Category: Wrestling News

AEW Dynamite Preview 6/11/21

Tonight’s AEW Dynamite episode airs at 10/9c on TNT from Daily’s Place in Jacksonville, Florida. This week’s show was preempted on Wednesday due to the NBA Playoffs.

* Nyla Rose vs. Leyla Hirsch

* Christian Cage vs. Angelico

* Don Callis and Kenny Omega will blow the lid off the conspiracy to get the AEW World Title off Omega

* Cody Rhodes will make a special announcement in a segment with Tony Schiavone

* AEW World Tag Team Champions The Young Bucks and Brandon Cutler vs. PAC, Eddie Kingston and Penta El Zero Miedo

* Hangman Page and 10 vs. Brian Cage and Powerhouse Hobbs

* AEW TNT Champion Miro defends against Evil Uno

* Lance Archer will be in action for the first time since his loss to AEW TNT Champion Miro at Double Or Nothing

* Sting and Darby Allin will make an announcement on Allin’s tag team partner for the match against Scorpio Sky and Ethan Page

* The Pinnacle will speak for the first time since their Stadium Stampede loss to The Inner Circle at Double Or Nothing

Mickie James Joins NWA, All-Women’s PPV Announced For August

Mickie James has officially joined the NWA, which has announced their first all-women’s PPV. Tuesday’s episode of NWA Powerrr saw Billy Corgan announce that the first all-women’s show, NWA In Power, will take place on August 28th in St. Louis, Missouri. James, who made her debut on yesterday’s show, will be the executive producer for the PPV. In addition, August 29th will be the date for the NWA’s 73rd Anniversary show which will also be in St. Louis.

James was released from WWE in April as part of the cuts that saw Samoa Joe, The IIconics, Chelsea Green and others released. The NWA Women’s division includes new NWA Women’s Champion Kamille along with former champions Serena Deeb and Thunder Rosa, the newly-signed Kylie Rae, Melina, and Taryn Terrell.

Source: 411Mania

Lio Rush Announces His Retirement From Wrestling

Former WWE Superstar Lio Rush has announced that he is retiring from professional wrestling at just 26 years of age.

Rush took to social media to inform fans that he had decided to retire as a result of a shoulder injury he sustained during his AEW debut in the Casino Battle Royale at Double Or Nothing. Rush shared the news of his retirement on Instagram.

“I have written and erased this post so many times purely out of not being able to wrap my head around this. The moment I went home in a sling, I kept saying to myself “this was like any other time I got a little bruise or strain, and I will shrug it off and continue on my new journey”. Once the pain subsided and I started to feel just how uncomfortable it was to feel my arm hanging from my body, I sunk into an immediate and rapidly growing depression because I knew something was wrong,” Rush wrote. Got the news that I’d be taking some time off due to this injury. Me thinking it would only affect my wrestling obligations, I still tried to go on about my days as I knew them. I realized just how much this would affect my everyday life. For anyone who knows me, you know that I work endlessly for myself and my family. It became more and more frustrating every day finding little things that I could no longer do. Like simply putting on a shirt and a much harder fact to deal with, not being able to pick up my newborn son,” he continued.

Rush then said that he was grateful to AEW for wanting to sign him even after they found out that he had been injured, and signed off on an optimistic note, saying he sees the situation as a blessing in disguise.

Lio Rush made his AEW debut during the Casino Battle Royale at Double Or Nothing on May 30th. Rush was under contract with New Japan Pro Wrestling, but AEW president Tony Khan claimed there was “handshake deal” in place between all parties prior to the event.

After a highly-rated stint on the independent scene, Lio Rush signed for WWE in August of 2017. He initially reported for duty at NXT, but was soon moved to the Cruiserweight division where he competed on 205 Live. Rush was then moved to the main roster and was used predominantly as the mouthpiece of Bobby Lashley. He moved back to NXT and had a run as Cruiserweight champion, but in April of 2020, Rush was released from his WWE contract as part of budget cuts stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rush also recently wrestled for MLW.

Source: The Sportster

ECW Legend New Jack Passes Away At 58

Legendary former ECW wrestler Jerome Young, otherwise known by his ring name “New Jack” has  passed away at the age of 58 Friday afternoon. According to a report from Mike Johnson as PWInsider.com.

New Jack reportedly suffered a heart attack at his home in North Carolina. New Jack’s wife informed Johnson of her husband’s death.

New Jack was a controversial performer who specialized in the hardcore style matches typically associated with ’90s ECW. He began his career in Georgia and formed his stable The Gangstas with Mustafa and future WWE Superstar D-Lo Brown. The group had a run in Smoky Mountain Wrestling which put them on the map and drew the attention of Extreme Championship Wrestling. New Jack and The Gangstas joined ECW in 1995.

“I always saw New Jack’s performances as a mid-1990s urban version of the American Dream Dusty Rhodes,” Paul Heyman said of the New Jack in a Grantland piece back in 2015. “He’s a bad man, placed in a bad situation, under bad circumstances, and he’s going to now show the bad guys how to be truly bad.”

In the wake of his passing, some of New Jack’s friends and former colleagues paid tribute to him.

“New Jack was always good to me. He told me that since Jack Victory liked me, he’d put up with me,” former ECW star Steve Corino tweeted. “We used to do these crazy 8-mans in ECW. Jack would always be last and I’d get goosebumps when that music hit. Then pray I wasn’t getting the crutch that night! Thank you Jack.”

Like a lot wrestlers, New Jack retired and un-retired several times. His last match took place an ICW in April of this year.

In 1999, New Jack was featured in the pro wrestling documentary, Beyond the Mat. More recently, he was the subject of an episode of Dark Side Of The Ring.

Source: The Sportster

Dark Side Of The Ring Season 3 Premiere Tonight On Vice TV, Brian Pillman

The third season of Vice TV’s popular documentary series about professional wrestling, Dark Side of the Ring, premieres tonight Vice TV at 9 p.m. EST.

https://twitter.com/DarkSideOfRing/status/1390330438863015936
https://twitter.com/DarkSideOfRing/status/1388510653879623681

Below is the updated list of confirmed topics for season three, which is narrated by Chris Jericho:

* Brian Pillman (season premiere, WWE Hall of Famer Steve Austin interviewed)

* FMW (Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling)

* XPW (Xtreme Pro Wrestling)

* Nick Gage

* WCW/NJPW Collision In Korea event from 1995

* The Smith Family (Grizzly Smith and his children – Sam Houston, Rockin’ Robin, WWE Hall of Famer Jake Roberts)

* Ion Croitoru (aka Bruiser Bedlam and Johnny K-9)

* Chris Kanyon

* “The Dynamite Kid” Tom Billington

WCW Legend Steve ‘Mongo’ McMichael Diagnosed With ALS

WCW legend and former NFL star Steve ‘Mongo’ McMichael has revealed that he was recently diagnosed with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Speaking to the Chicago Tribune, Mongo revealed that he was diagnosed with the disease three month ago.

“I promise you,” Mongo told the Tribune, “this epitaph that I’m going to have on me now? This ain’t ever how I envisioned this was going to end.”

According to the man himself, Mongo will no longer be able to make public appearances. “I want everybody to realize why they’re no longer going to see me around,” he said.

Steve McMichael was a defensive tackle for the Chicago Bears between 1981 and 1993. He is best remembered by wrestling fans for his stint in WCW between 1995 – 1999.

Mongo also appeared at ringside at WrestleMania XI in support of his NFL colleague Lawrence Talyor, who was taking on Bam Bam Bigelow in the main event.

Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet

Former WWE Superstar Kenn Doane (Kenny of The Spirit Squad) Announces Retirement

Former WWE Superstar Kenn Doane (Kenny Dykstra of The Spirit Squad) has officially announced his retirement from pro wrestling.

Doane took to Twitter this morning and noted that smart investments have allowed him to retire in his prime, at the age of 35.

“I’ve decided to retire from in ring wrestling. When I started at 13 I thought I’d retire at 40. But smart investments overtime have allowed me to be done now. I’m in my prime, and that will go towards my family and being a father. Thanks to the fans who stuck by me,” Doane wrote.

Doane originally worked for WWE from 2005-2009, but returned for a brief storyline in 2016. He and Mike Mondo most recently worked for MLW in 2019. He is a one-time WWE Tag Team Champion.

https://twitter.com/kenndoane/status/1384460763159572481

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Warrior Wrestling Announced A Changed To The Upcoming Kylie Rae Title Match

Warrior Wrestling announced a changed to the upcoming title match between Kylie Rae and Thunder Rosa. Due to NWA adjusting its taping schedule, Rosa will no long be available on June 5, as originally advertised. Rae will still defend her title on that date against a soon to be announced opponent, and if she wins, she’ll face Rosa on the August 21 show. Below is the full statement from Warrior Wrestling:

Warrior Wrestling announced today that the advertised Kylie Rae vs. Thunder Rosa match scheduled for Saturday, June 5th will be delayed until the third Stadium Series show on Saturday, August 21st. The delay comes due to the NWA changing its taping schedule for early June and Thunder Rosa no longer being available that day. Warrior Wrestling worked with the NWA and Thunder Rosa to reschedule the match for Saturday, August 21st.

Kylie Rae will still make her return to pro wrestling on Saturday, June 5th, and defend the Warrior Wrestling Women’s Championship. Her opponent will be named in the coming days, and the entire card will be revealed over the course of this week and next week.

If Kylie is still champion on August 21st, the match with Rosa will be for the title.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Lucha Underground Possibly Returning Soon?

There has been talk of reviving the Lucha Underground promotion.

It was reported this week by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that there is at least the beginning of talks to revive the promotion. However, the revival would just be the same type of ideas, with a different name.

MLW has used several aspects of Lucha Underground in recent months, but it appears that this revival is something separate.

Lucha Underground aired on the El Rey Network on Wednesday nights, first premiering in late October 24. The show ran for 4 seasons with the last episode airing in early November 2018. Vampiro worked on the project and noted last year that the series and the promotion were done. Before that there had been reports of budget issues that prevented a fifth season from happening.

“90% of the roster is in AEW, the other 10% is in WWE. The writers are gone, the production crew is gone, the company is split. I would pretty much put my money on, it’s over and done,” Vampiro told Chris Van Vliet in early 2020.

The promotion featured several current WWE and AEW stars working various gimmicks, including Ricochet, Karrion Kross, Brian Cage, Lucha Brothers, Taya Valkyrie, Rey Mysterio, john Morrison, Sammy Guevara, and many others.

There’s no word on when this revival might be happening.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Kylie Rae Set To Make Pro Wrestling Return This Summer

Kylie Rae is set to make her return to pro wrestling in June.

Warrior Wrestling out of Chicago has announced that Rae will defend her Warrior Wrestling Women’s Title on Saturday, June 5 at the first event in The Warrior Wrestling Stadium Series. There is no word yet on who her challenger will be.

Kylie has not wrestled since the October 13 Impact Wrestling episode, where she defeated Kimber Lee. She made headlines back in 2019 when she became the first women’s wrestler signed by AEW. She left the promotion after wrestling just one match, which was the Fatal 4 Way at Double Or Nothing 2019. That match also featured Nyla Rose, Awesome Kong, and the winner, Britt Baker. Rae ended up going to Impact soon after leaving AEW, where she feuded with Knockouts Champion Deonna Purrazzo. She was scheduled to challenge Purrazzo at the Bound For Glory 2020 pay-per-view, but she did not appear. Rae announced a few days later that she was “unwell” and was no longer a pro wrestler.

Rae won the Warrior Wrestling Women’s Title from Tessa Blanchard back on September 12 of last year. She made her first successful title defense over Madison Rayne on September 26. She has not defended the title since then.

The Warrior Wrestling Stadium Series is a “collection of outdoor, socially-distanced, safe” pro wrestling events that will be hosted on Marian Catholic’s Dave Mattio Field in Chicago Heights, IL. The first event will be held on June 5, which will feature Rae’s return. The other two shows will take place on Saturday, July 17 and a date to be determined in August.

Other wrestlers announced for the June 5 show include Warrior Wrestling Champion Trey Miguel, Brian Pillman Jr., Brian Cage, Thunder Rosa, and IWTV Champion Lee Moriarty, among others. Matches and more talent will be announced in the coming weeks.

Kids 16 and under will be admitted to the Warrior Wrestling summer shows for free with a paying adult. General Admission Field Seating tickets are $47.50 while Bleachers/Standing Room tickets are $32.50. Parking is included in the ticket price. Tickets can be purchased online at warriorwrestling.net. A scaled-down, socially-distanced VIP Fan Fest will take place before the show from 5-6:30pm, with tickets going for $75. Doors to the wrestling show will open to the public at 6:30 and bell time is at 7pm. This will be a family-friendly event.

A Season Pass for the whole summer is being sold for $300, and is a $450 value. The Season Pass includes a Field Seat at all three shows, entry to all 3 VIP Fan Fest events to meet all of the wrestlers, and to receive an autograph from every wrestler on items that you bring or buy, and a photo on your phone with every wrestler. The Season Pass also includes a Warrior Wrestling mask, a poster for each show, and an overall series poster. Season Pass holders are allowed to bring up to 3 kids under 16 for free, and they get free parking.

Warrior Wrestling has announced that COVID-19 safety protocols will be in place at these contact-free events. Masks are required and fans will receive temperature checks upon entry. Fans are encouraged to bring their own food and drinks. Also, hand sanitizer will be available.

A portion of proceeds from the June 5 show will go to benefit scholarships and student activities at Marian Catholic High School. You can find more on the school at marianchs.com and more on Warrior Wrestling at warriorwrestling.net.

Source: Wrestling Inc.