Kylie Rae has signed on with WWE’s “Independent Development” program.
During Freelance Wrestling’s ‘Thursday Night Slammasters’ event, it was announced that Rae has joined the WWE ID program.
Rae has previously worked for AEW, TNA Wrestling, GCW, and many other promotions.
Source: eWn
Josh Alexander, one of the most respected wrestlers to emerge from the Canadian independent circuit, has announced his retirement from indie wrestling after 20 years. The 37-year-old TNA star shared the news on social media, reflecting on his journey, the grind of constant travel, and his desire to make way for the next generation of wrestlers.
In a heartfelt post on X (formerly Twitter), Alexander expressed gratitude for the promotions, wrestlers, and fans who have been part of his journey. He acknowledged the toll that wrestling’s demanding schedule has taken on him, emphasizing how the relentless travel, especially on the indie scene, has shaped his career and, ultimately, his decision to step back.
“I’ve loved my time in the independents these past 20 years,” Alexander wrote. “I’ve done amazing things, worked with amazing people, and got to travel the world performing in front of amazing fans. That being said, I’m tired of the hustle. It’s time for the next crop to step up and fill whatever void I may leave behind in the Canadian scene.”
The “Walking Weapon” also shared gratitude for the experiences that led him to prominence, even crediting his time as a tire technician—a job he held to supplement his wrestling income—as part of the grind that ultimately gave him a livelihood. He ended his announcement on a positive note, using a classic wrestling sendoff: “It’s not goodbye. It’s just see you later.”
Though Alexander is stepping away from independent wrestling, his career is far from over. He remains a cornerstone of TNA, where he has wrestled since 2018 and achieved Triple Crown Champion status. His accolades include two reigns as TNA World Champion, with his second reign setting a record at 335 days. In 2023, his efforts earned him a spot in the PWI 500’s top 10, ranking ninth overall.
Alexander is expected to continue as a pivotal figure in TNA’s resurgence, and fans can still look forward to seeing him in high-profile matches under the promotion’s banner.
As of now, it’s unclear if WWE or AEW has their sights set on Alexander. He recently faced AEW’s Konosuke Takeshita for the International Championship in October, though the match took place at a Maple Leaf Wrestling event, not an AEW show. While his future outside of TNA remains speculative, Alexander’s impressive resume makes him a potential asset for any promotion.
Josh Alexander’s departure from the independent scene marks the end of a remarkable chapter in his career. For 20 years, he has been a fixture in Canadian wrestling, inspiring countless performers with his work ethic, skill, and dedication. Now, as he focuses on the next phase of his journey, he leaves behind a legacy for the next wave of talent to build upon.
Alexander’s fans, both on the indies and in TNA, know that this isn’t truly goodbye—it’s simply a new beginning for the “Walking Weapon.” Stay tuned to WrestlingNewsBlog.com for updates on his career and the latest in professional wrestling!
It’s no secret that one of the visions of WWE’s Chief Content Officer, Triple H, has been to expand the company into different areas, including establishing performance centers in the UK, which WWE did briefly with NXT UK, Japan, Mexico, and other territories, and creating the WWE NIL program for college athletes. Now, WWE is looking to get involved with independent wrestling, with a new program that will have them very attached to certain areas of the scene going forward.
In a press release, WWE announced “WWE ID,” short for “WWE Independent Development.” The new program has been launched to “identify, support, and develop independent wrestling schools and wrestling talent.” Five independent wrestling schools have already earned the “official designation” of being WWE ID schools, including Reality of Wrestling in Houston, the Nightmare Factory in Atlanta, the Black and Brave Academy in Davenport, Iowa, Elite Pro Wrestling Training Center in Concord, New Hampshire, and Knokx Pro Academy in Los Angeles.
“WWE ID is the latest in our efforts to identify and support the journey of up-and-coming wrestlers, in turn raising the profile of and strengthening the independent wrestling ecosystem,” Triple H said in a statement.
Wrestling Schools With WWE Ties First To Achieve WWE ID Status, Canadian Promotion Expresses Skepticism
Four of the five WWE ID schools already had strong ties to WWE, with ROW, Nightmare Factory, Black and Brave, and Knokx Pro being run/co-owned by Booker T, Cody Rhodes, Seth Rollins, and Rikishi respectively. Meanwhile, one of Elite Pro’s head trainers, Mike Hollow, previously worked as a WWE jobber during the 90s.
Independent talent associated with the program will also receive a “WWE ID” designation, with WWE providing “financial opportunity” for the talent, as well as “assisting with training, mentorship and development, including access to world-class facilities, best-in-class ring training, athletic trainers and more.” The program will also allow fans to monitor these talent’s progress via matches, highlights, and behind the scenes content to be aired on “WWE social platforms.”
