PWInside Elite reports that WWE Talent Relations Executive Mark Carrano has gained considerable amount of power within WWE lately. It is believed that he is now pretty much the head of Talent Relations, although he hasn’t been officially given the title yet.
This news comes after the recent departure of Janes Geddes. Her departure has been confirmed by multiple sources to PWInsider.
Source: WrestlingINC.com
It was reported by PWInsider that WWE officials held a meeting with the talents before Monday’s RAW in Pittsburgh. WWE officials told the talents that if they have any issues or problems they are to bring them to the company’s attention right away and not let them go on to be brought up later. WWE wants the talents to come to them right away and talk to them about their problems, whether they are personal or work-related issues. WWE made it clear that they have more than enough people that are willing to help talents out with their issues. It was also said that they are here for the wrestlers and appreciate everything they do for the company.
Bill DeMott or the recent controversies from developmental were not brought up in the meeting.
Source: WrestlingINC.com
PWInsider reports that WWE is apparently taking aim at New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s The Bullet Club stable. WWE recently registered to trademark the old NWO/Kliq hand gesture for merchandise purposes. NJPW’s The Bullet Club uses the same hand gesture and it’s featured on some of their t-shirts. Below is the version that WWE is trying to trademark:
It’s that time again to take a trip into the rumor mill. The feeling backstage is that the divas match at mania will be the Bella’s vs Paige and AJ. AJ’s return this past Monday seems to almost have cemented that claim, so looks like my buddy Trevor may be on to something here.
AJ Lee had been absent for 3 months after dropping the tittle to the current champion Nikki Bella. In a backstage segment AJ said “since her enemy is now the enemy of her enemy that Paige and her are now friends”. Had a hard time keeping up with that tongue twister? What AJ means is that she’s willing to look past the differences her and Paige may have had to take down a common enemy in the Bella’s.
A lot of people backstage where unsure of how AJ’s return would be recieved especially since Stephanie McMahon was legitimately upset and embarrassed over AJ calling her out in a tweet regarding the unfair treatment of the divas.
Putting all that aside though Stephanie knows that AJ’s return is “what’s best for business and knows full well that a match like this is needed at mania. All and all I hope this means that a lengthy divas match is set for mania. Paige and AJ are the wrestling communities darlings and the Bella’s have improved tremendously and right now the “Bella Army” is stronger then ever. Add these four women to a 15+ minute march and they will be sure to tear Levi’s stadium down
-Vanessa (@GreatLove91)
Yesterday Monday Night Raw took place from Newhawk New Jersey. There was a divas title rematch from Fastlane which featured the champion Nikki Bella taking on the challenger Paige. To our delight the match was nearly 15 mins and the crowd got into it as well. At one point during the match it looked like Paige was going to become a 3 time divas champion by submitting Nikki via PTO but Brie Bella made sure that didn’t happen, breaking it up causing the DQ
As usual the Bella’s were looking to double team Paige which they succeeded in for awhile and this sent the crowd into a frenzy of “AJ” chants. The Jersey crowd soon got what they wanted when the familiar tune of “light it up” filled the arena and the hometown hero herself AJ Lee came charging down the ring. Yes ladies and gents instead of skipping AJ ran to the ring.
Once in the ring AJ started whaling away on Brie Bella but the numbers gain seemed to be to much as Nikki blindsided AJ getting the uperhand, that didn’t last forever though because Paige then comes to the aid of AJ. The frenemies then do a little double trouble of their own to clear the ring and send the Bella’s running scared.
This moment was great and showed that when executed properly the divas can have some mark out worthy moments too. Now that AJ is back what does it say for the divas divison? Could this mean a Bella’s vs Paige and AJ match at mania? Would it mean that AJ and Paige can be the next legit women’s team aside from the Bella’s?(site owner Trevor Decker seems to think so) You know what they say keep your friends close and your enemies closer.
