WWE SmackDown will air live tonight on FOX, and emanate from the Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina.
Lanny Poffo, known during his time in the World Wrestling Federation as “Leaping Lanny” and “The Genius,” has died at age 68. The news was broken by “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan on his Instagram page on Thursday afternoon. The cause of his death is unknown at the time of this writing.
Poffo’s prolific wrestling career began in the 1970s during the territorial era, appearing in promotions such as the National Wrestling Alliance before jumping to International Championship Wrestling, which was owned by his father, Angelo Poffo. After stints in the Continental Wrestling Association and Mid-South Wrestling, Poffo joined the World Wrestling Federation from 1985 to 1992, where he became known for his heel work and his poetry.
After leaving WWF, he joined the company’s rival promotion, World Championship Wrestling, from 1995 to 1999. According to Cagematch, he wrestled his final match in January 2020 for Survival Championship Wrestling in Rensselaer, New York. Poffo inducted his brother “Macho Man” Randy Savage into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2015. In 2020, he appeared on an episode of “AEW Dynamite” as part of a tribute to the legends of Memphis Wrestling
Outside of wrestling, Poffo was an author who published two books, including the anti-smoking book “Limericks from the Heart and Lungs!” His biographical comic, “The Genius of Lanny Poffo” was released in 2018, the same year he started his “The Genius Cast with Lanny Poffo” podcast, which saw him interview a host of wrestling legends. Per IMDb, he was also an actor who starred in movies such as “Curse of the Wolf,” “Ninja: Prophecy of Death” and “Alien Danger 2! With Raven Van Slender.”
WWE issued the following statement on the passing of Lanny Poffo.
Lanny Poffo passes away
WWE is saddened to learn that Lanny Poffo, best known to sports-entertainment fans as The Genius, passed away at 68 years of age.
The son of Angelo Poffo and younger brother of WWE Hall of Famer “Macho Man” Randy Savage, Lanny Poffo had a style all his own. Arriving in WWE in 1985 alongside his brother, “Leaping” Lanny Poffo was one of the first high-flyers in WWE. While he achieved some success as a fan favorite reading his own poetry and throwing Frisbees to the crowd, he reached new heights as The Genius while managing Mr. Perfect.
WWE extends its condolences to Poffo’s family, friends and fans.
On January 17, Jamin Pugh, known to fans as Jay Briscoe, tragically passed away in a car accident that shook the wrestling world down to its very core. Fortunately, his daughters, who were also in the vehicle, survived the accident. However, both of them sustained life-altering injuries.
We now have a positive medical update on Jay Briscoe’s daughters, Jayleigh and Gracie.
Update on Jayleigh: “JJ, Briscoe’s nine-year old daughter was officially released from the hospital yesterday and is back home. She will have to wear her neck and back brace for four more weeks, at which point she will then return to the hospital to have her back brace surgically removed. She will obviously need continued physical therapy as she recovers but she was able to return home last night.”
Update on Gracie: “Gracie, Briscoe’s twelve-year old daughter, will be moved to the rehab floor of the hospital so that she can focus more on physical therapy towards regaining use of her legs below the knee. She has feeling in her legs but is still unable to move them below the knees. She noted to her sister that her leg, which has felt as if its tingling nonstop, ‘felt normal’ last night.”
We wish Jayleigh and Gracie the best on their road to recovery.
Source: eWrestlingNews
CARD
NXT CHAMPIONSHIP STEEL CAGE MATCH:
Bron Breakker (c) vs. Grayson Waller
NXT WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP TRIPLE THREAT MATCH:
Roxanne Perez (c) vs. Gigi Dolin vs. Jacy Jayne
NXT NORTH AMERICAN CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Wes Lee (c) vs. Dijak
NXT TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP FATAL 4-WAY MATCH:
The New Day (c) vs. Chase University vs. Gallus vs. Pretty Deadly
2-OUT-OF-3 FALLS MATCH:
Apollo Crews vs. Carmelo Hayes
NXT WOMEN’S TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Katana Chance and Kayden Carter (c) vs. Fallon Henley and Kiana James
MLW FUSION tonight at 8pm ET streaming worldwide on Pro Wrestling TV and Saturday 8pm ET nationwide on cable television on beIN SPORTS.
This week’s card:
The Micromobile rolls up to South Philly as Microman, World Middleweight Champion Lince Dorado and DRAGONGATE’s La Estrella take to the air against the dangerous triad of Delirious, Mini Abismo Negro and Cesar Duran’s handpicked AZTECA henchman in trios action on this edition of Fusion!
Can Micromania run wild in South Philly? Tune in and find out!
