This past Monday on RAW WWE opened up the show with a near-two hour Seven-Man Gauntlet match with names such as Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, John Cena, Elias, Finn Balor, WWE Intercontinental Champion The Miz, and Braun Strowman. For a match that lasted nearly two hours it was actually pretty entertaining. Seth Rollins put on an amazing performance after lasting more than half of the match, and also earning two clean pinfall victories over WWE’s biggest stars – Roman Reigns and John Cena.
All seven men involved in the match will compete in the Elimination Chamber this weekend. The winner punches their ticket to WrestleMania 34 and will challenge Brock Lesnar for the Universal Championship. PWInsider reports that Vince McMahon was actually the person who suggested the Gauntlet match for Monday Night RAW. This reportedly shocked a lot of people backstage because Vince suggested it “out of nowhere.” It’s said that he traditionally isn’t very high on these kinds of matches. After the plan was laid out Vince approved the length and presentation of the show.
Some fans actually believed that this was a Triple H suggestion given how different it was from usual plans. It turns out that Vince was the mastermind behind Monday’s Gauntlet match idea.
– Last night on RAW the show opened up with a Seven-Man Gauntlet match between Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, John Cena, Elias, Finn Balor, The Miz, and Braun Strowman. The match started off with Shield members Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins. After a great back-and-forth bout Rollins was able to hit the rollup for an upset win over “The Big Dog.” Reigns took to Twitter to say that he respects Rollins for his performance last night, but still intends to go on to WrestleMania and challenge Brock Lesnar:
– WWE posted the following video on their Twitter account of a “WWE: Photoshoot” segment in which Hall Of Famer and RAW General Manager Kurt Angle discusses his relationship with Vince McMahon:
72-year-old Vince McMahon recently sold $100 million worth of WWE stock in order to invest in his new company, Alpha Entertainment. The company has since announced the planned return of the XFL in 2020.
With news that Vince McMahon is investing in non-WWE projects, it has led to speculation he will be reilinquishing more responsibilities in WWE. According to a recent report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, that is exactly what is taking place behind the scenes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khlfATUQDE8
Report on Triple H and Stephanie McMahon Taking Over WWE
The report in the Observer states the belief backstage is Paul Levesque (Triple H) will be taking over more of Vince McMahon’s responsibilities in the near future. Levesque has already taken over the booking of 205 Live as of late. Jeremy Borash’s hiring in NXT is believed to be part of Triple H putting together “his team”.
Perhaps the biggest sign that Triple H and Stephanie are taking over more of Vince McMahon’s responsibilities is that they were responsible for signing the deal with Ronda Rousey and not Vince.
The report also notes Vince McMahon normally deals with Brock Lesnar’s contract but that could change as well. There is speculation that Triple H and Stephanie could take over that role as well when Lesnar’s contract comes due later this year.
– WWE has decided to make some major changes backstage at 205 Live. PWInsider reports that the decision was made two weeks ago by Vince McMahon to let Triple H take the helm of the program. Triple H is currently the frontman at NXT and will now take on 205 Live as well.
While McMahon likes to focus on the characters on the program, Triple H has taken a different route – focusing on the in-ring product more instead. McMahon reportedly made the decision as an attempt to reboot and fix the show. People within the company have compared the past two weeks of 205 Live to NXT.
– NJPW has announced that AXS TV will broadcast their Strong Style Evolved event live on Sun. March 25, 2018. It’s NJPW’s second-ever standalone North American event.
NJPW made the following announcement on the matter:
NEW JAPAN PRO WRESTLING’S BIGGEST STARS RETURN TO AMERICA ON AXS TV’S EXCLUSIVE LIVE BROADCAST OF ‘STRONG STYLE EVOLVED’ ON SUNDAY, MARCH 25 AT 8pE/5pP
The Sold-Out Show Will Feature Kazuchika Okada, Kenny Omega, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Tetsuya Naito & More from Long Beach, California
‘STRONG STYLE EVOLVED’ Marks NJPW’s Second U.S. Event as Japan’s Biggest Wrestling Organization Continues to Expand Stateside
Leading up to the Live Broadcast, the Network will Premiere Matches from NJPW’s New Year Dash, New Beginning in Sapporo and More
Los Angeles (Feb. 7, 2018) – AXS TV—the exclusive U.S. television home for New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW)—will partner with NJPW and TV ASAHI to broadcast NJPW’s second U.S. event STRONG STYLE EVOLVED live on Sunday, March 25 at 8pE/5pP from California State University Long Beach’s (CSULB) Walter Pyramid.
