Category: Wrestling News

WWE Hall of Famer Road Warrior Animal Passes Away At 60

Joseph Laurinaitis, better known in the professional wrestling world as Road Warrior Animal, died at the age of 60 on Wednesday morning. Animal’s official Twitter account broke the news — “At this time, we would like to confirm the passing of Joseph Laurinaitis aka Road Warrior Animal at the age of 60. The family is planning to release a statement later today. At this time we ask for you to keep everyone in your thoughts and prayers.”

WWE then released a statement responding to the Hall of Famer’s passing, writing, “WWE is saddened to learn that Joe Laurinaitis, known to WWE fans as Road Warrior Animal, has passed away. WWE extends its condolences to Laurinaitis’ family, friends and fans.”

https://twitter.com/RWAnimal/status/1308747451415830529

https://twitter.com/WWE/status/1308751246233395200

Born in Philadelphia, Laurinaitis made his pro wrestling debut in November 1982 as The Road Warrior. He was quickly convinced by manager Paul Ellering to start working as a tag team alongside Mike Hegstrand (Road Warrior Hawk) as The Legion of Doom. Their iconic looks, impressive physiques and dominant in-ring style helped make them one of, if not the, most popular tag teams in pro wrestling history. The two would set out to work in numerous promotions — Georgia Championship Wrestling, All Japan Pro Wrestling, the American Wrestling Association, Jim Crockett Promotions, the World Wrestling Federation, World Championship Wrestling and Impact Wrestling from 1983-2014. The two were inducted into the WWE and Professional Wrestling Halls of Fame in 2011 and the NWA Hall of Fame in 2012. Hegstrand passed away at the age of 46 back in 2003.

“One of the most intense Superstars to ever step into the squared circle, the 6-foot-2, 300-pound Animal spent the majority of his career alongside his tag team partner, Hawk,” WWE’s statement read. “Together, they formed what was arguably the most successful, popular and feared tandem of all time — The Road Warriors. With their intimidating face paint, outfits covered in metal spikes and impressive array of power moves, the duo captured titles and destroyed opponents wherever they roamed. Their dominance made them so popular that the phrase “Road Warrior pop” has been used in locker rooms to describe particularly deafening reactions from the crowd ever since.”

Source: comicbook.com

Former TNA Wrestler Stevie Lee “Puppet The Psycho Dwarf” Passes Away

Former TNA wrestler and actor Stevie Lee has passed away. Lee was known as “Puppet The Psycho Dwarf” in the early days of TNA.

According to his GoFundMe, Lee unexpectedly passed away on Wednesday, September 9, 2020 at his home.

Stevie Lee starred in American Horror Story, Jackass 3D, Oz The Great and Powerful, Rhino, and March in Windy City.

He was also the star of the reality TV series, Half Pint Brawlers, which aired on SpikeTV in 2010.

Below is Impact’s statement on his passing:

It is with great sadness that we learn of the passing of Stevie Lee, better known as “Puppet The Psycho Dwarf” in the early days of TNA. We send our deepest condolences to his friends and family.

https://twitter.com/IMPACTWRESTLING/status/1304192269667442688

Beyond Wrestling Announces Upcoming Live IWTV Streaming Special

Beyond Wrestling has announced they are returning to IWTV for a streaming special on Sunday, September 20.

The indie promotion tweeted, “BREAKING: Beyond Wrestling returns to @indiewrestling for a LIVE streaming special on Sunday afternoon, September 20th sponsored by https://ShopIWTV.com! The goal of this card is to feature wrestlers that haven’t had a chance to compete for us since the start of the pandemic.”

Kimber Lee, Joey Janela, and Priscilla Kelly were some of the wrestlers at the promotion’s latest event, “Wear Sunscreen.” The event had taken place last month in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

IWTV has about 225 independent wrestling promotions on its streaming platform. Beyond Wrestling alone has over 150 events on the platform that are currently available to watch.

Game Changer Wrestling, Black Label Pro Wrestling, ICW, and DEFY are just a few other notables that are on the service. The monthly price for Independent Wrestling TV is $10.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Kevin Nash Responds To The Rock, Confirms His Recovery From COVID-19

WWE Hall-of-Famer Kevin Nash has confirmed that he and his family recently recovered from COVID-19. Nash revealed the news through his Twitter account while responding to The Rock, who stated through a 11-minute Instagram video yesterday that he and his immediate family are currently recovering from COVID-19.

Nash went onto thank Rock for “making people realize” that COVID-19 is real, while detailing his experience with the virus.

“Welcome to the team. Very sorry you’re family is infected. I was tired for a while didn’t train for the 4th day. My wife still hasn’t got smell or tastes back. Son was asymptomatic. Pray you heal up quickly. Thank you for making people realize it’s real,” he wrote.

The Rock promptly responded to Nash, stating that he hasn’t got his tastes back either.

