Posts Tagged ‘Rob Van Dam’

8 Takeaways From Impact Wrestling 5/10

Impact Wrestling 5/10 was the 2nd episode taped the night after Rebellion in Toronto’s Rebel Nightclub. An 8-Man street fight featuring OVE against Tommy Dreamer, Rich Swann, Fallah Bah, and Willie Mack would headline the show.

Here are 8 takeaways from Impact Wrestling 5/10:

Rob Van Dam Defeated Ethan Page

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUihBwmAn70
  • RVD defeated Ethan Page

Rob Van Dam took on and defeated Ethan Page last night on Impact Wrestling. The match had been set-up by Page confronting RVD last week.

I was at the tapings live and Rob Van Dam got the biggest reaction of the night. Ethan Page and Josh Alexander are really popular in Toronto as well but Rob Van Dam was clearly the featured act of the night.

OVE Stand Tall To End The Show

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1_ZS4nVL-Y
  • OVE defeated Willie Mack, Rich Swann, Tommy Dreamer, & Fallah Bah

Last night’s main event was a street fight between OVE against Tommy Dreamer, Willie Mack, Rich Swann, and Fallah Bah.

OVE is perhaps at the strongest it has ever been ever since Sami Callihan added Madman Fulton into the group. They were able to pick up the win in a plunder-filled main event after Callihan gave Willie Mack a “Cactus Special” piledriver onto a pile of lego.

LAX and the Rascalz Hang Out

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rHSLw6NnBkQ

LAX and the Rascalz spent some time hanging out in the Rascalz clubhouse this week. Trey, Wentz, and Dez had some trouble keeping up with what they were drinking, however.

Madison Rayne Gets Non-Title Win Over Taya Valkyrie

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ggr1U64ZTWo
  • Madison Rayne defeated Taya Valkyrie – Non Title

Taya refused to defend her title in this match against Madison Rayne. Valkyrie explained she only has to defend her title once every 30 days and was not willing to put the belt on the line in this match.

Valkyrie then submitted rather easily to a single-leg crab. The victory likely means Madison Rayne will receive a title match sometime in the near future.

Tessa Blanchard was on commentary and stated her belief that Rayne deserves a title shot and Valkyrie took the easy way out of the match.

Kiera Hogan Says Rosemary Can “Die Like Allie”

Kiera Hogan cut a backstage promo this week. Hogan abandoned Rosemary last week as she was being attacked by Su Yung and her minions. This week, Kiera Hogan told Melissa Santos and Jordynne Grace that she doesn’t need friends and that Rosemary can “die like Allie” for all she cares.

The Desi-Hit Squad Pull Out A Win!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsattab7hM0
  • The Desi Hit Squad defeated the Deaners, Aiden Prince & Brent Banks, and the Rascalz

The Great Gama Singh’s tag-team faction doesn’t have the greatest win/loss record in the promotion. They pulled out a big win in a 4-team match this week, however. Rohit Raju picked up the win for his team with a roll-up and a handful of trunks.

The win for the Desi Hit Squad probably earns them a match against a highly ranked team in the division.

LAX Win Non-Title Match Against Josh Alexander & Moose

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIgYBZD23dY
  • LAX defeated Josh Alexander & Moose

It’s not clear if Moose is an official member of the North or not. He wears Red and Gold and teams with them frequently but he is not technically Canadian. He is named Moose, however, an iconic Canadian animal.

Regardless, LAX picked up the win over Alexander and Moose this week.

Jordynne Grace Back In The Win Column

  • Jordynne Grace defeated Alexia Nicole

Jordynne Grace dropped a Knockouts title match to Taya Valkyrie at Rebellion but she got back in the win column tonight. Grace used her power to get the win over local indy wrestler, Alexia Nicole.

Quick Results:

  • LAX defeated Moose & Josh Alexander – Non Title
  • Madison Rayne defeated Taya Valkyrie – Non Title
  • Jordynne Grace defeated Alexia Nicole
  • Rob Van Dam defeated Ethan Page
  • Sami Callihan, Madman Fulton, & the Crist Brothers (OVE) defeated Rich Swann, Willie Mack, Fallah Bah & Tommy Dreamer

Next Week:

https://twitter.com/IMPACTWRESTLING/status/1127063323760046082
  • Rich Swann vs Michael Elgin
  • Demon Collar Match: Rosemary vs Su Yung
  • Killer Kross vs Eddie Edwards
  • Glenn Gilbertti returns

Posted May 11th, 2019 in News, TNA. Tagged: , .

8 Takeaways From Impact Wrestling 5/3

Impact Wrestling presented the first of two episodes taped the night after Rebellion from the Rebel Nightclub in Toronto. I was in attendance for the show and will provide live notes throughout this post.

Here are 8 takeaways from Impact Wrestling 5/3:

Rob Van Dam Is Back! Will Face Ethan Page Next Week

Rob Van Dam came out this week but his return was interrupted by “All Ego” Ethan Page.

As a member of “the North” and well-known independent wrestler from the nearby city of Hamilton, Page had plenty of supporters in the crowd but RVD got the largest reaction of the tapings.

RVD has been talking about how many on the Impact roster have been stealing his moves. Page noted that he doesn’t steal RVD’s moves and RVD was never a hero to him. The segment ended with a Van Daminator. A single’s match between the two was booked for next week.

Michael Elgin Is #1 Contender

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-ZsZv6cuCQ
  • Michael Elgin defeated Johnny Impact, Pentagon Jr. – 3-Way Match

Michael Elgin kicked things off last night with an in-ring promo. He noted that it is customary for a new World Champion to kick off the episode after winning the title but in this case, Brian Cage is unable to do so due to injury.

