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Friday, April 5, 2024 Issue #7202
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Visit our website at
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

I finally made it to Philadelphia this morning and thanks to arriving early and an awesome taxi driver from Albania, I made it on time for WrestleCon as well.

We did a video from the show which you can see at .


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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
Web version at

SMACKDOWN PREVIEW

- The final WWE show before WrestleMania takes place tonight as Friday Night Smackdown comes live from the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia where over 17,000 fans from all around the world will be on hand. A couple of matches were announced for the show including Jey Uso taking on his brother Solo Sikoa, Zelina Vega battles Elektra Lopez, and the New Catch Republic face A-Town Down Under. Plus, the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal also takes place with Akira Tozawa, Andrade, Apollo Crews, Ashante “Thee” Adonis, Bronson Reed, Brutus Creed, Cameron Grimes, Cedric Alexander, Chad Gable, Elton Prince, Ivar, JD McDonagh, Julius Creed, Kit Wilson, Omos, Otis, Ricochet, Sanga, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Veer participating. In addition, Randy Orton will also be on the KO Show ahead of their triple threat match for the United States title involving Logan Paul.

WWE HALL OF FAME 2024 INDUCTION CEREMONY TONIGHT

- Live from the Well Fargo Center in Philadelphia, WWE presents the 2024 Hall of Fame induction ceremony, streaming live on Peacock and WWE Network immediately following the conclusion of Friday Night Smackdown on FOX. This year's ceremony will feature six inductees and it's the first Hall of Fame class picked by Paul "Triple H" Levesque. Headlining the show will be the incredible Paul Heyman who will be inducted by the current Undisputed WWE Universal champion Roman Reigns. Heyman's induction in Philadelphia was by no means a coincidence and the beloved former ECW founder will surely wow the crowd in this highly-anticipated speech. Former WWF Women's champion Bull Nakano will make her first appearance on WWE television for the first time since 1995. The Japanese star will be inducted by her former arch rival Alundra Blayze. Barry Windham and Mike Rotunda, collectively known as The U.S. Express, will enter the Hall of Fame after they both were part of the first-ever WrestleMania. The two-time former WWF Tag Team champions endured a rough year with the passing of Windham Rotunda, better known to fans as Bray Wyatt. This will be Barry Windham's second HOF induction as he's part of The Four Horsemen as well. Former NWA wrestler Thunderbolt Patterson is also joining the Hall of Fame. A name maybe not synonymous with WWE, Patterson worked hard to get black wrestlers equal rights during his time in the ring. He was famously blacklisted by the NWA in the 70s for complaining about racism in the business and trying to form a wrestling union. He will be inducted by Scott Spears. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson will induct his grandmother, the late Lia Maivia, the former promoter of Polynesian Pro Wrestling in Hawaii. Maivia is one of the few female promoters in the business and was the wife of The High Chief Peter Maivia. And last and certainly not least, boxing legend Muhammad Ali will also be inducted into the celebrity wing of the WWE Hall of Fame. Ali, one of the most recognizable athletes in the world, was the outside referee for WrestleMania I and previously competed against Antonio Inoki in The War of the Worlds. The boxing champion and Olympic gold medalist will be inducted by his widow Lonnie Ali.

CODY RHODES' TOUR BUS CATCHES FIRE

- Cody Rhodes wrote on X that his tour bus caught fire last night but everyone is doing alright. "Before you hear it elsewhere - my tour bus caught fire last night," he wrote. "Everybody is safe and okay." Rhodes managed to grab two items before he got off, which he later revealed a photo of his wife and daughter and his WrestleMania boots. He thanked the Philadelphia Fire Department for putting the fire out and while he said the bus did not burn into a crisp, it was up in a fireball for a bit. Rhodes added that at the end, everything worked out okay except for his custom suits which now smell of fire.

TRIPLE H ON THOSE WHO CHOOSE LIGHTER SCHEDULE: "YOU HAVE NO BUSINESS BEING HERE"

- Appearing on The Pat McAfee Show earlier, WWE Chief Content Officer Paul "Triple H" Levesque said that that WWE is currently in competition against themselves, against the Attitude Era and the Ruthless Aggression Era. "The best of the absolute best of WWE, that's what we're working against," he said when McAfee asked about the competition. With the current success of the company, Triple H added that his job is now to make sure no one gets complacent so the trend continues and everyone remains successful. Asked about some of the top free agents that WWE missed signing, Triple H said that they have their eyes on everyone and has help from the likes of William Regal in that department, but just because you succeeded one place, doesn't mean you'll succeed in WWE, or as he called it, "in the big time." "When I see people that come out trying to make it and then they pick the job where they go, 'Well...they work less, the schedule is lighter...alright, then I'm glad I didn't get you," he said, referring to those who chose to go to AEW because of a lighter schedule. He added that if you're not in it for the grind at that point early in your career, then they have no business being in WWE.

THE ROCK GETS ROASTED BY YOUNG FAN AT WWE WORLD

- After arriving two hours late for his WWE World appearance Q&A sessions, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson met his match in a little girl who roasted him in front of the large crowd. The crowd got angry waiting for The Final Boss to arrive and even started a "Bullshit" chant but were nonetheless happy when he showed up. Among those who asked questions from the audience was a little girl who had a very valid question for The People's Champion. "Why did you think the title shot was yours to begin with," she asked as the crowd went "Oooooh!" A shocked Rock went, "Wait, what!?" and even started laughing as he got closer and the crowd chanted "Holy shit!" He said The Rock is the great one, the most electrifying man the world has ever seen and he's the final boss so he can do whatever to do and comes in whenever what he wants. The girl did not agree and shook her head, which prompted The Rock to ask her if she's not agreeing with him. "You didn't win the Royal Rumble, Cody did," she fired back. The Rock put his mic down for a bit as he waited for the crowd to calm down. "You should have been around if you wanted it," she added to more cheers, and that got The Rock to crack a smile. Rock told her he can tell she's a Cody fan and after Saturday, The Rock will apologize in advance for the ass kicking he's going to give Cody!

SAMANTHA IRVIN TO CALL ALL WRESTLEMANIA MATCHES

- It's going to be a huge weekend for Samantha Irvin as during the WaleMania event last night, it was revealed that she will be doing the announcing of every single match on both nights. Ring announcing duties are usually shared between both Raw and Smackdown announcers depending on the match and which brand it represents. But Irvin's popularity among WWE fans and her peers is undeniable and her introductions, some of which are custom, are super over with viewers. Samantha was at the WaleMania event and even gave a performance with the flute for fans in attendance.

WWE UNVEILS WRESTLEMANIA STAGE

- WWE has unveiled the WrestleMania XL stage with a video uploaded on their social media channels late yesterday. WWE backstage correspondents Kayla Braxton and Jackie Redmond hosted the unveiling along with some help from Ninja Kidz. The set is minimal considering the milestone number with large X L blocks on each side of the stage and mostly video screens surrounding it and a large WrestleMania logo on top. WWE is using the green color scheme all around for this show. The cold weather is also prompting WWE to put out the ring heaters for both nights to make things a little bit less freezing for the Superstars who will be inside the ring. You can see the video at .

NXT TRIO TASKED WITH GETTING THE ROCK IN RING SHAPE

- An article on ESPN lifted the lid of The Rock's training program to get back into ring shape for WrestleMania this weekend. It was noted that WWE sent him two rings, one for his Los Angeles home and one for his home in Hawaii where he was training alone. But in LA, the ring came with some add-ons. Apart from the ring, WWE sent Gallus - Joey Coffey, Mark Coffey, and Wolfgang - to train with The Rock along with Michael Hayes and Bobby Roode to oversee the training sessions. To get his timing back, The Rock worked with the NXT trio and also had veteran referee Chad Patton helping while a medical team stayed on stand by. The Rock described the training like riding a bike but with so many years in between his last match and this one, he needed to get his timing back since this will be a tag team match. Rock also said that once WrestleMania is over, he will not disappear forever again and will always be part of WWE. "We are in it now. This is our thing and will forever be our thing," Rock said.

SEVERAL WWE SUPERSTARS ATTEND BLOODSPORT EVENT

- The GCW Bloodsport event yesterday was attended by several WWE Superstars as well as by one of the most powerful men in the company: WWE President Nick Khan. Charlie Dempsey from NXT and former NXT Women's champion Shayna Baszler both participated in the Josh Barnett-led event, with Dempsey defeating Matt Makowski via submission and Baszler defeating TNA's Masha Slamovich via TKO. In addition, Sonya Deville, Natalya, Liv Morgan, and CM Punk were in attendance for the show while Zoey Stark cornered Baszler in her match. WWE President Nick Khan then came out at the end of the show to talk with Barnett and also GCW owner Brett Lauderdale.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT INFORMATION FOR WRESTLEMANIA AND OTHER EVENTS

- The city of Philadelphia will be beefing up its public transport system to accommodate the thousands and thousands of fans who are descending upon the city for WrestleMania. Extra Broad Street Line service will be in place for Smackdown, NXT, and RAW. On Friday night, two additional trains will depart Fern Rock Transportation Center at 6:38PM and 6:48PM for Smackdown. On Saturday morning, two additional trains will depart Fern Rock Transportation Center at 10:30AM and 10:40AM for NXT, and on Monday, two additional trains will depart Fern Rock Transportation Center at 6:38PM and 6:48PM for Raw. The BSL and Regional Rail will also offer additional weekend service on top of the current services to support WrestleMania on Saturday and Sunday. Additional trains will operate on the Chestnut Hill East, Fox Chase, Lansdale/Doylestown, Manayunk/Norristown, Media/Wawa, Paoli/Thorndale and Trenton lines. 10 additional trains will depart Fern Rock Transportation Center at 4:25PM, 4:35PM, 4:45PM, 4:55PM, 5:05PM, 5:15PM, 5:25PM, 5:35PM, 5:45PM and 5:55PM. For WWE World at WrestleMania and WrestleMania Superstore at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, fans can take the Market-Frankford Line (MFL) to 11th or 13th streets, the Broad Street Line (BSL) to City Hall, Trolley to 13th Street or Bus Routes 4, 16, 17, 23, 27, 33, 38, 44, 45, 48, 61, 78, 124 or 125. All Regional Rail trains stop at Jefferson Station, located on the lower level of the Pennsylvania Convention Center. Several forms of payment are accepted including a simple tap with Apple/Google/Samsung Pay on your phone. For more information and to plot your route go to .

12 WWE SUPERSTARS MAKING WRESTLEMANIA IN-RING DEBUT

- For several WWE Superstars, this weekend is a special one for them as many are making their WrestleMania debut at possibly the biggest WrestleMania of all time. In total, 12 are making their WrestleMania in-ring debut either tonight or tomorrow. These are Karrion Kross, Akam and Razar of The AOP, Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa of DIY, Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate of New Catch Republic, Grayson Waller, Dragon Lee, Santos Escobar, LA Knight, and Jade Cargill. Other stars such as Scarlett, B-Fab, and members of the LWO and Legado del Fantasma will also be making their debut if they appear but they are not scheduled to have a match.

EARLY BETTING ODDS FOR WRESTLEMANIA 40 NIGHT ONE

- The Bloodline looks like they have the early advantage as they are 2/9 favorites for the tag team match against Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins who themselves are 11/4. Is The Man walking out with the title? Bookmakers think not and have placed Rhea Ripley the 1/4 favorite to keep the WWE Women's World title while Lynch is 11/4 to win. Gunther is looking to extend his run as Intercontinental champion and is 2/5 favorite to do exactly that while Sami Zayn is 7/4 for the big upset. Awesome Truth are 7/10 favorites in the six-pack ladder match for the Undisputed WWE Tag Team titles but this match could crown different winners for each title. DIY are 3/1 and second favorite, A-Town Down Under are 4/1, New Catch Republic, Judgment Day, and The New Day all share the same 6/1 odds. The Usos will come face-to-face for their first one-on-one match, a match which Jey is the favorite currently with 1/3 odds while Jimmy is 9/4. A six-woman tag match will pit Damage CTRL vs Bianca Belair, Naomi, and Jade Cargill and the faces are 1/8 big favorites to win this match and the heels are 9/2. And in the last match for night one, Dom Mysterio and Santos Escobar are 1/2 favorites to beat Rey Mysterio and Dragon Lee who are 6/4.

DYNAMITE RATING

- Dynamite this week drew 752,000 viewers, up 5,000 viewers from last week's number and was the second least-watched episode of 2024 so far. The show had a 0.23 rating in 18-49, placing #3 for the night and matching last week's number which was the lowest since 2021. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)

ROH SUPERCARD OF HONOR 2024 LIVE TONIGHT

- Live from the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, ROH presents Supercard of Honor 2024. The event will stream exclusively on the HonorClub service. The full card is as follows: Eddie Kingston vs Mark Briscoe for the ROH World title; Athena vs Hikaru Shida for the ROH Women's title; Kyle Fletcher vs Lee Johnson for the ROH TV title; Billie Starkz vs Queen Aminata in the tournament final for the inaugural ROH Women's TV title; Mei Seira, Mina Shirakawa, and Maika vs Tam Nakano, Saya Kamitani, and AZM in a Stardom showcase six-woman tag team match; and Johnny TV vs Dalton Castle in a fight without honor match. Supercard of Honor begins at 7PM ET.



