-WWE Superstar Triple H recently put over his best friend, Shawn Michaels, in a new tweet posted on Sunday afternoon. A fan commented to “The Game” about his match with HBK at SummerSlam back in 2002, calling it “such a classic match.” Hunter replied to the fan by saying, “After 5 yrs off… There is only one @ShawnMichaels.”

-According to a new tweet, Matt Hardy was stopped and searched by airport security on Sunday because he had too much cash in his bag. The former WWE Superstar wrote on Twitter, “I got stopped & searched by TSA airport security today because I had too much cash in my bag. What a hassle! ;-)” The tweet was accompanied by a photo of Hardy holding up a sign that sarcastically read, “You don’t understand how hard it is to be Matt Hardy.”

-“WrestleMania” trended worldwide during the airing of the WrestleMania 29 special on NBC on Saturday night. “WrestleMania” reached as high as the number two spot, trailing only “#UFC163,” which trended worldwide at number one throughout most of the entire UFC pay-per-view show from Brazil on Saturday night.

-Also trending worldwide on Twitter, peaking at the number three spot, was “#RedneckIsland,” the CMT reality show hosted by WWE Hall Of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin. Austin encouraged fans to help him get the show trending, as he wrote on Twitter just before the start of the season finale of show, which aired on Saturday night, “Come on, folks. Lets get #redneckisland trending. RT like a sumbitch and hash tag redneck island.” Austin then proceeded to post nearly 50 tweets himself with the hash tag, “#RedneckIsland,” many of which were complaints about commercials and comments about how much beer he was drinking while watching the show.

BREAKING NEWS: Major Change Made To WWE SummerSlam PPV Lineup

-The Forever Hooligans, Rocky Romero and Alex Koslov, won the Ring Of Honor World Tag-Team Titles at the ROH television taping in Providence, Rhode Island on Saturday. Romero and Koslov, who are already the current IWGP Junior Heavyweight World Tag-Team Champions, defeated Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish in a great 15-minute match to become the first tag-team in quite a while to hold major championships in two different top organizations simultaneously.

Check out our full ROH spoiler report for the next four weeks of shows at the following link: (Spoilers) ROH TV Taping Results For The Next Four Weeks Of Shows

-Speaking of Ring Of Honor, current ROH wrestler Matt Hardy held an “Ask Matt” Q&A on his official Twitter account late Saturday evening. Hardy was asked a lot of typical questions, such as if it’s possible he’ll ever return to WWE. Hardy stated that it was possible. He was asked who he felt the most underrated workers were in WWE today. Hardy mentioned Antonio Cesaro and Drew McIntyre as two guys who he felt were underrated. Hardy was also asked when he and Reby Sky will be getting married. Hardy said the two will tie the knot on October 5th, and even linked to an official website completely dedicated to Hardy and Sky’s upcoming wedding. Check out the full Hardy Q&A on his official Twitter page (@MATTHARDYBRAND).

Ever wondered which wrestlers date Divas? Check out a full list here!

Former ECW Champion, multi-time WWE/F Tag Team Champion and current ROH star “Wrestling Jesus” Matt Hardy joined Kayfabe Wrestling Radio Tuesday Night. In a nearly 30 minute interview, he discussed why he wasn’t at the Border Wars iPPV, if there was possibly any jealousy between himself and Steen or if the fallout was more because of Steen and Corino, Matt Taven’s World TV Title win and his ‘priceless’ reaction to the win, on joining SCUM at the 11th Anniversary Show, what he thinks about the SHINE Wrestling product, his involvement with Southern Wrestling Superstars and what made him say yes, on being a part of the New England Hall of Fame and Fan Fest event, the perceptions people have of him versus his character on television, his reflections on Owen Hart on what would have been Owen’s 48th birthday, his time with Extreme Rising and the ‘incident’ with Luke Hawx, what a current Matt Hardy would tell his younger self and so much more.

Why he wasn’t at the Border Wars iPPV: “No, I was never supposed to be there; actually I’ll let everybody in on a little secret, when I first started speaking with Ring of Honor and Jim Cornette in September of last year, we kind of had an idea for a storyline arc that was going to go from December to WrestleMania weekend but because things went so well within that time, we decided to extend that and by the time we actually looked into the May dates, I was already booked on that weekend. So, I start back with them full time with everything else past this. It’s going to work out just fine storyline wise, once we explain why I wasn’t there. But basically, in a nutshell, Kevin Steen I really wanted to be his friend but he hurt my feelings by cursing me and also the Ring of Honor fans. I saw to all the Ring of Honor fans and to Kevin Steen: don’t be a bully, be a star.”

Was there jealousy there between himself and Steen or were the issues between Corino and Steen: “You know, I think the biggest issue Kevin Steen has with me is that he’s like a representation of the Ring of Honor fan base, in many ways. Even when he was a bad guy, he was still cheered for and I think Kevin Steen just goes ‘Well I’m (Hardy) a WWE guy and I’m just taking up Ring of Honor regular’s airtime and their spot on television.’ So, you know there’s a part of that and people crucify me for any mistakes I have made in the past, so I think all that rolled up into one is why Kevin Steen is so judgmental of me and he just didn’t want to pal around with me or be with the group. But I like Kevin personally; you know I think he’s a really cool guy, but I think his decision to not allow me to help to retain the title and to insult me and to bully me like he did, is really going to come back to bite him when it’s all said and done because you’re looking at a Matt Hardy now who’s really reborn and reinvigorated and I’m getting ready to go hard again for a full-time, regular run in the wrestling business and my fist stop is winning that Ring of Honor World Heavyweight Championship.”

Matt Taven’s World TV Title victory and his reaction to losing a shot at the title: “You are, you’re totally right in what you’re saying there and taking the pulse of the emotion I was feeling. I mean, myself and Adam Cole were looking past Matt Taven as we saw ourselves finally getting that one-on-one match we’d both been looking forward to for so long that next night but, you know, looking back in hindsight, I’ve actually been in the ring with Matt Taven before he even started with Ring of Honor and he’s a very talented guy. It’s one of those things I’m happy to see him win the Television Title and be successful, although I should have been the guy to win that title, on my way to the World Title. But, with all that said and done, Matt Taven has really come in and he’s really found a niche immediately with the whole hoopla thing and Truth Martini, so good for him, man. It’s always nice to see a new, young superstar break through and really get an opportunity and take the ball and run with it.”

On joining SCUM at the 11th Anniversary Show: “You know it’s funny because there were a couple of guys, I’ll be fully honest; someone like Rhett Titus, who the Ring of Honor fan base actually, I think they respect him and they appreciate him because he’s a Ring of Honor original and that’s where he was kind of born and bred. So I think, even for the Ring of Honor fan base to see him join up with SCUM, they’re like ‘Oh My God, Cool! Rhett Titus is going to get another shot; he’s going to get an opportunity. We’re going to see a lot more of him; a brand new and renewed push and character for Rhett Titus. Yea!’ And a couple of the guys were really cheered; they were excited to see Cliff Compton (Domino) show up but when I came out and I took off the shirt, there was no one happy to see me join SCUM, and that’s one thing I really enjoy more than anything else about my Ring of Honor gig; is that the people there that legitimately dislike me, really legitimately dislike me and I don’t have to any heel stuff to try and push them to dislike me any further.”

You can follow Matt on Twitter (@MattHardyBrand) or through his personal websites (http://matthardybrand.com or http://shopmatthardy.com) in order to get the latest news, notes and event information where he will be performing and his latest merchandise. You can also see Matt weekly on Ring of Honor television programming, through your local Sinclair Broadcasting Group stations and at the upcoming “Best in the World iPPV opn June 22nd; visit www.rohwrestling.com or Ring of Honor on Twitter (@ringofhonor) for the latest on upcoming events, listing of stations showing Ring of Honor programming and for iPPV ordering information. You can also see him as part of the debut of Southern Wrestling Superstars; go to www.southernwrestlingsuperstars.com and www.facebook.com/pages/Southern-Wrestling-Superstars/492537777462119 for the latest card and ticketing information. Matt will also be a part of the the New England Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame and Fan Fest event on June 22nd in Fairhaven, MA; go to nepwhof.weebly.com/ for more information on the event and as well as roster of talent attending and ticket prices. You can also visit their Facebook page (www.facebook.com/NewEnglandProWrestlingHallOfFame) for more information and the latest news.

Newsday.com has published a recent interview with Jeff Hardy, which was conducted in Westbury, New York earlier this month over WrestleMania weekend. Here are some of the highlights of what Hardy said about:

Why He’s With TNA Instead Of WWE:

“I was in TNA years ago, and it’s just more alternative, and more different, and I’m a different kind of cat. I can be more of the enigma I want to be with the music and art and just a professional wrestler in general. The WWE kind of limits it with what you can do, and here I can express my spirit more.”

What Inspired Him to Become a Wrestler:

“Back in the day when I’d see Hulk Hogan, The Ultimate Warrior, Sting — especially The Ultimate Warrior and Sting — with the face paint and the larger than life characters, I was obsessed with it. And then I learned more about professional wrestling and the beauty that does exist in it. It truly is an art, and I became obsessed with it and I said, ‘this is what I have to do'”.

His Relationship with Matt:

“We have a great relationship. He is working some Ring of Honor shows and working a lot of independent shows. So he’s staying busy. He’s prretty much his own boss. But yeah, we still stay in touch.”

– On Thursday, we reported that Ryback is teaming with Dolph Ziggler on Monday night against the team of Cena & Del Rio, a sign that WWE is booking Ryback as a heel. WWE is now advertising Ryback and Mark Henry vs. John Cena and Sheamus for RAW live events in May. Again, this is not necessarily an indication that he’s fully turned heel, but it is a result of him feuding with John Cena.

– Matt Hardy tweeted the following about being added to the Alumni section of WWE.com and being featured as the “Superstar Spotlight”:

It's great to be welcomed back home-in the "Superstar Spotlight" & as permanent WWE Alumni.. http://t.co/9r5SwNUka8 pic.twitter.com/dOJnFfVTq4

— MATT HARDY (@MATTHARDYBRAND) April 12, 2013

– Randy Orton tweeted the following about the crowd at this past Monday’s RAW:

Just watched back some of Raw from last Monday night. That crowd was insane! Never experienced anything like it before. Glad I was there.

— Randy Orton (@RandyOrton) April 11, 2013

Big congratulations are in order to Matt Hardy and Reby Sky – as the couple got engaged this week. Reby Sky tweeted that Matt asked her to marry him? She responded, “Is this a f*cking work ?!” It wasn’t .. and Then I said YES !! So happy ! :) :) :) <3″ Check out these pictures of them together and a closeup of the ring! –

– Matt and Jeff Hardy will be reuniting on January 15th in Durham, NC for the return of their Omega Pro Wrestling promotion. The event is a benefit show for former Omega wrestler Chuck Coates, who is battling cancer. The Hardy Boyz are teaming up with James Storm & Shane Helms to face Steve Corino, C.W. Anderson, Lodi & Gunner in the main event.

– TNA has announced a format change to the TNA Gut Check segments that air on Impact Wrestling. Previously, the Gut Check contestant would wrestle a member of the TNA roster in an attempt to impress the judges. Starting this Thursday, two Gut Check contestants will wrestle each other – with both of them being evaluated by Al Snow, Taz and Bruce Prichard.

– “Suspended” TNA star Bully Ray is asking fans if he should crash tomorrow night’s Impact broadcast.

– Rosita is the latest TNA talent expected to be gone from the company after her contract was not renewed by the company this past week.

* Several TNA Stars Leaving & Jumping To WWE

(Source: F4wonline.com)

Matt Hardy appeared on the Inside The Ropes radio show this week and spoke about a number of topics, including the state of tag team wrestling in WWE:

“I would love to see the tag divisions be highlighted more. I think until the WWE or TNA find their next white hot star or angle that’ll get record ratings or even improve ratings, starting to sell out more arenas, thats what all the companies are looking for that top star. The top guy in the WWE right now is John Cena but until they find the next Hulk Hogan or Steve Austin, they’re going to be engulfed, obsessed with that. While they’re obsessed with finding the new face of the company, tag team wrestling is always going to be secondary or even further down,” said Hardy.

“We were lucky because Stone Cold, The Rock, DX were so hot, we were selling out arenas every night so they had time to say “OK lets invest some time into the tag division” I think until they have their top 2 or 3 stars and their top programs, breaking records and doing good pay per view numbers, tag teams will just be an afterthought. It’s sad and I hate it, but it’s just the state of the game.”

Hardy also weighed in on Ryback’s breakout year:

“I think they’ve done an amazing job establishing Ryback, getting people to connect with him. In terms of him having longer, more competitive matches which will eventually be a necessity if you’re going to be a player. If Ryback can do that and follow through and retain his character and that fanbase then that’s great. He’s definitely the breakout star of 2012 and they took a guy who for years hadn’t really done anything and made him a star and made people care about him so kudos to that and hopefully he can continue and grow as a performer,” said Hardy.