Elgin was interrupted by both Johnny Impact and Konnan. Johnny disputed Elgin’s claim to a title shot and so did Konnan, who felt former world champion Pentagon deserved a shot as well. It was agreed that the 3 would meet in a triple threat match in the night’s main event, with the winner being declared the new #1 contender to Brian Cage’s title.

Pentagon Jr. injured:

Elgin got the win in the night’s main event but arguably the bigger story is Pentagon Jr. suffering an injury during the bout. My section was on the other side of the ring so I didn’t have a great view of it, however.

Something got messed up between Johnny and Pentagon as Johnny was going for a hurricanrana to the floor and Pentagon stayed down after. A medic and several referees helped him to the back as he was favoring his leg. There are no available updates on his condition other than he is dealing with an “undisclosed leg injury.”

Brian Cage Is Injured

It was noted on last night’s episode that Brian Cage is injured. He was taken to hospital following Rebellion with a back injury. Cage then said doctors told him they believe he suffered a deep bone bruise/inflammation or minor fracture after a Standing Spanish Fly from the entrance ramp to the floor.

He said on Busted Open Radio this Monday he didn’t expect to miss much time but he was pulled from the tapings this weekend due to the injury.

Madison Rayne Vs Taya Valkyrie Next Week – Non-Title

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttDMcpSRbeE

Madison Rayne confronted Taya Valkyrie in the back this week. Rayne noted that Taya has never defeated her. Valkyrie woudln’t agree to deend her title but will face Madison Rayne in single’s competition next week.

Kiera Hogan Left Rosemary To Su Yung & Her Minions

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pUk8fBQTIg
  • Kiera Hogan vs Rosemary – No Contest

A match between Kiera Hogan and Rosemary was thrown out this week when the Undead Bridesmaids interfered. The undead brides were attempting to rescue the Undead Maid of Honor who had been abducted by Rosemary last week.

Hogan was on the entrance ramp as Su Yung and her minions attacked Rosemary. She appeared to have second thoughts about getting in the ring and rescuing Rosemary, however, and in fact, never did come to her aid. What this means for her in the Rosemary/Su Yung/Undead Realm angle is unclear.

Killer Kross/Eddie Edwards Rivalry Brewing?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hBNvm0DxC3g
  • Fenix defeated Eddie Edwards

Killer Kross came out during the Eddie Edwards vs Fenix match last night. He stood ominously on the entrance ramp for a large chunk of the match.

Kross offered Eddie Edwards his kendo stick to use but then wouldn’t let go of it when Eddie grabbed for it. The distraction was all Fenix needed to go on offense and pick up the win with a muscle buster.

What does Kross want with Eddie Edwards?

Code Red Sunday Night – Impact +

This Sunday the first exclusive event to air on Impact + will be “Code Red.” Here is the lineup for the show:

  • Johnny Impact & Taya Valkyrie vs. Eddie Edwards & Alisha Edwards
  • Michael Elgin vs. Willie Mack
  • Impact Tag Team Championships: LAX (Santana & Ortiz) vs. oVe (Dave & Jake Crist) vs. New York Wrecking Krew (Smoothe Blackmon & Chris Seaton)
  • X-Division Championship: Rich Swann vs. Ace Austin vs. Trey vs. Smiley vs. Evander James vs. Mantequilla
  • The Rascalz (Dez & Wentz) vs. The North (Ethan Page & Josh Alexander)
  • Tessa Blanchard & Violette vs. Scarlett Bordeaux & Sonya Strong
  • Moose vs. Ken Broadway

Ace Austin Gets The Win/Will Challenge For X-Division Gold

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HgsGzk2r6SE
  • Ace Austin defeated Petey Williams

Ace Austin defeated a former X-Division Champion in Petey Williams this week. The win over Petey Williams could help Austin gain momentum as he gears up to challenge for the X-Division title on Sunday at Code Red. The match had originally been for the HOG Crown Jewel Championship but Josh Matthews announced the X-Division title would be on the line last night.

Quick Results:

  1. Ace Austin defeated Petey Williams
  2. Rosemary vs Kiera Hogan – No Contest
  3. Fenix defeated Eddie Edwards
  4. Impact World Title #1 Contendership: Michael Elgin defeated Pentagon Jr. and Johnny Impact

Next Week:

  • Taya Valkyrie vs Madison Rayne
  • Rob Van Dam vs Ethan Page
  • OVE Street Fight: Sami Callihan, Madman Fulton, & the Crist brothers vs Rich Swann, Willie Mack, Tommy Dreamer, & Fallah Bah
  • LAX vs Moose & Josh Alexander

Posted May 4th, 2019 in TNA, News. Tagged: , , , .

Rob Van Dam Opens Up On Returning To Impact Wrestling

Rob Van Dam has opened up on his decision to be back under contract with Impact Wrestling (formerly known as TNA Wrestling).

The former WWE, ECW and Impact Wrestling Champion signed a new deal with Impact Wrestling last month.

This was before he made his return to the promotion alongside Sabu where they teamed up to take on Pentagon Jr. and Fenix at the United We Stand event. The show went down on April 4th during WrestleMania weekend from the Rahway Recreation Center in Rahway, New Jersey.

RVD, who has worked a few matches for Impact since then, spoke with Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful about making his return to the promotion.

In this interview, RVD would explain that money combined with a light schedule and Scott D’Amore convincing him were factors in his decision to compete under the Impact Wrestling banner again.

“When I first talked to Scott, we were just talking about (United We Stand). Over the last three years, I’ve had about 10-12 matches a year. I haven’t really been interested in doing more than that. But good business is good business.

