— On Twitter, when asked whether he watches TNA Wrestling, Steve Austin replied: “yes i do watch TNA. lots of friends there. they have some good talent.”
He also said last week that “they will never catch WWE” and felt they needed to be different than them. However, he also wished them luck and said competition is good.
— It’s worth noting that Orlando Jordan has not appeared on TNA programming in over a month — not since the Feb. 18th edition of iMPACT! when he garnered a shocking victory over Samoa Joe. Though his character has not been featured since, he continues to tell people that he will play a bisexual character on television. Furthermore, the decision to not air footage of Jordan and his male companion groping one another during his Feb. 18 ring entrance was actually made while it was happening live, according to a company source. (source: www.pwtorch.com)
— According to the official TNA website, Rob Terry vs. Brutus Magnus for the TNA Global Championship is back on for Sunday’s Destination X pay-per-view. The match was removed earlier in the week but is once again being advertised.
WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has updated his blog at JRsBarBQ.com with an update on his WWE contract status, WWE banning chair shots to the head, Steve Austin and more. Some highlights:
His WWE Contract Status: “I’ve also I read where I signed a new contract with WWE, I hope to BTW, however that is also wrong as what I signed was a contract extension to take us through the end of April. Re-signing with WWE is my top priority and I hope that we can get another, long term deal done sooner than later.”
WWE Banning Chair Shots to the Head: “Nice to see WWE focus on eliminating chair shots to the heat of their athletes. I blogged about this several weeks ago which I am sure means nothing in regard to this decision being made. Some asked if I thought this mandate was ‘politically motivated’ to which I emphatically say hell, no. It simply makes common sense and the overall health of the competitors has to be any companies utmost priority.”
Is He Calling WrestleMania? “It seems that many within the wrestling media know more about my Wrestlemania assignment that do I. I still don’t know what I’m specifically and officially doing in Phoenix but as I mentioned I am just happy to be attending the event. So for those of you that may read what my role is going to be in conjunction with WM26, and insiders might be correct at the end of the day, just for the record and as of today I don’t know. However, if you get any more inside info please share it. I need to know what to pack.”
WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin appeared on Hardcore Sports Radio this week and discussed TNA Wrestling challenging WWE on Monday nights. Despite the fact that Austin is aWWE guy through and through, he says “competition is great for the business” and hopes TNA can give WWE a run for its money.
“I wish the TNA people all the luck in the world because it means more of the boys have jobs and it gives fans an alternative” Austin said.
TNA has a lot of the WCW pieces in place (Hogan, Bischoff, Flair, Sting, The Band), but Austin doesn’t know if TNA will ever be able to reach WCW’s popularity peak. “I don’t know if we’ll ever re-create that Nitro-Raw war,” he said. “WCW kicked our ass for two years, then we smoked their ass and never looked back and put them out of business.”
Even though he wishes good luck for TNA, he knows it will be close to impossible for them to realistically push them to the brink like WCW did. “I don’t think anyone will ever come close to really giving true competition to WWE because they’re so far ahead of the game, they’re rooted in their system, and they’re a winner.”
— Though it has not been confirmed, the feeling among several WWE sources is that Gregory Helms sealed his fate with the company when he was arrested for public intoxication in Kentucky in late January, reports the Pro Wrestling Torch. He was brought back to television shortly after the incident, but was the victim of a beatdown angle and never appeared in a WWE ring again.
“He gave them an excuse,” said one insider with knowledge of the situation.
Helms developed a reputation as a party guy within the company by posting notes on Twitter about drinking contests and parties he took part in. Though it initially seemed harmless, a few eyebrows were raised when he posted a message regarding a drinking contest that he and Christopher Daniels were having last August, which was proceeded by the TNA star being arrested on charges of driving under the influence just miles from Helms’ North Carolina residence.
— Last Monday’s special guest host of Raw, Criss Angel, was originally scheduled to have a more physical role on the show but plans were scrapped a few days before the event for his safety.
“Inside scoop – I was supposed 2 do something in the ring at Raw but a few days be4 it got cancelled 4 my safety – it would have been awesome,” Angel wrote on his Twitter account.