Champion and challenger put each other on blast as Hammerstone and EJ Nduka turn up the heat just seven days out from their Last Man Standing Match on the debut of MLW Underground on Reelz.
The Samoan SWAT Team attempts to send a loud and clear message to World Tag Team Champions Hustle & Power as they rumble with The FBI’s legendary capo Little Guido and his hand picked muscle Ray Jaz.
Fresh off her latest victory last week, World Women’s Featherweight Champion Taya Valkyrie dishes on what, or who is to come for MLW and AZTECA Lucha.
Davey Boy Smith Jr readies The Billington Bulldogs for war with Alex Kane and The Bomaye Fight Club.
Cesar Duran’s newest signee Sam Adonis puts the MLW heavyweight division on notice.
Doctor Dax looks to serve up punishment against Vinny Pacifico.
All-New IMPACT! tonight at 8/7c on AXS TV and 8:30pm ET on YouTube for IMPACT Insiders.
The award-winning WWE Network may have some competition if AEW goes ahead with reported plans to launch their own streaming service.
Since 2019, AEW had produced thousands of hours of content, and with the purchase of Ring of Honor, also has the distribution rights to the 2018 ‘ALL IN’ event.
Bloomberg is reporting that the promotion is considering launching its own streaming service, according to a source “familiar with management’s thinking.”
This streaming service would likely be done with the aid of AEW’s distribution partner Warner Bros. Discovery and isn’t the first time there have been reports of a service.
In October 2021, AEW President Tony Khan said that AEW was in talks with HBO Max over a streaming service with HBO Max, though no service came to light.
Source: eWrestlingNews
Vince McMahon returned to WWE’s Board of Directors last month to execute a sale of his billion-dollar company and negotiate new television deals. Vince’s return caused his daughter Stephanie McMahon to resign from WWE, leaving Nick Khan as the sole CEO of the juggernaut wrestling promotion.
Throughout January, Vince has been sued multiple times by multiple individuals and entities over his return to WWE’s Board.
Bloomberg now reports that on January 26th, shareholder Dennis Palkon filed a new lawsuit against WWE in Delaware Chancery Court.
The lawsuit seeks WWE’s internal files to launch an investigation into the allegations that Mr. McMahon “raped and sexually assaulted employees and contractors over decades” and paid millions of dollars in hush money to silence those allegations. The lawsuit further states “There are serious questions about how Vince McMahon obtained and delivered those funds to his victims” and suggests that McMahon reinstating himself as Executive Chairman of WWE’s Board displayed a “flagrant disregard for basic corporate governance norms.”
According to the lawsuit, if the information provided proves McMahon guilty of breaching his fiduciary responsibilities, “the plaintiff intends to achieve what the board wanted to, but could not in light of Vince McMahon’s thuggery [and initiate proceedings] to bar Vince McMahon from ever serving on the WWE board again.”
WWE has been dealing with three other lawsuits over McMahon’s return this past month.
Source: eWrestlingNews
The fourth season of VICE’s “Dark Side of the Ring” is in production. The documentary series, which focuses on controversial topics throughout the history of pro wrestling, will see the late Bam Bam Bigelow, Abdullah the Butcher, and the late Mike Awesome be profiled in the new season, according to PWInsider. It’s said that Mick Foley, Jim Cornette, Terry Funk, and “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan have all been interviewed for upcoming episodes.
Bigelow, who performed for promotions such as New Japan Pro-Wrestling, WWE, World Championship Wrestling, ECW and the Memphis Wrestling territory throughout his career, faced many struggles in his personal life. In his younger years, the former ECW World Heavyweight Champion was often arrested and was once incarcerated in Mexico City for six months. Years later, Bigelow struggled with his health and addiction. He passed away in January 2007.
Meanwhile, Abdullah the Butcher – a WWE Hall of Famer – is known for performing in hardcore matches around the globe. Because of his activities in such bouts, Butcher has several scars on the top of his head from excessive blading. In 2014, the former All Japan Pro Wrestling star was forced to pay out $2.3 million in damages to Canadian wrestler Devon Nicholson, who had accused Butcher of blading without consent and infecting him with hepatitis C. Regarding Awesome, he controversially departed ECW and signed with WCW while still reigning ECW World Champion in the 1990s. The former WWE Hardcore Champion was tragically found dead at his home in February 2007.
“Dark Side of the Ring,” created by Evan Husney and Jason Eisener, first aired in 2019 and has previously covered topics such as the Montreal Screwjob and Vince McMahon’s steroid trial. Chris Jericho has narrated the show since season two.
Source: Wrestling Inc,
AEW Dynamite will air live tonight on TBS and emanate from the Wright State University Nutter Center in Dayton, OH.
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