The cable network’s acclaimed commentary team, Wrestling Hall of Famer Jim Ross and former UFC Heavyweight Champion and NJPW veteran Josh Barnett, will call the live action ringside at STRONG STYLE EVOLVED. The broadcast is expected to feature NJPW’s biggest stars including Kazuchika Okada, Kenny Omega, Hiroshi Tanahashi, and Tetsuya Naito among others in matches to be announced.
“New Japan Pro Wrestling’s popularity and ratings in the U.S. are at an all-time high,” said AXS TV FIGHTS CEO Andrew Simon. “The G1 Special last summer sold out in a few hours, while STRONG STYLE EVOLVED, in an arena twice the size, sold out in less than 10 minutes. This second U.S. event is a great opportunity to further our relationship with NJPW and TV Asahi and we are looking forward to growing their strong style brand of wrestling in the states.”
AXS TV previously televised NJPW’s first stateside event—G1 Special in USA—live in July 2017 and also took over production of the Friday night series from distribution partner TV Asahi to air the Japanese events closer to the original air date. Continuing this trend, AXS TV aired a special presentation of NJPW’s biggest annual event—Wrestle Kingdom 12—on Jan. 6, 2018 just two days after it took place in Japan, which became the most watched broadcast in series history.
AXS TV wraps up its final night of Wrestle Kingdom 12 coverage on Feb. 9 at 8pE/5pP. Then, the network will showcase the best matches from NJPW’s winter events including “New Year Dash” (Feb. 16), three hours from “The New Beginning in Sapporo” (Feb. 23-March 9) and more to be announced leading up to STRONG STYLE EVOLVED.
AXS TV’s upcoming NJPW schedule is as follows (subject to change):
Feb. 9 – Wrestle Kingdom 12 Finale – Kazuchika Okada vs. Tetsuya Naito
Feb. 16 – New Year Dash – NJPW’s top wrestlers face off in a series of tag team matches and establish new rivalries for 2018.
Feb. 23 – The New Beginning in Sapporo – Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Minoru Suzuki
March 2 – The New Beginning in Sapporo – The Young Bucks vs. Roppongi 3K
March 9 – The New Beginning in Sapporo – Kenny Omega vs. Jay White
– Sasha Banks has had quite a nice run in the past week. In the first-ever Women’s Royal Rumble Banks lasted nearly a full hour in the match, before taking on Rumble winner Asuka in an awesome one-on-one match the following night on Monday Night RAW. Many are expecting Banks to turn heel soon for a potential feud with Bayley at WrestleMania 34. Perhaps that heel turn could come tonight after “The Legit Boss'” most recent Tweet:
– During a quick “5 questions” segment on Twitter, Ring Of Honor (ROH) and New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) star Cody Rhodes answered a question from a fan asking if he believes Vince McMahon unfairly holds NXT call-ups back. The former WWE Superstar then went on to defend his former boss:
He doesn't hold anybody back. A lot of times it's hard for fans to accept that some of their favorites have a ways to go or that they become lazy after they get that first LE check. Stardust for example didn't go beyond tag gold cuz' I wasn't improving & I also got outta' shape. https://t.co/PJstDITaMp
Former WWE executive Bruce Prichard was recently interviewed by 6-ABC to talk about several professional wrestling topics, including his return to the company at RAW 25 last week. Prichard was first asked about the big news of his former boss and friend Vince McMahon’s revival of the XFL. Prichard said that he’s excited for the return of the franchise, and the fact that McMahon is waiting two years for the relaunch shows maturity:
“What is there to say about the announcement of the XFL in 2020? Like everybody else, I was highly anticipating this announcement. It was met with I think a little bit of mixed reviews because I think people wanted more. But, at the end of the day, the XFL is returning. Vince McMahon is at the helm, even though he says he’s going to have the best in the business and professionals that know the football game and know that world.
“Vince will find the best. And Vince will hire the absolute best. I’m excited this time around because I don’t think Vince often makes the same mistakes too many times over. And the fact that he is taking two years to launch this league is a sign of, I don’t want to say maturity, but a sign of knowing the mistakes that he made last time and not wanting to repeat them. So already, he’s not rushing into this.”
Prichard also discussed his encounter with Vince McMahon at RAW 25 last week and described their brief reunion:
“I did get to say hello to Vince. I saw Vince right before he went out to start Monday Night Raw, in the hallway, and it was a short ‘Hello. Have fun.’ And at the very end, I thanked him and gave him a hug and that was it. Spoke to Stephanie and Shane [McMahon], as well, and it was great to reconnect with both of them. So all in all, it was an exciting day, a great night, a lot of history made, and, in a word, I had a blast, so it was it was an awful lot of fun.”
