Matt Hardy Wants Fans’ Opinions On Gimmick, Says He Has Hard Decisions To Make In Coming Months

Matt Hardy wants to know what the fans think! The WWE star posted tonight a poll on Twitter asking what fans thought of The Ultimate Deletion and his Broken/Woken gimmick. The choices are simple, “YES, it was wonderful” and “NO, it was not wonderful.” The poll so far has over 1,000 votes and 96% picked Yes.

Hardy explained why he wants input from fans, because in the coming months he has some tough decisions to make. He also explained that he wants to spend his last years in the wrestling industry being as creative and productive as possible.

At the moment, Hardy’s gimmick is “you don’t understand how hard it is to be Matt Hardy.”

Matt Hardy’s full quote, “I wish to spend my last few years in the wrestling industry being as creative & productive as possible. I have some hard decisions in the coming months & the wrestling fan’s opinions matter to me. What did you think of The Ultimate Deletion?”

Below is the poll:

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Goldberg On What Went Wrong In His Match With The Undertaker At WWE Super Showdown

Former multi-time world champion and WWE Hall of Famer Bill Goldberg was a guest on Booker T’s The Hall Of Fame podcast. During his discussion with Booker, Goldberg wasn’t shy about looking back at the match he had against The Undertaker at WWE Super Showdown 2019.

“I’m not going to make excuses, that’s for sure. I’m just going to answer questions and give facts,” Bill stated. “Facts are the reason why I had that match [with The Undertaker] and took that opportunity, was because it was an opportunity of a lifetime whether I was 22, 52 or 102, you know? Not that it was in Saudi Arabia but because it was against The Undertaker. He was the one guy that I never crossed paths with, and the heat – I knew going in it was going to be hot. In Georgia playing for The Falcons, or The Georgia Bulldogs, or the L.A Rams down in Los Angeles, it’s hotter than hell and you know it’s going to be hot. It’s one of those things you accept.”

Goldberg mentioned how with each new match he books, the preparation leading up to it varies. Bill ultimately regrets his attention to trimming down and getting in shape as opposed to weight training and getting bigger for Super Showdown.

“I had the perfect storm of crappiness because, for me, people don’t know all the things that go into everything,” Goldberg said. “At 52, going against The Undertaker and being Bill Goldberg in the short period of time that I had, I can either do one or two things – I can get in really good shape or I can try to get as big as humanly possible so I don’t look like an old Bill Goldberg against The Undertaker. So, it’s a compromise; it’s always a compromise. This last time, though I didn’t need the cardio, man, I didn’t concentrate on getting big at all for the 4 weeks that I had. I just tried to get in shape. I didn’t try to add a pound. I tried to lose weight this time. Every situation is different. It’s like trapping for a different team. I liken everything to football because I’m a meathead and was born into a football helmet.”

Goldberg also explained that his stiff connection with the ring post was something he and many others were expecting to happen. He apparently goes out of his way to try and make the spots he is a part of look as realistic they possibly can.

“But the ring post thing, hey man, that’s a spot that a couple of the bookers came up to me and said, well, we called it,” Goldberg said. “We knew you were going to do that because 50% of the time I have done that spot I have not had good results. Because here’s the deal, I don’t profess to be an entertainer on the level of Ric Flair that can go out and make people laugh. I mean, I can, but it’s not my way of doing things. My way of making people’s jaws drop is blurring the line of reality and fiction so everything I do has to be – it’s like the kick I took from Dolph Ziggler.

“The first kick that I took felt really good because I had to react to it because it was planted on me. It was perfect,” Bill continued. “That is the way I work, man, I am a reactionary guy. If I am going to be a Defensive Lineman that was an All-American, if I’m going to be a guy who played a couple of years in the NFL, if I am going to be a guy that was known to be a thrasher, I’m not going to run into a turnbuckle and miss it and act like it killed me. I can’t do that, so I have to make it look as close as killing me as possible, and sometimes, unfortunately, the circumstances are such that I go a little overboard. And when you accelerate at an age, your body can’t take that overboard as it used to.

Along with an intense heatwave, Goldberg noted how the timing between he and The Undertaker caused additional issues to take place during their match at Super Showdown.