I’m always interested in business when it’s good. Scott said he wanted to run by some future dates with me and as you could imagine, the biggest factors were on the business end. That’s what most of us look for is compensation and the schedule. It looks like a schedule that’s not too heavy. It’s not going to change a whole lot of my life.”

https://youtu.be/Y74COCP2nKc

Posted May 3rd, 2019 in TNA, News. Tagged: .

Impact Wrestling Announces Matches For TV Tapings Tonight

One night after the Rebellion PPV, Impact Wrestling is back inside Toronto’ Rebel Nightclub tonight. The promotion will tape 2 weeks of television tonight before heading to Philadelphia’s 2300 Arena next weekend to tape 4 more episodes.

Impact Wrestling recently announced the following matches will take place at tonights tapings:

  • OVE & Sami Callihan vs Rich Swann, Willie Mack & Tommy Dreamer
  • Madison Rayne vs Taya Valkyrie
  • Ace Austin vs Petey Williams
  • Rosemary vs Kiera Hogan
  • Fenix vs Eddie Edwards

Rob Van Dam At Impact Wrestling TV Tapings

Although he has not been announced for an official match tonight, RVD has been advertised as appearing at tonight’s show in Toronto.

Brian Cage Injury Update

Brian Cage had to take a trip to the emergency room following Rebellion last night. He gave an update on his status during Busted Open Radio earlier today:

Cage would ultimately say that the doctors believe he just has some inflammation and a deep bone bruise. He is not expected to miss much time.

Will Michael Elgin Be At The Impact Wrestling TV Tapings?

Michael Elgin debuted for Impact Wrestling last night. Elgin has a long history in the area and despite debuting as a heel, there were many “Big Mike” chants in the crowd when he walked down the entrance ramp at Rebellion. It is not known if he will be at the tapings tonight, however.

Two other wrestlers from the area, Josh Alexander and Ethan Page, also received hometown (or nearly hometown) reactions. Page and Alexander recently came together to form “the North” and Elgin took to Twitter to speak on their performances last night:

Posted April 29th, 2019 in TNA, News. Tagged: , .

RVD on Signing With Impact: “People Are Excited”

Rob Van Dam is back in Impact Wrestling. He’ll main event tonight’s “United We Stand” PPV along with his longtime partner Sabu against the Lucha Bros. He was the guest on today’s Impact Wrestling Press Pass. RVD spoke about facing the Lucha Bros, his contract with Impact, and changing attitudes towards cannabis.

His documentary “Headstrong” is also currently available at FITE, on Itunes, and other outlets.

“Lots of excitement coming into this. I’m getting a lot of feedback online and in-person,” RVD said about his Impact return. “People are excited.”

Rob Van Dam On Current Impact Wrestling Roster

“I see that a lot of the wrestlers are doing RVD moves,” Van Dam said when asked about the current Impact roster. “Which doesn’t surprise me. That’s what always happens when someone’s gone off of the TV for a minute.”

He then expressed he was surprised it took the wrestling industry so long to start taking his moves.

“I think I might start by leveling some of those guys out and letting them know they got another several years before they need to start comparing themselves to RVD.”

RVD On Cannabis In Pro-Wrestling

I asked Rob Van Dam his feelings on the changing attitudes towards cannabis in the pro-wrestling industry.

“I think that’s a reflection of the attitude towards cannabis changing all across the world,” he said.

He would continue to say that he doesn’t feel the need to advocate on behalf of cannabis as much anymore, as there is already so much momentum heading in that direction.

“Over the last several years, I find there’s a lot more wrestlers and athletes in general, whether they have a vape pen or using cannabis to calm their anxieties,” he continued. “Whatever it is, it’s not so stand-out and ‘one-of-a-kind-ish’ to be pulled in that direction now.”

“I’ve always said it’s a safer alternative than pills and alcohol and all that,” he continued. “Now that it’s a lot more accessible, I think people’s health will benefit from that, wrestlers and everyone.”

RVD On Impact Schedule, Who He Wants To Face, and more

You can listen to the full interview in the player below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJxRbUai_FE

Posted April 4th, 2019 in News, TNA. Tagged: .

Rob Van Dam Discusses Signing With Impact Wrestling

Rob Van Dam is back under contract with Impact Wrestling (formerly known as TNA Wrestling).

On Wednesday, Pwinsider.com reported that the former WWE, ECW and Impact Wrestling Champion had signed a new deal with Impact Wrestling. The length of the deal was not confirmed.

RVD spoke with The Sporting News about the details of his new Impact Wrestling deal. This is where he noted that he signed a friendly schedule and that he would be working some TV tapings in the near future.

“It looks like you are going to be seeing my face around for the foreseeable future,” Van Dam said. “We have an agreement to where I will be sticking after the show on Thursday. It does have a beginning and an end, but they can extend, so this is something to start us off. I had agreed to one match, and then we talked about and discussed doing their upcoming tapings after the show on Thursday and a couple of television tapings over the next few months.”

RVD added, “We looked at the schedule moving forward, and they asked if I was available. I told them I was. We will see how it goes. It’s a pretty friendly schedule, which has always been important to me. I want to be home more and on the road less.”

Rob Van Dam is set to make his return to Impact Wrestling alongside Sabu as they’ll team up to face Pentagon Jr. and Fenix at the United We Stand event. The show goes down on April 4th during WrestleMania weekend from the Rahway Recreation Center in Rahway, New Jersey.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y74COCP2nKc


Posted April 3rd, 2019 in TNA, News. Tagged: .

