News Archives - Spring 09(April-June)
Wednesday, April 8th, 2009 :
-I'm happy to announce that at the next set of Wrestling Roundtable tapings, ROH & Shimmer wrestler Daizee Haze will be sitting in our panel to discuss Women In Wrestling in the show that will be taped for the week of April 19th. Not quite sure if her new found flame Delirious will be around, but we've gotten lots of requests to do this topic and we're thrilled to have Daizee, who just made her HDNet debut this past weekend, on the show.
-This Sunday at WrestleMania, John Cena won back the (WCW) World Heavyweight Championship from Edge in a three way with The Big Show, and Rey Mysterio, Jr. squashed JBL to win the Intercontinental title in 21 seconds. JBL will be retiring, again. Superfly Jimmy Snuka is now also the oldest wrestler to actually wrestle at a WrestleMania.
-Bobby Lashley was not at The Ultimate Fighter tryouts
-Jerry Lynn became the 11th ROH Champion on Friday, finally ending Nigel McGuinness' long reign, the second longest in ROH history. And Ric Flair will be making his first ever appearance in The (ECW) Arena this Thursday during ROH's HDNet TV tapings(Credit : rohwrestling.com)
-While wrestling at match at WWE's Axxxxxxcessssss convention this weekend, Dolph Ziggler was injured with what was originally reported to be a broken collar bone. It must not have been that bad because he was wrestling Monday night in a dark match
-Reports of the WWE Hall Of Fame being a sell out are full of shit. There were plenty of empty seats and closed off areas(Credit : Using your fucking eyes)
-Columbia Pictures has contacted Macho Man Randy Savage about using his likeness in a new pilot, and apparently Savage agreed(Credit : machomadness.com)
-The November To Remember unofficial ECW reunion show to be promoted by Shane Douglas has been postponed due to a comedy show being already booked at The Arena for that date(Credit : pwinsider.com). WWE may have to do the same for the venue of the Extreme Rules PPV in June due to the NBA Playoffs should the New Orleans Hornetts need the New Orleans Arena for a home game.
-Gran Hamada's daughter Ayako announced she has signed with TNA and will wrestle her last match in Japan for now on April 19th on the Ito Dojo show.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009 :
-The biggest news in pro wrestling AND mixed martial arts is Bobby Lashley(2-0) ; The former "ECW" World Champion was the surprise 'former world champion' promised by TNA, debuting after the Frontline won the Lethal Lockdown match this past Sunday at Lockdown in Philadelphia(See our second BLOG for our thoughts on the show). Lashley has signed a short-term contract to TNA that won't prohibit him from pursuing his MMA career, which has taken a big step for his third fight as it was announced by MMA Fanhouse that he signed to fight Bob Sapp(10-3-1) on June 27th in Biloxi, MS at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum for Prize Fight Promotions PPV. Wrestling Observer reports that Sapp has yet to sign the deal.
-Lashley is still in negotiations to fight in May for Alberta, Canada's Maximum Fighting Championship but nothing is signed and one would have to expect that not to happen so close to a fight with a man who outweighs Lashley by 100 lbs.!
-Also at LockDown, Mick Foley won the TNA World Title from Sting, Team 3D defeated Beer Money, Inc. for the TNA Tag Titles & Angelina Love won the Knockouts title pinning Taylor Wilde in a three-way with Awesome Kong. Stevie Richards also made his first on-camera appearance as Dr. Stevie, though TNA can't be serious counting him as one of the "two former world champions" as Stevie never won a world title, ever. Not even a fake one! Ok, they're all fake, but you know what I mean(E-C-W! E-C-ugh).
-WSPA-TV(CBS) reports that William "The Refrigerator" Perry has been hospitalized in Aiken, South Carolina from "symptoms of a chronic illness." He is in 'serious' condition but is expected to recover.
-Jeff Hardy might be on his way out! Apparently he's been losing to Matt in their matches as a precautionary move by WWE should he in fact leave, as his contract runs up within the new few months and he has refused to sign an extension. Usually giving out 3 year deals, WWE even offered a short-term 1 year deal just to lock him down temporarily until he signs a longer deal, which he has also refused(Credit : PWInsider).
-Apparently Paul London(recently visiting backstage at ROH's HDNet tapings) was supposed to have debuted at the TNA Tapings this week but canceled & seems as if TNA doesn't care for pursuing him now(Credit : PWinsider). The original plan was to team him with also returning Amazing Red. Trevor Murdoch, however, debuted at the tapings as "Holiday," teaming with Eric Young. As you can see, no one is doing anything new despite being in a new company. Taz is expected to debut shortly(ha! get it?) as the man Joe was talking to backstage at LockDown.
-Larry Sweeney "quit" Ring Of Honor via his myspace BLOG. His contract is officially up May 2nd, and though ROH has re-signed most of their talents, Sweeney no doubt will not be considered.
-Speaking of Ring Of Honor, Colt Cabana was seen wearing a Wrestling Roundtable t-shirt in a recent video plugging this past weekend's Canadian shows on the ROH YouTube account. Sweet!
-Jim Cornette is now selling "The Midnight Express & Jim Cornette 25th Anniversary Scrapbook" on the newly opened jimcornette.com, and while you're on his site, you definitely must read his column in the commentary section, as it pretty much explains why there might never be another wrestling boom again in the conditions wrestling operates in these days. Although it is funny that when Cornette says the same things we do, he gets respected and "yes you're right," but we get labeled "wrestling haters" and "bitter, biased and critics"
-Lastly, don't forget to look for the new edition of the Wrestling Roundtable, as Daizee Haze from ROH & Shimmer joins our panel to discuss Women In Wrestling, coupled with the Funniest & Least Funniest moments!
Wednesday, April 22, 2009 :
-Internal company reactions to Bobby Lashley signing with TNA, according to PWInsider & paraphrased by me :
WWE : Don't give a shit
UFC : No fucking chance we'll look at you until you stop wrestling, faggot(Put in to Dana White-like language).
-Christopher Daniels will be relinquishing the role of X Champion, Suicide, to Frankie Kazarian next month when Kaz returns to play the masked character(Credit : PWInsider).
-Christy Hemme released her first album this week digitally, "Where Are You?" It's a small miracle it wasn't spelled "Where R U?"
-Ring Of Honor has canceled the July 17th(Danbury, CT), July 24(Montreal, Canada) & September 25th(Elizabeth, PA) shows, with possibly more to come.
-Joey Ryan, of PWG "fame," will be debuting for ROH on May 8th in Boston(Credit : rohwrestling.com).
Wednesday, April 29, 2009 :
-Longtime WWF & AWA veteran Playboy Buddy Rose(Paul Perschmann) died yesterday of what is expected to be determined as complications from diabetes.
-This past Sunday at Backlash, all three of WWE's World titles changed hands. Edge won the (WCW) World Heavyweight Championship for the fifth time from John Cena in a Last Man Standing match. This brings Edge's grand total of World titles to 8 titles in the time frame of just over 3 years. Randy Orton won the WWE Championship for the third time in a ridiculous 6-man tag by surprisiningly pinning the champion, Triple H, making Orton's total world title reigns 4. Christian won the ECW World Heavyweight Championship from Jack Swagger, making it his first world title win in WWE and he a 3 time world champion.
-Linda Bollea/Hogan has filed for documents asing for an additional $8,200 per month from Hulk Hogan(Hogan already pays $40,000 per month), plus $24,000 for "advanced security rent & deposits" to fund a move to California(Credit : TMZ.com). She claims she is in "imminent danger" stemming from Hulk's comments in Rolling Stone Magazine claiming he "understood OJ."
-Bob Sapp pretty much confirmed the fight with Bobby Lashly for June 27th in an interview with fighthype.com, although last we heard the contract was not actually signed by Sapp yet. Lashley(2-0), not resting on his laurrels however, announced he will be fighting for XFC in September, and his next fight will be May 15th in MFC against Mike Cook(7-3), which will air on HDNet.
-Reid Flair was arrested Sunday night after being pulled over, charged with DWI and driving with a suspended license due to a prior arrest(Credit : WSOC TV). Heroin was found in his car, he was charged with a felony & bailed out for $15,000.
-Amazing Red returns to TNA tonight on iMPACT!
-Jay Lethal re-signed with TNA in a new multi-year deal(Credit : tnawrestling.com).
-El Generico will be out of ROH, or wrestling in general, for the time being as he suffered bad damaged to his Meniscus & PCL(credit : rohwrestling.com).
-Matt Hardy suffered a broken hand in the I Quit Women...I mean, I Quit match at Backlash against his brother Jeff.
-All lucha libre shows in Mexico's Distrito Federal were canceled this weekend due to the latest government-created bioweapon/scare tactic....whoops, I mean, "swine flu." Since then, CMLL & AAA have canceled their shows this week(Credit : Wrestling Observer).
-Lance Hoyt is saying he signed a WWE developmental contract.
Monday, May 4th, 2009 :
-Batista was part of Manny Pacquiao's entourage as he made his way down the ring to destroy Britain's Ricky Hatton in the second round of the HBO Boxing PPV main event this past Saturday.
-WWE has canceled a tour of Mexico due to "swine flu."
-Hernandez recently had neck surgery and will apparently miss "2 to 3 months" of performing(Credit : PWInsider.com).