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Thursday, April 4, 2024 Issue #7201
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Visit our website at
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

Well, I thought I'd be sleeping in Philadelphia tonight but a snow storm in Montreal diverted our plane to Toronto and they refused to let us deplane, then took us back to Montreal several hours later and my connecting flight to Philadelphia was canceled, just like the majority of other flights out of Montreal.

Now I'm stuck here in a hotel waiting for my rescheduled flight tomorrow morning. Never a dull moment.

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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
Web version at

WRESTLEMANIA SUPERSTORE OPENS

- The WrestleMania Superstore opened this morning at Hall B of the Pennsylvania Convention Center and will be available for fans for the next five days. The largest collection of WrestleMania and WWE merchandise will be on display including apparel, toys, replica championship belts, and anything else imaginable where a WrestleMania or WWE logo can be slapped on. The hours of operation are today from 11AM to Midnight, tomorrow from 9AM to Midnight, Saturday from 9AM to 7PM, Sunday from 9AM to 7PM, and Monday from 9AM to 7PM. Entry to the WrestleMania Superstore is free and open to the public. P.S. Don't forget your credit card(s). You will need them! You can also opt to order online, beating the lines and take advantage of free shipping by going to .

WWE WORLD OPENS

- The modern-day version of WrestleMania Axxess, now titled WWE World, opened its doors this morning at the Philadelphia Convention Center. WWE World at WrestleMania will feature engaging content across multiple stages, the Kids Zone, the Gaming Zone, Superstar Row, the WrestleMania Superstore, memorabilia museums, interactive photo op experiences, and much more. At Superstar Row, you can meet your favorite WWE Superstars in person and pose for a photo with them. Select number of Superstars will be free while another batch will be designated as VIP Superstars and require an add-on ticket. Autograph Stages will have Superstars ready to sign one item per person and fans can either bring an item or an autograph mat will be provided. No photography is included here as that is all at Superstar Row. Kids Zone is family-fun activities where you can get your face painted, play your favorite carnival games, bust a move on the dance floor, and even participate in the DIY craft zone. Tattoo Pavilion will allow you to choose from the pre-designed tattoos and get inked up from the folks at Ink Fusion Empire. Superstar Entrance is a popular area where fans can create their own entrance by choosing your own theme and walk down a WWE set. All entrances are filmed and can be downloaded for free. WrestleMania Superstore is also part of WWE World, although a ticket for this is not required. You can, however, enter to the Superstore from WWE World to spend your life savings by buying tons of WWE and WrestleMania merchandise. Opening hours are today from Noon to 8PM ET, tomorrow from 10AM to 7PM ET, Saturday from 10AM to 5PM, Sunday from 10AM to 5PM, and Monday from 10AM to 5PM as well. A five-day ticket will cost $240, adult day tickets are $60, kids day tickets are $25, evening adult tickets are $30, and even kids tickets are $10. Evening tickets entry are from 3PM onwards. Tickets are available at .

EVENTS SET FOR WWE WORLD THIS WEEK

- WWE World at WrestleMania will feature a ton of live content across the five days. Today, the festivities start with the WWE2K Showdown including the first-ever WWE 2K24 gaming tournament featuring WWE Superstars Xavier Woods, The Miz, R-Truth, Zelina Vega, Bayley and more! The WWE World Main Stage will have Cody Rhodes and Rey Mysterio. On Friday, Pat McAfee will host his Pat McAfee Show live and will feature special guest Triple H. An Up Up Down Down live stream will also take place with Xavier Woods, Tyler Breeze and other WWE Superstars. The WWE World Main Stage will have Becky Lynch and Seth Rollins. Saturday will start with a Bray Wyatt: Becoming Immortal Documentary Panel featuring Big E, Natalya, JoJo Offerman, Taylor Rotunda (Bo Dallas) plus surprises you won’t want to miss. The WWE World Main Stage will have Charlotte Flair, Drew McIntyre and Randy Orton. On Sunday morning, The Slammys: The Fans Choice Awards will be held and it will be hosted by Cathy Kelley and Big E with special appearances by WWE Superstars. A WWE Mattel Elite Squad Panel featuring CM Punk will also take place during the day while WWE World Main Stage has Rhea Ripley. On the last day on Monday, Pat McAfee will host another Pat McAfee Show live featuring WWE Superstars to be determined and the WWE World Main Stage hosts Bianca Belair and Jey Uso.

SUPERSTAR LINE UP FOR WWE WORLD

- Several WWE Superstars will be appearing at The World over the next five days for meet and greets, some of which will cost $200 each due to their designation as VIP Superstars. The VIP Superstars are The Undertaker, Hulk Hogan, Bayley, Dominik Mysterio, LA Knight, Drew McIntyre, Jey Uso, Randy Orton, Rhea Ripley, Rey Mysterio, Becky Lynch, Cody Rhodes, Seth Rollins, Charlotte Flair, CM Punk, and Bianca Belair. All are sold out with the exception of The Undertaker, Hulk Hogan, Bayley, Dominik Mysterio, and LA Knight. Taker and Hogan tickets vary in prices and cost more than $200. General Admission stars which do not require extra payment for Thursday include Finn Balor, Damian Priest, Bobby Lashley, Shinsuke Nakamura, AJ Styles, Kofi Kingston, and The Miz. Appearing on Friday are Gunther, Nia Jax, Natalya, JBL, Naomi, Austin Theory, Sami Zayn, and Big E. Saturday will feature Sonya Deville, Bronson Reed, Carmella, Iyo Sky, Omos, Braun Strowman, and Chad Gable. Sunday will have Baron Corbin, Tiffany Stratton, Diamond Dallas Page, Raquel Rodriguez, Kairi Sane, Asuka, and R-Truth. Monday's guests include The Street Profits, Dakota Kai, Kevin Owens, Xavier Woods, and Liv Morgan. Tickets are available at .

NXT RATING

- The Stand & Deliver go-home episode of NXT on USA drew 641,000 viewers this week, up 40,000 viewers from last week's broadcast. The show had a 0.20 rating in 18-49, the highest since January 9 and was #8 on the top 50 cable chart for the night. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)

BECKY LYNCH'S BOOK DEBUTS ON NY TIMES BEST SELLERS LIST

- Becky Lynch's new book, titled The Man: Not Your Average Average Girl, has reached the #4 spot on the New York Times best-selling chart in the hardcover nonfiction section for April 14, 2024. The book sits behind The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt, Age of Revolutions by Fareed Zakaria, and Get It Together by Jesse Watters. "World Champion. WrestleMania main eventer. Mother," Lynch wrote on X today. "And now, a new title I’m very proud of, New York Times Best Selling Author." Published by Gallery Books through Simon & Schuster, this 384-page hardcover book is compelling and deeply personal memoir from Rebecca Quin who delves into her earliest wrestling days, her scrappy beginnings, and her meteoric rise to fame.

FORMER STARDOM CHIEF ROSSY OGAWA IN PHILADELPHIA

- Rossy Ogawa, the former STARDOM chief, is currently in Philadelphia and was photographed at the WWE hotel. Ogawa is there along with protege Giulia ahead of the launch of his new all-women promotion in Japan following his ousting from STARDOM by its parent company Bushiroad. Ogawa was accused of poaching talent away from STARDOM and was terminated by his bosses. The news was celebrated by AEW President Tony Khan at the time, and soon after his departure, Khan and STARDOM's new President and CEO Taro Okada met in the United States to start a working relationship, something that AEW didn't have with the Japanese promotion while Ogawa was there. There are rumors that Ogawa's new promotion will be tied with WWE although those claims remain just rumors. Several of the STARDOM talent are very loyal to Ogawa and the promotion is facing a mass exodus as they look to join him in his new venture. Giulia is expected to join WWE full time soon.

CHELSEA GREEN KICKED OUT OF NY HOTEL AFTER MISTAKEN FOR AN ESCORT

- It was a rough night for Chelsea Green on Tuesday after she wrote that she was kicked out of The Plaza hotel in New York after she was mistaken for an escort. Green said that she and a friend went to the bar inside the hotel on Tuesday afternoon before heading to a Broadway show but security told them they have to leave because they were not guests at the hotel even though the Champagne Bar is open to the public and not just guests. The former WWE Women's Tag Team champion told TMZ that security and staff at the bar told them that they know "what they were doing there" and Green took issue with the comment because of the outfit she was wearing - denim skirt, shoulder top, brown boots, and a coat. Trying to speak to front desk and managers went nowhere and Green and her friend eventually were forced to leave the premises. Green told TMZ that she was both pissed and embarrassed over the situation. She wrote on X, "Man… one night you’re wrestling at Barclays Center, having the time of your life and the next you’re being kicked out of @FairmontHotels and accused of being an escort because of your outfit. Life is funny! Maybe next year I won’t celebrate Wrestlemania weekend at The Plaza Hotel LOL…"

- Coco Jones has been tasked with singing the U.S. national anthem on Saturday at WrestleMania XL night one. The news was announced by Triple H in a post on social media.

"Excited to welcome Grammy award-winning singer-songwriter @TheRealCocoJ to #WrestleMania XL this weekend, where she’ll perform our country’s National Anthem to kick off @WrestleMania Saturday," he said.

At WrestleMania, America The Beautiful is usually sang instead of the national anthem so this could be a change.

Jones, who is also part of the cast of the Peacock series Bel-Air, was nominated for five Grammy Awards this year.

ADAM COPELAND RALLIES THE TROOPS WITH PROMO ON DYNAMITE

- Dynamite last night opened with a rally speech from TNT champion Adam Copeland as a reaction to CM Punk's explosive interview earlier this week where he blasted the company for not being a real business and labeling Tony Khan as "not a boss." Copeland noted that there were a lot of negative bullshit this week but he was out there to only talk about positive things and put over the AEW locker room and said he would put this AEW locker room against any other locker room he's been part of. The champion mentioned a list of stars who he can face and said that he's having the most fun he's ever had in his career which started an AEW chant from the crowd. Copeland put over The Young Bucks, Kenny Omega, Cody Rhodes, and Tony Khan for starting the company and said that AEW has made the industry and wrestling a better place and stuff like this should be celebrated. "AEW makes pro wrestling better. AEW makes pro wrestling more fun and AEW is where the best wrestle," Copeland said. He added that there is a reason why people like Will Ospreay, Kazuchika Okada, and Mercedes Mone chose to come to AEW. "There's a reason I came here," Copeland continued. Earlier in the interview, Copeland mentioned "WWF" as one of the promotions he used to watch when he was a kid and it received some boos, but nothing that can be compared to the early days of the company when the competition used to be mentioned. AEW President Tony Khan tweeted during the interview that it means a lot to hear those AEW chants on Dynamite.

MERCEDES MONE GETTING TBS TITLE SHOT AT DOUBLE OR NOTHING

- Mercedes Mone will be getting a TBS title shot at next month's Double or Nothing pay-per-view in Las Vegas. Appearing on last night's episode of Dynamite, Mone crashed Willow Nightingale's segment and told her that after Dynasty, she will take on whoever is the champion in Las Vegas. Nightingale will challenge Julia Hart for the TBS championship on the April 21 pay-per-view. Mone and Nightingale share a history together as they wrestled for the inaugural NJPW Strong Women's title last year, with Mone originally supposed to win but the match finish was changed on the fly after she suffered a broken ankle. Nightingale won the match and the title.

TONY SCHIAVONE ON CM PUNK'S INTERVIEW: "I DON'T GIVE A SHIT"

- During his podcast What Happened When, AEW announcer Tony Schiavone was asked about Punk's comment when he mentioned him during the interview on the MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani this past Monday. Punk said that Schiavone was the one who went over to ask him to deal with Jack Perry when Perry was cussing everyone out after he was told he could not use real glass during an episode of Collision. Co-host Conrad Thompson told Schiavone that Punk had nothing bad to say about him but wanted his reaction to Punk's version of events. “Did he have a couple of stories about me? Jungle Boy, right?" asked Tony. You know what? I really don’t give a shit about it. I’m not gonna get into this." Schiavone said he "knows what he said" and he's going to let Punk talk about it if he wants and that's all he has to say about it. "Look...okay...I don’t give a shit. That’s all I can say. I can’t get into that. It would be stupid for me to get into that, so f*cking what?" Tony continued. He said that he had no idea what Punk said because he did not see the interview but someone mentioned to him that Punk brought up his name, with Thompson once again pointing out the fact that Punk had no bad things to say about Tony. "I know," Schiavone responded. "That’s why I’m saying, ‘So what?’ If he was critical of me, people would say, ‘Oh, Schiavone on his podcast wanted to defend himself.’ I have nothing to defend. Let’s move on," Schiavone concluded.

TONY KHAN ADDRESSES RECENT AEW RELEASES

- AEW President Tony Khan addressed the recent releases from AEW, something which he has never done and often viewed it as a feather in his cap when comparing his practice to that of WWE. Khan admitted that sometimes you do have to make tough calls and in order to go after top talent, he needs to have enough money so trimming the roster where necessary is going to be a thing. He said that Anthony Henry will be re-hired after he heals from the broken jaw injury he's suffering, an injury he got wrestling at an indie show not related to AEW. He also added that Brandon and Brent Tate of The Boys were let go after they repeatedly missed shows they were supposed to be on. Khan's first question was about CM Punk and his recent interview but Khan refused to answer and no one bugged him again about the subject. Khan also did not want to talk when the AEW television rights with WBD will exactly expire, just noting it will be "soon." Khan was speaking to the media ahead of ROH Supercard of Honor tomorrow.

