– Part-time WWE performer Batista was in attendance at the Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Buffalo Sabres NHL game in Tampa, Florida on Saturday evening. Below is a photo of Batista at the game with his new wife Sarah Jade, as well as Robert Molloy.
– The latest WWE 2K16 “Book Of Austin” vignette, “Austin 3:11 – Creation Suite,” featuring Steve Austin, can be seen below.
– Former NXT Champion Sami Zayn tweeted the following about Triple H and his EVOLVE appearances in New York City. As noted, Zayn won’t be wrestling on the shows, but will be meeting with fans and cutting a promo in the ring. He will not be appearing on the actual iPPV broadcast.
– It’s interesting to note that WWE.com is running a feature looking at ‘Divas who won men’s championships’ and former Intercontinental champion Chyna is not mentioned.
– Triple H noted via social media today that he has lost 15 pounds after completing day 15 of his ongoing 21-day cleansing diet. HHH tweeted the following:
– The legendary nine-time World Tag-Team Champion Dudley Boyz are the guests on the latest edition of Chris Jericho’s “Talk Is Jericho” podcast, which just dropped today. You can download and listen to Jericho’s interview with Bubba Ray and Devon Dudley at PodcastOne.com.
– Tuesday would have marked the 89th birthday of WWE Hall Of Famer Walter “Killer” Kowalski. Triple H wrote the following on Twitter about Kowalski, who was his mentor when he first got into the business:
Today would have been Walter "Killer" Kowalski's 89th birthday. Had he never laced up his boots…I wouldn't have. pic.twitter.com/z7R94c5EOC
– Below is the latest edition of Booker T’s “Reality Of Wrestling” television show, which features Devon Dudley, Stevie Ray and Booker T’s wife, Sharmell, among the other ROW talent.
As noted on Monday evening, former NXT Champion Sami Zaym has been officially announced for this weekend’s EVOLVE internet pay-per-views in New York.
It was made clear today that while Zayn won’t be wrestling at the shows, however he will appear before the live crowds during the events, and will air during the beginning of the internet pay-per-view broadcast.
EVOLVE issued the following today:
“I love what EVOLVE does….I support them.” – Triple H in last week’s NXT conference call
The man backs up what he says. Sami Zayn is coming from NXT to EVOLVE in New York this weekend. We have all the details in this WWN Alerts. Let’s get to it….
October 13th: In an unprecedented move, Sami Zayn will be at EVOLVE 49 this Saturday in Queens, NY and EVOLVE 50 this Sunday in Long Island, NY. Here are the details:
-VIP ticket holders can take part in a meet and greet with Sami Zayn. This includes an autograph opportunity.
-If you have already purchased tickets, you can upgrade it to a VIP ticket at the events.
-Sami Zayn will make an in ring appearance on both events, but this will not be broadcast on live iPPV. It will be a special moment for fans in Queens and Deer Park. What will Zayn do? Who will he end up in the ring with? Be there and find out!
NXT star Sami Zayn is confirmed to appear at both the EVOLVE 49 and EVOLVE 50 iPPV shows in New York this coming weekend.
The announcement came courtesy of EVOLVE booker Gabe Sapolsky, who broke the news on social media and then proceeded to publicly credit Triple H for being a man of his word and helping support the independent wrestling scene. Sapolsky and Zayn also shared a brief back-and-forth.
This is said to be part of W#WE’s new working relationship with WWN Live.
Below is the reaction from Sapolsky and Zayn on Twitter.
– In Winter Haven, Florida last night Kenneth Crawford successfully cut his first WWE NXT live event promo. He made his debut in the ring a few weeks back during a battle royal. Crawford declared we were entering the “era of Ken” and that he was sent to NXT to clean it up on account of his military background. He took shots at NXT Champion Finn Balor, NXT Tag Team Champions The Vaudevillains and Tyler Breeze. Crawford is a United States Marine from North Carolina. He was signed to NXT back in April of this year with the rest of the new recruits. Crawford was a high school Athlete of the Year, however he has no wrestling experience.
– There may be a new agreement between WWE and Hulu as NXT Takeover specials are now available on the official Hulu website. The most recent “Takeover: Respect” special is already available.
