As soon as it was announced that Hulk Hogan had come to terms on a $31 million settlement of his lawsuit against Gawker, wrestling fans immediately began speculating about his return to WWE. Fueling the fire, Brooke Hogan told TMZ that her dad is already in negotiations to return at WrestleMania 33, while on last week’s Bauer and Pollock podcast, Court Bauer reported that Hogan has recently been taping talking head segments for WWE Network programming. The idea of the latter is that whenever they air, it’s under the radar enough that WWE can ease into bringing Hogan back, plus viewers don’t really know when those clips are filmed, anyway.

Having said all that, it’s not as if settling the sex tape lawsuit is/was the only hurdle for Hogan’s return. After all, it was, in and of itself, never the issue. The Gawker post didn’t hurt his career; last year’s National Enquirer article revealing his racist comments on a different sex tape (I subsequently located the audio for some of it in April) did. While they’re connected and the lawsuit being settled does chip away at the legs of the racist comments story, the settlement (if approved by the bankruptcy and trial judges) may not be the end for a few reasons.

The biggest is that Hogan still has a lawsuit outstanding that’s centered on the original leak of the racist comments. Filed in May in the same court as the Gawker lawsuit, it named not just the now-bankrupt blog empire (which Hogan alleged was the Enquirer’s source despite no compelling evidence), but also everyone who he believes was involved with the original sex tape leak to Gawker as well as a subsequent extortion attempt using all of the videos as bait. If that lawsuit keeps going, it’s going to keep the topic of his racist comments in the public eye for as long as the case lasts.

So is it gonna keep going?

That’s hard to say right now. Obviously the claim against Gawker, which was tenuous in the first place, is being dropped soon. When reached for comment, Gawker attorney Rachel Fugate said she had “no clue” if Hogan would be dropping the case against the other defendants. Charles Harder, Hogan’s lead attorney on the Gawker cases, did not return a request for comment. So it likely comes down to this: Did Hogan file the second  lawsuit as part of the deal with Peter Thiel to drive Gawker out of business (with the others as collateral damage, albeit people who Hogan had no problem suing), or would he have pursued this case regardless?

While it ramped up after he started needing money in the aftermath of his son’s car wreck and his first wife filing for divorce, Hogan has been a very litigious man for going on two decades now. Ever since he filed an extortion lawsuit against the woman he sued him alleging that he sexually assaulted her the weekend before the first episode of Monday Nitro, he’s been relented. Last year, Amanda Hess wrote this in an article about the sex tape case at Slate:

Hogan is easily aggrieved. When a woman accused him of sexual battery, he sued her; when his ex-wife Linda alleged domestic abuse in her memoir, he sued her; when a series of back surgeries stopped Hogan from inking a last-hurrah wrestling contract, he sued the surgeon; when his auto insurance failed to cover the cost of his tipsy teenage son recklessly driving his sports car into a tree, causing permanent brain damage to a passenger, Hogan sued his insurance company; when that didn’t work, he sued Linda, too, for not forcing him to be better insured; when Hogan’s lawyers sent the bill for their services, he sued them as well.

That’s definitely missing plenty of cases, too. So it’s easy to make an argument for why he would continue to pursue the second lawsuit, but it’s just as easy to argue that it was primarily part of the plan to sink Gawker. The only mark against the latter is that if Hogan’s lawyers foresaw Gawker filing bankruptcy a month after they filed the suit (and it’s starting to look more and more like they did), then the second lawsuit was unlikely to push them further in that direction.

Until they know for sure whether or not this case is going away, though, it’s likely too risky for WWE to bring Hogan back as a an actual character, and not just a talking head on canned streaming shows. If the case is still going, then Hogan’s racist comments will literally be an ongoing issue in the public record until the case is resolved.

WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has checked in with his latest blog update, which you can read in its entirety over at JRsBarBQ.com. JR spoke with Chris Jericho on Monday morning and got Jericho’s side of the story regarding his backstage altercation that took place over the weekend at a WWE live event in the United Kingdom.

“Chris said it was largely about nothing and that it resembled more of a scuffle than a full fledged fight. Sin Cara threw one punch and then the minor melee was broken up. Tensions often times rise on these extended, international tours which can bring out the worst in people. This scrap apparently occurred on the bus in route to Glasgow. At the end of the day, it was seemingly much to do about not that much on a slow news day online.”

• Details On What Started Chris Jericho & Sin Cara’s Backstage Altercation

JR also commented on the prospect of Hulk Hogan returning to WWE and appearing at WrestleMania 33 next April. He feels WWE (like any other entity) needs all the star power they can muster for their biggest show of the year.

“Seems like good marketing to me and something I that I’d concur with without any reservations. Hogan’s an icon, the Babe Ruth of his era, and would appeal to many fans who will engage the April 2, 2017 event. I think that it would be fun for many fans to see the red and yellow front and center at Wrestlemania because after all he did have a significant hand in helping build the brand that changed the business. ”

• Video: Brooke Hogan Says Her Dad Is Negotiating With WWE

Head over to JRsBarBQ.com to read the full blog. The Jim Ross Show podcast is also available at PodcastOne.com.

If you’re a fan of WWE’s curated “Collections” of themed matches and angles, then we have some good news for you. As reported on Saturday by Steve Coulson of WWE Network News, Monday (November 7th) will see the release of two new additions to the Collections bucket: Austin vs. McMahon Part II and Randy Savage: Cream of the Crop. Here are the official descriptions for each collection:

Austin vs. McMahon Part II:

One of the greatest rivalries of all time rages on as the next chapter in the saga between the tyrannical Mr. McMahon and the defiant Stone Cold Steve Austin unfolds. Beginning with WrestleMania XV, follow The Rattlesnake and The Boss throughout their journey of ups and downs, Black Weddings, Greater Powers, celebrations, farewells, and more, culminating with the stunning fallout from WrestleMania X-Seven. Relive these unforgettable matches and moments in this exclusive WWE Network Collection!

Randy Savage: Cream of the Crop:

Get ready to freak out and let the madness begin with this WWE Network Collection celebrating the storied career of Macho Man Randy Savage. From unforgettable moments and interviews, to both rare and classic battles against Macho Man”s greatest rivals, there is only one place to find these eclectic moments from the Hall of Famer”s legendary run in sports entertainment!

– WrestleMania has once again made the top 10 of Forbes’ “Fab 40: The World’s Most Valuable Sports Brands” events list for the third year in a row. WrestleMania came in at number five, behind the Super Bowl, the Summer Olympics, the Winter Olympics and FIFA’s World Cup.

Forbes valued WrestleMania at $180 million, a 5.9% ­change from one year ago. #5 is a very impressive showing for WWE, with Forbes valuing WrestleMania higher than the World Series, college football playoffs, the college basketball Final Four and the Daytona 500.

According to Forbes, WrestleMania 32 in Dallas generated $29.4M in live event, WWE Network and stadium merchandise revenue, 18% more than the previous year’s event in Santa Clara. For more information, click this link.

