Pandemic protection ends:

Tony Khan says he can no longer guarantee contract's will be renewed in AEW. He had done so regardless of status during the pandemic years, but feels the time has come to end that.

Impact debut:

Konnor of the Ascension debuted for TNA this week.

Why Japanese ladies are struggling in AEW:

Hikaru Shida wrote in her column this week...

“My feeling is that the hurdle for Japanese women’s pro wrestlers to come to AEW has become much higher. The major cause is the Corona disaster which is not easy to finish. And it’s because the AEW Women’s Division has grown so much in the past year. “AEW is an organization that is constantly changing, and the players come and go very rapidly. TV and YouTube. If you’ve been following AEW on FITE TV or YouTube, you’ll know that the women’s division in particular has seen an increase in the number of young, cute, and dynamic players over the past year. At the time of the launch, the women’s division of AEW relied heavily on Japanese female pro wrestlers, and that was one of the selling points of the division. But that was only for a while after the launch. Nowadays, being a Japanese female pro wrestler is not as much of an advantage as it used to be.”

WWE / TNA:

Mickie James says she believes WWE and TNA will continue to work together...

“I think yes. I don’t know that it will be immediately, I think this was an opportunity for WWE to test the water, to see if it was something, people talk and they say ‘this will be great and this will get a lot of ratings and this will be a big buzz’ but until it’s actually in front of them I think they can’t actually see it.”

Rousey worried:

Ronda Rousey has revealed her biggest worry about her WWE return...

“Sorry if I leak through the hoodie on my screen. On the stream, which has become my new paranoia, which is that I’m going to start lactating live on television. Like would I, well on Raw, SmackDown, or wrestling or something. That’s why like, it was pretty bold wearing the white, white shirt on Raw. Oh God, please do not lactate.”

Tyson Kidd:

Tyson Kidd has not quit WWE and is on good terms with the company, but is in need of time away to allow his neck injury to heal. It has been in a tough way for a while after a flare up of pain.

AEW tease:

• Bryan Danielson will speak
• The Young Bucks vs. Roppongi Vice
• AEW Women’s World Champion Britt Baker vs. Robyn Renegade in a non-title match
• Hook vs. Blake Li
• AEW World Tag Team Champions Jurassic Express defend against The Gunn Club in the main event

Fear of Flying:

Freddie Prinze Jr. has recalled a fright on a flight which left him with a fear of flying, cured, he says, by Vince McMahon...

“So, we’re coming in, and it is, turbulent is not the word. The winds are crazy. This plane is, we felt like the Gilligan’s Island ship. That was us. So we’re literally swerving back and forth, like the Viking ship at the State Fair, and you can’t see anything out of the window. Sarah’s hand is on my hand, and it’s gripped tight, like nails through the skin. My left hand, I’m in the window seat on the left side, is gripped to the armrest my nails into its poor skin. And I’m looking out of the window, and all of a sudden I see the ground, except not beneath me, I am looking directly at the ground. The plane is about to land sideways on the left wing, and my face is about to go through the tarmac. And at the last second, and I’m not exaggerating, I’ve never even told this story. At the last second, the plane corrects itself, the pilot is a G, corrects itself and we came in hot and we’re sliding and slipping and the plane lands, no damage, no anything, outside of the six and a half years it took off my life from the scarring of my heart. So we have to get off the plane. Everybody is freaked out, and we have to get right back on the plane, takeoff through this weather, and get back to L.A. So I’m freaking out, you know, I trust the pilot now more than any human, more than my wife. But still, like, we almost died. They say, you’re flying on the jet, and I’m sweating when they tell me. Vince wants you on the jet. I was like, ‘oh man, alright.’ My armpits are sweating right now and I ain’t even afraid of flying anymore thanks to Vince, actually, he just made me do it until I wasn’t scared of it anymore. So I get on the jet and the first thing that Vince says to me when he gets on, he says, ‘I heard you had a bit of a problem on the last plane ‘Yeah man, I’m not big on planes.’ And this is who I tell this story to and he goes, ‘ah don’t worry, I got a better pilot than Kevin Costner anyway.”

WWE women in Saudi:

WWE's female talent have appeared on billboards promoting the next WWE visit. A first in the country.

Mickie James got apology:

Mickie James says she received a number of apologies for the way she left WWE during her Royal Rumble return. She had complained online about receiving her belongings in a trash bag. She says she got calls from Vince, HHH, Stephanie and Johnny Ace, most of which she did not answer, but it was Nick Khan who spoke to her at the taping...

“Nick Khan came up to me at the show and apologized. I don’t even know that he was a part of, like, I think he was a part of the company. But I hadn’t met him or knew who he was at that time because it was early transitional days. But even he apologized to me at TV, ‘this should’ve never happened.’ I agree it should’ve never happened. It shouldn’t have happened 10 years ago and now it’ll never happen again.''

Tama Tonga:

Tama Tonga has re-signed for NJPW.

SmackDown tease:

• Rick Boogs and WWE Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura join Sami Zayn on his “In-Zayn” show
• WWE Hall of Famer Bill Goldberg will appear
• Natalya vs. Aliyah in a “Dungeon-style showdown” that can only be won via pinfall or submission
• SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair defends against Naomi
• Ronda Rousey is advertised to appear locally

Lita turned down AEW:

Lita says her Royal Rumble appearance earned her a call from Tony Khan...

“I mean, AEW is doing exciting stuff and it has new life in the industry. Any time there’s competition, it’s good, it revives the industry, whatever that is. So, when they reached out to me, I did consider it. I was like, ‘well we can talk, I am interested, you guys are doing some interesting stuff.’ But, ultimately, upon talking to them, it just made me go, ‘but I have all these things already, with my home that I have known for 20 years, with the people that I have worked with for 20 years.’ Basically, I gave them my blessing. I said, ‘I will watch you, and support you, and I want you guys to do great. But this just doesn’t feel like the right fit for me right now.’”

She also shared her changed view of performing in Saudi Arabia...

“I was outspoken on the early relationship on WWE and Saudi. Oh, they say they want women to wrestle over there, there’s no women on the card. There are now.  And I’ve talked to the women personally that have been over there. And they’re like, ‘It’s unbelievable. There are women crying, never thinking they would get to see two women be so strong in the ring’. They’re like, ‘It’s really powerful. You’re going to enjoy that.’ And so, sure, do they have a long way to go? Do we as a society have a long way to go? Absolutely. But, you got to take the opportunities when they’re there.”

NXT to AEW:

Zayda is now AQA with Tony Khan's AEW. She debuted this week. Khan called her the hottest free agent out there.