We must take into consideration that a program with Stephanie vs AJ has been something the WWE universe has wanted for quite sometime and with the exchange on Twitter that AJ and Stephanie had last week it would be great for WWE to capitalize on that.
Whatever is next for the WWE divas after last nights turn of events it looks like it’s going to be great. After all there was a backstage exchange involving both Paige and AJ where AJ said quote: “here to give divas a chance, can the AJ and Paige tag team that Trevor believes in to over more then their feud did and can it be what’s needed to take the divas to new highs? Looks like we’ll have to watch to find out
-Vanessa (@GreatLove91)
I just witnessed the best 1:30 video of my life and is my duty to share it with you guys. This video sums up exactly what #GiveDivasAChance truly means. THIS is way we need to join the movement, THIS is why there needs to be change.
Kudos to whoever made this
-Vanessa (@GreatLove91)
Earlier today we posted an article on the site discussing the Twitter trend #GiveDivasAChance and the importance of those words. Often times WWE fans are very vocal about the change they want to see but more often then not are ignored. What happenens though when one of WWE’s biggest stars speak up to the powers that be?
That’s exactly what happened today when former two time divas champion AJ Lee tweeted to Stephanie McMahon. The tweet read
“@StephMcMahon Your female wrestlers have record selling merchandise & have starred in the highest rated segment of the show several times”
Followed by
“@StephMcMahon And yet they receive a fraction of the wages & screen time of the majority of the male roster. #UseYourVoice”
Folks hell has frozen over because for once in a very long time I agree 100% with what AJ had to say. In fact before this tweet was even sent out my best friend and I had a conversation in which we agreed that if an AJ return is what it takes to get the divas back on the map then we’re all for it. However with AJ’s future in the WWE being unknown who knows when and if that’ll even happen.
Can this tweet from AJ be what sparks the catalyst for change? Is AJ Lee “the voice of the voiceless” of the divas division? Can this tweet lead up to a possible AJ vs Stephanie McMahon match in the future? So many questions are left to be answered.
One thing is Forsure though the powers that be can’t ignore so many screaming voices forever
-Vanessa (@GreatLove91
Coming off the heels of a 40 sec divas tag team match last night between the Bella Twins vs Paige and Emma, it has sparked displeasure umong the WWE universe. Not only was the live crowd pissed but so were the fans watching at home. So much so that last night leading into today one of the top trends on Twitter is #GiveDivasAChance. On one hand this makes me extremely happy but on the other hand bothers me to my core. I’m upset because it shouldn’t even be a discussion and displeasure to begin with. Tell me how is it ok that Raw is a 3 hour show and the divas don’t even get a minute of TV time?! Excuse my language here but that’s complete and utter BULLSHIT
These women sacrifice just as much as the guys do. They get inured, wrestle injured, miss out on life events, spend lots of times away from their families all for the sake of our entertainment. They deserve more then a few seconds on our television screens.
Now on to why this trend makes me happy. It’s about DAMN TIME the WWE universe is waking up and seeing that these women are getting the short end of the stick. We here at WrestlingNewsBlog have been strong advocates of Women wrestling for years. We would always constantly say they deserved more respect in a male dominated business. We even made a lengthy portion of our then weekly podcast to highlight the happenings of women wrestling. Hell when I signed on as a contributor here nearly 3 years ago my soul purpose was to cover the Divas divison on Raw and Smackdown.
I would go on fellow wrestling news sites and Facebook pages only to see people saying things like “these women can’t even wrestle” blah blah blah blah blah… It would inferiate me because I would be like “HELLO WHAT DO YOU EXPECT WHEN THEY’RE GIVEN LESS THEN A MINITUE TO PROVE THEMSELVES”. I know you guys know that a lot of work goes into putting on a great match. Everything from the characters involved, the chemistry between opponents, the story being told and of corse the Chorography. Take all of that into consideration and of corse these women are going to produce quote “sloppy” matches.