– WWE has announced that the November 16th NXT Live Event from The Theater at Madison Square Garden will be headlined by NXT Champion Shinsuke Nakamura teaming with Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano to take on Samoa Joe and the NXT Tag Team Champions The Revival. Other stars being advertised for this enormous event include NXT Women’s Champion Asuka, Roderick Strong, Eric Young, Ember Moon, Bobby Roode, No Way Jose, Tye Dillinger, Cedric Alexander, and Nikki Cross.

– Below are clips featuring WWE Intercontinental Champion Dolph Ziggler discussing Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton and the US Presidential Election:

https://twitter.com/HEELZiggler/status/793840196856979458

https://twitter.com/HEELZiggler/status/793841831918313472

Yahoo News posted a story on Wednesday morning about Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s connections to Robert LiButti, a reputed mob member who was a regular at Atlantic City casinos when the former was in that business. It’s a topic they’ve covered in the past, including how Trump Plaza was fined over connections to LiButti before he was banned from New Jersey casinos. The new story, however, centers around new evidence they discovered that theoretically rebuts Trump’s claims that he didn’t know LiButti: The two of them attending WrestleMania IV together.

Held at the Atlantic City Convention Center (billed as “Trump Plaza” due to the hotel sponsoring the event), Trump is seated in the front row opposite the hard camera throughout WrestleMania IV. LiButti is next to him the whole time. However, even though the show is on WWE Network with minimal edits, this is how Yahoo referred to the clip (emphasis ours):

The reputed mob figure, Robert LiButti, can be seen standing alongside Trump in the front row of a 1988 “WrestleMania” match in Atlantic City, N.J. LiButti wasn’t there by accident, according to his daughter, Edith Creamer, who also attended the event. “We were his guests,” she told Yahoo News in a text message this week.

The video was given to Yahoo News by a confidential source who discovered it in the online archives of World Wrestling Entertainment, the sponsor of “WrestleMania.”

The images and clips in question have the WWE logo on them and appear to be taken from WWE Network’s version of the WrestleMania IV broadcast, not any kind of leaked video taken from WWE’s servers. Also, while worded oddly, that last part of the quoted section isn’t even factually true. as Trump Plaza was the sponsor of the event. That’s why the Atlantic City Convention Center was referred to as “Trump Plaza” for the show, because the sponsoring hotel got naming rights a la Atlantic City boxing events from that era.

Analysis: Politics aside, this is really strange, but also not the first time something like this happened during the election. Other outlets have branded previously broadcast Trump clips as exclusive discoveries, though not necessarily with the “confidential source” angle and sleight of hand used here by Yahoo. Even though there’s news value to tying together Trump and LiButti with the clip, the claims about the sourcing cast a shadow over the entire piece.

WWE sent out the following press release on Monday:

WWE Wins five Gold and 12 Silver W3 Awards; WrestleMania 31 takes home Best in Show Award

WrestleMania 31 was recently honored by the Academy of Interactive and Visual Arts (AIVA) W3 Awards as “best in show” in the Social Content and Marketing category; the first-ever Best In Show award won by WWE.

Additionally, WWE Network, WWE.com, WWE App, Connor’s Cure and WWE Social Media were all recognized for their creative excellence with five W3 Gold Awards and 12 Silver Awards – for an overall total of 18 Awards.

For a list of all W3 awards won by WWE please see below:

BEST IN SHOW

· WWE WrestleMania 31 – Social Content & Marketing – Sports

GOLD

· WWE.com – Website Features – Home Page

· WWE Network – Website Features – Visual Appeal

· WWE App w/ WWE Network – Mobile Apps/Sites – Sports

· WWE Social Media – Social Features-Social Presence

· Connor’s Cure – Social Content & Marketing – Public Service & Activism

SILVER

· WWE.com – General Website Categories – Sports

· WWE.com – General Website Categories – Entertainment

· WWE on YouTube – Video Channels and Networks – Variety

· WWE Network – General Website Categories – Entertainment

· WWE Network – General Website Categories – Sports

· WWE Network – General Website Categories – Media Streaming

· WWE WrestleMania 31 – Social Content & Marketing – Events

· WWE WrestleMania 31 – Social Content & Marketing – Entertainment

· WWE App w/ WWE Network – Mobile Apps/Sites – Entertainment

· WWE App w/ WWE Network – Mobile Features – Best User Interface

· WWE Superstar Ink – Online Video-Web Series

· Make your grand WrestleMania 32 entrance in 360° – Online Video-Interactive Video

The W³ Awards honors creative excellence on the web, and recognizes the creative and marketing professionals behind award winning sites, videos and marketing programs. The W³ is sanctioned and judged by the Academy of Interactive and Visual Arts, an invitation-only body consisting of top-tier professionals from a “Who’s Who” of acclaimed media, interactive, advertising, and marketing firms.

Why WWE wouldn’t get awards for WrestleMania 31 until 18 months later isn’t exactly clear, but WWE has a slickly designed presentation about the show for award purposes on WWEAwards.com. That’s a real site, described as “WWE digital awards portfolio website.”

There’s a new promotion in the WrestleMania weekend indie show mix, and it’s a surprising one. WhatCulture Pro Wrestling, the new UK-based promotion, announced on Monday that it will be running a show in Orlando on the afternoon of April 1st.

April 1st, 2017. We're coming to Orlando! Tickets and info: https://t.co/iWT93q0Uxf pic.twitter.com/4wU3Un5xmK

— DEFIANT Wrestling (@DEFIANTwres) October 24, 2016

That’s the day before WrestleMania 33, and if past years are any indication, WCPW will likely be running shows opposite WrestleCon, WWE Fan Axxess, Shimmer, possibly Evolve, and probably various local promotions. Announce so far are Joseph Conners, Joe Hendry, Martin Kirby, El Ligero, Grado, Primate, Drake and “Many more yet to be confirmed!” In other words, WCPW’s core wrestlers are committed but not any outside talent as of yet.

WCPW got a lot of attention for an internet pay-per-view a few weeks back that included very expensive fly-ins like Minoru Suzuki, Kurt Angle, Bret Hart as a surprise, and the commentary team of Jim Ross (during college football season, no less) and Jim Cornette (who never flies except for offers he can’t refuse). The response was mixed, in large part due to streaming issues on the WCPW side (FITE TV’s stream was unaffected).

Analysis: WrestleMania weekend is already a crowded space, to the point that this only makes sense if a lot oft he costs (staff flying in for WrestleMania weekend, the wrestlers working other shows and having promoters split the costs of flights, etc) are already taken care of in large part. Maybe this will have a unique appeal to the throng of British fans in town, but they also could decide they’d rather see different wrestling if they’re traveling abroad.

WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart made a surprise appearance during the recent “Inside The Ropes: An Evening with Jim Ross and Jim Cornette” event from London and revealed some interesting details regarding the WrestleMania 13 main event that never happened.

Following up on their Iron Man Match at WrestleMania 12 that saw the realization of Shawn Michaels’ boyhood dream, there were talks of a rematch taking place the following year. “I remember we talked about — my understanding was when I left that meeting that day was that I was gonna come back, and I was gonna have a bit of a chip on my shoulder towards Shawn, start ragging on him for not being a good role model, and then to — cause I remember watching him on TV and he’d pull his pants down and show his pubes and all that,” Hart said.