WRESTLECON RETURNS

- WWE World is not the only fan interactive convention that is happening in Philadelphia during this WrestleMania week as the popular WrestleCon is back for another round at the Sheraton Philadelphia Downtown. WrestleCon will run from today, April 4 until Sunday, April 7 and will feature nearly 250 guests and wrestling legends. This year's WrestleCon guests include the likes of Sting, Ronda Rousey, Bob Orton, Booker T, DDP, Dean Malenko, Dustin Rhodes, Earl Hebner, Mandy Sacs, Honky Tonk Man, Jake "The Snake" Roberts, Jeff Hardy, Jerry "The King" Lawler, Jordynne Grace, Kurt Angle, Lita, Trish Stratus, Matt Hardy, Mickie James, Mustafa Ali, Richard Flair, and many many more. Convention tickets are $41 per day plus extra for photos and autographs. For a full list of events go to wrestlecon.com.


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Wednesday, April 3, 2024 Issue #7200
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

I have a 6AM flight tomorrow, my first of three, to get to Philadelphia. Considering it's 10:30PM, I better get some sleep!

Keep up with our socials and website for the latest throughout the day. We'll be back tomorrow, but delivery times will vary this week depending on a variety of factors.

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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
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DYNAMITE PREVIEW

- AEW is doing a double taping of Dynamite and Collision at the DCU Center tonight in Worcester, Massachusetts. Five matches and a couple of segments have been announced for the broadcast. AEW World champion Samoa Joe and Swerve Strickland will have their contract signing for Dynasty and TNT champion Adam Copeland will be doing an in-ring promo. The Young Bucks will take on Best Friends in the first semi final of the AEW Tag Team title tournament and Mariah May will battle Thunder Rosa in a #1 contender's match for the AEW Women's title. Plus Bryan Danielson vs Lance Archer, Will Ospreay vs Powerhouse Hobbs, and Billy Gunn vs Jay White will also take place.

COLLISION RATING

- Collision on Saturday night drew 458,000 viewers, up 63,000 viewers from the previous show which was two weeks ago. The show had a 0.11 rating in 18-49, down 0.01 and placed #28 on the top 50 cable chart for the night. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)

RONDA ROUSEY ACCUSES DREW GULAK OF INAPPROPRIATE BEHAVIOR

- During an appearance on NewsNation with Brian Entin while promoting her brand new book Our Fight, former Raw and Smackdown Women's champion Ronda Rousey accused NXT star Drew Gulak of inappropriate behavior while she was waiting to speak to Triple H in the writers room. Rousey, who's been on a WWE culture-bashing tour over the past few weeks, said that she was standing when "this guy I was barely an acquaintance with" grabbed the string of her sweatpants as he was walking by. "And nobody reacts as if this is abnormal," Ronda said. Ronda asked Gulak that if her husband was there next to her if he would be comfortable walking up to her and grabbing the string of her sweatpants. "All the guys around me were like, this is part of the day. And if this guy was coming up to me and doing this kind of stuff to me when there are other people around, what’s happening to these other girls when I’m not in the hallway?" Ronda wondered. Ronda said that she told Gulak that if she hears that he put his hands on any other woman or do anything like that to her ever again, they were going to have a big problem. "And he was like ‘No, no, no, I’m glad you said something to me’ and he backpedaled. But it put a sour taste in my mouth about the culture there and what’s considered acceptable and how to touch and treat the women in the hallways," she continued. In a different interview, Ronda also said that while Vince is no longer part of WWE, his "little cronies" are still "running things for him," once again mentioning Bruce Prichard who she once called Vince's avatar. "I wouldn't be going back to work with them anytime soon because the last time he was gone, he was still running the show. Hopefully, he's completely gone and they are running more responsibly and allowing people to rehearse," she said. Ronda left WWE in August 2023.

CODY RHODES SHARES HIS AEW THOUGHTS

- Cody Rhodes was a guest on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani today and talked a variety of subjects, including AEW, a subject that was brought up by Helwani following the CM Punk interview on Monday. Asked for his opinion on CM Punk's comment that Tony Khan is not a boss, but just a nice guy, Cody Rhodes played more of a diplomat and said that while that is CM Punk's assessment, it's not his assessment. "It's always important for me to remind people that I am so proud of what me, Matt, Nick, Kenny, Tony, Bernie, Brandi, Dana, and Chris..." Cody said. "And I name all these people, because I was in those meetings and as much as the internet will try and spin the narrative in one way, if one of those people have not been at that start up level, the company would not have happened." Cody added that he's "insanely proud" of what AEW does for the industry overall, for wrestlers, their well-being, and their ability to feed their families and has unbelievable love for people in that locker room. The former TNT champion said that when he was there, the infrastructure was still being built up as a start up company but wishes nothing but the best to everyone in AEW. He joked that he loves Nick, Matt, and Kenny, and loves CM Punk too, if that is even all possible! Asked if it crossed his mind to go back to AEW at the end of his WWE deal before he signed, Cody said no, it didn't, and he didn't mean it as a negative way to AEW, but he's lucky to be in the current spot in WWE. Cody was also asked if he knew that CM Punk was coming back at the Survivor Series and spilled the beans that both Nick Khan and Triple H went to ask him before and to get his opinion so he went into War Games knowing what was about to happen. Cody said that that he's glad that CM Punk is back in WWE as he's a great addition to the locker room and was not shocked at all that the powers that be brought him back. "It's been wonderful since he came back," Cody said. You can watch the full interview at

THE ROCK AND ROMAN REIGNS ON THE TONIGHT SHOW

- The champion and the final boss will be on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon tonight for another WrestleMania push. While the two are frequent guests of the show, they've never appeared together on it until today. WWE Superstars will be very busy over the next few days appearing on different media outlets to promote WrestleMania, doing interviews for television, radio, and print. The majority of them are already in Philadelphia while the top stars get there over the next day after their several media commitments. The Tonight Show airs on NBC at 11:35PM ET.

CODY DEDICATING BOTH MANIA MATCHES TO HIS FANS

- Doing the media rounds ahead of WrestleMania, Cody Rhodes credited the fans for putting him in this position and said that if it were not for them, he wouldn't be in that spot on the card. The American Nightmare said that he is dedicating his matches on Saturday and Sunday to all his fans around the world. "Nothing in my entire career will ever be as touching," Rhodes said. "Just the fact that the biggest movie star on the planet came in...and they still do love him, The Final Boss. The Rock doesn't realize they still do love him. They just didn't want him to step in front of this year-long story that we've been part of and me trying to capture a championship my family's never held before." Rhodes joked that his mother told him that she's bringing bear spray for the match and Cody told her that it's not allowed in the stadium! "She's coming into WrestleMania week in Philadelphia probably with everyone just wondering what she's going to do, and who knows? She's the best, she's seen it all, she's perfect, she'll be there in the front row," Cody continued. "Rock ain't getting nowhere near her. And if I can say anything about The Rock's mom...lovely lady!"

DREW GULAK RESPONDS TO RONDA ROUSEY'S ACCUSATION

- WWE Superstar Drew Gulak has publicly responded to Ronda Rousey's claims of his inappropriate behavior backstage. Yesterday, Rousey accused Gulak of grabbing the string of her sweatpants as he was walking by and "nobody reacted as if this is abnormal." Now, Gulak, posted his own version of what happened on X, writing, "Backstage at a WWE event in 2022, I saw Ronda talking with a group in the hallway. I stopped to say hi and shake all their hands, and in an attempt to shake her hand, I accidentally touched her drawstring. Complete accident, and one that I had apologized to her for the mishap." The two versions obviously differ and at this point it's hard to say who is lying considering no other witnesses have stepped forward.

RAW RATING

- The WrestleMania go-home episode of Raw drew 1,783,000 viewers, up 54,000 viewers from last week's broadcast and the best number since February 19. The show was helped by the commercial-free first hour but was hurt big time by the Women's NCAA game which did 12,301,000 viewers head-to-head. Raw started big with 1,948,000 viewers for the first hour but dropped a lot after that, with 1,760,000 viewers in the second hour and then down to 1,643,000 viewers in the third hour. The show lost 305,000 viewers from the first to the last hour. Raw was #4, #5, and #7 in the top 50 cable chart for the night with 0.65, 0.58, and 0.55 ratings respectively for an average of 0.59, up 0.02 from the prior week. It was #4 overall on all of television as it beat everything on network as well. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)

WWE ON A&E RATING

- Week six of WWE on A&E programming had Rivals with an episode of The Miz vs Daniel Bryan followed by the Biography of Roman Reigns, directed by Paul Heyman. Rivals started the night with 333,000 viewers and a 0.10 rating in 18-49, good enough for #31 on the top 50 cable chart. That is up 13,000 viewers from last week's show but same in the demo rating. Biography followed with 337,000 viewers, down 20,000 viewers from the previous episode and a 0.11 rating in 18-49, the same as of last week. The show was #24 on the cable chart for the night. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)

GIULIA ON THE WAY TO THE U.S.

- Tokyo Sports is reporting that former IWGP Strong Women's champion Giulia is on her way to the United States and expected to be in Philadelphia for WrestleMania week. After a Tokyo Sports reporter confronted Giulia at the airport, Giulia joked that she was going to the Himalayas and planning to shave off her eyebrows while there. The report stated that Giulia boarded a flight to the United States afterward. The popular Japanese star is expected to join WWE shortly but according to various reports, Giulia will first help Rossy Ogawa launch his own all-female promotion before moving Stateside. Giulia's contract with STARDOM ended at the end of March and already appeared for NOAH, where she has a match booked for early May.

MYSTERY STAR TEASED FOR STAND & DELIVER PRE-SHOW

- Following last night's NXT on USA Network broadcast, a video posted by NXT Anonymous showed GM Ava talking to someone on the phone for a potential appearance this Saturday during the Stand & Deliver kickoff show. "I'm so excited that you're going to be joining us on the Countdown show on Saturday," Ava said to the mystery caller. "I know everyone is going to be so excited to see you." Ava referred to this individual as someone who's "always going to be part of the NXT family" and said that she'll see him/her on Saturday. The Stand & Deliver pre-show will start at 11 ET and will air on Peacock, WWE Network, and all of WWE's social media properties.

WWE NAMES C4 ENERGY AS OFFICIAL ENERGY DRINK PARTNER

- Nutrabolt, owner of C4 Energy, and WWE today announced an expansion to their multi-year partnership that will see C4 Ultimate Energy, one of the fastest-growing energy drink brands in the United States, become the first-ever Official Energy Drink Partner of WWE. As the first-ever Official Energy Drink Partner of WWE, C4 will receive prominent branding and exposure across a wide range of WWE properties and premium live events, including WrestleMania XL on Saturday, April 6 and Sunday, April 7 where it will serve as the first-ever sponsor of the WrestleMania Skycam which returns to offer the WWE Universe a unique viewing experience. In addition, C4 will be the presenting partner of the WrestleMania XL Night 2 press conference and WWE’s multi-day talent tryout as part of WrestleMania Week. C4 and WWE will also continue to collaborate across WWE, WWE Superstar and C4-branded social and digital channels to create exclusive and original content. “When it comes to next-level energy, nothing beats the WWE and its fans,” says Robert Zajac, Chief Marketing Officer at Nutrabolt. “We are thrilled to expand our partnership with the WWE as its Official Energy Drink and to offer fans nationwide the same Ultimate Undisputed Energy their favorite Superstars bring to the ring.” “C4 has been an innovative partner through the years which has enabled us to unlock the power of WWE to create unique integrations and branding opportunities across all touchpoints, including premium live events, on-site activations, social and digital content, and more,” said Michael DiNuzzo, VP of U.S. Business Development, Global Partnerships, WWE. “We are excited to introduce C4 Ultimate Energy as the Official Energy Drink Partner of WWE ahead of our biggest event of the year, WrestleMania XL.” C4 will employ a citywide takeover throughout Philadelphia for WrestleMania XL, sampling C4 Ultimate throughout the weekend including at WWE World and Lincoln Financial Field.


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Tuesday, April 2, 2024 Issue #7199
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Visit our website at
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

That was a very good Raw and the perfect ending. Just love how Rock is embracing this heel persona even though he's really protective of his image. Everyone looks like they're having fun.


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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
Web version at

CLASH AT THE CASTLE ANNOUNCED FOR SCOTLAND IN JUNE

- Clash at the Castle is returning as a premium live event, this time from The OVO Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland. The date for the event is Saturday, June 15, and marks the fourth international PLE this year so far following Elimination Chamber in Australia, Backlash in France, and Bash in Berlin in Germany. It’s the first time that a WWE PLE will be held in Scotland. Smackdown on the night before will also be held in the same location. “We are excited to bring both Friday Night SmackDown and Clash At The Castle: Scotland to our amazing fans in Scotland at the OVO Hydro in Glasgow this June,” said WWE President Nick Khan. “The world will see that this is one of the UK’s best venues and Scottish crowds are some of the loudest, craziest and most passionate on the planet.” WWE held Clash at the Castle in Wales in 2022 with over 62,000 fans in attendance. The Hydro is an arena though holding just under 15,000 seats. Fans interested in an exclusive presale opportunity can register now by visiting .

