Tag: WWE

Roman Reigns Wants To Make Changes To His WWE Character

Roman Reigns recently appeared on the Sports Illustrated Media podcast and said he wants to change his current character to include more of the real man behind the gimmick, Joe Anoa’i.

Reigns said he started that process the week after he returned to WWE TV following his second battle with leukemia.

“I honestly think last week, that was one of my goals. I was like, ‘OK, I knew the first week was gonna be crazy emotional, but I don’t wanna be the guy who comes out there and everybody gets semi-sad or gets super heavy all the time.’ I want people to have fun. I want to create escapism. It’s like a mini vacation [for the fans] on their couch. Let’s get into these storylines. Let’s take all this positive sensitivity being sent to me and shift it and send it to people in need. That’s where I’m at now, shifting all this positive energy from me to the people in need,” Reigns said.

Reigns said he believes it would be “pretty neat” if he can show different sides of himself over the next few years, including more of how he is when he’s chilled out, more comedy and more emotions.

He continued, “But also with the storylines and character, because we have introduced Joe, especially last week, I felt like there was a lot of Joe within the promo of Segment One. Even with the interaction with Seth [Rollins], I just feel like with me integrating the characters and who I am in real life and who I am on stage, for me to kind of mix them, it allows me to laugh at Roman a little bit and have a little more fun and be a little more loose as opposed to the stoic brawler. If you know me in real life, I’m kinda like my cousins [The Usos], I’m a bit of a clown, I act up, we goof off a lot. We’re silly. We’re big kids. We’re always goofing around, trying to laugh. If I can add that in the next couple of years, those layers of being chilled out, little more comedy, a few different emotions, I think that would be pretty neat.”

You can listen to the full podcast appearance at the link below:

https://art19.com/shows/si-media-podcast/episodes/c178559e-a132-48d3-9fe5-0bca20871e36/embed

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Backstage Talk On Jeff Jarrett’s WWE Future Behind-The-Scenes

As noted, WWE Hall of Famer Jeff Jarrett recently joined the WWE creative team and is now working under a full-time executive-level role.

There’s a feeling within WWE that Jarrett will end up being very influential behind-the-scenes, or at least become a key member of the creative team, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

One source close to the situation noted to the Observer that based on watching how Jarrett plays the game, they believe he will be the most influential guy in the company before too long, aside from Triple H and key writers like Dave Kapoor, Brian “BG” James, WWE Hall of Famer Michael “PS” Hayes and perhaps Paul Heyman, who is very influential right now due to his ties to RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey and WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar.

It was also noted that Jarrett is well-known for being very charming if you work with him, and he has the ability to quickly make you feel like he’s a friend. Jarrett also has some authority when talking to talents that a non-wrestler isn’t going to have because a lot of the current WWE talents grew up watching him perform and they know he ran his own companies.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Becky Lynch Calls Ronda Rousey A Fragile Fraud

The Twitter feud between Becky Lynch and RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey continued this week as they prepare to do battle with Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania 35. As seen below, Becky fired a shot at Rousey and then called her a fragile fraud.

Becky wrote, “You thought you had this business all figured after giving me a few smacks on RAW, didn’t you? Delighted u were; couldn’t shut you up. Now look you’re back to being a fragile fraud. Bring all your smacks to WM, Ronnie, because where u wilt after a beating, I absolutely flourish.”

You can see their latest tweets below:

https://twitter.com/BeckyLynchWWE/status/1105644122239631360

https://twitter.com/BeckyLynchWWE/status/1105947510189617154

SPOILER: Triple H Reveals What Will Happen With NXT Championship Due To Ciampa’s Injury

SPOILER:

The NXT Championship match at TakeOver: New York has been confirmed following an injury that forced Tommaso Ciampa to relinquish the title.

Triple H announced at the NXT TV tapings on Wednesday that Johnny Gargano would face-off at TakeOver next month in a title match against the winner of Ricochet vs. Adam Cole vs. Aleister Black vs. Velveteen Dream vs. Matt Riddle moments later in the taping — which was won by Cole.