You can listen to the full interview below, where Matt also talks about Extreme Rising, the Divas division in 2012, Ring Of Honor, Luke Hawx and his plans for 2013:

Matt Hardy joined The Big Mosh and “The Chairman of the Board” Todd Vincent for an interview Monday Night Mayhem, which is now available for free download, exclusively on the WrestleView Radio Network (available here). Highlights from the interview are as follows:

Why he sees himself as not a “cancer” in Ring of Honor, but as the company’s “cure”: “I wanted to come to Ring of Honor to help. A lot of Ring of Honor die-hard fans think I’m the ‘cancer,’ but I don’t think I’m the ‘cancer.’ I think I’m the cure. Not only can I offer my experience and wisdom to these guys, but I can bring in a huge fan base as far as Hardy fans go. I want to change some things. I don’t want to take away what Ring of Honor stands for, but I do want to change it in a way where it evolves and grows.

The type of crowd reaction that he is expecting at The Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City this Sunday at “Final Battle 2012”: “I know the Ring of Honor die-hard fans, and I’m going to be the enemy to them. I’m walking into hostile territory, and that’s good. I dig that. As long as the fans are reacting, whether they love me or they hate me, it’s all good.”

The chance of a WWE or TNA return in 2013 and how he has received some “interesting phone calls” within the last month: “It’s really hard to put a number on that figure. All I can say is in the wrestling business is ‘never say never.’ I can tell you right now, there have been some interesting phone calls during the last month or so. If I could command a schedule in WWE or TNA where I could work a day a week or a couple days a week, that would be helpful. I would definitely take it into consideration.”

– Monday’s Raw averaged 3,920,000 over the course of three hours, up from 3,835,000 for last week’s post-Survivor Series show. The first hour garnered 4,147,000 viewers, with hour two slightly dropping 4,126,000. The third hour, however, saw a sharp decline, dropping to 3,488,000 viewers.

The final rating is expected to be released later today. Last week’s show drew a 2.73.

– The official WWE website has published photos and an article looking back at ringside valets, such as Kimberly Page, Miss Elizabeth, Stacy Keibler, Sharmell, Beulah McGillicutty, Debra and Torrie Wilson, among others. WWE writes, “Some Superstars like to have a little company on their way to the ring, without the prodding of a manager. To add that extra flair, these grapplers went out and found the perfect combination of beauty and brains in ringside valets. Learn more about these lovely ladies, check out photos and watch them in action!”

– Matt Hardy appears for Dreamwave Wrestling this Saturday at LaSalle Knights of Columbus 209 Gooding St. LaSalle, Illinois.

(source: PWInsider.com)

2013 could see the WWE returns of one of the most innovative tag teams in history – the Hardy Boyz.

During an interview with Pass The Torch Radio to promote his appearance at WOH wrestling in Whitehall, New York, this Friday, Matt Hardy was asked about the possibility of a Hardy Boys reunion in WWE next year, with him being a free agent and Jeff’s contract with TNA Wrestling expiring in February. His response?

“Very likely!”

Hit up the comments below and tell us if you want to see Matt and Jeff back in WWE.

– This week on WWE Inbox, Superstars and Divas are asked which celebrity they would like to get in the ring with, whether they have ever purchased an item from SkyMall, and about favorite childhood possessions.

– “The British Bulldog” is featured in today’s “Superstar Spotlight” on WWE.com.

– Matt and Jeff Hardy will be be promoting a special benefit show on January 15th for a friend of theirs who is battling cancer. The show will be billed as an OMEGA show, the name of their defunct indy promotion. Matt and Jeff will be teaming up with Shane Helms in the main event against opponents to be announced. Also confirmed for the show is TNA star James Storm.

– TNA Tag Champion Hernandez will be holding a clinic in Denton, Texas on Saturday, Dec 15th at 12pm. Registration costs $50. For more information, visit Facebook.com/xcwinstitute, or email David Fuller at Dfhxcpromotion@gmail.com.

– Following Thursday’s episode of Impact Wrestling, here’s the updated card for next month’s TNA Final Resolution pay-per-view:

TNA World Heavyweight Title Match
Jeff Hardy (c) vs. Bobby Roode

TNA Knockouts Title Match
Tara (c) vs. Mickie James

Daniels vs. AJ Styles

(Partial Source: PWTorch.com)

Matt Hardy posted the following video on Monday updating fans on his health status following the health trauma he sustained at Saturday night’s Extreme Rising iPPV.