“Sorry to hear that brother. Not a team we want to be on for sure. You guys stay strong too (still haven’t got my tastes back either).”

In his Instagram video, Rock revealed that he and his family contracted the virus from close family friends that they “love and trust.” Rock, who has been in home quarantine for several months, encouraged people to wear masks, work on their immune systems, and commit to wellness.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Jerry “The King” Lawler 50th Anniversary Celebration Event 9/26/20

There will be a huge event to celebrate Jerry “The King” Lawler’s 50 year career in the wrestling business on Saturday, September 26th at The Ball Park in Jackson, Tennessee at 7:30 PM. Call (731) 234-5883 for tickets.

There will be a big list of wrestling Superstars in attendance including, Lex Lugar, Sgt. Slaughter, Scott Steiner, Bill Dundee, Jimmy Hart, Jim Ross and many more.

Below is a Facebook post about the event from Jerry’s son Kevin Lawler:

Karrion Kross Reveals When He Was Injured During WWE NXT Title Win, Possible Time Off

New WWE NXT Champion Karrion Kross recently spoke with ESPN’s Marc Raimondi and said he does not believe he will miss any significant time from the ring due to the separated shoulder he suffered on Saturday night at “Takeover: XXX” in the main event title win over Keith Lee.

WWE confirmed that Kross suffered a “separated acromioclavicular joint” and will be undergoing a MRI on Monday to get a better idea of the severity of the injury. Kross confirmed that the injury is to his right shoulder. He commented on Monday’s MRI and reiterated what Triple H said in his post-Takeover media call – this is not ballet.

“I will get the professional, educated opinion on what the severity of it is,” Kross told Raimondi. “But it’s definitely separated. I won’t beat around the bush about that. As the saying goes, it’s not ballet.

“I feel mixed emotions right now. The whole situation is very bittersweet. I think from a natural place, I’m always a very motivated individual. I’m a solution-based thinker, rather than a pity-based thinker.”

Kross said he felt the pain immediately, revealing that the injury occurred when Lee hit him with a clothesline near the ropes. Kross’ right shoulder took the brunt of Lee’s 300-pound momentum.

“It felt like a choir of demons screaming inside my shoulder in unison,” Kross said.

Kross is already researching ways he can begin rehabbing the shoulder. He also commented on how he still does have some range of motion.

“From my point of view, no,” Kross said when asked if he thinks he’ll be out for a significant period time. “[Due to] how I feel and what I’ve heard, I don’t know. I’m very intuitive with my body.

“And the range of emotion that I have right now, while it’s not what I would like it to be, for me personally, it would indicate to me that I’m going to get be able to get through this without any sort of extreme measures, so to speak. In my opinion, today.”

Kross said fighting through the shoulder pain was his way to “prove who I am,” he said, acknowledging that in everyone is trying to tell, and sell, others on who they are in the world of pro wrestling. Kross said he believes this was his chance to show that everything he has been saying about himself was true.

“Whatever is going on with my shoulder is not as important to me as proving right now to every single person that I work with, every single person that’s taken time or equity out of their careers to elevate me, that I’m worth a s–t,” Kross said. “And I’m gonna finish this strong, no matter how severe this is. This is the time where people see who you really are. Because nobody could do anything for you right now. You have to stand up on your own two feet and show your worth.

“There are times in life where something happens and now it’s time to prove all of those things that you said. That was my calling [Saturday] night. That moment for me was [Saturday] night. It didn’t happen at a time where it was convenient. It happened in literally the most important match of my career on probably the most important day of my life occupationally.”

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Wrestling Legend Kamala Passes Away At Age 70

Former WWE star Kamala (James Harris) has passed away yesterday at age 70.

The word of his passing first came from WWE Hall of Famer Koko B. Ware.

The cause of Kamala’s death has been reported by Jason King from Bleacher Report.

King shared on Twitter that he reportedly spoke with Kamala’s wife, who revealed that her husband went into cardiac arrest and passed away yesterday afternoon.

Also according to Jason King, Kamala had tested positive on Wednesday for COVID. He was then hospitalized on Wednesday night.

https://twitter.com/JasonKingBR/status/1292650848288485376

Kamala made his WWE debut in 1984 and would make his RAW in-ring debut in 1993. During his WWE career, he feuded with Jake “The Snake” Roberts, Hulk Hogan, and The Undertaker.

He also wrestled in such promotions as Mid-South Wrestling, WCW, USWA, WCCW, and NWA Tri-State.

In recent years, Kamala had a number of health issues including a battle with diabetes that required his legs to be amputated. In 2015, he released an autobiography called “Kamala Speaks.”

Kamala was inducted in the Texas Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2012.

WWE has released the below statement about his passing.

WWE is saddened to learn that James Harris, known to WWE fans as Kamala, has passed away at age 70.Under the frightening face paint of Kamala, the 6-foot-7, 380-pound Harris battled the greatest Superstars in sports-entertainment history, including Hulk Hogan, The Undertaker and Andre the Giant.

