Category: WWE

Backstage News On The Format For The WWE Draft

The WWE Draft begins this Friday with SmackDown on FOX. Superstars will be legitimately finding out which brands they will be going to on Friday, and the event will continue on Monday’s Raw.

According to the latest episode of Wrestling Observer Radio, the WWE Draft will be different from previous years as it will be ran similar to the NFL Draft. Representatives from FOX and the USA Network will be announcing the picks.

The idea is to make the WWE Draft as authentic as possible thanks to the companies new TV deals. It was previously reported that various personalities from USA and FOX would be appearing, but WWE didn’t state if celebrities would be included.

Additionally, Dave Meltzer pointed out that WWE does not want authority figures involved in programming for now. It is unknown when WWE will be bringing them back.

It was also noted that all the major decisions regarding which stars will be drafted are complete, however WWE is keeping the moves very quiet.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

The Rock Gives Props For The New NWA Powerrr Premiere

Former WWE Champion The Rock took to Twitter to give props to Jim Cornette and everyone else responsible for the new NWA Powerrr show that premiered this week on YouTube, seen below.

The exchange began when Cornette, who is doing commentary for the show, responded to a fan question about how small the ring is.

Cornette responded, “Actually, standard size for all @nwa rings (& most Southern territories) has been 18X18 since the 1960-70’s. Some spot show/small studios used 16X16. Tradition in WWF was 20X20 due to large Northeast rings dating back to boxing rings in the 1950’s, some up to 24X24. #NWAPowerrr”

That’s when The Rock chimed in with props for Cornette and the others behind the new NWA Powerrr show.

Rock wrote, “Congrats Jim, the boys, crew etc. Stumbled across this show last night and enjoyed it. I grew up in territories and started my career at channel 5 in Memphis so I have a lot of love/respect for small scale, crowd tv shows. Cool vintage feel. Keep working hard boys. Rock”

Cornette responded to The Rock and invited him to the next taping. Cornette wrote, “Rocky, thank you so much for taking the time to check it out! I’m sure I speak for @Lagana and @Billy in offering you two tickets ABSOLUTELY FREE to the next taping! If you have more than 2 guests I’ll sneak one in the back for you!”

NWA boss Billy Corgan re-tweeted Rock’s comments, but has not responded.

You can see the full exchange below:

WWE NXT Preview 10/9/19

Tonight’s WWE NXT will air live from Full Sail Live in Winter Park, Florida on USA Network.

* Lio Rush challenges Drew Gulak for the NXT Crusierweight Championship tomorrow night

* Kushida and WALTER to clash on NXT

* Isaiah “Swerve” Scott to battle Roderick Strong

* How will Finn Bálor’s arrival impact NXT?

* How will Tommaso Ciampa’s quest to regain the NXT Title continue?

* Can anyone stop Shayna Baszler?

Jeff Hardy Had Bloody Nose From Domestic Incident During DWI Arrest, Was Uncooperative With Police

As noted, WWE SmackDown Superstar Jeff Hardy was arrested on the evening of Thursday, October 3 in Moore County, North Carolina, and charged with Driving While Impaired. Hardy was released from custody at around 11:30pm ET that night.

In an update, TMZ has revealed that the police report says Hardy had a bloody nose during the traffic stop, and he told officers that it was from an earlier fight with his wife Beth.

The police report also noted that Hardy was stopped by Carthage Police after receiving a tip about a careless & reckless driver at around 8:40pm ET on Thursday, October 3. Officers located the car and found Hardy parked in front of a liquor store. Hardy came out of the store and was carrying a case of beer. He got into the car and began driving while police followed closely behind him. They finally pulled him over after he was seen “weaving badly” in his lane.

The officer noticed what looked to be dried blood on Jeff’s nose during the stop, and asked him what happened. The report states, “The driver advised that him and his wife got into a fight.”

The police report does not give any further details on the possible domestic violence incident, but the officer did question Hardy about drinking alcohol. Hardy admitted to taking two shots of vodka earlier in the night, and admitted to being impaired. Hardy “bombed” the field sobriety test and was uncooperative when asked for a blood sample or Breathalyzer test.

The officer ended up getting a search warrant from a judge, to extract a blood sample from Hardy. Paramedics were called to draw the sample. Hardy was then arrested for Driving While Impaired and Driving on a Revoked License.

Police told TMZ that they are not investigating the possible domestic incident between Jeff and his wife, but they said they would if Jeff filed a complaint.

As noted, Jeff is scheduled to be in court for the charges on Thursday, November 7.

