WWE To Start Announcing Hall Of Fame Inductees Today?

WWE will be holding this year’s Hall of Fame ceremony on Friday, March 31, after SmackDown that night in Los Angeles.

WWE is just a few weeks away from WrestleMania weekend and has yet to announce any inductees for this year’s class. That will be changing, according to WrestleVotes. 

Per the report, WWE will start announcing the inductees today. 

“The plan as of Monday was to begin announcing this years Hall of Fame induction class today. The annual HOF ceremony is 3 weeks from tonight in Los Angeles following SmackDown.”

WWE is operating with the idea of keeping things shorter than in previous years. 

Earlier this week, Mick Foley revealed that he had been asked to induct someone as a part of this year’s class, although he wouldn’t offer any specifics on who had made the request or if it’d even been greenlit yet. One name that keeps being bandied about is Dave Bautista. He was initially tapped to enter the WWE Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2020. However, that event was put off as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. He was then going to be inducted the following year, but he was pulled from the slate with the wrestler-turned-actor stating that prior obligations would prevent him from attending. A later date was expected for his eventual participation, so could this be the year?

Sources: WrestleVotes and Wrestling Inc.

Taya Valkyrie Finishes Up With Impact Wrestling

Taya Valkyrie has finished up with Impact Wrestling. Pwinsider.com reports her last date for the promotion was on March 2nd at the TV tapings in Las Vegas.   

It’s worth pointing out that AEW TBS Champion Jade Cargill challenged a Canadian star to face her on Dynamite next week, and Valkyrie is Canadian so she could be the mystery person. 

Taya does currently hold the MLW Featherweight Title so if she does go to AEW then she may have to drop the title soon.

Source: eWrestlingNews

Impact Wrestling Preview 3/9/2023

Tonight’s episode of Impact Wrestling at 8/7c on AXS TV and 8:30pm ET on YouTube for IMPACT Insiders.

  • Knockouts Championship: Mickie James (c) vs. Gisele Shaw 
  • Sami Callihan vs. Rhino
  • Jonathan Gresham vs. Kushida

ROH TV Preview 3/9/2023

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. 

  • Ring of Honor Television Championship: Samoa Joe (c) vs. Tony Deppen
  • Ring of Honor Pure Championship: Wheeler Yuta (c) vs. Timothy Thatcher
  • Ring of Honor Women’s Championship: Athena (c) vs. Willow Nightingale
  • Dalton Castle & The Boys vs. Marcus Cross, Guillermo Rosas & Cody Chhun
  • Rhett Titus & Tracy Williams vs. Aussie Open
  • Eddie Kingston vs. Ben Dejo
  • Serpentico & Angelico vs. RUSH & Dralistico
  • Billie Starkz vs. Trish Adora
  • Jake Crist & Man Scout vs. Ari Daivari & Slim J

The AEW All-Atlantic Title Renamed To International Championship

Orange Cassidy successfully defended the AEW All-Atlantic Championship against Jay Lethal on this week’s episode of Dynamite.

AEW President Tony Khan announced on Wednesday night’s show that the All-Atlantic Title is now “leveling up” to the AEW International Championship.

Cassidy will defend the AEW International Championship against Jeff Jarrett next Wednesday.

https://twitter.com/AEW/status/1633655024587874307

Cody Rhodes Teases That Brandi Could Make Her Return To WWE

Could Brandi Rhodes be making an appearance on WWE programming in due time? Never say never.

In February 2022, both Cody and Brandi parted ways with AEW but at this time, the American Nightmare is the only one to have made a return to WWE.

Speaking on the “Out of Character with Ryan Satin” podcast, Cody spoke about his wife, saying that it isn’t unusual for the pair to do things independently. He said,

“We always wanted to do everything separately. I think even in one of the last interviews she had done before I left, guy was making fun of me in the ring, and she went out there and didn’t even need me anywhere near her. She very much can defend herself and fight her own battles.”

Cody went on to say that given her support for his career both on and off-screen, Brandi is already playing a role in his WWE return.

The 2023 Men’s Royal Rumble winner remained cagey when discussing the possibility of Brandi returning to WWE, saying,

“I wouldn’t rule it out, but she absolutely loves watching what I’m doing. She’s got some stuff that she’s working on secretly, unrelated.”

Rhodes said he won’t spoil what his wife is working on, but he reminded fans to “never say never” when it comes to the wrestling business.

Brandi worked as a ring announcer for WWE in 2011 and then for a second run from 2013 to 2016 under the name Eden Stiles.

Source: eWrestlingNews

Bryan Danielson After AEW Revolution Loss: ‘It’s Time For Me To Go Home’

Bryan Danielson has seemingly been written off AEW television for the foreseeable future.

On last night’s “AEW Dynamite,” a pre-recorded video showed a bloodied and battered Danielson — following his Iron Man Match loss to MJF at AEW Revolution — addressing his immediate future in pro wrestling.

“I always thought I was doing this for my kids,” began Danielson. “When I was forced to retire, I wanted to teach them that if you love something, you have to fight for it. What I realized out there tonight [Sunday] was that Max was right. This whole time, my whole career has been [about] legs, lungs, heart, and never giving up. That’s always what I thought was best — to just fight, fight and fight.” 

Danielson continued, “But when I woke up from being unconscious, I found myself in a LeBell Lock, and my first instinct was to fight! As I was fighting, I realized I couldn’t feel my arms. My left leg didn’t have any strength anymore. And when Max said, after the Iron Man Match, that I wouldn’t be able to play with my kids…it dawned on me. He’s right.”  

Danielson was overcome with emotions as he acknowledged that he had prioritized winning the AEW World Championship over spending time with his family.

“I was putting myself before my family,” Danielson rued. “More than tapping out, that made me more ashamed than anything else. It’s time for me to go home.”

While the pre-recorded interview did not include an update on Danielson’s return date, AEW did air a separate post-match interview with MJF earlier in the show and announced a birthday celebration segment for the AEW World Champion for next week’s show. As such, it appears MJF will be moving onto a new challenger going forward.

It’s no secret that Danielson is in the stretch run of his illustrious career. In a recent interview, “The American Dragon” made it clear that the expiration of his AEW contract would mean he’s “done being a full-time wrestler.” Danielson signed a three-year contract with AEW in September 2021, meaning he’d become a free agent in the summer of 2024.

https://twitter.com/AEW/status/1633656090448793600

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Shawn Michaels Names Johnny Gargano As Grayson Waller’s Opponent At WWE NXT Stand & Deliver

The ongoing feud between Grayson Waller and WWE Senior Vice President of Talent Development Creative Shawn Michaels has escalated to the “NXT” Stand & Deliver premium live event. During Tuesday night’s special Roadblock episode, Michaels was a guest on “The Grayson Waller Effect.”

During the segment, Waller challenged Michaels to a match, which is when Michaels revealed that former “NXT” Champion and current “Raw” Superstar Johnny Gargano was going to be Waller’s opponent instead. Gargano and Waller have a history that goes all the way back to Gargano’s farewell to “NXT” in December 2021. As he was ending his farewell speech, Waller came out from behind and attacked him. Gargano’s last “NXT” match before he went to the main roster was at the “NXT” WarGames 2021 event.

Waller started his feud with Michaels when he crashed the Vengeance Day post-show media call and was “suspended” for his behavior. Waller returned on the February 14 episode of “NXT,” when he was kicked out of the arena after confronting Michaels backstage. While Waller was being escorted out of the building, he called the WWE Hall of Famer “a hypocrite and a suit” and that “HBK doesn’t exist anymore.”

“NXT” Stand & Deliver is set for April 1 at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California. It will be on the same day as night one of WrestleMania 39 and will be starting at 1 PM ET. The only other match announced for Stand & Deliver is Bron Breakker defending the “NXT” Championship against Carmelo Hayes in the main event.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

AEW Dynamite Preview 3/8/2023

AEW Dynamite will air live tonight on TBS, and emanate from the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California.

  • AEW TNT Championship: Wardlow (c) vs. Powerhouse Hobbs
  • AEW All-Atlantic Championship: Orange Cassidy (c) vs. Jay Lethal
  • Chris Jericho, Sammy Guevara & Daniel Garcia vs. Top Flight & AR Fox
  • Jon Moxley & ROH Champion Claudio Castagnoli vs. Alex Reynolds & John Silver
  • Skye Blue vs. Ruby Soho
  • Hangman Adam Page to appear

Wardlow Robbed – TNT Title, Ring Gear, & More Stolen

Wardlow, who just defeated Samoa Joe to capture the TNT Championship at Sunday night’s AEW Revolution pay-per-view event, had his car broken into on Tuesday.

The AEW wrestler took to Twitter to announce that all of his possessions were stolen from his vehicle while he wasn’t around. The windows of his rental car were smashed out, which appears to be the result of a smash-and-grab. This has been happening more and more in California and other states in recent months.

In the video, which you can see below, Wardlow says he’s still planning to make it to Sacramento tonight for his match with Powerhouse Hobbs. He stated,

“Well, thanks to the person who broke into my rental car and took absolutely everything from me. My TNT Title, my gear, my boots, my whole life were in those bags. I don’t know if this means I’m going to have to beat the sh*t out of Hobbs in these clothes I’m wearing right now, but one way or another I’m going to make it to Sacramento and we’re going to get this sh*t done. Whoever did do this better thank God that I didn’t catch you in the act because your jaw would be as shattered as this glass is.”

https://twitter.com/RealWardlow/status/1633339726576103426

Source: eWrestlingNews