He terrorized opponents and thrilled audiences in Mid-South, World Class Championship Wrestling, WCW and WWE until 2006.

WWE extends its condolences to Harris’ family, friends and fans.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

EC3 Says “I Have No Home” After Impact Wrestling Slammiversary Appearance

As Impact Wrestling Slammiversary came to a close, a video was shown hyping the return of EC3.

Released by WWE back in April, he previously worked in TNA / Impact from 2013 until 2018. During his run, EC3 won the TNA World Heavyweight Championship on two occasions.

While it looks like he’s returned or has come back to Impact, EC3 noted earlier today on social media that is not quite the case.

“I have no home. I’m not ‘back.’ I’m not here for ‘friends’ or ‘family.’ In reality, who I am, has never been here. ‘Nostalgia’ and ‘comfort’ do not interest me. This isn’t what you think this is. This is more. #ControlYourNarrative #FreeEC3”

By the sounds of it, maybe EC3 is planning on showing up in more than one promotion over the next couple weeks.

EC3 dropped his “Choose Your Narrative” video once his 90-day non-compete clause ended with WWE.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Rusev Test Positive For Coronavirus, Gives Update On Lana’s Parents (Video)

Below is video of former WWE star Rusev, where he gives and update on Lana’s parents who have the coronavirus and announced that he has tested positive for Covid-19.

 

Michael Elgin Denies Claims Made Against Him In #SpeakingOut Movement

Former Impact Wrestling star Michael Elgin has released a video denying claims made against him in the #SpeakingOut movement.

The nearly ten-minute video is titled “Hopefully you’ll listen” and begins with Elgin saying he hasn’t enjoyed thinking about wrestling the past two weeks.

He then addresses the #SpeakingOut movement and says it’s truly terrible that a lot of serious offenses were committed towards wrestlers/fans.

“A lot of things have been said about me,” he said next in the video. “And even though everything is drastically different, a lot of the things that were going on in wrestling were people using their power, using their position, or even taking advantage of younger people, and that sucks. But it was brought to my attention that some girl made claims about a hotel room in 2011.”

“Now, I don’t know if anything had ever happened to this young lady, I hope that it hasn’t and I hope that if it has she’s found some peace and some resolve. And I’m sure that’s impossible, because I can’t speak on anything like that. But what I can say, is that in 2011, I did share a hotel room with the girl and I did share a bed with the girl,” Elgin added. “But what has been left out is there was four other people in the room and I laid down in the bed next to the girl, asked her to come closer, or to have sex, I don’t know the exact verbiage. All I remember is her saying no and me going to sleep and the next morning the four wrestlers asking if we slept together. When I said no, they said, ‘Oh, we know. We heard her turn you down.’ And joked with me for months after about getting turned down.”

“I’m many things and I’ve made many mistakes in my life, but never, ever would I do anything to try and force anybody to do anything. Because, one, it’s not good for either one of us. The act. And, two, I mean, there’s legal consequences behind that,” he continued.

As for allegations made regarding him sending unwanted explicit photos to a female wrestler, Elgin claims to have reached out to the woman saying he didn’t recall doing that. She then told him that it was done as a dare while he was out drinking with wrestlers, as he explained while apologizing after it initially happened. Because of this, he apologized once again, though he says the photo may have been a picture he found online and not his own.

He also says a fan claiming he called her fat wasn’t true, as he grew up obese and knows what it feels like to be picked on for size, therefore he wouldn’t do that to someone.

Lastly, Elgin addressed the infamous video of him claiming to have urinated on a woman in a hotel room who was asking him to stop. Here’s what he had to say in full:

“Yes, I said that story. I said that story in 2013, because at that time those overly sexual stories or overly wild stories were getting massive downloads and massive buys because people wanted to hear them. So a story that happened in Timmins. Myself and two other wrestlers met three girls, and this was like maybe 2007, and we went back to the hotel. And there was joking about peeing on someone consensually on the ride up, and we did definitely joke about it, and somebody pee’ed on a girl in the shower when they were showering together, and joked about it after.

We went out with the girls the next day for breakfast. We saw them the next two times we went to town. It was an over-exaggerated story that I should have never told because now I realize, as I’ve matured, as I’ve growed, that … one, the story is outlandish and paints everybody in a bad light. But at that time, I was trying to sell DVDs. That’s not an excuse, that’s not anything. Because I take full blame for people bringing it up because it was me that said it. But I’ve tried to correct that story a million times, even the person that pee’ed on the girl in the shower corrected the story two years ago. And it just still floats out there. Again, that’s on me. One-hundred percent. I take ownership of that. I’m taking ownership of everything.

As we previously reported, Impact Wrestling says Elgin will not appear in future programming.

Watch his comments in the video below.

 

Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet