31/5/2019

HHH talks Tyler Breeze's relegation back into NXT:

"For me, Tyler Breeze is in NXT right now. I'm thrilled to have him and think he's one of the greatest talents out there. In some way they've talked about it in the show, but sort of Velveteen Dream being the today's version of Tyler Breeze…this match to me has all the markings of being a sleeper than could steal the show."

WWE support old boy:

WWE co-promoted a show with an indie last night, sending a number of their talent to appear and compete. The aim was to raise money to help Samu in his battle with cancer.

Blue tour cancellation:

WWE have cancelled a third SmackDown tour show so SD stars can compete on the Raw tour. That is now three in a week.

Goldberg:

Goldberg will be on SmackDown next week.

Edge blasts WWE:

Edge has called the new 24/7 title, the ugliest championship he has ever seen.

Sasha's status:

Sasha Banks reportedly had a clear the air meeting with Vince McMahon in the past week, and the tension since Mania has improved. It is still said to be early days, but it is hoped she will be back by the summer.

Ryan refuses:

Joey Ryan says has turned down big money offers from all the top promotions and has decided to stay an indie star. WWE, ROH, and AEW were some of those interested in him.

Ambrose reveals miserly pay:

Dean Ambrose has revealed WWE only paid him $500 a shot for the extra shows he appeared on after he was set to leave at Mania.

New baby:

Tony Nese has announced he is to become a father.

Flair falls out with HBK:

Ric Flair says his recent health scare cost him almost $2 million. He has also put Shawn Michaels on blast. He was upset at Michaels critical comments on his lifestyle during a ESPN interview...

"Shawn Michaels, I'm sorry... you're not in a position to judge me, buddy. Telling me I'll never know who Richard Fliehr is. Do you think I'll ever know? I don't know. Richard Fliehr, like I said before, was an irresponsible kid who was blessed with the greatest parents in the world, did everything wrong, and by the way, who are you to judge me? I mean, really? Come on, man, let's get serious. You've opened the door and I'm giving it back to you. Who are you to judge me, are you kidding me? You idolized me and then all the sudden contempt, for what? For what you grew up loving and for what you inspired me to be, who you are. I don't think so, man."

WWE claim ownership of AEW:

A leak from WWE says the mention of AEW was scripted, and was done to make the show seem edgier, and, ironically, less scripted.

Cash in:

Brock Lesnar will cash in his case on Monday vs Seth Rollins.

AEW first champ:

AEW have confirmed Chris Jericho vs Adam Page will decide their first champion.

Heat on Cornette:

Jim Cornette is in heat online for his insensitive, and some have said homophobic, comments about one of the participants in AEW's battle royal.

30/5/2019

AEW for the young:

AEW owner, Tony Khan, says his promotion are targeting their product at the young adult wrestling fan...

"When you see a guy reading off a teleprompter or a mental teleprompter, just trying to recite a script or trying to look up in the air when you forget a line. It is hard to suspend disbelief when the wrestler doesn't believe in the real-life situation that is unfolding. So like I said, I am not surprised that we are drawing young viewers; it was part of the plan going in."

Alum addresses arrest:

Terri Runnels was arrested this week for carrying a loaded gun into an airport. She has commented on the situation, and revealed how it happened...

"Evidently, it's everywhere that I took a loaded handgun into the Tampa International Airport. And I literally—when I go to see my mom, I pack my gun because she has armadillos that ruin her garden and other critters that go after her chickens. I usually take my gun when I go to see her. I was with her for about a week and a half, and helping her out. I got home and was literally, I think I got eight hours sleep in three days. And then I got up this morning, Wednesday the 29th, I think it was 4 am when I got up to make this early flight to go to Allentown for the show, for the benefit, for Sam. And literally it did not even cross my mind that my gun was in my Vera Bradley tote that I always take on the plane with me. It was the most—God, I've never in trouble in my life and it scared the hell out of me. It was a simple mistake, dear God, it was just horrible. If you're a praying soul, pray, because it still scares me. I don't even know what to say because I'm going to start crying, so, I'm going to shut up. But I at least wanted you guys to know what mistake I had made and what happened. I think some places are reporting as if I had intended to do something terrible. I simply forgot that it was in that bag."