MATCHES FOR EACH NIGHT OF WRESTLEMANIA ANNOUNCED

- The card for the two-night WrestleMania was finally fully announced yesterday, with seven matches taking place on Saturday and six matches taking place on Sunday. Headlining night one is obviously The Rock and Roman Reigns vs Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins. Joining them are Rhea Ripley vs Becky Lynch, Gunther vs Sami Zayn, Jey Uso vs Jimmy Uso, Judgment Day vs DIY vs Awesome Truth vs The New Day vs The New Catch Republic vs A-Town Down Under in the six-pack ladder match, Rey Mysterio and Dragon Lee vs Dominik Mysterio and Santos Escobar, and the six-woman tag match between Jade Cargill, Bianca Belair, and Naomi vs Kairi Sane, Asuka, and Dakota Kai. Sunday will see Roman Reigns vs Cody Rhodes in the main event along with Seth Rollins vs Drew McIntyre, IYO Sky vs Bayley, LA Knight vs AJ Styles, Logan Paul vs Kevin Owens vs Randy Orton in a triple threat match, and a Philadelphia street fight between Bobby Lashley and The Street Profits vs Karrion Kross and AOP. Each night will have an equal four title matches.

ROMAN REIGNS TO INDUCT PAUL HEYMAN IN THE HALL OF FAME

- Roman Reigns will be inducting his special counsel Paul Heyman into the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2024 this coming Friday after Smackdown. The news was revealed last night on Raw during a backstage segment involving The Rock as well, where Reigns said he had a speech to write and Heyman confirmed the speech is for his induction. Heyman's speech is probably one of the most anticipated Hall of Fame speeches in history and while there were probably a few others worthy of inducting him, no one can complain about the selection considering the close relationship Reigns and Heyman share together. Heyman recently produced and directed the A&E Biography of Reigns which aired this past Sunday.

LIA MAIVIA TO BE INDUCTED INTO THE WWE HALL OF FAME CLASS OF 2024

- Lia Maivia, the late grandmother of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is the last person to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2024. Maivia is one of the first-ever female wrestling promoters with The Rock describing her as a trailblazer, protector, and the real final boss. Real name Ofelia Fuataga Maivia, she was born in 1931 and ran the Polynesian Pro Wrestling in Hawaii as a territory for the NWA after her husband, the High Chief Peter Maivia, passed away. Maivia died of a heart attack at her home in Florida in October 2008 at the age of 77. Her grandson, The Rock, will be inducting her during the ceremony.

CM PUNK TALKS IN-DEPTH ABOUT AEW PROBLEMS

- During a lengthy appearance on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani yesterday afternoon, CM Punk went into as much detail as he could about things he could talk about from his time in AEW. Punk described what led to his altercation with Jack Perry at All In, saying there was already some history there dating back to an episode of Collision where Perry wanted to smash the window of a rental car as part of a storyline. Tony Schiavone was the one who alerted Punk about it and Tony said that Perry had been cussing him, the doctor, and producers who all shot down the idea. Punk went over to Perry to explain to him that it should not be done and if he was interested, he could do it on a Wednesday on the other show. This led to Punk and Perry having a little scuffle at All In, with Punk saying he did not punch Perry but choked him a little bit until it was broken up by Samoa Joe and others. "I turned to Tony Khan, this place is a f*cking joke man. You're a clown. I quit," Punk recalled telling Tony Khan. But producer Jerry Lynn and Samoa Joe convinced him to go out and wrestle, knowing full well it was his last match with the company. He did admit that it was the right thing to do for referee Paul Turner, for Samoa Joe, for Jerry Lynn, and for the thousands who paid money to see him. Punk said he does not regret going to AEW as he made a lot of friends along the way but is sure that many in there didn't want him around. Asked about Tony Khan, Punk described him as a good person, but not a boss, and ultimately that works against the company. He described the chaos and rudderless ship backstage, with no one taking ownership and having the balls to stand up to those who make a mess and also talked in length about what happened with Hangman Page. Punk could not talk about Brawl Out as he was forced to sign an NDA by Tony Khan and refused to confirm or deny if his torn tricep came in the match against Moxley or in the backstage altercation with The Elite. The former AEW champion said that AEW is not a "real business" and they are not there to sell out arenas and make money. When asked what kind of business AEW is, Punk said, "I don't know. Having good matches, maybe?" You can watch the full interview at

LIL WAYNE TO APPEAR AT WRESTLEMANIA

- Five-time Grammy Award winner Lil Wayne will be appearing at WrestleMania this weekend. The 41-year-old New Orleans native appeared on Raw last night in Brooklyn in a backstage with Jey Uso where Uso invited him to Mania if his schedule is free. Wayne said he would be there and he also has a new single that he will have its world premiere at WrestleMania as well. He joins fellow rapper Meek Mill who is also appearing at WrestleMania and will doing the voice over for the cold open of the show.

SMACKDOWN RATING

- Smackdown certainly felt the wrath of the NCAA programming on CBS, TBS, and ESPN this past Friday as the show drew 2,201,000 viewers, down 34,000 viewers from the prior week and the least-watched episode of 2024. The show had a 0.60 rating in 18-49, down 0.01 from the prior week and was #3 on network television but #7 overall. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)

TKO MAJORITY OWNER ENDEAVOR GROUP SOLD TO SILVER LAKE

- Silver Lake, a private equity firm, today announced that it is acquiring Endeavor Group Holdings for $27.50 a share. The purchase price is valued at $13 billion and the transaction is expected to be finalized by the end of the first quarter of 2025. As part of the deal and majority owner of TKO Group Holdings which owns WWE and UFC, TKO will remain a public company. "We believe this transaction will maximize value for all of Endeavor’s public stockholders and are excited to continue to unlock and invest in the growth opportunities ahead as a private company," Endeavor CEO Ariel Emanuel said in a statement. Silver Lake initially invested in Endeavor in 2012 and helped with the sale of UFC in 2016. TKO shares rose nearly 5% after the news was announced and is now trading at just over $90.

AEW RELEASES 10 STARS

- For the first time, AEW has released several stars from its roster, mostly those who have not appeared on television much lately. In total, 10 were let go, one of which is an announcer. The releases were confirmed by Fightful and PWInsider. Stu Grayson, Jora Johl, Gravity, Slim J, Parker Boudreaux, Brandon and Brent Tate of The Boys, Anthony Henry, Jose the Assistant, and Dasha Kuret were all given the pink slip as the company is trying to trim its roster following years of not releasing anyone until their contract expires.

RAMPAGE RATING

- Rampage on TNT drew 349,000 viewers on Friday back in its regular time slot, down 192,000 viewers from the previous week when it aired after Dynamite. It was actually up 22,000 viewers from the March 15 episode which also aired on a Friday. The show had a 0.11 rating in 18-49, same from the March 15 show but down 0.07 from last week and was #28 on the top 50 cable chart for the night. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)


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Monday, April 1, 2024 Issue #7198
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Visit our website at
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

If you have a chance, watch the CM Punk interview on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani. Holy shit.


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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
Web version at

BRAY WYATT DOCUMENTARY OUT, BIG TEASE IN POST-CREDIT SCENE

- The Bray Wyatt documentary titled Becoming Immortal is now available to stream on Peacock. Filmed after the popular Superstar unexpectedly passed away at the age of 36 in August of last year, this Peacock Original documentary takes you behind the scenes and in the world of one of the greatest minds that the industry has ever seen, with new sit-down interviews specifically shot for this documentary including with Triple H, John Cena, Braun Strowman, his brother Bo Dallas, his sister Mika Rotunda, and his fiancee JoJo Offerman. But the two-hour documentary also ends with a tease in the post-credits, as the in memory graphic turns glitchy in typical Wyatt style and then a lantern is shown. The lantern eventually switches on after a few tries and we see an image of Uncle Howdy in the background and a voice which says "run!" According to Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful, Bo Dallas is making his return, resuming his Uncle Howdy gimmick. WWE sources confirmed that the ending was put there on purpose and it will eventually lead to his comeback, keeping the spirit of Bray Wyatt and the fireflies alive.

CM PUNK SAYS AEW WERE MAD AT HIM FOR SHOWING UP BACKSTAGE AT RAW

- Appearing on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, CM Punk said that AEW management were pissed at him for showing up unannounced backstage before a taping of Monday Night Raw in Chicago last May. Punk explained that he was going back home to Chicago from Tampa following a CFFC show and on the plane he met several WWE Superstars who were traveling for Raw. Punk said that he got a text from Bayley after landing saying that Liv Morgan, who was on the same flight, described him as being super nice and Bayley invited him to come over to say hello. Punk joked that it was all Bayley's fault and when he showed up he met a few other Superstars such as The Miz, Bobby Lashley, and Baron Corbin, before running into Triple H. A few minutes later, Punk said he was thrown out of the arena on the orders of Vince McMahon who did not like that he was there while he was still under an AEW contract. Helwani asked what did AEW think about it and Punk said that they used the word "betrayed." He said that AEW allows other people on the roster to appear on other shows and here he was just being backstage and not appearing anywhere on TV but were still mad about it. Punk said that if they wanted to be mad about it, then they could be mad about it and shrugged it off.

WWE TOUTS RATINGS SUCCESS AHEAD OF WRESTLEMANIA

- Ahead of WrestleMania, WWE issued a press release today touting their viewership increase among the 18-49 demographic. "These ratings are a testament to our creative team, production crew and all of the WWE Superstars that work together week in and week out to produce these impressive results," said WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque. The press release said that in Q1 2024, Friday Night Smackdown averaged 892,000 total viewers in 18-49, up 15% from the year prior. The show was #1 for 11 of the first 12 weeks of the quarter among all shows while the February 16 episode, it scored 985,000 viewers in 18-49, making it the most-viewed broadcast program in primetime for the entire week of February 12. Jumping to Raw, Q1 2024 saw Raw averaging 733,000 viewers in 18-49, up 6% compared to the prior year. It ranked #1 on Monday for nine of the 13 weeks during the quarter and highlighted the January 29 episode which was the start of Pat McAfee as a commentator where the show had 811,000 viewers in 18-49, an increase of 13% over the prior week. NXT only had one line in the press release but registered the biggest jump in 18-49 as the show has an increase of 31% in 18-49 for Q1 2024.

NY POST PUBLISHES LOVE LETTER JANEL GRANT SENT TO VINCE MCMAHON

- A New York Post article has shed light on a love letter written by Janel Grant to Vince McMahon on December 24, 2021 where she described the former WWE CEO as "my best friend, my love, and my everything." Grant, who sued McMahon, John Laurinaitis, and WWE, is claiming that she was coerced into writing the letter and her attorney, Ann Callis, said that Grant was instructed to write it by the former WWE chief. Screenshots of text messages a few days earlier corroborate her version of events as she sent a picture of her right arm where she had surgery on her left finger, asking Vince, "How will I write your letter? I can type & read it. Or try to write in a couple of days. I'm so sorry if I mess this up. I want u to have a nice letter," along with a sad face emoji. Jessica Taub Rosenberg, McMahon's attorney from the law firm Kasowitz Benson Torres, told the Post that no one coerced Grant to write the letter and she wrote it of her own accord. Grant’s spokesperson said many of the lines in the letter were taken from the 1947 film The Bishop’s Wife as well as other exiting material from pop culture. The letter, published in full by the Post, was Grant's 24th draft and is four pages long. You can read it at

ESPN TAKES A BACKSTAGE LOOK AT THE WM MAIN EVENT CHANGE

- ESPN's Marc Raimondi and Mike Coppinger wrote a detailed look at how WWE had to switch things around and change their planned Roman Reigns vs The Rock match at WrestleMania 40 after fans turned on The Rock and supported Cody Rhodes. Featuring quotes from Rhodes, Seth Rollins, Rock's writer Brian Gewirtz, and WWE Chief Content Officer Triple H, the team behind the storylines admitted that they had to call an audible and listen to what the people actually wanted. Triple H told ESPN that things are run differently now that he's in charge. "My career, I learned from being here, but there were things along the way that I always thought I would do differently," Levesque said. "In this time now, I get to make those calls and with a large team of people. Whether people will want to believe it or not, I think we were sort of looking at this as here's where we're going to go to get this started and it has the opportunity of going this way or that way." He said that they call audibles "every single week" depending on reactions because this is what the business is all about. "The beautiful thing with this group and with Cody and Roman and Rock especially, everybody's got their ear to the ground. And then we all just get together and figure the shit out," Triple H noted. Meanwhile, to make this all happen, The Rock had to get on board as well, especially since it meant turning heel. Brian Gewirtz said that this is not The Rock's first rodeo and he's all too familiar with the "card subject to change" term. "I think he went into this with Rock vs. Roman, we have like 95 pages of merchandise and all these kinds of things," Gewirtz said, adding that this is one of those things where "WWE needs to do what WWE needs to do."