-Ted Grizzly, who was a jobber for the WWWF in the 70s & 80s, died last week in Canada(Credit : PWInsider.com). No relation to Grizzly Redwood.
-Lacey returned at this weekend's Shimmer tapings as the manager of the "International Home Wrecking Crew."
-Tyler Black was stripped of the FIP title this weekend when he was unable to wrestle after aggravating a nagging neck injury at an AAW show in Illinois.
-WWE released Superstar Billy Graham from a Legends/consultant contract but sent him a statement that they will be retaining the rights to the name. Needless to say, Eldridge Coleman isn't very happy about this.
-Warner Bro.s has expressed interest in buying Midway Games, makers of the TNA iMPACT! video game who happen to be in the process of creating the followup title.
-Muscle Flex, Inc. recently successfully beat WWE in court - a rarity - over a trademark dispute over Muscle Flex filing for the term "In the Raw." On a more positive note for WWE in court, CCP's lawsuit over the use of the Gangrel character was thrown out after the judge ruled the former White Wolf, Inc. didn't prove they were still using the character & waited too long to file the suit.
-Everyone is assuming there will be no second season of Hulk Hogan's Celebrity Championship Wrestling due to On-Camera Audiences removing tickets to their events from their website(Credit : Hamilton Avenue Journal/411mania.com)
-Nikki Roxx/Roxxi Laveaux, who was in the middle of a suspension along with Rhaka Kahn due to a backstage fight between the two, was fired by TNA rather than being brought back.
-Elix Skipper's 22 year old son was murdered in Columbus, OH last week. He was shot after answering a knock at his apartment door and police are searching for suspects. The Wrestling Roundtable would like to extend our sincere condolences.
-James "Little Guido" Maritato will be returning to Ring Of Honor at their Hammerstein Ballroom show on June 13th as "Guido Maritato."(Credit : rohwrestling.com).
-Speaking of ROH, the "high profile talent" they've been hinting for their Toronto shows on July 24th & 25th is rumored to be a former world champion. Former world champion, in Canada? Should be....excellent.
-At WWE's Annual Shareholders Meeting this past Friday, Vince McMahon - when he was done making stupid excuses about why PPV buyrates are down - said they were interested in adding ANOTHER national television show to their lineup, on Wednesday nights and that the scumbag hellhole capital of the world, China, was a big part of their future plans. He also said there would not be a physical Hall Of Fame, which goes against reports last year of Shane McMahon saying there should be one.
-Eric Bischoff declined WWE's offer to take part in WWE's upcoming "Rise & Fall Of WCW" DVD, saying, "I have no desire to give credibility to their revisionist history"(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
-Shark Boy was sent home from a TNA house show last night in Kentucky after having flu-like symptoms(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
-Dennis Rodman was asking Jeremy Borash in Miami last week about doing a match for TNA(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
-Mick Foley started work on his fourth autobiography several weeks ago(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
-After waiting so long for test results, Sonny Siaki will be donating his kidney to his brother Bernard.
-Steve "Mongo" McMichael, long known as the best worker to ever grace the Four Horsemen faction, will be inducted in the College Football Hall Of Fame this year.
-Jon Davis, one half of the Dark City Fight Club, recently dislocated his wrist in a ROH match in Dayton, and could require surgery, which would put he - and by proxy, the tag team - on the shelf for some time.
Wednesday, May 6th, 2009 :
-Bobby Lashley Vs. Bob Sapp has officially been signed for June 27th PPV.
-Turns out that the legal notice sent to Superstar Billy Graham with text stating WWE was retaining exclusive rights to his name, likeness, etc. was just standard print on every letter and they will not be enforcing this on the name Graham had been using since before his WWWF days.
-Despite earlier nauseating reports, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson will not be playing Captain Nemo in a remake of Disney's 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea. Thank god(Credit : Wrestling Observer).
-Tyler Black said he'd be ready to wrestle again for ROH's next HDNet tapings in Philadelphia on May 29th.
-Indy female wrestler and Jay Lethal's girlfriend, Miss April, signed with a developmental deal with WWE this week.
-Mike Quackenbush is off this weekend's ROH shows, claiming injury. Fake or not, good fucking riddance.
-J.J. Dillon came out of retirement & wrestled this weekend, believe it or not, teaming with "Beef Stew" Lou Marconi & Handsome Frank Staletto to lose to Dominic Denucci, Shane Douglas & Cody Michaels at "Deaf Wrestlefest 2009" in Pittsburgh(Credit : 411mania.com). Since when is Russel Simmons promoting wrestling? It was actually promoted by the Western Pennsylvania School For the Deaf. So many jokes! ....here's one : At least they weren't be able to hear them calling spots.
-Dave "May retire in a year" Batista & Rob Van Dam will involved in a Louisiana shooting of a movie titled Wrong Side Of Town(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
-Doug Basham has retired(Credit : PWinsider). And the world goes on
-WWE's lawuist against the IAHL Corporation over money owed from sponsoring WrestleMania 23 last year has been settled(Credit : Wrestling Globe)
-Indy wrestler Regular airlifted to a hospital from a Dynamic Wrestling Alliance show in Ohio after a ladder was dropkicked in to his head during a ladder match. After suffering a 'neck injury,' broken jaw & missing teeth, he suffered seizures and stopped breathing during the trip. He is currently listed in critical condition while staying in intensive care(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
Tuesday, May 12th, 2009 :
-WWE released their financial numbers for the first quarter of the year this past Friday, and they were down in every category except TV Licensing fees ; a 24% drop from this time last year. They still made over $100 million in revenue.
-Stephanie McMahon held a meeting with talent saying there was no 'glass ceiling' & they should come up with their own storylines(Credit : Wrestling Globe). Sure.
-Lance Storm will be - once again - coming out of retirement for Ring Of Honor on their upcoming shows in Toronto on July 24th & 25th also featuring Ric Flair & Bret Hart making guest appearances(Credit : rohwrestling.com). That's the good news. The bad news is...well, wait til you see his opponents.
-New Japan ingeniously released a poster for their upcoming show, Dominion, that featured Nazi imagery including a Swastika. I guess the Japanese thought showcasing the symbol of their country's old Axis partner's toppled regime of race-hating exterminators was a good idea. Being that NJPW is an NWA member, Executive Director of the NWA Robert Trobich released a press statement denouncing the whole thing & now NJPW says they're redoing the poster. Probably should have thought that over before going through with it in the first place, but hey, at least it's a step in the reich...excuse me, right direction.
-Kurt Angle is involved in the Pittsburgh shooting of a movie this week, playing a Russian MMA fighter(Credit : Pittsburgh Post Gazette). Yet another place, besides TNA of course, where Angle can play 'MMA fighter.'
-Speaking of movies, Roddy Piper is in a new movie called Fancypants about a pro wrestler who's afraid of conflict in real life(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
-Chris Benoit's personal steroid doctor, Phil Astin, was sentenced to prison time without parole for an unspecified amount of time(Credit : time-herald.com)
-Tough Enough 4 winner Daniel Puder's next MMA fight will be against Jeff Ford at the Ontario, CA "Call To Arms 1" show on May 16th Internet PPV.
-Jeremy Borash reports Shawn "Hotstuff" Hernandez has successful fusion neck surgery & should be recovered in 3 months
-Amazing Red, just returned to TNA TV, has signed a new contract with the company, and "Cute" Kip is believed to soon be offered a newer deal as well(Credit : Wrestling Globe)
-Paul London continues to seemingly carelessly destroy his reputation as he's no-showed several indy shows recently and now a convention, claiming back injuries have caused him to cancel, sometimes with mere hours' notice.
-Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson was invited to The White House Correspondent's Dinner this weekend, hopefully so President Obama could scout him to play himself in his eventually bio movie, "Obama." Alright, that's my idea, but a good one, yes?
-Former wrestler Princess Jasmine(Cynthia Peretti-Johnson), 60, died Friday morning after a bout with cancer(Credit : Wrestling Globe). She wrestled all over after debuting in 1968 ; AWA, NWA, WWWF, Japan, the Caribbean & Africa.
-Shannon Moore recently married a WWE costume designer Julie Youngberg(Credit : Wrestling Globe), who happens to be Droz' ex-wife.
-Ken Kennedy returned to the ring at the last FCW tapings.
-Fred Sampson from ECWA was signed to a WWE developmental deal(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
-Indy wrestler "Sure Shot" Derek Wayne(Derek Gatton) was found dead in his parents' home in Lansdown, MD a few weeks ago(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
-Tommy Dreamer was offered a new contract last week and might eventually replace Tiffany as ECW's GM(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
-Now not just Bischoff, but Jim Herd & Ted Turner himself turned down involvement in WWE's Rise & Fall Of WCW DVD
-Konnan's lawsuit against TNA claiming racial discrimination and breech of contract has been settled out of court.
-Doug Basham changed his mind & isn't retiring. I haven't changed my mind & still don't care.
Tuesday, May 19th, 2009 :
-Ric Flair, still playing the role of "ROH Ambassador" on Ring Of Honor's HDNet show with upcoming appearances still planned no less, returned to WWE at Judgment Day this past Sunday, making the save for Batista after being beaten down by the Legacy. Judgment Day was the first pay per view WWE has done since October that didn't feature Edge in a World title changing match.
