It looks like Luke Harper won’t be leaving WWE any time soon.
As was speculated, WWE is adding another 6 months to Harper’s contract to make up for the time he missed for wrist surgery, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Harper’s contract was to end in November of this year, but WWE has added to it because it was “frozen” while he was on the shelf.
We noted before how Harper took to Twitter on April 16 to announce that he had requested his release. He had previously tweeted about being concerned or unhappy with his position in WWE going into the WrestleMania 35 Axxess events, where he wrestled Dominik Dijakovic for the Worlds Collide tapings. That match aired last week on the WWE Network, Harper’s first WWE TV match since last summer.
It was believed that WWE could add to Harper’s contract to make up for the time he missed when he was injured, and according to the Observer, that is what has happened. There has been obvious speculation on Harper going to All Elite Wrestling once he’s a free agent and he is good friends with AEW’s Vice President of Business Strategy, Chris Harrington.
Harper would be able to leave WWE around WrestleMania 36 time next year.
For those who missed it, below is Harper’s original statement from last Tuesday:
“As of this evening, I have requested a release from WWE. The past 6 years have been a simply, amazing journey around the world and back with lifelong friends and family. I am proud of it all and proud to say I shared the ring with my co workers.This decision, as difficult as it was, feels right for myself and WWE. My goal in the future is to continue to grow as a performer and person and continue to make my family proud.
Thank you. From the top to the bottom of WWE. Thank you to the fans for your undying support. Thank you everyone.”
WWE officials have had talks with Joey Ryan about coming to work in their developmental system.
Ryan was not given an official WWE offer as of earlier in the week, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, but he was contacted after the company got word that he was a free agent when he was let out of his Lucha Underground contract. Ryan was asked if he would be willing to move to Orlando, wrestle in WWE NXT for a few years, and then move into a coaching position.
The Observer notes that Ryan is expected to end up with All Elite Wrestling, but he’s not currently under contract with them. Ryan currently owns a home in Los Angeles and earns far more money working the indies than he would with an average NXT salary. The Observer adds that Ryan would have absolutely taken WWE’s offer if he was 29 years old, but at 39 he’s probably not interested in taking a pay cut to start with WWE, or anyone else offering far less than what he’s already making.
It’s only been a little over a month since Tommaso Ciampa underwent neck surgery, but the former NXT champ has already resumed training.
Ciampa shared footage of his workout on Wednesday and wrote:
Day 48 post op cervical fusion. I am still at a 5 pound max on most lifts. Thanks to @tarahalaby for this burner. Use constant tension squeezing the ball against the wall with a neutral spine. 20 reps overhead, 20 reps lateral raise, 20 reps front raise. Great for recruiting stabilization muscles throughout the traps and neck.
As we previously reported, Tommaso had to undergo anterior cervical fusion surgery in March.
WWE NXT Tag Team Champions The Viking Raiders were referred to as The Viking Warriors in the latest WWE Fan Council survey, seen below.
There’s no word yet on if this is just a typo or if WWE has plans to change their name once again. Ivar and Erik won a non-title match on last night’s NXT episode and were still being called The Viking Raiders.
As noted, The Raiders were brought to RAW last week in the 2019 WWE Superstar Shakeup and given a new name – The Viking Experience. WWE quietly changed the name this week, likely due to the negative fan reaction to the original name change, and they are now being called The Viking Raiders. Their tag team finishing move is now called The Viking Experience. It was reported that Vince McMahon did not like The War Raiders name, and wanted a new name. At one point the team was scheduled to be called The Berzerkers.
It’s possible that this is just a typo, but we will keep you updated on any other potential name changes.
AEW President and CEO sits down with Chris Van Vliet in Jacksonville, FL one month before Double or Nothing. Tony gives us an idea of what we can expect from All Elite Wrestling and also covers of number of topics like a TV deal, how he signed Goldust (Dustin Rhodes), his 5-year plan for the company, being compared to WCW, wins and losses counting in AEW, whether or not he wants to be an on-air personality and much more!