So far, at least one independent promotion has expressed hesitancy towards this new program. Taking to X this morning shortly after WWE’s official announcement, Ottawa based promotion Capital City Championship Combat, better known as C4, posted several tweets, the first of which stated the point of independent wrestling was “to grow. To learn,” and that those claiming to be independent while backed by a billion dollar promotion weren’t independent. In later tweets, the C4 poster admitted this was their immediate reaction, and hoped more info would arise that would prove them wrong.
Source: Wrestling Inc.
Matt Cardona is reportedly dealing with a torn pectoral muscle that will require surgery.
According to a report from Fightful, several promoters have been informed that Cardona will be undergoing surgery for the injury in the near future.
Cardona’s last match came in the form of a win over Blue Pain at Joey Janela’s Spring Break 8 event over WrestleMania 40 weekend in Philadelphia, PA.
Source: eWn
“Hot Stuff” Eddie Gilbert will be inducted into Game Changer Wrestling & Orange Crush magazine’s Indie Wrestling Hall of Fame this Sunday (April 7). The induction ceremony is streaming live for free on YouTube starting at noon Eastern time.
Trent Acid, The Briscoes, indie superfan Kevin “Whack Packer” Hogan, Steve Corino, Sabu, and Mercedes Martinez are also part of the Hall of Fame class. Acid, Jay Briscoe, Hogan, and Gilbert are being inducted posthumously.
The son of Tommy Gilbert, Eddie began his in-ring career as a teenager. He worked as both a wrestler and a booker before passing away at 33 years old in February of 1995.
Gilbert is best known for his time wrestling in Memphis. He also has a connection to Philadelphia through the work he did for ECW.
Gilbert spent time in the NWA, USWA, AWA, ECW, and more. Along with being an in-ring performer, Gilbert was a booker for Global Wrestling Federation and Eastern Championship Wrestling.
The Sheraton hotel in downtown Philly is hosting Sunday’s Indie Wrestling Hall of Fame ceremony. The ceremony is held annually during WrestleMania weekend.
The Indie Hall of Fame ceremony takes place on April 7.
Gilbert will be inducted by Missy Hyatt.
Thanks to the usage today of social media and the internet, wrestling promotions of all shapes and sizes can form their own identities and develop their own followings around the world. Two promotions that have made a name for themselves in the United States and United Kingdom are DEFY and Progress, respectively. DEFY, based out of Seattle, Washington, has become one of the most popular independent promotions in the US, helping to launch AEW stars like Swerve Strickland, Darby Allin, and Nick Wayne.
In the United Kingdom, Progress has become one of the premiere promotions to benefit from the British wrestling boom in the mid-2010s, with some of its biggest alums ranging from Pete Dunne and GUNTHER in WWE, to Will Ospreay and Zack Sabre Jr. in NJPW.
Now the two companies have joined forces in a major merger first reported by Fightful Select, and have since gone public with their new venture as both DEFY and Progress aim to create a global presence that benefits both companies and aids further expansion plans.
DEFY’s recent anniversary event DEFY To Survive: Lucky Number 7 was the first event to take place since the merger was announced, and DEFY events will be available to stream on Progress’ streaming service Demand Progress Plus. The next Progress event, Chapter 163: Twisted Metal, will be the first event for the English promotion since the announcement, and will take place on February 25. The companies have held joint events together in the past, the most recent example being DEFY X PROGRESS in June 2023. Progress did help DEFY come to England over All In weekend in August 2023, with both companies running shows in London’s ‘Electric Ballroom’ on August 26, 2023. The next collaborative effort from the two companies will come over WrestleMania weekend in April, as both DEFY and Progress will host events as part of The Collective on April 4.
Source: Wrestling Inc.
Revolution Pro Wrestling delivered sad news Friday morning as they announced that Kurtis Chapman, known to wrestling fans as Mad Kurt, had died at the age of 26.
“We, at Revolution Pro Wrestling are absolutely heartbroken to report the loss of our dear friend Kurtis Chapman,” RevPro stated on X (formerly Twitter). “We watched Kurtis grow from a child to a young man who loved professional wrestling and continued to excel in all aspects of his life. One of the most gifted technical wrestlers, charismatic characters and magnetic personalities. He will never be forgotten.”
A nine-year veteran in the wrestling business, Chapman gradually built his name in the UK’s independent scene, where he later captured the RevPro Undisputed British Cruiserweight Championship. Along his journey, Chapman competed in several other notable promotions, including PROGRESS, TNT Extreme Wrestling, IPW UK, and Game Changer Wrestling, the latter of which saw him challenge Matt Cardona for the Internet Championship in September 2022. Chapman wrestled his last match in June 2023, successfully defending the Resurgence Arthouse Championship in a four-way bout against Chocolate Thunder, Rayne Leverkusen, and Skye Smitson at the promotion’s The Day Resurgence Stood Still event.
