Author: John Bass

Conrad Thompson Teases Starting Promotion With WWE Hall Of Famer Jeff Jarrett

Following another round of WWE releases this week, there has been some talk about another wrestling promotion starting. Conrad Thompson has taken to social media to tease that he and Jeff Jarrett could be doing just that.

Conrad Thompson responded to several tweets today with different GIFs, all hinting that he has an interest in starting up his own wrestling promotion. These questions also involved Jeff Jarrett, with who he co-hosts the popular My World podcast.

Earlier this week Jeff Jarrett spoke with The Wrestling Inc. Daily about the possibility of promoting again. During the interview, the WWE Hall Of Famer made it clear he is still open to that.

“I think there’s much more of an opportunity, an exponential more of an opportunity… So the ability to create good high-quality compelling content has never been more readily available. Then pair that with all the talent around the world that is working consistently, then yes, the opportunity is there for me and a lot of others.”

While nothing is confirmed at this time, it is clear that Conrad is at least thinking about the situation. There is currently a lot of talent available right now who are free agents following Ring Of Honor’s hiatus and the multiple WWE releases this year. At the moment, there are too many wrestlers to simply fit into the existing promotions out there.

Yesterday WWE released: Hit Row, John Morrison, Tegan Nox, Jaxson Ryker, and Drake Maverick.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Jeff Hardy Wants Heel Turn In WWE Based On Being “Mistreated”

“The Charismatic Enigma” Jeff Hardy recently spoke with Sportbible about some new ideas he has for his future in WWE.

The former WWE Champion has mentioned in the past his desire to bring in Willow from his days in Impact Wrestling. He also recently delved into an idea that evoked The Fiend and the Firefly Funhouse, where Hardy would become like Bob Ross at times.

Now, Jeff Hardy gave his take on what he might look like as a heel character on television. Instead of focusing so much on the fans’ opinion of him, he would try to aim his frustrations and criticisms at WWE.

“I think there’s a way to kind of turn heel without turning on the fans,” Jeff states. “It’s like turning on the company where it’s something like, ‘Ok, I’m 44 years old. I’ve been doing this for so long and I’m really being mistreated – what’s going on here? Should I ask for my release from World Wrestling Entertainment?’.

“This is not a ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ question, it’s a ‘Yay!’ or ‘Boo!’ question – let them yay or let them the boo and let them decide. That’s just an idea that popped into my head but it might be a route to take. I feel like there’s something to be unleashed inside me that wants to get out and rage to a certain extent and hopefully, we’ll figure that out.”

From being part of one of the greatest tag teams of all time to becoming WWE Champion to taking part in WWE 24/7 title segments, Hardy has done it all in his career. Perhaps we will see a full-on heel turn in “The Charismatic Enigma’s” future.

Jeff Hardy will be a part of the traditional 5-on-5 Survivor Series match this Sunday, representing team SmackDown. Stay tuned to Wrestling Inc. for live coverage of the show!

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Chris Jericho Announces “Rock ‘n’ Wrestling Rager At Sea: Four Leaf Clover” Cruise Details

Chris Jericho has officially announced his fourth “Rock ‘n’ Wrestling Rager at Sea” cruise.

Chris Jericho’s “Rock ‘n’ Wrestling Rager at Sea: Four Leaf Clover” will sail next year from Miami, Florida to Nassau, The Bahamas from Monday, March 14 through Friday, March 18. The cruise will take place aboard the Norwegian Pearl.

AEW is once again partnering with Jericho to provide the in-ring action on the cruise. There will also be music, comedy, live podcasts, and more. Bookings are being accepted now via ChrisJerichoCruise.com, and various price points are offered, with payment options.

The cruise promises “the most epic St. Patrick’s Day party of all time”, three Fozzy shows, four days of AEW wrestling matches in the ring on the Pool Deck, autograph sessions, the “Are You Smarter Than Le Champion?” game show, plus more performances and activities with wrestlers & comedians.