This year there’s going to be two Royal Rumble matches on the pay-per-view (PPV) card, a men’s Royal Rumble match and the first-ever Women’s Rumble as well. Prichard offered his thoughts on having two Rumbles on one card:
“Having two Rumbles in one show concerns me a little bit because those are two long matches and they’re the same type of match. It’s kind of like having a night of cage matches or a night of the same gimmick matches. It can wear on you after a while, but I’m confident that they’ll be able to make it different enough that people will enjoy it and pretty much be into everything that they do.”
You can read Prichard’s full interview with 6-ABC by clicking this link here.
WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross recently did an interview with Business Insider to talk about a variety of professional wrestling topics. “Good Ole’ JR” was asked for his opinion on 72-year-old WWE frontman Vince McMahon and his ability to continue to run the company. Ross said that Vince isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, as he’s still very healthy for his age, but has his own idea of where the company will go without him:
“I have an opinion on where the company will go. I will say this — you know, Vince is very healthy. He still works out like a crazy man. He really takes care of himself,” Ross said. “So, he ain’t going anywhere soon. We don’t want him to go anywhere soon. He’s the rock that built that thing. He’s the rudder in the water. It’s an amazing company.”
As for who Vince’s successor would be once he decides to step away from WWE, Ross said that he’d put his money down on son-in-law Triple H rather than McMahon’s own son Shane McMahon:
“I think that, if I’m guessing, and it’s gonna strictly be a guess — that the money would be on, probably, Paul Levesque to be Vince’s successor,” Ross said.
The future WWE Hall Of Famer currently serves as the WWE’s Executive Vice President Of Talent, Live Events, and Creative. Because of these roles and opportunities given to “The Game” Ross feels that McMahon is grooming his son-in-law to take the helm once he steps down:
“I think Vince is kind of preparing him for that in a lot of ways. You always knew that he was different from the other guys because he was very studious, and very – under control,” he said. “He didn’t drink. No drugs. He looked to be a lifer early on, and he got a lot of that from being a fan all his life growing up in the northeast — New Hampshire. Then, getting trained by Killer Kowalski who was a great, old-school guy. So, I think he’s probably the heir apparent.”
Ross believes that both Stephanie and Shane McMahon would continue to be involved with the company after Vince steps away, but in smaller roles, while Hunter is left as the right man for the job:
“Stephanie is very involved and, you know, is really more of a face of WWE. She does a lot of charity work. And she’s great at that. And you’ve got to have that in that world,” he said. “I think Shane seems to be, apparently, content with being a TV character. I don’t know where his role’s gonna be going forward or what he wants it to be. But, I think that Paul Levesque is the one that seems to be earmarked to be the next guy, if and when Vince is not in that role.”
You can read Ross’ full interview with Business Insider by clicking this link here.
Buckle up. Through his new venture Alpha Entertainment, WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon will be holding a press conference later today at 3pm (Eastern) to make a “major sports announcement.”
Alpha Entertainment describes itself as, “a new enterprise founded by Vince McMahon to explore investment opportunities across the sports and entertainment arena.”
Last month, WWE filed paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission stating that Vince McMahon was selling over $100 million in WWE stock to fund his new Alpha Entertainment venture.
Vince McMahon recently created in a new company called “Alpha Entertainment” with many believing this company will eventually promote a professional football league. While there are still questions regarding the actual name of the league, it does appear Vince McMahon’s new venture is planning on launching a football league by 2020.
A new report from PWInsider is stating that WWE production staff have been working on promotional videos for the league in preparation for a 2020 start date.
XFL Re-Launch
Earlier this year, ESPN ran a “30 for 30” documentary on the history of the XFL. The success of the documentary spurned rumors Vince might be willing to give the league another shot.
One of the admissions made during the filming of the documentary was that they rushed the league onto the field and as a result, the quality of football suffered. A 2020 start date gives Vince and the league more time to prepare.
WWE Hall of Famer Steve Austin returned to TV on tonight’s RAW 25th Anniversary show for the opening segment with Vince McMahon, SmackDown Commissioner Shane McMahon and RAW Commissioner Stephanie McMahon.
Austin hit a Stone Cold Stunner on Shane before ending the segment with a Stunner to Vince. Austin also celebrated with several beers.
Below are photos and videos from tonight’s segment, which opened the show from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn:
This past September Kevin Owens and Vince McMahon put on one of the best segments of 2017 when “KO” attacked “The Chairman Of The Board” on SmackDown Live. Just after McMahon granted Owens a Hell In A Cell match with his son, Shane, Owens headbutted Vince as they shook hands. He also hit him with a superkick before finishing things off with a frog splash.
McMahon was busted open on his forehead and it added to how personal the rivalry between Shane and Owens had been getting over the weeks. Recently, “KO” and Sami Zayn joined Chris Jericho’s podcast, Talk Is Jericho, to talk about their run together on SmackDown Live. Owens was asked about his segment with McMahon and busting him open with the headbutt.
