Author: John Bass

Nikki Bella Announces In-Ring Retirement (Video)

The Bella Twins are officially retired, as Nikki Bella has announced she’s also hanging up her boots and ending her in-ring career.

On the season finale of Total Bellas, Nikki talked to her family about the decision and said her last European tour made her realize it was time to call it quits.

As we previously reported, Brie made the same decision following her run in WWE around Evolution because she wanted to go back to focusing on her family.

The Bella Twins signed with WWE in June 2007. They left the company in 2011, but returned two years later and shortly after Total Divas began airing.

Nikki is a two-time Divas champion and the longest reigning champion to hold that belt.

WWE Announces Main Event Of WrestleMania 35

WWE has confirmed that the RAW Women’s Title Triple Threat between champion Ronda Rousey, Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair will be the main event of WrestleMania 35.

Below is the full announcement on the first-ever women’s WrestleMania main event:

WrestleMania to feature first-ever women’s main event

For the first time in WWE history, a women’s match will be the main event of WrestleMania as the Raw Women’s Championship Match featuring Ronda Rousey vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Becky Lynch will take place on Sunday, April 7, in front of a capacity crowd at MetLife Stadium and streaming live on WWE Network around the world.

Ronda Rousey is the current Raw Women’s Champion, Olympic medalist, the first female UFC Champion and the first woman to be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame. She is also an actress and New York Times bestselling author. Charlotte Flair is a seven-time Champion in WWE, a former Division 1 volleyball player, philanthropist and author. She is the daughter of two-time WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair. Becky Lynch is the 2019 Women’s Royal Rumble winner, a two-time SmackDown Women’s Champion and was named Wrestler of the Year by both Sports Illustrated and CBS Sports in 2018. She was also the first woman ever to top ESPN’s WWE Power Rankings.

At WrestleMania 32 in 2016, WWE re-branded the Divas Division the Women’s Division and unveiled a new Women’s Championship title. Since that time, the women’s evolution has placed a greater spotlight on WWE’s female Superstars, including more prominent storylines and deeper character development that showcases their athleticism, charisma and star power.

Last October, WWE held it’s first-ever all-women’s pay-per-view event, Evolution, in front of a sold-crowd and millions more watching on WWE Network.

Becky Lynch, Charlotte Flair and Ronda Rousey responds to the historic news:

https://twitter.com/BeckyLynchWWE/status/1110206135330631681

Triple H took to Twitter today and congratulated Becky Lynch, Charlotte Flair and RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey on earning the main event of WrestleMania 35.

He wrote, “The main event of #WrestleMania… For all the dreams, the hopes, the struggles, the work. Where they belong. Where they deserve to be. Congratulations. #EarnedNotGiven”

You can see Triple H’s full tweet below:

PAC No Longer Appearing At Upcoming WrestleCon Due To Visa Issues

WrestleCon has announced PAC will no longer be appearing at their WrestleMania weekend event due to visa issues.

The company released a statement saying:

We regret to inform you that PAC will not be at WrestleCon. We worked diligently over the past several months with our attorneys to ensure that he successfully received a Visa to travel into the United States. Our Visa application was filed in a timely manner, all fees were paid to attorneys, and all required information was disclosed to government officials. Our attorneys were confident there would be no issue and based on their experience and expectation, we advertised PAC on the assumption there would be no problem obtaining a Visa. However, after exhausting all efforts, we were unable to provide PAC the appropriate Visa to travel and work in the United States. We understand and share your disappointment of this unanticipated outcome, as does PAC.

Further, we would like to clarify that in no way will this unfortunate incident have any impact on his future with AEW. This issue is isolated to WrestleCon only.

According to WrestleCon, refunds will be issued to everyone who purchased photo ops and autographs with PAC. They’ll also be changing all the advertisements so he’s no longer shown.

Jerry”The King” Lawler & Rikishi Dance At NBA Game, Wrestle In A Tag Match Against Steiner Brothers With Buff Bagwell

Last night at a Memphis Grizzlies game, WWE Hall of Famers Jerry “The King” Lawler and Rikishi wrestled against The Steiner Brothers (Scott & Rick) with Buff Bagwell to become the new Grind City Tag Team Champions.

Buff Bagwell attempted to crack Lawler with a foreign object during the match, he missed and hit Steiner, allowing Lawler to pick up the win.

In the video below, Lawler and Rikishi would come out during the third quarter of the game to dance with the Memphis Grizzlies’ Grizz Girls. The group danced to Too Cool’s theme and Lawler wore a “Grandmaster Sexay” vest to honor his late son, Brian Christopher.

WWE NXT Star Keith Lee Reportedly Out Of Action With Injury

It looks like the “limitless” Keith Lee may have very well found his limit, as F4WOnline is reporting that he is currently sidelined with an undisclosed injury.

Lee hasn’t had a match with the promotion since his victory over Luke Menzies at an NXT live event March 8 in Largo, FL. Prior to the injury, he had a prominent role in the Matt Riddle/Kassius Ohno feud that played out on NXT TV at the beginning of the year.