Fans draw heat om ECIII:

Dean Ambrose says bad WWE booking, causing fans to rebel, is the reason ECIII is being buried in the WWE mid-card...

"They put me against EC3, debuting from NXT. Great talent, great friend of mine. Excited to work with him. They have EC3 come in as a babyface, defeat me in two minutes. ... The crowd does not like this, because it's transparent what's happening and this is not a, this is not good for EC3, because now he's gonna get the backlash. So it was an unfair position for him to be put in. We get to that weekend, I'm working with EC3 on house shows, now I'm the biggest babyface on the show. I'm a heel, I'm thumbing him in the eye, I'm making fun of the town, it doesn't matter, they're violently rejecting him as the babyface and they're cheering the hell out of me. It's got nothing to do with him, it's like anti-WWE."

Old boy joins AEW:

Judas Devlin, ex of NXT, whose career was cut short by a seemingly insurmountable back and neck injury has signed for AEW as Luchasaurus, completing a remarkable turn around in his in ring career.

29/5/2019

Sami suspension?

Sami Zayn is facing suspension from WWE over his AEW comment on Raw, so says a WWE leak. Vince McMahon reportedly exploded in fury at the mention of the promotion, despite the rumours of a select number of people knowing and OKing it.

New champions:

Elias took the 24/7 gold from R-Truth last night, but Truth took it back at the end of the show.

Taker's return:

Undertaker will be on Raw next week.

Wild Card rule = Live show killer:

WWE have cancelled a second WWE live show for the SmackDown tour. The arena set to host said show say WWE want to make blue top talent available for the red tour, via the wild card rule, and therefore cannot promise to have enough top stars available to put on a decent show.

WWE ban fans:

WWE rounded up a number of fan signs for AEW that made it onto air during a promo early into SD last night.

New game:

WWE have released a new mobile phone game.

Ambrose talks WWE departure:

Dean Ambrose has listed his reasons for quitting WWE...

• He says he did not leave WWE right after making his mind up to go, because he worried there would be ramifications for his wife, Renee Young.
• He also said WWE threatened to revoke royalty payments if he did not see out his deal.
• He recalled a promo Vince had written for him, and telling McMahon to hos face that it was stupid and would not do it, despite Vince saying it was ''Good sh!t''
• He cited his first day back after injury. Creative presented him with a script for the show, with his promo's written by Vince, with a note that Dean had to read it verbatim. He said the script was ''Hot steaming crap'' and he went to each member of the creative team to try to get around Vince's decree, to no success.
• He said his frustrations with the above caused him to blow up backstage, and asked during a heated row, why he was employed, and that they should hire actors if they wanted people to read scripts.
• He repeatedly said Vince was out of touch and too old and is killing WWE.
• He said he knew it was time to go when he was too tired and depressed to argue about a Vince written promo, and did it as was written, despite him hating it.
• He then revealed it was the promo where he mocked the real life cancer fight of Roman Reigns, that made his mind up for him.

Alum arrested:

Terri Runnels has been arrested in Florida, and faces up to five years in jail for carrying a loaded gun into an airport.

Alum's brother on WWE TV:

Mike Sydal, brother of Evan Bourne, wrestled on 205 this week.

Neville removed:

Neville has been pulled from AEW promotional material.

Lars deletes social media profile:

Lars Sullivan has deleted his Twitter account.

NXT auto wreck:

Rachel Evers was hit by a drunk driver earlier today. She was uninjured, but is badly shaken.

28/5/2019

AJ goes home:

WWE have announced AJ Styles is benched with an unspecified injury. It is, perhaps, kayfabe, but that it is not confirmed.

Rey relinquishes:

WWE say Rey Mysterio will vacate the US title next week, due to injury.

WWE KSA:

Seth Rollins vs Baron Corbin is booked for the KSA trip, the Universal gold will be on the line.

AEW name checked on Raw:

Sami Zayn mentioned AEW during a promo on Raw this week, drawing a gasp of shock from the audience. They is mixed reports about it. Some say it was office authorised, but WWE have taken the comment out of repeated broadcasts of the segment, so, who knows?

Ryan refuses:

Joey Ryan has refused a contract offer from AEW.