Rob Van Dam Hints At Working More Events For Impact Wrestling

Former WWE Champion Rob Van Dam is set to make his return to Impact Wrestling alongside Sabu as they’ll team up to face Pentagon Jr. and Fenix at the United We Stand event. The show goes down on April 4th during WrestleMania weekend from the Rahway Recreation Center in Rahway, New Jersey.

This has led to speculation about his future with Impact Wrestling. RVD dropped a teaser to add fuel to the fire during a recent interview with TV Insider, in order to promote his new documentary, Headstrong.

This is where he made it known that he might be making more appearances for Impact Wrestling.

“There are people who have RVD money. But having said that, I can tell you after talking so much about AEW, Impact Wrestling also has RVD money,” he said. I don’t know if I’m spoiling any big announcement or anything, but yes.”

Here is the updated card for United We Stand:

  • Pentagon Jr. and Fenix vs. RVD and Sabu – Extreme Dream Match
  • Jake Crist vs. Dante Fox vs. Pat Buck vs. Kotto Brazil vs. Jack Evans vs. TBA – Ultimate X
  • Sami Callihan vs. Jimmy Havoc – Monster’s Ball Match
  • Brian Cage, Moose, Eddie Edwards, and Johnny Impact vs. Drago, Daga, Aero Star, and King Cuerno
  • Eli Drake vs. Tessa Blanchard
  • Impact X Division Champion Rich Swann vs. Yamato
  • Impact Knockouts Champion Taya Valkyrie vs. Rosemary vs. Jordynne Grace vs. Katie Forbes

Posted March 9th, 2019 in TNA, News. Tagged: .

Rob Van Dam Reveals Vince McMahon’s Advice On Taking Chair Shots To The Head

Former WWE Superstar Rob Van Dam revealed touching advice that Vince McMahon gave to him about taking chair shots to the head years ago.

While promoting his new documentary ‘Headstrong‘, Rob Van Dam spoke to TV Insider and discussed about a conversation that he had with Vince McMahon when he first signed with the company. RVD revealed that McMahon advised him to put his hands up to protect his head from the chair shots but he didn’t want to do it because he wanted to show how tough he was.

“I never knew I could be doing long-term damage. For me, one of the things I enjoy about professional wrestling is showing how tough I am. That’s an outlet for it. I would get hit in the head with a chair, and I knew it would knock my senses a little loopy. This was part of the job for me. I just thought I was really tough because I could take it. Now I feel very fortunate that at this point in life that I don’t have the CTE that the football players have suffered…Vince McMahon told me when I first got into WWE to put my hands up to protect my head from those chair shots.”

Eventually the former WWE Champion argued with Vince McMahon but the boss “went all fatherly on him.”

“I was arguing with him because I was stupid because I thought I was tough. He went all father on me, ‘I’m your father telling you to put your hands up. He was really serious. Now I won’t be cheering on chair shots to the head, but most of my concussions have probably come from landing and hitting the back of my head. So, I’m going to be cautious of that as well. There’s been once or twice I’ve had similar things happen since shooting the movie. Thankfully, I didn’t get concussed.”

RVD also talked about his his wrestling schedule, his upcoming marquee match teaming up with Sabu to face Pentagon Jr. & Fenix at Impact Wrestling’s United We Stand event, AEW, and more. You can read the entire interview by clicking here.

 

Posted March 9th, 2019 in News, WWE. Tagged: , .

Rob Van Dam Addresses His Pro Wrestling Future

Former WWE/TNA/ECW World Champion Rob Van Dam recently spoke with Wrestlezone’s Kevin Kellam to talk about a wide range of topics to promote his new documentary ‘Headstrong.’

At his advancing age and for his mind, RVD has decided to work a selective number of dates on the independent scene. It appears that he’s just enjoying his life after putting together a successful career.

In this interview, RVD talked about his status as a pro wrestler and future in the wrestling business. This is where he made it known that he considers himself semi-retired.

“I consider myself semi-retired. The last three years I’ve had about 10-12 matches a year, most of them overseas, and I’m really not looking to do more than that. But good business is good business, if somebody talks.. I can’t see myself going back to full-time, that’s really not a possibility, not the way full-time was defined in the past anyway.”

RVD to make his return to Impact Wrestling alongside longtime friend Sabu as they’ll team up to face Pentagon Jr. and Fenix at the “United We Stand” event on April 4th during WrestleMania weekend from the Rahway Recreation Center in Rahway, New Jersey

“Yeah I got this Impact match coming up, I’m looking forward to tagging with Sabu , it’s been a long time since we’ve tagged, so I’m looking forward to that because he’s my mentor. He brought me into the business, he was the first guy I was the ring with, he helped train me, not counting Ted DiBiase when I kissed his foot.”

Posted February 28th, 2019 in TNA, News. Tagged: .

Impact Wrestling United We Stand Event Now A PPV On FITE

Impact Wrestling’s event over WrestleMania weekend this year will now be a PPV on the FITE app. The promotion earlier announced a dream tag-team match for the event featuring Rob Van Dam & Sabu teaming up to face Pentagon Jr. and Fenix, the Lucha Bros. Sami Callihan vs Jimmy Havoc in a Monster’s Ball match was also scheduled for the event recently.

United We Stand takes place on April 4th from the Rahway Center in Rahway, New Jersey.

Impact Wrestling has recently announced 3 more matches for the event. Tessa Blanchard and Eli Drake will face each other in a special inter-gender match.

A team representing Impact Wrestling will also take on a team wrestling Lucha Underground on the show. Brian Cage, Johnny Impact, Moose, and Eddie Edwards will make up Team Impact. The Lucha Underground team will consist of Aerostar, Drago, King Cuerno, and Daga.