Owens revealed that McMahon was actually talking a ton of trash during their handshake as they lowered their microphones, as he colorfully told Owens not to hold anything back on him:
“And then he starts talking so much s**t. If you can read his lips, I was legitimately taken aback by it. So many swear words. People always ask me later, what was he saying when the mics were down? Was he telling you to make sure to get him good?….In a way, but not in those words…”
Former WWE Universal Champion Kevin Owens recently did an interview with AL.com to discuss several professional wrestling topics. “KO” discussed his activity on Twitter, as he’s famous for delivering some of the best smack talk on social media out of anyone on the WWE’s roster. He also was asked about possibly being a Grand Slam Champion, which he would be if he were to win the WWE Championship.
Owens has held the Universal Title after winning the vacated belt back in August of 2016. Finn Balor was the first-ever Universal Champion after defeating Seth Rollins at SummerSlam for the inaugural strap but was forced to vacate it after suffering a shoulder injury during the bout. The former NXT Champion also discussed what winning the WWE Title would mean as opposed to having held the Universal crown.
And finally Owens revealed what was going through his mind when he headbutted Vince McMahon on an episode of SmackDown Live to hype his Hell In A Cell match with Shane McMahon last year. Here are the highlights:
You have a really great voice on Twitter, but you’ve also expressed concerns about the nastier aspects of social media. Where do you stand right now in terms of how you manage your social media presence and how you engage with fans both positive and negative?
“I really don’t go on Twitter as much as I used to. I feel like as you become more well-known, more and more people have access to you and know who you are. There’s a lot of people out there who are just miserable in their own lives I guess and just trying to make other people miserable as well to bring themselves up. There’s no shortage of that, that’s for sure. It’s taken a toll on my in terms of how much I love social media. I don’t enjoy it as much. But whenever I do, I get messages from people telling me how my work helps them in their life in the struggles they’re going through.
“That always means the world to me. It will never stop. There’s something very special about meeting fans you know you reach with your work. We do this every week, we get into a routine, and as passionate as we may be, it’s like any other job in a way. Once you do something long enough, you kind of get used to it. Sometimes we’re lucky enough to meet somebody that’s really touched by your work, and that always puts things in perspective and is really cool.”
How important is winning the WWE championship to you? Obviously you’d be a grand slam champion, but now that you’ve been Universal champion, which is a top title in the company, why would it still mean a lot to win the WWE title?
“Honestly, to me, the WWE championship and the Universal championship are the same thing. They’re the top championships on the respective brands. If the brand extension were to end or whatever may happen, those titles would just be fused into the WWE championship again. The point is, they mean the same thing. So of course I want to be WWE champion because of what it means, and that means you’re the top superstar. I don’t think that you necessarily have to be the champion to be the top superstar, but it certainly helps.
“It’s an accolade that everybody wants. Who doesn’t want to be WWE champion? I was Universal champion, and I’m very proud of that, and that’s always going to be a highlight of my career. But of course I want to be WWE champion, just like I want to be tag team champion eventually. All the titles just mean your work is being recognized, and you’re seen as someone who can represent the company. That’s always very gratifying.”
Can you paint a picture of what goes through your head when you find out that you’re going to headbutt Vince McMahon?
“No I really can’t, honestly. It’s pretty indescribable. But it’s something I’ll remember forever, I’ll guarantee you that. [laughs]”
You can read Owens’ full interview with AL.com by clicking this link here.
Former WWE and WCW writer Vince Russo was recently interviewed on The Two Man Power Trip Of Wrestling podcast to talk about his time in the industry. The highlights can be found here below:
Where the “crash TV” concept came from when writing for the Attitude Era:
“Basically where “crash” TV came from is real simple because there is no reason in the world that they should not instill the same freaking work ethic and if they instilled this today the show would go from a one to a ten overnight. Where “crash” TV came from was because we were going head to head with Monday Nitro. The way Ed (Ferrera) and I wrote the show is you had a television with a wrestling fan sitting in front of that television set on Monday night and they had a choice between Nitro and RAW.
“When they flip over to RAW and they are watching RAW they are begging you to give them a reason and give them a low and give them the opportunity to tune over to the other show and (bro) knowing if they tune over to the other show and there is something good there, they may never come back. Ed and I literally wrote that show like the wrestling fan was sitting in front of his TV on Monday nights and he had the remote control in his hand and he was begging you to let him flip over to see what was going on on Nitro. That is where “crash” TV came from and you know what? There is no reason in the world that it should not be the same psychology today.”