Hardy says after he was pushed off the top rope during his main event match against Shane Douglas, lost control of his body and his head hit the unpadded arena floor. Hardy says he was unconscious for 10-15 minutes, began convulsing when he tried to speak and vomited 3 times, including on his girlfriend Reby Sky.

Luckily for him, doctors found no signs of long term concussion effects, so he should make a full recovery.

The video below contains Matt’s comments as well as footage of the incident:

After suffering a very serious injury at #ExtremeRising’s “Remember November” event in Pittsburgh, I update everyone and give thanks for all of the wonderful support I’ve had.

As reported earlier, Matt Hardy was injured at Saturday night’s Extreme Rising iPPV event from Monaca, PA.

During his main event match against Shane Douglas, Luke Hawx interfered and shoved HArdy off the top rope. Hardy hit his head on the floor at ringside and began convulsing. The crowd was asked to leave the building as EMT’s tended to Hardy at ringside.

Hardy eventually got up and was able to walk to the back by himself.

Matt Hardy tweeted the following on Sunday morning:

Thanks so much for all the kind words & thoughts-they're very appreciated. I'm feeling much better, I'll let u know more when I know more.

— MATT HARDY (@MATTHARDYBRAND) November 18, 2012

Here are quick results from Saturday night’s Extreme Rising iPPV, courtesy of PWInsider.com:

* Jay Bradley defeated Christian York via Pin
* Extreme Rising Championship Tournament: Stevie Richards defeated Papadon via submission
* Extreme Rising Championship Tournament: Luke Hawx defeated Perry Saturn via submission
* The Blue Meanie and Balls Mahoney defeated Da Lost Boys via pin
* Bestia 666 defeated Façade via pin
* BLK OUT defeated The FBI via pin
* Raven vs. Gary Wolfe never happened as Raven said Wolfe wasn’t there.
* Stevie Richards challenged Raven to face him in a Loser Leaves Town match, they brawled, and then a “new flock” hit the ring, no match.
* Extreme Rising Championship Tournament: Devon Storm defeated Sabu via pin
* Extreme Rising Championship Tournament: Rhino defeated Homicide via pin
* Shane Douglas vs. Matt Hardy was a no contest. Things broke down and there were run-ins galore.

The big news coming out of the show was that Matt Hardy was injured during the main event. During the match, Hardy was shoved off the top rope by Luke Hawx and hit his head on the floor at ringside. According to fans who were at ringside, Hardy vomited appeared to be convulse.

Hardy did sit up before the show went off the air, but medical staff had him lay down. Fans were told to clear out of the arena as the event was going off the air. EMTs came to ringside and checked him out. After 30-40 minutes, Hardy returned to the locker room under his own power.

Shining Wizards Podcast with Matt Hardy
Hosts: Tony Z, Eddie, and Matt
Interview available at Shiningwizards.com.

On his match with Shane Douglas being a battle of former ECW Champions from different incarnations: “I think we both have something to prove. We both have mutual respect for one another, but that being said neither one of us are gonna pull any punches when it comes to getting the W and looking good. Shane is probably the most well-known, recognized World Champion of the original ECW, and when WWE recreated it, it was ECW to an extent, and I felt I was one of the better ECW Champions. Two guys from two different eras, and I know when Shane gets in the ring he’s got something to prove. Shane is probably the best champion from the original ECW, but I have something to prove.”

On his first appearances in WWE with his brother: “We met a guy who was in independent wrestler, and he wrestled primarily for the Italian Stallion. We worked every Friday and Saturday, basically for free, learning the psychology and terminology of the business. Every few months, he would take guys to WWE for TV as extras. The main goal of my brother and I was to work hard to show what we have, even if we weren’t featured. We tried to make the talent look as good as possible.”

On whether he and his brother raised the bar too high: “We definitely raised the bar too high that we made it harder for everyone else to get near it, even ourselves. We tried to make each match better. Jeff and I wrestled in ladder matches up and down the East Coast on the independents. It was our idea (in WWE), we pitched that. Then Edge and Christian were two guys that worked like us, and had the athleticism and the intestinal fortitude to compete in these matches, and they were magical. No Mercy 1999 we turned the corner and went from WWE wrestlers to WWE Superstars. We had no idea how historic that match would be. This led to matches with the Dudleys, the TLC matches, and how far we went with that.”

On the current state of tag team wrestling: “It would be nice if tag team wrestling came back. I saw Raw recently. Primo and Epico wrestled, and they’re a good tag team, and they end up getting beat. And then the Usos wrestled, who I think could be really good, and they lost as well, and the teams that beat them were two singles guys thrown together. This is when these guys get wasted, and then when they don’t get over as a tag team, they look at them like it’s their fault. The talent has to provide, but it’s the people that put them there that makes a huge difference as to whether they succeed or not. If you put them in a position to fail, and people aren’t going to believe in them, it’s your fault as well. You can’t just blame the talent if you don’t book them in good positioning.”

For the complete interview, including his views on enhancement talent, the breaking up of the Hardy Boys, working with MVP, the Cruiserweight storyline, working with Mr. Perfect and the plane ride from hell, and his current work with Pro Wrestling Syndicate, visit www.ShiningWizards.com and check out Episode 59

– Ring of Honor announced on Monday that former WWE/TNA star Matt Hardy will get a shot at ROH gold at the company’s upcoming Final Battle iPPV on 12/16. Matt Hardy will challenge ROH TV Champion Adam Cole at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City. The main event will see ROH World Champion Kevin Steen defending against El Generico in a Ladder War match. For more information, visit ROHWrestling.com.

– Last week’s Impact Wrestling (11/8), the go-home show leading into Sunday’s Turning Point pay-per-view, drew a 1.02 cable rating. The hourly numbers were 0.96 and 1.09.

Impact opened with a weak 0.88 rating, but increased to a 0.95 rating in the second quarter-hour and was then above 1.0 for the remainder of the show. Impact peaked with a 1.13 rating at the top of the second hour and then lost viewership for the remainder of the broadcast.

* FLOYD MAYWEATHER Agrees To Box 50 CENT – Billionaire Puts Up $10 Million For The Fight!

– Former TNA star Alex Shelley (and KUSHIDA) captured the IWGP Jr. Tag Team Titles on Sunday night in Osaka, Japan. Shelly and Kushida defeated Alex Koslov and Rocky Romero in the PPV pre-show of New Japan Pro Wrestling’s “Power Struggle” event. There was talk earlier this year that Alex Shelly will be headed to WWE when his current run in Japan is over.

– WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Stevea Austin spoke to ESPN.com over the weekend to discuss the second season premiere of his CMT reality competition show, “Redneck Island.”

– Former WWE & TNA star Matt Hardy published the following video promo hyping his upcoming match against Shane Douglas at Extreme Rising on November 17th:

– WWE Hall of Famer Roddy Piper has responded to talk that Vince McMahon was unhappy with the recent Piper’s Pit segment that he hosted on WWE RAW several months back. He tweeted:

I read that Vince was angry at the last Piper's Pit. Not a word was said to me. For the record, I DIDN'T WRITE THAT CRAP! #bemadatwriters

— Rowdy Roddy Piper (@R_Roddy_Piper) November 9, 2012

– Former WWE superstar Matt Hardy captured the Pro Wrestling Syndicate Heavyweight championship from Kevin Matthews at last night’s PWS live event from Rahway, NJ.

– WWE announcer JBL has posted the following YouTube video talking about his full-time return to the company and his thoughts on WWE’s latest gimmick character, Fandango:

Hosts Jack E. Jones and One Inch Biceps welcomed Matt Hardy of Extreme Rising to IYH Wrestling Radio. Matt was on the show to publicize the upcoming Extreme Rising show on Saturday, November 17 from the Golden Dome in Monaca, PA that will be on IPPV (http://www.WWNlive.com). Matt will be wrestling “The Franchise” Shane Douglas in the main event that evening.

Highlights of this interview included the following:

When he wrestled in June for Extreme Rising for the first time, was he unsure how the fans would react to him?

“No, I was pretty sure and I think I pretty much had it to a T. I’m pretty good at being on the pulse of how wrestling fans are going to be. I knew it was going to be a very mixed bag, because wherever I go there’s going to be diehard Matt Hardy/Hardy Boyz fans, which are younger kids or people that followed us through our WWE career; they’re going to be there and they’re going to be supportive regardless of whatever. But then the diehard ECW and extreme-niche fans, because I’m not an extreme original or an ECW original, I knew those people it was going to be an uphill battle. And you know, it’s one of those things in time only you earn their respect, especially when you walk into their promotion and on your debut match you’re in the main event against Jerry Lynn, who is one of the ECW icons. I knew it was going to be a mixed bag for sure. The people that were diehard extreme wrestling fans, they gave me a hard time, which was great. And my fans were there cheering, so it’s OK. As long as I’m invoking emotion from people, it’s fine. I’ll channel it in the appropriate way in the ring. As long as they’re entertained and I’m invoking emotion, I’m good.”

Were there people that didn’t want some of the ECW guys to succeed when they would come over to the WWF?

“I think so…The thing that made ECW so good – Paul Heyman was such a genius booker/promoter because he highlighted everyone’s strengths. I mean, he would take whatever the best qualities were about someone and he would keep pushing that, pushing that, and pushing that and get everything they could out of it, and that’s what gets characters over. That’s what gets characters or wrestlers to connect with the crowd emotionally. Public Enemy, they had their deal; they were hip-hop gangstas and they did the hand motion and they would put people through tables, and they ended up being a huge act. When they came to the WWE and were forced to wrestle a couple matches; I know there were some guys who didn’t like them. They ultimately had a match with the Acolytes which was very very ugly. Taz was another guy who was over huge in ECW. Once he came to WWE, you can see that never translated. Once again, they took away from playing to his strengths and what his character was built around. And the examples keep popping up over and over if you look at Paul Heyman’s ECW originally. Sandman, he came out and he would drink beer and he would cane people, and he was over like crazy and people bought tickets to see him. 911 was another example of a guy who was very limited as far as being a complete wrestler overall but he became a huge star there; he was really over…At WWE sometimes they expect people to be a more well-rounded performer 360 degrees and be able to do everything, and my thought is if it’s business and you’re trying to make money you want your acts to be as over as they possibly can be. And if that means like protecting them in some areas that they’re weak at, then why not do it because it’s your investment in the first place. But that’s not always how the WWE crew thinks.”

This interview is available for listening at https://www.iyhwrestling.com/viewnews.php?autoid=4836.

– In this week’s edition of “WWE Inbox,” Eve, David Otunga and others name which of their peers they could see in the White House. Also, Superstars share their most embarrassing pocket dials.

– John Cena is featured on the cover of the December 2012 issue of WWE Magazine. The headline reads – “JOHN CENA – Ultimate Main Event Superstar!” Also featured are the 25 Most Apocalyptic In-Ring Moments, Superstar Scars and Daniel Bryan’s “Startling Secret.”

– Matt Hardy will be the guest tonight live on “In Your Head” beginning at 8:00 p.m. EST. Listen and chat live www.IYHwrestling.com call in and talk to him yourself at 508-644-8503.

Matt Hardy appeared on this week’s Kayfabe Wrestling Radio, hosted by Alan Wojcik & Spug. You can listen to the whole show by clicking here (.MP3).

In a nearly 20 minute interview he talked about wrestling in Nashville, how he feels fans approach the product today is if that is regionally based, True Blood and other television and its effect on wrestling, if RAW going to three hours was a mistake, what the WWE should do to help build the fans interest, his appearance in Ring of Honor and the fan’s reaction to that appearance, his use of DDP Yoga and the success of it with wrestlers, the Omega Group success, his recent match with Crossfire Heavyweight Champion “King” Shane Williams, updates on MattHardyBrand.com and much more.

Here are some highlights of what Matt Hardy said about:

What he thinks of fans being overly critical of the wrestling product and if there’s a regional aspect to that:

“They ruin the experience for themselves, in my opinion. I mean the thing is watching a wrestling match is like watching a really good TV show or watching a really good movie; when it’s all said and done you realize, ‘Hey, I’m watching this to be entertained.” It’s really going be as entertaining as you allow yourself to find it. You understand the parameters that go with professional wrestling; there’s the situation where guys fight one another, they do these larger-than-life moves, they’re almost like living breathing superheroes, they shoot guys into the ropes and guys come back. That’s the parameters professional wrestling is built around. So don’t over think that, just because you have a feeling of what the business is about because it’s so accessible because you can read online or there’s so much information out there to get. The thing is, just sit back and enjoy it like a fan. And even the people who are smarter, they realize this storyline happens because that is what draws you into a wrestling match; it’s not the moves, people can do moves all day long but if there’s not a good story in that match that someone can follow and that is really complex, the fans won’t get emotionally involved like they should.

