Category: WWE

Triple H Talks Women Not Competing At Friday’s ‘Greatest Royal Rumble’ Event

Image result for Triple H Talks Women Not Competing At Friday's 'Greatest Royal Rumble' Event

Triple H spoke with The Independent about this Friday’s Greatest Royal Rumble event in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The Game addressed criticism regarding women not wrestling at the event, and said that he believes that they will be in a few years. Below are a couple of highlights:

Women not wrestling at the event this Friday:

“I understand that people are questioning it, but you have to understand that every culture is different and just because you don’t agree with a certain aspect of it, it doesn’t mean it’s not a relevant culture. You can’t dictate to a country or a religion about how they handle things but, having said that, WWE is at the forefront of a women’s evolution in the world and what you can’t do is affect change anywhere by staying away from it.”

Women eventually wrestling in Saudi Arabia:

“While, right now, women are not competing in the event, we have had discussions about that and we believe and hope that, in the next few years they will be. That is a significant cultural shift in Saudi Arabia.

“The country is in the middle of a shift in how it is dealing with that – the position is changing, and rights are changing, as are the way women are handled and treated in society. We think that’s a great thing and we’re excited to be at the forefront of that change.”

Triple H also discussed the worldwide cultural shift regarding women, WWE stars being recognized worldwide and more. You can read the full interview here. Also, new subscribers can sign up for the WWE Network today by clicking here and get their first month for free, which includes The Greatest Royal Rumble this Friday and Backlash on May 6th.

Source: WrestlingINC

Zack Ryder Suffers Knee Injury During WWE Main Event Match

Image result for Zack Ryder

Former WWE Intercontinental Champion Zack Ryder revealed on Twitter that he suffered a knee injury on Monday night during his match against Mike Kanellis, which was taped for Main Event. He noted that he will not be at Friday’s Greatest Royal Rumble event in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia as he will be getting an MRI in Orlando.

https://twitter.com/ZackRyder/status/988773180549550086

Ryder tore his ACL in December 2016, which kept him out of action for six months. He was moved to RAW last week as part of the Superstar Shake-up.

Source: WrestlingINC

Enzo Amore Posts Cryptic Message On Social Media

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Eric Arndt, a.k.a. Enzo Amore, who was released by WWE in January after being accused of rape, removed all his postings from his Instagram account last week. As seen below, on Monday, Arndt posted a new image that has his Jordans hanging from a phone line with the message, “I T ‘ S * B E E N * R E A L”

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bh7nB2Fgukl/

Arndt has been relatively quiet since being accused of rape in January by Philomena Sheahan. His only public statement regarding the accusations was on January 23rd via his attorney:

Over the last two days, Philomena Sheahan has made multiple public accusations against Eric Arndt (also known as Enzo Amore with the WWE), including allegations of sexual misconduct concerning an October 2017 incident in Phoenix. Mr. Arndt fully and unequivocally denies those accusations. He is cooperating with the authorities in this matter and looks forward to having it resolved in a timely manner. Neither Mr. Arndt nor his counsel will be making any further public comments on this matter.

A former friend of Sheahan’s, Sam Cook, shared a group text exchange from the night of the alleged rape incident where she confirmed having sex with Arndt, but seemed to suggest that it was consensual. Sheahan responded by stating that those texts where “completely out of context.” She has since deleted her Twitter account.

Source: WrestlingINC

WWE Honors Bruno Sammartino With 10-Bell Salute And Special Video

Image result for WWE honors Bruno Sammartino on RAW

Last night WWE RAW opened with Vince McMahon and the RAW roster out on the stage to honor Bruno Sammartino,  who passed away last Wednesday at the age of 82, with a 10-bell salute and a special video package.

RAW Preview 4/23/18

Tonight’s WWE RAW will take place from the Scottrade Center in St. Louis with the final build for Friday’s Greatest Royal Rumble event in Saudi Arabia.

Booker T will be filling in for Jonathan Coachman on commentary tonight. Coach will be back next week.

* The Conqueror cometh

* Superstar Shake-up aftermath

* Will Stephanie McMahon continue to overrule Kurt Angle’s decisions?

* Could we soon have “Woken” Raw Tag Team Champions?

How Long Is The WWE Greatest Royal Rumble Scheduled To Run?

Image result for WWE 'Greatest Royal Rumble' Ticket Sales And Seating Upsets Many Fans

The WWE Greatest Royal Rumble will take place on Friday, April 27 in Saudi Arabia and will air on the WWE Network beginning at 11am ET with a one-hour Kickoff. The Greatest Royal Rumble main card will begin at 12pm ET and is scheduled to run for five hours. In total, this is one hour shorter than WrestleMania 34’s main card and Kickoff.

 It will feature a 50-Man Royal Rumble and WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar facing Roman Reigns in a steel cage.