“Being the ‘so called’ hero- baby face of the company, that’s not a good way to present yourself. I just remember sort of making note in my head, and the more I saw Shawn doing stuff like that, pulling his pants down and getting the kids dancing and all that in the ring, it’d be easy for me as a babyface to take exception to what Shawn was doing. But I thought really what it was was a chance for me to make a storyline here with Shawn where I lost the title to him at Wrestlemania 12 and I got a bit of a chip on my shoulder that I lost, the way the whole thing was set up was perfect for me to come back with a bit of an attitude about Shawn. And what I had wanted to do was work a storyline with Shawn where I’d wrestle him at Wrestlemania, we woulda had a really good match.”

Bret put Shawn over as a great wrestle and one of the best he’s ever worked with – “maybe the best I ever worked with in a lot of ways.”

Bret wanted to have a great 35 minute match that would have resulted in him snapping – both figuratively and literally (Shawn’s foot). “Basically a duplicate of the ironman match all over again, but we wouldn’t go the full hour again. I wanted to do a thing where Shawn was stomping his foot, getting ready to give me the big kick, and I’m in trouble like I’m pulling myself up form the ropes on the other side of the ring and Shawn goes to give me that big kick as I stagger over to him, just like at the iron man match. Except this time I would take Shawn’s foot, catch it in the air and get him to the ground and put some kind of a shoot hold on his foot and break his foot right in the middle of the ring. I wanted Shawn to tap out like they do in UFC, where it’s like when they break somebody’s arm they tap out pretty fast and everyone jumps in and it’s a very serious kind of thing. I wanted to break Shawn’s foot and then they hand me the belt and I would’ve gone over and stand over the top of him and go ‘f*ck you.’

Sadly, it wasn’t meant to be for a variety of reasons. Bret still went heel and wrestled “Stone Cold” Steve Austin in the classic double-turn match that saw Austin passing out while in the sharpshooter. Shawn Michaels was involved in the main event – doing color commentary for The Undertaker’s WWE Championship victory over Sycho Sid.

Props to WrestleZone.com for the transcribed quotes.

Source: Miami Herald

The Miami Dolphins, the Miami Beach Convention Center, the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau and the AmericanAirlines Arena/HEAT Group submitted a bid to host WrestleMania in 2018, 2019 or 2020. WrestleMania 33 is confirmed for Orlando next year and it’s unlikely WWE will run WrestleMania in Florida two consecutive years but 35 in 2019 and 36 in 2020 are possible.

The plan would be to hold the event at the un-named Dolphins stadium, which has undergone a half-billion dollar renovation.

The Herald reports that local organizers are optimistic about their chances as WWE last chose their city for WrestleMania 28 in 2012.

– WWE has had talks about bringing WrestleMania 34 back to the NYC area in 2018. MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ hosted WrestleMania 29, which was a huge success by all accounts.

– Last week, it was announced that Paul Heyman’s Looking4Larry agency will be the focus of an upcoming reality show in development with Left/Right productions. Aside from the agency itself, another focus of the show will be Heyman’s life as the single parents to two children. He told TheWrap.com last week,

“I’m a single parent looking to demonstrate to his children that you can work your ass off and have the time of your life doing it. I sleep two hours a night, so if I don’t keep busy, I end up getting myself in a lot of trouble. At least now if I get in trouble, it’ll make for good television.”

Sources close to Heyman say that his 11 and 13 year old children will not appear on camera, although they will be referenced.

Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

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.

On the latest episode of his Talk is Jericho podcast, Chris Jericho briefly commented on the length of his current run with WWE – essentially telling fans, it’s none of your damn business.

“For all you jack-offs that think you can predict what my future is, I’m not going anywhere.” Jericho said. “Am I going to be here next week? Yeah. Am I going to be here one more month? I’m not going to tell you. You’re just going to have to wait and see.”

WWE’s first-ever Undisputed World Heavyweight Champion got a big win over AJ Styles this past weekend, an outcome that most fans did not see coming. Jericho said he had an amazing time at the event and said it’s addictive working in front of the massive crowds WWE draws for its biggest shows of the year.

“When you actually get there, you get to that stadium and see 101,000 people, I’ll tell you what, man, it’s an experience like no other. And it doesn’t matter how many shows I’ve done, how many matches I’ve had, how many WrestleManias I’ve had, there [have] been 12, nothing beats going out there in front of that type of crowd and having a great match. And it’s what we do this for.”

Jericho thinks he and Styles had one of the top 3 matches on the show, along with the IC title ladder match and the Women’s Championship match.

“I had a great time working with AJ Styles all four of our matches and the last one at WrestleMania [32] was exactly what we wanted. And especially after the amazing spectacle of the seven-man Intercontinental [Championship] ladder match. Our mission was to bring it down a bit and then build it back up with wrestling. And we did that. It was one of the best matches on the show. I don’t mind saying that.”

You can listen to the entire episode now over at PodcastOne.com.

H/T to William Windsor of WrestlingINC.com for the transcribed quotes

At the Wrestling Classics Message Board, Matt Farmer, who’s a well-known pro wrestling historian and former indie wrestler known to be very well connected in the industry, has posted the exact attendance for WrestleMania 32. Reports from Dave Meltzer and Brian Alvarez of WrestlingObserver.com pegged the number as somewhere between 93,000 and 94,000, which made sense because WWE usually exaggerates by about 8,000 people and they announced 101,763.

According to Farmer, the actual number is 93,730. [UPDATE: Farmer updated his number to 97,769,  which Meltzer and Alvarez are also now reporting.] That includes several thousand standing room tickets to the “Dallas Cowboys Party Plaza,” which is in the AT&T Stadium facility but not the main stadium bowl. It’s not unlike counting the old closed circuit crowds at the Felt Forum (now The Theater) as part of the attendance for Madison Square Garden cards where the forum was opened up due to overflow. They’re in the same building, but they’re not necessarily the same venue, though the Party Plaza is always counted in AT&T Stadium numbers.

Farmer also noted that “As of last week there was just over 86,000 tickets sold.”

This is the new undisputed WWE record, and is the verified professional wrestling record outside of the two shows at Mayday Stadium in Pyongyang, North Korea in 1995. Those shows are extreme outliers, being that they took place in a dictatorship, nobody there had ever seen pro wrestling before, and, for lack of a better term, those in attendance felt it was their civic duty to attend. The previous announced record was, of course, WrestleMania III at the Pontiac Silverdome in 1987, which WWE has always insisted publicly was 93,173. According to both Meltzer and PWTorch’s Wade Keller, Zane Brushoff, the local promoter (who’s since passed away), provided documentation to them showing the number was about 78,500. Meltzer was later given access to internal WWE records that showed the same number.

The actual record for WWE was 78,927 for SummerSlam 92 at Wembley Stadium, which was announced as “just” (as in relative to WrestleMania III) 80,355. Presumably the reason for that was wanting WrestleMania III to be the “official” record until they could beat it by a wide margin. Since then, stadium WrestleManias usually topped off a few thousand short of the record. There have been a number of stadium shows in places like India, Pakistan, and Greece that are believed to have drawn anywhere from 100,000 to 200,000 fans, but it’s not at all clear how verifiable those figures are. Particularly, King Kong Czaja is believed to have drawn a number of six figure crowds in the 1940s.