The NXT title match at TakeOver between Cole and Gargano will be two-out-of-three falls.

At the beginning of Triple H’s promo, the WWE exec admitted he had planned on announcing Gargano vs. Ciampa for the NXT Championship at TakeOver … but that obviously could no longer happen due to Tommaso suffering a neck injury that required surgery.

As we previously reported, Ciampa underwent surgery last week.

Dolph Ziggler Gives Update On Status With WWE

Earlier today, Dolph Ziggler spoke with 98.5’s Wrestling Inside the Ropes about his current status with WWE.

The last time fans saw Ziggler on WWE TV was in January where he entered the Royal Rumble match at number 28. Making it to the final four, Ziggler would eliminate his former tag partner, Drew McIntyre, and eventually be eliminated by Braun Strowman.

During his interview, Ziggler was asked if he was still under contract with WWE and while he technically is, it’s under more of a “handshake agreement” to allow him to have outside opportunities, like his stand-up comedy.

“Technically, I am, yes,” Ziggler said. “It’s weird because for the last two years I’ve had somewhat of a handshake agreement, kind of behind closed doors deal with WWE. I’ve been able to do a lot of things, on my own, not at WWE, just because of the relationship we’ve had for the last 14 years. I have a bit of a handshake agreement right now, but we’ll know some more details in the coming months.”

You can listen to Ziggler’s full interview at link below.

https://omny.fm/shows/wrestling-inside-the-ropes/wwe-superstar-and-comedian-dolph-ziggler/embed

Source: Wrestling Inc.

SmackDown Live In-Ring Promo – Randy Orton Disses Indies, AJ Styles Defends Them

During a segment last night on SmackDown Live, Randy Orton wonders how this could be The House that AJ Styles Built. Orton says in 2002, he was making his WWE debut while AJ was wrestling for $10 per night in a local gym with 12 people in the crowd. In 2004, AJ was working bingo halls while Orton was becoming the youngest WWE Champion. In 2005, AJ was in Florida getting a tan with Dixie Carter while Orton was going up against The Undertaker. He did not name TNA or Impact Wrestling, just the Dixie name-drop. And every year after that, Orton was here in WWE at the top, winning titles. Orton says this is not the house that AJ built, it was built long before AJ stepped foot in it. Orton goes on until the music interrupts and out comes AJ to a pop.

AJ says for someone who looks down on the indies, Orton sure did follow his career closely. AJ says he’s proud he came from the indies. AJ says he’s heard guys like Orton look down on AJ’s world but that’s fine because Orton would not have made it in his world. AJ points to Orton’s signature pose and says he has a knock-off Diamond Cutter. Orton points to how AJ and The Bullet Club, his pals, ripped off the “Too Sweet” gesture. AJ goes on about how Orton had help his whole career, especially on as Triple H, Batista and WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair made sure he wouldn’t fail. Orton defends his accomplishments and goes over some highlights from his career. Orton says no one has ever had to help him get… AJ interrupts and reminds Orton of Evolution, Legacy, Rated RKO, The Wyatt Family. AJ says it sounds like Orton had a lot of babysitters over the years.

AJ says don’t get him wrong, Orton is who he says he is – he’s a viper who uses everyone around him and then tosses them to the curb when he’s done. AJ says that’s why he got the jump on Orton with the attack at Fastlane, because he won’t be Orton’s next victim. Orton says AJ has no choice as long as he wants to rent a room where Orton is the landlord. Orton says rent is due, b—h, and AJ can make the check out to three letters… RKO. Orton drops the mic and goes to leave but AJ says if Orton wants his rent, he can come and take it. AJ points up at the WrestleMania 35 sign as he says this. They stare each other down and Orton looks up at the WrestleMania sign. Graves wonders if Orton will accept the challenge. Orton exits the ring and stares AJ down as AJ’s music hits.

