Tag: Eli Drake

NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day Results 2/14/2021, LA Knight (Eli Drake)

NXT CHAMPIONSHIP
Finn Balor (c) defeated Pete Dunne

After the match, Balor recovers as the music hits. We go to replays. We come back to Balor standing tall with the title. He poses in the corner as the crowd cheers him on. Dunne is down but recovering. Balor poses on the stage with the title around his waist until NXT Tag Team Champions Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch run out, dropping Balor from behind. The boos get louder as Burch and Lorcan bring Balor into the ring for the double team. The referee tries to stop the attack but he gets knocked down, possibly by a recovering Dunne. Dunne joins in for the triple team until The Undisputed Era’s music hits for a big pop. Adam Cole, Kyle O’Reilly and Roderick Strong run down and hit the ring as Dunne, Burch and Lorcan retreat to the stage. O’Reilly checks on Balor and offers his hand. O’Reilly helps Balor to his feet and they shake as fans cheer them on. The Undisputed Era stands in the middle of the ring and does their pose as Balor stands with them, doing his own pose. Cole suddenly superkicks Balor out of nowhere. O’Reilly and Strong, especially O’Reilly, aren’t happy with this. O’Reilly has words with Cole while we hear Strong say he understands what Cole did. Cole superkicks O’Reilly out of nowhere and lays him out next to Balor on the mat. Strong looks a bit unsure about everything but he’s with Cole. The boos get louder now as Cole looks down at O’Reilly, who is barely moving. Cole made his exit from the ring while Balor and O’Reilly are still down. Strong acted conflicted between the two. 

NXT WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP
Io Shirai (c) defeated Toni Storm and Mercedes Martinez

MEN’S DUSTY RHODES CLASSIC FINALS
MSK defeated The Grizzled Young Veterans

NXT NORTH AMERICAN CHAMPIONSHIP
Johnny Gargano (c) defeated Kushida

WOMEN’S DUSTY RHODES CLASSIC FINALS
Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzalez defeated Shotzi Blackheart and Ember Moon

Pre-show: The panel is interrupted by the former Eli Drake from Impact Wrestling and the NWA. He is now known as LA Knight. He puts the locker room on notice and warns that he has his eyes on any Superstar who is currently holding a title.

Eli Drake Announces Departure From Impact Wrestling, Backstage Notes

Former Impact Wrestling World Heavyweight Champion Eli Drake announced on Twitter yesterday that he is a free agent, taking bookings via Bookelidrake@gmail.com.

“After 4 years with Impact Wrestling, some ups, some downs, I would like to thank them for the overall great experience. Through those years, I had the fortune of carrying 3 different title belts, having my own talk show (Fact of Life), and was always given the trust to craft my own promos, virtually from day 1. I appreciate the chance that was taken on me and the trust I was given, as well as the friends and experiences I gained along the way. I wish Impact Wrestling nothing but continued success and growth going forward. Today, I am OFFICIALLY a FREE AGENT,” the statement read.

Drake and Impact recently agreed on a settlement regarding his termination and his non-compete clause, which paved the way for Tuesday’s announcement on being a free agent, according to PWInsider. Drake is now free to sign a deal with any wrestling promotion.

Despite issues between the two sides back in April, it sounds like the split was on somewhat good terms. PWInsider noted that one Impact executive told them, “We are happy to have the issue resolved and we wish Eli Drake well going forward.”

It was reported in early April that Drake had been released from his Impact contract on April 7, weeks before it was to expire on May 31, and that Impact officials were looking to stop him from signing with any other promotions by pursuing a breach of contract claim. It was also reported that Drake had heat from the company for speaking out against intergender wrestling.

Drake’s first post-Impact booking has been announced for the Championship Wrestling From Hollywood promotion on Father’s Day – Sunday, June 16 from The Canyon Club in Agoura Hills, California. Drake will do battle with UWN TV Champion Scorpio Sky and Eric Watts in a Triple Threat.

Drake had a Twitter exchange today with former Impact executive John Gaburick, who returned to work for WWE after leaving Impact in late 2017.

Gaburick responded to Drake’s Twitter statement and wrote, “Nice job kid. Class.”

Drake responded, ” Thank you, sir. I appreciate you. Thank you for the opportunity.”

There were rumors on Drake talking with WWE earlier this year, but that was never confirmed. We will keep you updated on any potential interest from WWE or AEW.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Eli Drake’s Impact Wrestling Firing Might Get Ugly

Earlier this week, Impact Wrestling announced Eli Drake was done with the company via an announcement on its website.

The full statement by Impact at the time was, “Impact Wrestling announced today that it has terminated its relationship with Shaun Ricker, known as ‘Eli Drake.'”

PWInsider received word from those within Impact that the company will look into a breach of contract claim against Drake. This move would delay his ability to sign with another promotion until its settled.