Tony Khan was a big fan of ECW, and was therefore asked if he would like to see AEW have a similar ‘edgy’ style:
“I think we are doing some very edgy things and I think what you see on our social media is not necessarily what you will see in our television product which I do expect to be much more advertiser friendly than ECW. But that doesn’t mean that we won’t push the envelope sometimes, that doesn’t mean that you won’t see really exciting high spots. A lot of what made ECW great was the work and we’re going to have the best caliber in ring stuff in the world.”
Many people have been comparing AEW to WCW. On the topic of the comparisons between the two promotions, Khan had the following to say:
“I don’t want to compare us to any other wrestling company. We’re AEW and we’re doing something very different. What’s great is what we will offer, which will bring people back to 20 years ago, and there will be a major alternative. There will be a second company with great production values and great exposure, it’ll be easy to watch and give you shows with the top wrestlers and the best matches on a regular basis. That’s something that hasn’t been readily available to people outside of WWE in a long time, almost 20 years.”
Khan also spoke about how he wants the touring schedule for his performers to be light, something that WWE doesn’t have:
“For us, I want to offer a quality of life and a work/life balance that is the best and is unparalleled in the business for the best quality of life. What that means is less time on the road, but still working regularly, still performing on pay-per-view and on television in the future. I believe you don’t need to spend 6 days on the road to make a good living as a wrestler or 5 days on the road per week necessarily”.
Khan was also asked if he wanted to be an on-air personality for the company:
“I have thought about it and I’m not going to do it. We have some of the greatest on-air performers in the world and look, I am who I am in the promotion. I am the president and the CEO and the founder of this company but it’s not going to be me all over TV and I’m not going to be doing a lot of interviews or backstage segments on television.”
He also discussed AEW’s television deal:
“I have negotiated some things and I am very excited about what we are doing. I do think it’s very important to give wrestling fans a better quality of life. I think 20 years ago was honestly in many ways not nearly as good of a time to be a wrestling fan. There was not nearly as much wrestling out there and available if you were really looking for it. If you are really looking for great wrestling now there has never been a better time to be a wrestling fan.”
He also spoke about where he wants All Elite Wrestling to be in five years time:
The 5-year plan for AEW is that we will have built up a brand, we will have built up a roster, we will have established ourselves as a top brand in wrestling for people who want fast paced exciting action and want a product that is more of a sporting based product. I’ve talked a lot about how I want wins and losses to matter because at the end of the day, that’s why you’re having the match. There’s going to be a winner and a loser and it matters. It should matter to your standing in the company and it should matter to your standing in your chase for the championship which at the end of the day is what everyone is trying to attain”.
Finally, Khan was asked if he would like to see former WWE Champion, CM Punk, sign for the promotion:
“He’s a great talent and a great performer, I don’t know if that was Phil in the ring, but he’s great. I’m from Illinois and I grew up around Chicago sports and he’s obviously very popular there.”
WWE RAW Superstar Nia Jax will be undergoing surgery tomorrow.
Jax is scheduled to go under the knife on Friday to repair both of her torn ACLs, according to Casey of Squared Circle Sirens on Twitter.
There’s no word yet on how long Jax will be out of action, but they should have a better idea of her timeline after the surgery. It was believed that she could be out for up to 9 months.
Jax took to Twitter back on April 12 and said she would be out of action for “a while” due to the injuries. She also revealed that she has been working through the pain for the last year.
“Some of you may or may not know, but I will be out of action for a little while,” Jax wrote, “Unfortunately, I have been pushing through some pain over the last year due to injuries in my knees and I will be undergoing surgery to repair both of my ACLs. I’m grateful to everyone who has supported me! Thank you!”
Jax hasn’t wrestled since WrestleMania 35 where she worked the Fatal 4 Way with partner Tamina Snuka, Natalya and WWE Hall of Famer Beth Phoenix, new WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions The IIconics and former champions Sasha Banks and Bayley.
For those who missed them, below are Jax’s tweets from earlier this month:
The WWE “Worlds Collide: Women Collide” special will air on the WWE Network tonight at 9pm ET after WWE NXT goes off the air. This one-hour special was taped during WrestleMania 35 Axxess earlier this month. The following matches have been announced to air:
* Zelina Vega vs. Piper Niven
* Candice LeRae vs. Kay Lee Ray
* Sonya Deville vs. Io Shirai
* Nikki Cross vs. Bianca Belair vs. NXT UK Women’s Champion Toni Storm with the title on the line
