In this interview Saraya talks about the evolution of Toni Storm: “When I first got to AEW, she was too nervous to pick up a microphone. So we were doing The Outcasts stuff or whatever but, I remember she had this one line that she had to say and she kept going over and over and she’s like, ‘Oh fuck. Can we keep going over it?’ It’s just one line, and I was like, ‘Toni, you got this, babe,’ and I had Ruby (Soho) who is amazing on the mic too. We got through that promo, she did amazing but I think the secret sauce is finding something that you really love and you’re really passionate about and to do something that kind of flips that switch for you, and so the whole Toni Storm, fucking phenomenon that she created really fucking capitulated her. She’s one of the best promos in the game now.”
Big Japan Wrestling star Koshiro Asakura is out of action due to a torn ACL and meniscus. Best wishes to him for a full recovery!
Naomichi Marufuji talks about why he stayed with Pro Wrestling NOAH after the passing of Mitsuharu Misawa: “After Misawa passed away, it was a very difficult time. The number of fans and wrestlers decreased, and there were times when only 200 people would show up at Korakuen Hall (which has a capacity of approximately 1,600). When we went to regional areas, there were only a few rows of seats, and even then, the crowd was sparse. We tried various things to keep NOAH going, but every time we did, there were many comments like, ‘This isn’t NOAH,’ or ‘Mr. Misawa wouldn’t have done this,’ which were quite difficult to bear. But we did our best to keep it going.”
KENTA talks about his time in WWE: “All the moves I’d been doing were taken away. Stylistically, they didn’t really want me to go for hard hits. So I wondered what it was that they were looking for in me. It was supposed to be a challenge to see how much of what I’d built up in NOAH would work in WWE, but it ended up becoming about abandoning what I’d built and starting over with a new style from scratch.”
Gunther talks about John Cena’s retirement tour: “It’s great for him that he’s able to do that and say, ‘This is the way I want to finish it and the way I want to go out.’ It’s a great way to do it. If somebody deserves it, then it’s him. It’s good to have him back around. Obviously, I have not interacted with him or seen him much because he’s on SmackDown mostly, but who knows, there’s still a long time left, so maybe there’s a chance to get in there with him before he hangs it up.”
TKO has made some new hires: Sana Shuaib has been hired to the position of SVP, Partnership Marketing & Digital which winds up promoting Brit Santypal to SVP, Operations.
Gerry Morrow (Gerard Etifier) of Stampede Wrestling in the 1970’s and 80’s passed away on Monday at 75 years old. (WO) My condolences to all of his family, friends and fans.
Rockin’ Robin had to miss The Gathering this weekend due to a broken foot. (PWI) My best wishes to her for a full recovery.
Apparently Hikaru Shida finally got her visa renewed which means we should see her back in AEW again soon!
Nick Comoroto vs. Simon Gotch has been added to Bloodsport XIV.
Hulk Hogan’s death has been confirmed to be due to a heart attack.
Ryoko Sakimura is leaving Marigold at her request, which the promotion granted.
Dynamite rose from 608K to 612K and 0.14 to 0.15 18-49 this week. (Wrestlenomics)
The Good Brothers (Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson) now have their own show on Triller TV+.
Here’s the card for SmackDown tonight. (WWE)
- WWE Women’s United States Championship Match: Giulia vs. Zelina Vega
- AAA Tag Team Championship Open Challenge: Los Garza vs. TBA
- Damian Priest vs. Aleister Black
- Jelly Roll, John Cena and Cody Rhodes to appear
TKO is extending their partnership with WingStop. Grant Norris-Jones, Executive Vice President & Head of Global Partnerships for TKO: “WingStop continues to be an incredible partner across both UFC and WWE, showing up in bold and memorable ways around our biggest moments. As their momentum in the market continues to grow, we’re thrilled to expand our work together on some of the most impactful stages in sports and entertainment.”
Zelina Vega has signed with the Prototype Talent Agency.
Here’s the lineup for Impact next week. (TNA)
- TNA Knockouts Championship Match: Jacy Jayne vs. Masha Slamovich
- TNA International Championship Match: Steve Maclin vs. Jake Something
- Joe Hendry vs. Mustafa Ali
- Heather by Elegance & M by Elegance vs. Xia Brookside & Léi Yǐng Lee
And here’s the updated card for Emergence on August 15th. (TNA)
- TNA World Championship Match: Trick Williams vs. Moose
- TNA X Division Championship Match: Leon Slater vs. Cedric Alexander
- Mike Santana vs. Sami Callihan
The updated AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door card on Aug. 24th is below. (AEW)
- AEW Unified Championship Match: Kazuchika Okada vs. Swerve Strickland
- AEW Women’s Championship Match: Toni Storm vs. Athena
- AEW Tag Team Championship Match: Hurt Syndicate vs. TBD
- Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. TBA
NXT did a 0.16 and 647K viewers this week, the same as last week but down 100K viewers. (PI)
Here are last night’s ROH Honor Club results. (FF)
- Hologram & Tomohiro Ishii def. MxM Collection
- A video package recapped Athena’s match against Alex Windsor
- Gringo Loco def. Jon Cruz
- Blake Christian (w/ Lee Johnson) def. Jimmy Jacobs
- Pure Rules Match: Xelhua def. Virus
- ROH World Heavyweight Championship Match: Bandido def. Adam Priest