RICKY STARKS DOING OK AFTER INJURY SCARE

- The Ricky Starks and Big Bill vs Top Flight match on Collision this past Saturday ended prematurely and with a different finish and scheduled winners after Starks had an injury scare during the match. During the match, which was part of the AEW Tag Team title tournament, Starks was hit with a Pele Kick off the turnbuckle by Darius Martin which looked like it knocked him silly. After a few more moves, they went straight to a finish which confused everyone as Starks didn't kick out of the pinfall and the referee stopped the count. He was then DDT'd and Martin pinned him again, this time with the referee counting to three. Starks later wrote that he was all good and "everything checked out fine" but was being precautious. Dave Meltzer of the Observer reported that Starks and Bill were originally scheduled to win the match and then take on FTR in the semi final of the tournament. The other semi final match features The Young Bucks vs Best Friends.


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Sunday, March 31, 2024 Issue #7197
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

Next week there will be a lot of content posted especially when I get on the ground in Philadelphia. If you're around and have cool photos or videos to share, please send them over and we'll obviously give you credit.

We will be posting content on the following social media so please give us a follow:

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CODY RHODES CONFIRMS SIGNING NEW MULTI-YEAR WWE DEAL

- Cody Rhodes has confirmed in an interview on 8 News Now Las Vegas that he has signed a new long-term deal with WWE and while he did not announce how long it is for, he said it goes past his 40th birthday and he's 38 now. "Not to like...give you a scoop, because it was widely reported, but I did sign a new contract with WWE. And it extends beyond my 40th birthday," Rhodes told his interviewer Justin Walker. Rhodes said that the plan is still to retire without it being a painful process when it's time to step out. He mentioned that his father retired as an "old man wrestler" and while he loved it, as his son, it was hard to see. "My daughter, she's two going on three here shortly, there does have to be a time, just like he did with us, where I have to be home all the time and be there with her," Cody said. The American Nightmare continued to add that he hit his prime run "late in the game" so the end date is no longer 40, but he'll update the number when he gets an idea!

RAW IN BROOKLYN SOLD OUT

- Tomorrow's Monday Night Raw in Brooklyn is completely sold out and Ticketmaster is out of tickets except for verified resale ones. @WrestleTix reports that the count is 13,345, with the last couple of hundred tickets selling out over the weekend. This number is over 1,000 more than their last visit there this past December which was a Smackdown taping. Both The Rock and Roman Reigns will be at the Barclays Center for the final push for WrestleMania on Raw.

ANDRE THE GIANT MEMORIAL BATTLE ROYAL PARTICIPANTS

- The 20 WWE Superstars who will be participating in the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal this coming Friday on Smackdown have been revealed. Included in the list are Akira Tozawa, Andrade, Apollo Crews, Ashante "Thee" Adonis, Bronson Reed, Brutus Creed, Cameron Grimes, Cedric Alexander, Chad Gable, Elton Prince, Ivar, JD McDonagh, Julius Creed, Kit Wilson, Omos, Otis, Ricochet, Sanga, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Veer. Reed was the runner up of last year's battle royal after he was eliminated by winner Bobby Lashley.

TAMYRA MENSAH-STOCK MAKES NXT IN-RING DEBUT

- Olympic gold medalist Tamyra Mensah-Stock made her NXT in-ring debut last night in Melbourne, Florida, at a non-televised live event. She wrestled - and won - against BreAnna Covington in the eighth match of the 10-match card. Covington is a track and field athlete from Fresno who is also under a WWE developmental deal. Mensah-Stock, who won the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics in the freestyle 68kg division, signed with WWE in May of last year and has been training at the WWE Performance Center ever since. She had previously made an appearance at SummerSlam in Las Vegas with fellow gold medalist Gable Steveson. The 31-year-old became the first black female wrestler to win a gold medal in women's freestyle wrestling.

WWE ON A&E PROGRAMMING TO RETURN LATER IN APRIL AND MAY AFTER TONIGHT

- WWE Rivals and Biography: WWE Legends will air their last episodes for a few weeks tonight on A&E. Rivals will start at 8PM with The Miz vs Daniel Bryan while Biography will follow with an episode focused on Roman Reigns, directed and produced by his special counsel, Paul Heyman. Rivals returns on the air on April 21 but instead of Freddie Prinze Jr as host, it will be Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias. New episodes will tackle Hulk Hogan vs Randy Savage, Steve Austin vs Booker T, Ric Flair vs Dusty Rhodes, Triple H vs Seth Rollins, John Cena vs Batista, and Hulk Hogan vs The Rock. Biography resumes on May 26 with episodes on Mark Henry, Eddie Guerrero, The Miz, Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat, Rob Van Dam, Ted DiBiase, The Steiner Brothers, Trish Stratus, Becky Lynch, Paul Heyman, Extreme Championship Wrestling, and another episode with Steve Austin training and preparing to get back to the ring against Kevin Owens. In addition, WWE's Most Wanted Treasures also returns on April 14 for a brand new season with Booker T, Mick Foley, and Lita on the hunt for memorabilia.

MATT CARDONA ANSWERS THE COPE OPEN ON COLLISION

- Matt Cardona made a surprise appearance on Collision from London, Ontario yesterday answering Adam Copeland's Cope Open challenge. While this is not the first time that Cardona appeared on AEW television, it's been a couple of years since the indie star showed up there. You have to go back to 2020 and the pandemic era to find his last appearance for AEW. As you might probably expect, Cardona did not win the TNT title but he did give Copeland a good challenge and hit his finisher Radio Silence for a very near fall. Ultimately, he fell victim to Copeland's spear to end the match. Cardona, the husband of WWE Superstar Chelsea Green, is currently a free agent but keeps himself very occupied as the former Intercontinental champion has mastered the art of indie wrestling, becoming one of the most successful wrestling stars without any of the big brands behind his marketing.


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Saturday, March 30, 2024 Issue #7196
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Visit our website at
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

Jade Cargill looked like a true Superstar last night. Let's hope her in-ring improved and if it did, she will probably be WWE's next big star.

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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
Web version at

WRESTLEMANIA KICKOFF SHOW ON FRIDAY

- A WrestleMania Kickoff show will be held on Friday, April 5 starting at 5PM ET outside the Wells Fargo Center ahead of Smackdown. Hosted by Michael Cole and Pat McAfee, the WrestleMania Kickoff will also feature Paul "Triple H" Levesque, WWE World Heavyweight champion Seth Rollins, WWE Women's World champion Rhea Ripley, Intercontinental champion Gunther, Cody Rhodes, Drew McIntyre, Becky Lynch, Jey Uso, Jimmy Uso, and Sami Zayn. The event will be streaming live on Peacock/WWE Network and on all WWE social media platforms. The Kickoff name is usually reserved for the pre-show but this year the name of the two pre-shows leading to the event will be called Countdown to WrestleMania. They will be two-hour events and will be hosted by Michael Cole, Pat McAfee, CM Punk, Big E, Wade Barrett, and Jackie Redmond.

FIRST HOUR OF RAW TO BE COMMERCIAL FREE

- Next Monday's Raw will have the first hour commercial free as WWE continues to push for the biggest WrestleMania ever. Raw will be held in Brooklyn, New York, and it will be the final stop for the red brand before the show of shows. Both The Rock and the WWE Undisputed Universal champion Roman Reigns are both slated to be on the show as we'll definitely see the fallout from last week's crazy ending where Rock busted open Cody Rhodes and beat him up outside in the Chicago rain. Brooklyn's Barclays Center is almost sold out and will be by the time the show starts.

ANDRE THE GIANT MEMORIAL BATTLE ROYAL SET FOR SMACKDOWN

- The Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal will be returning during WrestleMania weekend and just like it has been in the past few years, the battle royal will be part of the Smackdown on the eve of night one of WrestleMania. The match was introduced in 2014 as part of the actual premium live event but in 2021 it was moved to Smackdown the night before. Bobby Lashley won the last one, eliminating Bronson Reed. Among the nine winners of the battle royal, five of them are no longer with the company and one was sent back to NXT. A short-lived women's WrestleMania battle royal was also introduced in 2018 and but it was held only twice. Naomi and Carmella are the only two winners.

MANIA LADDER MATCH PARTICIPANTS CONFIRMED

- The WrestleMania Six-Pack ladder match has been completed after the final two teams moved on to the show after winning their last qualifying matches last night on Smackdown. Grayson Waller and Austin Theory defeated The Street Profits first and then Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate defeated Humberto and Angel to clinch the second and final spot. The match will now feature Damian Priest and Finn Balor defending the title against A-Town Down Under, The New Catch Republic, DIY, Awesome Truth, and The New Day.

SIX-WOMAN TAG TEAM MATCH ANNOUNCED FOR WRESTLEMANIA

- A six-woman tag team match has been made official for WrestleMania after last night's Smackdown. After the main event of Bianca Belair vs Dakota Kai, the WWE Women's Tag Team champions Kabuki Warriors attacked Belair and Naomi came out for the save. But with the numbers still favoring Damage CTRL, Smackdown's newest signee, Jade Cargill, walked down to even the odds. Cargill hit the big boot on Asuka, hit a pop-up power bomb on Dakota Kai, and then delivered the Jaded finisher to Kairi Sane. The faction then retreated as the faces stood in the ring staring them down. Smackdown General Manager Nick Aldis then made the match official during a backstage segment filmed for WWE's social media properties. You can see the video at

REY MYSTERIO CHALLENGES DOM AND ESCOBAR FOR TAG MATCH

- Rey Mysterio is looking to take on his son Dominik once again at WrestleMania, but this time in a tag team match. On Smackdown last night, the WWE Hall of Famer challenged Dominik and the leader of Legado del Fantasma, Santos Escobar, for a tag team match next weekend against himself and a partner of his choosing. Fans inside the arena chanted for Carlito, which popped a smile from the Puerto Rican. "Which one of you dorks are going to be the one?" Dominik responded among the boos from the crowd. "It's the newest member of the LWO," Mysterio responded, and former NXT North American champion Dragon Lee came out. With both factions standing across each other, it was Elektra Lopez who ran her mouth at Zelina Vega, and Vega responded with a massive slap across the face. All hell then broke loose as a brawl ensued between all members of the factions. You can see the video at
/.


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Friday, March 29, 2024 Issue #7195
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Visit our website at
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

And there I thought Tony Khan finally listened to most people and stopped tweeting stupid stuff...Tony, bro, get off that app!!


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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
Web version at

JADE CARGILL DEBUTS ON SMACKDOWN TONIGHT

- Jade Cargill will be making her much-awaited debut on Smackdown live tonight on FOX. While the former TBS champion has appeared on WWE television in multiple backstage segments after she signed, she only made her in-ring debut in the women's Royal Rumble in January and took out Nia Jax. But after that, she was gone again and the company never followed up with the Jax/Cargill confrontation. WWE has delayed the 31-year-old's full debut to prepare her better in the ring and she has undergone extensive training at the WWE Performance Center under the watchful eyes of experienced coaches. Cargill wrote on X that "weather reports say a storm is coming" tonight on Smackdown and earlier thanked her fans for sticking with her journey throughout "the small" of her career.

SMACKDOWN PREVIEW

- Smackdown tonight will be moving away a little bit from the whole Bloodline saga as it focuses on other matters leading up to WrestleMania next week. The last two teams in the mini tournament for a spot in the WrestleMania six-pack ladder match will be determined tonight with The Street Profits taking on A-Town Down Under while The New Catch Republic battle Legado del Fantasma. Each winner of those matches advance to WrestleMania. The only other two matches announced are Bianca Belair vs Dakota Kai and Kevin Owens teams up with Randy Orton to take on Pretty Deadly. Plus, Jade Cargill finally arrives!

NXT BATTLEGROUND MOVING DATE AND LOCATION

- The @WrestleVotes X account is reporting that the NXT Battleground premium live event has been moved from May 26 to June 9. The show was originally scheduled to take place from the Enmarket Arena in Savannah, Georgia and was going to be followed by a live Monday Night Raw the next day. With the date change, the location is also moving. The new location for the show is rumored to be the UFC APEX, the live events and production center for UFC located in Las Vegas. Opened in June 2019, the APEX was the home of the UFC during the COVID pandemic and still hosts the UFC Vegas series. Stage A is where the show would be held, a 12,425-square foot studio which pretty much holds less number of people than the WWE Performance Center where NXT is taped weekly.

VINCE MCMAHON SELLS NEARLY 3.5 MILLION TKO SHARES

- Vince McMahon has sold an additional 3,484,006 TKO shares according to a filing with the United Sates Securities and Exchange Commission. The transaction was recorded on March 5 and says that McMahon entered into a "variable prepaid forward sale agreement with an unidentified bank" on March 24, 2020. "The physical settlement contemplated by the Agreement were divided into 15 components, each of the first 14 of which were with respect to 232,267 shares of the Issuer's Class A common stock and the last of which was with respect to 232,268 shares of the Issuer's Class A common stock, and took place on each weekday between March 5, 2024 and March 25, 2024. Upon such physical settlement, the Reporting Person received, in the aggregate, approximately $100 million from the Bank," the SEC filing says. McMahon has made three large transactions to sell TKO stocks over the past few months as his involvement with the company came to an end after he resigned in January. The former WWE chief has received over $1 billion from these sales. McMahon still owns over 11 million worth of TKO shares which at today's value are worth just under $1 billion.

