-WWE will be taping the next four episodes of NXT on Thursday night at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida. The tapings will feature main-roster WWE Superstars Rob Van Dam and Fandango.
-Apparently WWE Superstars were informed about Jim Ross’ “retirement” on Wednesday via text messages sent to them by company officials.
-The new WWE produced Triple H DVD set, “Triple H – Thy Kingdom Come” will be released on September 24th. The DVD set will feature a documentary on HHH’s career as well as some of his most high-profile matches.
-WWE Superstar and long time marijuana advocate Rob Van Dam revealed in a recent podcast that he is thinking about quitting smoking marijuana. RVD used to go by the moniker, “RVD 4:20” and even once appeared on the cover of the infamous High Times magazine. You can check out the new Van Dam podcast online at HipCast.com.
-WWE legend Jake “The Snake” Roberts is currently featured on the official CBS Sports website, as Roberts will be making weekly NFL football picks for the website. You can check that out online at CBSSports.com.
WWE RAW emanates live from Des Moines, Iowa tonight for the Labor Day edition of the show.
The main focus of tonight’s show will be on the Daniel Bryan and Randy Orton feud, with all of the outside involvement from Triple H, as well as Vince and Stephanie McMahon. Also, heavy focus will remain on the storyline involving CM Punk and Curtis Axel/Paul Heyman.
There will be more follow-up on the World Heavyweight Championship program, which features champion Alberto Del Rio and his former manager Ricardo Rodriguez, who is now with Del Rio’s opposition, Rob Van Dam. They will continue the build to their title bout at the upcoming Night Of Champions pay-per-view.
The full talent roster advertised for tonight’s show in Des Moines is as follows: Orton, Bryan, Punk, Heyman, Axel, HHH, Vince McMahon, Stephanie McMahon, Del Rio, Van Dam, Rodriguez, Mark Henry, Dolph Ziggler, Big Show, Wade Barrett, AJ Lee, Kaitlyn, The Shield and The Wyatt Family.
The scheduled dark match main event for tonight’s show is The Shield vs. Rob Van Dam, Mark Henry and The Big Show. With Henry being injured, plans for that match may be off the table.
The following is an excerpt from a recent Chris Jericho interview on Ring Rust Radio:
On taking time away from WWE and his match quality during his last run: “People are always putting words in my mouth. I never once used the word hiatus or retirement; I’m just not working there. I don’t know if it’s a long time, if it’s a short time, forever. I’m not taking a hiatus or sabbatical, my contract was up. I have a bunch of other stuff going on. As far as why the matches were great, I don’t know, man.
“It was just a really good roll. It was like every match was better than the last and I was just in the zone. Experience level wise, many don’t have the experience that I have and I also think outside the box when I’m putting together matches, which other guys don’t. It just seemed like every match I had clicked. There were probably a few that weren’t as good as others, but the majority of them I was really, really happy with. Some bona fide best matches I’ve had in a long time. The Rob Van Dam match on Raw and the CM Punk one at Payback, I thought those matches couldn’t have been any better.”
The following are highlights from a recent interview with WWE Superstar Rob Van Dam:
On getting more respect with age: “I’m in a business where, until recently, the average standard for the wrestlers was probably in their young-40?s. You didn’t get respect until you were at that point where your body was starting to break down and, until that point, you were still kind of paying your dues. It’s great for me to have so much experience yet my body is not breaking down.”
On taking care of himself: “I haven’t aged. I’ve always taken care of myself and I’m a non-conformist, so I don’t accept the negativety that comes with birthdays. I’m 42, but I feel way better than I did when I was 18.”
-WWE Hall Of Famer Jerry “The King” Lawler will be the next guest on the “Steve Austin Show” podcast. The latest edition of the show, which features Shane “Hurricane” Helms and was released today, can be accessed online at PodcastOne.com.
-WWE Superstar William Regal will be holding “An Audience With A Wrestling Villain 2” on Monday, November 11th at The Frog & Bucket Comedy Club on Oldham Street in Manchester at 11:00PM. For more information, visit Facebook.com/ErosComedy.
