WWE Superstars Offer Support To Boy Who Was Bullied For Dwarfism, Possible Trip To WrestleMania 36

It looks like 9 year old Quaden Bayles could be going to WrestleMania 36.

The story of the 9 year old from Australia surfaced this week after his mother posted an emotional video about how he is bullied because he has Dwarfism. In response, several celebrities and brands have sent tweets and other messages in support of the boy and his mother.

Comedian Brad Williams, who also has Dwarfism, launched a GoFundMe campaign to help send Quaden and his mother from Australia to Disney in the United States. The campaign is currently trending and has raised $288,839 of a $10,000 goal, with more than 13,000 donors. The numbers are climbing as the story continues to go viral this morning.

Several WWE Superstars and other wrestlers, as seen in the tweets below, are also supporting Quaden. The MMA community has also reached out and the Bayles family has accepted an offer from ONE MMA CEO Chatri Sityodtong for free MMA lessons.

Williams, who kicked off the campaign of support for the boy, noted in one tweet that “multiple WWE Superstars” want to bring Quaden to WrestleMania 36 in Tampa this April.

“We are now over 35k. Multiple @WWE superstars want to bring him to WrestleMania. I’m one man trying to organize this. Can someone who works for a charity help me organize this? @WWE people? @Disneyland people? @TheEllenShow people?,” he wrote yesterday in one of many tweets trying to organize more gifts for Quaden.

Paige tweeted support for the boy and WWE Hall of Famer Mark Henry responded with an offer to help. Paige has offered to pay for flights to Tampa and other WWE Superstars such as Natalya have offered to spoil the boy while he’s in town for a vacation. Below are related tweets from Henry, Paige, Natalya, The Bella Twins, Nia Jax, Kayla Braxton, Naomi, Matt Hardy, Big Show, Alexa Bliss, Naomi, and Dana Brooke.

Below are some of the tweets:

https://twitter.com/RealPaigeWWE/status/1230616750246359040

https://twitter.com/NiaJaxWWE/status/1230592325015003136

https://twitter.com/KaylaBraxtonWWE/status/1230595150147182610

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Cody Rhodes’ Amazing Off Air Promo From Wednesday

Cody Rhodes gives an emotional off air promo after the end of Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite following his steel cage match win over Wardlow in Atlanta, Georgia.  He tells a touching story of how, where and when he fell in love with wrestling.

Plus, he announced that Turner and Warner Media has extended AEW Dynamite for 3 more years.

WWE To Launch A Performance Center In Japan Soon

WWE is expected to launch their Japan Performance Center soon.

The announcement of the new WWE Performance Center in Japan is expected to come in the next few months, possibly around the summer time if everything goes as expected, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. WWE returns to Osaka and Yokohama in July for three live events, so it’s possible the announcement coincides with that tour.

WWE has reportedly reached out to WWE Hall of Famer Antonio Inoki and Hiroshi Hase about the political situation surrounding the new PC in Japan. Hase, a semi-retired pro wrestler who once held the WCW International World Heavyweight Title, was named the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2015.

It was believed that WWE would be working with Pro Wrestling NOAH for the new expansion in Japan, but NOAH was sold to the CyberAgent media company earlier this year.

The new report did not mention if there will be a WWE NXT Japan brand to go with the new Japan Performance Center, but that has been rumored for some time now.

The WWE Japan Performance Center will be the third PC for the company. The main Performance Center in Orlando, Florida was launched in July 2013 and the UK Performance Center in London, England was launched in January 2019.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

AEW PPV Events To Replace WWE PPVs In Germany

AEW pay-per-view events will soon replace WWE pay-per-view events on Sky Germany.

Sky Deutschland announced this week that they are parting ways with WWE, and that this was a WWE decision. The current contract between the two sides expires at the end of March. Sky told customers that while WWE will no longer be offered, they will begin offering another wrestling league to fans beginning in April – AEW.

AEW Dynamite runs weekly on Sky each Friday at 9:50pm on TNT. Sky will begin offering AEW pay-per-view events “shortly” via the Sky Select service.

ProSieben Maxx continues to air RAW and SmackDown on free TV in Germany.