The following cruise details were announced today:

* Master of Ceremonies: Chris Jericho

* Guest of Honor: Mark Henry

* Guest Cruise Director: Mickie James

* Guest Hosts: Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson

* Director of Laughs: Brad Williams

* Official Bartender: Red Cup Geoff

* Goodwill Ambassador: Ted Irvine

* Special Guests: Mick Foley, Nick Aldis, Moose, Brutus Beefcake, King Haku, Mike Rotunda, Dan Lambert, Jordynne Grace, Swoggle, Matt Cardona, Brian Myers, Jonathan Gresham, Rocky Romero, Yuya Uemura, Ariane Andrew, The Boogeyman, ODB, World Famous

* Comedians: Jeff Dye, Kate Quigley, Raj Sharma

* Music By: Fozzy, Quiet Riot, Royal Bliss, Raven, Priss, Mickie James, Kuarantine, Guardians of the Jukebox, Gutter Candy featuring Frankie Kazarian, Dave Spivak Project, The Vaudettes featuring Shaul Guerrero, We Are Wasted

* Live Podcasts: Talk Is Jericho, The Major Wrestling Figure Podcast, Dave Schrader of Darkness Radio, Dan Lambert’s World Title Time Machine

Jericho will be announcing more names and happenings in the coming weeks or months.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Taya Valkyrie Urges Fans To Stop Supporting WWE Following Latest Wave Of Releases

Following the latest wave of WWE releases (which included her husband, John Morrison) Taya Valkyrie has stated that supporting WWE is ethically wrong.

WWE just released another batch of talent, and one former Superstar thinks it’s time for fans to start sending a message.

One of the wrestlers released today was John Morrison, the husband of Taya Valkyrie (Franky Monet), who herself was laid off by WWE just a few weeks ago. In the aftermath of her husband’s release, Valkyrie took to social media to encourage wrestling fans to stop supporting WWE.

“Stop supporting a company that has ZERO respect for their talent,” tweeted Valkyrie. “You love pro wrestling, spend your money on the hundreds of other alternatives. This is wrong. Ethically, as employers they don’t care about us. Talent or fans,” she added.

https://twitter.com/FrankyMonetWWE/status/1461522622546644992

Later, Valkyrie tweeted a message of support for Morrison alongside an image of the happy couple together in Impact Wrestling. “We always have each other, and that’s all that matters. I love you,” she wrote.

https://twitter.com/FrankyMonetWWE/status/1461531186715664384

In case you missed it, WWE released Drave Maverick, Top Dolla, Shane Thorne, Ashante Adonis, Isaiah Swerve Scott, Tegan Nox, Jaxson Ryker, and the aforementioned John Morrison on Thursday, November 18. According to Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp, WWE Head of Talent Relations John Laurinaitis informed the eight talents that they were being released due to budget cuts (although as we reported, WWE generated $256 Million in revenue this quarter).

In the aftermath of her WWE release, Valkyrie issued a statement and expressed disappointment with unnamed acquaintances who lied to her during her tenure with the company.

“I’ll say the hardest thing for me to process after being released, is realizing the amount of ppl that lied to me. Some of ya’ll should be ashamed,” Valkyrie tweeted on November 2, two days after her release.

Taya signed with WWE in February. She and several of her now-former co-workers were released by WWE on Thursday, November 4.

https://twitter.com/FrankyMonetWWE/status/1457014996966285320

Source: TheSportster

WWE Releases Eight More Superstars, Including John Morrison, Tegan Nox, Drake Maverick & Hit Row

WWE has released eight more superstars, including Hit Row, John Morrison and Drake Maverick.

WWE has performed another round of budget cuts.

On Thursday evening, Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com reported that WWE has released eight more superstars: Top Dolla, Ashante Adonis, Isaiah Swerve Scott, John Morrison, Drake Maverick, Shane Thorne, Tegan Nox and Jaxson Ryker. According to Sapp, WWE Head of Talent Relations John Laurinaitis informed the eight talents that they were being released due to budget cuts.

Maverick posted the following Twitter video following the news of his release:

https://twitter.com/WWEMaverick/status/1461520342539816961

Since his tag team partnership with The Miz ended, Morrison has rarely been seen on television. The former Intercontinental Champion returned to the WWE in Jan. 2020, and he spent most of his latest WWE tenure working with The Miz. Morrison’ s wife Taya Valkyrie (Franky Monet) was recently released.

Less than two years ago, WWE was keen on stockpiling superstars, presumably so that the rival AEW promotion wouldn’t be able to land them. But WWE has made the controversial decision to release dozens of talented wrestlers who provided great value to the company, including major fan favorites who never really got a chance on the main roster.