-Bobby Lashley defeated Mike Cook in 24 seconds via TKO after Cook was choked out by Lashley in the pre-main event of Maximum Fighting Championship's event this past Saturday. Lashley(3-0) has not been brought to TV by TNA recently because apparently, NOW, TNA got it in their head that they don't want to put him on TV as long as he's not under contract. Despite having already done so on PPV & TV, no less. Fucking genius.
-Daniel Puder(7-0) won his fight on Saturday at Clean Kill's Call To Arms internet PPV show in Los Angeles via ref. stoppage after his opponent, Jeff Ford(4-4), slipped while attempting a high kick and landed badly, injuring his shoulder.
-Vickie Guerrero won the "Miss WrestleMania Crown" from Santino Marella last night on RAW. Fill in your own joke, I can't be bothered.
-Next week's Monday Night RAW is being thrown out of Denver, CO's Pepsi Center in favor of a Denver Nuggets basketball playoff game(Credit : AP). The venue was booked back in August for this date by WWE and usually sports teams reserve certain dates from being booked by outside companies in case of needing the buildings for these sort of sporting championships should the home teams go that far, but McMahon insists their trucks will be sent to the building on Monday. If they do indeed have to do the show in the parking lot, that would be a unique RAW possibly worth watching!
-Looks like WWE will be doing a PPV with a theme of "Submissions." But they've got nothing in common with MMA.
-Shawn "Gavin" Spears debuts for ROH in Manassas, VA on June 12th(Credit : ROHwrestling.com). I thought TNA was supposed to the place where WWE rejects go to?
-Eric Bischoff, Bill Behrens & Jimmy Hart are being called as expert witnesses in the Live Nation Vs. WrestleReunion lawsuit originally filed in November 2007(Credit : PWInsider). WrestleReunion LLC claims that footage was shot but not properly distributed or marketed for a DVD of their 2004 & 2005 events & Mick Foley's unrealized reality show.
-James Storm has re-signed with TNA long term(Credit : Jeremy Borash's Twat).
-The Undertaker is being prepped to return in July for a SummerSlam match.
-Time Warner is dropping HDNet from their service in New York City. HDNet carries many MMA promotions & ROH. okthankyoubuhbye!
-Indy wrestler "Tank" Tim Robertson, 29, died from asphyxiation after a bee sting this Saturday(Credit : WGN).
-Canibal(Julio Gomez Roman), who wrestled for AAA, died the other Sunday after being struck by a truck when he was riding a motorcycle(Credit : WGN).
-Jose Arguello Lunca(Pepe Luna/Dr. Macabro/Polaris) died last week at age 64(Credit : WGN).
-Tank Toland & Jillian Hall have gotten engaged
-Former SMW/WWF wrestler Johnny K-9/Bruiser Bedlam(Jon Croitoru), 43, was arrested Friday for allegedly plotting to murder members of a rival biker gang(Credit : Calgary Herald)
Dead wrestler tally for the week : 3
Tuesday, June 2nd, 2009 :
-The big news of the weekend, more important than who got fired or who signed with what, is Dragon Gate being exposed as animal abusers. As brought to light by Chris Johnson of gerweck.net, the story apparently is that a monkey(looking to be a Japanese Macaque) was kept at the Dragon Gate dojo along with a dog, and was abused by Shingo Takagi and other wrestlers. Here is the post, with links to pictures of the disgusting acts :
- They choked it by the neck until it passed out.
- They burned it with charcoal.
- They threw it into a tub of boiling hot water.
- Not sure on this one but it looks like they blew air into its mouth and it would cause it to crap instantly.
- They gave it sake regularly until it would pass out.
- Drag it around by a chain on its neck.
- attached fire crackers to it and lit them
- lock it in a box and spray antiperspirant in the box causing it to freak out.
It really disgusting stuff and they created a huge mound of evidence. These people are fucking cretins.
I have confirmation of the legitimacy of these incidents(as if the pictures don't say it all) from a Japanese source who says it's "big news" in Japan. Dragon Gate also had the photos removed from their wrestler's blogs & YouTube. Word is Matt Sydal had posted a YouTube video a few years ago showing the monkey actually being abused that has since been taken down.
I encourage everyone to spread the word about this disgusting, disappointing and downright lowlife behavior. Don't support Dragon Gate, don't let them get away with animal abuse. I encourage you to write or call, as I have :
Pennsylvania SPCA
Location: 350 East Erie Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19134 USA
Phone: (215) 426-6300
Email: info@pspca.org
Pennsylvania Animal Welfare
Location: 2003 Glenview St, Philadelphia, PA 19149 USA
Phone: (215) 332-7297
Philadelphia Animal Care & Control/PAWS
Location: 111 W. Hunting Park Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19140 USA
Phone: 267-385-3800
Email: info@phillypaws.org
info@americanhumane.org
As an animal lover and volunteer, I hope you join me in spreading the word & bringing these criminals to justice.
Back to stupid wrestling news for the week :
-I attended the Legends Of The Ring convention this past weekend & was pretty stoked to meet some of the big names, one of which was Kurt Angle. However, it was made public the day before that he had accepted a minor role in a movie starring Nick Nolte being shot in Pittsburgh, PA the same day. As such, his signing was moved up to 8am. With staff warning us ahead of time that, "Kurt's tired," Angle looked zonked out of his mind.
It was very uncomfortable. He seemed as if he had a hard time focusing, wrote very slowly, spoke softly, moved in slow motion, looked unshaved, and seemed like he was in another world. It wasn't pleasant. Someone on the LOTR message board claimed to have eaten with Angle at the bar the night before, where he said Angle said he was on a schedule of a month full of 11 hour days back to back with flying and no sleep, but a photographer I spoke to said he's "used to seeing Kurt like that," and hadn't NOT seem him like that since after his first year in the WWF 10 years ago.
I really hate to have to report this to you as Angle is one of my favorites and arguably one of the best, if not the best, of all time, but this isn't the first time I've heard about Angle being this way. Take any stories of being clean with a grain of salt...
-After almost hurting Randy Orton in his big comeback match 9 days ago during the 10-man tag main event of RAW, Mr. Kennedy was fired after Orton complained about his reckless backdrop almost re-injuring Orton's collarbone. Initial reports of injury-prone Kennedy's wrist being hurt apparently being blown out of proportion(he had a minor sprain at best, but doesn't change the fact he's spent probably half his time in WWE out on injury), this is the second person Orton's bad-mouthed & subsequently was released(first being Manu).
-Kofi Kingston defeated MVP for the US title last night on RAW.
-Serena Deeb signed a developmental deal with WWE after having an ECW tv cameo, showing implants go a long way.
-Fit Finlay's been suffering from a scratched eye
-Time Warner and AOL have official un-merged. After the AOL/Time Warner merger 10 years ago, WCW was slowly phased out of their portfolio, and wrestling has never been the same since. Fuck you both.
-Eve Torres has been taking Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu(BJJ) classes at the Gracie Academy in Los Angeles(Credit : WGN).
-Raven & Shane Douglas returned to TNA this past Thursday, with Lisa Marie Varon(Victoria) debuting as well. Shane Sewell, their version of Danny Davis, was released, however.
-Midway Games, being purchased by Warner Bro.s, has put up the TNA license for video games for bid(Credit : WGN).
-Ric Flair quit Ring Of Honor in a non-televised promo this weekend at their ECW Arena HDNet tapings, saying he was "going back to" WWE. And I thought they didn't consider ROH competition, Dick? Anyway, Jim Ross and others are saying Flair will more than likely end up wrestling abroad sooner rather than later, but Flair will be finishing up for ROH on June 13th as the ref. for the Jerry Lynn/Austin Aries title match before he re-signs with WWE. ROH is not happy with this development.
-Rumor is John Cena married his "long time girlfriend" this weekend(Credit : WGN).
-Nigel McGuinness returned to ROH this past weekend at the HDNet tapings with a shaved head.
Wednesday, June 10th, 2009 :
-All but one title on the line at WWE Extreme Rules this past Sunday changed hands(Kofi Kingston retained the US title in a 4-way with MVP, William Regal & Matt Hardy) :
-Chris Jericho defeated Rey Mysterio, Jr. for his 9th Intercontinental title.
-Dave Batista became the 18th man to hold the WWE *world* title & the *wcw* World title when he defeated Randy Orton in the steel cage match
-Tommy Dreamer became the only person to win the ECW *world* title in the real & fake ECWs, when he won the title for a second time, pinning Jack Swagger in a three way with champion Christian
-Jeff Hardy became the 19th man to win both WWE *world* & *wcw* World titles when he defeated Edge in a ladder match. That is until CM Punk utilized his Money In The Bank briefcase to win his second *wcw* World title, the second year in a row he's used MITB to win the belt. This is also the FIFTH world title 9-time world champion Edge has lost....in less than a fucking year.
-Umaga was released by WWE Monday. He is not accepting indy bookings either(Credit : pwinsider.com).
-Batista developed a bicep injury weeks ago but was given the WWE *world* title regardless. Kingshit himself, HHH, returned to TV Monday night after a scheduled Orton/Batista match never got started. Batista was stripped of the title the next day and a four way with Cena, Big Show, HHH & Orton was set up for the vacant title on Monday. Batista had surgery to repair his tear and will be out four months at least, though the Wrestling Observer reports he may be kept off TV until the Royal Rumble for a big comeback.