MORE WWE VIP SUPERSTARS ADD-ONS ANNOUNCED FOR WWE WORLD

- Three more VIP Superstars have been added to the WWE World festivities at WrestleMania week. With all 11 previously-announced stars all sold out, WWE added Bayley for Thursday, Dominik Mysterio on Sunday, and LA Knight on Monday, each costing the usual $200 a pop. A general admission ticket is also required for the day. Many other WWE Superstars will be appearing throughout the week for meet and greets without additional payments including the likes of Pete Dunne, Dragon Lee, Grayson Waller, Chelsea Green, Zelina Vega, The Creed Brothers, Bron Breakker, Carmelo Hayes, Cora Jade, and many others. For tickets and more information go to .

DYNAMITE RATING

- Dynamite this week drew just 747,000 viewers, down 53,000 viewers from the previous show and the least-watched episode on a Wednesday night since April 2021. The show had a 0.23 rating in the 18-49 demo, down 0.04 from last week and the lowest since June 2020. It was #3 on the top 50 cable chart for the night. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)

TONY KHAN GETS INTO ANOTHER X ALTERCATION WITH ERIC BISCHOFF

- AEW President Tony Khan got into another altercation online with former WCW President Eric Bischoff, this time somewhat unprovoked and back firing on him. Bischoff's Strictly Business podcast co-host Jon Alba wrote on X that they are ending the successful show due to other commitments and Khan did not resist to fire a response in the early hours of the morning. "Sunsetting this fraud of a business podcast before the next AEW media deal is a wise choice," Khan wrote. Cue in Bischoff, who saw the post after waking up. "A money mark with no talent other than spending daddy’s money, going all the way to Canada to draw less than 4k in one of the hottest pro wrestling markets in North America, talking about “wise choices”? Strap in. It’s going to be a fun day," Bischoff responded. In fact, later in the day, Bischoff announced his new solo show aptly titled Wise Choices, which he credited Khan for the name! "Hey @TonyKhan, check out my new YouTube show "Wise Choices". We premiered tonight and hand an amazing audience who had a LOT to say. There are some nuggets in there that may help you get out your 55 straight week drought," Bischoff continued. The digs continued from Bischoff on the show, making fun of Khan after the AEW Dynamite numbers came out showing it was the least-watched episode since April 2021.

MATT HARDY RECEIVES NEW AEW CONTRACT OFFER

- Matt Hardy revealed on his podcast that he has been offered a new contract with AEW to stay "for a few years," with his current one set to expire at the end of this month. "I’m looking through it," Matt said. "I’m like deciding what I want to do going forward. There’s obviously still some options. I got to make sure that I’m aware of the ins and outs of the contract, and I want to make sure everything is up to par as far as like what I want it to be." Matt noted that since he only has a couple of more years left in him doing this, he wants to make the most out of those years, and wants to be optimized in whatever he is doing. "So I’m very happy to be invited to return to AEW and work for AEW for the foreseeable future, but we shall see. Because right now I’m just currently weighing out the options. There’s a couple things out there, and I would say in the next month, I should probably know what my immediate future’s going to hold," he concluded. Matt last competed in an AEW match on the January 5 episode of Rampage, teaming with his brother Jeff and Mark Briscoe to take on The Butcher, The Blade, and Kip Sabian.


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Thursday, March 28, 2024 Issue #7194
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Visit our website at
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

One week to go for Philly for me. Who's going to be there?


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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
Web version at

BECKY LYNCH SAYS SHE HAS ONLY TWO MONTHS LEFT ON WWE DEAL

- Appearing on the MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani to promote her new book, Becky Lynch revealed that she is in her final two months of her contract with WWE and there have not been any talks of renewal yet. “Nobody’s said nothing to me,” Lynch responded when Helwani asked what’s the status of a new deal. Pressed if she was interested in renewing her deal, Lynch simply responded, “We’ll see!” Helwani asked Lynch if she would be willing to talk to other promotions if after the next two months pass without a deal but Lynch said she’s WWE, although she was unsure if it was “WWE or bust.” Lynch said that the odds of finalizing a new deal before WrestleMania are not good simply because as a lot of things are happening over the next week but she’s confident this will not be her last WrestleMania. “At this stage in the game, contrary to a lot of the thoughts in this book, when I was coming up, I am so confident in my ability and my worth,” Becky said. “I’m not worried.” Lynch is not the only star who is still without a renewal. Her husband, Seth Rollins, is also out of a contract in a few months and so is Drew McIntyre, who has not signed a new deal yet.

WWE SPEED TO DEBUT APRIL 3

- The WWE Speed weekly show which will air exclusively on X will start next week on Tuesday, April 3. Speed matches will have a three-minute time limit in a tournament-style format where the winner of the tournament will also receive the WWE Speed championship. WWE uploaded a video hosted by Corey Graves explaining the format of Speed where he said it will be a "sprint to the finish line." Matches for Speed have been taped before Smackdown lately and it obviously won't be a live show. WWE Speed is the latest show, this time in short-form, to join WWE's weekly schedule and the first one which will air only on X. This is part of a two-year deal that WWE has reached with Elon Musk's social media company.

UNDERTAKER AND HULK HOGAN ADDED TO WWE WORLD

- WWE has added WWE Legends autograph sessions at WWE World during WrestleMania week with the first two Legends announced being The Undertaker and Hulk Hogan. Prices for The Undertaker, who will appear on Saturday, range from $219.99 to $249.99 while Hogan, who is there on Sunday, ranges from $199 to $399. Prices differ depending on which option you choose and some of them includes action figures, Funkos, trading cards, etc. A separate general admission ticket is required on top of the Undertaker or Hulk Hogan add-ons.

CM PUNK TO APPEAR ON THE MMA HOUR WITH ARIEL HELWANI

- CM Punk will be on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani next Monday live in studio for his first extended interview since signing with WWE. Helwani, who interviewed Punk at his home before his UFC debut, said there will be no restrictions on topics, nothing off limits, and it will be no holds barred. Becky Lynch was on the same show yesterday to promote her new book and talked about a variety of subjects including her current WWE deal which expires in two months, how WWE mishandled Ronda Rousey, wanting to originally join TNA, and much more.

NXT RATING

- NXT this week drew 601,000 viewers, up 32,000 viewers from the prior week. The show had a 0.17 rating in 18-49, down 0.01 from last time around and placed #10 on the top 50 cable chart for the night. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)

PAUL HEYMAN SAYS HE WILL HAVE NO HOF SPEECH PREPARED

- Appearing on The Rich Eisen Show yesterday, soon-to-be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame Paul Heyman said that he will not have a planned speech for his induction and will let the Philly crowd dictate how they want it to go. "I’m going to figure this out as we go along. I’m going to take the pulse of the room that night. I’m going to wing this," Heyman said. Winging it will surely not be a problem for Heyman, regarded as one of the industry's best talkers, and he has plenty of stories from his career that he can dig into. Heyman said he doesn't know what the crowd will expect from him, saying it could be modern-day WWE, Roman Reigns and the Bloodline, or even ECW since they will be in Philadelphia. "I really won’t know until I take the temperature of the room that night. And as you know better than I, you always have to know your audience. So once I feel the crowd, I'll pretty much know what I have to do to deliver for them," Heyman confidently said. Heyman will headline the class of 2024 in a ceremony that will start after the conclusion of Smackdown on Friday, April 5. It will air live on Peacock.

REBELLION ONLY HAS 364 TICKETS SOLD SO FAR

- With 23 days to go, the TNA Rebellion pay-per-view could be one of the lowest-attended shows for the company due to abysmal ticket sales. The show, which will be held at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, has only 364 tickets sold for a location that is configured for 1,231 seats. This is the same place where Hard To Kill was held in January and had a sold-out crowd, but the decision to try and repeat that in the same location has backfired big time for the company. They have sold even less tickets for the television tapings the next day according to @WrestleTix, with just 237 tickets out for the Sunday, April 21 tapings.

DOUBLE OR NOTHING 2024 TICKETS ON PRE-SALE NOW

- Tickets for Double or Nothing 2024 went on pre-sale this afternoon at 1PM ET using the code AEWGEN3 on AXS.com. Judging from the initial map, the 200 Level of the MGM Grand Garden Arena has not been opened at all but could open later depending on ticket sales. The cheapest tickets are reasonably priced at $31.25 including taxes and fees. Most of the tickets are $71.58 and $107.55, also inclusive of all fees. Floor tickets, which include the commemorative chair, are $750. Collision the night before will also take place at the same location and pre-sale is also on at Ticketmaster.com using the same code.


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Wednesday, March 27, 2024 Issue #7193
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

Nothing to say today, back tomorrow!

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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
Web version at

DOUBLE OR NOTHING TO BE HELD AT MGM GRAND GARDEN ARENA

- Double or Nothing 2024 will be taking place from the MGM Grand Garden Arena on Sunday, May 26, marking the first time that the arena will host this yearly Las Vegas pay-per-view since 2019. The Collision tapings on the eve of Double or Nothing will also be held at the MGM Grand as AEW moves away from the massive T-Mobile Arena in favor of the smaller, more intimate location across the street. The fallout from Double or Nothing will be at the Kia Forum in Inglewood, California on Wednesday, May 29 for Dynamite and a Collision taping on Thursday, May 30 at the Acrisure Arena in Palm Springs, California. Tickets for the upcoming Las Vegas and Los Angeles events go on sale this Saturday, March 30, via AEWTix.com, AXS.com and Ticketmaster.com. On sale information for Collision in Palm Springs will be announced soon.

DYNAMITE PREVIEW

- Dynamite remains in Canada for its second week as the show will be coming to you live from the Centre Videotron in Quebec City tonight on TBS where over 4,000 fans are expected. Four matches have been announced for the broadcast so far with Will Ospreay vs Katsyori Shibata, Swerve Strickland vs Konosuke Takeshita, Best Friends vs Undisputed Kingdom in a quarter final match in the AEW Tag Team title tournament, and a four-way #1 contender's match for the TBS title between Kris Statlander, Skye Blue, Anna Jay, and Willow Nightingale. Mercedes Mone will also be on the show and on commentary during the women's four-way match.

RAW RATING

- This week's episode of Monday Night Raw drew 1,729,000 viewers, up 43,000 viewers from the previous week and facing tough competition in the form of NCAA basketball. The show started with 1,757,000 viewers in the first hour and then climbed to 1,833,000 viewers in the second hour before dropping to 1,598,000 viewers in the third and final hour. Raw was #2, #3, and #4 in the top 50 cable chart for the night with 0.60, 0.55, and 0.55 ratings respectively for an average of 0.57, up 0.02 from the prior week. Raw was #3 overall in the chart among all of television behind the Women's NCAA Basketball match on ESPN and The Bachelor on ABC. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)

ROCK AND REIGNS ON THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JIMMY FALLON

- The Undisputed WWE Universal champion Roman Reigns and The Final Boss Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson will be appearing on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon next week. The Bloodline duo will be doing WrestleMania promotion on the popular late night show on Wednesday, April 3. The Tonight Show crew shot a small clip for Instagram as the golden WWE replica title made its way through Studio 6B with different staff of the show. Reigns usually stops by the show before big events and The Rock is also a favorite on The Tonight Show.

CM PUNK'S SEGMENT ON RAW DRAWS OVER 2.2 MILLION VIEWERS

- The segment between CM Punk, Drew McIntyre, and WWE World Heavyweight champion Seth "Freakin" Rollins brought in the views on Monday Night Raw as their quarter hour segment hit 2.2 million viewers. The 2.2 million figure represents a 500,000-viewer increase over the average that the show did on Monday night and even scored a big 0.71 rating in 18-49. As a comparison, the three-hour broadcast did a 0.57 average in that particular demo. Punk had some fun on Instagram, writing "We set records" on gate, merchandise, swears, and amount of time it took to leave the parking lot. "Thank you. All 85K (turnstile count from Chicago delegation) of you that came to the show last night," Punk wrote, obviously a dig at the All In attendance. He then wrote, "Just kidding. Don't get upset. Chicago delegation would not lie to you," as another AEW dig, quoting the attendance of 14,950 paid and a total of 15,431 including comped tickets. "Wanted to deliver while injured and felt like I did. Chicago is
the best. Love you all," he concluded.

WWE ON A&E RATING

- Week five of WWE on A&E featured WWE Rivals: Hardy Boyz vs Dudley Boyz vs Edge & Christian and then it was followed by Biography: The British Bulldog. The Rivals episode drew 320,000 viewers and a 0.11 rating in 18-49, placing #37 on the chart. That was down 10,000 viewers from last week's show but up 0.03 in the demo. The British Bulldog biography had 357,000 viewers, down 9,000 viewers from last week's show and a 0.11 rating in 18-49, which was up 0.02 from the previous week. It placed #32 on the top 50 cable chart. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)

RIDGE HOLLAND "STEPPING AWAY" FROM IN-RING COMPETITION

- In an angle shot last night on NXT, Ridge Holland announced that he is stepping away from NXT "indefinitely." Holland, who broke Big E's neck on Smackdown two years ago for real and then had a worked injury angle with Ilja Dragunov on NXT, thanked William Regal, Shawn Michaels, and other producers and talent for the journey but cannot risk injuring himself or someone else anymore. The former member of the Brawling Brutes added that he knows what the perception is about him and no matter if they are true or not, it had an effect on him. Holland noted that all he wants to be is a good father and a good husband and he doesn't want to take work home anymore, and with that, he announced that he is leaving the in-ring competition. To add to the angle, WWE has already moved his bio to the alumni section on WWE.COM. Holland was moved back to NXT after the Brawling Brutes disbanded.

