Former Lucha Libre and WCW star Konnan has revealed that Vince Russo has landed a new role in the wrestling industry. Russo will be joining the Aro Lucha promotion as a ‘script consultant’ for their December 10th show. Whether this means that he will be joining the company on a permanent basis is unknown, however with Aro Lucha being a new company in their own right nothing appears to be set in stone.
The company’s first show takes place this Sunday at the Nashville Fairgrounds and will feature Lucha Libre, WWE and WCW legend Rey Mysterio. Tickets are available to purchase here.
Since parting with Impact Wrestling in 2014, Russo has been busy working on podcasts and online content. Additionally, he writes for the wrestling show “Rocky Mountain Pro” which appears on the FITE App.
Earlier this summer, Russo filed a restraining order against Jim Cornette.
The Vince Russo vs. Jim Cornette saga isn’t over yet. Luckily however, it appears some good may come out of it. Recently, Russo had Cornette served with a restraining order, which prevents Cornette from calling or showing up at his place of residence. The two live in different states.
Earlier today on his YouTube channel, Cornette announced what he has done with the restraining order:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yPDAvR0S-VE
How To Purchase a Copy of Vince Russo’s Restraining Order Against Cornette
Jim Cornette has printed off copies of the restraining order and is selling them for $8 each (plus $2 shipping and handling). You can purchase them here.
According to Cornette’s website, $4 from each order will be donated to the WHAS Crusade for Children charity, whose work benefits special needs children in Kentucky and Southern Indiana.
If you would like something positive out of this, please consider purchasing a copy of their restraining order today.
Former WWE, WCW, and Impact Wrestling writer Vince Russo has filed a restraining order against former co-worker Jim Cornette. Russo and Cornette have a longstanding bitter feud that escalated in recent weeks.
The restraining order was filed on June 16th, one day after Jim Cornette’s response to Russo’s “apology” to him, which he used as a platform to hurl insults at Cornette. In this response, Cornette stated that he had a ‘surprise’ for Russo when he next saw him, which Russo apparently took at a threat.
Cornette received the order from local police at his home in Louisville, Kentucky on the evening of June 21st, and it decrees that Cornette must stay away from Russo, Russo’s wife, and also Russo’s home and place of employment. Upon receiving the order, Cornette posted the following photo on Twitter along with his comments.
Golly, VOLDERMORT just filed a Emergency Protective Order on me. I can't hang out with him anymore! pic.twitter.com/jSx9CEFj0F
WWE recently aired a new episode of Table For 3 on the WWE Network that featured Jim Cornette, Michael ‘P.S.’ Hayes and Eric Bischoff. During the episode, Cornette and Bischoff bonded over their dislike for Vince Russo. Cornette then challenged Vince Russo to a fight on his podcast and Russo issued Cornette a fake apology, which you can check out here. Well, Russo is back at it again and this time he is focusing on Eric Bischoff. Russo posted another fake apology and took some shots at Bischoff in the video.
Russo poked fun at Bischoff for wanting to put TNA head-to-head against RAW:
“I want to apologize, for you convincing Dixie Carter that ‘We had to go head-to-head with Monday Night Raw! It’s time, Dixie! We’re ready, we got the Hulkster! We can defeat them, Dixie!’ Yes, Eric, I believe it was you the Hulkster who were the big cheerleaders, why? It wasn’t your money. And what did you do? You embarrassed TNA, you ashamed TNA, and ya scarred TNA for life.”
Russo then went on to claim that he helped get Bischoff a job in WWE despite their dislike for each other. Russo thought it was best for business at the time and said the following:
“I said, ‘Vince, you’ve got to hire this guy. He is a great performer, you could tell great stories with him,’ I did that, Eric! Me! Vince Russo! Even though you were my archenemy, because it was right for business. You think Vince would have ever brought you into the WWE on his own? He heard the same stories about you that everybody else knew, but it was me who put you over to him that got you the job at the WWE. How ungrateful can you be?”