Source: TheSportster

Impact Wrestling Preview 11/18/21

It’s the last stop before IMPACT’s first LIVE special in almost two years, Turning Point! Don’t miss an all-new IMPACT! this Thursday at 8/7c on AXS TV and 8:30pm ET on YouTube for IMPACT Insiders.

* “The King of Pro-Wrestling” Minoru Suzuki vs. “The Walking Weapon” Josh Alexander

* The IInspiration vs. The Undead Bridesmaids

* Doc Gallows w/Karl Anderson vs. Hikuleo w/Bullet Club

* Steve Maclin vs. Laredo Kid (If Maclin wins, he’ll be added to the X-Division Match at Turning Point)

* Deonna Purrazzo will make her first post-Bound For Glory appearance in a sit-down interview with Gia Miller.

* Sam Beale vs. Brian Myers – Before the IMPACT, 7/6c on AXS TV.

* Johnny Swinger, Hernandez & Fallah Bahh vs. The Demon, Crazzy Steve & Black Taurus

Kenny Omega Reportedly Will Undergo Multiple Surgeries

On the most recent episode of AEW Dynamite, Kenny Omega revealed that he is taking some time away from the company. He also teased some tension with Adam Cole in the segment.

The former AEW World Champion has had a lot of issues lately. On the latest episode of the Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer noted that Omega has suffered problems with his knee, shoulder, abdominal, and hernia, as well as others, and has worked through them all. Omega recently revealed that he has been suffering from vertigo since 2018, stating that the room would start spinning for him while he was wrestling.

Meltzer noted that Kenny Omega is most likely set for multiple surgeries. The dates of those surgeries are still to be determined. He is taking time away from the ring in order to get healthy, for the first time in a while. But Meltzer stated that there is a lot of rehabilitation involved if he does multiple surgeries at once.

When it comes to a return date, there is nothing set in stone, but February was mentioned. However, Meltzer noted that it could be premature as he hasn’t even had any surgeries yet. It was also mentioned that Omega’s status for the upcoming AAA show is unclear at this time.

Kenny Omega had a 346 day run as AEW World Champion, which is the longest in company history to this point. He dropped the title to Hangman Page at Full Gear on Saturday.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

New Japan’s Tomohiro Ishii Debuts On AEW Dynamite, Leads CHAOS To Victory

Veteran Japanese wrestler Tomohiro Ishii made his AEW debut during this week’s edition of AEW Dynamite, on which he teamed up with Orange Cassidy.

Veteran Japanese wrestler Tomohiro Ishii walked away from his AEW debut with a victory under his belt when he and Orange Cassidy defeated The Butcher and The Blade on the latest episode of AEW Dynamite on TNT.

It all went down in Norfolk, Virginia on the first episode of AEW Dynamite to air since Saturday’s Full Gear pay-per-view. Ishii and OC were accompanied to the ring by their CHAOS stablemates Rocky Romero, Chuck Taylor, Wheeler YUTA, and Kris Statlander, while The Butcher and The Blade had The Bunny, Matt Hardy, and a few other Hardy Family Office members in their corner … needless to say, chaos ensued.

Hardy and The Bunny did their best to sabotage Ishii’s AEW debut, but ultimately the experience and brute strength of New Japan’s NEVER Openweight Champion was too much for the HFO to overcome. The finish came when Orange Cassidy took out the HFO with a dive outside, allowing Ishii to land a massive lariat on The Blade followed by a brainbuster. Ishii then covered Blade for the 1-2-3, delivering a huge win to CHAOS and adding a W next to his name in the AEW record books.

In case you missed it, Ishii’s New Japan colleague Rocky Romero made his in-ring AEW debut against Bryan Danielson on last week’s Dynamite. Before the show kicked off, Romero approached The Best Friends (Orange Cassidy, Kris Statlander, Chuck Taylor, and Wheeler YUTA) with a tantalizing proposition. Romero informed the group that Kazuchika Okada had invited them to join his stable CHAOS. Taylor, who was a member of CHAOS from 20017-2019 accepted Romero and Okada’s offer on behalf of his teammates. The best friends then accompanied Romero to the ring for his match with Danielson on Dynamite as official CHAOS members.