Transcript from Wrestling Inc.

WWE Signs Robbie E, Stokely Hathaway And Cal Bloom

WWE has signed three new recruits to the WWE Performance Center – former Impact Wrestling star Robbie E, former ROH star Stokely Hathaway and second generation wrestler Cal Bloom, son of former WWE Superstar Wayne Bloom (Beau Beverly).

All three talents have reported too the WWE Performance Center in Orlando and should be making their WWE NXT debuts soon.

Below is WWE’s full announcement on the signings along with a photo of them at the Performance Center:

Stokely Hathaway, Cal Bloom and Robert Strauss join the WWE Performance CenterWorld-traveled ring veteran Robert Strauss, renowned manager Stokely Hathaway and second-generation wrestler Cal Bloom are the newest recruits to join the WWE Performance Center this week in Orlando, Fla.

Strauss has been a fixture of the independent scene since making his debut in 2001, while still a teenager. Competing under aliases like “Robbie E” and “Rob Eckos,” he has won more than two dozen championships throughout his career, as well as wrestled in 46 states and more than 20 countries. In addition to his exploits in sports-entertainment, the New Jersey native has appeared on reality shows, making it to the finals on the 25th season of CBS’ “Amazing Race” and participating in the trials on “The Titan Games,” the competition series created by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. Strauss also starred in Muscle & Fitness’ “Dad Bod Destroyer” video series.

Hathaway comes to the Performance Center after a successful tenure as a manager and a wrestler on the indies. Although trained for the ring, Hathaway gained a reputation in recent years for wheeling and dealing on behalf of other wrestlers. The notoriously outspoken Hathaway has represented clients in several promotions throughout the U.S., from EVOLVE Wrestling to the New England-based Beyond Wrestling. He hails from New York City.

Bloom, meanwhile, brings a sports-entertainment pedigree to the Performance Center. The 6-foot-5, 255-pounder is the son of former WWE Superstar Wayne Bloom, who wrestled as “Beau Beverly” in the early 1990s. The younger Bloom played tight end at the University of Central Florida, making four Bowl Game appearances (including UCF’s Fiesta Bowl win against Baylor University). He also received the team’s Iron Knight Award for strongest player after bench-pressing 500 pounds, a record for UCF tight ends. Although he hasn’t yet had a match, the 25-year-old Bloom has received training from his father Wayne, WWE alumnus Ken Kennedy and famed wrestling coach Brad Rheingans.

https://twitter.com/WWENXT/status/1105216625110933506

WWE SmackDown Live Preview 3/12/19

Tonight’s WWE SmackDown Live will take place from the Nutter Center in Dayton, Ohio with fallout from WWE Fastlane.

* Shane McMahon to address his brutal attack of The Miz at WWE Fastlane

* R-Truth to challenge Samoa Joe for the United States Championship

* Hardys, Black & Ricochet join forces to face The Bar, Rusev & Nakamura

* Mr. McMahon addresses Kofi Kingston

WWE 205 Live Preview 3/12/19

Tonight’s WWE 205 Live will take place from the Nutter Center in Dayton, Ohio.

* WWE Cruiserweight Championship Tournament – Semi-Final: Tony Nese vs. Drew Gulak

* WWE Cruiserweight Championship Tournament – Semi-Final: Cedric Alexander vs. Oney Lorcan

Karl Anderson Responds To Report On His WWE Future

Karl Anderson took to Twitter this week and posted a message from his 7 year old son Cylus to respond to reports on his WWE status.

“My dad said don’t believe everything you read..,” Cylus said in the video below.

As noted a few days ago, via PWInsider, Anderson and Luke Gallows have reportedly turned down multi-million dollar contracts from WWE as they plan on leaving WWE when their current deals expire in late September. It was noted that The Good Brothers are not satisfied with how they have been used in recent years, so they’re determined to continue their pro wrestling careers outside of WWE.

Source: Wrestling Inc.