At the time, Taz rejected the idea, even agreeing with a fan on Twitter who claimed that big men shouldn’t use submissions to finish matches.
In an update to this story, the ECW Original has now confirmed he communicated privately with Dijakovic and has subsequently given him the “nod” to begin using the maneuver, calling Dominik a talented Superstar with a bright future.
“Just to wrap up yesterday topic. I DID reach out to @DijakovicWWE via DM and we communicated several times privately yesterday…I DID give him the nod with him using the Tazmission. He is a talented guy with a bright future, best of luck to him!”
His initial tweet, requesting Taz’s permission read:
“Hello @OfficialTAZ, do you mind if I start using your Tazmission hold on WWE programming and events to defeat my opponents? I have found it to be a very effective maneuver. Thank you.”
The NXT Superstar eventually deleted the tweet, but not before Taz responded. He explained that, although he appreciated Dominik’s request, he did care, and that using a public forum like Twitter wasn’t the “right way for this discussion to happen.”
A finishing move of a wrestler is amongst one of the defining traits of what makes a character work. There’s only so many maneuvers you can use as your finishing move and sometimes you just have a favorite move that has already been attached to someone else’s name.
WWE NXT Superstar Dominik Dijakovic is one of those wrestlers who has become fond of such a move that’s already used by another wrestler in the past. The move in question is the Tazmission, which Taz used during his time in ECW and WWE.
The NXT star requested to use Taz’s old finisher by writing to him on Twitter. His succinct tweet read, “Hello @OfficialTAZ, do you mind if I start using your Tazmission hold on WWE programming and events to defeat my opponents? I have found it to be a very effective maneuver. Thank you.”
The Tazmission is a half nelson choke which is a professional wrestling variant of the kata ha jime chokehold move from judo. The move is performed by putting the opponent in a half nelson with one arm and using the other to grab the opponent’s neck. Taz used this move while adding the body scissors to it, which made it look much more stronger. Here’s Taz applying the move in his WWE debut match against Kurt Angle at the 2000 Royal Rumble (6:12 mark in the video):
Dijakovic has an entire career ahead of him and we might very well be seeing him use the Tazmission on his opponents in WWE in the near future. This could of course only happen once Taz responds to Dijakovik’s request, which we will be on the lookout for.
UPDATE: Taz has responded to Dijakovic and also to other people’s comments, which reveal his thoughts on the whole thing.
Taz seemingly agrees that a big guy like Dijavokic shouldn’t be using a submission move as his finisher.
Some users said that the move existed in judo way before Taz even started using it, like explained above. Taz clarified that he was the first to use the move in professional wrestling:
Taz concluded by stating that every move that he incorporated in his wrestling style is special to him and they aren’t merely just moves or holds for him:
Former WWE Superstar and commentator, Taz, has chimed with his thoughts on Brock Lesnar’s Money In The Bank victory. Lesnar would scale the ladder after making a surprise appearance, securing the briefcase and earning himself a guaranteed championship opportunity.
Taz shared his thoughts on the Lesnar situation on his podcast, The Taz Show.
“The internet wrestling community, the hardcore fanbase is really pissed off about it,” he observed. “Honestly, this might not be the popular thing but I thought it was great. Brock’s a superstar. And WWE right now needs as many superstars as possible. They need to build other stars but Brock’s a star. I know I’m in the minority when I put this thing over but I don’t care.”
“It’s Heat For The Locker Room”
He would add, however, that this comes from his point of view as a spectator. If he were still WWE talent, he admits that he would probably feel very differently.
“I’m cool with Brock coming out and winning but as a former talent, I wouldn’t be cool with it. Looking at those men down selling, as a former worker, I felt for them,” he said. “These guys just busted their ass all this time in this match and put their bodies on the line, taking all these bumps on these f***ing ladders. And one guy comes out at the very end and doesn’t have to crack a sweat and wins the gimmick. It’s heat for the locker room.”
Taz would praise Lesnar’s acumen for business, claiming that, if nothing else, “if you can get limited dates, you’re doing the right thing. I’ve always sung his praises as a businessman.”
With the briefcase in hand, Lesnar has a choice over whether he will cash in against Seth Rollins or Kofi Kingston. He is scheduled to announce his intentions on next week’s episode of Monday Night RAW.
Former WWE Hardcore Champion and commentator Taz recently took to his radio show, The Taz Show, and discussed several professional wrestling topics. Taz was famous for his suplexes inside the ring. He noted how he never used the German Suplex in ECW because everyone else was.
