvd. East Elmhurst, New York. Visit tmartpromotions.com for more information.
– In an interview with WWE.com, Mason Ryan comments on his return to Raw after been sidelined since June due to injury.
“I’ve been training very hard, but being out through injuries is a tough thing for anyone because you obviously want to be in the ring competing,” Ryan said. “Being out of action made me even more focused than I was before to come back and be a bigger, better, stronger, faster and all around better Mason Ryan.”
– A fan asked Randy Orton during his autograph signing on Monday at Slackers CD and Games in Hazelwood, Missouri if the 2012 Royal Rumble would take place in St. Louis, Missouri: he replied yes. Security personnel, however, told Orton that it was merely a “strong rumor.” Here’s the video footage:
— Chyna is training Joey Buttafuoco for an upcoming boxing match against ex-mistress Amy Fisher’s husband, TMZ.com reports.
The former WWE Women’s Champion and Buttafuoco are working out at The Bunny Ranch in Carson City, Nevada. The owner of the venue, Dennis Hof, is giving them “round the clock use of the accommodations, gym and personal chef.”
Chyna and Buttafuoco fought a celebrity boxing match in 2002, which Joey won.
— Mason Ryan is on Twitter at twitter.com/WWE_MasonRyan. He confirmed the account as legitimate by posting a photo of himself displaying the web address.
— Trish Stratus is advertised for a rare U.S. autograph signing at George’s Cards & Collectibles in the Oxford Valley Mall 2300 E. Lincoln Hwy Ste 220A Langhorne, Pennsylvania on Saturday, October 29 from 1:00 p.m to 3:00 p.m. Visit www.georgescollectibles.com for more information or call 215-943-2475.
— After losing the United States Championship to Sheamus on the March 14 episode of Raw, Daniel Bryan was scheduled to receive his re-match at WrestleMania XXVII. The match was re-scheduled as a pre-show dark match on the day of the event; a lumberjack match that ended in a no contest when the lumberjacks fought among themselves to trigger the start of a battle royal. Speaking to WWE Magazine, Bryan offered his reaction on being bumped off the card.
“I go with the flow with a lot of things. Obviously, it was upsetting. Nobody told use beforehand or pulled us aside and said, “Listen guys, we’re sorry.” That was the most disappointing thing,” Bryan said.
“And of course, I wanted that ‘Mania moment. You’re not going to get it in a pre-show match. But I once slept in the trunk of my car, so it wasn’t the end of the world.
— Matches taped tonight in Ottawa, Ontario for this week’s episode of WWE Superstars are as follows:
— Mason Ryan returned to television at tonight’s WWE Superstars taping in Columbus, Ohio as he competed in a match against JTG. The Welsh grappler resumed competing at live events two weeks ago after being sidelined since late June due to an undisclosed injury.
The taping also saw the return of Tyler Reks and Percy Watson to television. Reks, teaming with Curt Hawkins, squared off against Percy Watson and NXT contestant Titus O’Neil. Reks and Hawkins would later appear on Raw Supershow during a backstage segment with Alberto Del Rio.
— Drew McIntyre beat Primo via Future Shock in a dark match.
— ESPN.com published an article on Mick Foley’s recent stand-up comedy appearance at The Brokerage Comedy Club in Bellmore, New York. ESPN mentioned some of his comedy bits and noted “He started the comedy journey 2 1/2 years ago, but took a long layoff while working for TNA Wrestling. Now a free agent, he’s focused on finding the same confidence in comedy that made him a squared-circle icon.”
— Mason Ryan returned to action at Friday’s Raw live event in Jackson, Mississippi. The Welsh grappler beat Zack Ryder in the second match of the night.
Ryan has been sidelined since late June due to an undisclosed injury.
— WWE Champion Alberto Del Rio will face Sin Cara in a non-title match this Tuesday on SuperSmackDown.
