Category: Wrestling News

Madusa Autobiography Announced For 2023

With a career in the squared circle as storied as the one Madusa Miceli has had, one would think she would have more than enough material to write her own book. Evidently the women’s wrestling and WWE Hall of Famer agrees with that sentiment.

Canadian publishing company ECW Press, who have previously published wrestling biographies or autobiographies on Stu Hart, Bruce Hart, and Pat Patterson, as well as books detailing the history of Stampede Wrestling or the Death of WCW, have announced “The Woman Who Would Be King: The Madusa Story.” The former WWE Women’s Champion is listed as the co-author of the book, along with Greg Oliver.

A description of the autobiography reveals that the book will cover Madusa’s in-ring career, including her time in All Japan Women’s Pro Wrestling, WCW, and WWE as Alundra Blaze, and moments such as her tossing the WWE Women’s Championship in the trash on “WCW Monday Nitro.” The book will also delve into Madusa’s private life and her post-wrestling career as a monster truck driver, where she became the first woman to win the Monster Jam World Finals racing championship in 2005.

Madusa has remained active in wrestling over the last several years, appearing a handful of times on WWE TV and for AEW back in 2020, where she presented the AEW Women’s Tag Team Cup to eventual winners Diamante and Ivelisse. Her most recent appearance was on “NXT 2.0” this past July, announcing a fatal four way match for the then-vacant “NXT” Women’s Tag Team Titles.

“The Woman Who Would Be King: The Madusa Story” will be available to read as of April 13, 2023, though fans can pre-order the book today.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

The Elite’s Version Of Events During Backstage Fight Comes To Light

A day after reporting on CM Punk & Ace Steel’s account, Fightful Select has now disclosed details from the other side involved in Sunday’s infamous AEW All Out altercation — Young Bucks and Kenny Omega.

According to sources close to The Elite, Young Bucks did approach CM Punk in his locker room to discuss Punk’s scathing comments during the post-All Out media scrum. However, they did not kick the door open – as claimed by the other side – and simply opened the door to engage Punk in conversation. Before Matt Jackson could utter a solitary word, Punk “had went off and started throwing sucker punches at Matt’s head,” the report added. Once Nick intervened, Ace Steel reportedly interjected himself into the melee, allegedly throwing a chair that struck Nick in the face.

As for Omega’s involvement, Fightful’s sources noted that The Best Bout Machine “was trying to remove Larry (CM Punk’s dog) from the situation to help keep him safe because he was barking and going nuts.” After handing Larry off (presumably to Steel’s wife), Omega would also join the fight, trying to get Steel off of Jackson. This led to Steel biting Omega and pulling his hair, as was previously reported by both Fightful and The Wrestling Observer. 

The only lighthearted aspect of the altercation, per The Elite’s sources, was when someone joked “He got bit,” and someone assumed Punk’s dog bit Omega, only to learn it was allegedly Steel who bit the AEW EVP.

The report further added that “all sides continued shouting” during the altercation, with Punk’s side making legal threats to The Elite. 

According to an earlier report from Sports Illustrated, “the fight went on for around six minutes” before security broke things up.

Punk, Young Bucks, Omega, Steel, Michael Nakazawa, Brandon Culter, and Pat Buck have all been suspended for the altercation. AEW has yet to make an official announcement on the timeline of the suspensions, and there is reportedly an ongoing investigation to get additional details from both sides of the fight. There was no mention of the altercation during Wednesday’s “AEW Dynamite” even as the promotion vacated the titles held by Punk and The Elite. 

Source: Wrestling Inc.

WWE NXT 2.0 Preview 9/6/2022

Here is the lineup for tonight’s episode of WWE NXT in Orlando, Florida at the Capitol Wrestling Center on the USA Network: 

Last Rodeo For Mickie James

Mickie James returned to the Impact Zone on Thursday night for an announcement regarding her future. Signs pointed toward retirement, but that wasn’t the case. James announced she’s saddling up for one last rodeo to chase the Knockouts Championship, however, there is a catch.

James took center stage for her announcement. November will be 24 years since first stepping into a wrestling ring with a prayer and a dream. Over half her life has been living, breathing, bleeding, and crying for this business that she loves so much.