Taz said he could hit a variety of Suplexes on opponents such as Christian and Sabu. He also credited himself with naming the “T-Bone Suplex”:
“That’s what I named it,” said Taz. “Whatever people called it, but that’s what I called it. I kinda named it. And [for] simple reasons; it looked like a T, right? I was grabbing you like a T, I was grabbing between your legs and around your waist, it was like a T motion from the side.
“And I would turn you in the air where I was the base of the T and you were the top part, the horizontal part of the T. And that’s why I called it a T-bone, and everybody loves a T-bone steak. Of course you gotta put over T-bone steak, right? So, that’s where that came from.”
You can listen to The Taz Show by clicking this link here.
Former WWE commentator Taz recently took to his show, The Taz Show, to offer his thoughts on the current goings on in NXT. One such topic was the success of current NXT Champion Aleister Black.
Taz believes Black has all the tools to be a major star for the company, but admitted that the NXT Champ’s promo skills lose him a bit:
“His promo work needs some work, in my opinion,” said Taz. “The only reason why I say it needs some work is because he’s got a very awesome look. His physique, all the ink he has, his facial hair, his hair on his head, the way his face looks, the way he moves in the ring.
“His athleticism in the ring, his body of work as a pro wrestler, all the years he’s got in the business. The martial arts feel he has to his work and his kicks and his strikes, and all this jazz. It’s all an awesome potpourri of a very unique talent, hence his success in NXT.
“And I do think once he’s on the main roster, he will be a big, big star, and I really believe that. He should be. The thing is, just me being blunt, his promo work loses me a little bit. It loses the darkness. He’s gotta certain darkness about him, right?
“You get that when you see him, a certain darkness. I’m not saying he shouldn’t talk, but I think he needs a little guidance on his talking. His vocabulary is great, very intelligent, he doesn’t have like a heavy duty accent or anything like that. But to me, it loses the darkness.”
Taz also believes that there’s only one man who should be NXT Champion right now, and that’s EC3:
“It’s almost like a Bobby Roode feel, but different,” said Taz. “Like that type of feel, but as a heel. He’s veteran enough, he knows what he’s doing enough that he feels like a champ. He can cut a helluva promo. I think that’s who eventually has got to be the NXT Champion, in my opinion.”
You can listen to The Taz Show by clicking this link here.
Former ECW and WWE Superstar Taz recently took to his radio show, The Taz Show, to talk about several professional wrestling topics. One such topic was who he believes is the most underrated talent on WWE’s roster. Taz didn’t hesitate to name Apollo Crews as the man he thinks has potential to be a big star:
“[Apollo] is for sure just a stud in the ring,” said Taz. “Just a straight stud in the ring, and I really feel like he is underutilized for sure. So he, for me, would be my main guy currently.
“Now I know his promo work is not amazing, also all of that needs to be a part of the package. Your promo work, your look, your in-ring work and all that jazz. So, all of that stuff obviously is vital. He probably doesn’t have the promo stuff down too good.”
In addition to Crews; Taz also names Zack Ryder, Becky Lynch, and Pete Dunne. He also noted that fans should keep their eyes on NXT’s Velveteen Dream.
Discussion: Do you agree with Taz’s assessment of Crews? And who else do you think is being underutilized by the company right now?
You can listen to The Taz Show by clicking this link here.
Earlier this week RAW commentator Corey Graves took a shot at Taz with a Tweet that he has since deleted, saying:
“Insecurity is a bad color on you @OfficialTAZ, shoulda stuck to orange and black.”
Taz issued out his own response to Graves and claimed to have absolutely no idea what Graves was talking about:
“I have no clue what you are talking about. PS: Tough to be insecure when I’m the happiest I’ve been ever professional for past 3 + years & I always stick to ORANGE & BLACK.”
It remains unclear what Graves’ issue is with Taz, however, it has been speculated that it could be due to Taz’s recent comments on Chris Jericho’s podcast, Talk Is Jericho. Taz said the biggest problem with WWE commentary right now is that there is nobody in the booth with high-level in-ring experience:
“The first thing, if you are a color commentator, not play-by-play, so if you are a former pro wrestler, and I learned this from Vince McMahon; you have to take your ego and what you did because it is not about you, it is a humbling job. I put over more guys as a commentator than as a worker, but you have to take your ego, and put it behind the curtain as Vince McMahon told me. You have to be able to, the key is you have to put your agenda and ego aside and keep it in the Gorilla position,” Taz said in the interview with Jericho. “You can’t bring it to the announce desk.
“I am someone that believes that as a former world champion and as a color commentator. That is not a knock on any current color commentator, but I believe in the guys that have been to the dance, drawn some money and know what it takes to have a title. It is a big deal to have that responsibility, as you know, and it is a big deal. I believe, and I know that it is going to sound negative on those that weren’t world champions; Corey Graves was a former tag team champion in NXT.