Jake Crist, Jack Evans, and Kotto Brazil are all confirmed for the Ultimate-X match that night as well.

https://twitter.com/impactwrestling/status/1098960941859901440?s=12

Impact Wrestling Statement

“We are delighted to welcome two legends in Rob Van Dam and Sabu back to an IMPACT Wrestling ring,” said Ed Nordholm, President of IMPACT Wrestling. “Add this to the list of other matches we have announced and United We Stand is becoming a dream night of action for wrestling fans all over the world made available through our partners at FITE.tv.”

Posted February 22nd, 2019 in News, TNA. Tagged: , .

Rob Van Dam Discusses Concussions, His New Documentary

Rob Van Dam is a busy man. With a documentary dropping on February 19, and ahead of his return to wrestling on an international platform, Rob Van Dam appeared on The Jim Ross Report and revealed the serious nature of his last concussion.

Headstrong Documentary

Van Dam says that the documentary was originally going to be about his on-again, off-again stand-up comedy tour, and his experiences on the road in a new medium.
All that changed, when as filming began, Van Dam began to experience double vision.

“I showed up for the beginning of the tour with symptoms still from a match I had a couple nights before,” said Van Dam. “I had gotten a bit of a concussion, and unlike the hundreds of other concussions that I’ve had, the symptoms didn’t go away right away.”

Rob said that he had no plans to take the film in a direction that would document his recovery from a concussion, but that’s exactly what ended up happening.

“I kept saying ‘I’ll be fine tomorrow, wake up and be 100 percent’, and we’ll just move on and forget about it. But after a couple days, I realized that wasn’t necessarily going to be what was happening,” Van Dam says.

“It became something much bigger than I anticipated. It became so big that the movie ends up following my concussion outside of the tour.”

That is not to say that the film ends up all doom and gloom, as Van Dam is quick to point out that the story takes an uplifting turn as he meets a host of wrestling veterans that appear in the documentary.

The film’s story also documents Van Dam’s very happy relationship with girlfriend Katie Forbes.

The documentary is called Headstrong, and it will be available on iTunes, Google Play, and VUDU platforms on Tuesday, February 19.

You can hear RVD’s discussion with JR below.

Posted February 14th, 2019 in News. Tagged: , .

Rob Van Dam Shares His Thoughts On All Elite Wrestling

We’ve reported on wrestling veterans throwing in their thoughts and opinions on the forthcoming All Elite Wrestling (AEW), especially when it comes to potentially working with the startup company. One wrestler, however, has taken a more pragmatic approach in how he views AEW.

Sitting down for a discussion with the WINCLY podcast, Rob Van Dam divulged his thoughts on AEW and spoke about what his future in the wrestling industry might look like.

When asked if there was a certain promotion he would like to associate with, RVD admitted that there’s not — at least at this point in time. He admitted that, for him, “Money talks.”

His goal at this juncture of his career is simple: work less and make more money.

“I’m really looking to do less and less — travel less,” he confessed. “I consider myself semi-retired. At the same time, I stay ready, so I don’t have to get ready.”

Asked if he saw any similarities between AEW and Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), RVD replied that he doesn’t see the comparison. He recalled ECW being a “gradual thing” and not something that made an impact “out of nowhere like this seems to be.” These comments are reminiscent of Kevin Nash’s thoughts, where he shared that AEW should “grow slow.”

“These Guys Don’t EVen Have A TV Deal Yet”

Other wrestlers have excitedly predicted a modern Monday Night Wars on the horizon between AEW and WWE. RVD doesn’t think so, saying, “As far as the Monday Night Wars goes, c’mon, these guys don’t even have a TV deal yet. I wish them all the luck in the world — I hope they do well.”

“They [AEW] have to prove history wrong that they are different and that they’re gonna stick around. People who have a whole lot of money usually don’t waste a lot of money. That’s why they have money. I’m not saying that they are wasteful but if things aren’t set up right and they’re paying guys the rumored reports, then they’ve got to make the money back and I hope they do.”

Despite all the hype and excitement, however, RVD still believes WWE will stand tall, claiming that he doesn’t see WWE getting “knocked out of its first place position.” He did add a caveat though: “[…] history is what it is and I’m all about breaking tradition.”

H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

Posted February 12th, 2019 in News, AEW. Tagged: , .

Sabu To Release Autobiography Next Month

Hardcore wrestling legend Sabu will release an autobiography next month. Sabu: Scars, Silence, & Superglue will be officially released in March, though an exact date has yet to be declared.

Sabu: Scars, Silence, & Superglue

Taz and RVD each wrote forewards for the book.

“I have said it before and will say it again, there would be no “TAZ” without Sabu. I have nothing but the utmost respect for him; both for his great legacy as a wrestler and the respect he deserves as the man he is.” – Taz

“Sabu’s autobiography reads like fiction because his story seems so unbelievable, but every word is true! Nephew of the legendary Sheik, a funny intelligent guy who gave more to the business than most ever will, and a man who has both more balls and athleticism than anyone I’ve ever met.” – Raven

Guest passages in the book include a who’s who of ECW legends and wrestling personalities including Bill Alfonso, Tommy Dreamer, Raven, Al Snow, Mikey Whipwreck, Mike Johnson, Justin Credible, Blue Meanie, Don Vega, Mike Johnson, and Kevin Sullivan.

The 54-year-old was recently announced as being in the main event of Impact Wrestling’s United We Stand show on April 4th. He’ll team with Rob Van Dam to take on the Lucha Bros in what’s being billed as an extreme dream match.