-30 Rock star Judah Friedlander has signed on to pen the introduction to the Headlocked comic book, which features contributions from pro wrestling stars such as Jerry “The King” Lawler, Rob Van Dam, Shane “Hurricane” Helms, Ken Anderson, Christopher Daniels, Beth Phoenix and others. For more information, visit Kickstarter.com.
SESCOOPS.COM reader Bootleg Kev sent along the following:
I got to sit down with WWE Heavyweight Champ Alberto Del Rio right before this past Monday’s WWE Monday Night RAW. We speak on his current run as WWE Heavyweight Champ, the double blackeyes he was wearing last week on raw, his recent run as a baby-face, whether he prefers the baby-face or heel role, his upcoming storyline with RVD, how he feels about Darren Young coming out of the closet, who his dream tag-team partner would be, who some of his close friends in the locker room are, and of course the departure of his beloved ring announcer Ricardo Rodriguez.
On Monday’s edition of WWE RAW, new matches, with some interesting stipulations, were added to the WWE Night Of Champions pay-per-view, scheduled September 15, 2013, which will be headlined by Daniel Bryan challenging “the face of WWE”, Randy Orton, for his WWE Championship.
WWE Superstar Rob Van Dam, through the help of a quick distraction by his new manager, Ricardo Rodriguez, defeated Alberto Del Rio to earn a World Heavyweight Championship match against the champion at the pay-per-view in three weeks.
Also added to Night Of Champions on RAW was a Handicap Elimination match featuring CM Punk against both Curtis Axel and Paul Heyman. It was noted that if Heyman doesn’t fight, he will have to leave WWE.
Here is an updated look at the official WWE Night Of Champions pay-per-view lineup thus far:
WWE Championship
-Randy Orton (c) vs. Daniel Bryan
World Heavyweight Championship
-Alberto Del Rio (c) vs. Rob Van Dam (with Ricardo Rodriguez)
Handicap Elimination Match
-CM Punk vs. Curtis Axel & Paul Heyman
Stay tuned to SESCOOPS.COM for continued updates on the WWE Night Of Champions pay-per-view.
WWE.com recently confirmed an additional match for tonight’s edition of RAW.
Already announced, in one of tonight’s main events, is a match between CM Punk and Curtis Axel (with Paul Heyman). While the bout was announced as a non-title match originally, the latest online rumors point to it most likely being for Axel’s Intercontinental Championship.
Additionally, WWE announced a match between World Heavyweight Champion Alberto Del Rio and Rob Van Dam for the show tonight.
-As previously reported, CM Punk vs. Curtis Axel (with Paul Heyman) is being advertised for next Monday’s edition of WWE RAW. According to reports, the WWE Intercontinental Championship may be on the line in that match.
-WWE taped the next four weeks worth of NXT television in Winter Park, Florida on Thursday. Spoiler results for all four of those episodes are on the newsboard now. The next set of WWE NXT television tapings are scheduled for September 12th, with WWE Superstars Rob Van Dam and Fandango scheduled to appear.
SESCOOPS.COM reader Michael Moody sent along the following:
The marijuana documentary featuring current WWE Superstar Rob Van Dam, titled ‘The Emperor, The President & The King’ is still in production and Hollymood Entertainment is very happy with the content and direction of the documentary. The production also features celebrities such as Willie Nelson, Jack Herer and George Noory.
You can watch the nearly 10 minute trailer for the production below:
Michael Moody, the owner of Hollymood Entertainment and the producer/director of the documentary is currently looking for an investor to finish the production the way he envisions it. If you would be interested in investing in the budget of the production and signing on as a producer, you can contact Michael Moody directly at Slowdive626@aol.com.
-WWE Superstar Ricardo Rodriguez recently tweeted about his new association with Rob Van Dam. In a recent tweet, Rodriguez wrote:
“Ironic to be in Bakersfield, where it all began for me and Del Rio 3 years ago. But now replacing those three initials of ADR with R.V.D.!”
-Speaking of Twitter, WWE legend Jake “The Snake” Roberts recently revealed on his official Twitter account that he is undergoing an operation to get new hair. Roberts wrote, “Getting new hair today. Feeling good. Procedure started. Gonna look like Heidi Klum when done. #Neograft.”
Roberts posted photos of the operation, which you can check out on Twitter @JakeSnakeDDT.