Outside of WWE, Lee is well known for his agility and technical offense despite typically being one of the larger men competing in matches. He is a former PWG World Champion and Pro Wrestling Illustrated ranked Lee #59 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in 2018.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

MLW Fusion Preview 3/23/19

Watch Major League Wrestling nationwide and in Canada each week on beIN SPORTS Saturdays 9pm ET / 7pm PT and on YouTube Sundays 12pm ET / 9am PT.

The destroyer LA Park is summoned by Salina de la Renta to battle Mance Warner in a Death Match in the main event. Ol Mancer faces his gravest challenge in just his second outing in MLW.  Can the Bucksnort brawler overcome the Mexican masochist?

Alex Hammerstone, MJF and Richard Holliday have united to form The Dynasty… and now The Hart Foundation are out for payback following the shocking ending to last week’s MLW FUSION.  What type of receipt does Teddy Hart, Davey Boy Smith Jr. and Brian Pillman Jr. have in store for The Dynasty? Brian Pillman Jr. faces his biggest challenge to date in Alex Hammerstone.

“Filthy” Tom Lawlor brings us inside his fight camp as he prepares to defend his World Championship at the Battle Riot on April 5th. How is Lawlor doing after CONTRA’s attack? Tune in to find out.

Speaking of CONTRA Unit, the global dealers in violence finally break their silence following turning MLW on its head.

The Battle Riot control center reveals more participants and a world championship title match!

Matches:

  • DEATH MATCH: LA Park (presented by Salina de la Renta) vs. Mance Warner
  • Brian Pillman Jr. vs. Alex Hammerstone
  • Myron Reed vs. Gringo Loco

Join Jim Cornette and Rich Bocchini ringside in Chicago as Major League Wrestling presents the fastest and most dangerous hour of combat sports you’ll experience anywhere in the world.

Watch MLW FUSION Saturday nights on beIN SPORTS at 9pm ET/6pm PT.  Don’t get beIN? Subscribe to MLW’s YouTube channel for free and stream binge on MLW FUSION anytime anywhere!

Jeff Jarrett Asks For Extension In Lawsuit Against Anthem

PWInsider reports that Jeff Jarrett and his legal team have filed a motion asking for an extension that will give them until April 12 to submit an update on where things stand with the lawsuit Jarrett and Global Wrestling Entertainment have filed against Impact Wrestling’s parent company Anthem. Anthem’s attorneys have agreed to the request, which is due to Jarrett’s travel schedule, responsibilities his legal team has unrelated to the suit and international travel required from Anthem’s attorneys. All of the issues prevent all of the parties from meeting for a conference. They are currently figuring out a time to meet.

Jarrett and GWE are suing Anthem and Impact for Anthem allegedly violating state and federal trademark infringements in relation to GWE and violating Jarrett’s exclusive property rights to his own name, photograph, and other likeness. Jarrett says that Anthem prevented him from filing copyrights for the Amped footage, so he had to provide footage in order to do so and Impact/Anthem deleted all of the master recordings. Anthem admitted that they had had the footage in their possession and deleted all of it in the “normal course of business” so that they could “free up storage space.”

Source: 411Mania

Impact Wrestling Preview 3/22/19

Scheduled for this weeks Impact airing on Pursuit, Twitch and FightNet.

* Eddie Edwards & Eli Drake vs. Fallah Bahh & KM

* Johnny Impact to explain why

* Moose vs. Trey

* X-Division Championship: (C) Rich Swann vs. Sami Callihan

* Willie Mack vs. Ethan Page

* Ace Austin in action

* Allie’s last appearance on Impact

WWE Changing Kurt Angle’s Opponent For WrestleMania 35 Farewell Match?

According to the @WrestleVotes account on Twitter, the “Farewell Match” for Kurt Angle at WrestleMania 35 could be changing.

The Twitter account, which has broken multiple WWE stories in the past, is reporting that due to the overwhelmingly negative response to Baron Corbin being announced as Angle’s final opponent inside the squared circle for WWE, the company is considering changing things up.

There is no word yet regarding whether or not WWE is committed to changing Angle’s opponent for next month’s big event, or if they do, who that new opponent will be (although John Cena has been rumored for a while now).

We will keep you posted if-and-when new information regarding Kurt Angle’s “Farewell Match” at WrestleMania 35 surfaces.

Source: EWrestling.com

Hulk Hogan Being Brought In For WrestleMania 35, Another Big Name Used That Weekend?, WWE HOF Update

WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan is being brought in to WrestleMania 35 weekend by the company, according to PWInsider.

This will be the first time The Hulkster is attending WrestleMania weekend since WrestleMania 31, where he was a part of the nWo reunion for the match between Triple H and WWE Hall of Famer Sting.

There’s no word yet on if Hogan may make an appearance on the WrestleMania pay-per-view, but he could be brought in to help induct his longtime friend Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake into the WWE Hall of Fame. PWInsider adds that sources have confirmed that Beefcake is being brought in as well. His Hall of Fame induction has been rumored for weeks now.

WWE is reportedly finalizing plans on other names from the past that they are looking to bring in for WrestleMania 35 weekend. WWE Hall of Famer Steve Austin has been talked about quite a bit, but there’s no word yet on what he might be appearing for.

Source: Wrestling Inc.