Women Of Honor Tournament Begins This Weekend On ROH TV

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The Women of Honor Tournament to determine the division’s inaugural champion will begin on ROH TV this weekend. A couple of first round matches will also take place in Japan on February 24, thanks to a partnership between ROH and Stardom. The first match will be Jenny Rose vs. Kagetsu and the second is “The Icon of Stardom” Mayu Iwatani vs. HZK. The 16-woman tournament will eventually lead to two semi-final matches at ROH’s Festival of Honor, held in New Orleans on April 7. The date for the finals has yet to be announced.

Source: WrestlingINC

Below is a photo of the Women of Honor Championship belt:

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Shelton Benjamin Finds Loaded Gun In Rental Car

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Shelton Benjamin took to Twitter yesterday and called out Budget car rental service after he found a loaded gun in the glove compartment. Benjamin had been traveling with the gun in the car for 4 days. He tweeted:

Hania the Huntress Denies She Was Fired From Impact Wrestling, Says She Quit

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It was recently reported in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Impact fired Hania the Huntress after she refused to do a 90-second job to newcomer Su Yung at a television taping on Jan. 13 in Orlando, Florida. On Twitter, Hania denied reports that she was fired, saying that she actually quit.

Source: WrestlingINC

Vince McMahon Steps Aside And Puts Triple H In Charge Of ‘WWE 205 Live’

There are major behind-the-scenes changes going on with the WWE 205 Live brand as Vince McMahon has stepped aside and is no longer personally producing the show, according to PWInsider. The changes began with last week’s episode, which featured new 205 Live General Manager Drake Maverick and kicked off the 16-man tournament that will end at WrestleMania 34 with the crowning of a new WWE Cruiserweight Champion.

Triple H is now overseeing 205 Live and he has brought back some of the aspects of the WWE Cruiserweight Classic tournament, including the style and presentation of the wrestlers. Vince had personally worked with the 205 Live Superstars to bring out their personalities to present them in a certain way but there has been more focus on the in-ring work under Triple H.

There has been a lot of internal talk over the past few months about why 205 Live wasn’t succeeding like they had hoped. Vince reportedly believed that a character-driven show was the best way to get the brand over, which is why former WWE Superstar Enzo Amore was brought over to be the top star of the brand. Enzo’s arrival helped with viewership and buzz for the show but there were still people in the company that wanted to present the show like the Cruiserweight Classic was presented. Their feeling was that having smaller talents that were just echoing the Superstars from RAW and SmackDown was not going to showcase what made the cruiserweight talents unique, and it wasn’t going to help 205 Live grow into its own brand, more than just a weekly WWE Network TV show.

The product we’ve seen over the last few weeks is said to be very much in line with the original plans for 205 Live before Vince became personally involved with the direction of the show and the development of the cruiserweight talents.

While WWE is still considering non-televised 205 Live live event shows in the future, there are currently no plans to run more cruiserweight-exclusive events as the plan is to focus on re-building the brand by presenting strong athletic characters with strong in-ring competition.

Vince finally made the decision to let Triple H run the show back in mid-January as a way to reboot the brand, or fix it. Triple H is running the show, making all decisions, while Jonathan Baeckstrom is the current lead writer. Baeckstrom has worked on the WWE creative team since August 2013 and has been a lead writer since November 2016. Former WWE Performance Center Coach Adam Pearce is still working as the lead producer for the brand.

Regarding roster changes, there may be more additions in the coming weeks. WWE NXT Superstar Roderick Strong was brought up to help freshen the roster and the show. As noted, Strong defeated Hideo Itami last night to advance in the 16-man tournament.

Source: WrestlingINC

Upcoming NJPW U.S. Event To Air Live On AXS TV

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AXS TV announced that it will live broadcast New Japan Pro Wrestling’s upcoming U.S. event “Strong Style Evolved” on Sunday, March 25 at 8pE/5pP. The press release can be seen below:

NEW JAPAN PRO WRESTLING’S BIGGEST STARS RETURN TO AMERICA ON AXS TV’S EXCLUSIVE LIVE BROADCAST OF ‘STRONG STYLE EVOLVED’ ON SUNDAY, MARCH 25 AT 8pE/5pP

The Sold-Out Show Will Feature Kazuchika Okada, Kenny Omega, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Tetsuya Naito & More from Long Beach, California

‘STRONG STYLE EVOLVED’ Marks NJPW’s Second U.S. Event as Japan’s Biggest Wrestling Organization Continues to Expand Stateside

Leading up to the Live Broadcast, the Network will Premiere Matches from NJPW’s New Year Dash, New Beginning in Sapporo and More

Los Angeles (Feb. 7, 2018) – AXS TV—the exclusive U.S. television home for New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW)—will partner with NJPW and TV ASAHI to broadcast NJPW’s second U.S. event STRONG STYLE EVOLVED live on Sunday, March 25 at 8pE/5pP from California State University Long Beach’s (CSULB) Walter Pyramid.

The cable network’s acclaimed commentary team, Wrestling Hall of Famer Jim Ross and former UFC Heavyweight Champion and NJPW veteran Josh Barnett, will call the live action ringside at STRONG STYLE EVOLVED. The broadcast is expected to feature NJPW’s biggest stars including Kazuchika Okada, Kenny Omega, Hiroshi Tanahashi, and Tetsuya Naito among others in matches to be announced.

“New Japan Pro Wrestling’s popularity and ratings in the U.S. are at an all-time high,” said AXS TV FIGHTS CEO Andrew Simon. “The G1 Special last summer sold out in a few hours, while STRONG STYLE EVOLVED, in an arena twice the size, sold out in less than 10 minutes. This second U.S. event is a great opportunity to further our relationship with NJPW and TV Asahi and we are looking forward to growing their strong style brand of wrestling in the states.”

AXS TV previously televised NJPW’s first stateside event—G1 Special in USA—live in July 2017 and also took over production of the Friday night series from distribution partner TV Asahi to air the Japanese events closer to the original air date. Continuing this trend, AXS TV aired a special presentation of NJPW’s biggest annual event—Wrestle Kingdom 12—on Jan. 6, 2018 just two days after it took place in Japan, which became the most watched broadcast in series history.

AXS TV wraps up its final night of Wrestle Kingdom 12 coverage on Feb. 9 at 8pE/5pP. Then, the network will showcase the best matches from NJPW’s winter events including “New Year Dash” (Feb. 16), three hours from “The New Beginning in Sapporo” (Feb. 23-March 9) and more to be announced leading up to STRONG STYLE EVOLVED.

AXS TV’s upcoming NJPW schedule is as follows (subject to change):

* Feb. 9 – Wrestle Kingdom 12 Finale – Kazuchika Okada vs. Tetsuya Naito

* Feb. 16 – New Year Dash – NJPW’s top wrestlers face off in a series of tag team matches and establish new rivalries for 2018.

* Feb. 23 – The New Beginning in Sapporo – Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Minoru Suzuki

* March 2 – The New Beginning in Sapporo – The Young Bucks vs. Roppongi 3K

* March 9 – The New Beginning in Sapporo – Kenny Omega vs. Jay White

Lita On Wearing ‘Times Up’ Gear For The Women’s WWE Royal Rumble Match

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Lita took to Twitter to discuss why she wore #TimesUp gear during The Royal Rumble match last week. The WWE Hall of Famer said that she paid tribute to the women who are no longer with us that had paved the way for the match to happen. She said that #MeToo and #TimesUp have helped bring strength and unity to men who had previously felt “alone, ashamed or scared” and that she is proud of every woman who has come forward for the movements.

 She also stated that she started an eBay auction fund. Although the link to the auction is in the pinned tweet on her Twitter account, the auction is currently down.

You can check Lita’s full statement below (h/t to Cageside Seats for the transcription):

“On January 28, I was fortunate enough to have been included in the first ever Women’s Royal Rumble match. Historically, it was tough to have the women even represented at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view, much less have equal representation and be the main event. With only a few days notice between when I was asked to participate and the match itself, I had to wonder: As much as I wanted to be a part of history, could I pull this off?? After all, I hadn’t been in the ring in a decade, and while my full-time tenure at WWE sowed the seeds for the current Women’s Evolution (led by a roster of kick-ass women), I knew this historic event was going to be much bigger than myself and my own contributions to the industry. A big factor in deciding to go for it was the position I was now in to represent women everywhere.First, to all the women in professional wrestling. Women who passed away before they were able to their contributions as a rung on this ladder [sic]. I wanted to step in the ring for these performers who came before me and sacrificed so much of their lives for their millions of fans. But this evolution is bigger than even them. I wanted to be an entrant in this match for all women who have felt underrepresented, in all aspects of their lives.

That is why, when I stepped through the curtain, I wore my #TimesUp gear. Watching these women step forward, hearing their #MeToo stories, as difficult as they are to share, has brought strength and unity to women who previously felt alone, ashamed or scared. This is so much bigger than one match. Everyone has their own journey and their own way to heal. I am still figuring out mine, but am so proud of all of you who have been able to come forward and join together for the sake of the evolution, and the re-education that this is not right.

Women should not be discriminated against, and I support you in whatever makes you feel like you are doing the right thing for you. Taking legal action is only one of those ways, but it also happens to be one of the ways where our support can do the most good. Which is why 100% of the proceeds of this auction is being donated to the #TimesUp Legal Defense Fund to honor the strength of ALL women. I support you, and applaud your courage and your healing, in whatever way is best for you.

Thanks for reading,

Amy”

Source: WrestlingINC

Jason Jordan’s Wife Issues Statement On His ‘Minor Neck Injury’ And WWE Return

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Jason Jordan’s wife April Everhart took to social media last night during RAW and issued a statement on his WWE status, confirming that he has been sent home after last night’s backstage segment with RAW General Manager Kurt Angle.

In regards to Jordan possibly undergoing surgery due to the apparent severity of his neck injury as he’s reportedly lost strength in his grip, Jordan’s wife indicates that he will not be undergoing surgery. You can read her statement below:

I will address this once…Yes, “Jason Jordan” is injured. I assure you everything you have seen online is “Fake News!” He has a minor neck injury and will be back in no time! Although, I am very excited to have him home for a bit, I promise, I will help guide him to a speedy recovery! Thank you to everyone who reached out to check on him! He is very positive and already planning his comeback! In the meantime, just please keep sending Nathan and I good vibes!!

https://www.instagram.com/p/Be11PEOhLql/?utm_source=ig_embed

 

Source: WrestlingINC

WWE Mixed Match Challenge and 205 Live Preview 2/6/18

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Tonight’s WWE Mixed Match Challenge and WWE 205 Live will take place from the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri.

WWE is allowing fans to vote for the special referee in tonight’s Mixed Match Challenge match – SmackDown General Manager Daniel Bryan or RAW General Manager Kurt Angle. Voting opens at noon today, as explained by Renee Young in this video.

WWE Mixed Match Challenge:

* Goldust and Mandy Rose take on Naomi and SmackDown Tag Team Champion Jimmy Uso.

 

WWE 205 Live:

* What does Drake Maverick have in store for WWE 205 Live?

* Who will advance in the WWE Cruiserweight Championship tournament? – Roderick Strong vs. Hideo Itami – Kalisto vs. Lince Dorado

SmackDown Live Preview 2/6/18

Tonight’s WWE SmackDown Live will take place from the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri as the road to WrestleMania continues.

* Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn to battle for a WWE Title opportunity at WWE Fastlane tonight on SmackDown LIVE

* Bobby Roode defends the United States Championship against Rusev tonight on SmackDown LIVE

* Daniel Bryan to reveal the first-ever SmackDown LIVE Top 10 Superstars List

* Charlotte Flair looks for payback against Riott Squad’s Liv Morgan

Jason Jordan May Need Surgery For Neck Injury

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It looks like Jason Jordan may need to undergo surgery soon.

It was noted on Wrestling Observer Radio that the kind of neck injury Jordan is currently suffering from is the kind that talents definitely get surgery for and not the kind of injury that one would just work through.

As noted, Jordan is said to be having issues with his grip, which could indicate a very serious injury. It was also noted that Jordan is dealing with a loss of grip strength.

Jordan’s injury is serious enough that WWE officials are not booking him in any physical angles or matches until further notice. This is also why he and Seth Rollins lost the RAW Tag Team Titles to The Bar.

Jordan’s last match came at the January 28th Royal Rumble pay-per-view, the title loss, but he barely did anything during that match. Before that he lost a six-person tag match with Rollins and Roman Reigns on the January 8th RAW and before that he defeated Cesaro in singles action on January 1st.

Source: WrestlingINC