Is it Rusev Day again? It appears so. The former WWE star, known as Miro in AEW, spent the day at WWE’s headquarters in Stamford on Wednesday and his presence was noted and reported by multiple people there. Those same sources noted that Lana (CJ Perry) was not there with him. The long and short version of this story is that he was there to finalize the details of his return to the company. (PWI)
Speaking to Stephanie’s Places, Cody Rhodes talks about his voice in his entrance song and wanting his daughter to one day be that voice: “I recorded that weeks after I left WWE the first time (in 2016). To this day, we still use that audio sample. My goal actually, I don’t know if she would want to do this, but the beginning of my song and the voiceover that exists, I’d love my daughter to do it at one point. I want her to have a good experience in this. I had the best experience. Certainly, you can’t predict the highs and lows and all it’s going to be. Opportunity showed, opportunity knocked, I was able to answer. Very lucky.”
In this interview Chelsea Green talks about standing out in WWE: “We don’t have teams. It’s WWE. That’s it. When you grew up watching wrestling, you only wanted to go to WWE. That was the goal, right? That’s a pinnacle. So to be fighting all the girls in the world that ever wanted to be a wrestler for that one spot, but then also fighting all the girls that WWE wants. They’re picking, they’re going out and they’re seeking women or seeking talent. So, you know, especially look, I’m just a white Canadian straight girl. Like that’s not giving much, right? Like we want, we want diversity, right? In WWE, we want something special, we want a story, and for me, coming in as an independent wrestler from Canada whose background is just, I’m just British, I’m just a Caucasian British girl, that doesn’t lend to hiring me. That’s not giving something special. So I had to make sure that my story was special, that the journey it took to get there was special, or my character work in the ring was special. Someone else couldn’t bring that to the table. But I had to show that a lot.”
Awesome Championship Wrestling has added Indi Hartwell & Tommy Dreamer to their upcoming card on May 17th in Poughkeepsie, NY.
In this interview Joe Cabray talks about OTT’s relationship with WWE: “It’s hard to talk about the workings, but it’s not an easy feat. It’s understandable as well. We’ve gotten proper, proper WWE superstars. The main roster, top people, the tag team champions. I don’t know is the short answer. I mean, we have a very good relationship there, but at the same point, you just have to watch this space. We’ll always try and get the best for the fans. I mean, I think we’ve delivered that over the years, but it’s not always so easy. It’s the old saying of never saying never in wrestling. I mean, like if someone had said to me, do you think the tag team champions will ever appear in OTT, and I was like, probably not. but you can never say never. I mean, it happened, so anything can happen, I suppose.”
CMLL Martes de Arena Mexico results are below. (FF)
- Shockercito & Galaxy def. Mercury & Full Metal.
- 2/3 Falls Match: Hera & Amapola def. Metálica & Candela (2-1).
- Lightning Match: Raider def. Fire.
- 2/3 Falls Match: Valiente Jr. & The Space Travelers (Max Star & Futuro) def. Rayo Metálico & La Fuerza Poblana (Stigma & Xelhua) (2-1).
- 2/3 Falls Match: The Barbarians (Cave Barbarian, The Terrible & The Elemental) def. The Devil Beasts (Akuma, Devil Twin I & Devil Twin II) (2-1).
- 2/3 Falls Match: Star Jr., Atlantis Jr. & Flip Gordon def. El Valiente & Los Hermanos Chávez (Ángel de Oro & Niebla Roja) (2-1).
Michin advanced in the latest round of the WWE Speed tournament.
Here’s the lineup for this week’s ROH on Honor Club. (ROH)
- ROH Tag Team Championship Proving Ground: Dustin Rhodes & Sammy Guevara vs. Griff Garrison & Cole Karter
- Kevin Knight, Rocky Romero, & Volador Jr vs. Mascara Dorada, Titan, & Templario
- Dark Order (Evil Uno & Alex Reynolds) vs. The Infantry
- The Outrunners vs. Premier Athletes (Tony Nese & Ariya Daivari)
- The Gates of Agony in action
Shane Haste has been added to MLW Battle Riot VII.
Here’s a new Speedball Mike Bailey interview.
In this interview Evan Husney talks about Dark Side of the Ring being renewed: “For every season, it’s been kind of different. Early on, it felt like we were waiting several months after the season aired to find out if things were going ahead for the next one. But this time around, I think with the last few seasons, it’s been probably midway through the season if the ratings hit whatever metric they need to hit. But for the most part, Vice has always been very supportive of the show and I think they would want to keep making this show as long as they can. We feel lucky enough to be in that position with the show and that it continues to perform well, people are still interested in it and people show up to watch it and obviously wrestlers still want to tell their stories. So I’m just super grateful for that. So it’s awesome.”
AEW is having a “Meet and Feast” at Jimmy’s Famous Seafood in Baltimore before Dynamite next week.