“Byron Saxton barely worked, so that to me jumps out. I believe in that. You can’t tell me as a fan, if I have never been a wrestler, you can’t tell me what it is like to be a world champion if you have never done it; I’m sorry,” Taz continued. “I hope for the best of those guys, and no disrespect to those guys. I met Corey Graves, and he seems like a great guy, but that is my opinion. You need some legitimate sea legs under you as a professional wrestler, I really believe that. I think putting your ego and checking it, and having the chops to talk obviously.”
You can listen to Taz’s full interview on Talk Is Jericho by clicking this link here.
Days after criticizing Ronda Rousey’s debut on RAW with Stephanie McMahon, Triple H and Kurt Angle, Taz spoke with Chris Jericho about his own debut in WWE. Appearing on the Talk Is Jericho podcast, Taz explained how his transition from ECW to WWE was the best and worst moment of his career.
“When I came out, when I was in Gorilla position, Bruce Prichard was in Gorilla. When Kurt Angle was out there cutting his promo I said to Bruce that I hope they know who I am,” […] “I was afraid, because I was from ECW, the ‘small, little bush leagues.’ When they heard the heartbeat of my entrance, the crowd exploded and Bruce Prichard said to me that he thinks they know who I am. When I walked through the curtain and walking slow with a towel on my head, I had an epiphany that I was doomed, because the pop was not built by this place. It hit me walking down the aisle.”
Taz was never told that his finishing move, the sleeper choke hold that closed the match, would be described as illegal. The first he knew about this was when watching the match over and listening to commentary from Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler. Prior to this, Taz hadn’t wanted illegal chokes to be part of his gimmick.
“When I came through the curtain after that it was like a ghost town. Vince McMahon wasn’t in Gorilla. It was a live Royal Rumble at the Garden, I thought that I had heat. If you go back and watch it, there was a German Suplex that I did to Kurt and he landed on his belly. What happened was when I grabbed Kurt, he popped up and I took him back down. I would always say to guys to let me control them. Kurt Angle, we didn’t know each other that well in the ring. Kurt is aggressive, and I knew the timing was way off. I knew that if I went through that throw he was going to get hurt, I just knew it. I put him back down and then did the throw on my pacing. From what I feel and heard that freaked out the boss and those that were close to him.”
Before WWE, Taz was FTW (F*ck The World) Heavyweight Champion in ECW, which he created himself after not being able to challenge for the official title. Although Vince McMahon and Vince Russo talked with Taz about his character/persona, they never mentioned anything about illegal chokes.
“Everyone knows my rep […] When I first met with Vince McMahon we had this great meeting in a conference room at a hotel on a Wednesday afternoon because it was a secret since I was the top guy in ECW. It was, me, Vince McMahon and Vince Russo. We talked about money, the deal, that took literally around 10 minutes and then we talked about an hour and a half about everything else. He knew me, and the character. He saw the FTW on my wrist, but he said that he doesn’t know we can do FTW, but that was the only thing. My concern was whether or not I can be me. I don’t want to say Vince McMahon lied to me, but he had a different vision for me once I was there.”
Taz was in good company as Chris Jericho comments about his own cursed debuts which often miss the mark as described in his books.
While Taz may think this was the worst part of his career, there are many who would disagree. The illegal choke on Kurt Angle worked well against the persistent good guy persona of the Olympic Gold Medalist, and gave Taz a good gimmick within the company.
Monday night’s RAW saw the first appearance of Ronda Rousey in a WWE ring since she signed her contract on Sunday’s Elimination Chamber PPV.
The contract signing did not go to plan as Stephanie McMahon slapped Rousey after her husband, Triple H, was thrown through a table.
The following night, Rousey confronted RAW’s commissioner and her husband to demand an apology. Stephanie squared up to the newly signed WWE superstar and looked Rousey in the eyes as she apologised for Sunday’s actions. Triple H however was not as sorry, as he showed Kurt Angle who’s in charge, leaving Kurt Angle on the mat after a surprise punch. Ronda stayed in the ring to check on Angle while Stephanie and Triple H left.
However one former WWE superstar has given their own opinion and shared a critical view on the recent events and introduction of Ronda Rousey to the WWE Universe.
“They take the most credible female they have in the history of the WWE, and second impression of her, and they made her look bad already”
On his radio show, Taz stated that the way Stephanie reacted on RAW made Rousey look weak. In a previous interview with ESPN Roman Reigns said that the savagery of Brock Lesnar and Ronda Rousey in UFC makes them more threatening and dangerous in WWE, but Taz thinks that WWE creative has missed its mark.