— The TV Guide preview for tonight’s Raw is as follows: “Guest host Steve Austin presents a WrestleMania rewind.”
— Here is the synopsis for WWE’s upcoming DVD set on Undertaker, The Undertaker’s Most Dangerous Matches: “He’s the most ominous presence in the history of Sports Entertainment, known for his remarkable “WrestleMania” streak and taking the souls of scores of superstars. Now the Undertaker’s most dangerous conflicts are collected in one 3-disc DVD set, “Undertaker’s Deadliest Matches”. This set includes “Casket Matches”, “Buried Alive Matches”, “Hell in a Cell”, “Last Ride Matches”, “Body Bag Matches”, “Boiler Room Brawls”, “Concrete Crypt Matches” and numerous other brutal bouts.”
— Today, Batista moves into eighth place all-time of longest reigning WWE World Champions, surpassing “Stone Cold” Steve Austin. He surpassed Randy Savage last week as well. Here is the complete list:
1) Bruno Sammartino – 4,040 days
2) Hulk Hogan – 2,185 days
3) Bob Backlund – 2,138 days
4) Triple H – 1,151 days
5) Pedro Morales – 1,027 days
6) John Cena – 969 days
7) Bret Hart – 654 days
8) Batista – 530 days
9) Steve Austin – 529 days
10) Randy Savage – 520 days
— WWE will be holding a “WrestleMania Kick-off Party” on Friday, Mar. 20 at the Westgate City Center in Glendale, Arizona. WWE Superstars and Divas are scheduled to appear. Click here for more details.
— Conspicuously, no Hall of Fame announcement was made this past week on Raw. It is believed that the announcement was cut out due to time constraints as WWE still has three names to announce, with one being Stu Hart. It is believed that his announcement will tie into next week’s WrestleMania contract signing between Bret Hart and Vince McMahon, with “Stone Cold” Steve Austin presiding.
It’s being speculated that WWE and Ultimate Warrior may have come to an agreement on him joining this year’s Hall of Fame class as he appeared in the opening montage before Raw, replacing Ric Flair. At last word, Warrior is not among the scheduled three to be announced. The only thing known about the other two names is that “they are not names that would be expected.”
— Last night’s episode of WWE NXT on Syfy took a twenty-five percent dip in viewership, dropping to 1,298,000 viewers overall. This is down over 400,000 viewers from last week’s 1.73 million viewers and 1.70 million viewers on the debut episode. Overall, the show scored a 1.0 cable rating.
— “Stone Cold” Steve Austin will be the Grand Marshal of the Food City 500 at the Bristol Motor Speedway on Sunday, Mar. 21, which airs on FOX at noon that day.
sources: Wrestling Observer Newsletter, PWInsider.com, Pro Wrestling Torch
The ex-wife of Steve Austin, Jeanie Clarke, who previously worked under the name Lady Blossom in World Championship Wrestling in the early 90s, was scheduled to undergo hip replacement surgery this week in her home country of England. Clarke has suffered from osteoarthritis in her back and hip for the past several years stemming from what she believes was a bad bump during a wrestling match years ago.
Clarke is credited with helping Austin develop his “Stone Cold” persona; While he was contemplating a change in gimmick from “The Ringmaster,” she told him to drink his tea before it got “stone cold,” inadvertently inspiring the nickname. She has two daughters with Austin (Stephanie, now 18, and Cassidy, now 14) as well as another daughter to the late Chris Adams who was legally adopted by Austin.
— The one and only “Stone Cold” Steve Austin is now on Twitter as Jim Ross verified his account last night. You can follow him at twitter.com/steveaustinBSR. He has posted numerous tweets related to his appearance at today’s Auto Club 500 NASCAR race in California.
— John Morrison noted on his Twitter account that he ran into former WWE star Nick “Eugene” Dinsmore while checking into his St. Louis hotel last night. You can view a photo of Dinsmore playing up his Eugene gimmick at the following link.
If you recall, Dinsmore made a short-lived return to World Wrestling Entertainment this past summer. He was released just four days after his lone appearance on television, allegedly due to issues with his weight.
— Jim Ross noted on his Twitter account that last night’s WWE Supershow in Springfield, Illinois sold out the Prairie Capital Convention Center. Furthermore, it was the third highest sales gross in arena’s history.