Sabu was elected to the 2300 Arena’s “Hardcore Hall of Fame” in 2009.

Posted February 9th, 2019 in News, TNA. Tagged: , .

Rob Van Dam Teases Pro Wrestling Return

Former WWE and ECW Champion Rob Van Dam, also known as RVD, had fans talking after a recent post that was sent out on his official Twitter account.

RVD caught the attention of one fan asking on the social media platform where he has been as of late considering the last match that he worked was back in March 2018 against Penta El Zero M at the PCW ULTRA Tuff Luck event. This is when he responded by stating that fans will hear from him soon.

A few months ago, RVD addressed rumors that he hasn’t wrestled for such a long period of time due to issues with concussions and ruled out that speculation.

Van Dam gained his mainstream popularity by 1998 when he won the ECW World Television Championship, which he held for a record 700 days. RVD’s latest run with WWE was from June of 2013 through August of 2014. He made a one-off appearance at the 2014 Slammy Awards to present the Slammy Award for Extreme Moment of the Year.

At his advancing age and for his mind, RVD has decided to work a selective number of dates on the independent scene. It appears that he’s just enjoying his life after putting together a successful career.

Posted December 17th, 2018 in WWE, News. Tagged: .

Rob Van Dam Comments On Potential WWE Return

Former WWE Champion Rob Van Dam was recently interviewed by Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated after wrestling at Northeast Wrestling’s Redemption event.

During the interview, Van Dam spoke about a potential return to WWE. At this stage in the game for RVD, he doesn’t think it’s a certain but a likely possibility.

“I know that my fans want to see me back in WWE, To that, I can say, it’s good to be wanted. I can tell you that I enjoy my days off a lot more than my days on, but I appreciate the fans. It’s because of them I have the life I have. So thank you to the fans, I know they’re going to stick with me for life, and never say never.”

RVD’s latest run with WWE was from June of 2013 through August of 2014. He made a one-off appearance at the 2014 Slammy Awards to present the Slammy Award for Extreme Moment of the Year.

At his advancing age and for his mind, RVD has decided to work a selective number of dates on the independent scene. Van Dam made his name known while working for ECW in the late 1990s, with the WWE in the early to mid-2000s, and then with TNA in the early 2010s. Van Dam gained his mainstream popularity by 1998 when he won the ECW World Television Championship, which he held for a record 700 days.

Posted November 15th, 2018 in WWE, News. Tagged: .

Kelly Kelly Gets Ready For WWE Evolution, Alundra Blayze On Her Wrestling Return

– WWE Evolution will see the wrestling return of Kelly Kelly as the one-time Divas Champion is scheduled to compete in the Women’s Battle Royal. To get ready for the match, Kelly (aka Barbie Blank) trained with former WWE Champion Rob Van Dam and independent wrestler Katie Forbes last Sunday at Santino Bros. Wrestling Academy in Bell Gardens, California.

Forbes posted the following on their training session:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BpN3n3Dgxx7/

Kelly replied, “Had the best time training with you babe thank you so much for getting off my ring rust hehe.”

The Women’s Battle Royal will also see the wrestling return of WWE Hall of Famer Alundra Blayze (aka Madusa), who hasn’t competed for WWE in nearly 23 years after throwing the WWF Women’s Championship into a trash can on WCW Monday Nitro on December 18, 1995. Ahead of tomorrow night’s match, Blayze tweeted the following:

Posted October 27th, 2018 in WWE, News. Tagged: , , , , .

Rob Van Dam Shuts Down Concussion Rumors

It’s been some time since Rob Van Dam wrestled in a WWE ring. The ECW alumni has been taking numerous independent bookings as of late but recently took time on Twitter to answer a few questions relating to his WWE absence.

When asked about why it’s been years that he stepped inside a WWE ring, RVD gave a pretty straight forward answer. “Last time we talked, my time was worth more to me than to them. That hasn’t changed.”

There had been reports earlier this year that RVD was dealing with concussion issues and would not be able to pass a WWE physical. RVD says he laughed when he read about that online. “This rumor didn’t come from WWE, because it’s not true.”  More on the RVD concussion story here.

Rob Van Dam’s Most Recent WWE Run

Rob Van Dam’s last WWE run had him return for 2013’s Money In The Bank main event which involved CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, Randy Orton, Christian, and Sheamus. While Van Dam did not win the match he did go on to have matches with Chris Jericho, Seth Rollins, and many other current WWE talent at the time.

He would go on to feud with Alberto Del Rio for the World Heavyweight Championship but came up short on two occasions. RVD would wrap up his WWE obligations on an episode of Smackdown where he would lose to Seth Rollins and made his final appearance at the 2014 Slammy Awards.

Posted August 14th, 2018 in News. Tagged: .

Bruce Prichard Reveals The Storyline That Made Him An RVD Fan

Former WWE official Bruce Prichard recently dedicated an episode of his podcast, Something To Wrestle, to overlooking the WWE career of former WWE Champion Rob Van Dam. Prichard first discussed that RVD made his WWE TV debut back in 1987 as a fan:

“Rob told me, when I first met him. He said, “You know I was one of those people that came out of the audience and did one of Ted Dibiase’s ‘Will you do this for money’ deal,” Prichard explained.

“He actually did the ‘Kiss My Feet’ thing with Ted Dibiase where he got paid to kiss his feet. We actually went back and found the footage and it was Rob Szatkowski, so I thought that was really cool. He was a mega fan.”