— WWE ring announcer Eden Stiles participated in her first angle at Friday’s Raw live event in Jackson, Mississippi as she was attacked by The Bella Twins. This led to Divas Champion Kelly Kelly and Eve hitting the ring to fend off the twin duo. Kelly and Eve beat Nikki and Brie in a subsequent match.
— The Great Khali turns 39 years old today while WWE Hall of Famer Sgt. Slaughter turns 63. Also celebrating a birthday is former WWE Women’s Champion Jazz, who turns 38.
— Mason Ryan, who has been sidelined since late June to an undisclosed injury, is advertised to appear at the September 25 Raw live event in Lubbock, Texas.
— Ring of Honor wrestler Jimmy Jacobs was backstage at Sunday’s Money in the Bank pay-per-view event in Chicago, Illinois and Monday’s Monday Night Raw event in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
There was talk of using Jacobs at Money in the Bank as a security guard in an angle to pull Randy Orton off Christian, but it didn’t happen. He also worked out in front of company personnel prior to Raw.
— Alex Riley spoke to Chad Dukes of CBS Washington to promote tomorrow’s Raw live event in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. In his interview with Dukes, Riley describes what it’s like experiencing various finishing moves from other WWE Superstars. He also gives his thoughts on CM Punk leaving WWE after winning the Championship at Money in the Bank.
— With The Nexus likely being dropped following CM Punk’s departure from WWE, Mason Ryan is expected to be repackaged. WWE’s creative has discussed using him as a bodyguard for either The Miz or Alberto Del Rio.
— The latest issue of WWE Magazine, which features Rey Mysterio on the cover, pays tribute to the late Randy Savage. Enclosed in the issue is a photo of every “Macho Man” outfit from WWE’s photography archive, totaling over 100.
— The Capitol Punishment DVD will feature a single extra, a backstage interview with Christian following his loss to Randy Orton.
– REMINDER: WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels’ new outdoor lifestyle TV show, “Shawn Michaels Macmillan River Adventures” premieres tonight at 11:30pm EST on the Outdoor Channel.
– WWE Hall of Famer Roddy Piper wrote on Twitter that he’s considering taking Drew McIntyre under his wing. Piper got good feedback about the idea and said he’s going to consider it.
– Michael Cole said on RAW that Mason Ryan was injured over the weekend. We haven’t heard anything about Ryan being injured, but he didn’t wrestle on this weekend’s live events, so we’ll ask around about this.
– Former WWE Superstar JBL wrote on Twitter that he’s currently involved in helping troubled youth in Bermuda:
“Helping some great folks put a program together for gangs here in Bermuda-giving kids an alternative. Most exciting thing I have ever done!”
WWE issued an apology via WWE.com to those who participated in Raw’s “Power to the People.” The tabulating provider’s overloaded system reported several inaccurate results, prompting WWE management to follow WWE.com’s Live Chat Poll for the night’s final vote.
Text Voting Inaccurate in Raw’s Power to the People
WWE would like to apologize for technical difficulties that occurred during the “Power to the People” edition of Raw on Monday night.
The interactive event aimed to give the WWE Universe the ability to choose what they wanted to see on their television screens. Unfortunately, uncontrollable difficulties created by an influx of heavy voting traffic resulted in not every one of the more-than 697,000 recorded votes to be properly counted.
During Monday’s Raw broadcast, WWE fans were given the option to text A, B or C to 46993 (GOWWE) in order to decide what they wanted to happen on the show. Things went perfectly at first when text votes selected Kelly Kelly (option B) to take on Brie Bella for the Divas Championship. However, our vote tabulating provider’s system became overwhelmed, causing these votes to definitively affect the following contest, in which Mason Ryan (also option B) was voted into a match against Evan Bourne — even though, as it was later discovered, Sin Cara had received 90 percent of the total votes in WWE.com’s Live Chat poll, and should have been Bourne’s opponent.
Votes for the third poll’s bout — Kane vs. Mark Henry in an Arm Wrestling Contest — were counted correctly. However, problems began to occur again during the next poll determining a match stipulation between United States Champion Dolph Ziggler and Kofi Kingston. At this point, so many text votes were received that the system overloaded, crashed and had to be restarted.