— Charlie Haas noted on his Facebook account that his wife, former WWE Diva Jackie Gayda-Haas, is expecting their third child. She is due in June.
— Steve Austin will be the official “starter” for today’s Auto Club 500 NASCAR race in California. The race airs on FOX at 3:00 p.m. EST.
“Stone Cold” is promoting the DVD release of Damage as there will be a large billboard promoting the flick along the racetrack.
— Lilian Garcia is auctioning off the outfit she wore on her penultimate appearance as the ring announcer of Monday Night Raw. You can view the auction at the following link.
— The latest issue of The Wrestler features an interview with “Superfly” Jimmy Snuka and it’s noted that he has a prospective reality series in the works called The Superfly Challenge. On this show, the WWE Hall of Famer undertakes a number of jobs, ranging from cooking in a diner to working on Nikolai Volkoff’s farm in Maryland.
In the new 2010 WrestleMania XXVI Almanac magazine, WWE superstar Shawn Michaels says he has regrets about his WrestleMania 14 match with Stone Cold Steve Austin. At the time, Michaels’ back was in terrible shape and his career was thought to be over. He was also an emotional wreck and admits he was not an easy guy to get along with in the WWE locker room. When asked if he has any regrets in his career, Michael said:
“The one I always come back to is my match against Steve Austin at WrestleMania 14. I just wasn’t in a great place physically or emotionally. That one could have been so much more. Steve didn’t get me at my best. And that’s unfortunate, because it was the last time I got to work with him. Steve went on to such great things afterward, and I had an opportunity to make that match so much more.”
Michaels also looks back at his matches with Bret Hart during the mid-90’s and thinks the two legends could have accomplished a lot more together if not for their personal differences:
“I will say that I wish I had been in a better place in my life with Bret. Our matches were phenomenal, but I shudder to think what he and I could have accomplished had we gotten along.”
Michaels also named his classic ladder match with Razor Ramon frmo WrestleMania as high on his list of all-time great WrestleMania matches:
“Over the years, the ladder itself has become the central figure of that particular stipulation, but in our situation, it served as a backdrop for something much bigger,” Michaels said. “We were two guys claiming rightful ownership of those titles, and the ladder was just there as a way for us to prove who was the best. Now, the ladder is the primary element, and these matches are often about what the contestants can do with it.”
In an interview with WWE Magazine’s special 2010 WrestleMania 26 Almanac, WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin says he still has no interest in fighting Hulk Hogan, despite WWE’s repeated attempts to make the match happen at the past few WrestleManias.
“After I retired, for two or three years, they asked me, ‘Do you want to wrestle Hogan this year? Do you want to wrestle Hogan? And the answer is: No, I don’t. “I don’t care to wrestle Hulk Hogan. I don’t think it would live up to fans’s expectations.”
Austin says his match with Dwayne “The Rock” Dwayne Johnson at WrestleMania 19 in 2003 was his “retirement match.” Austin isn’t looking for one last rematch, because he doesn’t think it could be as good as their past classics.
“That was my last match, and I’m not looking for a re-match. I don’t it would be as good as what we’ve done before because we’ve both been out of the ring for some time. Could it be done? Of course. But there’s no use talking about it. … I definitely do not have any interest in delivering anything that would be second-best to what I’ve done before.”
When asked about his favorite WrestleMania match, Austin his WrestleMania 17 main event match against The Rock, but admits that turning heel and aligning himself with Mr. McMahon that night was a bad idea looking back.
“Looking back, it wasn’t the best thing we ever did,” Austin said. “Now, if I could go back, as soon as that match ended, when Vince walked up to me, I would have shaken his hand and said, ‘Watch the Stunner,’ and dropped him right there in the middle of the ring. That’s hindsight being 20/20!”
– Jim Ross wrote the following on Twitter earlier today regarding Steve Austin:
“Steve Austin just called. Doing great. Working out hard 4 nx movie. Getting ready to promote “Damage” n big way.”
As always, you can follow 80+ wrestlers and divas on Twitter at PWTweets.com.
– Chris Jericho’s band Fozzy will be performing at Club Red in Tempe, Arizona on Friday, March 26th during WrestleMania weekend.