The main issue plaguing WWE across the board:
“Here is the problem in a nutshell and this is the problem across the board. It’s because of politics and that is what it is all about. It is all about ego and because of ego, politics and power they have people in key positions that have no reason being there. You know how in every other big company like if you work for Apple or you work for a Chevrolet, any company you work for will want to hire the best people to make their company better. That is how companies become better. You look at kids coming out of college and you look at people that are out there with experience and you are always looking for better people to make you better. Bro, wrestling is the complete opposite.
“They have inadequate people in key positions that got there because of politics and if you are on the outside looking in and you have any kind of talent whatsoever they will do anything in their power to keep you away. They will bury you, they will start campaigns online, they will smear your name, they will lie about you, they will make crap up about you and anybody that is better than them they just destroy because they are protecting their spot. When somebody comes in that is better than them all of a sudden they are exposed. There is no light at the end of the rainbow and they don’t have the right people in there and they don’t have the right people doing the key jobs and that is evident every time you watch one of their shows.”
Vince McMahon surrounding himself with “yes men”:
“Bro, you want to know something that makes no sense? All of these clowns, they are all writing to please Vince. They are all writing to please a 72 year old man. Unfortunately, 72 year old men are not your audience.”
Challenging Vince McMahon on booking calls:
“I will never forget there was a Summer Slam at Madison Square Garden with AC/DC Highway to Hell and I’ll never forget the main event was Taker vs. Austin. Taker and Austin were really good friends and they wanted to go into that match at Madison Square Garden and they wanted to make it a babyface match because as a shoot they were very close. I remember getting in a yelling match with Vince McMahon and lets face it Taker and Austin were the top guys and they earned that spot so Vince wanted to make them happy and I couldn’t understand that.
“I remember saying to Vince and especially in New York at Madison Square Garden that people do not want to see a babyface match between Austin and Taker, they want to see these guys freaking kill each other. It’s freaking New York City bro this isn’t Wisconsin and I remember yelling at him in his freaking car. The end of that story is they had their babyface match and there was no response and both guys knew why but that doesn’t matter. My point is that I got away with that stuff because at the end of the day Vince knew my passion and he knew that Vince Russo wasn’t about power and ego and money and all that crap but he was about wanting the show being the best it could absolutely be.
“Vince knew that and if he didn’t know that do you know how many times he would have fired me? He knew what my agenda was and he knew where my heart was and it was always in the show being the best it could be. Today it is all about protecting your spot and making sure you are safe, write something that Vince will like and OH MY GOD bro it is freaking horrible.”
The biggest misconception people have about himself:
“You know what part of the misconception is about me and listen I’m not saying this to be braggadocios because I swear to you I do not have an ego and I don’t give a crap. But I wrote for characters long enough to know what gets a character over and at the end of the day here is what gets a character over. Basically you’ve got to find something in them that is very real so when they go out and portray that (character) you magnify it a million times over and people believe it. They are not acting because it is real to them. That is the key to getting a character over. With that said, when they started putting so much freaking pressure on me to get rating at WCW, bro I never wanted to be a character on TV and I never had any intentions of being a character on TV. To this day, I promise you that is 90% of the reason why so many people disdain me.
“They disdain me because in their minds I am still that character and I’m not. That is not me, I don’t carry myself that way and I swear to God that I buried myself at WCW and later on in TNA buried myself because I never put on a power play, I never wanted power, never wanted more money I just wanted to write the television show. That is all I cared about and those around me who were political animals buried me and were burying me because they were afraid of me and because they knew my talent. The only way they were going to bring me down was to continue to bury me over and over again until they convinced that person that I was the person that they wanted me to be. Bro, I didn’t fight back because my whole theory was if you want to buy into that and want to believe them than no problem just get rid of me and let them do the job and lets see what happens.
“With TNA, you can look at TNA and you can look at the numbers and you can pinpoint exactly where Russo left the company. You can look at those numbers and see that Vince wrote up to this point and than Vince left because you look at that number month after month and they started losing more and more audience. So that is the misconception, people don’t know me, they have no idea of who I am and they don’t know about Vince Russo the son, the husband, the father, they know of me as being a fictional character that they saw on TV.”
You can listen to Russo’s interview on The Two Man Power Trip Of Wrestling by clicking this link here.
WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross recently did an interview with TV Insider to talk about several professional wrestling topics. “Good Ole’ JR” discussed calling matches with Jerry Lawler and Vince McMahon over the years, working with “Macho Man” Randy Savage and calling 1-2-3 Kid vs. Bret Hart, and missing out on Mick Foley winning his first WWE Championship due to Bell’s Palsy. Here are the highlights:
Calling matches with Jerry Lawler and Vince McMahon over the years:
“I had no idea what the franchise Monday Night Raw was going to eventually mean what it has. I worked with Vince [McMahon] and Jerry Lawler. That was new. Three men in a booth was new for me. Not being the lead guy was new. It was a great, refreshing start. A reboot. At that time, I came from a chaotic WCW with all the changes in management. It was a relief to work for a company where you could get a straight answer from the decision-maker. I loved that part of it.”
Working with “Macho Man” Randy Savage and calling 1-2-3 Kid vs. Bret Hart:
“I worked with Randy Savage, which is never easy. I loved his talent. I loved his passion, but he had to trust you. I think he had trust issues, but he was damn sure talented. He and I called the 1-2-3 Kid and Bret Hart. To many in the crowd, I’m sure they thought it would be an easy Bret Hart win and that this young guy, Sean Waltman, wouldn’t have a chance. It was one of the classic examples of how great a talent Bret Hart was, because he made Sean Waltman look like a million bucks. They had an extremely competitive match that was based in logic, unpredictability.”
Missing out on Mick Foley’s first WWE Title win because of his second battle with Bell’s Palsy:
“I worked so diligently and with all my heart to get Mick hired because I felt like he was a good citizen and a great opponent for The Undertaker, which I needed at that time. I didn’t get to call that match. That’s one of my regrets as far as Raw was that I was ill when Foley won his title. I thought it was a moment I would have loved to experience with him.”
You can read Ross’ full interview with TV Insider by clicking this link here.
Former WWE Intercontinental Champion The Miz recently did an interview with WWE to talk about a variety of topics. The Miz revealed what Vince McMahon told him after he won the WWE Championship back in 2010, why he went off on SmackDown Live General Manager Daniel Bryan on an episode of Talking Smack, and his first vignettes as The Miz in 2006. Here are the highlights:
What Vince McMahon told him after winning the WWE Title back in 2010:
“Vince [McMahon], kind of giving me the ‘Okay, we’re going with you, kid. We’re doing it.’ Vince always saw the talent, he was always my biggest supporter. When you come into WWE- it’s like a fraternity, fans don’t like you, because you’re an outsider, you’re from a reality show, you’re not supposed to have talent. The locker room doesn’t like you, you get thrown out of the locker room, and then going back and having Vince telling me ‘We’re going with you. I know you can do it,’ solidifies everything. Everything I worked for. It was awesome.”
Going off on Daniel Bryan on an episode of Talking Smack:
“There were a lot of emotions going on here. This wasn’t just to Daniel; this was like, to everyone. I unleashed a lot because Creative had nothing for me that day, and I went, ‘What?’ They were like ‘Yeah, you’re not on the show tonight.’ What do you mean I’m not on the show? I’m the Intercontinental Champion. They were like, ‘Yeah, but we’re introducing new titles, we’re introducing the new Tag Team Titles and the new SmackDown Women’s Title, and so, we don’t have room for the Intercontinental Championship.’
“I was like ‘Wait a second, you’re introducing new titles, but what about the rich history of this title? The title that you guys just keep throwing back, and throwing back, and throwing back. Burying it, burying it, and burying it, and I’m sick [of it].’ I was so aggravated, I was so sick of it. And I was like, ‘Put me on Talking Smack tonight, I’m going to unleash havoc on everything and everyone.'”
His early vignettes as The Miz in 2006:
“This was my first vignette as ‘The Miz,’ by myself. I went to the [WWE] Headquarters and basically pissed everyone off. When I threw these [water] balloons [from the roof], little did I know that I would dent all the cars that I threw them on. Yeah, I kind of made a lot of insurance companies not so happy.”
In a move done to fund his “Alpha Entertainment” venture, Vince McMahon has sold approximately 3.34 million shares of WWE. The total value of the shares is listed at $100 million.
Details of the sale were released to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The filing noted the reason for the sale as “primarily to fund a separate entity from the Company, Alpha Entertainment LLC, which Mr. McMahon established to explore investment opportunities across the sports and entertainment landscapes, including professional football.”
Alpha Entertainment and Football
News of the sale has fuelled further speculation that Vince could be re-starting the XFL.
Alpha Entertainment filed for 5 trademarks on December 16th related to a potential professional football league, most utilizing the name “XFL”. There was a trademark filed for “URFL”, however, so the name XFL is not a given just yet.
– There have been rumors circulating that an XFL-like relaunch could be in the works from Vince McMahon. Deadspin reached out to WWE, and although they didn’t confirm an XFL relaunch specifically, they did admit McMahon is venturing out to “explore investment opportunities across the sports and entertainment landscapes, including football.” WWE Superstar Rusev took to Twitter to joke about the rumored XFL return:
– During last night’s (Sat. December 16, 2017) NXT Live Event in Largo, Florida, Hideo Itami wrestled his final match for NXT before shipping out for 205 Live this Tuesday. Itami took to Twitter to say his final goodbye to the NXT brand:
Rumors have starting circulating through Twitter on a planned revival of the XFL professional football league.