Not much has come of the partnership between AEW and NJPW, but with several members of CHAOS infiltrating the AEW roster, it seems inevitable that CHAOS leader Okada will soon join them.

Source: TheSportster

AEW Wastes No Time In Turning Bryan Danielson Heel During Dynamite

Bryan Danielson got the AEW audience to turn on him in a matter of minutes and will play the heel role while he feuds with Adam Page.

Only a few days after “Hangman” Adam Page was crowned the new AEW World Champion and shortly after Bryan Danielson won the right to be the No.1 contender, Danielson came out on the post-PPV episode of Dynamite and played the heel role while challenging Page.

It was National Cowboy Sh-t Day in Virginia and Page opened the show with the Dark Order to celebrate his win. It didn’t take long for Danielson to interrupt. While The American Dragon congratulated the new champion, he also said he was a bit surprised and disappointed that Kenny Omega wasn’t standing across from him as the titleholder. Page responded that he’s right, Omega isn’t the champion, and that if he wasn’t mistaken, Page was able to beat Omega in under 30 minutes. This of course, was in reference to Danielson and Omega fighting to a time-limit draw a few weeks back.

https://twitter.com/AEW/status/1461140024771203083

Danielson suggested Page be careful and said he wasn’t the kind of competitor to just talk about his wins, he actually wrestles every week. He mentioned that he wrestled one night after WrestleMania and that obviously earned him a chorus of boos from the crowd. Danielson said, “of course Virginia boos hard work.” Danielson said that Page had a reputation for having a long list of excuses and said he wanted to fight Page with no excuses. He had a match with Evil Uno after the commercial break and essentially destroyed him, playing the heel role throughout the match. He even posed while applying his submission sleeper.

After his win over Uno, Danielson addressed the crowd and said he was going to kick the heads in of every member of Dark Order and challenged Colt Cabana for next week in Cabana’s hometown of Chicago.

If there was any question about how AEW was going to sell Danielson and Page as a babyface versus babyface feud, those questions were answered on Wednesday. Danielson will play the heel role and he’s incredibly good at it. Within a matter of 25 minutes, he turned an entire audience against him and cemented himself as the brand’s biggest bad guy with Omega announcing he was taking some time off.

https://twitter.com/AEW/status/1461144279716409353

Source: TheSportster

MLW War Chamber Preview 11/17/21

Major League Wrestling returns tonight at 7pm ET with WAR CHAMBER, streaming worldwide for free on MLW’s YouTube channel, Fite.TV and Saturdays on beIN Sports. 

  • WAR CHAMBER: Hammerheads vs. CONTRA Unit: Hammerstone, Richard Holliday, EJ Nduka, Savio Vega and Cesar Duran’s mystery partner vs. Jacob Fatu, Mads Krugger, Ikuro Kwon and The SENTAI Death Squad

Major League Wrestling’s two and half year war with CONTRA reaches its final battle as World Heavyweight Champion Alex Hammerstone and his team meet the global dealers in violence inside the WAR CHAMBER, presented by newlawoffice.com.

Hammerstone leads a team joined by Dynastic teammate Richard Holliday, 6’8 IFBB Bodybuilding and football standout “The Judge” EJ Nduka, legendary brawler Savio Vega and a mystery partner handpicked by one “El Jefe” Cesar Duran. 

Standing in their path to victory however is the best within CONTRA’s ranks in the form of CONTRA’s kingpin Jacob Fatu, the “ Black Hand of CONTRA” Mads Krugger, pit fighter Ikuro Kwon, and the SENTAI Death Squad.

Can Hammer and his team take out CONTRA inside the WAR CHAMBER and purge MLW of the international cabla once and for all, or will CONTRA conquer MLW?

5150 speak on the introduction of “The Notorious 187” Homicide to the crew and re-up on their calls for a World Tag Team title shot following the chaotic ending to their trios match with Los Parks last week.

PLUS: While rumors swirl regarding Cesar Duran’s handpicked 5th man on Hammerstone’s WAR CHAMBER team, “El Jefe” has already sent more shockwaves through the league by promising to unveil yet another surprise. What could Azteca Underground’s proprietor have in store for his loyal believers? 

Join Rich Bocchini, Joe Debrowski, and broadcast journalist Alicia Atout as MLW presents WAR CHAMBER!