SD tease:

• Kofi Kingston to clash with Kevin Owens
• Dolph Ziggler to appear on "The Kevin Owens Show"
• Bayley goes one-on-one with Raw's Lacey Evans
• How will Roman Reigns respond to Shane McMahon and his "insurance policy"?
• Can R-Truth make it through another night as 24/7 Champion?

WWE / AEW conspiracy theories:

A couple of wild stories are making the rounds on the interweb, relating to a relationship, or an attempt for sabotage between the two.

One story suggests WWE has sent Dean Ambrose to AEW to kill them from the inside, sort of like a plant in their camp, the other, profligated by a top WWE / WCW creative writer, Vince Russo (Yes, him!), who feels WWE and AEW ''Are in bed together.'' He made the call because of Sami's reference to the promotion.

27/5/2019

AEW praised:

US congresswoman, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, has praised Cody Rhodes and AEW for their commitment to diversity in their roster and programming...

"This exchange is a promising peek into what growth looks like in our national discourse on race. Thanks for sharing your experience in this powerful moment, Cody Rhodes."

Chris Jericho reveals when he decided his WWE career was over:

In 2016, I had my best story angle with Kevin Owens and we ended up second on WrestleMania.That's when I knew I had to get out of here. That should have been the main event."

WWE star honoured:

A mural has been unveiled in El Paso, Texas. It pays tribute to Sin Cara.

Road Dogg's new role:

Road Dogg has moved to NXT.

Ambrose to Japan:

Dean Ambrose has announced he is paying a visit to NJPW next month.

Injury:

Taka Michinoku has had to withdraw from the big summer NJPW tournament, through injury.

Goldust planned to retire:

Goldust says he was leaving his boots in the ring after Double Or Nothing, a symbolic act, to show a wrestler is saying goodbye to the sport, but his brother talked him out of it...

"I was, and he snuck in behind me. I was like, 'Geez, let me get my boots off before you do anything. My God, I want to leave this boot in the ring and say goodbye, proper.' I was tired, and he came in and I didn't know what to expect, or what he was going to do."

Raw tease:

• Brock Lesnar to announce blockbuster decision
• Future of the United States Championship to be addressed
• 24/7 Championship chaos continues
• Who will be Becky Lynch's next challenge?

Nintendo vs AEW:

Nintendo have demanded AEW change the name of Super Smash Brothers, because they have a game of the same name.

Starrcast 3:

The AEW offshoot legends event, Starrcast, have confirmed a third event in Chicago, this summer.

26/5/2019

AEW Double Or Nothing:

Results...

1. Adam Page won a battle royal for a shot at the AEW title (Pre)
2. Kip Sabian bt Sammy Guevarra (Pre)
3. SoCal Uncensored bt Strong Hearts
4. Britt Baker bt Awesome (Kharma) Kong, Nyla Rose and Kylie Rae
5. Best Friends bt Jack Evans & Angelico
6. Hikaru Shida, Riho Abe and Ryo Mizunami bt Aja Kong, Yuka Sakazaki and Emi Sakura
7. Cody bt Dustin Rhodes
8. Young Bucks bt Lucha Brothers for the AAA Tag titles
9. Chris Jericho bt Kenny Omega

Notes...

• Sasha Banks was live tweeting throughout the women's match, saying how excited she was
• Dean Ambrose debuted for AEW after the main, as Jon Moxley
• Bret Hart unveiled the new AEW title
• Cody Rhodes destroyed a throne as a dig at HHH
• Bret Hart fell down some steps backstage, but was OK
• WWE HOF'er, Mike Tyson, was backstage
• Impact talent were sitting in the crowd
• Kenny Omega broke his nose early into the main evemt

AEW:

AEW have announced their next PPV will be in Chicago in August.

Foley backs campaign:

Mick Foley says he will watch wrestling with anyone that donates $5000 or more to the diva's campaign to raise funds for the education of the late Ashley Massaro's daughter.

New baby:

Miz & Maryse are having a baby girl.

25/5/2019

Shane-O at music festival:

There is a pretty big music festival going on this weekend in my local park. One of the artists, Lewis Capaldi, performing today entered the arena for his set to the entrance music of Shane McMahon. Which in my opinion, was pretty frigging awesome...

Another new title?:

Cedric Alexander is calling himself the Main Event champion on social media.