If you aren’t aware, the XFL was a league created by Vince McMahon during the height of WWE’s Attitude Era, the venture was a huge failure on all counts as the presentation did not appease fans of wrestling or pro football, not knowing what either demographic wanted and subsequently the project ended up costing the WWE reportedly in the hundreds of millions.
SEScoops contributor David Bixenspan of Deadspin contacted WWE to confirm if there were any truth to these rumors and he received an interesting response. It appears as though McMahon is personally funding a separate entity from WWE named ‘Alpha Entertainment.’ The goal is to “explore investment opportunities across the sports and entertainment landscapes, including professional football.”
While this is nowhere near confirmation of an XFL return it is interesting to note that “professional football” is on the cards, and it is highly unlikely that Vince is looking to work alongside the NFL…
Billionaire businessman and TV personality Mark Cuban spoke with Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated this week about his AXS TV channel’s commitment to New Japan Pro Wrestling.
The “Shark Tank” judge says AXS is looking to invest a lot more money in NJPW programming. “We’re looking to expand it on Friday nights,” Cuban said “We want to do more live, as opposed to the delay, and we’re talking to them about special events.”
AXS TV recently announced the network will air the top three title matches from NJPW’s upcoming Wrestle Kingdom 12 PPV on January 6th, just two days after the event takes place from the Tokyo Dome:
IWGP heavyweight champion Kazuchika Okada vs. Tetsuya Naito
IWGP Intercontinental champ Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Jay White
IWGP US champion Kenny Omega vs. Chris Jericho
Cuban is a strong believer that NJPW is the best wrestling project in the world and did not think twice about purchasing the rights to air these matches on US television.
“We’re getting to know [the NJPW team] better,” said Cuban. “We went from a delay to a short delay to live, so we’re going to get smarter about it. The numbers keep on going up. Other TVs are declining, and ours are going up. That’s a good sign. There are some nights when it beats MMA, it’s doing that well.”
As NJPW continues to grow, does Mark Cuban think Vince McMahon sees them as serious competition?
“No, he thinks we’re just little sh—,” said Cuban. “We’re not a threat because of the language. That’s the biggest challenge, the language. But if you’re a purist for wrestling, and you like the action, it’s the best promotion by far. People here aren’t going to connect as directly, but if you really love wrestling, then it’s a no-brainer.”
To read the full exclusive interview with Mark Cuban, visit Sports Illustrated.
As we’ve noted, former WWE writer Jimmy Jacobs was recently a guest on Chris Jericho’s podcast, Talk Is Jericho, to talk about his time with the company. One topic of discussion amongst the pair was the addition of 205 Live, which focuses around the Cruiserweights of WWE.
Jacobs revealed Vince McMahon’s initial feelings about the new show and also explained why he doesn’t believe it’s worked out thus far. Here’s what he had to say:
“Vince was really excited about 205 Live when it first started, but I really think in a lot of ways, but they were in a really tough position, right off the bat. First off, being on at 10 p.m., after 2 hours of SmackDown without any stars, so it is really hard to create stars from non-stars. You need somebody that people know. I need to know that Noam Dar has at least met Chris Jericho, they are in completely different universes.
“Other thing is that there’s really no demand for the show. Look, this isn’t 20 years ago when WCW at the top of the card was Kevin Nash, Hulk Hogan, Big Show, or Lex Luger; you had Jericho, Rey Mysterio; I mean, the top of the WWE card those guys can go. Seth Rollins does the 205 Live style better than the 205 Live guys do, so where is the demand?
“Now you see smaller guys, lesser stars, doing stuff not really as good as those on the main roster. John Cena is even doing Springboard Diamond Cutters; that style has really permeated on the main roster. It’s a really tough position they are in. I give those guys a lot of credit from the talents to the Writer’s. It was and is a really tough job.”
You can listen to Jacobs interview on Talk Is Jericho by clicking this link here.
Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated has claimed that Vince McMahon is a huge proponent of the ‘Woken’ Matt Hardy gimmick. Barrasso also claims that McMahon has given Hardy ‘creative freedom’ over his television persona.
A source within WWE has stated that Matt is “allowed a creative license by McMahon, who sees opportunity and the opportunity to cash in on a character that is already established.”
This is a fairly unprecedented move for Vince McMahon, who traditionally prefers to craft characters within the confines of his own creative team and ideas…however if these reports are true and he is choosing to run with a persona developed outside of WWE then this can only be considered a shrewd move on his part.
If you haven’t yet seen the return promo for ‘Woken’ Matt Hardy from RAW then check it out below.