WWE and Sky Germany originally announced their multi-year deal to air WWE pay-per-views back beginning with Survivor Series 2016 back on November 16, 2016, and to start airing RAW and SmackDown on Sky Sports the following April.

You can see the announcement below:

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Vickie Guerrero Claims She Can No Longer Interview WWE Stars Due To AEW Appearance

Vickie Guerrero claims her recent appearance on AEW Dark has made it so WWE stars can no longer be interviewed on her podcast.

Guerrero explained during last week’s episode of her show that she had asked to interview a few WWE Superstars, but when the company found out about her AEW appearances they stopped answering.

“They didn’t call me for two years,” she added. “What did they expect me to do? Just to sit here and wait for them to call so I could do some work? I love wrestling. I love to work in the ring. And if someone is giving me an opportunity to go and show up and have some fun, then I should be able to because I’m not obligated to anybody.”

In case you missed it, Vickie did guest commentary on the December 11 edition of Dark in Texas.

“To be part of a promotion, or anyone, you should encourage the people that are in the other promotions because it’s about everyone showing their talent and their craft,” the former WWE star continued. “I think there’s enough jobs out there, and promotions, to let everybody work and to let everyone contribute to what they want to do in the industry. So when someone told me I couldn’t interview the Superstars because I went to AEW, I was just like, ‘Wow. They’re gonna be like that.” So you just quietly move on and you see how they are and you just have to take care of your own business.”

CLICK HERE for the full podcast episode or listen to her comments about WWE below.

Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet

XFL TV Ratings Suffer Noticeable Drop In Week Two While Attendance Rises

XFL television television ratings fell in week two. However, Ben Fischer of Sports Business Journal noted that attendance for the weekend was up 9.5% to 76,285 fans from the opening weekend because of the strong attendance for the Seattle Dragons opener.

In its second week, the XFL averaged 2.06 million viewers between the four games that aired on ABC, FOX and FS1. This was down 34% from the debut weekend, which averaged 3.12 million viewers between the four games that aired on ABC, FOX and ESPN.

The first game on Saturday between the DC Defenders and New York Guardians averaged 2.146 million viewers on ABC. It was down 35% from 3.302 million viewers from the prior week. According to Showbuzz Daily, the game averaged a 0.6 rating in the 18-49 demo, which was down 45% from the opening week. The game drew 15,031 fans in D.C., down 12.4% from the D.C. game last week.

The second game on Saturday between the Tampa Bay Vipers and the Seattle Dragons averaged 2.324 million viewers on FOX, down 29% from the previous week. The game scored a 0.6 rating in 18-49, so it was also down 45%. It drew 29,172 to CenturyLink Field in Seattle, which was the biggest crowd yet for an XFL game.

On Sunday, the first game featuring the Dallas Renegades vs. LA Wildcats averaged 2.397 million viewers on ABC and was the highest rated game of the weekend. It was down 29% from the prior week, which aired on FOX. Like the Saturday games, the game garnered a 0.6 rating in the 18-49 demo, down 40% from the week prior. It was the L.A. opener and averaged 14,979 fans at the Dignity Health Sports Park, the smallest crowd so far for an XFL game.

The final game of the weekend between the St. Louis Battlehawks and Houston Roughnecks aired on FS1 for the first time, which has the lowest reach of any network airing the XFL. The game averaged 1.359 million viewers, down 45% from last week’s game that aired on ESPN. It scored a 0.51 rating in 18-49, down 45% from the opening weekend. It drew 17,103 fans in Houston, down 4% from last week’s game in the city.

The AAF saw a much steeper 65% drop in television ratings from week one to week two, however the AAF aired on national television on CBS in its first week, compared to TNT and the NFL Network in its second. The original XFL in 2001 fell 52% from week one to week two on NBC.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

For the full XFL 2020 schedule click HERE.

 

Here is the schedule for Week 3 of the XFL.