But until we get more verification of those numbers, WrestleMania 32 at AT&T Stadium is the biggest crowd that doesn’t involve loyalty to a dictator.

WWE issued the following statement this morning with regards to the issues getting fans into AT&T Stadium for WrestleMania yesterday:

To ensure the safety of WWE fans, increased security measures were put in place tonight. We apologize that it may have taken some fans longer than usual to get into AT&T Stadium.

Fans in line at the stadium were told that the delays were caused by issues with the stadium’s Wi-Fi bringing down their wireless ticket scanning system. Given the two conflicting stories, it came off as at least curious.  Then this exchange happened on Twitter this morning:

@RealPaigeWWE sorry Paige i have no idea how your stalker got to mania and #Axxess.He had a restraining order from WWEEvnts here in Germany

— Raymond Reddington (@morpheus40721) April 4, 2016

https://twitter.com/RealPaigeWWE/status/717013496865533954

That’s not a good look either way, but more so if they had increased security.

It’s not the first time WWE talent, female or otherwise, have had issues with stalkers. Most recently, as far as it going public, there was the man who was shot by police outside the WWE Performance Center. Previously, TMZ had reported on Maryse having her own problems with a stalker, and Tough Enough Season 3 contestant Lisa had infiltrated the backstage area repeatedly after being removed from the show when she had some kind of breakdown. Ric Flair also had numerous run-ins with a stalker over many years, as did Bret Hart, who wrote about the topic in his book.

Wrestlemania 32 Kickoff Show

United States Championship Match: Kalisto (c) vs Ryback

Heading into Wrestlemania I thought for sure Ryback would become the new United States Champion. Ryback pretty much dominated the entire match, but it all turned when Kalisto sent him flying into the exposed turnbuckle. Kalisto then hit the Salida del Sol and it was all over. I guess the WWE really is trying to make Kalisto the new Rey Mysterio.

Team Total Divas (Natalya, Paige, Alicia Fox, Brie Bella and Eva Marie) vs. B.A.D. and Blond (Lana, Tamina Snuka, Naomi, Emma and Summer Rae)

This match was far more entertaining than I expected it to be. Lana made her in ring debut and hit a couple of kicks. One of the biggest takeaways from this match was the incredibly negative reaction Eva Marie got from the WWE universe. In the end, Brie Bella got Naomi in the “Yes! Lock” for the submission. After the match, Nikki Bella came out sporting a neck brace and celebrated with Team Total Divas. This was a cool moment, especially since this is most likely Brie Bella’s last match.

https://twitter.com/Sloomzo/status/716752376221286400

The WWE Women’s Championship Belt is Revealed

Lita came out to the ring and unveiled the new belt which is replacing the Diva’s belt. The belt looks absolutely awesome and it is about time the WWE got rid of the word “diva” when it comes to professional wrestling.

Yep, it's a beauty! #WrestleMania #WomensChampionship @AmyDumas pic.twitter.com/WlecOKpLo0

— WWE WrestleMania (@WrestleMania) April 3, 2016

The Usos vs. The Dudley Boyz

I’ve hated the build to this match. The Dudley Boyz denouncing tables hasn’t made me hate them, it has just made this feud even more boring than it already was. This match was thankfully short but it was decent enough. As expected, the Usos got the victory. After the match, the Dudley Boyz attacked the Usos and brought tables into the ring. However, the Usos fought back and wound up frog-splashing the Dudleyz through the tables. The crowd booed the hell out of this for some reason. I thought it was pretty awesome and it makes sense since the WWE is trying to build up the Usos.

Wrestlemania 32 Main Card

Kevin Owens (c) vs. The Miz vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Sami Zayn vs. Stardust vs. Zack Ryder vs. Sin Cara in a Ladder Match for the WWE Intercontinental Championship

This was an incredible match. There were so many amazing spots in this match. The one that stood out the most to me was when Kevin Owens pushed Sin Cara off the ladder and he landed on Stardust. Of course, Stardust was already laying on top of a ladder and they both went smashing through it. I never in a million years thought that Zack Ryder would wind up winning this match. He felt like a throw in, simply in the match due to the injury to Neville. This was a tremendous way to start off the show and the finish was certainly unexpected.

Congratulations to Zack Ryder for becoming the NEW WWE Intercontinental Champion. #WWE pic.twitter.com/EF1E5ETKw2

— WWE Today In History ? (@WWE__History) April 3, 2016

Chris Jericho vs. AJ Styles

I thought that this match had the potential to steal the show and it did not disappoint. The match started out slow, but when it got going it was incredible. This was another shocking finish to me. I thought AJ Styles would surely get the win at his first Wrestlemania, but Jericho came out on top. I don’t really get why Jericho won but it doesn’t really matter. This feud will most likely continue and that sounds good to me.

What a victory for @IAmJericho! #WrestleMania pic.twitter.com/lsEhMIV9iG

— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) April 3, 2016

The League Of Nations vs. The New Day in a Handicap Match for “Tag Team Supremacy”

Originally, this was going to be a match for the tag team titles but it was changed before Wrestlemania. Once that happened, I figured the League of Nations would get the victory and they did. The match itself was alright but what happened after was legendary. Shawn Michaels, Mick Foley and Stone Cold all came out and whooped the League of Nation’s ass. Xavier Woods tried to get Stone Cold to dance and fell victim to a vicious Stone Cold stunner. This was the quintessential Wrestlemania moment for anyone that grew up in the 80’s or 90’s.

https://twitter.com/BBCSporf/status/716781978260017153

Brock Lesnar vs. Dean Ambrose in a No Holds Barred Street Fight

The match started off with a trip to Suplex City for Dean Ambrose. Dean Ambrose fought back a bit but ultimately lost due to 13 german suplexes and an F-5 onto a pile of chairs. Everybody knew that Lesnar would win this match, the question was if the match will help Ambrose in the future. Dean Ambrose looked good and put up a fight against Brock Lesnar, but overall this match felt pretty insignificant. Watching Lesnar suplex the living hell out of people is always entertaining, I just thought there would be more epic moments in this match. It was entertaining but pretty forgettable.

Charlotte (c) vs. Sasha Banks vs. Becky Lynch in a Triple Threat Match for the WWE Women’s Championship

This was another match that was excellent and another result I didn’t see coming. I thought Sasha Banks would walk out as the new Women’s Champion and once again I was wrong. It is amazing what female wrestlers can do if they are just given some time to perform in the ring. It seems like the WWE is finally figuring that out, better late than never I guess. Charlotte got Becky Lynch in the Figure 8 Leg Lock and Sasha Banks was unable to stop the hold because Ric Flair was holding her back outside the ring. I wish Ric Flair wasn’t involved in this match but it is what it is. This was a fantastic match and Charlotte is the first WWE Women’s Champion.