AEW debut:

AEW will host their first event tonight. The much anticipated first show will be headlined by the battle of the Rhodes brothers, but also has a huge rematch between Chris Jericho and Kenny Omega on the card.

AJ pulled from road:

AJ Styles has been pulled from the live tour for the next month.

24/5/2019

Alum signs for AEW:

Dean Malenko has joined AEW as a coach and producer.

Live change:

WWE have announced the wild card rule is now in effect for their live tours too. Meaning talent will no longer perform exclusively on their brands tour.

WWE give back:

WWE have given four Full Sail University (Home of NXT) students $10,000 scholarships.

Fan skit gets heat:

WWE had a little contest for some kids during an ad break on Raw this week, with three youngsters impersonating their favourite wrestlers. It was all fun until the crowd were asked to vote with their voices. The two boys were booed by some, before the young girl got the winning cheer. After the result and prize were awarded, it seemed like one of the boys was wiping away tears, perhaps as a result of the crowd reaction, drawing some heat on the video when WWE released it on social media today, but at the end he did give a big smile and two thumbs up, so it may just be the internet getting  over excited (Again). Here is the video, decide for yourself...

23/5/2019

New faction:

Marcel Barthel and Fabian Aichner have defected from NXT to the UK offshoot to join the champion of the brand, Walter. Alexander Wolfe will also join the group in the coming weeks.

Ashley anger:

The lawyer behind the concussion lawsuits has used the death of Ashley Massaro to further attack WWE, repeating the accusations that Ashley was raped by a US military doctor at a base in Kuwait, whilst on WWE duty. WWE have angrily responded to he callous timing of his latest onslaught...

''WWE is saddened by the death of Ashley Massaro, and we reiterate our condolences to her family. However, we regret that her attorney Konstantine Kyros, who filed multiple cases against WWE, lost all of them, and was sanctioned multiple times by the Court for repeated misconduct and false allegations, is using Ashley's death to further his malicious campaign against WWE by releasing an affidavit that she submitted to the Court and later apologized to WWE for being involved with, so we wish to make certain things crystal clear. At no time was Vince McMahon or the management of WWE ever informed by Ashley Massaro or anybody else that she had been sexually assaulted, drugged, raped or sodomized by a military doctor with a nurse standing guard while on a goodwill tour in 2007 to U.S. military bases in Kuwait. In fact, if she ever articulated such a claim to WWE, we would have reported it immediately to the Base Commander. At no time was there ever a meeting with Vince McMahon, Kevin Dunn, John Laurinaitis or other company executives in which she told them of such a claim and was instructed to keep it quiet.''

Vacant titles:

William Regal has announced a multi team ladder match at the next NXT special will determine the next owners of their Tag gold.

Jericho recalls backstage falling out with McMahons:

"I'm doing my promo, typical heel stuff, everyone's booing. Some dude hits me in the eyeball - it hit me hard. It pissed me off. And I was like 'Alright, alright, you want to throw stuff at me? Everyone go ahead. Everyone start throwing stuff at me - come on. What do you got?'…There is a snowstorm of these glow sticks. There must have been one hundred. I remember being like a ninja, like Sugar Ray Leonard boxing them out of the way. After the show, I was told that Stephanie [McMahon] wants me fined and she wants me suspended. Well Stephanie's not my boss. I don't give a s--t what Stephanie wants - you can tell her that. I called Vince and cut a promo on his answering machine. 'I got heat out there. This is my job. This is what I'm here to do. At the end of the night, the babyface beat me. What's the problem? You're going to fine and suspend me for getting heat? Bring it on m-erf-er.' Vince just texted me back with a little smiley face saying 'calm down junior'. So the next day, at the Garden, he didn't even mention it… He said 'There's no problem".

KSA stay at homes:

Aleister Black has been told he can't go to Saudi Arabia because of one of his tattoo's religious conotation, he explained the meaning of it...

"I don't really talk about the meaning of my tattoos, but I will give you that one. The being on my back is Lilith, in some folklore she is the first woman to ever rebel against paradise. The reason she is there for equality, equality for every man and woman – which is the most important thing there is."