SAT, FEB 22 – 2:00 PM ET

Houston Roughnecks @ Tampa Bay Vipers

BUY TICKETS

SAT, FEB 22 – 5:00 PM ET

Dallas Renagades @ Seattle Dragons

BUY TICKETS

SUN, FEB 23 – 3:00 PM ET

New York Guardians @ St. Louis BattleHawks

BUY TICKETS

SUN, FEB 23 – 6:00 PM ET

DC Defenders @ LA Wildcats

BUY TICKETS

The Bella Twins To Appear On SmackDown Tomorrow Night

Amidst rumors of a possible WWE Hall of Fame induction this year, The Bella Twins have been announced for an appearance Friday night on SmackDown.

According to WWE’s Instagram, Nikki and Brie will be guests on A Moment of Bliss this week with host Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross.

While it has yet to be confirmed at this point, The Bella Twins have been heavily rumored as part of the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2020. Their involvement on SmackDown this week will only increase speculation.

As you’ll recall, the Bella’s both officially retired from in-ring competition last year. Nikki went on to get engaged to Artem Chigvintsev. She and Brie are now both pregnant as well.

WWE additionally announced an eight-man tag match for Friday pitting New Day and The Usos against The Miz, John Morrison, Bobby Roode and Dolph Ziggler.

AEW Launching Their First Official Podcast

AEW has announced their first official podcast.

“AEW Unrestricted” will premiere today, February 20, and new episodes will air each Thursday. The podcast is hosted by AEW announcer Tony Schiavone and AEW referee Aubrey Edwards.

Below is the official synopsis for the “AEW Unrestricted” podcast:

“What does it take to be All-Elite? Dig in with the stars and talented team behind AEW on TNT via in-depth conversations highlighting their lives, pop culture, and pro wrestling. AEW referee Aubrey Edwards and broadcaster Tony Schiavone bring you new episodes every Thursday.”

The podcast is available on iTunes and most podcast platforms. An intro is available now, but there’s no word yet on who the first guest will be for tomorrow’s premiere, if any.

An AEW podcast was first mentioned back at the WarnerMedia Upfronts last year, when it was noted that the host would be AEW Chief Brand Officer Brandi Rhodes. However, Pro Wrestling Sheet reports that this was just a mix-up by the network, and Brandi will not be hosting. Schiavone then revealed in December on his own podcast that he would be hosting AEW’s program when it launched in January of this year. It looks like the launch was delayed until this month.

Former WWE And ECW Star Raven In The Crowd At AEW Dynamite (Photos, Videos)

Former WWE, ECW, WCW and TNA star Raven was sitting in the crowd for last night’s AEW Dynamite episode from the State Farm Arena in Atlanta.

He could be seen on TV a few times, during the Tag Team Battle Royal, but he was not acknowledged by the AEW announcers, and did not appear to be in character at all.

AEW had some fun with Raven’s appearance and joked about him being involved with The Dark Order as he was sitting near members of the group, including The Exalted One, and did not move while the action unfolded next to him. Raven can be seen in a clip that was tweeted from the official AEW Twitter account.

“Did you see it? The exalted one is always watching,” AEW wrote in the caption.

Raven lives in Atlanta and is good friends with Diamond Dallas Page, so it’s possible he was just visiting. DDP was visiting at Dynamite this week, along with Austin Aries.

Raven has not appeared for a major promotion since his last TNA appearances in 2010. You can see several related tweets below:

https://twitter.com/GetDaTables/status/1230304471567208451

https://twitter.com/JeffreyShowLive/status/1230298256506269699

https://twitter.com/AEWrestling/status/1230298156866457601

https://twitter.com/AndyNemmity/status/1230328933943586816

https://twitter.com/JoeyShoots/status/1230298390157758464

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Samoa Joe Suffers Injury During Commercial Shoot

Pro Wrestling Sheet is reporting that Samoa Joe is not cleared to wrestle after suffering an injury while filming a commercial.

According to sources, the injury took place at a WWE commercial shoot last week when Joe hit his head during a bad table break as they were filming a stunt. While it’s unconfirmed at this point, sources say Joe could be out of action for a considerable amount of time.

As you’ll recall, Joe returned from a broken thumb at the end of last year. Upon his return, he joined Kevin Owens and the Viking Raiders in their feud against Seth Rollins and his disciples, but suffered a concussion last month which briefly took him out of action. He then wrestled last week on Raw, but was once again absent on Monday.

Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet