Backstage Update On Becky Lynch’s WWE Status Amidst Reported Contract Negotiations

WWE fans might have seen the last of Becky Lynch for a while. Lynch lost the WWE Women’s World Championship to Liv Morgan at King and Queen of the Ring, and was unsuccessful in her rematch against Morgan on the May 27 edition of “WWE Raw.” Following the loss, Lynch posted a cryptic message on social media as she has yet to agree to a new deal. According to Dave Meltzer of the “Wrestling Observer Radio,” the reason for this is because “The Man” is possibly looking to take an extended break from wrestling to spend more time with her family.

“Becky Lynch didn’t renew,” Meltzer said. “Lynch is taking an extended leave. From what I was told, it’s not like a short period of time; she was looking for a long period of time out. It’s probably if [Seth Rollins] isn’t on the road, it makes sense for her not to be on the road. They can’t be hurting for money or anything where they need it right now, and maybe she’s looking at other things or maybe she’s not. But she will be a free agent a couple of days from now.”

News of Lynch’s status with WWE has attracted a lot of attention from people in and around the wrestling business. AEW star Chris Jericho on commented Lynch’s future in wrestling, stating that having a company like AEW around is good for “The Man” as it gives her another option when she decides to get back in the ring.

Source: Wrestling Inc. with credit to Wrestling Observer Radio

TNA Impact Preview 5/30/2024

Tonight’s episode of TNA Impact on AXS TV is all-new. Here are the matches that have been announced for the show:

  • X-Division Champion Mustafa Ali vs. Leon Slater
  • TNA Tag Team Champion Eddie Edwards vs. Joe Hendry
  • Ace Austin vs. Chris Bey
  • Xia Brookside vs. Steph De Lander
  • Sami Callihan vs. Jonathan Gresham
  • Steve Maclin vs. Mike Santana

ROH TV Preview 5/30/2024

ROH will air a new episode of its weekly television show tonight at 7 pm ET on HonorClub. 

You can sign up for the streaming service here. Below is the lineup for the show: 

  • ROH Women’s Championship Proving Ground: Athena vs. Viva Van
  • Lee Johnson vs. Aaron Solo vs. Action Andretti
  • Premier Athletes (Tony Nese & Ariya Daivari) vs. Bollywood Boyz (Gurv Sihra & Harv Sihra)
  • Red Velvet in action
  • Serpentico in action
  • ROH World Tag Team Championship Proving Ground: Undisputed Kingdom (Matt Taven & Mike Bennett) (c) vs. Nick Comoroto and Jacoby Watts
  • The Workhorsemen (Anthony Henry & JD Drake) vs. Top Flight (Darius & Dante Martin)
  • Zak Knight in action

Tony Khan Donating $100K To St Jude’s For Neck Brace He Wore During NFL Draft

AEW President Tony Khan recently appeared on an episode of the Rich Eisen Show, where he talked about a number of topics including how he should keep the neck brace he wore during the NFL Draft, which he had on due to the attack by the Young Bucks on AEW television. Khan also talked about how he will be donating a total of $100,000 to St Jude’s Hospital for the neck brace.

Source: PWMania

Ethan Page Denies Reports He’s Signed To WWE In Social Media Video Following NXT Debut

Former AEW star Ethan Page shocked the world on May 28 when he made a surprise appearance on “WWE NXT” attacking NXT Champion Trick Williams. Page left All Elite Wrestling earlier this year after his contract expired, and seems to have found himself in a brand new environment…at least for now. The day after “WWE NXT” aired, Page took to his X (formerly known as Twitter) account to reveal that, despite rumors suggesting otherwise, he hasn’t actually signed with WWE.

https://twitter.com/OfficialEGO/status/1795893384382443766

“Everybody saw what I did last night, literally everybody. We’re talking millions of views across all social platforms, that’s pretty heavy. I’d even say that’s a bit of buying power for Ethan Page, especially because, contrary to popular belief, Ethan Page is not signed to any company, or any contract, and I’m going to just assume that Trick Williams would love to get a little payback and revenge on Ethan Page. So NXT, I’m going to leave this one to you, ball is in your court, and ‘All Ego’ is all ears. I’m going to assume someone in that company has my number, I’ll wait for the call.”

Page has also gloated on social media about how he ‘whooped that trick’ with the intention of baiting the NXT Champion into potentially putting his title on the line against the former AEW star. The upcoming June 4 edition of “WWE NXT” will be the final episode of the show before the NXT Battleground Premium Live Event takes place on June 9 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, and at the time of writing, a match for Williams’ NXT Championship has yet to be booked. However, given how Page blindsided the champion this past week, WWE might want to consider keeping the former AEW star to be Williams’ first title defense. 

Source: Wrestling Inc.

AEW Dynamite Preview 5/29/2024

Tonight’s AEW Dynamite live on TBS from the KIA Forum in Los Angeles, California.

  • Fallout from Double or Nothing
  • A new segment will debut on tonight’s show – TV Time with The Learning Tree Chris Jericho.
  • Casino Gauntlet Match for AEW World Title opportunity at AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door III
  • Don Callis to present a contract
  • Kris Statlander and Stokely Hathaway will explain why they turned on Willow Nightingale at Double or Nothing
  • Mercedes Mone’s TBS Championship celebration
  • World Heavyweight Champion Swerve Strickland vs. Killswitch in a non-title bout
  • IWGP World Heavyweight title eliminator: Jon Moxley vs. Rocky Romero

Report – The WWE NXT-TNA Wrestling Cross-Over Is Expected To Continue

TNA Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace made an appearance on this week’s episode of WWE NXT.

During the show, it was announced that Grace will be facing off against Roxanne Perez at the 2024 NXT Battleground pay-per-view event. Grace will also be appearing on next week’s show.

According to a report from Pwinsider, the belief among those backstage is that there will be some kind of NXT representation at future TNA events as well. As of this writing, there is no word on who from WWE NXT will be coming over to make appearances. As of now, only Roxanne Perez and Jordynne Grace are involved. But that could easily change.

The next set of TNA tapings will be at the Against All Odds pay-per-view event on June 14th and a TV taping the following night on June 15th.

Source: eWn

Adam Copeland Provides Injury Update After AEW Double Or Nothing

Following his Barbed Wire Steel Cage match at AEW Double or Nothing on Sunday, there was fear that TNT Champion Adam Copeland had suffered an injury. Though AEW owner Tony Khan was unsure of Copeland’s condition immediately following the match, it seems the 50-year-old didn’t escape Sunday’s PPV unharmed. In a video posted to Copeland’s X page today, the AEW star confirmed that he fractured his tibia in the match and will require surgery.

Copeland stated that the injury was his body’s way of telling him to slow down and make better choices. At one point during Sunday’s bout, Copeland performed a dive from the top of the cage to hit an elbow drop onto opponent Malakai Black. While it has yet to be confirmed, this may have been the move that resulted in Copeland’s injury.

Copeland, previously known in WWE as Edge, was forced into retirement in 2011 after speaking with doctors about his various neck injuries. He returned to the ring in 2020, spending the next three years in WWE before making a surprise debut at AEW WrestleDream last October. Since then, Copeland spent much of his time occupied by a feud with longtime friend and tag team partner Christian Cage, whom Copeland defeated for the TNT Championship in March. Shortly after that, he began a series of open challenges before feuding against the House of Black.

Since joining AEW, Copeland has wrestled more than 20 matches, including lengthy singles bouts against Cage, Brody King, Buddy Matthews, Black, and more. Copeland recently revealed that he had signed a two-year deal with AEW in 2023 and intends to retire from wrestling when that contract is up.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Arn Anderson Leaving AEW

Earlier this week, “The World’s Strongest Man” Mark Henry confirmed that after his contract with AEW expired on May 28, he’d be moving on from the company in order to better focus on some of his professional projects. On the latest episode of the “ARN” podcast, wrestling legend Arn Anderson announced that he too will be imminently leaving All Elite Wrestling, as his respective contract expires on Friday, May 31. The reasoning for Anderson’s departure, however, is much more personal.

“The limited time that I have left [in my wrestling career], I want to spend with [my son] Brock, because I think Brock has aptitude and attitude,” Anderson said. “I think he will be a player for somebody. And I just got to get him some experience, and that’s where I’m going to go with my time – helping develop Brock and teaching him. If he comes along like I think and hope it will, it will be sooner than later. So I just want to say thank you to Tony [Khan]. This coming, believe it or not, on double shot day, [May] 31st is the last day of my contract. I just want to say thank you. I appreciate everything, and that goes to everybody that works there.”

During his five-year tenure with AEW, Anderson notably served as a mentor, manager, and coach. Upon his arrival at AEW in 2019, “The Enforcer” was appointed as the on-screen personal advisor to “The American Nightmare” Cody Rhodes, who resided as one of AEW’s founding members. After Rhodes exited AEW in early 2022, Anderson shifted his attention to managing the likes of Wardlow, Lee Johnson, and his son, Brock Anderson. Brock spent two years in AEW before leaving the company in October 2023.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Jake Hager Reportedly Done With AEW, Mark Henry’s Status

Another name is reportedly gone from AEW after his contract recently expired. 

According to Bodyslam.net’s Cassidy Haynes, Jake Hager did not re-sign with Tony Khan’s company. Haynes reported that the decision was mutual between Hager and AEW and the former Jack Swagger is now a free agent.

The 42 year old’s last match with the company was on the February 21 episode of “AEW Rampage,” where he was defeated by Roderick Strong. He was last featured on “AEW Dynamite” at the end of December in 2023 when he teamed with The Gunns and Matt Menard in a losing effort against Billy Gunn, The Acclaimed, and Scott Taylor. He signed with AEW in 2019 and made his debut with the company on October 2 as a member of Chris Jericho’s inner circle. He didn’t make his in-ring debut until Revolution the following February. As Haynes reported, Hager hadn’t been used much on AEW programming since the breakup of the Jericho Appreciation Society, where he was a member alongside Jericho, Daniel Garcia, Angelo Parker, Menard, Sammy Guevara, Tay Melo, and Anna Jay.

Prior to his run with AEW, Hager was known as Swagger in the company’s competition from 2006 to 2017. He debuted with WWE on the revamped ECW brand and won his first title from Matt Hardy in January 2009. “The Real American” was released from the company in March 2017 after requesting to be let go.

AEW’s Mark Henry also recently revealed his contract expired and he had not re-signed as well. Henry explained on “Busted Open Radio” that the decision was mutual and he would be taking more time to handle his brands. Henry worked for AEW as an announcer, coach, and scout.

Source: Wrestling Inc.