Prichard also revealed that after seeing Van Dam get his start in WCW he seriously considered bringing him in to WWE:

“The first time I saw Rob Van Dam was actually with Dory Funk Jr, long before he was in ECW. Right about the time he was going to WCW. Rob Van Dam does the ‘Van Dam Deadlift’ where he takes two chairs and does the splits and then he lifts a barbell in between,” Prichard said.

“Extremely difficult to do and extremely impressive when someone does it. He had a unique look and had a different style, so watching Rob from day one thought that he was special and thought someone that can come to WWE and have a big niche following.”

RVD got his start with WWE in 2001 as a member of the Invasion storyline. Prichard said that he became a fan of RVD’s during this storyline when he saw his interactions with WWE Hall Of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin – as he believes the ECW legend has great chemistry with the Texan:

“The Alliance stuff with Steve Austin and Rob Van Dam, to me, that was where I fell in love with RVD because I really didn’t know him that well, except superficially, but when we were doing stuff with Steve Austin and Steve was doing stuff with his watch and doing the ‘What?’ chant and looking at his watch, we’re shooting and I am telling Rob to act natural, react and just go with it because I wasn’t a big fan of scripts, so I would let the guys freestyle at times, and if it would work we would go with it,” Prichard said.

“So, Steve is putting his watch in his ear and RVD takes the watch and puts the watch up to his ear asking what it is he was listening to. It was real, and it was something that everybody wanted to do but they’re looking for a script, but I told Rob to just freestyle with it and it was good.

“Steve and Rob had a chemistry in the backstage vignettes where we thought that there may be something there. It was just good chemistry.”

You can listen to Bruce Prichard’s comments on Something To Wrestle by clicking this link here.

H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

Posted May 9th, 2018 in WWE, News. Tagged: , , .

Rob Van Dam Shares His Plans For 4/20

During his prime, there was no better high-flyer in wrestling than Rob Van Dam. As today is April 20th, a celebrated day amongst marijuana enthusiasts, it has become a popular day for Rob Van Dam to make media appearances. RVD has shared through his social media channels that you can hear him on a popular podcast later today and check out a collection of his matches on the FITE App.

Conrad Thompson and Bruce Pritchard of the “Something to Wrestle With Podcast” decided April 20th was the perfect day to bring RVD on as a guest. The 4-hour session with Rob Van Dam will be released at noon today.

Rob Van Dam in 2018

RVD is still wrestling these days, though he doesn’t keep a full schedule. He’s a regular for Pacific Coast Wrestling which operates out of California. His last match for the promotion was on March 18th when he unsuccessfully challenged Pentagon for the promotion’s heavyweight championship.

PCW is releasing a collection of Rob Van Dam’s matches in the promotion through the Fite App today to celebrate 4/20:

RVD is a former PCW champion, having held the title for 202 days between November 2016 and June 2017. Pentagon was the promotion’s inaugural champion, having defeated Brian Cage in the finals of a tournament. He lost the title 3 months later to RVD.

RVD would successfully defend the title against Willie Mack and MVP before dropping it to John Hennigan. As for Hennigan, he would defend the title 3x before losing it. Hennigan defeated Pentagon, Jeff Cobb, and Brian Cage. He’d lose the title to Pentagon at the Refuse to Lose event, however. His only title defense came recently against RVD.

The 47-year-old Rob Van Dam also wrestled frequently for the now-defunct 5-Star Wrestling promotion based out of Liverpool. The short-lived promotion brought in several big names for their events, including Rey Mysterio Jr and Jake Hager (FKA Jack Swagger).

Posted April 20th, 2018 in News. Tagged: .

WWE To Hold Tryout In Saudi Arabia, Rare AJ Styles vs. RVD Match Released (Video)

WWE Holding Tryout In Saudi Arabia

The WWE is set to head to Saudi Arabia later this month for the Greatest Royal Rumble event. One of the featured matches on the card is a 50-Man Royal Rumble match, the largest in WWE history.

Huge names like The Undertaker, Chris Jericho, John Cena, Brock Lesnar, and Roman Reigns are scheduled to appear. WWE has also now announced that they will be holding tryouts while in Saudi Arabia as well:

WWE to hold tryout in Saudi Arabia this week

RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA and STAMFORD, Conn. — WWE is in Saudi Arabia this week in search of the next generation of WWE Superstars with a four-day talent tryout in Jeddah beginning tomorrow, Wednesday, April 18, through Saturday, April 21.

The tryout, which will be hosted at the King Abdullah Sports City Sports Hall, will give more than 25 athletes from Saudi Arabia the opportunity to showcase their abilities with the goal of being selected to begin training at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Fla. The talent pool will be comprised of elite performers with a diverse background in sports, including soccer, powerlifting, volleyball, boxing, jiujitsu, gymnastics, CrossFit and taekwondo.

The world-class tryout is part of WWE’s commitment to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, highlighted by the Greatest Royal Rumble event on Friday, April 27. General Sports Authority of Saudi Arabia Chairman, His Excellency Turki Al Sheikh, WWE Chairman & CEO Vince McMahon and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia invite the world to celebrate this signature event. It is the first event as part of a long-term partnership between WWE and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The Greatest Royal Rumble card includes the first-ever 50-Man Greatest Royal Rumble Match; John Cena vs. Triple H; The Undertaker vs. Rusev in a Casket Match; Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns in a Universal Championship Steel Cage Match; an Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match featuring champion Seth Rollins vs. The Miz vs. Samoa Joe vs. Finn Bálor; United States Champion Jeff Hardy vs. Jinder Mahal with Sunil Singh; a Raw Tag Team Championship Match between “Woken” Matt Hardy & Bray Wyatt and Sheamus & Cesaro; and SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Bludgeon Brothers vs. The Usos, as well as a WWE Championship Match and a Cruiserweight Championship Match.