NORTH AMERICAN TITLE MATCH ANNOUNCED FOR STAND & DELIVER

- The NXT North American title will be defended in a triple threat match at Stand & Deliver on Saturday, April 6 with champion Oba Femi defending the gold against Dijak and Josh Briggs. This particular title has always been defended in a multi-man match at Stand & Deliver, with a gauntlet eliminator match in 2021, a ladder match in 2022, and a fatal five-way match in 2023. The triple threat is the fifth match to be announced for this event which will take place from the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia starting at Noon ET on WrestleMania Saturday. This will be the biggest NXT crowd since the Takeover days with over 9,000 tickets distributed so far.

MIKE ROTUNDA DISCUSSES HIS SON, HOF, AND DOCUMENTARY

- In an interview with Bill Apter, soon-to-be WWE Hall of Famer Mike Rotunda said that the fact that Bray Wyatt is not going to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame this year is much less stressful on their family. Rotunda said that after Bray passed, he thought they would put him in the Hall of Fame immediately but thinks that WWE reassessed the situation. "He will be at some point," Rotunda said about his son in the HOF. "But I think that WWE reassessed stuff and thought it was too soon to go there with our family and the reactions and the stress on us." Rotunda, who used the IRS gimmick during his second stint with the company, said that when Bray passed, he called Triple H because he did not want rumors and "internet crap" about him so Levesque took the reigns and distributed the news himself. "Then later, Triple H called and said we would like to do a documentary so his kids know him when they get older," he continued, adding that he watched the documentary and it was sad, but
very well done. "WWE has been awesome. They just have been very helpful throughout the process with Windham passing. And very generous and I can't say enough about that. Along with The Rock, he was sending food here every other day, and people reaching out, Undertaker and so many people," he said.


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Tuesday, March 26, 2024 Issue #7192
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

That was an excellent Raw last night with Attitude Era vibes. It really was the best show they've done in a very long time, at least for a Monday night. The Rock is on a whole other planet.


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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
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THE ROCK MAKES UNANNOUNCED APPEARANCE ON RAW

- The Rock made an unannounced surprise appearance at the Allstate Arena last night and brought some Attitude Era with him as the show closed in major chaos, blood, and bleeped words. The People's Champion made his presence felt at the beginning of the show, interrupting Cody Rhodes' opening segment. The Rock didn't say anything at all and just whispered something to Cody and left the ring. A backstage interview afterwards was unsuccessful in trying to decipher what Rock told Cody. At the end of the broadcast as Cody Rhodes was battling Jimmy Uso and Solo Sikoa backstage, The Rock showed up again and beat the holy hell out of Rhodes. The two took matters outside where it was raining and Rock threw Cody into the side of his bus, busting him open. Rock took out a white weight-lifting belt which had Mama Rhodes on it and wiped Cody's blood on it and then talked about hard times referring to Cody's dad Dusty and told Cody that this is what happens "when you f*ck with the final boss." The Rock left Cody a bloody pulp and then looked at the camera to address Cody's mother. "Look at your son, Mama Rhodes. It didn’t have to be this way but now, this is the only way," The Rock said. While not quite exactly what the nWo did to The Rock in the buildup to WrestleMania 18, this had a similar Attitude Era feel with The Rock now playing the perfect heel. You can see the segment at .

CM PUNK TO BE GUEST COMMENTATOR AT WRESTLEMANIA

- CM Punk will be the guest commentator for the WWE World Heavyweight title match between champion Seth Rollins and challenger Drew McIntyre. Punk, who returned on Raw last night, seems like he had a free reign on the mic, ruffling some feathers along the way with his promo which at one point even broke Drew McIntyre when McIntyre said he was the chosen one and Punk fired back asking if he has the balls to say the name of who called him that. (For those unaware, it was Vince McMahon) Punk also teased being the referee for their match but said he can't be objectively fair towards the "two dipshits!" In the end, Punk settled to sit by Michael Cole and Pat McAfee and do commentary and said he guarantees that he'll do something that WWE has never done before: make them two interesting. You can see the video at .

SMACKDOWN RATING

- Friday Night Smackdown on FOX drew 2,235,000 viewers last week, down 90,000 viewers from the prior week for the least-watched episode of 2024 so far. Smackdown had a 0.61 rating in the 18-49 demo, down 0.07 from the prior week and also the lowest of the year. The NCAA basketball tournament on CBS, TBS, and TNT took the big share of the TV market on Friday and while the show was #2 for the night on network, it slid down to #6 overall. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)

MEEK MILL TO APPEAR AT WRESTLEMANIA

- It looks like rapper Meek Mill will be appearing at WrestleMania after a video promoting the show featuring Mill aired last night on Raw. The whole thing started on Instagram a couple of days ago when The Grammy-nominated artist told Triple H that Philly is his city and his sons wanted to be there. Triple H told him to clear his schedule and he's going to hook him up. Mill the teased a performance saying that fans are asking for Dreams and Nightmares, which is one of his songs. The 36-year-old rapper formerly dated Nicki Minaj and had his fair share of troubles with the law, even spending time in prison. After his release from prison, he setup the Reform Alliance with Jay-Z and other notable business men and became a leading advocate of criminal justice reform in the United States.

BECKY LYNCH BIO BOOK OUT TODAY

- Becky Lynch's book The Man: Not Your Average Average Girl, is out officially in bookstores nationwide and online. Published by Gallery Books through Simon & Schuster, this 384-page hardcover book is compelling and deeply personal memoir from Rebecca Quin who delves into her earliest wrestling days, her scrappy beginnings, and her meteoric rise to fame. Lynch was in New York City today doing the media rounds promoting the book and appeared on The Today Show this morning. She also had an autograph signing at Barnes & Noble where she spent over four hours signing copies of her book for the hundreds of fans who showed up. The book is currently #1 in the wrestling biographies section on Amazon and #254 in the overall books section.

TRILLER TO OFFER AEW PPVS FOR U.S. CUSTOMERS TOO

- For the first time since it started, AEW will be offering its upcoming Dynasty, Double or Nothing, and Forbidden Door pay-per-views on Triller TV for fans in the United States. While Triller TV, formerly known as FITE, carries all AEW pay-per-views internationally, AEW has only been offering the shows exclusively through B/R Live, which is owned by AEW's broadcast partner Warner Bros. Discovery. The shows are being offered for the regular price of $49.99 each, which is way more than the price that shows are going for if you're outside the United States. The three mentioned pay-per-views are available as a combo for $49.99 if you have an AEW Plus subscription internationally but the offer does not extend to those located in the United States. The Revolution pay-per-view was also made available on Triller while the show was ongoing due to several technical difficulties encountered by B/R Live.

AEW OFFICIALLY ANNOUNCES THE HIRING OF KOSHA IRBY AS NEW COO

- AEW today officially announced the hiring of Kosha Irby as the new AEW Chief Operating Officer two months after he started with the promotion. Irby will oversee all strategic planning and execution of live events, marketing, finance, human resources, licensing, consumer products and other major lines of business for the company. He joins AEW from Clemson University, where he served as Chief Marketing Officer within the athletic department and has previously held positions with the Memphis Express of the Alliance of American Football as Chief Marketing Officer, Professional Bull Riders (PBR) as President and WWE as Regional Director of Live Events. "Kosha brings decades of experience within the sports, entertainment and wrestling industries alongside an incredible work ethic and passion for our brand," said AEW President Tony Khan. "As Chief Operating Officer, he will be a phenomenal asset to AEW as we enter the next phase of the company's ongoing business development and expansion." Kirby worked for WWE for seven years from 2011 to 2018. In his LinkedIn profile, Kirby writes, "As the Chief Operating Officer at All Elite Wrestling, I lead the strategic planning and execution of live events, media production, and business operations for one of the fastest-growing and most innovative professional wrestling companies in the world."


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Monday, March 25, 2024 Issue #7191
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

Raw should be interesting tonight. The Allstate Arena is an amazing place and will be rocking.


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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
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RAW PREVIEW

- Raw is Punk tonight live from Rosemont as a rowdy crowd will welcome CM Punk back for the first time since his return at the Survivor Series. The former champion will be involved at WrestleMania somehow and maybe we'll get to find out what his role will be tonight. A total of five matches have been announced for the show including Jey Uso vs Shinsuke Nakamura, Sami Zayn vs Bronson Reed, Ivy Nile vs Candice LeRae, Ricochet vs JD McDonagh, and Andrade vs Ivar. Plus, Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins will be in the house and so will Mami Rhea Ripley as the road to WrestleMania continues.

WWE: NEXT GEN DEBUTS ON ROKU NEXT WEEK

- A new Roku Original WWE show will debut on the streaming platform next week titled WWE: Next Gen. From executive producer John Cena, Next Gen is an eight-part docuseries going behind the scenes to experience the training, personal triumphs, and life-changing moments of young men and women making their WWE dreams a reality. The series was green-lit last year and started filming around WrestleMania 39. It was originally titled WWE Recruits. WWE: Next Gen is produced by WWE and A.Smith & Co Productions. Arthur Smith, Frank Sinton, Ian Mallahan, Dan Baime, and John Cena serve as executive producers. It streams free starting on April 1 on The Roku Channel. You can see the trailer at .

SHAYNA BASZLER VOLUNTEERS TO TAKE A STINKFACE FROM RHEA RIPLEY!

- On Saturday night at a non-televised live event in Springfield, Illinois, Rhea Ripley made headlines after she gave Nia Jax the stinkface. Videos of Ripley shoving her ass in Jax's face made the rounds online in a spot which had everyone in the arena laughing. Yesterday at the live event in Rockford, Illinois, the same triple threat match also involving Shayna Baszler took place. This time, Rhea didn't do the same thing that she did the night before, but in one of the most hilarious moments of the night, Shayna Baszler decided to volunteer herself to be on the receiving end of Ripley's ass by going in the corner, and closing her eyes as she waited...and waited. Unfortunately, Nia Jax spoiled the party and took down Ripley but as Baszler waited patiently with her eyes closed, Jax took the opportunity and gave Baszler the stinkface herself. Baszler was happy at first...until she then opened her eyes and realized she was deep into Jax's crack and not Ripley's. Baszler acted like she was going to vomit as fans laughed and cheered. Also, at one point when Jax was recovering outside, she noticed one fan eating popcorn in front row and decided to have some herself, with the fan feeding her popcorn! The beauty of non-televised live events! You can see the videos at .

ALLSTATE ARENA AT OVER 15,000 TICKETS SOLD FOR TONIGHT

- The Allstate Arena is going to be rocking tonight as WWE has sold over 15,000 tickets for Monday Night Raw, making it one of the largest Raws in recent memory. Less than 100 standard tickets are left on Ticketmaster selling for $35 or $45 located up in the gods and either behind the stage or behind the WrestleMania sign. CM Punk is advertised for tonight's show and definitely the reason why Rosemont and Chicago are turning up in droves to see the man who returned in the same location just four months earlier. On that day, Punk did not get on the mic but tonight, you can bet he will!

BECKY LYNCH SAYS SHE WANTS TO OPEN NIGHT ONE OF WRESTLEMANIA 40

- In an interview with ClutchPoints to promote her book, WWE Superstar Becky Lynch said since she can't main event either night of WrestleMania this year, she would love to open the show of night one. "I would love to open the show. I would love that," Becky said. "I've never opened WrestleMania before." Her husband Seth Rollins is main eventing night one of WrestleMania with Cody Rhodes, The Rock, and Roman Reigns and by opening night one, she said she can relax and really enjoy Seth main eventing the show, the first one of his career. (No, cashing in at 31 does not count as main eventing a WrestleMania!) "And to open this one, as big as it is in Philadelphia, I'm just putting that out there," Lynch continued. "It would be pretty cool because if it's not the main event, I always want to be the opening spot — it's always a great place on the card because people are so excited." The only women's match that has opened a WrestleMania so far is Charlotte Flair vs Rhea Ripley for the NXT title at night two of WrestleMania 36 in front of no crowd.

APRIL 6 COLLISION MOVED TO 11:30PM START TIME

- The April 6 Collision, which is on the same night as night one of WrestleMania 40, has been rescheduled for an 11:30PM ET start time because TNT will be airing an NCAA game in its usual time slot. Collision that night will also not be live or taped on that same day as tapings will be held on Wednesday, April 3 following the conclusion of Dynamite from Worcester, Massachusetts. The show has suffered greatly when going against WWE premium live events and this is the first time it airs on the same day as WrestleMania, although by the time that Collision starts, WrestleMania should be off the air. Numbers for that day are not expected to be great due to the late start time and probably wrestling viewing fatigue since Mania will surely last over four hours.

