Tag: Bobby Lashley

Bobby Lashley To Take Time Away From WWE After SummerSlam For MMA Return?

Bobby Lashley recently spoke with Sky Sports and revealed that he is still under contract to the Bellator MMA promotion.

The 42 year old Lashley said he expects to do a few more fights before he calls it quits on his MMA career. He has his eye on Bellator Heavyweight & Light Heavyweight Champion Ryan Bader.

“I think I am still probably going to do a couple more before it’s all said and done,” Lashley said. “I am still under contract at Bellator also, and if I go back I will give them a call and possibly go after (Ryan) Bader. I don’t want to wait too long, time is ticking.”

Lashley said may return to the cage after the WWE SummerSlam pay-per-view in August. He would likely need to take some time away from WWE to train for the fight. Lashley said his body is at 100% these days.

“I feel great. My body is 100% so I think maybe this summer, maybe after SummerSlam,” Lashley said.

Lashley said maybe he will talk with WWE boss Vince McMahon about winning the WWE Universal Title at SummerSlam, then go to Bellator to win their title.

Lashley also talked about Conor McGregor possibly coming to WWE and joked that they won’t be putting a top title on him because he’s too small.

Lashley’s last MMA fight came at Bellator 162 in October 2016. He defeated Josh Appelt that night by submission. Lashley’s current MMA record is at 15 wins and 2 losses.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

“The Demon” Is Coming For Lashley At WrestleMania 35

Last night on RAW, Finn Balor revealed that he is bringing his alter ego “The Demon” to WrestleMania 35 to face Bobby Lashley for the Intercontinental championship.

There had been speculation as to whether or not Balor would bring out the rarely-seen demon to face Lashley at WrestleMania. Now it has been confirmed.

John Cena’s Crown Jewel Replacement Confirmed During Raw

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It’s official! John Cena will not be participating at WWE Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia and his replacement was confirmed this week during RAW.

As we previously reported, Cena allegedly refused to participate due to controversy surrounding the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Up until this point, however, we had only been able to confirm with sources that Daniel Bryan had also requested to be left out of Friday’s event.

That was until a segment on Monday Night Raw when acting GM Baron Corbin decided to give Bobby Lashley a spot in the tournament. When asked who he was replacing, Corbin’s response was simply: “You are replacing someone who didn’t qualify … John Cena.”

WWE has still not addressed Daniel’s request to be left out of the event and, at time of this posting, are still openly advertising Bryan vs AJ Styles for the WWE Championship. Seems safe to assume this will most likely be addressed in some way tomorrow on SmackDown Live.

Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet

Backstage News On Why WWE Turned Bobby Lashley Heel, Vince McMahon Feeds Lines To Lio Rush

Image result for Bobby Lashley and Lio Rush heel turn on RAW

Regarding the angle on Monday’s WWE RAW with Bobby Lashley and Lio Rush, the idea for them was a heel turn.

WWE officials had just decided on the heel turn earlier that day, according to The Wrestling Observer Newsletter. There was a long discussion over whether Lashley would be better off as a heel or a babyface right now, especially with the roster losing another top heel in Kevin Owens, who is out of action with a knee injury. Owens is expected to be out of action for around 4 months if he needs just a minor operation but it could be 8 months if the surgery is major.

The decision was made at RAW to turn Lashley, with the idea that if he’s better off as a heel and if the roster needs heels, they should do the turn right away. The turn made even more sense as they needed Lashley to injure Owens to write him off TV anyway.

It’s interesting to note that Rush was plugged-in to the back with an ear piece on Monday night. Vince McMahon was in Rush’s ear and was personally feeding him lines to deliver during the match.

Source: WrestlingINC

Sasha Banks Injured, New MMC Partner For Bobby Lashley

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WWE has announced that Sasha Banks is injured.

Banks is being pulled from the Mixed Match Challenge season 2. Bobby Lashley’s new partner will be Mickie James.

No word yet on when Banks suffered her injury but her last TV match came on September 3. She teamed with Bayley to defeat Ember Moon and Dana Brooke that night. She also worked live events that weekend from Sptember 7 – 9, where she teamed with Bayley, Natalya and Ember Moon to defeat Alexa Bliss, Liv Morgan, Sarah Logan and Alicia Fox.

Cathy Kelley made the announcement on Banks in the video below:

https://twitter.com/WWE/status/1043177079305453568

Source: WrestlingINC

Bobby Lashley Makes Return To WWE On RAW, Jeff Hardy & Samoa Joe Returns From Injuries

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Last night on WWE RAW, Bobby Lashley made his long-awaited return to WWE, interrupting Elias and layed him out with a stalling vertical suplex. It was Lashley’s first WWE appearance in 11 years. Lashley has since competed for TNA/Impact Wrestling in two stints from 2009-2010 and 2014-2018, winning the TNA/Impact Championship multiple times. Lashley has also gotten into the world of MMA, competing for the Strikeforce and Bellator promotions. It is unknown if Lashley will be wrestling for WWE full-time, or will continue to compete in MMA

Jeff Hardy made his return to in-ring action after undergoing rotator cuff surgery last fall. Hardy competed in a 6-Man Tag Match, teaming with Intercontinental Champion Seth Rollins and Finn Balor against The Miz and The Miztourage, and appearing in a backstage segment with his brother, “Woken” Matt Hardy, and Bray Wyatt.

Samoa Joe returned for the first time since going out with a foot injury back in January, interrupting Roman Reigns and setting up a match between the two at the Backlash PPV on May 6th

Backstage News On Bobby Lashley Possibly Signing With WWE And Feuding With Brock Lesnar

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Bobby Lashley is reportedly expected to sign with WWE imminently, according to Dave Meltzer on the latest edition of Wrestling Observer Radio. Meltzer noted that Lashley was negotiating with both NJPW and WWE, and is no longer negotiating with NJPW. He added that Lashley is going to WWE “almost for sure.” Although he doesn’t know if Lashley will appear in the Royal Rumble match tonight or answer Bobby Roode’s open challenge, Lashley is contractually clear to start with WWE immediately. People in NJPW and Impact Wrestling believe that Lashley will start with WWE at any moment.

Meltzer also noted that Lashley may start a program with Brock Lesnar after WrestleMania or later this year. While Meltzer didn’t mention it, Lesnar’s WWE contract is expected to expire shortly after WrestleMania. He added that Lesnar is supposedly not aware of a possible program with Lashley, even though he’s supposed to be told of his programs ahead of time.

Lashley worked for WWE from 2005-2008. He left the company due to reported issues with Michael Hayes. When WrestlingINC‘s Raj Giri  spoke to Lashley in late 2015, I asked him if there was still heat with the company.

“I don’t think there is,” Lashley said. “I’m still good friends with some people there. I’ve talked with Vince [McMahon] a couple times. Shane [McMahon] and I are pretty good friends, I talk with him from time to time. Dolph Ziggler, I talk to him from time to time. We just haven’t really went that route.”

Source: WrestlingINC

Backstage Update On Ethan Carter III Returning To WWE And If He Can Keep His EC3 Name, Rumble Appearance?, Lashley – WWE

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It’s now confirmed that Ethan Carter III (Michael Hutter) will be returning to WWE soon, according to The Wrestling Observer Newsletter . It’s possible that EC3 will use the same name in WWE as he does own the rights to it. He previously used the Derrick Bateman name in WWE.

Regarding a possible WWE return for Bobby Lashley, it’s still believed that he will be returning to the company as some have expected it to happen for months but there’s been no confirmation like there has with EC3.

A Royal Rumble appearance for EC3 is possible as he’s now able to sign with any promotion he wants following the Impact Wrestling departure. As Raj noted before, EC3 was recently pulled from a Renegade Wrestling Revolution indie event in Houston, TX on the day of the Rumble. The promotion noted on Facebook that EC3 pulled out of the show due to a private family matter. They wrote, “Unfortunately it is a private family matter. He is ok just has to be with family. But don’t be discouraged there isn’t shortage of talent on this card”

Lashley could appear at the Rumble as well but it would take Impact officials giving approval to WWE.

Source: WrestlingINC

UPDATE:

EC3 was seen at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando this week, according to PWInsider.

EC3 & Bobby Lashley Gone From Impact Wrestling?

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After over four years with Impact Wrestling, EC3 seems to be done with the company — and his character was written out of storylines during last night’s TV taping.

Sources say Carter’s deal expires between now and the next set of tapings in April, so he was officially written off the program. It’s unclear when the actual date of expiration is on the contract, but the Wrestling Observer reports that he doesn’t intend to re-sign.

As we previously reported, EC3 filed documents to trademark his name last month.

For those who don’t recall, Ethan previously worked in WWE as Derrick Bateman. He was released in 2013 and re-invented himself in TNA, becoming one of the most popular acts on the roster. According to sources, WWE officials have been extremely interested in bringing him back to the company in the past … but it’s unclear if any recent talks have occurred.

ec3 ethan carter gone impact wrestling written off contract expires

Former World champ Bobby Lashley said goodbye to the crowd at  Impact Wrestling TV taping this past weekend and he seems to be done with the company.

According to those in attendance, Lashley lost his final match to recent signee Brian Cage … then, as he walked to the back, Bobby waved goodbye and bowed.

Similar to EC3, sources tell us Lashley’s contract expires before the next taping in April so he was written out of storylines in case he doesn’t re-sign.

The 41-year-old wrestler returned to Impact in 2014 and won their World title shortly after, making him the first African-American to do so. He went on to capture the belt three more times.

No word on his current plans for the future.

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Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet

Could EC3 & Lashley be headed to WWE?

WWE Reportedly Interested In Signing Top Impact Star Facing Possible Departure, Note On Contracts

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We noted before how Bobby Lashley and Ethan Carter III could be leaving Impact Wrestling when their contracts expire soon. The Wrestling Observer Newsletter reports that former World Heavyweight Champion Eddie Edwards may be joining EC3 and Lashley as his contract expires in February 2018.

Regarding contracts moving forward, word is that the company will only be offering the new per-day contracts instead of significant guaranteed money deals, which Lashley, EC3 and Edwards are currently signed to. There’s a good chance these three veterans may be leaving because of this, just like James Storm. Storm recently left the company as he was signed to a high-paying contract that the company did not want to renew as they are looking to stop losing money.

No word yet on Eddie’s future plans but the belief right now is that WWE and ROH do have interest in signing him. WWE’s interest is for the WWE NXT brand, according to The Observer.

Source: WrestlingINC