KO told WWE he is not going because his family do not want him to go, partly because of the ban on his best friend, Sami Zayn, not being allowed to travel there, and partly over worries over safety, given the controversial regime's track record.

JR blats WWE creative:

Jim Ross says the top people running WWE creative do not know pro wrestling...

"I've always had a little bit of creative freedom to express myself. Over time WWE kind of reeled that back in, I guess they had some of that research or it was due to personal philosophy, I don't have a clue, but most of them don't understand wrestling -- they are in administration there. They are great marketers, they've got some brilliant, brilliant people in WWE, no doubt about it, but I think some of the key decisions are being made without an inordinate amount of product knowledge, which is not going to make them happy to hear, but that's the way I look at it. Vince could do better by surrounding himself with a different kind of consultant or writer or creative people or whatever."

Injury:

Johnny Gargano is dealing with a knee injury.

22/5/2019

Holiday ends:

Dolph Ziggler is back. He returned on SmackDown last night. He will challenge Kofi for his gold in KSA.

Heat:

Carmella publicly accused Mandy Rose of being unsafe after they wrestled each other last night. She has since removed the social media post, where she made the accusation.

Tye to AEW:

Tye Dillinger will be at the first AEW PPV, in a battle royal.

KSA refusals:

Daniel Bryan has, for the second year, told WWE he will not travel to KSA for their PPV there. Kevin Owens, too has refused, due to the ban on Sami Zayn going on the trip, hence Dolph Ziggler's return to TV. Aleister Black has also decided not to go.

Charlotte blasts fan for racist joke:

A fan tweeted that he mistook R-Truth for Charlotte when he was disguised as a woman on SD last night, as a joke, she did not find the humour in the comment...

''What makes you think this is possibly ok? Shame on you.''

Diva's unify for fallen sister:

A number of WWE women past and present have joined together to launch a fundraiser for the daughter of the recently deceased Ashley Massaro. The ladies put together an emotional video package, hosted by former ring announcer, Lilian Garcia, with their memories and tributes, for Lexi Massaro, with any funds raised going toward her education. If you would like / are able to support the campaign, here is the link...

Ric Flair sends message to concerned fans:

"The Naitch Is Home!!! Thank You To All The Incredible Staff And Doctors At Gwinnett Medical Center Once Again! I Am So Thankful For All My Family, Friends, And Fans For All The Love. At This Time In My Life, I Never Take It For Granted. I Will Be Back Up And WOOOOOing In No Time!"

WWE > AEW:

Cody Rhodes has been refused the TM of 'Bash At The Beach' due to WWE owning the right to apply first.

WWE in surgery:

Ruby Riott has had the first of two surgeries on a shoulder injury.

21/5/2019

Angry Ali attacks Brock:

It is reported that the WWE roster were told Ali was going over in the MITB match, to keep the secret of Brock's return, the change was called on the night, and revealed to everyone as it happened. Ali, understandably, is uoset at the change, and tweeted in the matter today...

"Look at the bright side, brocklesnar climbing a ladder is the most wrestling he's done all year."

New title:

Mick Foley unveiled the new 24/7 title on Raw last night. Titus O'Neil was the first owner, but his reign was shorter than his trip under the ring at GRR, Robert Roode took it from him, and R-Truth ended the show with the gold.

JR was not impressed, writing...

''Titles have never meant less in pro wrestling at least in my career than they do now.''

SD teaser:

• The New Day present Big E's Welcome Back Celebration
• What will SmackDown Women's Champion Bayley say in exclusive interview?
• Roman Reigns and Elias clash in a WWE Money in the Bank rematch
• Who will bring the 24/7 Championship to SmackDown LIVE?
• Will Daniel Bryan's tag team revolution continue?

HOF:

Bruno Sammartino, Sgt. Slaughter and Beth Phoenix are some of the names to be inducted into the Tragos / Thesz HOF this weekend.

Ashley Massaro:

Ashley Massaro is said to have been found hanging in her home, seemingly confirming, sadly, that she did take he own life.

20/5/2019

Money In The Bank:

WWE dedicated MITB last night to Ashley Massaro, who died earlier this week.

Results...