The last few years were a whirlwind journey. When she was released from WWE to feel like being thrown out with garbage, negative criticism flooded her mind. It was the fans that brought her back to be empowered for the greatest run of her career returning to Impact. James won the Knockouts Championship for the fourth time and was in a PPV main event for a Texas Deathmatch.

Then, James lost the title to Tasha Steelz. Protege and friend Chelsea Green betrayed her and beat her twice in the ring. That sent James back to negative thoughts that she couldn’t hang anymore with the new crop of talent.

James went home to do some soul searching. What more does she need to prove? James only wanted to make the business a better place for women, where they could be seen as equals.

James never wanted to hang on too long to be a shell of her former self. She doesn’t know if she can compete with the best anymore, but she has to find out. James will not be retiring. She is going to test herself in a quest to be the best. James isn’t asking for a title shot. She wants to earn it the same way she earned everything in life, with dirt in her eyes and grit in her teeth.

James issued an open challenge to anyone and everyone in the Knockouts division. She will build her way back to the top. James is coming for the Knockouts Championship.

Even though James is not retiring at this time, there is a catch. If she loses on this journey, then that’s it. This is James’ last rodeo. She’ll either end as champion or go home for good. James can’t promise it will be a long ride, but she can promise it will be a hell of a ride. Hardcore country!

https://twitter.com/IMPACTWRESTLING/status/1565507556809887754

Source: SB Nation

DDP Confirms Former NWO Member Buff Bagwell Has Entered Rehab

It’s been nearly six months since longtime wrestling veteran Buff Bagwell announced he was moving in with Diamond Dallas Page to live in the “accountability crib” and be part of his “Change or Die” docu-series. Unfortunately, DDP took to his YouTube channel earlier today to reveal that Bagwell has suffered a significant setback on his journey to a drug-free life.

“For the most part, [Bagwell] was doing really well, but a lot of times with addiction, it has everything to do with the people you hang out most with. And when he’s with us, our whole force is about positive reinforcement, a place you can be safe. When he goes outside of that, well, those people, they don’t really care about that, or they think they do, but they really don’t … Now, because of some of the negative influences in Mark’s life, and I’m talking about people who love him and enable him, he’s had a relapse, so we had a meeting with all of my people and Marcus, and we all agreed that it was time for him to go to a rehab facility.”

DDP added that they are uncertain how long Bagwell will be at the rehab facility, but he’s currently in a very positive and receptive mindset. According to DDP, the purpose of creating the video is to offer a reason for Bagwell’s upcoming appearances being canceled. Still, they plan to return to regular meet & greets once Bagwell feels confident enough to leave the facility and begin again on the road of recovery. “It’s a tough place, and I’m really hoping that you guys can help support him when he gets out,” DDP said.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Title Unification Matches Announced For NXT Worlds Collide

WWE announced last Thursday that “NXT UK” will be put on hiatus before it relaunches as the rebranded “NXT Europe” in 2023.

WWE has officially announced title unification matches for its NXT Worlds Collide event on September 4.

“NXT” Champion Bron Breakker issued the challenge to “NXT UK” Champion Tyler Bate at the top of Tuesday night’s “NXT 2.0.”

Minutes after announcing “NXT” Champion Bron Breakker will face “NXT UK” Champion Tyler Bate in a title unification match, WWE has revealed another match at the upcoming Worlds Collide event to unify two more titles.

“NXT” Women’s Champion Mandy Rose will face “NXT UK” Women’s Champion Meiko Satomura and Blair Davenport in a Women’s Championship Unification Triple Threat Match on September 4.

The match was made official on Tuesday night’s episode of “NXT 2.0.” Satomura made an appearance during an in-ring segment between Rose and Davenport.

STARDOM Teases ‘Super Big Foreign Wrestlers’ For Upcoming Show

All sorts of things are happening right now in World Wonder Ring Stardom. The promotion is set to have talent appearing on New Japan shows in the United States for the first time starting in October, followed by a joint show with New Japan, called Historic x-Over, in November, where the first-ever IWGP Women’s Champion will be crowned. And the latest announcement seems to suggest a big player could be involved in the tournament to crown the first champion.

Early this morning, Stardom made the following announcement on Twitter.

“Urgent notice,” Stardom tweeted. “Super big foreign wrestlers from overseas decided to participate in the [IWGP Women’s Championship tournament]!! Scheduled to be announced at Korakuen Hall on 8/27!”