With little information to work from, WWE management selected to follow the system’s earliest projections, which determined that the 2-out-of-3 Falls Match had been the people’s choice. It was not until later that it was discovered that “Vickie Guerrero Banned from Ringside” was actually the top vote getter.
Restarting the tabulating system allowed for things to run smoothly with the voting for the Triple Threat Match to determine a No. 1 contender for the WWE Championship going off without a hitch.
Regrettably, technical difficulties occurred once more leading up to the night’s Six-Man Tag Team Match main event, when it became apparent to WWE management that text votes were again not being tabulated properly. At this time, a decision was made to turn to WWE.com’s Live Chat Poll for the official judgment. With the power still in the hands of the people, the WWE Universe selected the Elimination Match (option C) by an overwhelming 87 percent, leading to this stipulation being enacted.
— New Florida Tag Team Champions were crowned last Thursday in Tampa, Florida as Big E Langston and Calvin Raines (a/k/a Patrick Brink) defeated Richie Steamboat and Seth Rollins.
Steamboat and Rollins had reigned since March 25.
— WWE developmental wrestler AJ Lee beat Rosa Mendes in a dark match prior to Tuesday’s SmackDown taping in Corpus Christi, Texas.
Lee worked this past weekend’s SmackDown live events, teaming with Natalya against Alicia Fox and Rosa Mendes. The babyfaces won both matches.
— Mason Ryan has been announced for autograph signings at the June 3 Florida Championship Wrestling live event at Largo Minnreg Hall in Largo, Florida and the June 4 show at the Charlotte County Fairgrounds in Port Charlotte, Florida.
— The WWE Tag Team Championship will be on the line this Friday on SmackDown as Edge joins forces with Christian to take on Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel. The duo has won the WWE Tag Team Championship on seven occasions.
— No members of Nexus will be in CM Punk’s corner for his match against Randy Orton at WrestleMania XXVII. Just as Michael McGillicutty and David Otunga, “The Viper” punted Ryan in the skull following his victory tonight on Raw, which would indicate that he has been written off television for the time being. The Welsh grappler was stretchered out of the arena during the commercial break.
— Evan Bourne’s family as well as Randy Orton’s daughter and wife all sat ringside at tonight’s Raw taping in St. Louis, Missouri. Bourne, however, did not appear make a live appearance.
— World Wrestling Entertainment has signed Ryan Nemeth, the younger brother of Dolph Ziggler, to a developmental contract. He has been working in Ohio Valley Wrestling for the past year.
— CM Punk is expected to have one Nexus member in his corner for his match against Randy Orton at WrestleMania XXVII. His second would be Mason Ryan.
— “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan will be appearing at the Great North Wrestling events in Napanee, Ontario, Canada on May 13, 2011 and Hawkesbury, Ontario, Canada on May 14, 2011.
WWE newcomer Mason Ryan (real name Barry Griffiths) was born in Gwynedd, Wales, however WWE bill him as being from Cardiff, Wales. According to the UK’s Daily Post newspaper, Ryan’s hometown isn’t happy about being snubbed by WWE.
The chairman of Porthmadog Town Council calls WWE’s decision to not acknowledge them as a great disappointment. “We are very proud of him and all he has achieved in his profession, so it is a great disappointment that he is not being promoted as from this area.”
Ryan’s father Malcom also expressed disappointment, but understands why WWE decided to bill him from Cardiff.
His dad Malcolm Griffiths said the geography blip was a shame. He said: “It is disappointing because I am sure he would have liked to have been promoting his home village.
“It is a shame but there are not that many people in America who even know Wales, and of those most will only know Cardiff. I suppose this is why they’ve done that. He was born and bred in North Wales but spent 18 months in college in Cardiff.
What do you guys think – would you be offended if your hometown hero changed the city he was billed from?