What an amazing match!!! So proud of @MsCharlotteWWE @SashaBanksWWE & @BeckyLynchWWE! Such inspiring women!!! You guys rule!!! #WrestleMania

— Noelle Foley (@NoelleFoley) April 4, 2016

The Undertaker vs. Shane McMahon Hell In A Cell Match (If Shane wins, he controls RAW/WWE. If Undertaker loses, he can never compete at WrestleMania again)

When Shane McMahon jumped off the top of the cell to try and elbow drop the Undertaker through a table I almost lost my mind. This match lived up to the hype and then some. I desperately wanted Shane McMahon to win the match just so the weekly promos from the Authority would stop. Unfortunately, that was not the case and the Undertaker got the win. Thus, Vince McMahon and the Authority remain in control of Monday Night Raw and the painfully boring promos will continue.

https://twitter.com/ThisIsMyHouse02/status/716811129079595008

Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal

DDP, Tanaka and Shaq were in the battle royal, so that was cool. Other than that this match’s sole objective was to take up some time before the main-event. NXT’s Baron Corbin wound up getting the win, which was refreshing. I was worried Kane or Mark Henry were going to win it.

After the match the Dallas Cowboy’s cheerleaders came out and danced. Then, for some reason, the Rock came out with a flamethrower. That went on for several meaningless minutes before he finally walked to the ring. He then went on to announce that Dallas, Texas has broken the attendance record but was interrupted by the Wyatt Family. Ultimately, this led a literal six second match between the Rock and Erick Rowan in which the Rock hit a Rock Bottom right away. The Wyatt’s went to attack the Rock but John Cena came out and made the save. It was good to see Cena back, even if he only did a couple of moves. I find it weird that the Wyatt family was once again buried in a big spot. Why take another Bray Wyatt promo seriously if he is just going to get destroyed at every big event? Sure, this was a cool Wrestlemania moment, but it buried the Wyatt family yet again.

Arrive. Make #WrestleMania moments. Leave. @JohnCena @TheRock pic.twitter.com/W9fNyQuUt1

— WWE WrestleMania (@WrestleMania) April 4, 2016

Triple H (c) vs. Roman Reigns in a No Disqualification Match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship

As expected, the boos were deafening for Roman Reigns. The guy is clearly talented but has been the victim of bad booking ever since the Shield disbanded. Stephanie McMahon even cut a promo before the match that pretty much insulted everyone in the audience in a desperate attempt for the crowd to cheer Roman Reigns. It didn’t work. It will never work. Apparently that doesn’t matter to the WWE as they just went ahead and ignored the reaction from crowd after crowd. Roman Reigns gets the win over Triple H and is the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion. The WWE didn’t turn him heel or anything, he just won the match.

The @WWE World Heavyweight Champion @WWERomanReigns overcomes the odds to close out #WrestleMania!!! pic.twitter.com/gAPqHToP9r

— WWE (@WWE) April 4, 2016

Final Thoughts

This Wrestlemania started out great and unpredictable. Unfortunately, it veered off that path and turned out to be rather safe and predictable. I have no problem with Roman Reigns being champion, I just don’t understand why he wasn’t turned heel. The WWE universe has let it be known that they don’t really want Roman Reigns to be the good-guy champion. It would have made perfect sense for Reigns to turn into a bad guy and walk out champion, the way he won it made no sense at all. Tomorrow night will have to be one hell of a Monday Night Raw for the WWE because people were already sick of Roman Reigns before he was champion. For those who think that Roman Reigns is another John Cena they are wrong. John Cena actually has the capability of entertaining the audience on the microphone and in the ring. Roman Reigns is decent in the ring and can’t cut a promo to save his life. What started out as a great Wrestlemania, ended with the WWE universe scratching their heads at the blind stubbornness of the WWE.

WrestleMania 32 Kickoff Show (Mauro Ranallo as host/play by play announcer)

Team Total Divas (Natalya, Paige, Alicia Fox, Brie Bella and Eva Marie) vs. B.A.D. and Blond (Lana, Tamina Snuka, Naomi, Emma and Summer Rae)

The two big things going into this match are that it’s Lana’s in-ring debut and probably Brie Bella’s last (or next to last) WWE match for the time being. The finish depends on what they’re trying to do here. Well, and if Lana has political weirdness going on. Brie winning would be a nice moment, but the heels need a big win a lot more, especially with Lana debuting and both Emma and Summer Rae returning to the mix. Still, this was so hastily thrown together (with an angle shot on Main Event, no less) that it doesn’t really matter. E! and/or Bunim/Murray Productions wanting Team Total Divas to go over could also be a factor, especially depending on what type of storylines they’ve been shooting and if they’re looking to give Eva Marie a big moment.

The Usos vs. The Dudley Boyz

This has potential to be a really good match, as The Usos tend to deliver on big shows and especially WrestleMania, plus they may have chips on their shoulders about being on the pre-show. The Usos should get a win here to blow off the feud in what is, on paper, the best match of the kickoff show.

Kalisto (c) vs. Ryback for the WWE United States Championship

Kalisto’s first WrestleMania match, so he should be looking to make a statement with his performance as well. The only ending that makes sense is Kalisto conquering Ryback and proving The Big Guy wrong about if a good little guy can beat a good big guy. Anything else would be a flat ending and kill of Kalisto. In the ring, this might be the sleeper match of the card. Ryback has quietly improved a lot in the last year or so and he’s done some fun promos to hype this match, so if it delivers with an uplifting finish, it’ll be a nice way to gear the fans up for the main card.

WrestleMania 32 Main Card

Chris Jericho vs. AJ Styles

This is the rubber match, and Styles has to win. On top of only being in for a limited run, Jericho has not been setting the world on fire since his return, most noticeable having blown a lot of spots in their previous pay-per-view match. Styles, on the other hand, is coming off a run where he was arguably the best wrestler in the world and excelling at putting on great big show matches. There’s really no reason for Jericho to win this match; It’s for Styles to get a big win over a tenured star in (hopefully) a great match at WrestleMania.

Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal

With the reports that Braun Strowman has lost favor with Vince McMahon, this is wide open, especially with the surprise entrants. Baron Corbin is rumored to be one of the surprises (Tommy Dreamer is another) and would make some sense. Otherwise? If the Strowman story is false, he should still win. If it’s true? This is a pick ’em with no obvious winner except for maybe one of the surprises.

The League Of Nations vs. The New Day in a Handicap Match for “Tag Team Supremacy”

New Day has been winning most of the matches in this feud, which would make you think they lose here, but with all of rumors about their big entrance and a surprise star being involved in the finish,  it sure seems like they’re winning unless plans changed. In the ring, the feud hasn’t been lighting the world on fire but I could see them pulling out the stops here, especially with the kind of risks Kofi Kingston and Big E like to take.

Charlotte (c) vs. Sasha Banks vs. Becky Lynch in a Triple Threat Match for the WWE Divas Championship

All signs point to Banks winning here, though it feels like Lynch caught on better with the fanbase at large. In-ring expectations will be high coming off of their NXT matches, so expect the usual flashy, rehearsed match with a lot of dramatic false finishes. This should also lead to the rebranded WWE Women’s Championship being introduced tonight or tomorrow and the winner will be doing a lot of media, so expect this to be treated as a really big deal.