“She should have went after Stephanie like she wanted to kill her […] I’m talking about legitimate police officers there holding her back, two or three or them, something. A couple of the boys, somebody. Someone needed to stop her and [keep her away]. Stephanie should have been terrified of her. Absolutely freakin’ terrified of her. But instead, Stephanie got in her face and apologized. When the girl, Ronda, demanded an apology, Stephanie had to get the upper hand and look down at her and say: ‘I’m sorry.’ That sucked! That sucked. Build the girl and get her over. She’s legit! She’s legit. What [WWE] did, sucked. Sucked!”
Taz shared the same opinion of Kurt Angle’s work on RAW as well, repeating that the segment ‘sucked’. Taz also said that he didn’t ‘give a sh*t’ if he wasn’t placed in the WWE Hall of Fame either.
The former WWE superstar and commentator explained that Ronda Rousey should have been introduced as ‘the killer that she is’ and that the segment needed to end with Stephanie in an armbar that only Triple H could stop. Taz explained that Stephanie isn’t a good worker, in promos or in the ring, and that standing face-to-face with Rousey showed the height difference, making Rousey look submissive and weak; not the qualities you want in a heavily invested asset.
Opinion:
I understand what Taz is saying, but at the same time Ronda Rousey is being put in a face position, not following in Brock Lesnar’s shadow or being made out as the female Brock Lesnar. WWE and Rousey will want her to be her own individual, not a copy of anyone that’s come before.
On last week’s episode of SmackDown Live, Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair thanked the crowd for being so invested in the Women’s Revolution. This promo came just 24 hours after Monday Night RAW Commissioner Stephanie McMahon announced the first-ever all-female Royal Rumble match set to take place next month. Charlotte is a big fan favorite at the moment on WWE TV, but former WWE Superstar Taz took to his radio show, The Taz Show, to explain why he feels “The Queen” should’ve turned heel:
“There was a good portion of [the interview] were I thought, ‘Wow, she’s gonna turn like, nasty heel here, early in this promo,'” said Taz. “She didn’t do it, but I thought she was gonna. I really did. And then they went into doing angles after that. But, there was an opportunity for her before Naomi came out.
“For her to really turn heel, heel, heel, but, it’s probably not time. I just was thinking, they need someone to bury this Royal Rumble first time ever female thing. They need a woman to do it, not a guy. And it’s just a heat, heat gimmick, and I think Charlotte could do it with no problem. But, I think [WWE] had their chance, and they didn’t do it. Instead, they went to a tag match.”
You can listen to The Taz Show by clicking this link here.
While Chris Jericho attacking Kenny Omega at World Tag League Finals has become one of the hottest topics among wrestling fans in no time, it appears former WWE Star Taz is not impressed with a part of this segment.
During the latest episode of his podcast, Taz explained that he didn’t like the way the announcers Kevin Kelly and Don Callis, sold the whole angle. Below are some highlights from his podcast:
How Kevin is an underrated commentator:
“I love Kev. I think he’s a really good, underrated play-by-play man… When I first started as an announcer in the WWE, Kevin Kelly was in the WWE, and Kevin helped me out my first couple of days with the gig. He’s just a good guy, a real pro’s pro. I think he’s a great fit there with the New Japan stuff”
Disagreeing with the way the commentary team handled Jericho’s appearance:
“But, I don’t know if he was directed this way or not, he and [Don Callis] started screaming, ‘It’s Jericho. Oh my God, it’s Jericho!’ I can understand them getting hung up on the emotion, they’re there in the building. I get it. I just disagree with the way this was handled. If it was something that was done from someone in their holding area, whatever they call their Gorilla Position.'”
How they should have played dumb until they saw Chris on their monitors:
“I don’t agree with that move, because, and I’m saying that respectfully because I love Kevin, but…I just don’t agree with it because I can’t see who it is. Yelling ‘It’s Chris Jericho,’ well the announcers, the number one rule for the announcers, at least from what I was taught for many years by some pretty high-end guys, you gotta look at your monitor. And what the monitors sees, the fan at home sees, or vice versa… You have to play dumb, and do the job, until you can see him [in the monitor].”
Former WWE Superstar Taz almost had a massive match against current WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar at Madison Square Garden during his heyday.