Shortly after the announcement, Japanese Twitter user Shigeo provided his own translation that confirmed the news, while also providing an additional comment from Stardom promoter Rossy Ogawa. Shigeo’s translation referred to the teased foreign wrestler as “an unbelievably famous non-Japanese Joshi wrestler.”

Stardom provided no other hints at who the mystery talent could be. One name that will likely receive a ton of speculation is AEW star Toni Storm. Storm previously worked for Stardom from 2016 to 2018, winning the World of Stardom and SWA Undisputed Women’s Championships, as well as the 2017 Cinderella and 5Star Grand Prix tournaments. While no known working relationship exists between AEW and Stardom, a July report suggested the two sides were discussing a plan to work together, and Storm was named as a talent Stardom would be interested in using. Storm is currently scheduled to challenge for the AEW Women’s World Championship at AEW All Out on September 4, taking on the current champion — and Storm’s tag team partner — Thunder Rosa.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Details Released For The Rock And DSOTR’s New Vice TV Series – “Tales From The Territories”

The history of professional wrestling is about to have some light shined upon it.

According to Variety, Seven Bucks Productions, a company founded by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and producer Dany Garcia, will team up with the producers of “Dark Side Of The Ring” for a new documentary series on VICE called “Tales From The Territories,” putting a spotlight on the regional promotions that originally popularized pro wrestling in the United States. The series is scheduled to premiere on October 4, 2022, at 10 pm EST. The trailer can be seen below and features interview clips from Abdullah The Butcher and Bret Hart.

“In many ways, the wrestling world is a family, they have great moments, tough times, and everything in-between,” said Brian Gewirtz, vice president of creative development for Seven Bucks Productions and a former head writer for WWE. “There’s a rich history of untold stories which we can’t wait to bring to life.”

“Wrestling is embedded into Dwayne’s DNA and part of the brand ethos of our Seven Bucks Productions, so we are honored to showcase these sensational stories and to create a time-capsule of this legendary industry,” said Garcia. “Being able to honor and highlight the larger-than-life personas that jump-started the wrestling industry, through their first-hand accounts, is immensely special, and the type of storytelling we love to do here at Seven Bucks.”

Joining Seven Bucks as executive producers will be Jason Eisener and Evan Husney, the original creators of “Dark Side of The Ring,” which aired for three seasons on VICE.

“We’re incredibly excited to expand the ‘Dark Side of the Ring’ series with this first-ever exploration of the hidden past of wrestling’s Wild West era, with a dream collaborator in Dwayne Johnson, who has such deep family roots in the history of the business,” said Husney and Eisener. “We can’t wait to showcase the fascinating stories of the pioneers who set the stage for wrestling’s worldwide pop culture dominance.”

There’s been a lot of speculation recently regarding the future of “Dark Side Of The Ring,” as it had been reported that the series would be halted in place of something with a “softer tone,” and with access to WWE footage. The trailer, it should be noted, shows only photos and the signature reenactments that “Dark Side” has become well known for.  The show’s third season created significant controversy and shake-up behind the scenes of the wrestling industry when the “Plane Ride From Hell” episode caused problems for Ric Flair and Tommy Dreamer.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Ric Flair Brawls With Fellow WWE Hall Of Famer Carlos Colon In Puerto Rico

Less than a week after Ric Flair’s Last Match, The Nature Boy got physically involved in the main event of WWC Anniversario.

On July 31, the Ric Flair’s Last Match PPV took place. The Nature Boy seemingly hung up his boots for good after securing the win for his team with son-in-law Andrade El Idolo, when he pinned Jeff Jarrett in a figure four leg lock in the main event. However, just six days later, Flair found himself physically involved in the main event of another significant event. The stage was the annual Anniversario show promoted by the World Wrestling Council in Puerto Rico, where Flair appeared as the manager to Andrade, facing off against fellow WWE alum, Carlito.

As reported by Thomas Lowson (SEScoops) Carlito defeated Andrade El Idolo in the last match of the night for WWC Anniverario on August 6. While both competitors are well-known wrestling fans around the world for their respective tenures in WWE, not to mention Andrade’s current work with AEW, it was a pair of WWE Hall of Famers who arguably stole the show. Ric Flair posted photos to his Twitter of him getting into an altercation with Carlito’s father, the legendary Carlos Colon during the match (as well as the icons and their family members posing together backstage).