Russo also stated that Dixie Carter never wanted Bischoff in TNA in the first place:
“I also want to apologize that a man had to have his lips sewn to another man, for the better part of twenty years. Sounds like a bad centipede movie to me, Eric. But that was the case between you and Hulk Hogan, wasn’t it? And Eric, how do I know that was the case? Here’s how I know it was the case. Because I want to apologize that when Dixie Carter wanted to hire Hulk Hogan, you rode in on the Hulkster’s coattails and you told Dixie Carter, ‘Hulkster ain’t coming without me, brother. This is a two for one deal.’ And ya milked Dixie, for an exorbitant amount of money, when she never wanted you in TNA in the first place.”
Former WWE and WCW writer Vince Russo recently joined the Wrestling Inc. podcast to talk about a variety of professional wrestling topics. During the show, Russo commented on how he believes the WWE is ‘mishandling’ WWE Champion Jinder Mahal and SmackDown Live star Shinsuke Nakamura’s respective pushes within the company. You can check out what he had to say here:
WWE mishandling Jinder Mahal:
“What a mishandling of Jinder Mahal three weeks as the champion,” Russo said. “And they killed it. They dropped the ball… It’s horrendous what they did to this poor guy in the last three weeks.”
“This is what they do with all these guys, Raj. Everybody just becomes another name on the roster. If you go back and you look at the Attitude Era show, every single show was built around who the champion was. And that championship and that title. Every show was built around that. That’s the most important thing on the show.”
Shinsuke Nakamura’s poor push:
“Yesterday, three weeks after winning the title, this guy was handled just like another wrestler on the show,” Russo commented about this week’s episode of Smackdown. “Bro, the announcers couldn’t have no-sold it any-more. When Shane announced he [Jinder Mahal] had a match with Mojo, the freaking announcers no-sold it. This is your freaking champion!”
“There’s a basic problem with the WWE, I’ll you what it is and this is what’s happening,” Russo stated. “We used to spend a lot of Monday Night RAW and a lot of SmackDown building characters and developing storylines. So by the time we got to the match, it was a big deal. What happened now is they don’t know how to make characters anymore, there are no storylines. Everybody just wants to fight each other. So when you take away the character building and when you take away the storylines, all you have are matches.”
“So every week bro, as you’re working towards the pay-per-view, these guys are in the same ring,” Russo explained. “Whether it’s a six-man or a tag or an eight-man, by the time you get the pay-per-view, you’ve seen these guys mix it up like three or four times before and it doesn’t mean anything. And Nakamura, as unique as the guy is, bro, what have they done,” Russo asked. “I saw a vignette of a guy yesterday painting. That’s the character build of Nakamura. I mean, that’s supposed to get me excited about this freaking guy?”
The heat between Jim Cornette and Vince Russo doesn’t seem to be going anywhere. It all started when Cornette took to the WWE Network special Table For 3 to claim that Russo has been emailing Vince McMahon regularly “begging” for a job back with the WWE. Russo responded on his podcast by inviting Cornette to come on the show and settle their differences.
Cornette then took to his own podcast, The Jim Cornette Experience, to respond to Russo’s request, but instead of taking him up on his offer he challenged him to a fist-fight with $5,000 on the line:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HErBP9e6H9A
“But here’s the rules: no cops, no guns, and no knives and we both come alone. And what happens, happens. Nobody makes a dime off of it, nobody gets any publicity off of it, nobody’s even gonna know it’s gonna happen until after it happens when nobody hears from you anymore”
“So not only will I come to you, not only will I meet you in a neutral location with no cops, no guns, no knives — just the two of us. But I’m gonna have $5,000 in cash with me because I got that Vince unlike you. You don’t have to bring anything. You don’t even have to bring a ham sandwich. I’m gonna have $5,000 in cash with me and you can have it if you can take it away from me”
“But I’m making you a legitimate offer. I swear on my mother’s grave if you give me a date, a time, and an address I will meet you there and I will bring five grand in cash. As long as the rules are no cops, no guns, and no knives and what happens, happens!”
There has been a bit of drama between former WWE writer Vince Russo and Jim Cornette lately. On a recent edition of WWE Network’s Table For 3, which featured Cornette, Michael Hayes, and Erich Bischoff, Cornette claimed that Russo had been writing Vince McMahon every week about wanting a job back with WWE. Russo recently joined the Wrestling Inc. podcast to respond to Cornette’s claims, and stated that they’re clearly not true:
“That’s absolutely untrue, Raj,” Vince said. “You know what the funny thing is and bro anybody with half a brain would understand this. Cornette obviously doesn’t have half a brain. Raj, I go on my podcast, OK, and I publicly read my personal emails with Vince McMahon.”
“Ok bro, I did that on my show. I read his response to me when I did reach out one time and I also, on Konnan’s show on Podcast One this week, I read Vince’s response to me when I called him out for the Table for 3 Show. I wrote him an email; I called him out. And he wrote me back and I read that response.”
“Raj, I’ve got to ask you question,” Russo stated. “If I’m dying and begging the WWE for a freaking job, am I really going to go on my freaking show and read Vince McMahon’s personal email,” Vince asked. “I mean, let’s just be logical bro. Like, is that the way I would get a job if I was dying and begging for a job? It’s so freaking ridiculous.”
Russo then went on to say that he found himself bashing RAW on a regular basis, and instead of having nothing but negative things to say, Vince wanted to be a part of the solution. Therefore, Russo emailed McMahon saying that he’d love to help out on RAW in any way McMahon saw fit, to which “The Chairman Of The Board” responded with “Vince, there is nothing available at this time.”
He then claimed that the exchange of emails with McMahon only occurred that one time, before providing some more backstory:
“Raj, can I tell you this,” Vince said. “I didn’t just write to Vince. I wrote to Vince because I spoke to somebody at a very high level at the WWE and basically the person relied to me, like, ‘Vince, you know they need you here’ and the person also suggested that I need to kiss Vince’s ass in order to work there. And I’m like you don’t understand; I don’t want to work there. If I can help and contribute, I will.”
Earlier this week, Vince Russo revealed he has been in contact with Vince McMahon regarding a return to WWE. According to Russo, Vince was not enthusiastic about the idea however, and he is not expecting a job offer from the company.
Jim Cornette, a longtime Russo critic, reacted to to this news on his most recent podcast. He posted his comments on his YouTube channel earlier today:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQAyE7PVRss
Cornette’s Critique of Vince Russo
According to Cornette, Russo contacts WWE on a weekly basis, critiquing Raw and possibly looking for a job.
Cornette and Eric Bischoff appeared on a recent episode of “Table for 3”, where Russo, and their complaints about him, were a topic of conversation.
Former WWE, WCW and TNA writer Vince Russo claims to have reached out to Vince McMahon last week about a potential return to the company. Russo actually heard back from the WWE Chairman, but it doesn’t sound like Russo will be writing WWE television or doing consulting work for WWE any time soon.
Russo hasn’t worked for WWE full time since 1999 but has been very outspoken about the product in recent years. To this day, Russo remains a big fan of professional wrestling. He doesn’t like a lot of what WWE puts out and took it upon himself to reach out to Vince McMahon once again to offer his services.
During an interview with Fightful.com, Russo revealed, “I’ve reached out to Vince McMahon in the past week. He got back to me. I am still a wrestling fan at heart, going back to when I was 10, 11 years old. I hate today’s product. To me, it’s not professional wrestling.”
He continued, “I don’t want to be the guy critiquing the problem without saying ‘Here’s my olive branch, I think I can help you as the numbers go down every week.’ I didn’t use the word help. You don’t tell Vince McMahon he needs help. I said ‘if you want me to contribute, I’d love to once again contribute.’”
Russo said Vince McMahon didn’t seem receptive to his offer. “Vince never seems receptive. His response is always a couple of words. He’s not that guy. He’s the same guy that told me I could get a nanny (to raise) your kids.”
You can see Russo’s comments about his recent discussion with Vince McMahon below:
WrestleMania 32 brought out a new side of Roman Reigns. As soon as he won the WWE World Heavyweight championship, Reigns came out with the title and said that he wasn’t a good guy or bad guy, but the guy.
Much to the dismay of WWE fans all around the world, he continues to say it week-after-week.
Alongside Reigns’ new attitude came even more hatred from the WWE Universe. It was the first time since The Miz’s WWE title win at WrestleMania 27. Not even the Rock could save that match.
A lot consider Reigns’ push from the WWE to be a failure. One controversial figure agrees with that logic, as former-WWE employee Vince Russo says, “It’s all Vince McMahon,” while on the Pro Wrestling Illustrated Podcast.
“It’s Vince. In Vince’s mind, it’s Bruno. It’s Backlund. Look at his history. He’s done it over and over and over again . . . Kevin Nash was this killer who beat Bob Backlund in like 8 seconds in Madison Square Garden. I was the editor at the WWF Magazine at the time. Diesel wins the belt. The next thing I know, Vince wants a picture of him on the cover of the WWF Magazine smiling like a Cheshire cat. And I remember arguing with Vince at the time, saying ‘What are you doing? This is not the character.’ And Vince wanted the white bread babyface. From there, it was Shawn Michaels’ turn. I remember Vince had me write every single promo for Shawn when they did the house show promos. Vince wanted every single promo being that white bread babyface promo. And I sat there with Shawn for hours. And it was so difficult and hard for Shawn to do, because he wasn’t that guy. After that it was the Rock. I’ll never forget. I was sitting in the office—me, The Rock and Vince— the day after The Rock won the title with that corporate swerve. And Vince is sitting there wanting him to go out and cut this white bread, babyface promo. And Rock kept looking at me like, ‘Is this guy serious?’ . . . Here we are with Roman Reigns 25, 30 years later. He’s doing the exact same thing, because Vince, at 70 years old, really believes that the 1970s philosophy is going to work today. . . It’s all he knows. He’s repeating it over and over again. And there’s nobody there with the balls to say, ‘Vince, this does not work in 2016.’”
That may be the most-accurate representation of Roman Reigns’ booking to date. Russo makes great points about the “white bread babyface” in the WWE. Until a few weeks up to WrestleMania, Reigns was making himself look foolish on the microphone.
He never had to pick up the mic to get over, but McMahon wanted it to happen.
Will Reigns’ style of booking change at WWE Payback? There are a lot of theories floating around that Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows will join Reigns. They are only theories, but something like that would give Roman Reigns a new dynamic that could work long-term.
Shawn Michaels was a guest on Vince Russo’s podcast this week and didn’t hold anything back on his opinion of the current WWE product. When asked if he misses wrestling for WWE, he responded:
“Everybody asks me, ‘Do you miss it?’ No, I don’t miss it because what’s on TV now isn’t what I used to do. So it’s easy not to miss.”
It’s an interesting quote that’s hard to disagree with. To be fair, every generation says that things were better when they were growing up. It is the old “back in my day” argument that has been had millions of times. However, Shawn Michaels was a key figure for wrestling fans who grew up in the 80’s and 90’s so it is a bit shocking to hear him give a quote like that.
Michaels also addressed fans who complain about the WWE on the internet.
“I get what those hardcore fans say and they don’t like it, but at the same time, and I’m going to get a lot of heat for this, but it is true: You do keep watching. The ratings may go down, but we’re not losing you.”
Isn’t that just the brutal truth that all of us wrestling fans hate to hear. If you are reading this right now, I’m guessing you’ve probably said to yourself “I’m never watching this again” hundreds of times. I know I certainly have. There were so many times I wondered why I was watching wrestling when it seemed like Cena was winning every match. Then, I was reminded why I watch it when I saw Edge beat him at SummerSlam 2006 live. It is the same thing now with Roman Reigns. He is not popular amongst the hardcore fans but there is no way they are going to stop watching.
During a recent appearance on Bolin Alley podcast, Former WWE, TNA and WCW writer Vince Russo spoke openly about his time working for TNA and controversial company president, Dixie Carter.
Over the years “Fire Russo” became a chant synonymous with TNA’s crappy booking, but Russo told host Kenny Bolin that during his near-decade stint with TNA, he only served as head booker for 2 months.
“I was at TNA for the good part of 10 years and there was about 2 months where as Mr Bolin would say I had the book. Other than that I will not claim 100% responsibility, simply because I did not have 100% responsibility,” Russo said. “If I had it, I would claim it and have no issue with it. When I first started, Jeff [Jarrett] was in charge of creative and my job was to bring Jeff as many ideas and as many storylines as I could, that was my job but at the end of the day Jeff decided what was on TV and what wasn’t on TV. Jeff was the boss, it was me, Jeff and Dutch Mantell. Then Jeff was sent home because of the Kurt Angle incident and there was about a 2 month there where I was literally in charge of writing the TV.
While talking about Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff’s stint with TNA, Russo bluntly stated that lying is simply part of Dixie Carter’s persona.
“Matt Conway was helping me but shortly after [Jarrett’s departure], Dixie brought in Eric Bischoff and Hulk Hogan and of course, she lied to me from the offset because Dixie lies very much, that’s part of her persona,” Russo said. “She told me the only creative input that Eric Bischoff and Hulk Hogan were going to have was as it pertained to Hulk’s character and literally within a week, there was Eric Bischoff sitting in on creative meetings acting like he was the boss, Hulk Hogan acting like he was the boss by the time we got to TV, so that was a period where I was definitely not in control of either.”
His time with TNA wasn’t all negative. Russo said his first year with TNA was probably his most enjoyable time in the wrestling business because he felt that he would have the opportunity to evolve the concepts he helped create during the Attitude Era. However, by the time TNA reached a deal with Fox Sports, it became clear he wouldn’t have the creative freedom he wanted and things went downhill from there.
WWE announcer and host of his own new WWE Network show took exception to comments made about the program, called “Legends With JBL,” from former WWE, WCW and TNA writer Vince Russo.
JBL wrote a lengthy explanation in response to comments made by Russo about JBL’s past shows with the man who helped WCW finally overtake WWE as the biggest national wrestling company, Eric Bischoff.
Featured above are the original comments made on video by Vince Russo, which were released back in September, and below is JBL’s response, which he posted on his Facebook page on Saturday.
“I saw the comments Vince Russo made about the interview I did with Eric Bischoff. I want to address a couple of points. Mr Russo said that Eric decided to appear on WWE programming-this is true, but at my request ,this was NOT Eric’s idea, it was mine. Eric is a friend and I knew he would be a great interview. To take WCW from losing $10 million to making $40+ million in five years is one of greatest stories in history. I wanted to capture this…and we did.
I am very proud of this interview. I understand Mr Russo is not happy with the content of some of Eric’s comments. I felt Eric was honest, I have known Eric for some time-I have a ton of respect for him. However, there is two sides to every story. What Eric did is incredible, I wanted this on record. For the record-I believe Eric.
It is no secret that Mr Russo and I don’t like each other, but that being said-I have no problem asking him on a show and letting him say whatever he wants. Mr Russo and I have both gotten older and hopefully wiser-would love him on a future show. I have zero animosity to Mr Russo—I am getting old:)
The other point is that Eric made money on the interview-I know his pay and it was done for history and not for money. Same as I did some other great interviews that are ‘in the can’, I want to preserve history and show honor and respect to legends with this format, it’s not about money…trust me:) It’s some of the highest watched shows on the Network.
I asked for this format to record history and honor legends-Eric fits both. Proud of my friend, Eric, for what he has done, I thought I was fair with the interview. Would be honored to have Vince Russo on the show as well-and would treat him with respect as well.
BTW, I am not asking for Mr Russo to come on the show-I am not, happy if he did, but not seeking him to come on show. He seems to be doing fine doing what he is doing, and I am happy working with at risk kids in Bermuda on my days off and certainly not asking for more work as every day I do a network show takes away from work with kids who really need my help!”
– 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
WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross recently updated the Q&A section of his official website, JRsBarBQ.com, answering questions from fans about topics such as the
On if WWE acknowledges the negative feedback they get from former WWE Superstars such as Bret Hart, Mick Foley and Vince Russo:
“Would it bother you if you were in their shoes and actually read the endless stream of negativity directed their way? I don’t have any idea if they actually immerse themselves in this info.”
On whether or not Goldust should get a run as WWE Champion before he retires:
“I’m a Goldust fan and respect him and his work greatly but I’d not have any desire for him to be WWE Champion at this stage of his game.”
On whether or not people in WWE read his website and if he’d be willing to do a WWE Network “Table For 3” episode with Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler:
“Whether someone in WWE reads my work or listens to my podcasts isn’t a concern to me. However, I’d be happy to work on any WWE projects if they fit my schedule and I thought that I’d enjoy doing them. Me working on projects in WWE isn’t an issue with me but is strictly a WWE decision.”
On not being a fan of scripted promos in WWE:
“I am not a fan of long, scripted promos in today’s world of pro wrestling. They are predictable and come off as nothing more than time fillers moe often than not.
Vince Russo posted a video this week saying that he has reached out to Vince McMahon (once again) after watching WWE RAW. Russo says that he can help save the business and he’s there for Vince if Vince needs him.
He acknowledged that he has been universally discredited and his reputation has taken a beating, but he wants to help get the industry back on track before it’s too late.
Former WWE & TNA writer Vince Russo has launched a new podcast called Nuclear Heat, which you can listen to here (.MP3). On the show’s premiere episode, Russo talked about the future of TNA and the uncertainty of their TV deal with Destination America. Russo argues that without an extension on their deal beyond the end of the year, it does not make sense for the company to do spend more money on tapings.
“Destination America has given TNA to the end of the year. That’s what we’re hearing. That’s the rumor. Nobody from TNA, nobody from Destination America, has come forward to say differently, so you have to believe there is some truth to that.”
Russo continued, “So put yourself in TNA’s position. If I know I’m done at the end of the year, with Destination America, and I don’t have another [television] network to go to, why on Earth am I going to invest the money to produce television for October, November, and December when no matter how good that television is, it doesn’t matter.”
Russo expects TNA to go back and splice together a bunch of matches from previous tapings to create ‘new’ episodes of Impact, which would help keep the show on the air for several more weeks without holding additional tapings:
“I believe that those last 12 weeks of TNA programming will probably be random matches that they do have in the can that we have not seen before here in the United States. And with that, they aren’t going to involve storylines. They are just basically going to be straight wrestling matches to fill time. That would be my guess based on what I know.”
Vince Russo wrestled at Sunday’s International Pro Wrestling: UK event from Swanley, England and took a nasty RKO during the main event.
Russo teamed with IPW:UK Champion Jimmy Havoc, Mr. Puppet and The London Riots in an Elimination Match against TNA star Grado, Scott Star, Daniel Edler and IPW:UK Tag Team Champions D&D.
Russo, who actually scored a few eliminations, was the last man standing for his team before taking being pinned Grado.
After the match, Grado picked Russo up and the two danced together before Grado laid him out with an RKO.
Over on CSRWrestling.com Vince Russo has written two lengthy articles about Sting and his work so far in the WWE. In what sounds like a letter to Vince McMahon he explains that Sting deserves better.
Below is an excerpt from the piece where he discusses Sting in the WWE. Part one can be read at this link while part two can be read by clicking on this link.
“Fast forward a couple of years later—WWE. After holding out for 15 years . . . Sting finally decides to go to work for Vince McMahon. I’d be lying to you if I didn’t admit that there were tears in my eyes when I witness Sting come out in front of that crowd at WrestleMania. For years I was there when he came out to only a handful at Universal Studios—this is what this legend deserved. Sadly, knowing Vince and his massive ego, I knew deep down going in that Sting wasn’t going to win this match. To Vince, even after 15 years, he was still getting off on beating Ted Turner, and Sting was basically the last and biggest pawn. But, as unbelievably sad as that is—it really didn’t matter. Sting was getting the send-off in front of a massive audience, and win, or lose, I was glad he was going out that way. I also knew that the W meant nothing to Sting, because in the almost decade that I had worked with him—he was always business.
Fast forward to just a few weeks ago. Yeah, I was kind of surprised that the WWE was wheeling Sting out again. Why? Because they had lowered his stock with the loss to Hunter, and now a match against the Champion just really didn’t make much sense. This clearly showed that it was Vince’s ego that defeated Sting at WrestleMania and nothing else. Why would you beat the guy who was going to eventually get a shot at your Champion a few months later, and put over the guy who isn’t even close to wrestling again. That’s ego in its rawest form. Sting got beat, because Sting was WCW and not WWE. I’m sitting here not even believing that I wrote that last line—ridiculous.”
Earlier this week, Forbes.com ran an article looking at WWE’s declining television viewership and the fact that the company will have to rely even more on WWE Network subscribers in order to remain financially successful.
Former WWE, WCW & TNA writer Vince Russo has posted a new blog update reacting to the article, stating that WWE needs to “TRY HARDER” to turn things around. Russo wrote:
An article broke today on Forbes.com, one of the world’s business leaders, citing that professional wrestling isn’t as popular as it once was. The story utilizes data and facts, to clearly back-up that the business is vastly losing its audience as less, and less of its once massive appeal is clearly waning on a year-to-year basis.
The basis of the story is that with the ratings on a consistent decline, the WWE is going to be depending more, and more on the success of the WWE Network, from a financial standpoint in order to make up for the loss of the supporting and paying public that used to tune into RAW and SMACKDOWN.
At this point, I can only wonder if people will now listen, and understand concerning the plight of pro wrestling, now that a legitimate business magazine is writing about it, and not just the “clueless” Vince Russo. The fact is that the numbers are there for anybody, and everybody to look at, but in our industry the numbers, or facts, become secondary to what those with strong opinions want to believe. The voices and pens that beat the drum of “more wrestling” in spite of less and less people truly wanting that, supersedes the real viewership problems that have steadily been there for the last 15 years.
Here’s what I don’t understand–how have I become the enemy by simply stating that the WWE needs to TRY HARDER. I have made it clear, week, after week, after week, that my complaint is not from a talent standpoint. The men and women in the WWE who are busting their asses week in, and week out, are leaving nothing in that ring. These are athletes that are built on 100% pride—just striving to be the best that they can be, despite the fact that those working behind the scenes with them have been taking a lackluster approach for years.
Over the weekend, WrestlingDVDNetwork.com released a preview clip for an upcoming WWE DVD featuring Eric Bischoff calling “B.S.” on several things Vince Russo has said about their time working together in WCW.
Vince Russo has since responded to those claims, saying that Bischoff is the one who is full of it. Specifically, he gives his side of the story regarding his infamous shoot on Hulk Hogan at Bash at the Beach 2000. Russo says, “Eric Bischoff has obviously forgotten what the truth is.”
– On Tuesday, WWE will release their “Monday Night War: Vol. 2: Know Your Role” DVD and Blu-ray set, which as noted, will feature a new interview with Eric Bischoff. Below is a clip from the special that features Bischoff calling “B.S.” on comments made by both Paul Heyman and Vince Russo during the “Monday Night War” series on the WWE Network.
– Fred Oliveira, a video director of Grey Wolf Visuals, is currently filming some kind of project that involves Eva Marie and her husband Jonathan Coyle. Oliveira tweeted the following teaser on Saturday.
– Former WWE star Mantaur will be bringing back that gimmick for only the second time since leaving WWE nearly 20 years ago. His first match was in 2013 against Tito Santana for the Pro Wrestling Syndicate promotion. His second post-WWE match will take place at St. Patrick’s CYO Sports in Brooklyn, New York, also for the PWS promotion, on Saturday, September 12th. For ticket information, visit ProWrestlingSyndicate.com.
– Former WWE announcer Justin Roberts will be the guest on the next edition of Jim Ross’ “Ross Report” podcast, which drops on Tuesday evening, September 8th at PodcastOne.com.
– Former WWE, WCW and TNA writer Vince Russo is the guest on the latest edition of Ric Flair’s “WOOOOO! Nation” podcast, which you can download right now at Play.it.
– WWE taped the following matches on Tuesday night in Miami, Florida for tonight’s edition of WWE SmackDown:
* The Dudleyz vs. The Prime Time Players
* Stardust vs. Neville
* Sheamus vs. Cesaro
* Bo Dallas vs. R-Truth
* Charlotte vs. Tamina Snuka
* Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose vs. Big E and Kofi Kingston
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.