Drake’s contract was set to expire on May 31, but he was officially terminated on April 7 over comments he made about Impact Wrestling. The report noted some in Impact believed Drake was headed to AEW once his contract expired.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Eli Drake On Possibly Signing With WWE Or AEW After Impact Contract Expires In May

Former Impact Wrestling World Champion, Eli Drake, recently sat down with The Wrestling Perspective podcast to talk about his status with the company. After revealing that his contract has nearly expired, Drake mulled over some potential options on where he may be performing next.

Drake looks back at his past year in Impact Wrestling as one of his more lackluster ones. He believes that one of the sole reasons he’s been kept on TV and relevant is because of his ability to talk on the mic.

“There is a way to keep a talent elevated even while you’re elevating others… I’ll be honest, the exception over the last few months, I’ve been written kind of in to oblivion in the last year,” Drake said. “Fortunately, the fact that I can speak has kept me over – has kept me relevant to some degree. But otherwise, a lot of it stemmed from the fact that it was believed that I was leaving. I even thought that I was going to be leaving. At the last minute, I did an inventory of everything and I said, ‘You know what? I’m going to stay here.'”

Despite challenging for the Impact World Title throughout the Spring of 2018, Eli remembers his place on the card being lowered after signing this most recent contract with the company. In the more recent months with Impact, he’s been more engaged by the stars he’s worked with, like Abyss and Eddie Edwards.

“I was thinking, there’s probably going to be a level of happiness and appreciation and, ‘Oh great, well now we can use him in this great way!’ And then it was like, no, we’ll feed him to Joe Hendry. And I’m like, why?” Drake asked. “And in the last couple months, I’ve enjoyed myself very, very much – the stuff with Abyss, the stuff with Eddie, everything’s been good…[But] if you watched this show between last April and this past December, you’d have no idea I was the World Champion the year before. And that’s where I think there is a giant disconnect, for my character in particular.”

Drake saw recent rumors about WWE’s interest in his talents, and although he’s flattered, he’s confused where the rumors originated from. Eli does indeed have friends within the company, even some of the coaches, but there hasn’t been any formal offers from WWE.

“I looked at [the rumor that WWE was interested in Eli Drake], and I’m like, ‘Well, nobody’s contacted me! So, what’s the source?'” Drake joked. “I mean, I’ve talked to people there that I’m friendly with, or, whatever, certain coaches that I’m friendly with and stuff like that. Definitely people have been like, ‘I think you would do well here’, but nobody has overtly made me an offer. There was nothing like that.”

Even if he was potentially offered a contract by WWE, Drake explained that he wants to weigh all of his options before making a final decision on where to go when his contract with Impact expires. He even mentioned how AEW is an option that he may look in to.

“I know AEW is out there, all of that stuff, so, the fact is, there’s a lot of options at this point,” Drake explained. “This is a time where, truth be told, I run up on May 31 at Impact, so, if that’s the case, it’s time to start thinking about what options I have, things like that.”

You can listen to the full interview at link below.

https://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-ehjeq-abda29

Sources: The Wrestling Perspective and Wrestling Inc.

Eli Drake Signs New Deal With Impact Wrestling

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Eli Drake had signed a new deal with Impact Wrestling

Drake’s new contract with Impact, it is said per a new report by Mike Johnson of PWInsider.com that the new contract for Drake is for a long-term deal.

It was originally believed that Drake would be signing a short-term extension through July 31st, which would get Drake and Impact through the Slammiversary PPV and subsequent TV tapings in Toronto from July 22 to July 26.

It was also said that WWE had interest in Drake for NXT should he have departed Impact. Drake (Shaun Ricker) had been under a NXT developmental deal from May 2013 to August 2014 and then debuted for TNA/Impact in 2015.

Source: WrestleView

WWE Reportedly Has Some Interest In Signing Eli Drake

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Eli Drake is not booked for the July 22nd Impact Slammiversary pay-per-view in Toronto because he still has not committed to staying with the company, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

Drake’s deal reportedly expired this past weekend but he did work the Impact Wrestling TV tapings, to lose a match. The two sides continue to talk but there is no word on a new contract being signed.

Regarding a possible return to WWE, The Observer confirms that there is interest as there has been talk of signing Drake within WWE in recent months.

Following a stint on The Rock’s TNT reality series The Hero in 2013, Drake signed a WWE developmental deal in mid-2013 but was released on August 1, 2014. He joined Impact in the spring of 2014.

Drake spoke with The Mirror back in April and recalled an October 2013 dark match plus his run in WWE NXT, saying NXT was “great and terrible” at the same time.