The problem here isn’t the Divas or what we here like to call them “women wrestlers”. The problem is Vince McMahon and his out dated ideas along with his soap opera excuse of a writing team. They need to open their eyes and realize that right now more then ever is the perfect time for women to florish in the sports industry. Now not to compare apples to oranges but Vince can learn a lot from Sean Shelby and Lorenzo Feretta of the UFC. This Saturday at UFC184 is a prime example with both headline fights being fights involving WOMEN!! Now I’m not saying ufc is all high and mighty, they still have A LOT of work to do but at least their moving ahead with the times.
What Vince and company need to realize (just like everyone else has) is that women wrestling appeals to a huge portion of fans and further more brings new eyes to the product. After all the inception of Total Divas is proof of that.
I remember in 2004 Raw took place in Cameron North Carolina and the main event that evening was the WWE Womens champion Trish Stratus defending her title against her greatest rival Lita. That match lasted well over 15 mins and till this day is my favorite match of all time.
I just want to get back to those days. The days were girls had different characters, long lasting and meaningful feuds, and when it was clear that they were a force to be reckon with.
It’s time that the women of the WWE start kicking ass and taking names. We can help them get there guys. Are voice matters so I ask that you join us and use #GiveDivasAChance its time for a better and brighter day for these women
-Vanessa (GreatLove91)
6-Man Tag Match: Big Show, Kane & Seth Rollins def. Dolph Ziggler, Ryback & Erick Rowan – After the match, Rollins hit a Curb Stomp on Ziggler & Rowan, The Authority dragged Ryback over and Randy Orton’s music hit & he came down. Orton hit RKO on Noble & Mercury. Orton went for draping DDT on Rollins but he was pulled to safety. Orton hit RKO on Kane. Rollins retreated all the way out of arena to the parking lot.
Goldust def. Stardust
WWE Tag Team Championship: (C) Cesaro & Tyson Kidd w/Natalya def. (C) The Usos w/Naomi – Cesaro & Kidd are the new WWE Tag Team Champions.
Triple H called out Sting. They fought, Triple H grabbed his sledgehammer from under the ring, Sting put his baseball bat to Triple H’s throat & backed him into a corner and pointed to the WrestleMania 31 sign. Triple H said he is going to kick Sting’s ass and pointed to the sign. Sting said he will see him at WrestleMania 31 and turned to leave. Triple H charged at Sting but Sting turned around & hit him with the bat & hit him with a Scorpion Death Drop. Sting pointed to the WrestleMania 31 sign and left.
Divas Championship: (C) Nikki Bella w/Brie Bella def. Paige
Intercontinental Championship: (C) Bad News Barrett def. Dean Ambrose – DQ. – After the match, Ambrose hit BNB with Dirty Deeds and left with BNB’s title belt.
The bells toll and The Undertaker’s entrance began. Two druids pushed a casket to ringside. Bray Wyatt sit up in the casket. Wyatt talked about the first time he seen The Undertaker. Wyatt said he feared him but now he is weak and broken. Wyatt said his soul is lost, stuck in limbo between your world and ours. Wyatt said it’s time for him to go home. Wyatt says he no longer fears The Undertaker and now he is the new face of fear. Wyatt said he will claim the soul of The Undertaker at WrestleMania.
United States Championship: (C) Rusev w/Lana def. John Cena – Cena passed out to The Accolade submission.
WWE World Heavyweight Championship #1 Contender’s Match: Roman Reigns def. Daniel Bryan- Reigns is the #1 Contender and will face Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 31. – After the match Bryan shook hand with Reigns & told him he better kick Lesnar’s ass.
There are rumors that Triple H has interest in giving Samoa Joe a WWE tryout for a potential run in NXT.
According to the report, Vince McMahon isn’t as interested in Joe as Triple H but there could be a push within WWE over the next few weeks to give Joe at least a tryout run.
There is no word yet if Joe is even interested in coming to WWE and working NXT.
Source: WrestlingINC.com