-Vickie Guerrero has quit WWE, as last month it was arranged for her to leave WWE to spend more time with her daughters & the storyline was set up for her exit. With her quitting as GM of RAW, it is expected for Ric Flair to be named her replacement on Monday(Credit : pwinsider.com)
-Chris Masters was re-signed by WWE last week, as well as Tommy Dreamer(to a multi-year deal).
-Ring Of Honor is not planning on doing pay-per-views any longer, for the time being.
-Jeremy Borash reports Hernandez was given medical clearance to return much sooner than expected
-WWE performed drug testing on Monday night.
-TNA is rumored to be looking to bring in Mexican wrestlers via CMLL, specifically Mistico & Cibernetico.
-In another pathetic garbage indy story, CZW wrestler Nick Gage had to be airlifted to a hospital from wrestler DJ Hyde's parents' farm in Delware during Tournament Of Death 8 show, as he was thrown into light tubes & severed an artery. Genius.
-Kane is expected back on TV soon, while Samoa Joe will be off for six months after the Slammiversary PPV, suffering broken fingers & a torn tricep that requires surgery(Credit : WGN).
-Wonder why the popular wrestling news sites like Wrestling Observer or PWInsider didn't report the Dragon Gate/monkey scandal? hmmmmm, I have a real good idea.
Wednesday, June 17th, 2009 :
--In the most shocking news in a long time, Pro Wrestling NOAH President & Puroresu legend Mitsuharu Misawa died in the ring during a GHC Heavyweight Tag Team title match at a NOAH show after taking a backdrop suplex from Akitoshi Saito. Attendants rushed to the ring and tried reviving Misawa, who had stopped breathing. The show was stopped as Misawa was rushed to a hospital where he was declared DOA. Reports from the hospital say he died of spinal damage rather than the initially guessed at heart attack(Credit : Mainichi Daily News).
Misawa was one of the most important figures in Japanese wrestling in the past several decades in the ring & out. The Wrestling Roundtable sends our condolences to the friends & family of Mitsuharu Misawa, as well as the staff of NOAH.
-Go Shiozaki won the GHC Heavyweight title that had been vacated by the retiring Jun Akiyama by defeated Takeshi Rikio on NOAH's show the next day.
-Randy Orton won the vacated WWE *world* title for his fourth reign in a four-way with Triple H, Big Show & John Cena on Monday. This is Orton's fifth world title. Also on RAW, Vince McMahon announced he "sold" the RAW show to Donald Trump. WWE stock is reported to have fallen 6.7% the next day(Credit : PWtorch). As part of their latest ridiculous trying-to-get-media-attention-storyline, Trump announced RAW will be commercial free next week.
-Ric Flair walked out on Ring Of Honor's Manhattan Mayhem 3 show this past Saturday after refusing to perform his initially-agreed role as 'ringside enforcer' (which had been changed from 'special referee') after seeing HDNet was taping the main event. Immediately after cutting another phony kiss-ass promo in the ring, Flair grabbed his bags and walked out the door. He had also tried no-showing his Manassas, Virginia autograph signing, despite advertising already being done for both shows based around his appearances. Although he is still scheduled to make his next three ROH appearances, this is extremely disappointing behavior.
-Also on ROH's show, Austin Aries became the first 2-time ROH champion by pinning Tyler Black in a three-way elimination match with then-champion Jerry Lynn. Bret "Hitman" Hart was also announced for their Sep. return to the Manhattan Center, where Bret Hart used to defend the WWF World title during the first days of Monday Night RAW.
-SoBe Entertainment has filed a lawsuit against The Big Show & WWE claiming they advanced Paul Wight $1 million so he could buy a house in Miami in return for appearing for them in various roles - namely as a pro boxer - until 2012, which naturally didn't happen as we know he returned to WWE shortly there after(Credit : PWInsider).
-Former TNA wrestler Mesias, AAA wrestler Billy Boy & referee Hijo Del Tirantes were arrested days ago for allegedly beating up someone who was upset they were snorting coke he had given them in his car. They were bailed out shortly after arrest(Credit : wrestling observer).
-Former 60s-80s EMLL & UWA wrestler Cesar "Guerrillero" Valentino, 68, has died.
-Gerald Brisco had a stroke this weekend, is undergoing surgery & expected to fully recover(Credit : WGN).
-Lisa Marie Varon(Victoria/Tara) posted a great message on her myspace upset about rumors that she was Chris Benoit's mistress towards the end of his life, insinuated the rumors come from someone within WWE & told them to back off unless they want real dirt to come out. Victoria is fuckin awesome! Despite that, it is now being reported that the man who made up the rumor was just some message board poster, so that makes me wonder what exactly Victoria is talking about...
-Nancy Benoit's parents have filed a lawsuit against Dr. Phil Aston and several other outlets related to drugs obtained by.prescribed to Chris Benoit prior to his double-murder/suicide(Credit : Fox Atlanta)
-Paul "The Butcher" Vachon underwent reconstructive jaw surgery recently(Credit : WGN).
Wednesday, June 24th, 2009 :
-Billy "Red" Lyons, 77, died Tuesday from cancer. He had been a famous Toronto wrestler for decades, from the 50s to the 80s teaming with Red Bastein as The Flying Redheads, and also worked as a commentator for WWF house shows in the 80s & 90s(Credit : WGN).
-This past Sunday at Slammiversary(celebrating 7 years of existence for TNA), Kurt Angle regained the TNA World Heavyweight title in a King Of The Mountain match where Samoa Joe turned heel, helping Angle win & joining the Main Event Mafia. Kurt Angle is the first 3-time TNA champion.
Also, Beer Money regained the TNA Tag Titles from Team 3D. & Shane Douglas hurt his ankle in the match against Christopher Daniels.
-The Donald Trump angle was seemingly dropped on Monday with McMahon "buying RAW back for double the initial price," which of course was not specified. On the same RAW that was "free" of commercials(but not from blatant KFC shilling), the "ticket refund" angle by RAW "owner" Trump was legit, as anyone who seeks a refund will be able to attain one. This year's bribery for attention worked as RAW got the biggest rating in several years, and will probably result in the resurrection of the Trump angle. Joy for all.
-Candice Michelle, Sim Snuka, & Joseph Canterbury(Henry Godwinn's son) were all released this past week by WWE.
-Former Killer Bee, B. Brian Blair, was arrested for child abuse(punching his two sons) & jailed Sunday morning(Credit : Tampabay.com). His 17-year-old son Brett, who had previously tried running away from home 6 times, and his younger brother Bradley, 12, say their father, in a drunken rage, shoved, grabbed, choked & punched them this weekend. Two other boys at the residence witnessed the events & called 911. Blair, gay son of a bitch worse than the Michael Jorda...I mean the Michael Jackson, had his first court appearance on Monday & was allowed to return home.
-The Bob Sapp/Bobby Lashley fight takes place on the Ultimate Chaos PPV this Saturday presented by Prize Fight MMA & Fight Force International.
-ROH canceled HDNet tapings in The Arena for July, as they already have more shows taped than to necessitate next month's taping. They will pick back up again in August.
-Priceless will now be just called "Legacy."(Credit : Wrestling Observer). That's better.
-Security removed Macho Man signs from RAW this past Monday in Green Bay, WI(Credit : PWinsider). But there's no conspiracy.
-Ric Flair's booking company, The Gillespie Agency, put out a press release claiming Ric Flair isn't exclusive to WWE & is still available for outside bookings. Funny, could of fooled me the way he fucked over ROH.
-Petey Williams debuts for ROH this weekend in Detroit(Credit : rohwrestling.com)
-Matt Hardy, days after claiming he's 100% healed from a broken hand, tore an abdominal muscle on the Superstars taping Monday(Credit : Wrestling Observer). He's scheduled for surgery later this week.
-Hulk Hogan Appreciation Day takes place on July 10th in Bridgeview, IL with an autograph/photo session earlier in the afternoon, then an indy show in the evening.
-Jeff Hardy's contract is set to expire within the next few weeks(Credit : WGN)
-Dos Caras, Jr. of EMLL is reported to have (finally) signed a WWE contract - for real, this time, and Super Luchas Magazine showed a picture of him with contract in hand.
-Bill Watts' ex wife Ene owns most of the Mid-South/UWF video tape library and is the hold up in WWE wanting to buy it, as they don't agree on money(Credit : WGN).
-Sarah Stock is expected to debut on TNA tv soon(Credit : WGN).
-Nick Cvjetkovich(Kizarny/Sinn) was supposed to meet with TNA officials this week(Credit : WGN). Trina Michaels, former porn star turned wrestler, is hinting she is also on her way to TNA. Carolina indy wrestlers Mikael Judas & Phill Shatter are getting "tryouts" playing Mick Foley's security.
-WWE seems to be interested in doing a cage-themed PPV or all-cage PPV.
-Serena Deeb is claiming she hasn't been offered a contract buy WWE yet(Credit : WGN).
-Brock Lesnar & wife Rena(Sable) had a baby boy this past weekend.
-AAA President Joaquin Roldan announced on AAA tv that Konnan has been suspended indefinitely(Credit : WGN).
-Bryan Danielson pulled out of ROH's shows this and next weekend due to a staph infection.
-Calgary indy wrestler Randy Myres was signed to a developmental deal but WWE(Credit : WGN).
-Rhaka Kahn is back on the road for TNA, but not back on TV as yet.