On a recent episode of his show, The Taz Show, a fan called in to state that Taz vs. Brock Lesnar was actually one of his dream matches, to which Taz revealed was an actual possibility as Vince McMahon approached him with the idea during his days at the commentary booth on SmackDown:
Here’s what he had to say:
“Vince McMahon approached me about working with Brock at Madison Square Garden while I was a commentator there… I’m over there doing the commentary for the WWE at the SmackDown table several years ago. And Brock was just cooking up before, and basically, they were really building Brock up as this killing heel machine. This was before this whole suplex city thing they have going on. And I was, I don’t know what year this was, could have been 2006 or something like that. Somewhere in that world, 2007, something like that. Maybe 2005; I’m horrible with years.
“So, it was earlier in the day, it was probably around 3pm, and we’re at the arena. I’m sitting at the announce desk, and some guys are in the ring just working out, loosening up, stretching out, who’s doing this, who’s doing that. I’m doing some prep work, like I always do. Michael Cole is over there twiddling his thumbs, doing nothing. And I’m doing all the prep work (God, I wish he could hear this. He might listen to the show. I should text him, because he would flag on me, because everything I just said was a little bit of a lie [laughs]).
“So, I’m sitting there with Cole, and he’s writing stuff up, and Vince walks by, he’s just watching and checking on some of the people who are working out. He was talking to some of the agents, they were doing a rehearsal or something. So Vince slips over to my area, at the announce desk, and he’s like, ‘Hey, uh, can we talk for a minute?’ [And I thought I was going to be fired]. So I walk over there in the corner with Vince, and he goes, ‘Listen. This is big. You ready?’ I’m like, ‘Yeah. I’m ready. What’s up?’
“He goes, ‘You and Lesnar do something at the [Madison Square] Garden. I’d be great. You would come back, do a match at the Garden, we’ll plug it, push it.’ I go, ‘Vince. No thank you. I love Brock, I love you, and I love the company, but I can’t do it. I’m banged up, I got a lot of numbers to my body. I’m just, physically, I’d be too risky for me to do.’ He goes, ‘No, I know that. We’ll work around it, we’ll do business.’ [I told him], ‘Vince. I’m not what I was. I can’t go be what I was, and I don’t want to put myself at risk.’
“And he was cool, [then] he goes, ‘I understand, but, you know what? I never knew you were this terrible as a businessman. Just horrible. What is wrong with you?’ He just started ripping me. ‘You don’t even know how much I was willing to pay you!’
Taz ended off by saying he told Vince that it wasn’t about the money, but that he simply couldn’t get back to the old character he used to be. Furthermore, Taz said McMahon would get upset when people don’t do good business. Taz said that he wasn’t worried about fighting Lesnar but was instead more concerned with his health.
Former ECW and WWE Superstar Taz recently did an interview with CBS Local Sports to offer his thoughts on today’s WWE product. Some of the best highlights from his appearance can be found here below:
His reaction to the sudden main event push of Jinder Mahal on SmackDown Live:
“I don’t think so at all. A lot of fans will say the guy wasn’t pushed, they weren’t doing much with him and he was losing a bunch of matches. To me it’s all about, and if Vince McMahon where here he’d agree, if a guy’s in-ring work is strong enough, if he can sell tickets on the microphone and get the proper reaction, has some size, looks believable, it’s ‘Hey, let’s give this guy a shot.’ I don’t have a problem with it at all. …To me, if a guy checks all of those boxes, I have no problem with it. Actually, Jinder Mahal, I’m a fan of his work and his promo style. He’s one of the few that have legitimate heat on the microphone in that company.”
Thoughts on Shinsuke Nakamura not being immediately thrust into the title picture:
“Vince McMahon might have a slight hesitation because of connectivity. The lack of an ability to speak strong English to draw people. Nakamura is a tremendous talent, loaded with athleticism, charisma and toughness. I’m a big fan of his, but you have to be able to talk people into the building. This is a good starter angle on the main roster for him, because Ziggler is doing the heavy lifting on the microphone. I’m not surprised that Vince hasn’t put him in the title picture with Randy Orton. Actually, I’m surprised he’s getting this type of push already. I’m not saying he doesn’t deserve it. I’m just saying it’s a little tough sometimes, and this is the way WWE looks at it, if you can’t go out and cut a promo that people are going to gravitate to. That doesn’t mean that someone who doesn’t speak can’t get over. There are different guys with managers as mouthpieces or speak here or there, and it’s pretty obvious that’s what they’re doing with Nakamura. This is a good way for him to start getting pushed.”
Braun Strowman’s recent injury:
“They’re used to having problems with talent getting injured. They’ve done well with Seth Rollins. He’s been hit with the injury bug and so has Finn Balor. They’ve been pushed — start, stop, start, stop — and WWE has done a pretty good job with them. A guy like Braun Strowman is an attraction. Even though he’s working full-time, guys like him or Goldberg or Brock Lesnar are attractions. They’re not going to give you five-star matches every night. These guys are not wrestling machines in there. They are attractions, great attractions. It’s not a big problem. They’d have a bigger problem, God forbid, if someone like Bray Wyatt gets injured. Or now Seth Rollins again, or let’s say Jinder Mahal, because they’re putting the rocket on him. Someone like Braun, I feel bad for him, but it’s not as bad creatively for them. They can shuffle the deck a little bit.”
ECW originals Taz, Tommy Dreamer, The Dudley Boyz and Paul Heyman himself were backstage at Tuesday’s SmackDown 900 from Wilkes-Barre, PA. Accoridng to Taz, they filmed something “very cool” for the WWE Network.
It appears Corey Graves will be hosting the project as he tweeted the following:
Taz feels that Finn Balor’s injury at WWE SummeSlam shouldn’t be entirely blamed on Seth Rollins. On The Taz Show on CBS Radio earlier this week, the former ECW Heavyweight Champion explained why he feels Rollins is not as reckless as Bret Hart says he is.
Taz explained that wrestlers don’t get pushed by WWE if they’re dangerous or “douchebags” in the ring. He feels that Rollins is one of the best workers in the current era of wrestling, and that if Balor didn’t feel comfortable with the move it wouldn’t have taken place. Taz says that if a performer isn’t comfortable taking a move, it isn’t happening on TV.
“You don’t become as successful as Seth Rollins by being a douchebag,” Taz said of Rollins position in WWE. “Seth Rollins is not going to do something to someone that they’re not comfortable with.”
He explained that Vince is a “huge stickler” for safety, but also wants a very physical style of performance. Taz says this is a fine line that WWE stars learn to walk.
Taz also brought up Rollins breaking John Cena’s nose last year, a move that also drew criticism from Bret Hart. Taz theorized that Cena very likely asked Rollins to “bring it” and be physical during their match to make it look good. Taz stressed that you “have to be physically tough” to be in the wrestling business.
Balor suffered a shoulder injury at SummerSlam 2016 after being powerbombed into the fan barricade by Rollins.
John Gaburick recently appeared on The Taz Show to talk about Impact Wrestling switching from Tuesday to Thursday nights on Pop TV. Gaburick serves as TNA’s Executive VP of Talent Relations & Creative, and shed some light on TNA’s position on the move.
Gaburick said the move was an opportunity for Impact to go “back home” to Thursdays, where he says their viewership was always the highest. He theorized that people have built-in habits to watch wrestling on Thursday evenings. Gaburick says TNA management is “super-excited” about the move, and said it’s a good opportunity for the company.
Gaburick hadn’t made any mention of SmackDown moving to Tuesday nights against the current Impact timeslot, so Taz asked him and Gaburick admitted that the competition from WWE “was a part of the decision.”
Impact Wrestling moves to Thursday on Pop TV starting July 21st.
Earlier this week, The Rock announced a new weekly competition series titled Rock The Promo. The show, which will air on his new Studio 71 Youtube channel, will feature user-submitted videos of fans cutting their best wrestling promo. As it turns out, Taz has been doing a similar weekly feature on his CBS radio show and wasn’t happy about The Rock seemingly ripping off his idea.
The two had an exchange on Twitter, with some fans starting up an “#IStandWithTaz” hashtag in support of the former ECW World Champion. When The Rock got word of the backlash, he reached out to Taz, told him he wasn’t even aware Taz had a radio show and asked him to send him a text message so they can hash it out.
– The Thursday, December 17th edition of WWE SmackDown scored a final cable rating of 1.68, up from last week’s 1.55 final draw. Thursday’s SmackDown averaged 2.332 million viewers, also up from last week’s show, which averaged 2.133 million viewers.
– The latest edition of “The Taz Show: Bodyslams & Beyond,” which is available for download right now at Play.it, features ROH’s Adam Cole and former head WWE writer Vince Russo as guests. The official description for the show reads as follows:
“The Taz Show has Adam Cole on to discuss Ring of Honor! Taz also welcomes Vince Russo as an impromptu guest and gets into a disagreement about Kevin Owens. Lastly, Taz chats about Smackdown from Newark, NJ.”
– John Cena checked in on social media on Saturday, praising the efforts of both the WWE and NXT brands during his absence to film various television and movie projects. Cena wrote the following on his official Twitter page on Saturday afternoon:
It is always heartbreaking to be away from the @WWE but gives me great pride to see the success of many new faces as well as @WWENXT#evolve
As noted, WWE Hall Of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin appeared on The Taz Show: Bodyslams & Beyond” recently. In addition to the excerpts we posted last week, Austin also spoke about his time in ECW, evolving from The Ringmaster to “Stone Cold” in WWE and more. Below are some more highlights from the interview.