Below is the current card for the show:

Steel Cage Match for the WWE Universal Title
Brock Lesnar (c) vs. Roman Reigns

Ladder Match for the WWE Intercontinental Title
Seth Rollins (c) vs. Samoa Joe vs. Finn Balor vs. The Miz

Match for the Vacant RAW Tag Team Titles
Bray Wyatt and Matt Hardy vs. The Bar

SmackDown Tag Team Title Match
The Bludgeon Brothers (c) vs. The Usos

WWE Cruiserweight Title Match
Cedric Alexander (c) vs. TBA

WWE Title Match
AJ Styles (c) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

WWE United States Title Match
Jeff Hardy (c) vs. Jinder Mahal

50-Man Royal Rumble Match
Daniel Bryan, Braun Strowman, Big Show, Kurt Angle, Elias, Baron Corbin, Big E, Kofi Kingston, Xavier Woods, Bray Wyatt, Kane, Apollo, Titus O’Neil, Shelton Benjamin, Chad Gable, Sin Cara, Goldust, Mojo Rawley, Dolph Ziggler, Chris Jericho, TBA

Casket Match
The Undertaker vs. Rusev

John Cena vs. Triple H

Source: WrestlingINC

Booker T Returning To WWE RAW Commentary?, Jonathan Coachman Responds To Criticism

Image result for Booker T and Jonathan Coachman

It looks like WWE Hall of Famer Booker T could be returning to WWE commentary on Monday’s RAW from St. Louis.

As seen in the video below, Booker spoke with co-host Brad Gilmore on Houston radio this week and made the announcement when asked about a possible return.

Booker has been off regular RAW commentary since Jonathan Coachman was brought back in late January. There’s no official word yet on if Booker will be taking his old spot filled by Coachman.

On a related note, Coach recently took to Twitter and responded to some of the criticism he’s received since returning to WWE, noting that he’s hiring an assistant to help him research topics. You can see the exchange below:

https://twitter.com/BillyWescott/status/986991120541470720

Source: WrestlingINC

WWE ‘Greatest Royal Rumble’ Ticket Sales And Seating Upsets Many Fans

Image result for WWE 'Greatest Royal Rumble' Ticket Sales And Seating Upsets Many Fans

The 50-man Greatest Royal Rumble special is scheduled to air on April 27 at the King Abdullah International Stadium in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. In addition to the battle royal, every major title is scheduled to be on the line, with the exception of the women’s championships. Undertaker is also scheduled to compete against Rusev in a Casket Match, and John Cena is scheduled to compete against Triple H. The winner of the Greatest Royal Rumble will receive a trophy.

The tickets were originally scheduled to go on sale a month ago, but were delayed. According to the The Wrestling Observer, the process of ticket sales and seating has been a disaster.

In an attempt to sell out the stadium, which has reportedly never been done before with other sports, WWE is selling tickets between $2.70-$5.30 USD. There is also a VIP low-level seating area that is selling at about $80 USD, but these seats are only allowed for Saudi General Sports Authority President Turki Al-Asheikh and his colleagues.

In addition, there are only two ticket options: one for bachelor men, and another for families. For the family option, it must include a female attending. The bachelor tickets are at the top of the stadium and are sold out, leaving only the family option. As a result, irate fans have emailed WWE with their frustrations. There is a possibility for more singles tickets to be released before the event occurs.

A fan on Twitter recently vented his frustration on the seating arrangement. He stated that he booked single tickets, but there was a rearrangement in the seating positions. Now, his old seats are in the families section, which he is not allowed to enter. He did not receive any email to clarify what happened to his booking, or where his new seats are going to be.

The Greatest Royal Rumble event is scheduled to air live at 7:00 pm in Saudi Arabia on April 27, which is 12:00 noon US Eastern Time. As always, we will have live coverage of the event.

Source: WrestlingINC

Vader Back In The Hospital Just Days After His Initial Release, Diagnosed With Pneumonia

Vader diagnosed with pneumonia

Leon White, known to wrestling fans as Vader or Big Van Vader, is back in the hospital just a few days after announcing he was released. Vader underwent successful open heart surgery last month and was in the hospital until April 13 of this month.

Vader announced on Twitter yesterday that he was hospitalized due to pneumonia. In the tweet, Vader mentioned that his pain is through the roof and cannot breath.

Brief timeline of Vader’s recent health issue:

Less than two years ago, Vader revealed that he had congestive heart failure and said that he had two years to live. Vader is now 62 years.

On March 26 2018, Vader’s son, Jesse announced on Twitter that Vader had underwent open heart surgery and has a long road to recovery.

Just a few days on, on April 13th, 2018, Vader announced that he was released from the hospital.

April 19, 2018, Vader is back in the hospital and was diagnosed with pneumonia. He was experiencing a lot of pain and difficulty breathing.

https://twitter.com/itsvadertime/status/987098714123767809

Source: WrestleView

John Gaburick Back Working With WWE, Update On Local Advertising For Greatest Royal Rumble

John Gaburick

John Gaburick back working with WWE

John Gaburick, who recently finished up with Impact Wrestling at the end of 2017, is now back in a new role with WWE according to a report by PWInsider.com.

Gaburick is reportedly in Saudi Arabia right now working on pre-production for the WWE’s upcoming Greatest Royal Rumble special taking place next Friday.

Gaburick was a big part of the early years of the “Tough Enough” series and would later take on a production role with TNA/Impact Wrestling. His responsibilities with the company would increase, including a role with talent relations and then taking on bigger management role after the Anthem purchase and parting ways with Jeff Jarrett.

Update on local advertising for Greatest Royal Rumble

The Great Khali is expected to take part in the 50-Man Greatest Royal Rumble match next Friday in Saudi Arabia. Khali was featured in advertising on the WWE Network.

Local advertising is listing Bobby Lashley for the previously announced ladder match for the WWE Intercontinental Championship. Unless plans change, it is likely that match will now become a five way involving Lashley, Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, The Miz and Samoa Joe.

Source: WrestleView