DEAD WRESTLER TALLY FOR THE PAST TWO WEEKS : 3
-I'm happy to announce that at the next set of Wrestling Roundtable tapings, ROH & Shimmer wrestler Daizee Haze will be sitting in our panel to discuss Women In Wrestling in the show that will be taped for the week of April 19th. Not quite sure if her new found flame Delirious will be around, but we've gotten lots of requests to do this topic and we're thrilled to have Daizee, who just made her HDNet debut this past weekend, on the show.
-This Sunday at WrestleMania, John Cena won back the (WCW) World Heavyweight Championship from Edge in a three way with The Big Show, and Rey Mysterio, Jr. squashed JBL to win the Intercontinental title in 21 seconds. JBL will be retiring, again. Superfly Jimmy Snuka is now also the oldest wrestler to actually wrestle at a WrestleMania.
-Bobby Lashley was not at The Ultimate Fighter tryouts
-Jerry Lynn became the 11th ROH Champion on Friday, finally ending Nigel McGuinness' long reign, the second longest in ROH history. And Ric Flair will be making his first ever appearance in The (ECW) Arena this Thursday during ROH's HDNet TV tapings(Credit : rohwrestling.com)
-While wrestling at match at WWE's Axxxxxxcessssss convention this weekend, Dolph Ziggler was injured with what was originally reported to be a broken collar bone. It must not have been that bad because he was wrestling Monday night in a dark match
-Reports of the WWE Hall Of Fame being a sell out are full of shit. There were plenty of empty seats and closed off areas(Credit : Using your fucking eyes)
-Columbia Pictures has contacted Macho Man Randy Savage about using his likeness in a new pilot, and apparently Savage agreed(Credit : machomadness.com)
-The November To Remember unofficial ECW reunion show to be promoted by Shane Douglas has been postponed due to a comedy show being already booked at The Arena for that date(Credit : pwinsider.com). WWE may have to do the same for the venue of the Extreme Rules PPV in June due to the NBA Playoffs should the New Orleans Hornetts need the New Orleans Arena for a home game.
-Gran Hamada's daughter Ayako announced she has signed with TNA and will wrestle her last match in Japan for now on April 19th on the Ito Dojo show.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009 :
-The biggest news in pro wrestling AND mixed martial arts is Bobby Lashley(2-0) ; The former "ECW" World Champion was the surprise 'former world champion' promised by TNA, debuting after the Frontline won the Lethal Lockdown match this past Sunday at Lockdown in Philadelphia(See our second BLOG for our thoughts on the show). Lashley has signed a short-term contract to TNA that won't prohibit him from pursuing his MMA career, which has taken a big step for his third fight as it was announced by MMA Fanhouse that he signed to fight Bob Sapp(10-3-1) on June 27th in Biloxi, MS at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum for Prize Fight Promotions PPV. Wrestling Observer reports that Sapp has yet to sign the deal.
-Lashley is still in negotiations to fight in May for Alberta, Canada's Maximum Fighting Championship but nothing is signed and one would have to expect that not to happen so close to a fight with a man who outweighs Lashley by 100 lbs.!
-Also at LockDown, Mick Foley won the TNA World Title from Sting, Team 3D defeated Beer Money, Inc. for the TNA Tag Titles & Angelina Love won the Knockouts title pinning Taylor Wilde in a three-way with Awesome Kong. Stevie Richards also made his first on-camera appearance as Dr. Stevie, though TNA can't be serious counting him as one of the "two former world champions" as Stevie never won a world title, ever. Not even a fake one! Ok, they're all fake, but you know what I mean(E-C-W! E-C-ugh).
-WSPA-TV(CBS) reports that William "The Refrigerator" Perry has been hospitalized in Aiken, South Carolina from "symptoms of a chronic illness." He is in 'serious' condition but is expected to recover.
-Jeff Hardy might be on his way out! Apparently he's been losing to Matt in their matches as a precautionary move by WWE should he in fact leave, as his contract runs up within the new few months and he has refused to sign an extension. Usually giving out 3 year deals, WWE even offered a short-term 1 year deal just to lock him down temporarily until he signs a longer deal, which he has also refused(Credit : PWInsider).
-Apparently Paul London(recently visiting backstage at ROH's HDNet tapings) was supposed to have debuted at the TNA Tapings this week but canceled & seems as if TNA doesn't care for pursuing him now(Credit : PWinsider). The original plan was to team him with also returning Amazing Red. Trevor Murdoch, however, debuted at the tapings as "Holiday," teaming with Eric Young. As you can see, no one is doing anything new despite being in a new company. Taz is expected to debut shortly(ha! get it?) as the man Joe was talking to backstage at LockDown.
-Larry Sweeney "quit" Ring Of Honor via his myspace BLOG. His contract is officially up May 2nd, and though ROH has re-signed most of their talents, Sweeney no doubt will not be considered.
-Speaking of Ring Of Honor, Colt Cabana was seen wearing a Wrestling Roundtable t-shirt in a recent video plugging this past weekend's Canadian shows on the ROH YouTube account. Sweet!
-Jim Cornette is now selling "The Midnight Express & Jim Cornette 25th Anniversary Scrapbook" on the newly opened jimcornette.com, and while you're on his site, you definitely must read his column in the commentary section, as it pretty much explains why there might never be another wrestling boom again in the conditions wrestling operates in these days. Although it is funny that when Cornette says the same things we do, he gets respected and "yes you're right," but we get labeled "wrestling haters" and "bitter, biased and critics"
-Lastly, don't forget to look for the new edition of the Wrestling Roundtable, as Daizee Haze from ROH & Shimmer joins our panel to discuss Women In Wrestling, coupled with the Funniest & Least Funniest moments!
Wednesday, April 22, 2009 :
-Internal company reactions to Bobby Lashley signing with TNA, according to PWInsider & paraphrased by me :
WWE : Don't give a shit
UFC : No fucking chance we'll look at you until you stop wrestling, faggot(Put in to Dana White-like language).
-Christopher Daniels will be relinquishing the role of X Champion, Suicide, to Frankie Kazarian next month when Kaz returns to play the masked character(Credit : PWInsider).
-Christy Hemme released her first album this week digitally, "Where Are You?" It's a small miracle it wasn't spelled "Where R U?"
-Ring Of Honor has canceled the July 17th(Danbury, CT), July 24(Montreal, Canada) & September 25th(Elizabeth, PA) shows, with possibly more to come.
-Joey Ryan, of PWG "fame," will be debuting for ROH on May 8th in Boston(Credit : rohwrestling.com).
Wednesday, April 29, 2009 :
-Longtime WWF & AWA veteran Playboy Buddy Rose(Paul Perschmann) died yesterday of what is expected to be determined as complications from diabetes.
-This past Sunday at Backlash, all three of WWE's World titles changed hands. Edge won the (WCW) World Heavyweight Championship for the fifth time from John Cena in a Last Man Standing match. This brings Edge's grand total of World titles to 8 titles in the time frame of just over 3 years. Randy Orton won the WWE Championship for the third time in a ridiculous 6-man tag by surprisiningly pinning the champion, Triple H, making Orton's total world title reigns 4. Christian won the ECW World Heavyweight Championship from Jack Swagger, making it his first world title win in WWE and he a 3 time world champion.
-Linda Bollea/Hogan has filed for documents asing for an additional $8,200 per month from Hulk Hogan(Hogan already pays $40,000 per month), plus $24,000 for "advanced security rent & deposits" to fund a move to California(Credit : TMZ.com). She claims she is in "imminent danger" stemming from Hulk's comments in Rolling Stone Magazine claiming he "understood OJ."
-Bob Sapp pretty much confirmed the fight with Bobby Lashly for June 27th in an interview with fighthype.com, although last we heard the contract was not actually signed by Sapp yet. Lashley(2-0), not resting on his laurrels however, announced he will be fighting for XFC in September, and his next fight will be May 15th in MFC against Mike Cook(7-3), which will air on HDNet.
-Reid Flair was arrested Sunday night after being pulled over, charged with DWI and driving with a suspended license due to a prior arrest(Credit : WSOC TV). Heroin was found in his car, he was charged with a felony & bailed out for $15,000.
-Amazing Red returns to TNA tonight on iMPACT!
-Jay Lethal re-signed with TNA in a new multi-year deal(Credit : tnawrestling.com).
-El Generico will be out of ROH, or wrestling in general, for the time being as he suffered bad damaged to his Meniscus & PCL(credit : rohwrestling.com).
-Matt Hardy suffered a broken hand in the I Quit Women...I mean, I Quit match at Backlash against his brother Jeff.
-All lucha libre shows in Mexico's Distrito Federal were canceled this weekend due to the latest government-created bioweapon/scare tactic....whoops, I mean, "swine flu." Since then, CMLL & AAA have canceled their shows this week(Credit : Wrestling Observer).
-Lance Hoyt is saying he signed a WWE developmental contract.
Monday, May 4th, 2009 :
-Batista was part of Manny Pacquiao's entourage as he made his way down the ring to destroy Britain's Ricky Hatton in the second round of the HBO Boxing PPV main event this past Saturday.
-WWE has canceled a tour of Mexico due to "swine flu."
-Hernandez recently had neck surgery and will apparently miss "2 to 3 months" of performing(Credit : PWInsider.com).
-Ted Grizzly, who was a jobber for the WWWF in the 70s & 80s, died last week in Canada(Credit : PWInsider.com). No relation to Grizzly Redwood.