On ECW being just the place he needed when his WCW career was cut short:
“[ECW] was just a great environment at that point in my life,” Austin recalled. “[ECW] was just a hub of so much creativity and guys going through the refining process, trying things out, experimenting, and, of course, guys with great success with real cool gimmicks laying down some heavy stuff. So, it was a great learning process for me and a real eyeopener as far as the creative freedom that Paul E. [Heyman] harbored down there and you were able to do anything that you wanted to do to get over and that doesn’t exist in today’s system.”
On Paul Heyman playing a significant role in his success:
“I really value my days down there in ECW in Philly.” Austin continued, “it was a pivotal time in my career and I dare say that if I’d not made my stop through [ECW], I don’t know if I’d ever really [become] ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin. I always give Paul Heyman all the credit in the world for helping me get to the level [to which] I got.”
On Heyman’s ability to get the most out of talent:
“That dude’s like Cesar Millan talking to a dog. Dude can just talk to a cat. I don’t even care if it’s a guy or a girl, but he’d get you in a frame of mind where he opens your mind up, or focuses you, or gives you confidence in yourself, or just sparks some kind of creative spark in your brain, but the dude just has a way to talk to talent to get them to crank out some bad ass stuff.”
WWE Hall Of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin was a guest on The Taz Show: Bodyslams and Beyond earlier this week and spoke about various issues related to the state of the pro wrestling industry. Here are there highlights..
Austin continues to voice his opinion that promos are entirely over-scripted, which stifles creativity and prevents the wrestlers from fully getting over.
“I don’t like to be the bitter veteran that complains about the system, but, I don’t believe that promos should be scripted,” Austin said. “A couple of bullet points, yes, to point a cat in the right direction, but you’ve got to be out there and be able to feel at home and believe with conviction and your heart and your soul with everything that you’re saying and if you’re just trying to be an orator or someone who delivers a speech, that’s not effective in my opinion. And to me, to draw money, you’ve got to be able to reach people’s heartstrings and reach some kind of guttural response or just anything that resonates with them.”
Despite the limitations of a stale creative environment, Austin says today’s WWE Superstars are athletically superior to the generations that proceeded them. That said, it’s not just about bouncing around in the ring and current performers need to focus on selling and telling a story.
“These guys are a step above our generation and the generations before us, athletically. What they can do in the ring is amazing and they’re great athletes, but I can give you Flair/Windham from ’87 or ’86 and those guys are working at today’s pace, but they’re selling everything, they’re not telegraphing anything, they’re not foreshadowing the next sequence of moves. It’s about 50-50 or 70-30 called in the ring and so it feels spontaneous and it feels different. It feels like a shoot. So there’s a real fine line between taking all that athleticism and you’re going to set up a little bit of stuff, but when it looks like you’re just going through the motions, you’re just going through the motions and people can see that. And you’ve got to be able to feel and really get behind a character and a personality and the human that’s doing that. I mean, that’s the money level.”
NXT Champion Finn Balor was also a recent guest on The Taz Show and explained that he’s in no hurry to join the main roster. Stone Cold also has some concerns about Balor getting called up and whether his character will connect with the WWE Universe. Austin put over Balor as a great human being and a hellacious worker, but it’s all about getting the fans behind your character.
“I’m wondering if he’s going to get lost in the shuffle a little bit [on the main roster]. He does that crawl to the ring and sometimes it takes so long. It’s a little disconcerting because I’ve seen the kid. Good looking kid, worked for many years in Japan, and he’s very technical from Ireland or wherever he’s from. Great kid! Great kid! Hell of a worker. Ten times the worker I ever was, but he [has] got to connect with those people. And so hopefully that gimmick allows him to do that. And it’s a great look. You can make a lot of action figures off of it, but put all the pieces together. People [have] got to care about him to become emotionally invested in him, but a great human being and a hellacious worker.”
He added that he’s not totally sold on Balor’s elaborate ring entrance because he finds it unrealistic that his opponent will stand in the ring waiting while Balor takes his time crawling to the ring. If Austin would have been in the ring waiting for Finn Balor to finish his ring entrance, “I’d have to go stomp a mud hole in him and walk it dry when I’d have the opportunity because that’s what ‘Stone Cold’ would do.”
NXT Champion Finn Balor recently appeared on The Taz Show: Bodyslams & Beyond show, a live two-hour daily show (NOT a podcast) hosted by the multi-time world champion.
Balor spoke about his transition from the independent scene to WWE. Not only was it a big change joining the NXT roster and working a different style than he was used to, but also moving to the United States. After living in Ireland (which was “peaceful”) and Japan, calling Florida home has taken some getting used to for him.