The following are highlights from a recent Rob Van Dam interview with the official website of Marvel Comics.
Marvel.com: What’s it like being back in WWE?
Rob Van Dam: It’s awesome. I predicted that this return to WWE might be the most impactful part of my entire career. It has a lot to do with timing, and a lot to do with being RVD because I have so many years of experience. But it’s all positive. All the time I’ve spent. There’s no downside. I don’t have that a.g.e. factor that seems to affect a lot of other people. Honestly, my body feels as good as it ever did. Sometimes my back bothers a little bit, but it bothered me even more when I was 23. Sometimes my knee bothers me a little bit. It bothered me even more when I was 30. I feel great. And obviously it shows when I’m in the ring. And the fan response has been off the hook. And, by the way, my position in the company, considering the other wrestlers that are there, versus the wrestlers that were there before, again, works in my favor because all the other guys that were ahead of me that were getting all the attention, all the TV time, well they’ve dropped off, they’re outta the scene; a good time to be the whole damn show.
Marvel.com: Your return during Money in the Bank was amazing, and now you’re headed in to arguably the second biggest show of the year with SummerSlam. What is it about the energy of SummerSlam that you think really gets you and fans excited?
Rob Van Dam: Well a lot of it has to do with the amount of promotion put into it. I mean everybody knows that WrestleMania is compared to the Super Bowl of wrestling. They do a pay-per-view every month, and a lot of them don’t get so much attention. But they’re all getting bigger and bigger. They’re all growing every year as the fan base grows. SummerSlam is like the big party of the summer, and everybody looks forward to that now, just like they look forward to WrestleMania.
For me, I’m excited that it’s right here in Los Angeles, which is where I reside. I grew up in Battle Creek, Michigan, but I live out here in Los Angeles. So I’m on my own home turf here. It’s where a lot of scores are settled. It’s where a lot of storylines are kicked off. It’s where a lot of people are tuning in all over the world. So the pressure’s on for all the wrestlers to be at their best. So that’s where somebody sets up the great combination of the matches. I’m looking forward to getting in the ring. To be honest, it doesn’t even matter who I’m in the ring with. I still will steal the whole show.
Check out the complete interview online at Marvel.com.
-Daniel Bryan, Rob Van Dam and Randy Orton vs. The Shield is currently the advertised dark match main event for the upcoming WWE SmackDown television taping on September 17th in Cincinnati, Ohio.
-Former WWE referee Jimmy Korderas will make his professional wrestling in-ring debut for Smash Wrestling at The E-Zone in Toronto on Saturday, August 17th. The card Korderas debuts on will also include Brian Kendrick, Paul London, Matt Cross, Johnny Gargano, Player Uno, LuFisto, Gregory Inn and Tyson Dux.
-Currently injured WWE Superstar Sheamus will be appearing at the Wizard World Ohio Comic Con from September 20th through September 22nd in Columbus, Ohio at the Convention Center.
-Former WWE Superstar Chris Jericho will be appearing at the Montreal Comic Con at the Palais de Congres on September 14th. Also that night, his rock-and-roll band Fozzy will perform at the Corona Theater in Montreal.
According to one source, an angle is likely going to be shot during the Dean Ambrose vs. Rob Van Dam WWE United States Championship match during the WWE SummerSlam Kickoff Show on Sunday night prior to SummerSlam.
The report claims that the angle will either lead to a trios match featuring The Shield against Big Show, Mark Henry and Rob Van Dam, or a regular tag-team match between Show and Henry and Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins.
Regardless, all of the aforementioned WWE Superstars have been informed that they will be working on the actual SummerSlam pay-per-view card itself.
-WWE Superstar Rob Van Dam has posted a new audio blog online. In the blog, RVD talks about his first month back in WWE and why he feels his in-ring work has improved during his current WWE run. Van Dam also takes a few shots at the TNA Impact Wrestling roster. Check it out online at iPadio.com.
-“Stone Cold” Steve Austin has posted the latest edition of the “Steve Austin Show” online. The latest edition features the return of Kevin Nash to his show. On this episode of the program, the focus is mainly on the end of Nash’s WWE career, as well as a lot of nWo and WCW discussion. Check it out online at PodcastOne.com.