At least it’s not as bad as Kofi Kingston, who is from Ghana, claiming to be Jamaican! Or Santino Marella, who is Canadian, being billed from Italty. Or the late Yokozuna, who was Samoan, being billed as a Japanese sumo wrestler.
— WWE.com has added Mason Ryan to their Raw Superstars page. CM Punk officially introduced Ryan as the newest member of The Nexus last night on Raw.
— The Star-Ledger has a story on Sheamus’ prior employment as the bodyguard of U2 front man Bono. The U2 bandmates would frequent the Lily’s Bordello pub in Dublin, Ireland, where the future WWE star worked.
“He came in all the time. It was his favorite spot when he got off tour because he wouldn’t get hassled,” Sheamus recalls. “He was a really cool guy, and took time to say hello to everybody.”
— “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan appears this Sunday at Causeway Tickets (located at 239 Causeway St. Boston, MA) from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. He is giving free autographs.
— This one has to be seen to be believed .. Check out this video of John Cena squatting 545 pounds 3 times prior to WWE RAW a few weeks ago ..
John Piermarini, a former writer with WWE, recently started a blog recalling numerous behind the scenes stories that occurred during his two year stint with the organization. Highlights include:
* Piermarini says he originally proposed that Mason Ryan fill Sheffield’s powerhouse role in The Nexus shortly after “The Cornfed Meathead” fractured his ankle. Vince McMahon, however, rejected the idea.
* Vince McMahon views Skip Sheffield as a potential number two babyface, behind John Cena. He remains sidelined after suffering a compound fracture of his ankle in August.
* Piermarini says the original concept of the Uso brothers was to present them as the opposite of the stereotypical Samoan wrestler—educated, intelligent and wear boots. “Usos would essentially have been the Russell Simmons of the WWE. That preppy hip-hop style,” he says. Piermarini attributes their lackluster push in the organization to Vince McMahon not understanding hip-hop culture, and thus couldn’t comprehend the appeal of the brothers Uso. He also says they fell victim to bad timing due to The Nexus debuting shortly after them.
– We reported earlier this week that WWE Chairman Vince McMahon is being considered for a role on the new season of Tough Enough, which begins the night after WrestleMania. RAW star William Regal is also being considered for the show and would serve as one of the coaches, similar to Al Snow’s role on the original show.
– WWE has signed Mexican wrestler El Hijo de Medico Asesino to a developmental deal. He’s expected to head to Florida Championship Wrestling in the coming weeks.
– Following last week’s brutal beatdown of the Big Show by Wade Barrett’s new group on SmackDown, a feud between the 7 foot giant and Ezekiel Jackson is in the works.
– Sources from WWE developmental note that Mason Ryan is still considered green in the ring and on the mic. Ryan is generally well liked by his peers and understands he’s still at the beginning of what looks to be a promising career. According to a WWE source, when Mason Ryan won the Florida Championship Wrestling title last summer, he didn’t understand why he was being pushed so hard over other developmental talents that he thought were farther along than him.
— Earlier today, we reported that Chris Jericho commented on Mason Ryan’s WWE television debut on RAW – jokingly calling him “Batistwo.” A few more wrestlers have commented on the debut:
FCW star Ken Li: “Big congrats to Mason Ryan!! Good seeing him on Raw!!”
Tyler Reks: “Big Barry, torture rack, break your back”
Zack Ryder: “What? Steve Blackman joined the Nexus tonight?”
— The move that Mason Ryan delivered to John Cena on RAW was his finishing move in FCW, which he calls the House of Pain.
– MMA fighter Kimbo Slice will make his pro wrestling debut on February 5th for WWE Hall of Famer Antonio Inoki’s IGF promotion in Japan.
Slice will be taking on Shinichi Suzukawa in an “IGF Championship” match, says their website. That show will also feature fellow MMA fighter Josh Barnett and former WWE star Shane Helms.
COMMENT BELOW: Based on what you’ve seen of Kimbo Slice in UFC – do you think he’d make a good fit in the pro wrestling world?