-Lacey returned at this weekend's Shimmer tapings as the manager of the "International Home Wrecking Crew."
-Tyler Black was stripped of the FIP title this weekend when he was unable to wrestle after aggravating a nagging neck injury at an AAW show in Illinois.
-WWE released Superstar Billy Graham from a Legends/consultant contract but sent him a statement that they will be retaining the rights to the name. Needless to say, Eldridge Coleman isn't very happy about this.
-Warner Bro.s has expressed interest in buying Midway Games, makers of the TNA iMPACT! video game who happen to be in the process of creating the followup title.
-Muscle Flex, Inc. recently successfully beat WWE in court - a rarity - over a trademark dispute over Muscle Flex filing for the term "In the Raw." On a more positive note for WWE in court, CCP's lawsuit over the use of the Gangrel character was thrown out after the judge ruled the former White Wolf, Inc. didn't prove they were still using the character & waited too long to file the suit.
-Everyone is assuming there will be no second season of Hulk Hogan's Celebrity Championship Wrestling due to On-Camera Audiences removing tickets to their events from their website(Credit : Hamilton Avenue Journal/411mania.com)
-Nikki Roxx/Roxxi Laveaux, who was in the middle of a suspension along with Rhaka Kahn due to a backstage fight between the two, was fired by TNA rather than being brought back.
-Elix Skipper's 22 year old son was murdered in Columbus, OH last week. He was shot after answering a knock at his apartment door and police are searching for suspects. The Wrestling Roundtable would like to extend our sincere condolences.
-James "Little Guido" Maritato will be returning to Ring Of Honor at their Hammerstein Ballroom show on June 13th as "Guido Maritato."(Credit : rohwrestling.com).
-Speaking of ROH, the "high profile talent" they've been hinting for their Toronto shows on July 24th & 25th is rumored to be a former world champion. Former world champion, in Canada? Should be....excellent.
-At WWE's Annual Shareholders Meeting this past Friday, Vince McMahon - when he was done making stupid excuses about why PPV buyrates are down - said they were interested in adding ANOTHER national television show to their lineup, on Wednesday nights and that the scumbag hellhole capital of the world, China, was a big part of their future plans. He also said there would not be a physical Hall Of Fame, which goes against reports last year of Shane McMahon saying there should be one.
-Eric Bischoff declined WWE's offer to take part in WWE's upcoming "Rise & Fall Of WCW" DVD, saying, "I have no desire to give credibility to their revisionist history"(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
-Shark Boy was sent home from a TNA house show last night in Kentucky after having flu-like symptoms(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
-Dennis Rodman was asking Jeremy Borash in Miami last week about doing a match for TNA(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
-Mick Foley started work on his fourth autobiography several weeks ago(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
-After waiting so long for test results, Sonny Siaki will be donating his kidney to his brother Bernard.
-Steve "Mongo" McMichael, long known as the best worker to ever grace the Four Horsemen faction, will be inducted in the College Football Hall Of Fame this year.
-Jon Davis, one half of the Dark City Fight Club, recently dislocated his wrist in a ROH match in Dayton, and could require surgery, which would put he - and by proxy, the tag team - on the shelf for some time.
Wednesday, May 6th, 2009 :
-Bobby Lashley Vs. Bob Sapp has officially been signed for June 27th PPV.
-Turns out that the legal notice sent to Superstar Billy Graham with text stating WWE was retaining exclusive rights to his name, likeness, etc. was just standard print on every letter and they will not be enforcing this on the name Graham had been using since before his WWWF days.
-Despite earlier nauseating reports, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson will not be playing Captain Nemo in a remake of Disney's 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea. Thank god(Credit : Wrestling Observer).
-Tyler Black said he'd be ready to wrestle again for ROH's next HDNet tapings in Philadelphia on May 29th.
-Indy female wrestler and Jay Lethal's girlfriend, Miss April, signed with a developmental deal with WWE this week.
-Mike Quackenbush is off this weekend's ROH shows, claiming injury. Fake or not, good fucking riddance.
-J.J. Dillon came out of retirement & wrestled this weekend, believe it or not, teaming with "Beef Stew" Lou Marconi & Handsome Frank Staletto to lose to Dominic Denucci, Shane Douglas & Cody Michaels at "Deaf Wrestlefest 2009" in Pittsburgh(Credit : 411mania.com). Since when is Russel Simmons promoting wrestling? It was actually promoted by the Western Pennsylvania School For the Deaf. So many jokes! ....here's one : At least they weren't be able to hear them calling spots.
-Dave "May retire in a year" Batista & Rob Van Dam will involved in a Louisiana shooting of a movie titled Wrong Side Of Town(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
-Doug Basham has retired(Credit : PWinsider). And the world goes on
-WWE's lawuist against the IAHL Corporation over money owed from sponsoring WrestleMania 23 last year has been settled(Credit : Wrestling Globe)
-Indy wrestler Regular airlifted to a hospital from a Dynamic Wrestling Alliance show in Ohio after a ladder was dropkicked in to his head during a ladder match. After suffering a 'neck injury,' broken jaw & missing teeth, he suffered seizures and stopped breathing during the trip. He is currently listed in critical condition while staying in intensive care(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
Tuesday, May 12th, 2009 :
-WWE released their financial numbers for the first quarter of the year this past Friday, and they were down in every category except TV Licensing fees ; a 24% drop from this time last year. They still made over $100 million in revenue.
-Stephanie McMahon held a meeting with talent saying there was no 'glass ceiling' & they should come up with their own storylines(Credit : Wrestling Globe). Sure.
-Lance Storm will be - once again - coming out of retirement for Ring Of Honor on their upcoming shows in Toronto on July 24th & 25th also featuring Ric Flair & Bret Hart making guest appearances(Credit : rohwrestling.com). That's the good news. The bad news is...well, wait til you see his opponents.
-New Japan ingeniously released a poster for their upcoming show, Dominion, that featured Nazi imagery including a Swastika. I guess the Japanese thought showcasing the symbol of their country's old Axis partner's toppled regime of race-hating exterminators was a good idea. Being that NJPW is an NWA member, Executive Director of the NWA Robert Trobich released a press statement denouncing the whole thing & now NJPW says they're redoing the poster. Probably should have thought that over before going through with it in the first place, but hey, at least it's a step in the reich...excuse me, right direction.
-Kurt Angle is involved in the Pittsburgh shooting of a movie this week, playing a Russian MMA fighter(Credit : Pittsburgh Post Gazette). Yet another place, besides TNA of course, where Angle can play 'MMA fighter.'
-Speaking of movies, Roddy Piper is in a new movie called Fancypants about a pro wrestler who's afraid of conflict in real life(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
-Chris Benoit's personal steroid doctor, Phil Astin, was sentenced to prison time without parole for an unspecified amount of time(Credit : time-herald.com)
-Tough Enough 4 winner Daniel Puder's next MMA fight will be against Jeff Ford at the Ontario, CA "Call To Arms 1" show on May 16th Internet PPV.
-Jeremy Borash reports Shawn "Hotstuff" Hernandez has successful fusion neck surgery & should be recovered in 3 months
-Amazing Red, just returned to TNA TV, has signed a new contract with the company, and "Cute" Kip is believed to soon be offered a newer deal as well(Credit : Wrestling Globe)
-Paul London continues to seemingly carelessly destroy his reputation as he's no-showed several indy shows recently and now a convention, claiming back injuries have caused him to cancel, sometimes with mere hours' notice.
-Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson was invited to The White House Correspondent's Dinner this weekend, hopefully so President Obama could scout him to play himself in his eventually bio movie, "Obama." Alright, that's my idea, but a good one, yes?
-Former wrestler Princess Jasmine(Cynthia Peretti-Johnson), 60, died Friday morning after a bout with cancer(Credit : Wrestling Globe). She wrestled all over after debuting in 1968 ; AWA, NWA, WWWF, Japan, the Caribbean & Africa.
-Shannon Moore recently married a WWE costume designer Julie Youngberg(Credit : Wrestling Globe), who happens to be Droz' ex-wife.
-Ken Kennedy returned to the ring at the last FCW tapings.
-Fred Sampson from ECWA was signed to a WWE developmental deal(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
-Indy wrestler "Sure Shot" Derek Wayne(Derek Gatton) was found dead in his parents' home in Lansdown, MD a few weeks ago(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
-Tommy Dreamer was offered a new contract last week and might eventually replace Tiffany as ECW's GM(Credit : Wrestling Globe).
-Now not just Bischoff, but Jim Herd & Ted Turner himself turned down involvement in WWE's Rise & Fall Of WCW DVD
-Konnan's lawsuit against TNA claiming racial discrimination and breech of contract has been settled out of court.
-Doug Basham changed his mind & isn't retiring. I haven't changed my mind & still don't care.
Tuesday, May 19th, 2009 :
-Ric Flair, still playing the role of "ROH Ambassador" on Ring Of Honor's HDNet show with upcoming appearances still planned no less, returned to WWE at Judgment Day this past Sunday, making the save for Batista after being beaten down by the Legacy. Judgment Day was the first pay per view WWE has done since October that didn't feature Edge in a World title changing match.
-Bobby Lashley defeated Mike Cook in 24 seconds via TKO after Cook was choked out by Lashley in the pre-main event of Maximum Fighting Championship's event this past Saturday. Lashley(3-0) has not been brought to TV by TNA recently because apparently, NOW, TNA got it in their head that they don't want to put him on TV as long as he's not under contract. Despite having already done so on PPV & TV, no less. Fucking genius.
-Daniel Puder(7-0) won his fight on Saturday at Clean Kill's Call To Arms internet PPV show in Los Angeles via ref. stoppage after his opponent, Jeff Ford(4-4), slipped while attempting a high kick and landed badly, injuring his shoulder.
-Vickie Guerrero won the "Miss WrestleMania Crown" from Santino Marella last night on RAW. Fill in your own joke, I can't be bothered.
-Next week's Monday Night RAW is being thrown out of Denver, CO's Pepsi Center in favor of a Denver Nuggets basketball playoff game(Credit : AP). The venue was booked back in August for this date by WWE and usually sports teams reserve certain dates from being booked by outside companies in case of needing the buildings for these sort of sporting championships should the home teams go that far, but McMahon insists their trucks will be sent to the building on Monday. If they do indeed have to do the show in the parking lot, that would be a unique RAW possibly worth watching!
-Looks like WWE will be doing a PPV with a theme of "Submissions." But they've got nothing in common with MMA.
-Shawn "Gavin" Spears debuts for ROH in Manassas, VA on June 12th(Credit : ROHwrestling.com). I thought TNA was supposed to the place where WWE rejects go to?
-Eric Bischoff, Bill Behrens & Jimmy Hart are being called as expert witnesses in the Live Nation Vs. WrestleReunion lawsuit originally filed in November 2007(Credit : PWInsider). WrestleReunion LLC claims that footage was shot but not properly distributed or marketed for a DVD of their 2004 & 2005 events & Mick Foley's unrealized reality show.
-James Storm has re-signed with TNA long term(Credit : Jeremy Borash's Twat).
-The Undertaker is being prepped to return in July for a SummerSlam match.
-Time Warner is dropping HDNet from their service in New York City. HDNet carries many MMA promotions & ROH. okthankyoubuhbye!
-Indy wrestler "Tank" Tim Robertson, 29, died from asphyxiation after a bee sting this Saturday(Credit : WGN).
-Canibal(Julio Gomez Roman), who wrestled for AAA, died the other Sunday after being struck by a truck when he was riding a motorcycle(Credit : WGN).
-Jose Arguello Lunca(Pepe Luna/Dr. Macabro/Polaris) died last week at age 64(Credit : WGN).
-Tank Toland & Jillian Hall have gotten engaged
-Former SMW/WWF wrestler Johnny K-9/Bruiser Bedlam(Jon Croitoru), 43, was arrested Friday for allegedly plotting to murder members of a rival biker gang(Credit : Calgary Herald)
Dead wrestler tally for the week : 3
Tuesday, June 2nd, 2009 :
-The big news of the weekend, more important than who got fired or who signed with what, is Dragon Gate being exposed as animal abusers. As brought to light by Chris Johnson of gerweck.net, the story apparently is that a monkey(looking to be a Japanese Macaque) was kept at the Dragon Gate dojo along with a dog, and was abused by Shingo Takagi and other wrestlers. Here is the post, with links to pictures of the disgusting acts :
- They choked it by the neck until it passed out.
- They burned it with charcoal.
- They threw it into a tub of boiling hot water.
- Not sure on this one but it looks like they blew air into its mouth and it would cause it to crap instantly.
- They gave it sake regularly until it would pass out.
- Drag it around by a chain on its neck.
- attached fire crackers to it and lit them
- lock it in a box and spray antiperspirant in the box causing it to freak out.
It really disgusting stuff and they created a huge mound of evidence. These people are fucking cretins.
I have confirmation of the legitimacy of these incidents(as if the pictures don't say it all) from a Japanese source who says it's "big news" in Japan. Dragon Gate also had the photos removed from their wrestler's blogs & YouTube. Word is Matt Sydal had posted a YouTube video a few years ago showing the monkey actually being abused that has since been taken down.
I encourage everyone to spread the word about this disgusting, disappointing and downright lowlife behavior. Don't support Dragon Gate, don't let them get away with animal abuse. I encourage you to write or call, as I have :
Pennsylvania SPCA
Location: 350 East Erie Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19134 USA
Phone: (215) 426-6300
Email: info@pspca.org
Pennsylvania Animal Welfare
Location: 2003 Glenview St, Philadelphia, PA 19149 USA
Phone: (215) 332-7297
Philadelphia Animal Care & Control/PAWS
Location: 111 W. Hunting Park Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19140 USA
Phone: 267-385-3800
Email: info@phillypaws.org
info@americanhumane.org
As an animal lover and volunteer, I hope you join me in spreading the word & bringing these criminals to justice.
Back to stupid wrestling news for the week :
-I attended the Legends Of The Ring convention this past weekend & was pretty stoked to meet some of the big names, one of which was Kurt Angle. However, it was made public the day before that he had accepted a minor role in a movie starring Nick Nolte being shot in Pittsburgh, PA the same day. As such, his signing was moved up to 8am. With staff warning us ahead of time that, "Kurt's tired," Angle looked zonked out of his mind.
It was very uncomfortable. He seemed as if he had a hard time focusing, wrote very slowly, spoke softly, moved in slow motion, looked unshaved, and seemed like he was in another world. It wasn't pleasant. Someone on the LOTR message board claimed to have eaten with Angle at the bar the night before, where he said Angle said he was on a schedule of a month full of 11 hour days back to back with flying and no sleep, but a photographer I spoke to said he's "used to seeing Kurt like that," and hadn't NOT seem him like that since after his first year in the WWF 10 years ago.
I really hate to have to report this to you as Angle is one of my favorites and arguably one of the best, if not the best, of all time, but this isn't the first time I've heard about Angle being this way. Take any stories of being clean with a grain of salt...
-After almost hurting Randy Orton in his big comeback match 9 days ago during the 10-man tag main event of RAW, Mr. Kennedy was fired after Orton complained about his reckless backdrop almost re-injuring Orton's collarbone. Initial reports of injury-prone Kennedy's wrist being hurt apparently being blown out of proportion(he had a minor sprain at best, but doesn't change the fact he's spent probably half his time in WWE out on injury), this is the second person Orton's bad-mouthed & subsequently was released(first being Manu).
-Kofi Kingston defeated MVP for the US title last night on RAW.
-Serena Deeb signed a developmental deal with WWE after having an ECW tv cameo, showing implants go a long way.
-Fit Finlay's been suffering from a scratched eye
-Time Warner and AOL have official un-merged. After the AOL/Time Warner merger 10 years ago, WCW was slowly phased out of their portfolio, and wrestling has never been the same since. Fuck you both.
-Eve Torres has been taking Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu(BJJ) classes at the Gracie Academy in Los Angeles(Credit : WGN).
-Raven & Shane Douglas returned to TNA this past Thursday, with Lisa Marie Varon(Victoria) debuting as well. Shane Sewell, their version of Danny Davis, was released, however.
-Midway Games, being purchased by Warner Bro.s, has put up the TNA license for video games for bid(Credit : WGN).
-Ric Flair quit Ring Of Honor in a non-televised promo this weekend at their ECW Arena HDNet tapings, saying he was "going back to" WWE. And I thought they didn't consider ROH competition, Dick? Anyway, Jim Ross and others are saying Flair will more than likely end up wrestling abroad sooner rather than later, but Flair will be finishing up for ROH on June 13th as the ref. for the Jerry Lynn/Austin Aries title match before he re-signs with WWE. ROH is not happy with this development.
-Rumor is John Cena married his "long time girlfriend" this weekend(Credit : WGN).
-Nigel McGuinness returned to ROH this past weekend at the HDNet tapings with a shaved head.
Wednesday, June 10th, 2009 :
-All but one title on the line at WWE Extreme Rules this past Sunday changed hands(Kofi Kingston retained the US title in a 4-way with MVP, William Regal & Matt Hardy) :
-Chris Jericho defeated Rey Mysterio, Jr. for his 9th Intercontinental title.
-Dave Batista became the 18th man to hold the WWE *world* title & the *wcw* World title when he defeated Randy Orton in the steel cage match
-Tommy Dreamer became the only person to win the ECW *world* title in the real & fake ECWs, when he won the title for a second time, pinning Jack Swagger in a three way with champion Christian
-Jeff Hardy became the 19th man to win both WWE *world* & *wcw* World titles when he defeated Edge in a ladder match. That is until CM Punk utilized his Money In The Bank briefcase to win his second *wcw* World title, the second year in a row he's used MITB to win the belt. This is also the FIFTH world title 9-time world champion Edge has lost....in less than a fucking year.
-Umaga was released by WWE Monday. He is not accepting indy bookings either(Credit : pwinsider.com).
-Batista developed a bicep injury weeks ago but was given the WWE *world* title regardless. Kingshit himself, HHH, returned to TV Monday night after a scheduled Orton/Batista match never got started. Batista was stripped of the title the next day and a four way with Cena, Big Show, HHH & Orton was set up for the vacant title on Monday. Batista had surgery to repair his tear and will be out four months at least, though the Wrestling Observer reports he may be kept off TV until the Royal Rumble for a big comeback.
-Vickie Guerrero has quit WWE, as last month it was arranged for her to leave WWE to spend more time with her daughters & the storyline was set up for her exit. With her quitting as GM of RAW, it is expected for Ric Flair to be named her replacement on Monday(Credit : pwinsider.com)
-Chris Masters was re-signed by WWE last week, as well as Tommy Dreamer(to a multi-year deal).
-Ring Of Honor is not planning on doing pay-per-views any longer, for the time being.
-Jeremy Borash reports Hernandez was given medical clearance to return much sooner than expected
-WWE performed drug testing on Monday night.
-TNA is rumored to be looking to bring in Mexican wrestlers via CMLL, specifically Mistico & Cibernetico.
-In another pathetic garbage indy story, CZW wrestler Nick Gage had to be airlifted to a hospital from wrestler DJ Hyde's parents' farm in Delware during Tournament Of Death 8 show, as he was thrown into light tubes & severed an artery. Genius.
-Kane is expected back on TV soon, while Samoa Joe will be off for six months after the Slammiversary PPV, suffering broken fingers & a torn tricep that requires surgery(Credit : WGN).
-Wonder why the popular wrestling news sites like Wrestling Observer or PWInsider didn't report the Dragon Gate/monkey scandal? hmmmmm, I have a real good idea.
Wednesday, June 17th, 2009 :
--In the most shocking news in a long time, Pro Wrestling NOAH President & Puroresu legend Mitsuharu Misawa died in the ring during a GHC Heavyweight Tag Team title match at a NOAH show after taking a backdrop suplex from Akitoshi Saito. Attendants rushed to the ring and tried reviving Misawa, who had stopped breathing. The show was stopped as Misawa was rushed to a hospital where he was declared DOA. Reports from the hospital say he died of spinal damage rather than the initially guessed at heart attack(Credit : Mainichi Daily News).
Misawa was one of the most important figures in Japanese wrestling in the past several decades in the ring & out. The Wrestling Roundtable sends our condolences to the friends & family of Mitsuharu Misawa, as well as the staff of NOAH.
-Go Shiozaki won the GHC Heavyweight title that had been vacated by the retiring Jun Akiyama by defeated Takeshi Rikio on NOAH's show the next day.
-Randy Orton won the vacated WWE *world* title for his fourth reign in a four-way with Triple H, Big Show & John Cena on Monday. This is Orton's fifth world title. Also on RAW, Vince McMahon announced he "sold" the RAW show to Donald Trump. WWE stock is reported to have fallen 6.7% the next day(Credit : PWtorch). As part of their latest ridiculous trying-to-get-media-attention-storyline, Trump announced RAW will be commercial free next week.
-Ric Flair walked out on Ring Of Honor's Manhattan Mayhem 3 show this past Saturday after refusing to perform his initially-agreed role as 'ringside enforcer' (which had been changed from 'special referee') after seeing HDNet was taping the main event. Immediately after cutting another phony kiss-ass promo in the ring, Flair grabbed his bags and walked out the door. He had also tried no-showing his Manassas, Virginia autograph signing, despite advertising already being done for both shows based around his appearances. Although he is still scheduled to make his next three ROH appearances, this is extremely disappointing behavior.
-Also on ROH's show, Austin Aries became the first 2-time ROH champion by pinning Tyler Black in a three-way elimination match with then-champion Jerry Lynn. Bret "Hitman" Hart was also announced for their Sep. return to the Manhattan Center, where Bret Hart used to defend the WWF World title during the first days of Monday Night RAW.
-SoBe Entertainment has filed a lawsuit against The Big Show & WWE claiming they advanced Paul Wight $1 million so he could buy a house in Miami in return for appearing for them in various roles - namely as a pro boxer - until 2012, which naturally didn't happen as we know he returned to WWE shortly there after(Credit : PWInsider).
-Former TNA wrestler Mesias, AAA wrestler Billy Boy & referee Hijo Del Tirantes were arrested days ago for allegedly beating up someone who was upset they were snorting coke he had given them in his car. They were bailed out shortly after arrest(Credit : wrestling observer).
-Former 60s-80s EMLL & UWA wrestler Cesar "Guerrillero" Valentino, 68, has died.
-Gerald Brisco had a stroke this weekend, is undergoing surgery & expected to fully recover(Credit : WGN).
-Lisa Marie Varon(Victoria/Tara) posted a great message on her myspace upset about rumors that she was Chris Benoit's mistress towards the end of his life, insinuated the rumors come from someone within WWE & told them to back off unless they want real dirt to come out. Victoria is fuckin awesome! Despite that, it is now being reported that the man who made up the rumor was just some message board poster, so that makes me wonder what exactly Victoria is talking about...
-Nancy Benoit's parents have filed a lawsuit against Dr. Phil Aston and several other outlets related to drugs obtained by.prescribed to Chris Benoit prior to his double-murder/suicide(Credit : Fox Atlanta)
-Paul "The Butcher" Vachon underwent reconstructive jaw surgery recently(Credit : WGN).
Wednesday, June 24th, 2009 :
-Billy "Red" Lyons, 77, died Tuesday from cancer. He had been a famous Toronto wrestler for decades, from the 50s to the 80s teaming with Red Bastein as The Flying Redheads, and also worked as a commentator for WWF house shows in the 80s & 90s(Credit : WGN).
-This past Sunday at Slammiversary(celebrating 7 years of existence for TNA), Kurt Angle regained the TNA World Heavyweight title in a King Of The Mountain match where Samoa Joe turned heel, helping Angle win & joining the Main Event Mafia. Kurt Angle is the first 3-time TNA champion.
Also, Beer Money regained the TNA Tag Titles from Team 3D. & Shane Douglas hurt his ankle in the match against Christopher Daniels.
-The Donald Trump angle was seemingly dropped on Monday with McMahon "buying RAW back for double the initial price," which of course was not specified. On the same RAW that was "free" of commercials(but not from blatant KFC shilling), the "ticket refund" angle by RAW "owner" Trump was legit, as anyone who seeks a refund will be able to attain one. This year's bribery for attention worked as RAW got the biggest rating in several years, and will probably result in the resurrection of the Trump angle. Joy for all.
-Candice Michelle, Sim Snuka, & Joseph Canterbury(Henry Godwinn's son) were all released this past week by WWE.
-Former Killer Bee, B. Brian Blair, was arrested for child abuse(punching his two sons) & jailed Sunday morning(Credit : Tampabay.com). His 17-year-old son Brett, who had previously tried running away from home 6 times, and his younger brother Bradley, 12, say their father, in a drunken rage, shoved, grabbed, choked & punched them this weekend. Two other boys at the residence witnessed the events & called 911. Blair, gay son of a bitch worse than the Michael Jorda...I mean the Michael Jackson, had his first court appearance on Monday & was allowed to return home.
-The Bob Sapp/Bobby Lashley fight takes place on the Ultimate Chaos PPV this Saturday presented by Prize Fight MMA & Fight Force International.
-ROH canceled HDNet tapings in The Arena for July, as they already have more shows taped than to necessitate next month's taping. They will pick back up again in August.
-Priceless will now be just called "Legacy."(Credit : Wrestling Observer). That's better.
-Security removed Macho Man signs from RAW this past Monday in Green Bay, WI(Credit : PWinsider). But there's no conspiracy.
-Ric Flair's booking company, The Gillespie Agency, put out a press release claiming Ric Flair isn't exclusive to WWE & is still available for outside bookings. Funny, could of fooled me the way he fucked over ROH.
-Petey Williams debuts for ROH this weekend in Detroit(Credit : rohwrestling.com)
-Matt Hardy, days after claiming he's 100% healed from a broken hand, tore an abdominal muscle on the Superstars taping Monday(Credit : Wrestling Observer). He's scheduled for surgery later this week.
-Hulk Hogan Appreciation Day takes place on July 10th in Bridgeview, IL with an autograph/photo session earlier in the afternoon, then an indy show in the evening.
-Jeff Hardy's contract is set to expire within the next few weeks(Credit : WGN)
-Dos Caras, Jr. of EMLL is reported to have (finally) signed a WWE contract - for real, this time, and Super Luchas Magazine showed a picture of him with contract in hand.
-Bill Watts' ex wife Ene owns most of the Mid-South/UWF video tape library and is the hold up in WWE wanting to buy it, as they don't agree on money(Credit : WGN).
-Sarah Stock is expected to debut on TNA tv soon(Credit : WGN).
-Nick Cvjetkovich(Kizarny/Sinn) was supposed to meet with TNA officials this week(Credit : WGN). Trina Michaels, former porn star turned wrestler, is hinting she is also on her way to TNA. Carolina indy wrestlers Mikael Judas & Phill Shatter are getting "tryouts" playing Mick Foley's security.
-WWE seems to be interested in doing a cage-themed PPV or all-cage PPV.
-Serena Deeb is claiming she hasn't been offered a contract buy WWE yet(Credit : WGN).
-Brock Lesnar & wife Rena(Sable) had a baby boy this past weekend.
-AAA President Joaquin Roldan announced on AAA tv that Konnan has been suspended indefinitely(Credit : WGN).
-Bryan Danielson pulled out of ROH's shows this and next weekend due to a staph infection.
-Calgary indy wrestler Randy Myres was signed to a developmental deal but WWE(Credit : WGN).
-Rhaka Kahn is back on the road for TNA, but not back on TV as yet.
DEAD WRESTLER TALLY FOR THE PAST TWO WEEKS : 3