This was actually a revisiting of a very old rivalry. In Flair’s prime, he worked some of the greatest matches in wrestling history and along that run, Colon challenged Flair for the NWA Championship back in 1983. The Puerto Rican star even garnered a “phantom” title reign—beating Flair in a match never recognized on NWA TV, after which Flair quietly won the title back, as was somewhat customary at the time.

Late in his in-ring career with WWE, Ric Flair actually worked multiple angles with Carlito. That includes Flair beating Carlito to win his lone Intercontinental Championship in 2005. A year later, Flair insulted the youngster’s lack of dedication en route to the two of them forming a teacher-student tag team, only to windup feuding once more. Carlito was arguably a big missed opportunity for WWE, but Flair did his part as a partner and rival in the effort to help him succeed. So it was that there was another layer to The Nature Boy backing his son-in-law, Andrade against this old rival.

It’s for the best that Ric Flair’s altercation with Carlos Colon seems to have remained short and not all that intense given each man is in his 70s and probably best suited leave wrestling to younger athletes at this point. Flair proved in his last match that he’s still up to the task of delivering his signature chops and taking a bump, but he isn’t getting any younger. That match left Nature Boy fans on a high note, and hopefully he won’t press his luck much further.

Source: TheSportster

Photos from Ric Flair’s Twitter page

https://twitter.com/RicFlairNatrBoy/status/1556314372959600641
https://twitter.com/RicFlairNatrBoy/status/1556241361480867840

AJ Mendez Makes Big Announcement Regarding WOW’s TV Return

AJ Mendez is coming back in a big way with Women Of Wrestling.

The former AJ Lee in WWE is the executive producer and color commentator for the promotion with origins to GLOW and she was the figurehead to speak on behalf of the company’s return to television with a video announcement. Mendez notes that the promotion will return to television on September 17 under the Paramount/CBS banner. Full details and information are below:

WOW – WOMEN OF WRESTLING, the world’s premier all-female sports entertainment entity, today revealed its new key art and announced that the series will premiere nationwide the weekend of Sept. 17. WOW, the only all-female wrestling organization with a global TV footprint, will be available in syndication via Paramount Global Content Distribution, marking the largest-ever distribution deal in the history of women’s wrestling.

WOW – WOMEN OF WRESTLING has been cleared in 100% of the U.S. including the following station groups: CBS-owned-and-operated stations, Sinclair Communications, Nexstar Broadcasting, Hearst Television, TEGNA Media, Weigel Broadcasting, Gray Media and Cox Television. Internationally, the show has also already been licensed in Canada (CHCH and CHEK), Australia (10 Play) and Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore (MOLA), with more to come.

WOW is owned by trailblazing sports executive Jeanie Buss and was created by David McLane, founder of the original GLOW: Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling. Global professional wrestling superstar, screenwriter, mental health advocate and New York Times bestselling author AJ Mendez serves as executive producer and color commentator.

“From sports to politics to business and beyond, women’s voices are being heard louder than ever, and the Superheroes of WOW couldn’t be more excited to step into the ring on Sept. 17 and join this revolution,” said WOW owner Jeanie Buss. “We’re grateful to our partners at Paramount Global Content Distribution for providing a platform for these inspiring athletes.”

“The Superheroes of WOW have come from all walks of life to prove who’s the best, and are eager to show the world what’s been missing for years from women’s professional wrestling,” said WOW creator David McLane.

“We can’t wait to share the thrilling sports entertainment experience of WOW – WOMEN OF WRESTLING with a wider audience,” says Dan Cohen, chief content licensing officer at Paramount Global. “We know viewers will be inspired and empowered by the Superheroes’ athleticism and emotional backstories, while being thoroughly entertained by this unique roster of athletes. We look forward to working with Jeanie Buss and David McLane as we continue to grow this brand.”

The return of WOW had big plans in place as the promotion was reportedly in talks to bring in Lita, but the WWE Hall Of Famer had no interest in working with David McLane. Tessa Blanchard was also signed on to work with WOW, but the former IMPACT World Champion reportedly had a falling out with McLane and the promotion after she went too far in a promo with WOW star Samatha Sage.

Source: Wrestling Inc.