The official Xfinity website recently posted an interview with Paul Heyman. While most of the interview is Heyman answering questions completely in-character, below are highlights where Heyman is somewhat candid in his responses.
On the significance of his role in last year’s WrestleMania: “It’s huge. Nothing short of it. And probably even bigger than that adjective. It’s exhilarating for me because you have the most unique, the most gifted athlete in the history of the WWE, or UFC, or college athletics in Brock Lesnar, going against a wrestler who probably has more heart, more determination, and the ability to overcome the odds better than anybody else that I’ve ever come across in my entire career in CM Punk. It’s a fascinating match-up. It won’t be over in 30 seconds. This is going to be an all-night affair. There’s an old expression in the professional wrestling business; “This match will be worth the price of admission.” I humbly suggest that Brock Lesnar vs. CM Punk is worth the price of admission alone.”
On Brock Lesnar telling him to ‘say something stupid’ on RAW recently: “He wanted me to say something stupid! Brock Lesnar is a man who thinks in a far different way than your average beast walking down the street. This is a once-in-a-lifetime athlete. Brock made his point, he told the world, “I, Brock Lesnar, am better than CM Punk.” So, what else is there for us to say?”
On his thoughts about Daniel Bryan: “I’m not done recruiting Daniel Bryan. I think Daniel Bryan is a fascinating performer who has put on arguably the most consistent string of best matches of the past year. The striking thing about Daniel Bryan is the best is yet to come with him. Daniel Bryan still has more to offer. And having seen footage of him dating back to when he was wrestling in VFW halls and very small arenas and high school gymnasiums, he still has so much more that the WWE Universe hasn’t seen. I’m admittedly, and I will confess to this, a huge fan of Daniel Bryan.”
On his thoughts about John Cena: “I think there’s a streak going involving John Cena that both the WWE Universe and the media have failed to pick up on. The glory days of “Stone Cold” Steve Austin lasted two, maybe two-and-a-half years. That was the peak of his run. He came back as General Manager, but day-to-day, going to every city, main eventing every Pay Per View, the focal point of Monday Night Raw…Steve Austin’s peak was two-and-a-half years. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s peak was along the same lines. John Cena has been the focal point of WWE since 2005. For eight and now going on nine years, John Cena has not only main evented all the Pay Per Views, been the major attraction on Raw. John Cena has gone to every city, main events all the live events, and yet he still makes all these media appearances, he’s done more Make-A-Wish Foundation visits than anybody in history…and he’s a tireless workhorse. And he shows up last Monday with his elbow…looking grotesquely…is that a word? His elbow was so messed up and yet he says, “Wrap me up, I’m going out there to perform because the people are counting on me.” There is a work ethic to John Cena that is to behold.”
On his thoughts about Bray Wyatt: “It’s an emotional presentation, and it sets him apart from everyone else which means that Bray Wyatt will stand out. Whether it’s in WWE or UFC or Major League Baseball or the NBA or the NFL or television or movies…any genre that is star-driven has the need for unique personalities. And Bray Wyatt is as unique as they come.”
On how TNA Impact Wrestling handled Rob Van Dam: “I don’t mind getting into detail. I think TNA squandered the opportunity of exploiting the talents of Rob Van Dam. And I don’t think that’s a mistake the WWE is going to repeat.”
Check out the complete interview online at Xfinity.com.
-The cast of WWE’s Total Divas reality show on the E! cable channel will be appearing on the E! show, “The Soup” this coming Wednesday night.
-UFC heavyweight prospect (who will be moving down to Light Heavyweight following his next fight against Roy “Big Country” Nelson) Daniel Cormier was in attendance at the WWE live event on Sunday night in Oakland, California.
-WWE Superstar Rob Van Dam noted on Twitter recently that he would be appearing at the upcoming WWE NXT television tapings in September.
-According to reports, one potential reason Rob Van Dam has had random matches on television upon returning to WWE, as opposed to being locked into an actual feud with one specific wrestler, is because of the terms of his new WWE contract.
Van Dam’s current deal with WWE calls for him to work for 90 days before taking an unspecified amount of time off, before returning back to action for the company.