Mina Shirakawa wrestled her last STARDOM match this week at Korakuen Hall.
Here’s a new Kyle Fletcher interview and Konnan’s latest vlogcast.
In this interview Tony Khan talks about negotiating with WBD: “It’s interesting. For me, as a sports executive, it’s interesting to sit in the other seat as a player. I’ve been in so many negotiations across football and pro wrestling and have so many great relationship with talent and athletes. Knowing what it’s like with the greatest athletes, in this case, as AEW the company, the sports league, being in the player’s seat, it was really really great. You talk about relationships I know what it’s like to be the party on WBD’s side. That’s why I had such a great relationship and rapport with them and I think it helped AEW. We have a lot of trust, and what’s really great is Mr. Zaslav himself told me he believes in AEW. David Zaslav is one of the greatest executives in Hollywood and a big supporter of AEW. That’s really great for us to have the boss of Warner Brothers Discovery in AEW’s corner and in the wrestling fans corner. I was at the Olympics with him in Paris and we’re talking about AEW on the biggest stage in international sports with a top executive whose company had all the European broadcasting rights and great things going on. Mr. Zaslav was really excited about the renewal process over the summer, and engaged. To have Mr. Zaslav, Bruce Campbell, and the great team behind us. Kathleen Finch will be retiring. She’s been great boss for us at TBS and TNT and a big AEW supporter. Kathleen is a very prestigious entertainment executive and her first ever wresting event was AEW Grand Slam at Arthur Ashe Stadium. It was the first time she had ever been to pro wrestling, and we made a fan for life with Kathleen. I got to spend a great time with her and her husband Pete and all the great Warner Brothers Discovery executives in Paris as we were coming to close this deal together.”
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Jonathan Gresham has been added to Bloodsport XIII.
Here are the brackets for the women’s Owen Hart Cup. (AEW)
- Jamie Hayter vs. Billie Starkz
- Thunder Rosa vs. Kris Statlander
- Julia Hart vs. Mercedes Mone
- Harley Cameron vs. Athena
And here are the brackets for the men’s Cup. (AEW)
- Will Ospreay vs. Kevin Knight
- Brody King vs. Konosuke Takeshita
- Mark Briscoe vs. Kyle Fletcher
- Hangman Page vs. Wild Card
Jay White was scheduled to compete but was taken out with a storyline injury to cover for a real injury (undisclosed) he needs surgery on. (FF)
This week’s NXT did a 0.15 and 650,000 viewers, down from 0.16 and 741K last week. (PI)
Mick Foley’s update following his car accident: “It’s been a little over 24 hours since I climbed out of this car, and I’m feeling very fortunate and very grateful. I do feel like I’ve been run over by a truck, but the idea that someone would be in an accident like this and walk away with only soft tissue injury makes me feel like someone was looking out for me! Thank you to all of you who sent well wishes. I’m back on the road tomorrow and will not miss a single date!”
Chasyn Rance has been arrested for violating the terms of his sex offender registration. Rance failed to report changes in vehicle ownership, failed to report a “internet ID, web page, or app name” in two cases, and provided false registration info three times.
Isla Dawn’s first post-WWE match is for Northeast Wrestling on July 19th.
Good news — Brian Knobbs health is starting to improve! “Today, Brian saw his doctor – and for the first time in a while, the news was encouraging. The wound on his foot is finally starting to heal. There’s still risk, and we’re not out of the woods yet, but he’s moving in the right direction – and that’s because of YOU.”
Here’s the updated card for Dynasty on April 6th. (AEW)
- AEW World Championship Match: Jon Moxley vs. Swerve Strickland
- AEW International Championship Match: Kenny Omega vs. Mike Bailey vs. Ricochet
- AEW Women’s World Championship Match: Toni Storm vs. Megan Bayne
- AEW World Trios Championship Match: Death Riders vs. Rated FTR
- AEW World Tag Team Championship Match: The Hurt Syndicate vs. Big Bill & Bryan Keith
- AEW TNT Championship No Time Limit, No Outside Interference Match: Daniel Garcia vs. Adam Cole
- ROH World Championship Mask vs. Title Match: Chris Jericho vs. Bandido
- Men’s Owen Hart Cup Tournament First Round Match: Will Ospreay vs. Kevin Knight
- Women’s Owen Hart Cup Tournament First Round Match: Mercedes Mone vs. Julia Hart
All Japan has announced the blocks for their Champions Carnival. (AJPW)
Block A:
- Kento Miyahara
- Jun Saito
- Hideki Suzuki
- Shotaro Ashino
- Kuma Arashi
- Kengo Mashimo
- Xyon
- Takashi Yoshida
- Davey Boy Smith Jr.
Block B:
- Yuma Aoyagi
- Rei Saito
- Hokuto Omori
- Yuma Anzai
- Ryuki Honda
- Ren Ayabe
- Aigle Blanc
- Mike D Vecchio
- Madoka Kikuta
