Speaking to Ariel Helwani, Shotzi Blackheart says Vince McMahon messed with her presentation from the start: “Hunter loved it. When I went to NXT, he was all for it. I showed him a video of my little tiny tank that I got at Walmart. No (I didn’t get the one from WWE TV at Walmart). That’s the upgrade. That’s the Hunter version. He hooked it up. But, I started with a tiny tank that I got at Walmart. It’s for children. It was a little two-seater for children and I showed him a video and he’s like, ‘Can you get it to TV this week?’ And I ordered an Uber XL, got that little tank in there and brought it to Full Sail and yeah, he was just so into it, and then when I got to the main roster, Vince (McMahon) was not on the same page. No, he didn’t like it. But you know what? I was ready for the change and I totally understood where he was coming from. He was just like, ‘Look, you got so much going on. You got the green hair and all the tattoos. You’re really, really cool-looking and then you muddy it up with the helmet, the tank and the howl. I just wanna know who Shotzi is.’ He wanted me to be more real. I agree, I agree (the tank was great). But I was ready for the challenge. I’m a company woman. If there needs to be changes, I can do it. So I was fully game. I was a little sad to see it all go because I worked so hard to create this cool character and I was very happy with it. But I’m always down for a challenge.”
In this interview Lash Legend says she’s improved tremendously in NXT: “I feel like I’ve tremendously grown so much from where I was even a year ago, two years ago, three years ago. I feel I’ve tremendously owned everything that I do now and I know that, nah, I should be a champion. It’s overdue at this point and so I feel like what it takes is just consistency and me getting these opportunities. I think Jacy Jayne actually said in her promo the other week that it’s new flavors of the month all the time coming in. I mean, it’s about who’s being the most consistent. Everybody see a new shiny toy, like, oh! Let’s look at this person and I’m not talking bad about this person. That person’s probably a great person but that’s just how it goes around here and it’s about who can outlast and who can stay poppin’ through it all and that’s me, the Bougie Bully.”
The lineup for TripleMania Regia on June 15th has been updated again. (AAA)
- Steel Cage Match for AAA Mega Championship: El Hijo Del Vikingo (c) vs. Alberto El Patron
- TNA X Division Championship: Moose (c) vs. Joe Hendry vs. Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr vs. El Mesias
- AAA Reina de Reinas Championship: Lady Flammer (c) vs. Dalys vs. Lady Shani
- AAA World Tag Team Championships: Sanson & Forastero (c) vs. Los Garza vs. The Nemeth Brothers vs. Psycho Clown & Pagano
- Nino Hamburguesa, Mr Iguana & El Fiscal vs. Tokyo Bad Boys
- La Parka, Octagón Jr. & Laredo Kid vs. Los Vipers (Abismo Negro Jr., Taurus & Histeria)
Mr. Iguana is grateful for all the fan support during and since Worlds Collide: “Well, what can I say? A dream come true for the kid who wanted to be a luchador and became one, and from up here, there’s nothing beyond, this is the top. There’s a mantra I have, from a Japanese story and I always say that I am a wave, I’m a wave, I’m water. I’m water, I flow, I flow. I hope people are ready to learn more about Mr. Iguana. I think people in Mexico already know me, I think many of you already know me, and now for real, now you’re going to see who’s really calling the shots.”
WWE filed their “Blake Monroe” trademark for the former Mariah May on June 10th. (FF) Incidentally if you hadn’t already guessed, the last name is a tribute to Marilyn Monroe, while the first name is a tribute to her niece.
Hirooki Goto is sad to see Tetsuya Naito leave NJPW: “It’s a little weird for an entire faction I’ve feuded with to disappear. But you know, Naito always talks about the courage to take a leap, and I think he’s shown that. I’ve always felt myself that I wouldn’t want to wrestle anywhere else, and I’ll end my career here. I don’t know what made Naito arrive at the decision he did, and I’m sure it’s not just one thing. I’m sad to see him go, but I’m sure I’ll see him in the ring again. A lot of people go and come back in this business. Shibata was the same. There’s no forever’s in this business.”
Here’s the card for the four hour Summer Blockbuster tonight. (AEW)
- Swerve Strickland vs. Will Ospreay
- Toni Storm vs. Julia Hart (Mercedes Mone on commentary)
- The Hurt Syndicate vs. Speedball Mike Bailey, Komander & Kevin Knight
- Tay Melo & Anna Jay vs. Megan Bayne & Penelope Ford
- Kyle Fletcher vs. Anthony Bowens
- Thekla vs. Queen Aminata
- Mistico returns
- Kenny Omega & Kazuchika Okada contract signing
In case you missed it here’s the latest episode of NWA Powerrr on X.
Here’s the lineup for Impact tomorrow on TNA+ and AXS TV. (TNA)
- First Class vs. The Hardys
- Jason Hotch vs. Leon Slater
- The IInspiration vs. TBA
- Steve Maclin appears
Berto advanced to a title shot against El Grande Americano on WWE Speed. He’ll get that shot on next week’s episode.