-The following is the official preview for the third episode of WWE Total Divas, which airs on Sunday night at 10pm on the E! cable channel:
“Naomi and Jon Uso come face-to-face in the ring. JoJo ends up giving her boyfriend an ultimatum. Nikki disagrees with Brie’s decision to move to Phoenix.”
This week’s WWE SmackDown and Main Event television shows will be taped before a live audience at the BHO Harris Bank Center in Rockford, Illinois this evening.
Already confirmed for the show, as announced on Monday’s WWE RAW show, is a MizTV segment with special guests Big E. Langston and AJ Lee.
The advertised dark match main event is Sheamus, Randy Orton and Rob Van Dam vs. The Shield. However, for whatever this is worth, the advertised dark match main event for RAW between John Cena and Alberto Del Rio never took place on Monday night.
Make sure to check back here on the website later this evening for live WWE SmackDown spoiler results.
-WWE is advertising a dark match main event of Randy Orton, Sheamus and Rob Van Dam vs. The Shield (Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns) for Tuesday’s WWE SmackDown and Main Event television taping.
-As previously noted, the WWE RAW dark match main event for tonight’s show in Green Bay features John Cena vs. Alberto Del Rio in a “Champion vs. Champion” match. Starting with next Monday’s RAW, the dark match main event will feature John Cena and Mark Henry taking on all three members of The Shield in a Handicap Match.
-For whatever this is worth, WWE is no longer advertising Brock Lesnar for the post-SummerSlam edition of WWE RAW. Lesnar is still scheduled for tonight’s RAW and next week’s RAW, the final two editions of the show leading into the annual SummerSlam pay-per-view.
-WWE is advertising the following lineup for the live event on September 22nd in Hidalgo, Texas:
–John Cena vs. Dean Ambrose [Champion vs. Champion Match]
–Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton [Special Challenge Match]
–Mark Henry vs. Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns [2-On-1 Handicap Match]
-There is currently a pre-sale available for tickets to the WWE “Battleground” pay-per-view event, scheduled for October 6th at the First Niagara Center in Buffalo, New York. The password for the pre-sale, which runs through Friday night at 10:00pm E.T., is JOHNCENA.
-The following are some new combined tweets from the official Twitter page of WWE Superstar Rob Van Dam. Van Dam makes some comments about the growing legalization of marijuana in the United States and internationally. RVD wrote:
“FYI Last week, N.H. Became 19th state to adopt medical marijuana. Yesterday, Uruguay became first country to legalize pot. Today, Illinoise became 20th state w/ medical marijuana program. Joke all you want but your truth is changing, so is tomorrow’s education. Put that in your pipe. When the time comes to say “I told you so”…I will rise above.”
-WWE Superstar Rob Van Dam is listed as a voice of a character in the new Saints Row IV video game. Van Dam will provide the vocals for a character named “Bobby.” You can check out the full list of voice-overs, which includes celebrities such as Neil Patrick Harris, at SaintsRow.com.
-WWE Superstar Triple H celebrates his 44th birthday today. “The Game” was born on July 27, 1969.
-The following is the latest “Backstage Fallout” for Friday’s edition of WWE SmackDown:
-WWE Superstar Wade Barrett’s mouth was busted open during his match with Rob Van Dam on Monday’s edition of WWE RAW. The blood was likely drawn from a stiff kick from RVD. RVD has always had a reputation of working stiff, and many times opponents get banged up when working with Van Dam.
-CM Punk mentioned the staples in his head as well as his ribs, arm and ankle as injured parts of his body during his promo on Monday’s edition of RAW. Punk listed the nagging injuries to sell the beatdown he suffered at the hands of Brock Lesnar the previous week. According to reports, the injury list was a shoot, as Punk is pretty banged up from head-to-toe lately.
-The following is the latest edition of Backstage Fallout for this week’s WWE SmackDown:
-You can officially pencil in Rob Van Dam for the upcoming WWE live event on July 26th in Atlanta, Georgia, as well as the July 27th event in Macon, Georgia.
-WWE Champion John Cena recently posted a tweet in response to the TMZ article that showed a Total Divas clip where he and girlfriend Nikki Bella talk about marriage:
Thanks @TMZ 4 showing ‘challenging’ clip from #totaldivas 4 more make sure to check out @eonline @ENews E! July 28 10pm est