“Ah no, that was when I was already with WWE actually, my dark match in 2008 was me and [Gene] Snitsky against Cryme Tyme [in WWE’s ECW]. The Yoshi Tatsu thing was just kind of thrown on me last minute and that was a hell of an experience,” Drake said. “At the time – I think they were just messing with us half the time. Bill DeMott [former head coach of WWE’s Performance Center] came back and grabbed me five minutes before the match was supposed to happen. He said ‘are you ready?’ and I was like ‘yeah’ and he said ‘alright, it’s you and Yoshi, hurry up’. ‘Okay’. Ha ha. I put my stuff on and went out there and had a match. And believe me, it was a stinker. It was terrible.

“That whole run at NXT, it was great and terrible at the same time. I enjoyed it, I made a lot of friends from it, I actually liked being on some of the workout programmes they had us doing there, you’re able to stay crisp by staying in the ring four or five days a week, but at the same time, it was a lot of BS, especially with Bill DeMott there. But from what I gather now with him out of the picture, it sounds like things have changed for the better there. Hopefully the guys are enjoying it more.”

Drake also commented on if he sees himself staying with Impact or going to WWE, or elsewhere.

“It really depends. I am looking at all my options. I am very grateful for the opportunities Impact have given me and putting me on the stage they have put me on. I also have grown my bank account enormously! I’m doing well on that front. So I’m very grateful for it,” Drake said. “But at the same time, I am a businessman, I am going to look into any opportunities that are afforded to me and anybody who wants to talk and wants to throw numbers my way and anything like that, of course I am open to that. Will I stay with Impact? That’s a definite possibility. It could be a likelihood, I really don’t know. It really depends on what else is out there. But I am interested in any opportunity that comes my way, that’s for sure.”

Source: WrestlingINC

WWE Reportedly Interested In TNA Wrestler

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WWE officials are interested in bringing current TNA star Eli Drake (Shaun Ricker) back into the company, according to The Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Ricker worked WWE dark matches in 2006 and 2008 but was later signed to the WWE Performance Center in May 2013. He made it to WWE NXT as Slate Randall but was released in August 2014.

The obvious issue here would be Ricker’s contract status with TNA. Dixie Carter announced back in May of this year that they had signed Drake to a new deal but the length of that contract was not revealed. Drake first started working with TNA in February 2015 and has held the King of the Mountain Title.

There were high hopes for Ricker coming into WWE back in 2013 after he appeared on TNT’s reality TV show “The Hero,” which was hosted by The Rock. His release came with a handful of other developmental talents, reportedly due to budget cuts, but it was said that his departure was different as it had little to do with the budget. Ricker had the charisma WWE wanted and he was progressing better but there were some issues with his Twitter use and an e-mail he sent while with the company. Exact, confirmed details on that e-mail were never revealed but it was said to have buried him with officials, who also weren’t happy about some of his tweets.

Drake spoke with Pancakes & Powerslams in June 2015 and talked about WWE blacklisting him. He said:

“I was on the black list there for a while. One of the guys who used to work in Talent Relations – I’ll leave him nameless – he got fired around early 2012, apparently not very liked in the back anyway; I guess he was kind of a jerk to a lot of people, for whatever reason, would bury me in the office. So I was kind of just, nobody could touch me; nobody would touch me. So for a lot of years it was frustration and wondering what I’m working toward and why isn’t these guys taking my calls. And I finally started getting some of the details of why this guy was burying me. There was talk of them picking me up in 2011, I was there for SummerSlam, and then and the follow-up Raw and SmackDown, and everything went incredibly well. But all of a sudden it was like radio silence on their end and I hadn’t quite understood why until I spoke to this person, and he was like, “Well, we’re gonna go in a different direction.” I’m like, “OK?” and he’s like, “You can check out Ring of Honor or TNA or whatever.””So I think maybe five months after I had spoken to him on the phone, he’d gotten fired, which was a great day for me. I don’t wanna see anyone lose their job, but if you’ve keeping me out of a job, here’s to ya. So, I was more than happy to see him go. And so this new guy comes in, and the beauty of it is that with the footage I had from (Championship Wrestling from Hollywood), I would take some of this great-looking television footage that was on every week and put it together with a short little paragraph just introducing myself and a resume and some photos. Emailed it to this guy and he immediately responded to me and was interested but then found out that I was on this blacklist or whatever. So for the next few months I had to just wait and keep trying to establish this rapport. Eventually, these tryouts kept getting pushed off. First he offered me a tryout until he found out that I was on the blacklist. Then, a few months later I got offered a tryout but simultaneously, I also was offered a TNA tryout. So, my TNA tryout was on a Thursday and my WWE tryout was actually that following Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. I was ecstatic because I have the two biggest companies vying for me and it’s perfect. Thursday I go into Impact and that goes well, then Sunday I get an email and I’m told that I can’t come to the (WWE) tryout. They couldn’t say why, but I’m pretty certain it was because there was a lawsuit going on between TNA and WWE at the time.”

Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter via WrestlingINC