I mean my thing is, if I’m sitting back and watching True Blood, where it’s a show that had vampires, werewolves, shape shifters, and all these other things, when something out of the ordinary happens, we thing ‘Woah, these parameters are a little big with what we are working with here and there’s extraordinary stuff going on,’ so sit back and enjoy what’s going on and be entertained by it. A lot of times, fane feel like they are over educated and become overly critical of the product; they are just hurt themselves and not allowing themselves to be entertained. ”

RAW going to three hours and the problems with that:

“In my opinion, and I know a lot of people said this, three hours is just too long. It was a really nod for the RAW 1000 episode. Past that, from what we’ve seen, three hours is just a little too long for them, especially considering how many first run shows they do a week, three hours is a long time to try and keep a viewer’s attention, especially in 2012.”

What he thinks the WWE can do to improve themselves and compete with other TV:

“I don’t think it has to be tacky; I think it does need to be edgy in some ways. Once again, it’s just like, last night I watched the show (RAW) and this is one thing, to segway into Crossfire for a second; one thing I hope they do in promoting the TV style is using the qualities that southern wrestling is based on: a new, more edgy engineered product, that when you tell the fans one thing, you don’t go back on your word; you stay consistent with that. Last night, for instance, there was a storyline, who knows what it’ll develop into, where AJ was removed from being the General Manager of Raw because of some sort of controversial dinner date she has with John Cena, and Vickie Guerrero was placed in charge. She’s (Vickie) been been fraternizing with Dolph Ziggler the whole while she was the General Manager and she was also married to Edge. The thing is, wrestling fans aren’t dumb; they remember these things and I think when the fans see something like that, they go ‘Why would they do that? They didn’t do that before; they don’t think I don’t remember that? Do they think I’m stupid?’ I think you just need to keep a consistent thing. I think the days of letting the person that’s the General Manager of RAW be a heel, and cheat and do bad things, or have someone you just considered yourself or tagged to be a crazy chick, like AJ, as the General Manager who Vince put in charge. I don’t think you can do that anymore. I think if you want wrestling to be taken seriously, you have to promote it seriously and stay consistent and there has to be continuity throughout.”

* The Latest On JEFF HARDY’s Future: Staying With TNA Or Returning To WWE?

– Edge is featured in today’s “Superstar Spotlight” on WWE.com.

– Former WWE Superstar Matt Hardy weighed in on Monday’s Raw via Twitter: “Good, solid Raw tonight. Kofi-Dolph was hot, nice to see King look so well, Punk-Foley promo, the Kane-Bryan skits were absurd but funny..”

– Former WWE Women’s Champion Candice Michelle stated on Twitter Monday that she is due to give birth in less than a month:

Less than a month for this baby to arrive! Already having contractions and pressure!… Oh and back killing me! Getting excited and nervous.

— CANDICE MICHELLE (@DIVACANDICEM) September 25, 2012

– This week on “Backstage Fallout” for Raw, Dolph Ziggler, The Prime Time Players, The Miz and Ricardo Rodriguez react to Monday’s events.

– Hulk Hogan tweeted the following about Aces & Eights on Monday:

Getting alot of maniacs telling me not to go to Aces& 8's club house on Thursday,there is no other way,game on brother HOLLYWOODHH

— Hulk Hogan (@HulkHogan) September 22, 2012

– TNA announced the following regarding this week’s TV Title situation:

“This week on Impact, it’s the return of “Championship Thursday” and the TNA Television Title will be defended! 4 competitors will vie for the right to compete for the TV Title. Who will Hulk Hogan select?”

– Matt Hardy posted this YouTube video on Sunday, his birthday:

“As several of you know, September 23rd is my birthday. But it’s not just Matt Hardy’s birthday-it’s also the birthday of my close friend Caprice Coleman’s son, Chayce. Check out this moment from the afternoon of September 23rd, 2012, as myself, Caprice, his family, Reby, and my brother Jeff Hardy get together in honor of BOTH of our birthdays!

– As reported earlier, WWE is doing business with All Japan Pro Wrestling. During WWE’s recent live events tour of Japan, All Japan’s Kaz Hayashi and another company official had dinner with WWE’s John Laurinaitis to discuss AJPW becoming a Japanese developmental territory for WWE.

It’s believed the meeting went well and WWE will be working with the promotion to scout Japanese talent.

– Matt Hardy has responded to online reports that his brother Jeff is interested in returning to WWE for a big payday to pay off his legal fees:

Jeff doesn't need or care about money. RT @saulski90: @MATTHARDYBRAND Thoughts on rumors that Jeff wants to go to @WWE to make more money?

— MATT HARDY (@MATTHARDYBRAND) September 19, 2012

* News on JEFF HARDY & BATISTA Returning to WWE Before WRESTLEMANIA

(Partial Source: f4wonline.com)