– As noted earlier, Sunday would have been the 70th birthday of the late WWE Hall Of Famer, “The American Dream” Dusty Rhodes. In addition to Triple H acknowledging “The Dream’s” birthday on social media yesterday, Corey Graves tweeted this one out.
Tell someone you love them today. Remember the Dream, smile, & know that "you can't roller skate in a buffalo herd."#HappyBirthdayDusty
– WWE had camera crews at the NXT live event in Winter Haven, Florida this weekend filming matches for the WWE Network show, “Breaking Ground.” They have had the same crews at the WWE Performance Center and other recent NXT live events for the same reason.
– Speaking of the NXT live event in Winter Haven, Billy Gunn made an appearance in front of the crowd and the aforementioned camera crews at the end of the show. Finn Balor invited Gunn to the ring after his match, and while Gunn declined at first, the fans in attendance eventually changed his mind. Gunn went on to hit Blake with a FameAsser before closing out the show doing the D-X routine alongside Balor and The Vaudevillains.
– Triple H posted the following on Twitter to the late Dusty Rhodes on what would have been “The American Dream’s” 70th birthday.
– As noted, John Cena will be taking time off after Hell In A Cell this month and isn’t expected back until late December. Madison Square Garden has confirmed that Cena will be at their December 26th live event, as will Kevin Owens, Dean Ambrose, Ryback, Sheamus and Rusev.
– Triple H will be hosting a Twitter Q&A this Wednesday, October 7th to promote the NXT Takeover: Respect special. Fans can submit their questions to @TripleH using the hashtag “#NXTTakeover”.
– Zeb Colter took to Twitter today to post the following comments on Presidential candidate and WWE Hall Of Famer Donald Trump.
IN FAIRNESS TO ALL, @realDonaldTrump SEEMINGLY HAS TAKEN THE IMMIGRATION MESSAGE FROM #WeThePeople. SHOULDN'T I GET A ROYALTY? @WWE
– There is currently no word on where Naomi was on Saturday night, as the WWE Diva and Total Divas star didn’t work the WWE Network special in Madison Square Garden or the WWE live event in Bangor, Maine last night. Team B.A.D. members Sasha Banks and Tamina Snuka worked the live event in Bangor without Naomi, and Jimmy Uso, Naomi’s husband, noted via social media that the two spent the weekend with Uso’s daughter in Niagra Falls.
– There were a lot of issues with the WWE Network stream lagging on Saturday night, as well as some technical problems with full screen playback during the special in Madison Square Garden in New York.
– NXT will be running more matches as part of their “Louder Than Life” festival in Louisville, Kentucky. Both Triple H and Matt Bloom oversaw the matches on Saturday night. As seen below, Triple H then flew from Louisville to New York City for the MSG special last night.
WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has updated his blog at JRsBarBQ.com with his thoughts on various WrestleMania 32 rumors. Here are some highlights of what JR said about:
WrestleMania 32 Rumors:
“The online speculation on what the card will resemble at Wrestlemania Texas will become nauseating before it will all be said and done. This ‘Mania will do 100,000+ IMO but even with that success one has to wonder will today’s social media obsessed fans will be satisfied? I think that we all know the answer to that one.
Plans are coming together well for our WM32 weekend of activities. Our meetings in Dallas last week on our venue and our show schedule in Dallas plus a new pro wrestling project that we are exploring went very well.”
Steve Austin wrestling Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 32:
“Love the fact that Steve Austin definitively shot down the rumors of any chance that he would face Brock Lesnar at Wrestlemania Texas on April 3 in Arlington at AT&T Stadium. I said the same thing on my podcast this week after talking to Steve before recording it last week on the Bruce Mitchell episode. Nonetheless no matter what Austin or anyone else says many fans will remain hopeful and damn near sure that this match is going to happen. I can only say to that ” Let it go.”
I could see Lesnar winning the 2016 Royal Rumble and then facing the WWE champion and winning before 100,000+ fans at WM32. Time will tell as there are many ways to go with a star as talented as Lesnar.”
The Rock vs. Triple H at WrestleMania 32:
“Another rumor is Rock vs. HHH at Wrestlemania Texas. I could see that happening but only time will tell. These two could have a great build up and then deliver a stout, old school match.”
As previously noted WWE.com caught up with Sting following his match with Seth Rollins at WWE Night of Champions which left him injured and the WWE Universe concerned for his future.