Arguably pro wrestling’s biggest ever mainstream attraction is now being immortalised on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
That’s right, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson will be receiving his star next week (December 13th) in a ceremony as part of the ‘motion pictures’ category. Walk of Fame ceremonies producer Ana Martinez made the following statement regarding the WWE superstar:
“Not only does Dwayne have a great personality and talent, but he also does a great amount of philanthropic work which is part of the criteria for earning an immortal spot on the Walk of Fame. We envision scores of photos being taken at his star by his fans.”
The Rock and Vince McMahon are the only two WWE stars currently on the famous ‘Walk,’ do you see anyone joining them in the coming years? John Cena possibly?
– We noted yesterday that The Rock made the cover of Entertainment Weekly with his “Dwanta Claus” alter ego. Vince McMahon took to Twitter to congratulate his former WWE Champion on the accomplishment, and “The Great One” responded with a great little anecdote about meeting “The Chairman Of The Board” at age 11 before being offered a contract at 25:
First shook hands w/ Vince when I was 11yrs old. At 25, he offered me the bare minimum @WWE contract. Said, “You can go to WCW for more money but here you’ll earn every dollar” To this day, Vince is one of my greatest mentors & trusted advisors. #FullCircle#Ohana ???? https://t.co/YB2rBHHe8L
– USA Network is advertising a one-hour show entitled “WWE NXT” on Wednesday, December 13th at 7:00 PM ET. Here’s the description:
“WWE’s next generation of superstars battle to make an impact on their rise to fame.”
It’s very possible that the lineup could simply be a mistake, however, “WWE Week” has been a tradition on USA Network and NXT could be a part of that this year. The listing was pickup up by Comcast, Verizon, and DirecTV:
WWE Hall Of Famer Edge recently did an interview with Sports Illustrated to promote his appearance on The History Channel’s “Vikings” series. During the interview Edge discussed his relationship with “The Chairman Of The Board” Vince McMahon. “The Rated-R Superstar” discussed McMahon’s work ethic, if he still keeps in contact with him today, and claiming that you can only be a top performer in WWE by being close with Vince McMahon. Here are the highlights:
Vince McMahon’s work ethic:
“There are not many with Vince’s work ethic, and I think what that does is breeds it in a lot of his performers, especially the ones that make it to the top,” he explained. “If it isn’t already in you, it will be taught to you by Vince, whose go-to was usually to push, not praise, but that was OK with me.”
If he still keeps in contact with Vince:
“I’ll still call or text Vince, and it’s not about bad things or complaints or gripes. When I got dual-citizenship, I called him thanked him for the opportunities he afforded me in his company. I don’t know how often he hears that.”
You can only be a top star in WWE by being close to Vince:
“That’s not politicking, that’s getting to know each other and allowing him to know what type of person he is going to invest this massive machine in. How can he do that unless he has some sense of who you are as a person, and not just as a performer?
“It happened organically with us. When I had points I felt very strongly on, I went to him. In doing it, he began to see that I would stand up for what I believed strongly in, and that I would admit when I was wrong. I didn’t look for a pat on the back when I was right, either. He also knew how much I cared for that industry.”
You can check out Edge’s interview with Sports Illustrated by clicking here.
With the release of James Ellsworth from WWE, most have speculated about his future within the world of sports entertainment. Many have suggested that he could easily demand more money when appearing in other promotions, and that he has an open and easy career ahead of him.
However, James McKenna has revealed some outrageous plans for James Ellsworth that were discussed at creative meetings. The plans, that are reported to have originated from Vince McMahon, would place Ellsworth in a championship match at WrestleMania 34.
What championship match?
The SmackDown Live Women’s Championship match.
Around the time of Money In The Bank, after James Ellsworth won the first Money In The Bank match for Carmella, Triple H was interviewed on Sky Sports saying: “I wasn’t there, but it doesn’t seem right […] although we are still trying to confirm that James Ellsworth is 100% a man.”
The comment came across as a joke, however the source from James McKenna suggests that Triple H’s interview wasn’t just a joke, but a potential seed for Vince McMahon’s idea – to reveal that James Ellsworth was transgender.
McKenna said that the Chairman and CEO of WWE brought this idea forward and that the creative team had to debate and discuss how it would work. The whole plan would be for James Ellsworth to eventually feature at WrestleMania 34 to compete with Charlotte (as the champion) for the SmackDown Live Women’s Championship.
WWE have done some pretty weird and offensive things in the past; usually resulting in some form of relationship or feud that results in a wedding and nudity. But using, or even suggesting, gender transitioning is not only ridiculous, but also insensitive. Thankfully it was stopped in its tracks well before getting out of hand.