This DWI arrest comes after Hardy was arrested for public intoxication and impairment in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina back in July of this year. Jeff is currently out of action for WWE while he recovers from knee surgery that he underwent in May. It’s been reported that Jeff would be out of action for 6-9 months. He is still scheduled to appear at Ringside Fest in New York City on Sunday, November 3.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Hulk Hogan Undergoing Surgery Soon, Reveals Talks With Vince McMahon For A Possible WWE Ring Return

WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan is set to undergo back surgery soon, but he’s still hoping for one more match in WWE.

The 66 year old Hulkster spoke with The Los Angeles Times this week and said he has a hard time moving around these days, which he blames on the “Seven unsuccessful back surgeries” that have led to the upcoming eight operation. Hogan blamed that on the Atomic Leg Drop finisher he used for 30 years, noting that he would have never used the leg drop if he knew then what he knows now. Hogan would have used the Sleeper hold instead.

“Everyone says they wouldn’t change anything about their life. If I could change anything, it would be my finisher,” Hogan said. “I would never use the leg drop. I’d use the sleeper. All the back surgeries I’ve had are because of that damn leg drop. I had scoliosis, brother. Dropping that leg for 35 years did me in. I said I had the largest arms in the word, and I should have used a sleeper hold or another finisher with my arms.”

Regarding one more match, Hogan said he’s had talks with WWE Chairman Vince McMahon about a ring return, possibly at WrestleMania 36 in his hometown of Tampa, Florida next April. Hogan said he’s not sure if he can live with his last match being for TNA.

“I talked to Vince, and I said I really don’t know if I could live with myself knowing my last match was with TNA,” Hogan said. “If I can get fixed, I pray I can have one more match. I told Vince, ‘When I get through this back surgery, I’m going to get in the best shape of my life and we’re going to talk about me having one last retirement match.’ ”

Who does Hogan want to face in his last match, if it were to work out? Mr. McMahon himself.

“I’d love for it to be against Vince,” Hogan said. “I had such a great time with him in the ring at WrestleMania 19. I had no idea what to expect from him, but he’s a great bad guy. His timing is great. I loved wrestling him, but everything he does hurts. When you’re in the ring with someone and they’re hurting you, you kind of pinch them on the wrist, and the whole match I was doing that to Vince. I was like, ‘Vince, take it easy!’ Everything he does hurts, but I’d like to get in the ring with him one more time for my last match. That would be perfect.”

Hogan and WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair will be involved in the upcoming WWE Crow Jewel event from Saudi Arabia on Halloween, October 31. They will lead their teams into a big ten-man battle. Team Hogan currently features Rusev and WWE Universal Champion Seth Rollins, while Team Flair currently features Randy Orton and King Baron Corbin.

Stay tuned for updates on a possible WWE ring return for The Hulkster.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Big Show Getting His Own Reality TV Travel Series

Veteran WWE Superstar Big Show has signed on for his second TV show.

Show will be getting his own travel reality TV series, titled “Big Show vs. The World: A Giant Abroad,” from WWE Studios and ITV America’s Thinkfactory Media, according to The Wrap.

“Big Show vs. The World: A Giant Abroad” is currently in the development phase ad is being shopped to top broadcast and cable TV networks, and streaming platforms.

“Big Show brings so many different layers to a project like this; it’s a dream scenario for us as producers,” said Thinkfactory CEO Adam Reed. “He blends his fierce intelligence and curiosity with an unexpected, one-of-a-kind wit, and his intimidating physical stature is offset by his surprisingly disarming personality. We’re ecstatic to be working with him and the WWE Studios team and can’t wait for the journeys ahead.”

“For more than two decades, Big Show’s magnetic personality has inspired fans around the world, and in this new series, he will be able to meet the people and explore the places that have played a pivotal role in his journey as a WWE Superstar,” said head of WWE Studios Susan Levison. “We are thrilled to be bringing this show to life with our partners at Thinkfactory who are proven winners in the unscripted television genre.”

Show also commented on the show and said, “I won’t guarantee we’ll solve every mystery, but we’ll explore every strange detail, chase every bizarre lead, and meet the incredible characters involved in pursuit of the truth.”

WWE Studios and Netflix started filming “The Big Show Show” earlier this summer. The live-action multi-camera family comedy series will run for 10 thirty-minute episodes, starring Show, Allison Munn and kid actresses Reylynn Caster, Lily Brooks O’Briant, and Juliet Donenfeld. It is expected to premiere in early 2020.

There’s no word yet on when “Big Show vs. The World: A Giant Abroad” will premiere or what network they will sign with, but stay tuned as we will keep you updated.

Below is the official synopsis for the new series:

“Through his extensive world travels with WWE, Big Show has collected a lifetime of unusual stories filled with unexplained natural occurrences, local enigmas and fascinating people. “Big Show vs. The World: A Giant Abroad” will follow the larger-than-life WWE Superstar as he travels back to these locations and indulges his lifelong passion for exploring the strange and unknown.Each self-contained episode will feature Big Show venturing to a new exotic area, where he’ll team up with a local guide and dive head first into a native mystery or legend. Navigating the difficulty of travel (at seven feet tall) and the extreme, sometimes awkward situations he encounters with his signature self-deprecating sense of humor, Big Show will do whatever it takes to unearth every quirky and shocking detail during his adventures into the bizarre.”

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Edge Reportedly In Pittsburgh For WWE Business Today

WWE Hall of Famer Edge was reportedly in Pittsburgh, PA earlier today on WWE business, according to PWInsider.

There’s no confirmation on what Edge was doing in Pittsburgh, but it’s interesting that WWE’s Dr. Joseph Maroon is based out of the city.

As we’ve noted, there has been a lot of talk about Edge possibly returning to the ring for WWE. The Wrestling Observer Newsletter reported last week that Edge negotiated with both WWE and AEW, which ended with a much higher offer from WWE to stay. It was also noted that Edge still wasn’t cleared by WWE doctors to do a full match, but that a ring return had been discussed among higher-ups. It was later reported by @fightoracle that Edge had been medically cleared by WWE doctors to return to the ring. There was no timetable given for a ring return, but it was noted that Edge was now cleared and under contract to WWE once again.

Edge took to Twitter that same night, before the SmackDown FOX premiere, and apparently dismissed the reports on his WWE status.

“No I’m not and no I’m not,” he wrote, as seen in the tweet below.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Jeff Hardy DWI Update

Last Thursday, Jeff Hardy was arrested in Moore County, North Carolina for another DWI. This comes after Hardy was arrested for public intoxication and impairment in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina back in mid-July.

According to PWInsider.com, Hardy is expected to appear in court on Thursday, November 7th for the DWI charges. He also had his license revoked for at least 30 days pending his hearing.

Hardy has been out of action since April due to a leg injury. He suffered a right knee injury at the April 20th WWE live event in Madison, Wisconsin when The Hardys defeated The Usos. He is expected to appear at the November 3rd Ringside Fest event in New York.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

WWE 205 Live Status Update

WWE 205 Live is scheduled to air live on the WWE Network this Friday at 10pm ET from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, according to F4Wonline.com. This will be right after SmackDown goes off the air on FOX.

As we’ve noted, the future of 205 Live remains up in the air following the SmackDown move from Tuesdays to Fridays. WWE ended up nixing last Tuesday’s new episode of 205 Live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, shortly after they had announced Tony Nese vs. Humberto Carrillo and Akira Tozawa vs. Brian Kendrick for the show. It was reported that a “late call” made at the arena led to the show being nixed. The show was to air as a new, live episode after the SmackDown FOX premiere ended. WWE aired a replay of the September 24 205 Live episode instead, at 9pm ET, and then a replay of the weekly WWE NXT episode at 10pm ET.

WWE has not aired a new 205 Live episode since September 24. It’s been reported that WWE officials have discussed several options for the show, including doing away with it altogether. Triple H recently made comments about 205 Live being ran under the NXT umbrella, and that was made clear last week when they re-branded the WWE Cruiserweight Title as the NXT Cruiserweight Title. Drew Gulak will defend that title against #1 contender Lio Rush on this Wednesday’s NXT USA Network episode. It was also recently revealed that the NXT creative team is now booking the cruiserweights and handling 205 Live.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Sasha Banks Reportedly Injured At WWE Hell In A Cell

Sasha Banks suffered an injury at Sunday’s WWE Hell In a Cell pay-per-view.

Dave Meltzer reported on Wrestling Observer Radio that WWE is keeping quiet about her injury, and it’s not known when she will return to action. Banks reportedly does not want the injury to become public, however she has been saying that it’s not a concussion.

Banks has been pulled from the ring, according to PWInsider. Word going around is that Banks suffered a back injury during the Cell match with Lynch on Sunday.

There’s no word yet on the severity of Banks’ injury or when she will be back in action.

Source: Wrestling Inc.