Kevin Owens (c) vs. The Miz vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Sami Zayn vs. Stardust vs. Zack Ryder vs. Sin Cara in a Ladder Match for the WWE Intercontinental Championship

Zayn should win to get momentum and set up an Owens program after how coldly he was introduced to the main roster fans. Will they do that? It’s not like the other options are especially realistic other than Owens retaining and maybe Ziggler winning for a renewed push. I’m especially curious to see what Stardust, Ryder, and Sin Cara pull out, as they’re all more talented than their pushes and are getting a rare major showcase match here. Given Owens, Zayn, and to a lesser extent Ziggler have a history of doing some pretty insane ladder matches, this has potential to be a lot of fans’ pick for best match.

Brock Lesnar vs. Dean Ambrose in a No Holds Barred Street Fight

The booking patterns would suggest an Ambrose win, as revenge for Lesnar leaving him laying over and over again. This is another strong candidate for match of the night, as Ambrose is probably as willing as anyone on the roster to do a hard Lesnar style match, and at WrestleMania with weapons he’s totally in his element.

Triple H (c) vs. Roman Reigns in a No Disqualification Match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship

Does Vince change his plans again? Who knows?!?! I don’t see a way Reigns doesn’t win, but the question has become if he’ll somehow turn heel in the process. With The Rock there, maybe Reigns can turn on him? That said, if Reigns doesn’t turn, at least it’s not going on last as of the most recent reports. In the ring, both guys are inconsistent, and it seems like the added No DQ stipulation will let them have all of the smoke and mirrors that Triple H loves.

The Undertaker vs. Shane McMahon Hell In A Cell Match (If Shane wins, he controls RAW/WWE. If Undertaker loses, he can never compete at WrestleMania again)

This is the “real main event.” Shane McMahon will probably jump from somewhere high as the big spot in a crazy match with every kind of smoke and mirrors you can think of. Nobody knows who will win, but it certainly seems like Shane winning makes more sense unless Shane was somehow enticed back just to have a big main event opponent for Undertaker. Drama wise, expect a ton of crazy stunts and camerawork zooming in on facial expressions.

Tonight is the night where superstars become legends.

WrestleMania is still the Granddaddy of Them All and the biggest night in professional wrestling. Despite what the card may look like, the WWE will deliver nonetheless.

If it weren’t for injuries, tonight would look a lot different.

Moving forward, WrestleMania 32 has the potential to be a legendary day in wrestling. With Dean Ambrose, Shane McMahon, Triple H and the women headlining the card, every match can “steal the show.”

Vince McMahon and co. aren’t done making changes, even when the show begins. Last year, Seth Rollins’ cash-in wasn’t decided until the night before. Surprises can, and most-likely will happen.

With all of that being said, here are my no-so confident WrestleMania 32 predictions for the entire card:

Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal: There are a lot of possibilities in this match, obviously, but not many actually make sense to walk away with this prize.

Due to the last two years, the booking for this award post-Mania has been horrid. Cesaro and Big Show did absolutely nothing with the AGMBR victory. So, why should it matter this year? One man has the chance to surprise the WWE Universe, and that’s Cesaro.

Ryan Satin of Pro Wrestling Sheet reported that Cesaro was walking around Arlington without a sling. He’s supposed to come back during WWE’s European Tour next month. If anyone could win this and make it mean something, it’s the Swiss Superman. Prediction: Cesaro

Kalisto vs. Ryback for the United States Championship: Unfortunately, this match has no hype, and not even a good reason to be at WrestleMania.

Perhaps in NXT, where talents not in the main event are invested in, this would do a lot better. Ryback and Kalisto are at the mercy of WWE programming, which doesn’t help their case. If they let them be free creatively, they will surprise a lot of people. Prediction: Ryback

Team Total Divas vs. Team B.A.D & Blonde: Wrestling purists aren’t putting this match as a potential show-stealer, but it will feature something to watch. This is presumably Brie Bella’s last match in the WWE.

After Daniel Bryan’s retirement, she’s suggested retiring early to start family and be a wife first, not a wrestler. Therefore, it will be nice seeing Bella wrestle one last time. As for Lana, who will make her wrestling debut, that’s also a wild card in the match. Then again, Paige and Natalya being there is a travesty, but that’s besides the point.

With Charlotte, Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch preparing to put on a spectacle, these 10 women won’t have that luxury. Flip a coin here folks. Prediction: Total Divas

The Usos vs. the Dudley Boyz: Just like the U.S. championship match, this bout hasn’t received good treatment as far as hype is concerned. With proper guidance, WWE officials had the chance to make this fight mean something.

Bubba Ray and Devon are back as heels and it’s worked on occasion. The Usos have no story, so WWE fans are left guessing what their identity is. Match quality will be great, but not enough to warrant any undivided attention. WWE loves to leave the fans happy, so expect a face victory here. Prediction: The Usos.

Intercontinental Title Ladder Match: Much like the HIAC match, Street Fight and WWE title bout, Kevin Owens and his six opponents have an opportunity to keep a new tradition going with a great ladder match.

Just to get it out of the way, Sin Cara, Stardust and The Miz, Zack Ryder have absolutely no chance to win here. It will come down to Dolph Ziggler, Owens and Sami Zayn.

It’s unknown as to how high the WWE is on Zayn, who was the heart and soul of NXT for the past two years. They won’t have to try too hard getting him over, as his natural charisma will do that for them. Ziggler was given a lot more time in the spotlight recently, which makes this prediction tough.

The Intercontinental title hasn’t been successfully defended since 2001, when Chris Jericho retained his belt against the William Regal at WrestleMania 17. Given that, Owens may be due to retain. Prediction: Kevin Owens

The New Day vs. League of Nations: Since this isn’t for the title, the obvious answer of League of Nations capturing the belts isn’t so obvious anymore.

Right now, it’s a 4-on-3 bout. The New Day is rumored to bring out a fourth partner, which is set as a surprise at this point. Being that the New Day is a face tag-team, and the mystery partner they bring in will probably get a huge pop, there’s no way they are losing tonight. Prediction: The New Day

AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho: What hasn’t the WWE Universe seen from these two men since Styles’ WWE debut in January? That’s the all-important question as they get ready for another match. Match quality will remain off the charts, just like their last match.

However, to keep WWE fans tuned in, they need step it up even higher. There isn’t a stipulation to the bout, at least one that wasn’t already advertised. So, it’s going to be based on pure wrestling.

If Jericho wins, then WWE officials simply don’t believe in Styles. Yes, it’s that obvious. This is exactly why the Phenomenal One must win again to keep up that momentum. Samoa Joe is rumored to be on the main roster soon, so expect Styles to get another win here. Prediction: AJ Styles

Charlotte vs. Sasha Banks vs. Becky Lynch for the Women’s championship: This is the match I’m most-excited for on the card. Sure, that sounds premature with Shane McMahon and Dean Ambrose in two, great matches, but the women are finally getting a chance to show the world what they can do.

This all comes with the rumor of a new Women’s championship belt and re-design. WrestleMania 32 is where woman, not divas, are getting a chance.

As for the victor, Lynch is the least-likely to win here. It’s then down to Banks and Charlotte, with Ric Flair at ringside. An angle will take place where he is forced to leave, which doesn’t help his daughter’s chances. If the new belt is a reality, I’m taking the Boss to be the one to debut it. Prediction: Sasha Banks

Dean Ambrose vs. Brock Lesnar in a Street Fight: This one should be fairly simple to all. There won’t be any interference, shenanigans or heel-like moments. Both are faces who just want to destroy each other with weapons galore.

This is also Dean Ambrose’s singles’ debut at WrestleMania and his chance to “get over” for the WWE fans, which Vince McMahon still believes hasn’t happened yet.

Lesnar also knows his duty in the WWE, and that’s to put wrestlers over. That will happen in this case. Prediction: Dean Ambrose

Roman Reigns vs. Triple H for the WWE Championship: Let’s just sit back and enjoy this match for what it is, and that’s to get Reigns his time in the spotlight at WrestleMania 32.

Unless he gets passed over for the second year in a row, the former-Shield heavy will walk out of Arlington, Texas with gold. AT&T Stadium will boo Reigns out of the building, which is why it won’t main event the show.

Only one thing can be done to ensure a good reaction. That one thing is a Reigns heel turn.

How can that be accomplished? The Rock is already confirmed to be at WrestleMania. Rock and Reigns are cousins. When Reigns wins the match, the Rock should go out and congratulate his family member on the big win.

Just before he leaves, Reigns delivers a huge spear to the Great One and beats the living daylights out of the former-WWE champion. He told me in an interview that he wants to make a statement. That would be making the statement of the year. Prediction: Roman Reigns

Shane McMahon vs. Undertaker in Hell in a Cell: This match has a lot on the line, even though that’s quite obvious. It also has a lot on the line with WWE fans. They’ve stacked the deck and put a lot of eggs in one basket, when putting this match together.

If Shane wins, the Undertaker can never perform at WrestleMania. If Undertaker is victorious, then Shane doesn’t get control of Monday Night Raw. Therefore, which side bends the furthest?

With all of the rumors of a brand split, Shane appearing after Mania and the different branding of both Raw and Smackdown, Shane’s victory is the most-probable. There will be a lot of smoke and mirrors, which isn’t a surprise.

Consider it similar to Triple H and Sting from last year’s event. Given that reality, here’s my prediction for the main event of WrestleMania 32. Prediction: Shane McMahon.

Dean Ambrose spoke with FOX Sports this week to promote his match against Brock Lesnar this Sunday night at WrestleMania 32.

The former Shield member wrestlers a very physical style, yet somehow he’s avoided the injury bug that’s plagued WWE’s roster and kept stars like John Cena and Seth Rollins on the sidelines. Ambrose said a lot of that has to do with the way he trains and takes care of himself. He focuses a lot on flexibility and makes a point of not exceeding his “normal” bodyweight by much. He says a lot of guys carry excessive muscle mass, which makes them more injury prone. He likes to keep himself lean and healthy and also admits to being lucky.

That said, he is used to dealing with pain on a regular basis and it’s just part of the job. 

“On the other hand, I’m also constantly hurt. I’ve been hurt for 10 years,” Ambrose said. “It’s not like I’m not constantly dealing with a litany of injuries that I have myself. If it’s not one thing, it’s another thing but I’ve just been able to keep rolling. I’ve not had anything catastrophic happen to me. It’s a funny thing because it’s always like the crazy freak things. It’s not like ‘Oh he got hurt when he jumped off the top of the cage.’ It’s like ‘He got hurt stepping into the ring’ or ‘popped his shoulder out giving a high five’. It’s the little things you can’t plan for. It’s not anything that ever enters my mind.

Not only is he facing the toughest opponent of his life this Sunday in Brock Lesnar, but the No Holds Barred Street Fight stipulation adds an extra element of danger.

“It’s the most dangerous match possible. It’s the most hardcore stuff. It could be a flaming table, ladder, exploding ring, whatever stuff you can think of and I’ve been in all of them. But there’s no more dangerous match than just being in the ring with Brock Lesnar. He is so physically overwhelming and the attributes that he has — let alone against little old me. That in itself makes it a very hazardous and dangerous situation.”

He said that he likes to “play with fire” in what could be a foreshadowing of what to expect in their match. The idea of him and Brock Lesnar being armed with weapons excites him because it’s kill or be killed. “It’s not every day you get to play a game of legit Russian roulette,” he said. “It’s very exciting for me.”

It’s a bit strange that this wasn’t officially announced yet, but it’s hard to argue with the evidence: Dave Meltzer is reporting at F4WOnline.com that it looks like WWE may have found a way to quickly get some major historical figures into their hall of fame at this Saturday night’s induction ceremony. A WWE Hall of Fame class of 2016 shirt being sold at the WrestleMania store at AT&T Stadium includes not just the announced inductees, but also a “WWE Legacy Award” with Ed “Strangler” Lewis, Frank Gotch, George Hackenschmidt, Lou Thesz, Mildred Burke, Pat O’Connor, and “Sailor” Art Thomas all listed under that heading.

As of this writing, WWE has not said anything else about the new Legacy Award. The obvious inference, though, is that the company is addressing the long-held criticism that they won’t ever put in a number of deserving inductees due to the unofficial “quota” on deceased inductees for each year’s ceremony. This would be a simple way to solve that problem: Induct several missing historical figures each year as a group. If there’s something else to it, who knows? But it’s hard to think of any alternative scenario besides the one outlined here.

While the pre-television era wrestlers included here (Lewis, Gotch, and Hackenschmidt; Thesz and Burke straddled both eras) were never really considered realistic candidates to be inducted. Thesz not being in had been controversial for many years. It goes a bit deeper than that, though: When he and Wahoo McDaniel passed away within two weeks of each other in April 2002, neither death was acknowledged on WWE programming. The uproar online was significant enough that WWE eventually ran a quick feature honoring both. Given the alleged “death quota,” nobody ever really expected him to go in the Hall of Fame, especially after when happened in the first place when he passed away.

Thesz was in the first class of the WCW Hall of Fame, but in the 15 years since WWE bought WCW and the 12 years since the WWE Hall of Fame was restarted, WWE never adopted WCW’s hall as their own. That would have been a quick way to add Thesz and McDaniel, among others.

One would think that the Legacy Award will be officially announced on this week’s edition of SmackDown. We should know that any moment now, as the show has already aired in Canada. If it’s not announced on SmackDown, this may just be a small gesture that WWE is making without a lot of fanfare.

Roman Reigns putting life and limb on the line – right before fans began chanting, “You Still Suck”

WWE World Heavyweight Champion Triple H spoke with CBSSports.com this week to promote this Sunday’s WrestleMania 32 event at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Topics discussed include his WrestleMania XII debut against The Ultimate Warrior, staying in shape with Joe DeFranco and more. Perhaps the most newsworthy quotes came when Triple H addressed his challenger this Sunday, Roman Reigns.