– Bret Hart posted a message on his Facebook page talking about the one thing that’s been missing from WWE since his return:
“As far as the WWE goes, all I can say is where the heck is Jim Ross? With everything that has transpired in my three appearances on Raw, it’s too bad he hasn’t been there to call it. There’s nobody that calls it the way Jim Ross calls it and that’s the bottom line because I say so.”
Less than two weeks before WrestleMania XXVI, WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin hosts Raw on March 15. The WWE Universe should certainly mark their calendars for the legendary Rattlesnake’s return, as it is sure to turn WWE’s flagship show upside down. Though it’s uncertain what will happen when Stone Cold takes his place at the head of Raw for one night only, there’s no doubt that he’ll be looked at as one of Raw’s most controversial special guest hosts.
Things should be getting very interesting in the WWE universe with only 2 weeks until WrestleMania and it should be great seeing Steve Austin interact with one of his greatest rivals, Bret Hart, once again.
WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has udpated his JRsBarBQ.com blog with his thoughts on whether WWE legends Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Stone Cold Steve Austin would return for a night to guest host an episode of RAW.
Regarding Johnson, Jim Ross said he was under the impression that The Rock was going to guest-host an episode of Raw in January, but scheduling conflicts “eliminated that opportunity.” Johnson’s new “Toothfairy” movie comes out this month, which would have been the promotional tie-in for Johnson to guest-host. Commercials for Johnson’s “Tooth Fairy” movie have been seen during all WWE shows over the past two weeks.
Johnson said two months ago that he was working on a TV project with WWE beyond just guest hosting RAW for 1 week. Johnson has yet to provide an update on the status of the project.
As for Steve Austin, JR also said he “assumes” Steve Austin will guest host RAW, possibly in March to help promote Austin’s new straight-to-DVD film “Damage” (and of course, WrestleMania).
– This week’s edition of WWE Raw hosted by actor Verne Troyer drew a 3.2 cable rating, down from last week’s 3.4. The show did hours of 3.28 and 3.08, continuing the disturbing trend of viewers tuning out as the show progresses. Raw was up against stiff competition this week from Monday Night Football on ESPN, which drew a big 13.8 rating – the second highest rated Monday Night Football game on ESPN.
– The Ultimate Warrior vs. WWE lawsuit was officially closed on 11/19.
– Former WWE ring announcer Lauren Mayhew has signed with Don Buchwald and Associates, the same talent agency that represents WWE Hall of Famer Steve Austin.
— TNA president Dixie Carter wrote a message on Twitter that she “walked past a rattlesnake,” which led to online speculation that she had met with WWE Hall of Famer Steve Austin. Carter set the record straight by writing, “I wish it had been Steve Austin. But, no, it was the regular bite you, rush you to the hospital variety rattler.” To read additional quotes from Dixie, visit PWTweets.com.
— Former WWE superstars Gene Snitsky and Zeus are featured in a new music video for rock band VYRUS’ new song, “Free Your Soul.” The video ends with “TO BE CONTINUED,” so we may not have seen the last from this strange duo. Check out the video:
WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has updated his blog, which you can read in its entirety at JRsBarBQ.com. Here’s what JR wrote about:
His future in WWE: “Some think that it is automatic that when/if I return to WWE that I am automatically going back on the Smackdown announce team. I wouldn’t say it’s automatic at all. Let’s allow all the issues to play out and then see where I land. It might be Smackdown and then again it might not. I don’t have a crystal ball to gaze into but within the next few months things will shake out.”
Steve Austin & Ric Flair In TNA: “Will Steve Austin ever go to TNA? That’s a question for Steve but my educated guess would be no. I don’t think Steve has any intention of ever wrestling again as he focuses on his movie career which is both time consuming and challenging for the ‘new guy.’ Steve is and always will, be a fan of the wrestling business but he’s building a body of work in the movie business and has been involved in, I think, 3 or 4 productions this year alone which is a helluva, challenging schedule “Will Ric Flair ever go to TNA? Again, that’s a “Naitch” question but the chances of Flair doing some work with TNA especially now that Hulk (Hogan) is headed there is much more likely than had Hulk not joined TNA in my opinion. Bottom line is that the above questions re: Austin and Flair can only be definitively answered by those two men but at least I addressed the questions of which we have been inundated.”
Why WWE PPV Buyrates Are Down: “Read something about “why PPV buys are down in wrestling.” That’s an easy one. If the product/attraction is what the fans want to see they will find a way to buy it. PPV’s are attraction driven. Give me what I want and I will pay you for it. Obviously, some folks can’t afford the volume of PPV’s that come their way plus seemingly having a PPV every three weeks or so is not advantageous. One’s disposable income is an issue with buying any non essential products but wrestling fans will usually pony up the cash if the attractions are in place. Plus, it makes sense that more folks are chipping in and watching the PPV’s together.”
As always, you can read the rest of JR’s informative blog at JRsBarBQ.com.
Hulk Hogan called in to Bubba The Love Sponge’s satellite radio show this morning and as always, the Hogan hype machine was in full force. During the Hogan said that some big names in the pro wrestling world could be headed to TNA Wrestling. Hogan said we could see Steve Austin, Randy Savage and the Nasty Boys in the future.
Steve Austin is a working actor and it’s highly unlikely he’d ever appear for any company outside of WWE. Hogan said he’s buried the hatchet after a long personal feud with Randy Savage, who is 56 years old and did not look very good during his last TNA run several years ago. The Nasty Boys are close with Hogan and actually could wind up in TNA at some point.
Hogan also joked with Bubba and asked if he wanted a spot on TNA’s creative team with him.
WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has updated his blog, which you can read in its entirety at JRsBarBQ.com. Here’s what JR said about:
Ric Flair: “Ric Flair called me Saturday as I was pulling into Owen Field in Norman about two hours before the Sooner game. Ric is staying very busy and the state lottery, promotional endorsement that he’s doing may be growing to other states outside the old, Mid Atlantic Territory area. Ric told me he was working out twice a day, when he could, in preparation for the upcoming Australian tour on which he’s booked. After talking to ‘Naitch’ it’s obvious to me that he still has the passion and the fire to perform inside a wrestling ring which should come really as no shock or surprise and I don’t think that his passion to perform will ever wane. Mother Nature might cause Ric more ‘female problems’ but Ric’s will to compete and perform can’t be deterred.”
Steve Austin: “Steve Austin called me Sunday afternoon during the Packers-Vikings game and most of our discussion centered on football and how I was doing battling my ‘little friend’ Bells palsy #3. Steve is preparing to head up to Vancouver to film another action/adventure movie that is going to be largely done outdoors in the beautiful terrain of Vancouver, British Columbia. The Texas Rattlesnake expects to encounter plenty of ‘weather’ including ample rain which apparently is what they want for the film to have the organic grittiness to fit the script. I don’t know the release date but one can assume some time in 2010 nor do I know the title. I obviously don’t know much but as I said we talked football and not work.”
— According to Philadelphia’s CityPaper.net, WWE lawyers have sent a cease-and-desist letter to the Wine School of Philadelphia for an event they’re holding called “Sommelier Smackdown,“ where a professional sommelier’s food and wine pairings are matched against those of a member of the Wine School, with students voting for the winner. Keith Wallace, the school’s founder and director, says he has no plans to stop using the smackdown phrase. “They don’t have a leg to stand on. I am not going to bow down to a bully,†he said in a press release. “They claim that they own the term “smackdown” but they don’t.†In response to the WWE threat, Wallace is calling out Mr. McMahon Chris Jerico to a wine-tasting double-team cage match.
— Jim Ross wrote in his latest JRsBarBQ.com blog that Steve Austin’s new movie “Damage” did strong sales in its first week in the United Kingdom. “Damage debuted at #5 on the i-Tunes store chart in the U.K. and #3 in DVD sales through major retailer HMV,” Ross said. The movie went straight to DVD in the UK and is scheduled for theatrical release in the U.S. on January 28, 2010.
— HecklerSpray.com has posted an interview with Steve Austin, who talks about his various movie projects.
— Ric Flair is said to be engaged to be married once again. According to Mike Johnson of PWInsider.com, Flair has been seen around with his girlfriend, who is sporting a new ring on his finger. This would be Flair’s fourth time down the aisle.
During an interview with the UK Sun this week to promote his new movie Damage, WWE Hall of Famer Steve Austin says he’s spoken to former WWE superstar Jeff Hardy about his ongoing issues, but you can only do so much to help another person.
“I called him a while back and talked to him,” he said. “He’s a good looking kid, he’s got a really unique style, people love him, he has his own kind of charisma. I wish he could put it all together and get his personal demons behind him. He got caught with a lot of stuff and we’ll see what happens.”
Austin said he’s reached out to other WWE superstars when he they were having issues with drug addiction.
“I’ve called a few guys when I hear some of them getting into problems,” he said. “I try to give my two cents to the situation. They’ll all swear that everything is cool, it turns out things aren’t cool. [Vince McMahon] has offered to pay for rehab for anybody who wants it. Some people have taken him up on it, some people haven’t. I get made when people point the finger at Vince and say it’s his fault. It’s not his fault. He’s a third generation promoter who runs a wrestling company. I take responsibility for all my actions. I think everybody should. I refuse to think that it’s Vince McMahon’s fault for any of this.”
He said Jeff Hardy has a unique situation for WWE. One hand hand, he’s one of the most charismatic and popular superstars on the roster, but there’s such a risk of him screwing up that they’ve never been able to fully get behind him.
“Man. This last thing I just heard about the other day when I was driving back from Texas to L.A.,” he said. “They never gave that guy a full green light push, but you can’t keep him down. All the calamity and trouble he gets into, but people love him. If they ever fully gave him a green light push, who knows what would happen? But you can’t do that because you don’t know what he’s going to do because all of a sudden you have all of this time and money invested and then he screws up. So who knows what’s going to come out of it, if he’s going to do time or whatever. He has some serious stuff going against him.”
— Stone Cold Steve Austin was in London over the weekend and was brought out onto the field during the West Ham vs. Fulham soccer game yesterday. Austin got on the microphone and said: “If you want to see West Ham open a can of whoop-ass, give me a hell yeah.”
— Bobby Heenan was not at his scheduled autograph appearance in Philadelphia yesterday. Promoters said he was injured in a fall on Friday. This would have been his first appearance at an event of this type since all of his surgeries.
— From the ‘Where are they now’ file: Kevin Fertig, who wrestled for WWE as Kevin Thorn, wrestled for Insanity Pro Wrestling on Saturday night in Indianapolis. He used the name Seven Thorn.
— There are talks for the Hulkamania tour of Australia being released on DVD in North America, but nothing is confirmed. Contrary to rumors, the shows likely won’t be available on PPV.
— Reminder: Matt Hardy appears on SyFy’s Scare Tactics tonight.
WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has updated his blog at JRsBarBQ.com. JR talks about what Steve Austin is upto these days, Ric Flair’s decision coming out of retirement and whether he would follow in the footsteps of Jesse Ventura, Jerry Lawler and Linda McMahon ever consider a career in politics. The highlights:
Steve Austin: “Steve Austin is on the cover of the current Muscle and Fitness Magazine. Great story on Steve in the prestigious publication about his new career in film. Steve is attacking his movie roles with the same intensity, preparation and attention to details as he did when he was wrestling. Steve is in awesome physical condition which always leads fans to speculate if he will come back for ‘one more match.’
“Officially, only Austin can definitively answer that question but I know him pretty well and I think he made his last foray in wrestling at WM25 with the possible exception of a guest shot, non wrestling, here and there but even that is my own personal speculation. Hopefully, fans of ‘Stone Cold’ will support Steve’s movie work as religiously as they did his hell raising inside the ring. We talk regularly this time of the year and 90 percent of our discussions concern college football of which we are both major fans.”
Ric Flair Coming Out of Retirement: “It looks like the ‘Naitch’ may be joining Hulk Hogan’s upcoming tour. What a reality show this tour would make if we never saw a single wrestling match. I’d watch it!”
Getting into Politics: “I got an email asking if I had any political aspirations such as The King, et al and I said not just no but HELL no. Being an elected official would cut into my BBQ and Football time not to mention my ‘day job’ of being Todd Grisham’s sidekick on Smackdown.”