“WWE is dedicated to recruiting the most talented athletes and entertainers from around the world and developing them into global Superstars,” said Paul “Triple H” Levesque, WWE Executive Vice President, Talent, Live Events & Creative. “In partnership with the General Sports Authority, we look forward to bringing the Greatest Royal Rumble to Saudi Arabia while showcasing this historic event to the world.”

The Jeddah tryout is the latest example of WWE’s global talent recruiting efforts. In recent years, WWE has scouted rugby and soccer players from Europe, kabaddi and kushti athletes from India, and martial artists and boxers from China. In 2017, WWE held a tryout in Dubai, which resulted in the first Arab woman, the first Indian woman and the first Kuwaiti man to sign with WWE.

Rare AJ Styles vs. RVD Match (Video)

Title Match Wrestling has recently released a video of a match between current WWE Champion AJ Styles and former WWE star Rob Van Dam (RVD) from Pro Wrestling Syndicate’s “Frightmare Before Christmas” event in 2014.

The special guest referee for the match was Jerry Lynn, and Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson also make appearances. You can watch below:

Posted April 17th, 2018 in WWE, News. Tagged: , , , , .

Kurt Angle Tweets Royal Rumble Poster Featuring Ronda Rousey, Ex-WWE Champ Says He Wasn’t Invited To RAW 25

– Monday Night RAW General Manager Kurt Angle may have just given away a major spoiler for tonight’s Women’s Royal Rumble match. The WWE Hall Of Famer posted the following blurry poster for the Women’s Rumble, featuring former UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey – who has been speculated for the event for some time now:

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bef_r23hzUv/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=embed_ufi_control

The poster looks to be a fake but WWE actually retweeted Angle’s post on Twitter rather than telling him to take it down. We’ll keep you updated….

– Sports Illustrated recently caught up with former WWE Champion Rob Van Dam who revealed he didn’t receive an invite from the company to return at RAW 25. He also said he prefers wrestling sporadically on the independent circuit compared to working for WWE:

“I know some people can’t understand that, but I’m wrestling overseas and I’m wrestling way less matches,” said RVD. “I don’t enjoy the road life or WWE’s really hectic schedule.”

Posted January 28th, 2018 in WWE, News. Tagged: , , .

Rob Van Dam’s Concussion History Preventing WWE Return

Documents obtained through Rob Van Dam’s divorce proceedings have revealed the 47-year-old is unable to return to WWE. According to documents filed by his lawyers, RVD suffered permanent vision loss due to a concussion suffered last November for PCW in California.

This vision loss and history of concussions, his lawyer contends, will prevent him from ever competing inside a WWE ring again.

Rob Van Dam’s Divorce

RVD is going through divorce proceedings with his ex-wife, Sonia. The two had been married from 1998-2015. The purpose of RVD’s filings was to show his income level has been “substantially reduced” since the time he and Sonia were married. The filings also report that RVD’s merchandise contract with WWE ran out in July.

Since 2016, RVD has been linked to independent wrestler, Katie Forbes.

Posted December 6th, 2017 in News. Tagged: , .

RVD Talks Possible Return To WWE, Paige’s Father Comments On Her Return

– Former WWE Champion Rob Van Dam was recently asked by a fan on Twitter if he thinks he could beat current WWE Champ AJ Styles for the strap. In regards to a possible return to the company, RVD indicated that the final call is up to Triple H. Van Dam hasn’t wrestled with WWE since his August 29th match with Seth Rollins back in 2014. He has since been working the independent scene:

https://twitter.com/markawalsh90/status/933685005469081600?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ringsidenews.com%2F2017%2F11%2F24%2Frvd-says-triple-h-returns-wwe%2F

– As we saw on this past Monday’s episode of RAW Paige finally returned to WWE TV, and her father Ricky Knight recently took to Twitter to react to her return:

Posted November 25th, 2017 in WWE, News. Tagged: , , .

Rob Van Dam’s Opponents Named for ICW Fear & Loathing X

Former WWE/ECW star Rob Van Dam will be making his way to ICW’s biggest event of the year: Fear & Loathing X on November 19th.

RVD was slated to face ICW’s Lionheart but now another name has been thrown into the mix…Liverpool’s Number 1 Zack Gibson will be making this match a Three Way Dance.

Gibson is one of the top talents on the UK circuit, he has been plying his trade as part of PROGRESS, ICW, OTT and Revolution Pro for years and he also starred as part of the World of Sport reboot this past New Year’s Eve. Gibson will be looking to make a name for himself on the worldwide stage when he faces the One of a Kind star.

https://twitter.com/InsaneChampWres/status/927596780086276097

Posted November 6th, 2017 in News. Tagged: , .

Rob Van Dam Opens Up On Possible WWE Return

Former WWE Champion Rob Van Dam was recently interviewed by Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated to promote his appearance at Booker T’s charity event on Sunday in Hollywood. This show will be for the victims of Hurricane Harvey.

During the interview, Van Dam spoke about a potential return to WWE. The former WWE Champion hasn’t been seen on WWE television since he left the company in 2014. Here is what he had to say:

“I’m looking at 24 matches, all international, booked over the next 12 months. I don’t have any plans to share, but there is always a possibility of a return. I’ve talked to WWE recently, but it’s about the new video games that are coming out. That was more of a business talk about that, but when the business is right, and it’s the right time to go back, that, of course, is then always a possibility.”

You can read the entire interview here.

Posted September 22nd, 2017 in WWE, News. Tagged: .

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