“He’s a great kid, and I’m really happy for his success and how well he’s done,” Triple H said. said. “But it’s a tough road and a long road. That success has come fast. Sometimes that can be a blessing and sometimes it can be a curse. So I think he’s done the best that he can with it.”

Despite the fact that Reigns has been pushed as the “new face of the company” for well over a year, fans just aren’t buying it. WWE is not blind to this reality and Triple H shared his insight about why Reigns isn’t catching on.

“You know, the hardest thing in this business to do now is, as a character, to either make everyone love you or everyone hate you,” he said with a laugh. “The world is a divided place in politics, in music and everything. Choices now, and people’s opinions, are front and center more than ever. The Internet makes that readily available to everybody. They know all of the machinations of everything and the behind-the-scenes of everything, you know.

“It used to be that the good guy was the guy that didn’t cheat, you know what I mean? It was just very simple. The world has changed. I think [Reigns has] done a phenomenal job. He’s, you know, from a behind-the-scenes standpoint, a great human being. I’m really happy for his success, as I am for all of them.”

Comment on this article and tell us if you agree with Triple H’s explanation.

WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has updated his blog, which you can read in its entirety over at JRsBarBQ.com. Naturally, this installment focused on last night’s “marathon” episode of RAW, which JR says “seemed to lack some spark/sizzle” considering it was the go-home show before WrestleMania.

JR commented on Shane & Undertaker’s opening segment, which saw Shane take his life in his hands by diving off the top rope and crashing down on The Undertaker on the announcer’s table at ringside. JR expects them to deliver on Sunday night, but ponders how much higher the stakes would be if Taker was still undefeated at WrestleMania.

As Roman Reigns climbs his uphill battle for fan acceptance, JR continues to anticipate a double turn from Reigns and Triple H in the WWE title match. “Getting the audience to cheer Roman Reigns isn’t simply going to happen any time soon so why continue to go against the grain?” he ponders.

Regarding Eva Marie’s tepid reaction on RAW, JR is wondering if she’s getting heel heat or simply “go away” heat. He thinks Eva deserves some patience, but sees potential for her to be a “special personality” if handled properly.

The buildup for WrestleMania has certainly been better in years past, and this quote from JR sums up the major theme heading into Sunday:

“This will likely be known as the Wrestlemania that injuries destroyed. Or, should it be known as the Wrestlemania that was laden with injuries and creative wasn’t able to bail them out?”

It’s another great blog that you should absolutely check out at JRsBarBQ.com.

WWE Divas Champion Charlotte recently spoke with USA Today High School Sports about “Girls Sports Month” and WrestleMania 32. 

– It’s an honor having the Divas championship and there is lots of history behind it, but “this is 2016” and she still wants to bring back the Women’s Championship. 

– Working as a heel makes it harder to be a role model for young girls, which was a big part of the Divas Revolution.

“I think Stephanie McMahon is who I’m trying mold myself after,” Charlotte said. “She is the biggest villain on TV, but there is no one who is more empowering for women than Stephanie McMahon.” 

No matter if she’s portraying a hero or villain, she is athletic and still expects to earn fans’ respect.. 

– She gets goosebumps just thinking about WrestleMania. She sees the Divas championship match at WrestleMania as the big payoff for everything that’s happened in the women’s division over the past year. 

– Not only does she want to get rid of the Divas  championship belt, but she also sounds sick of the Divas moniker entirely.

“I’m hoping we’ll get the time and and be able to show the world on the grandest stage that we’re not divas, we’re superstars. This is an opportunity to treat women as women at WrestleMania and we’re going to steal the show.”

On RAW, Vince McMahon announced another major stipulation for The Undertaker’s match against Shane McMahon inside Hell in a Cell.

After declaring that The Undertaker is his “bitch” Vince dropped the bombshell. Not only is control of WWE on the line – but if the Undertaker does not defeat Shane McMahon, this will be The Undertaker’s final WrestleMania.

• Editorial: How Shane McMahon, Vince McMahon & The Undertaker Saved WrestleMania 32

The ante just got upped in a big way and WWE has finally given us something more tangible as to why The Undertaker is wrestling on behalf of Vince and The Authority.

WrestleMania 32 takes place on Sunday, April 3rd from AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. For the 6th consecutive year, SEScoops.com provide exclusive in-person coverage from WrestleMania 32 weekend. We’ll see you here next weekend!

For the second consecutive year, WrestleMania will feature a 7-man ladder match for the Intercontinental Championship.

On RAW, The Miz, Dolph Ziggler and Sami Zayn stepped up as potential challengers to Kevin Owens’ IC title. Owens was granted a match pitting the 3 of themagainst each other with the winner becoming #1 contender. Instead, Owens had Stardust, Sin Cara and Zack Ryder compete for the honor. The match broke down after Miz, Ziggler and Zayn came to ringside and brawled with Owens, who was ringside on commentary.

Afterwards, Stephanie McMahon announced it will be Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. The Miz vs. Stardust vs. Sin Cara vs. Zach Ryder for the Intercontinental championship at WrestleMania.

.@StephMcMahon makes it official: @FightOwensFight will face SIX OPPONENTS in a #LadderMatch at @WrestleMania! #RAW pic.twitter.com/2H70mOco8U

— WWE (@WWE) March 22, 2016

POP SENSATION FIFTH HARMONY TO PERFORM AT WRESTLEMANIA®

STAMFORD, Conn., March 21, 2016 – WWE® (NYSE: WWE) today announced that pop sensation Fifth Harmony will perform “America the Beautiful,” kicking off WrestleMania on Sunday, April 3 in front of a sold-out crowd at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas and live on WWE Network around the world. Fifth Harmony will join the likes of renowned artists Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin and John Legend who have opened WWE’s annual pop-culture extravaganza.

“We are so excited to be a part of this year’s WrestleMania!” the group said. “It’s such an honor to be chosen to perform at one of WWE’s biggest events. We can’t wait to see everyone in Arlington!”

“WWE has a long tradition of attracting the world’s most popular artists to perform at our biggest event of the year,” said Neil Lawi, Senior Vice President and General Manager, WWE Music Group. “Fifth Harmony will continue this great tradition as we look forward to their much-anticipated performance at this year’s WrestleMania.”

The award-winning girl group was formed in 2012 on the second season of The X Factor USA and will release their highly-anticipated sophomore album “7/27” in May. The first single from “7/27,” “Work from Home,” featuring Ty Dolla $ign, marks the group’s highest debut on the Billboard 200 charts, and currently has nearly 50 million views on YouTube. 2016 has already been a big year for Fifth Harmony as they recently took home the award for “Favorite Group” at the People’s Choice Awards and “Favorite Music Group” at the Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards.

Last year, Fifth Harmony released their debut album, “Reflection,” solidifying their place at the top of pop as it debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard Top 200 and yielded two platinum-selling singles “BO$$” and “Sledgehammer,” and the quadruple-platinum hit, “Worth It”. Named 2015’s Billboard’s Women in Music’s Group of the Year, 2015 was an award-winning year, with honors at the MTV VMAs, MTV EMAs, MTV Fandom Awards, Teen Choice Awards, Kids’ Choice Awards, YouTube Music Awards and Radio Disney Music Awards.