He also commented on the possibility of being called up to the main roster. Echoing what he’s said in previous interviews, Balor indicated he’s in no rush to leave NXT and takes a lot of pride in building the NXT brand:
“A lot of people keep bringing up that question, this ‘when are you getting called up to the quote, unquote main roster?’, but I really believe that the stuff we’re doing down at NXT is going to go down in history as a period of time that has changed the sports entertainment business and I want to be here in NXT and be a part of what we’re doing right now because it really does feel like something special. And there’s this real kind of camaraderie among the boys, [and] really, like, team effort. And it’s something that I’m not in a hurry to step away from. I’m here for the long haul.”
Bálor continued, “a lot of people are kind of always focused on what’s coming next and trying to get onto the next thing, but I’m very much living in the moment here at NXT and I’m happy to be flying the flag as NXT Champion.”
Finn Balor defends his NXT title against Samoa Joe at NXT Takeover: London on Wednesday, December 16th.
NXT Champion Finn Balor recently appeared as a guest on The Taz Show: Bodyslams & Beyond to discuss all things NXT. Below are some of the highlights from the interview.
On NXT talents that have ‘blown him away’:
“The growth that a lot of the boys have shown in the last year since I got here is just unbelievable. The likes of like Jason Jordan [and] Chad Gable, they’re two guys that, in the last year, have blown me away with their growth.”
On his demon body paint:
“Honestly, I’m just a fan of art. I’m a fan of expressionism. I’m a fan of changing things on the fly. I’m a fan of just going with the flow and being in the moment and that’s really what the demon is for me. It just kind of helps me channel, kind of, maybe an inner, darker side. People accuse me of being kind of too nonchalant or too laid back and too introverted and I feel like the demon definitely helps me bring a different side of my personality out.”
– Dolph Ziggler recently spoke with The Herald Dispatch to promote the WWE live event at the Big Sandy Superstore Arena in Huntington, West Virginia. During the interview, Ziggler spoke about being paired on television with Lana.
“It took us (Ziggler and Lana) time to develop chemistry. When we had that bond, it was OK,” Ziggler said. “I like to be in control, be the leader, do things myself. You know look out for myself. If Summer’s with Tyler, so be it.”
– ECW Original Taz has a Thanksgiving theme for the latest edition of “The Taz Show: Bodyslams & Beyond” podcast. The official description for the episode reads as follows:
Tazgiving Hump Day Promos!
It’s a Tazgiving Hump Day special! This week’s topic: why your Thanksgiving is going to be the best. In addition, a possible new faction arises to compete with the Tazmaniax!
– WWE posted the following tweet to promote a new WWE.com feature that looks at the history of WWE World Heavyweight Champions, including current champion Sheamus.
— A WWE camera crew followed around Roman Reigns backstage last night and captured the above video, which is a behind-the-scenes look at the “rise and fall of Roman Reigns” at Survivor Series.
— Taz was recently interviewed by Wrestling Inc and gave his thoughts on what WWE should do with Roman Reigns’ character after Survivor Series. Here’s what he had to say about the possibility of turning Reigns heel:
“I knew there would be a tournament gimmick, and that’ll work perfect. It’s an opportunity for a guy like Roman Reigns, and people called in and said it was a great opportunity for Roman Reigns to turn heel. My point about that it’s cool if Reigns turns if he can, but you don’t turn a guy until he’s at his peak as a babyface. Roman Reigns is not at that spot. John Cena all those years has been, but usually you don’t turn him unless everyone’s connecting to him. Reigns has heat with some fans, and some love them.”
In an interview with Sports Illustrated, Taz talked about traveling with Vince McMahon and what his work ethic is like. He mentioned that only wrestlers are allowed to sleep on WWE’s plane coming back from TV tapings, while Vince and the other staff stay up working late into the night.
“I had the opportunity for so long to travel every week on Vince’s plane,” said Taz. “Michael Cole and I would travel with Vince and the writers because we had to get back to Connecticut to do the voiceovers for Smackdown, so I got to see Vince behind the scenes 30,000 feet in the air. He’d be sitting there at one in the morning, on a flight from Anaheim to New York, while everyone was struggling to keep their eyes open, and he’d be working non-stop.”
“I’ve seen Triple H fall asleep on the plane, and it wasn’t a problem. I fell asleep on that plane many a time and it wasn’t a problem. If you took some bumps and you fell asleep, it was no problem. If you’re a writer or a play-by-play announcer, it was going to be a problem. It was never mean-spirited, it was like high school with money. It was fun.”