1. Uso's bt Daniel Bryan & Rowan (Pre)
2. Bayley won the female MITB
3. Rey Mysterio bt Samoa Joe for the US
4. Shane McMahon bt The Miz
5. Tony Nese by Ariya Daivari
6. Becky Lynch by Lacey Evans
7. Charlotte Flair bt Becky Lynch for the SD Women's
8. Bayley bt Charlotte Flair for the SD Women's by cashing in her case
9. Roman Reigns by Elias
10. Seth Rollins bt AJ Styles
11. Kofi Kingston bt Kevin Owens
12. Brock Lesnar won the male MITB

Notes...

• Joe vs Rey was ended quicker than planned after Joe suffered a broken nose, causing a lot of bleeding from the injury and Rey injuring his shoulder, during the bout.
• Brock Lesnar was hidden from everyone backstage, to keep the secret of his return from even the rest of the roster.

New title:

Mick Foley will unveil a new title on Raw tonight.

Raw tease:

• Money is the Beast - will light be shed on Lesnar's MITB win?
• A new championship emerges - Mick Foley reveals new title
• Uso Rules - The Usos weigh challenge from The Revival and non-title win over SmackDown Tag Team Champions Rowan and Daniel Bryan
• Becky One Belt - how will Becky Lynch react to MITB?

Grace chooses:

Despite any number of promotions chasing her signature, Jordynne Grace has decided to make her current spell with Impact official, by signing an exclusive contract with them.

Lana calls out creative:

''I love watching shows and seeing stories I wrote and pitched given to other people. This might be the 10th time this has happened in the past year.... good to know I'm really creative that my ideas are given to others.''

WCW film:

WWE will air a documentary on the failure of WCW on May 26.

WarGames:

Triple H has confirmed NXT will host a third annual WarGames this year.

Flair in surgery:

Ric Flair is currently resting after undergoing heart surgery today.

19/5/2019

Neville withdraws from AEW PPV:

Neville made a comment after an indie match over the weekend, which has now come to be confirmed. He said he would not be turning up to AEW's PPV event later this month, to fans attending the show he was competing at. AEW today confirmed this, pulling his match vs Adam Page from the card.

He is reportedly unwilling to lose the planned match, due to pressure from Dragon Gate, for whom he is their champion. They want him to continue to appear invincible.

Mania celeb confirms Brawl For All was punishment for Gunn:

Butterbean says Bart Gunn winning Brawl For All, against the wishes of the office, was punished by the Mania match they had against each other...

"It was pretty bad for Bart. Bart actually wanted to get out of wrestling and go into boxing and he had made Vince mad because of the whole Brawl For All thing. Vince wanted him to throw one, he wouldn't do it, so I was his punishment."

Top star asks for release:

Scarlett Bordeaux reportedly asked Impact to let her go last week.

PPV tonight:

Tonight is WWE Money In The Bank.

Dasha Fuentes says Roman Reigns interview led to her WWE firing:

"My manager at the time told me I was being released. I don't want to name too many names, but my manager called me—and that was another thing, they called me on a Tuesday and I was told 'After the events that occurred on Monday Night Raw, we are taking you off TV and you're not going to WrestleMania. I literally went back and I watched the interview and there a tiny little blip that happened but it was live, it was with Roman and I figured it was a pretty good interview and I could see the growth and consistency that was happening from week to week. So I was like 'Series of events?' and I was just taken aback. I figured I would relax and not freak out about this, maybe they're going to send me back to NXT because a lot of people don't know that I ring announced for NXT and that's my passion, I love ring announcing. I was told I'd get a call the next week and told what was going on. Well, the following Monday after WrestleMania I got a call that lasted literally like a minute and a half and they said 'We're letting you go' and I was like 'Well, thanks for 5 years.' and that's it."

New baby almost cost WWE an announcer:

JoJo's mother says her daughter suffered serious complications during her giving birth to her and Bray Wyatt's son, and that she was fighting for the lives of both herself and her child during the traumatic birth. She went on to praise Bray, who never left her side for a second throughout the drama.

18/5/2019

Cody's good deed:

Cody Rhodes found and rescued a lost dog yesterday. He was appealing on social media to try to find the owners, but eventually called a humane charity to pick him up.

Massaro apology:

WWE have revealed Ashley Massaro, who died yesterday, wrote a letter of apology last October, for joining the concussion lawsuit against them. She said she was roped in by a charismatic lawyer who promised the world, but she quickly realised things were not going as promised and decided she wanted out.

WWE star in kidnap attempt:

Kayla Braxton says someone claiming to be an Uber driver tried to pick her up from an airport this week, but something told her it wasn't right and she did not get in. She has since heard that there has been a number of abductions by a person or persons doing just what she had almost fell victim too, from that same airport.

HOF'er assaulted:

Arnold Schwarzenegger was dropkicked in the back while attending a sports event in South Africa this week. The assailant was quickly tackled by his security, and Arnie says he was uninjured.

New baby:

Bray Wyatt and JoJo have become parents to their new son, Knash.

17/5/2019

Diva dies:

The original diva search winner, Ashley Massaro, has died after an apparent suicide, aged just 39. She was found unconscious at her home, after no showing a regular job she had with a local radio station, who raised the alarm, as it was out of character for her. Law enforcement officials say they found no evidence of criminal actions in relation to the death of Massaro, who was just one week shy of her 40th birthday. Friends and former colleagues have since confirmed on social media that her death came at her own hand, after a long battle with substance misuse and depression. One, Rochelle Loewen, ex of WWE herself, said she had dropped out of a planned girlie holiday with some other former stars at the last minute, but said she did not realise she was as ill and troubled as she obviously was.

Despite being involved in the concussion lawsuit against WWE, the company paid tribute to their former star today, as have WWE stars past and present, many of whom recalled her warmth, her smile, her generosity, and drive to make it in WWE.

She had recently announced that she had planned to return to the ring to mark her upcoming landmark birthday, and had started training.

She leaves behind a daughter.

Dain demoted:

Killian Dain officially returned to NXT this week. He is back on their live tour.

WWE star talking to Bellator:

Bellator have offered an MMA fight to Jack Gallagher, and the Englishman has opened talks with the promotion.

Titus does not support call to fire Lars:

"It's not just us, 99.9 per cent of the roster feels overlooked because we're all so good and we're all so passionate. Everybody wants to be a champion and everybody can be a champion because we're that good. It's just that there's only so many titles. You gotta find what sticks out, you gotta be different. It doesn't matter if Rusev Day or Lana Day chants or whatever it is, the most hyped thing doesn't make you a champion. There's so many moving parts to become a champion, it's beyond my head. Only Vince McMahon knows these things."

Flair complications:

Doctors have delayed operating of Ric Flair after finding some worrying complications in his health status. The delay will be brief though, he is now expected to have an op of Monday.

Old boy at PC:

Shannon Morre is guest coaching for WWE this week.

Jericho reveals why he worked Fandango at Mania:

Chris Jericho says he was pissed off that Vince McMahon was adamant about him wrestling Fandango at Mania 29, so much so he hung up during a heated telephone call, but an intervention from the straight taking Undertaker changed his mind, and the rest is history.

Live cancelled:

WWE have axed the blue tour show scheduled for this Monday.

Alum talking to AEW:

Jack Swagger says he is in talks to join AEW, and that he expects Dean Ambrose will not be far behind him.

Online heat over no-show:

Scott Hall took to Twitter to call out an indie for advertising a booking for him this week. He says the promotion are lying, that he has never had contact with them, and is already booked for a show on the day they claim him. Problem is, he recorded a video to promote his booking with the promotion he has never heard of a month ago, a video said promotion gladly posted to their own social media, to show that the bad guy was being less then honest with his accusations.

WWE stars wife getting death threats:

Reby Sky's decision to make a less than subtle jibe at the death of Ashley has not gone down well with wrestling fans. The two women have a long history of feuding, over Ashley's past relationship with Reby's husband, Matt Hardy, and seemingly took pleasure in the news of her rivals death, by posting a smiling face and a goodbye kiss emoji. Although, she of course denies that, saying she was commenting on a television show she had been watching. She also revealed she and her children had been getting death threats since the tweet.

16/5/2019

HHH frustrated with WWE:

A leak from WWE creative has revealed some recent issues he has witnessed, and that Triple H is growing increasingly frustrated with how the main roster is being presented, particularly his NXT Alumni.

