Today's News

Tom Prichard on WWE departure:

WWE Alumnus, and former Developmental Chief Dr. Tom Prichard has spoken about his sacking from the company for the first time...

“When anyone new comes in, they want their team. When Bill DeMott came back, I knew that the writing was on the wall. Canyon Cemen, who took over Ty Bailey’s place, is very new to the business and really knows nothing. I was very honest with him when I probably shouldn’t have been. I told him that he came across like an a—hole in his initial meeting with the talent, and the writing was on the wall from there. I understand how it works. HHH wants his own people. If they can’t produce stars, but proof will be in the ratings.”

Charles Wright interview:

WWE Alum, (Better known as Papa Shango and The Godfather) Charles Wright has given a great interview, some highlights...

On his first character Papa Shango...

“Papa Shango was supposed to last much longer in the main event but Sid f—ed it up. It was supposed to be Sid and Warrior headlining SummerSlam [1992], but Sid didn’t want to do it and he quit. He had his own issues, he said Vince had brought him in under the promise of replacing Hogan as the top babyface and it wasn’t going the way it was supposed to. So Papa Shango was fed to Warrior instead. The problem was, with a character like Papa Shango, once the losses piled up, the character lost a lot of that mystique and invincibility, and it was all downhill fast from there.”

He also revealed WWE planned to resurrect the Character, with a very different look in 1997...

“A lot of people don’t know this, but Papa Shango was going to return in 1997. It was going to be a more gritty, realistic version with a mask instead of paint.They created the costume and the new entrance. But what happened was, the decision was then made to do Kane. I guess they felt there wasn’t enough room for two dark, supernatural characters, and so I became Kama Mustafa and they put me in The Nation. I’ve still got some 8×10 promos of me in the new mask and gear.”

On guiding The Rock's early career...

“The Rock was put into The Nation to protect him. Vince had big plans for The Rock from day one and was worried that he had been getting bad advice from the wrong people. Some jealous dudes had been getting into his ear. So Vince put Rock in the Nation so he could benefit from the guidance of Ron [Simmons] and myself. It was the same thing with Mark Henry. Mark was a big long term investment that was getting some bad advice, learning some bad habits, and so Vince put him under myself and Ron for guidance. Both those guys were struggling.”

On almost joining WCW / NWO...

“I almost went to WCW to be Hogan’s enforcer in the nWo. I named my price, the contract was being drawn up, and then at the last minute, I got a call saying the contract was being retracted and there was no longer an offer for me. I was stunned, man, just stunned. I asked why, and it turned out that Virgil offered to do it for a third of the price because he wanted to be back on TV so bad. That dumb motherf—er cost us both.”

Bruno to HOF:

Jim Ross has again linked Bruno Sammartino's name with Hall Of Fame induction, this time via his Twitter...

“Don’t know any dirt but #WWE has long wanted Bruno Sammartino in the #WWE HOF. His fans deserve it, Bruno deserves it. It’s Bruno’s call.”

Damien Sandow responds to comparisons with stars of the past:

Hunter Hearst Helmsley...

“We both were trained by Killer Kowalski, but I think if you look at the history of our business, you can draw comparisons to a lot of guys that have come before. There’s the Gorgeous George element and so many other things. I think what makes people successful is just being able to be themselves. Throughout the course of time there’s been so many characters and personas, and there’s going to be comparisons drawn. However I believe I am the first-ever ‘Intellectual Savior of the Masses.’'

Lanny Poffo...

“I simply have to deal with the crusade at hand and enlightenment of everyone. The Genius Lanny Poffo as we know him, is someone who recites poetry. I do not recite poetry. I simply recite statements. My verbiage is geared more toward people enriching their lives. So I do what I do for the people.”

WWE dig at Chris Jericho:

WWE recently released the full listings for their 2012 best of DVD, one fan was left very disappointed that the retrospective does not include a single Chris Jericho match, Y2J responded with...

“I agree. LAME.”

Jake The Snake faces big test:

In the latest installment in DDP's documentary on the rehab of Jake The Snake, Roberts faces his greatest test, a trip to Sin City - Las Vegas, making all of his vices easily available...

Kofi hits landmark:

Kofi Kingston has become only the 7th man in WWE history, to win 100 TV singles matches, his victory over Damien Sandow on the November 23 SmackDown was the match.

The others were...

* Jeff Hardy
* Kane
* Randy Orton
* Sheamus
* CM Punk
* John Cena

Now I don't want to argue with Statisticians, but are you seriously telling me that The Undertaker, The Rock, Austin, HHH, Jericho, HBK et al did not win 100 matches, really...???

Tonight's Raw teaser:

* What answers will Cole uncover when he interviews Reigns, Ambrose and Rollins?

* After being attacked on SmackDown, will Dolph Ziggler retaliate against John Cena?

* Is Vickie Guerrero done with the AJ Lee scandal?

* Will Sheamus and Big Show collide on RAW or wait until TLC?

* How much longer before Ryback gets his hands on CM Punk?

Michael Cole will also interview the NXT boys.

Shawn on Flair:

A fan asked Shawn Michaels on Twitter if he was offended that Ric Flair reneged on losing his retirement match to him at WrestleMania 24, he replied...

“Not even slightly.”

He added that Ric Flair asked for, and he granted permission for him to get back between the ropes.

JoMo corrects mis-information:

John Morrison has corrected details of his upcoming appearance in a Christmas play, he will in fact not be a regular cast member, but will be a celebrity cameo, and it will be a one night appearance.

6 man tag:

Plans for Ryback to take on the NXT boys alone at TLC have changed, he will instead team with Santino Marella and Tyson Kidd.

This is because, they want Ryback to gain revenge over the group, but do not want to destroy the groups momentum by having them lose a 3 on 1 match right at the start of their careers.

The Rock wraps movie:

The Rock has now finished his movie Fast 6.

MITB:

The reason Dolph Ziggler has not yet cashed in his briefcase has emerged, WWE want to test him with a run against John Cena, and that run has been pushed back time and again, until now, they feel he needs to prove he can go with the best before they give him a proper run as World or WWE Champion.

New NXT Champ:

Now that Seth Rollins has made it to the main roster, he will have to drop the NXT title, Corey Graves is expected to be the man to replace him.