Outside of the ring, Chapman also established himself as a prominent social media personality, providing his followers with many smiles and laughs over the years.
As of this writing, the circumstances surrounding Champan’s death remain unknown.
As the wrestling world continues to absorb the gravity of this news, many of Chapman’s friends and peers have chimed in on social media to share their condolences and memories of the young performer.
“I know Kurt would have loved the amount of love shown for him today,” former “WWE NXT UK” star Lizzy Evo wrote on X alongside a candid photograph of herself and Chapman. “Absolute gem of a human behind the keyboard and behind the cape. This one hit hard today. Please have the convos you wanna have and speak to the people you wanna speak to. Life truly is so short.”
ROH World Television Champion Kyle Fletcher, who was a recurring opponent of Chapman’s, expressed similar sentiments, writing, “I don’t quite have the words for how I’m feeling right now. someone I always looked forward to seeing, never failed to make me laugh I’ll miss you Kurt, thanks for everything. rest easy.” Fletcher’s post was also accompanied by a flexing photo of himself, Chapman, and Mark Davis.
Former NXT UK” star Nina Samuels touted Chapman as not only a “special and unique” character in the wrestling world but as a person in the real world as well. “My heart is broken that this isn’t just another Mad Kurt rib,” Samuels wrote. “Sending love to his family and everyone close to him.”
Recent Impact/TNA Wrestling signee Dani Luna offered up a happy memory of Chapman, in which the two can be seen laughing with each other while in attendance at a wrestling show. “The last time me and Kurt hung out is encapsulated perfectly in this photo. Talking s*** about wrestling, drinking beer, and him making me laugh until I couldn’t breathe. Miss you my friend,” Luna tweeted.
“GCW is saddened to learn of the passing of Kurtis Chapman, aka Mad Kurt. We were lucky to work with him during our first tour of the UK and we will remember him with great fondness. RIP Kurt,” Game Changer Wrestling wrote alongside a smiling image of Chapman and Matt Cardona.
Many of Chapman’s cohorts have also sent their condolences to his family and friends, including former Impact Digital Media Champion Joe Hendry, Veda Scott, Faye Jackson, and Darius Lockhart, who praised Chapman for his sharp wit and comedic bits that Lockhart feels were often under-appreciated.
Source: Wrestling Inc.
Spike Dudley returned to the ring for the first time in eight years, competing at LIVE Pro Wrestling’s show this weekend.
Dudley hasn’t competed since 2015, and he stepped into the ring with Leon St. Giovanni at the indie event.
St. Giovanni later tweeted,
“I wrestled Spike Dudley tonight. Life is crazy.
Don’t worry about the footage. Trust me, I beat him senseless afterwards.
@LIVEpwevents”
Source: eWn
It wasn’t even a month ago that Ronda Rousey hinted towards retiring from pro wrestling, something that seemed pretty apparent following a loss to Shayna Bazler at WWE SummerSlam, which all but ended her WWE career. But things have changed over the last few weeks, with Rousey working a Lucha VaVoom show on October 26, and accepting a booking on November 16 for Sami Callihan’s Wrestling Revolver promotion, which is running their event, UNREAL, in Los Angeles, California.
Appearing on “Busted Open Radio” on Wednesday, Callihan was asked about Rousey’s appearance, which will see her team with AEW star, and long-time friend, Marina Shafir. According to Callihan, Rousey’s appearance on the show almost happened by happenstance and was motivated by Rousey looking to do something for a good cause.
“I fell into that one,” Callihan said. “I’m not going to take credit for that, that it’s some mastermind plan that I went ‘You know what, this is going to be the thing. We’re going to run LA on only two and a half weeks’ notice.’ No, it’s something I fell into, because of my relationships with other people, and people putting myself over [to] Ronda. ‘This is a guy you want to work with. This is a guy we want to do this with.'”
“Ronda wanted to do this for charity. She wants to do something for the Hawaiian relief fun. Her husband is from Hawaii, and this is a charity she holds very near and dear to her heart. As soon as it was brought up to me, I was like, ‘Absolutely. That is something I want to be involved with because that money will actually go to help people.'”
Source: Wrestling Inc. credit “Busted Open Radio”
WWE and UFC alumnus Ronda Rousey will be making her Wrestling Revolver debut at the upcoming Unreal event that is scheduled for November 16 at the Homenetmen Glendale Ararat in Los Angeles, California.
Earlier today, Wrestling Revolver announced that Rousey will be teaming with her longtime friend Marina Shafir at the event on November 16.
Rousey made a surprise return to the ring this past Thursday, teaming with Shafir at a Lucha VaVOOM event.
Impact Wrestling World Champion and WR Remix Champion Alex Shelley, AEW stars Jon Moxley, Swerve Strickland, and award-winning actor Paul Walter Hauser are also booked for the Wrestling Revolver Unreal event.
Source: eWn
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