Among a variety of topics including his injury, what happened after the match and if he’ll wrestle again, Sting was also full of praise for his opponent that night Seth Rollins.
What he has to say about competing against Seth Rollins:
“The biggest pleasure. I’m honored. After 30 years and working with some of the best and some of the greatest, [Rollins] is, I’m telling you, he’s got to be the best I’ve ever worked with. I mean, this guy has it. And I think he’s just scratching the surface on what he will do. I’ve never seen somebody as talented. He’s working two [matches] on Raw, two [matches] on the pay-per-view, he’s involved in every other segment and it’s physical. He’s got guys coming from every angle. There’s a lot on his plate. He’s carrying a lot, and he’s handling it. He’s proven he can do it. I’m just glad I had a chance to work with him. He’s the kind of guy who could be in there with a broomstick and make something very interesting happen, a match that people would love somehow.”
What they had to say to each other once the match was over:
Really, I can’t say enough. He poked his head in the ambulance and said, “Man, I’m so sorry. I don’t know what happened.” I said, “Seth, don’t worry about it. It’s not your fault.” And he, for 15 minutes, he said, “I just wanted to tell you what an honor it was, what a pleasure. I can’t believe I had a chance to get in the ring with you and work with you. I was you for Halloween when I was a kid.” He was on and on about it, but man, this young guy, he doesn’t have any idea how much I appreciate being able to work with him.
Credit: WWE.com
– In other news, this coming Monday following RAW exclusively on the WWE Network fans will get a unique insight into the NXT panel from SummerSlam weekend in Brooklyn.
The panel which took place before NXT Takeover: Brooklyn features Triple H, Finn Balor, Sasha Banks, Kevin Owens, Corey Graves and Seth Rollins.
– WWE.com has a new poll up asking fans if Chris Jericho was a bad choice to be the mystery partner for Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose at Night Of Champions. 69 percent of fans felt that The Wyatt Family would have lost if they had a different partner, while 31 percent of fans believed if Jericho couldn’t help them win, no one could.
– WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross was full of high praise for new WWE Divas Champion Charlotte following her victory over Nikki Bella at Sunday’s WWE Night Of Champions pay-per-view. “Good Ole’ JR” took to Twitter after the show to post the following.
Just my opinion but @MsCharlotteWWE ain't no diva…she's all woman and the champion making her the women's champ. Just saying…
– As noted, Scott Hall was among the guests backstage at WWE Night Of Champions on Sunday night in Houston. Here he is backstage at the show with Scott Norton and Big Show.
Triple H returned to his old home, the WWE.com sit-down interview, in the 100th episode of Michael Cole’s weekly segment on WWE.com and WWE’s official YouTube Channel. This time out, Triple H (mostly out of character as Paul Levesque but still called Triple H)shared some of his thoughts on his baby, NXT.
When asked if he thought it was possible in advance that NXT could sell out the Barclay’s Center, he said:
I think you want to shoot for the stars with that stuff. And, yeah, I wanted to create sort of a counter brand, another brand for the WWE that we could build the future in and try to make it as big as possible. A lot of people even asked me just going into Brooklyn when Brooklyn was suggested, I originally balked at the idea. I felt like we could sell it out, I felt like the interest in the brand was there, and I felt like the desire to see it would be there, especially in the New York area being Brooklyn, but I was hesitant to do it. What I didn’t want to do is disappoint people and have them think it would sell out and then sell 10,000 tickets and have that be seen as a disappointment. So I played up [that] I didn’t believe in it a little bit but was excited that it did as well as it did.
In the interview, Triple H also talks about the presence of NXT alumni on the main roster, Sting’s impact on WWE, and more. There’s also a reference having lost 65 pounds in the last 11 months, which is pretty impressive of his part.
Sting, who’s doing his late media for this Sunday’s Night of Champions pay-per-view event, granted an interview to Rolling Stone’s Kenny Herzog that went up today. Among other topics, he talks about the promo he cut on Seth Rollins a week or two back where it seemed to some fans like he was randomly putting over Triple H at Seth Rollins’ expense. “I don’t pay attention a lot of times to what’s out there, so this is the first time I’m hearing any news of that. I don’t think there’s anyone who’s going to carry all that to Night of Champions and think about that, because the bottom line is, my focus is Seth Rollins. Triple H is Triple H, and he’s worth the put-over.”
When it comes to Sting’s promos right now, he said that “I’m working collaboratively, but there’s no one looking over my shoulder making sure this or that is being said. I am definitely allowed to ad-lib and be Sting.” Later, when asked about how he’s shown different sides of his character on his promos as of late (like tha “Joker Sting” from TNA), he answered by saying that “This is one of the things I always try to tell the younger guys when they ask for advice. I try to tell them to step outside of their comfort zones, try something different.”
Noting that some fans are always asking him to go back to the blonde spiked hair, different fans ask for the stoic, non-verbal “Crow” Sting, others ask for “Joker Sting,” and so on, he told Herzog that “You can’t please everybody all the time, that’s for sure, and I can’t say that I have blown it or failed over the years by trying different things and trying to evolve and show different sides of my character. Hopefully, it’s working.”
In the full interview, Sting discusses other topics like wrestling at 56 years old, whether he’ll ever engage fans on social media, and more.
Kevin Owens was recently interviewed by Canadiens Magazine to promote WWE’s upcoming live event at the Bell Center from Montreal on September 18th.
During the interview, Owens was asked what his message would be for arguably the most dominant force in WWE today, Brock Lesnar.
“I would simply say that few people think I have a chance against him,” Owens said. “I have the body that I have, and I look like I look and that’s just who I am. On the other hand, I know from experience that I’m harder to beat than people think. I’m not saying I’d beat him, but I’d really like to see if I can, or at least how far I can push him.”
He also told an interesting story about how he got hired by WWE. Typically when WWE is considering hiring a performer, there are a handful of people who vote on whether or not they should be brought in. In the case of Kevin Owens, the vote was split 2-2, until Triple H made call to sign him.
“When I got my chance to be called up to the pros, the story I heard was that four or five people had a say in the decision. The vote was tied at two, and Triple H cast the deciding ballot. He gave me my chance. I appreciated that he was willing to risk signing me even though I’m not the typical WWE wrestler.
Since I started working with him, we’ve become a lot closer. He helps me as much as he can for shows – like he does with everyone – but we both have young kids at home and we talk about a lot of other things that have nothing to do with wrestling. The fact that he’s in my corner is what counts. I watched him fight when I was younger. I went to the Bell Centre to see him live. He’s the one who motivated me.”
Japanese women’s wrestling star Kanako Urai (Kana) has signed with the company. A press conference was held on Tokyo on Tuesday to announce the news.
Kana will be joining NXT and officially reports to to the Performance Center in Orlando in late September. She has wrestled for several organizations throughout Japan and has held multiple championships.
Triple H was quoted by WWE.com, “We are very excited to have Kana join the NXT roster. Her exciting in-ring style will make an immediate impact on the already impressive NXT women’s division.”
WWE World Heavyweight Champion and WWE United States Champion Seth Rollins recently spoke with Scott Fishman of the Miami Herald. Below are some of the highlights from the interview.
On turning his doubters into believers: “Everyone is a naysayer. Everyone has an opinion. Half the people love me and half the people hate me. A few months later and it all flip-flops, it doesn’t matter to me. I just go out there and do the best I can. I’ve been doing this a long time, so I know when things are going well and when they’re not. It’s nice to have people appreciate what you do though. Our fan base is super passionate and always has an opinion, and that’s awesome.”
On which NXT talent he would like to see called up to WWE’s main roster: “I would like to see Bayley. She is my favorite who is not up here and being used. So hopefully she gets a shot soon.”
On working with Triple H: “Triple H has been incredible to work with. Triple H is the ‘Cerebral Assassin.’ His best advice to me is to make sure you always, always come out on top.”
Check out the complete interview at MiamiHerald.com.
WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross recently updated the Q&A section of his official website, answering questions from fans on a number of topics. Below are some of the highlights.
On if WWE will ever return to a TV-14 rating, and who is the next big thing in WWE: “I don’t think that they ever go back to TV14. Ever. It’s wide open as to who will be the next big thing. I have no idea.”
On if WWE should have supported Jimmy Snuka and not suspended his Legends contract: “I think it was the only call tht they could have made unfortunately. That’s my opinion.”
On the best wrestling city: “Loaded question that I have no answer. There are many and I won’t diss any city.”
On Seth Rollins and Triple H nearing their feud: “Obviously HHH and Rollins are on a collision course and Sting is a conduit.”
On why WWE sometimes doesn’t have their title match in the main event: “WWE isn’t a combat style event, it’s a theatrical event. However, under usual circumstances the WWE Title would normally close the show but it doesn’t have to due to artistic liscence.”
Check out the complete blog at JRsBarBQ.com. You can also order JR’s Bar-B-Q products online at WWEShop.com.
– WWE is running a new poll asking fans if Seth Rollins really is as good as Triple H was in his prime. With over 1,000 votes, around 80 percent voted, “No, he still has miles to go before he can be compared to Triple H.” The rest of the votes went to, “Yes, Rollins has proven he is on The Game’s legendary level.”
– As noted, King Barrett will be taking some time off to film the new WWE Studios movie, “Eliminators.” Barrett had the day off on Saturday and wrote the following on Twitter:
Back at hotel after a crazy & intense week of shooting @WWEStudios#Eliminators movie. Loving every second. 1 day off, then we roll again.
– Global Force Wrestling founder Jeff Jarrett was in the United Kingdom last week negotiating what could be GFW’s first official television deal for the U.K. market. GFW is expected to make announcements next week for what will likely be their first international television deal.
– GFW posted the following video called “Kevin Nash Uncut,” which features Nash talking about Jeff Jarrett, his friend Triple H and more.
Former WWE, WCW and TNA writerVince Russo has posted a new blog entry explaining why WWE has put themselves in a really bad position with the Hall of Fame, in light of the various issues surrounding the likes of Chyna, Sunny, Hulk Hogan and Jimmy Snuka. Here’s an excerpt of what he wrote:
It was some time ago when I swooped in to protect the good name of my friend, Chyna, after Triple H made some unnecessary comments defaming her character on the WWE Network. Knowing that Joanie was living in Japan at the time, I wanted to give her the forum to be heard, because I felt she deserved that much. To my surprise, it was during that interview, that Chyna made the comment that Triple H hit her on one occasion during their relationship. That news blew up the internet as her valiantly protecting her name–turned to a horse of a whole different color.
That interview literally burned my bridge with the WWE. It was “suggested” by an employee of theirs that in the words of Bob Ryder, I received “nuclear” heat just by extending the forum to Joanie in order to get her voice heard. Hindsight being 20/20—I wouldn’t change my decision for the world and everything in it. I just felt it wasn’t right for Hunter—who I also thought was a friend on mind—to bully Chyna, knowing that she didn’t have a voice.
Which brings me to how all that drama started—the fictitious WWE Hall of Fame that only exists in the mind of Vince McMahon. Whether you are in, or out, solely depends on whether, or not, you have heat with him—and, him only. I can go through the laundry list of those that aren’t in the Hall, but what difference does it make any way? For the inductees, the celebration really is, “Vince likes me . . . he really likes me!” Oh, brother.
When Hunter made that statement about a kid typing Chyna in Google and finding out about her past, I knew then that those same words that he spoke out his backside, where going to come back and do much more damage than good? Why? Because there are a far amount of inductees in the Hall, that let’s just say, aren’t your model citizens. No, I’m not going to name names, because that’s not the point, the point is that by using the WWE Network to bury Chyna, Triple H has now buried the company that he so loves—to an even greater degree.
What I’m talking about are the three most current instances involving WWE Hall of Famers; Tammy Sytch, Hulk Hogan and Jimmy Snuka. Depending on how you want to rate their “Dirty Deeds”, I wonder in Hunter’s view, if the actions of his ex—because she needed to make a living—were more severe than the actions of, more notably, Hulk and Super Fly. I take Sunny out of that equation, because like Chyna, Sunny is currently making a living by using her “assets” in a way that is profitable. And, I LOUDLY applaud Sunny for standing up to the WWE juggernaut–when word on the street was that they weren’t happy with the Hall of Famers choice of work–and stating that since the WWE was in no way, shape, or form, currently financially assisting her—she was doing what she had to do to earn an income, and really didn’t care what they thought. Good for her.