“I can’t bounce back from it like I used to, and then the perfect storm of the heat, and the perfect storm of The Undertaker not having the timing and not going at the same time at one point or something. Hey, at the end of the day, there’s never been a freaking dude in the middle of the ring that I couldn’t pick up, period. It was an unfortunate deal that I shouldn’t have gone as hard as I went. And then there were a couple of people saying that he referee should have called it. Well guess what? The referee asked me 15 times how I felt and you know what I told him? Fifteen different answers. I felt different every single time that he asked me.”

Goldberg followed up the poor performance against The Undertaker was a crowd-pleasing victory over Dolph Ziggler at SummerSlam this past Sunday. When the subject of his storied career reaching it’s final chapter was brought up, Goldberg seemed conflicted on where his future is going.

“No, [I’m not finished],” Goldberg said. “I mean, I’d be content if I never stepped foot in the ring again. But I don’t know, it’s not something I aspire to do but it is something I aspire to do. I don’t know. I have no idea; I just don’t.”

Source: Wrestling Inc.

WWE Co-President Michelle Wilson Sells Nearly 80% Of Her Company Stock

WWE Co-President Michelle Wilson sold 158,134 shares of her WWE stock last week. The shares, which amounted to 79% of her stake in the company, were sold at $69.30 worth $10,958,686.20.

Wilson now owns 41,508 shares worth around $2.7 million. According to Bloomberg, WWE is stating that she sold the shares for personal reasons. It was noted that she still has enough equity to meet the requirements for an officer at the company.

As previously reported, Wilson had also sold shares in late July, along with fellow WWE Co-President George Barrios, WWE CEO Vince McMahon, Paul “Triple H” Levesque, Stephanie McMahon, Kevin Dunn and Mark Kowal. Wilson had sold around $4.5 million of company stock during that transaction.

WWE stock is currently trading at $69.47, down 30% from its peak of $99 this past April.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Austin Theory And Santana Garrett Report For Duty At WWE Performance Center

WWE announced the latest batch of Performance Center trainees on Wednesday, which includes EVOLVE wrestler Austin Theory and Women of Wrestling star Santana Garrett.

As you may recall … Theory made his WWE Network debut on the recent EVOLVE 10th Anniversary Celebration and Garrett was a competitor in the first Mae Young Classic tournament.

The additional new signees, announced by WWE.com, are as follows:

  • Tehuti Miles: U.S. Army vet and Division I football player
  • EJ Nduka: Former professional football player who played in the CFL, IFL and AFL
  • Aleksandar Jaksic: Trained by Santino Marella and Alex Wright
  • Briana Brandy: Aspiring hip hop artist who has years of ninjutso/extreme CrossFit experience
  • Rita Reis: Jiu-Jitsu world champ and multi-time medalist in Jiu-Jitsu and judo.
  • Marcos Gomes: 260-pound trainer in Jiu Jitsu, boxing and Muay Thai
  • Catalina Garcia aka Chilean wrestler “La Diva del Ring”

CLICK HERE for photos and more information on each new signee.

Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet

WWE NXT Preview 8/14/19

NXT streaming tonight at 8 ET on WWE Network.

NXT Breakout Tournament Finals: Jordan Myles vs. Cameron Grimes

* “Reimagined” Breezango take on The Forgotten Sons

* Catch all the fallout from TakeOver: Toronto

WWE NXT UK Preview 8/14/19

NXT UK, streaming today at 3 ET/8 GMT on WWE Network.

Kassius Ohno to battle the undefeated Ilja Dragunov

Just less than three weeks before NXT UK TakeOver descends on Cardiff, the outspoken Kassius Ohno will lock horns with the full fury of Ilja Dragunov.

Plus, Flash Morgan Webster will take on Gallus’ Mark Coffey in the first of two possible contests to prove to NXT UK General Manager Johnny Saint that he and Mark Andrews are worthy of an NXT UK Tag Team Title Match at NXT UK TakeOver: Cardiff, Travis Banks will battle Kenny Williams, and Isla Dawn will go one-on-one with Nina Samuels.

Paige Undergoing Surgery Today

Paige posted on Twitter this morning that it was surgery time.

https://twitter.com/RealPaigeWWE/status/1161625567684251648

As noted, Paige revealed over the weekend that she missed her SummerSlam Meet & Greet because she had to visit her doctor, where it was determined that she needs to undergo neck surgery to fix a new hernia, which is related to the original career-ending neck injury that she suffered during the December 2017 WWE live event in Uniondale, NY. Dr. Uribe has also worked on the necks of Tyson Kidd and Nikki Bella.

WWE Signs Santana Garrett

WWE has reportedly signed top indie women’s wrestler Santana Garrett, according to Squared Circle Sirens.

There’s no word yet on when Garrett will begin working with WWE at the Performance Center in Orlando, but the deal will see her become a member of the WWE NXT roster.

It’s been reported that several top indie wrestlers were expected to begin with WWE in the September Performance Center class, and it’s possible that Garrett’s signing will be confirmed then.

Garrett, formerly known as Brittany in Impact Wrestling, has held titles in several promotions, including the NWA World Women’s Title, the Shine Title and Shine Tag Team Titles, the Wonder of Stardom Title, the WOW World Title and WOW Tag Team Titles, among others. She has been wrestling professionally since 2009.

The 31 year old from Florida has made several appearances for WWE since 2013, working as an enhancement talent in NXT. She also participated in the 2017 Mae Young Classic, losing to Piper Niven in the first round.

Garrett is a second-generation wrestler as her father, Kenny Garrett, worked as “TNT” Kenny G during the territory days.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

UPDATE: 

Santana Garrett confirmed on Twitter that she has signed with WWE.

https://twitter.com/SantanaGarrett_/status/1161764539970609154

WWE Possibly Keeping The Fiend’s Bray Wyatt Head Lantern

As noted, WWE deleted the original video of Bray Wyatt’s entrance for “The Fiend” at SummerSlam and re-uploaded it after taking out the visuals of the head lantern that he brought to the ring.

In an update on the head lantern, it looks like the piece wasn’t totally nixed from The Fiend’s gimmick. Bryan Alvarez noted on Wrestling Observer Live yesterday that he reached out to multiple sources on the matter and none of them had heard anything about the lantern being dropped. Furthermore, the head lantern is going to be a part of Wyatt’s upcoming Mattel action figure for The Fiend. It was also said that WWE is producing more of the lanterns, apparently for other merchandise items.

It will be interesting to see if The Fiend is still carrying the Wyatt head lantern the next time he appears on WWE TV. Wyatt defeated Finn Balor at Sunday’s SummerSlam pay-per-view, but he did not appear on last night’s RAW.

For those who missed it, below is a screenshot of the lantern from Sunday’s match:

Source: Wrestling Inc.

UPDATE: 

WWE seemingly confirmed that the head lantern is here to stay, at least for now. WWE tweeted the photo below on Wednesday of Wyatt with the lantern intact, as seen below.

WWE Announces New Dates For Cancelled RAW Weekend Tour, Possible Reason For Cancellation

As previously reported, WWE cancelled an upcoming RAW weekend tour later this month, with shows scheduled in Louisiana and Alabama. WWE has confirmed that the events that weekend have been postponed, below are the new dates:

* Friday, August 23 in Bossier City, Louisiana postponed to Sunday, March 22, 2020.

* Saturday, August 24 in Lafayette, Louisiana postponed to Friday, January 17, 2020.

* Sunday, August 25 in Mobile, Alabama postponed to Thursday, March 19, 2020.

WWE will be presenting SmackDown live events in South America that weekend with shows in Lima, Peru on Saturday, August 24th and Panama City, Panama the following night. WWE added several RAW stars to those events this week, so the cancellations may just be to strengthen those shows. RAW stars AJ Styles, Braun Strowman, Drew McIntyre, Ricochet, Samoa Joe, Sami Zayn and Rey Mysterio are scheduled for those shows in South America. SmackDown talent booked for those events include WWE Champion Kofi Kingston, Roman Reigns, Daniel Bryan, Charlotte Flair, Randy Orton, Kevin Owens and Andrade, amongst others.

As noted, PWInsider reported that WWE also cancelled RAW live events on Friday, August 30 in Bangor, Maine and on Saturday, August 31 in Portland, Maine. It should be noted that there were no SmackDown live events scheduled that weekend.

Source: Wrestling Inc.