• WWE's contract with Fox for SmackDown prohibits Fox from moving the show to FS1, even if the ratings drop
• When Neville walked out of the company, there was a "crazy shouting match" and Neville flipped out on Vince. That was the last time the writers saw him. The writers praised Neville for being so easy to work with
• It was also said that ideas never pan out as originally planned because writers come up with stuff and then Vince loses interest after a week or two. They used Mojo Rawley as an example
• The writers said the pay for the job is good and it's a dream job for many of them, but it gets frustrating. It was also said that talents are very unhappy and people are trying to get out of their contracts
• The writers believe Bruce Prichard is a pleasure to work with. "He's a funny guy and a pleasure to work with, but he's not getting through to Vince either," it was said. Shane McMahon, Stephanie McMahon and Triple H have also tried to talk to Vince with no luck
• Writers listen to podcasts and they hear fans bashing them for the weak product. "It breaks their heart," the caller said
• It was claimed that the current Sami Zayn promos are not his own, despite recent claims by Sami and others. "That's not Sami Zayn's promos. That's Vince McMahon talking through Sami Zayn," it was said
• There are currently 37 total writers and they are now working on both RAW and SmackDown. This change went into effect after the 2019 Superstar Shakeup. The entire writing team has pitched to have RAW and SmackDown look completely different with different production, a different way of filming things, and other differences, but Vince shot the idea down
• Some of the writers believe WWE Hall of Famer "Road Dogg" BG James will eventually end up in AEW. James recently left the writing team after working as co-lead writer of SmackDown and his future is up in the air, but he's been working other roles behind-the-scenes
• It was said that NBCUniversal and Fox both want top stars on their shows, which was recently reported. The writers loved it when there was a real brand split
• The Superstar Shakeup changed week to week and didn't pan out how it was originally laid out months prior. Everything changed because Vince just decided to change it. The Wild Card Rule was not in the RAW script on the morning of the show it was introduced
• Andrade allegedly went into Vince's office and asked for a legit push. Vince allegedly looked at him and said, "Learn some English and get back to me." Andrade has been taking English lessons
• The "Firefly Fun House" storyline is all Bray Wyatt's idea. Wyatt was described as an "absolute genius" and it was said that helps others with their promos. "He's one of the best guys in the locker room," it was said
• The storyline comedy between The Usos and The Revival has been done because Vince just thinks it's funny

Titles vacated:

The Vikings officially vacated their NXT Tag gold at the taping last night.

NXT star thrilled about AEW:

Matt Riddle says the greatest era of wrestling is about to begin, and that is because WWE finally have worthy competition in AEW.

AEW owner says UK PPV can work:

"I think it is something we can offer, I hope we do offer, and I plan to offer is shows here because there is a great fan base here, definitely a proven live audience that will attend the shows, there are great television and PPV audience as well. Plus, there is a great chance to market that content back home to the American fans. If there was a show that had an 8 p.m. start time on pay-per-view at one of the great arenas that we'd like to work with, that's still a very reasonable start time on the weekend. You could see a 3 p.m. start time on the East Coast, a noon start time (on the West Coast), these are great start times to watch wrestling on a Saturday or a Sunday. In terms of our television, there is a lot of potentials to expand the partnership in a lot of ways."

Injury:

Alexa Bliss has been told she will not be allowed to compete at MITB by the WWE doctors. Nikki Cross will replace her. No word on what the injury is as yet, officially, but it is reported to be another concussion. Which, if true, could have an impact on her future career, her last battle with concussion almost put her on the shelf permanently.

New school:

Tye Dillinger and Tyler Breeze are working on opening a wrestling school together.

HOF'er suffers medical emergency:

Ric Flair was said to have been rushed to hospital in a very serious way this morning by a US celebrity site. He was actually going for a planned appointment for a surgery he wanted to get out of the way before the summer.

Rush removes WWE:

Lio Rush has removed all reference to WWE from his social media profiles.

WWE try a new tactic to make Lars story go away:

A leak of a meeting WWE had with Lars over a year ago, about his past social media comments has come out, with the additional information that it was his fear of the posts coming back to haunt him that caused his anxiety issues before Mania, and cost him a match vs John Cena, not the stage fright that was reported at the time.

WWE leave UK home:

WWE have ended their long relationship with Sky in the UK and will join BT Sport in the new year.