RONDA ROUSEY: "I UST DIDN'T WANNA BE VINCE'S ACTION F*CKING FIGURE"

- Former Raw and Smackdown Women's champion Ronda Rousey continued to air her frustrations against WWE and their lack of planning for women on their roster, saying that The Bloodline have plans lined up for a year, yet, no one would talk to her about plans for that day until she gets to the arena. Speaking to Cageside Seats, Rousey said that while they seem to be giving Logan Paul enough time and resources to be successful, none of the girls were getting any of that while she was there. "I just didn’t wanna be Vince’s action f*cking figure anymore. I felt like I was like doing custom matches for a f*cking sicko in the back,” Rousey said. "All power to the girls that keep fighting the good fight. But I’m in my mid-30’s now. I’ve got shit to do." Asked about why a singles match against Becky Lynch never transpired following the hot feud the two had, Rousey said that WWE refused to work with her or collaborate to make it happen. "They kept pushing it off and pushing it off until it finally got to the road WrestleMania, and they’re like, yeah, we’re not gonna do you and Becky," she said. Rousey mentioned that after she was told that, she informed the powers that be that she would leave unless they put her in a tag team with her friend Shayna Baszler. As for leaving, Rousey said that she couldn't be associated with mediocrity, which is what WWE was at the time. "I had a long sit down with Triple H and I was like, ‘I can’t be associated with mediocrity.’ And that’s what they seemed to be happy with at the time. And I hope that is different now, but I can’t say... that I’ve ever experienced it any other way." She added that she wished that her second run was under Triple H and Vince McMahon gone because Triple H has always been great towards the women in WWE and believed in all of them.


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Sunday, March 24, 2024 Issue #7190
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

It was a relatively quiet weekend. We'll be back tomorrow.


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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
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MOTOR CITY MACHINE GUNS WRAP UP TNA DUTIES

- PWInsider.com is reporting that Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin, who wrestle as the Motor City Machine Guns in TNA Wrestling, wrapped up their TNA duties this weekend and will be officially free agents on April 1. The two had an "emotional sendoff" backstage according to PWInsider as their long TNA career came to a close. Sabin made his debut for the company in 2003 and Shelley followed in 2004, winning pretty much every title the company had to offer during their stints there. The two signed a new deal with TNA in March of last year.

JADE CARGILL COMING TO SMACKDOWN

- Smackdown has landed Jade Cargill, the former AEW TBS champion, who will officially join the blue brand roster on next week's episode of the show. "I didn't come here to be the next anyone," Cargill said in a video package promoting her appearance. "Jade Cargill is a once-in-a-lifetime generational talent." Cargill said she doesn't have to speak, yet, she's the trending topic and the headline. "They're going to build statues of me and you don't have to like it, but you damn sure can't deny it," Cargill continued in the promo. She made her WWE in-ring debut at the Royal Rumble in January, making it to the final three. She came in and had an explosive encounter with Nia Jax, who she eliminated from the match.

SEMI FINALS IN MINI TOURNAMENT FOR WRESTLEMANIA SPOT SET

- The semi finals of the mini tournament to see who will take the final two spots in the WrestleMania six-pack ladder match were revealed on Friday. Austin Theory and Grayson Waller moved on to the semis after they defeated The OC while The Street Profits defeated AOP during Smackdown last night. The two winning teams will now clash to see who will take one of the two spots remaining. The other semi final match will pit New Catch Republic vs Legado Del Fantasia for the last spot. Both matches are expected to take place on next week's Smackdown. The New Day, DIY, Awesome Truth, and the reigning champions The Judgment Day are the other four tag teams in the match.

ASUKA RETURNS TO THE RING AFTER INJURY SCARE

- After she was pulled out from last weekend's non-televised live events, one half of the WWE Women's Tag Team champions, Asuka, returned on the road. Asuka suffered a leg injury last week on Smackdown and was given time off as a precaution and to have medical have a better look at the extent of the injury. But the Empress of Tomorrow was on Smackdown on Friday and then wrestled yesterday at a house show in Springfield, Illinois where she teamed up with Kairi Sane and IYO SKY to take on Becky Lynch, Bianca Belair, and Naomi. While the tag champs have no match yet, it's rumored that the two will be joined by Dakota Kai to take on Belair, Naomi, and Jade Cargill in a six-woman tag team match.

MORE TICKETS RELEASED FOR WRESTLEMANIA

- WWE released additional tickets for WrestleMania 40 Saturday and Sunday as ticket demand remains pretty solid. For WrestleMania Saturday, the cheapest tickets are now priced $150 with limited view excluding taxes and fees. The cheapest full-view seats are $344.75. Prices are a bit more expensive for WrestleMania Sunday and while there's only verified resale tickets with limited views selling for $227 plus fees, the full-view cheapest seat is $394 plus all the other Ticketmaster fees. Sections 126 to 133 remain close as they are directly behind the set and most likely will not be opened as the set will cover the whole view. WrestleMania night one is currently at 59,322 tickets distributed while night two is at 61,093 according to @WrestleTix. The current setup for Lincoln Financial Field is 62,251.

ADAM COPELAND BRINING BACK THE COPE OPEN

- Adam Copeland is bringing back the Cope Open, and challenged anyone to step up for a title shot. The new TNT champion, who won the title this past Wednesday on Dynamite from Christian Cage, said in a backstage promo that it's time for him now to face different faces now that the chapter with Cage is over. "If you think you deserve a shot, fine, step up," Copeland said. "Cope Open is back, if anybody wants to step up, feel free, there's more at stake now too, the TNT championship." This essentially means that the recently brought-back rankings are dead once again, at least when it comes to the TNT title.

JACK PERRY SAYS HE ASKED FOR AND WAS DENIED AEW RELEASE

- Bryan Alvarez from F4WOnline.com is reporting that Jack Perry asked for his AEW release but his request was denied in the fallout from All In. A Dave Meltzer report said that Perry asked for "forgiveness" and "continually apologized" for what happened after the All In fight with CM Punk but now, Perry is denying Meltzer's report. Perry told Alvarez that he did not hear from Tony Khan for two months after the incident at All In and Perry never apologized and told AEW's lawyers that he will not be the one reaching out first. The AEW President then set up a meeting in Los Angeles at Full Gear to discuss how Perry would be brought back in the fold but those plans were scrapped after CM Punk returned to WWE. Why plans in one company were affected by a return of another star in a different company was not explained. Perry said that AEW still has no plans to bring him back at the moment and he has not talked to Tony Khan since November. The former Jungle Boy is currently working in New Ja
pan Pro-Wrestling.


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Friday, March 22, 2024 Issue #7189
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

Happy Friday, folks! After a good Dynamite, a good Smackdown should follow tonight, at least, it looks good on paper.

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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
Web version at

SMACKDOWN PREVIEW

- Smackdown is live from the sold-out Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin tonight, marking the 9th consecutive sold out television taping for WWE. The Rock is not scheduled to appear on the broadcast tonight but Roman Reigns is and he will be having a face-to-face with the #1 contender for the Undisputed WWE Universal championship, Cody Rhodes. Matches announced for tonight are Rey Mysterio vs Santos Escobar, Naomi vs WWE Women's champion IYO SKY in a non-title match, and two qualifying matches in the tag team title mini tournament for a spot at WrestleMania featuring The OC vs Grayson Waller and Austin Theory and The Street Profits vs AOP.

BAYLEY GRATEFUL TO BE ABLE TO ATTEND MERCEDES MONE'S AEW DEBUT

- Speaking to UK-based Digital Spy, Bayley said that getting to witness Mercedes Mone's AEW debut was "incredible" and is grateful that she, Naomi, and Tamina were able to be there for her. "Mercedes is the best. I wouldn't be here without her," Bayley said about her best friend. "She's done so much for me, even after she was done with WWE, she's been there for me in my big moments. So I know I need to be there for her continuously throughout the years." Bayley said that she was happy Mercedes made her debut on a Wednesday when it's one of their few days off so she and her friends could attend. "It was really special to see her celebrate that with her family and her friends and people she started wrestling with and see her welcomed by a new family," Bayley said. "It's bittersweet, but I'm very, very, very proud of her and just so grateful we got to be there." Bayley was even pictured taking photos of Mone from her suite at the TD Garden and despite wearing wigs and masks to conceal t
heir identity going in, the trio didn't hide much in their suite.

ROMAN REIGNS SAYS NO ONE DESERVES HOF INDUCTION MORE THAN PAUL HEYMAN

- Appearing on The Pat McAfee Show today, a largely out-of-character Roman Reigns discussed Paul Heyman going into the WWE Hall of Fame. Reigns described Heyman as incredible and unbelievable for everything he's done for this business as well as in his personal life. "I just have the utmost respect for him, I really do," Roman said. "No one deserves the Hall of Fame induction more than him." Roman said that whoever is selected to induct Heyman in the Hall of Fame needs to be authentic and himself, tell their story of Paul from the early days with the giant phone, to the advocate, and special advisor. He finished talking about Heyman by acknowledging him with the raised index finger and an applause from the crowd.

SLAMMY AWARDS RETURNING DURING WRESTLEMANIA WEEK

- The Slammy Awards are returning to WWE as part of WrestleMania weekend under a slightly different name of Slammys: The Fans Choice Awards. The news, announced today, will see The Slammys air in a live broadcast on all WWE social media networks from the WWE World at WrestleMania on Sunday, April 7, an event which will be hosted by Cathy Kelly and former WWE champion Big E. WWE has not held a Slammy Award presentation since 2020 and it's usually held throughout an episode of Monday Night Raw. Voting, categories, and nominees are available at wwe.com/slammys.

MATT HARDY UPDATE ON HIS AEW CONTRACT TALKS

- During the latest episode of the Extreme Life of Matt Hardy podcast, the former multi-time tag team champion said that he is still negotiating on a new contract with AEW and there's not much new information to share at this point. Hardy put over Tony Khan as a good boss and someone who is taking care of him, calling him a great human being. "But at the end of the day, when it comes for me making the decision about what I do next, it also comes down to making sure that I'm happy and that I'm comfortable with what I'm doing too in all capacities across the board," Matt said. He said he loves working for AEW and AEW is very important to the pro wrestling industry as it needs to do well to prevent one company from controlling everything. "They need competition. Competition is what makes it thrive, it is what makes it better. For all the young kids that are coming up, competition needs to exist," Matt said. "So yes, I want AEW to do well and I want AEW to thrive. But I want to be in a s
atisfactory position in what I'm doing in AEW." Matt also discussed going to Monday Night Raw with his wife and joining her friends in their box at the PNC Arena and taking nearly 200 photos with fans who lined up after he was spotted.

DYNAMITE RATING

- Dynamite this week headlined by Cage vs Copeland in an I Quit match for the TNT title drew 800,000 viewers, up 2,000 viewers from last week's broadcast. The show did a 0.27 rating in 18-49, same as last week, and was #6 for the night on the top 50 cable chart for the night. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)

RAMPAGE RATING

- Rampage, which aired on Wednesday night immediately following the conclusion of Dynamite on TBS, drew 541,000 viewers, up 214,000 viewers from last week's show which aired in its regular time slot. This was the most-watched Rampage since April 14, 2023. Rampage also had a 0.18 rating in 18-49, up 0.07 from last week and was #10 on the top 50 cable chart for the night. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)

AEW TRIPLE CROWN NO LONGER IN PLAY

- AEW President Tony Khan confirmed that the AEW Triple Crown is no longer and the Continental title, NJPW Strong Opwenweight title, and the ROH World title are now separate once again. It was a short-lived stint for the Triple Crown, which was introduced at Worlds End in December 2023 and ended at this Wednesday's Dynamite in Toronto when Kazuchika Okada defeated Eddie Kingston for just the Continental title. Khan told ComicBook Nation in an interview that whoever is the champion after the Full Gear pay-per-view in November will be included automatically in the Continental Classic tournament and the only way to keep the title then is to win the tournament at the Worlds End pay-per-view. The rules for the title will remain the same, meaning there will be no interference and the match will be a one-on-one with no one allowed around the ring.

MARYSE TUMOR-FREE AFTER SUCCESSFUL HYSTERECTOMY

- Former WWE Superstar Maryse wrote in a post on social media that she is now tumor-free following a successful total hysterectomy. The former Divas champion was diagnosed with pre-cancer of the ovaries after months of abdominal pain which no one could figure out why, except for one doctor. "She found and removed 11 implants around my uterus, ovaries, and all connective tissues around the organs in my abdominal cavity," Maryse wrote at the time. "All 11 implants came back as Serous Borderline Tumors. A very rare pre-cancer of the ovaries. Very sneaky and aggressive. If those became cancer, the survival rate is less than a year." Now, Maryse said that two weeks ago she underwent surgery to have her ovaries, uterus, tubes, cervix, and omentum removed as well as removal of the lymph nodes in her abdomen to see if the disease had spread. "Pathology confirmed that it had not which is amazing news! More amazing news is that I am tumor free! The diagnosis did confirm that I had Primary Peri
toneal Serous Borderline Tumors with involvement of ovaries/uterus/tubes," Maryse wrote. She added that seven cases per million women in the U.S. per year are successfully diagnosed and cured of this disease. "The fact that we not only found this but found this at this manageable stage is unbelievable and literally saved my life as this would have most likely been lethal," she continued. Maryse will need to have followups with specialists at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas to monitor her health moving forward.


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Thursday, March 21, 2024 Issue #7188
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

Nothing to say today, back tomorrow!


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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
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ADAM COPELAND WINS TNT TITLE

- There's a new TNT champion in town and his name is Adam Copeland. The Rated-R Superstar defeated his former tag team partner Christian Cage in an I Quit match in the main event of Dynamite last night in his hometown of Toronto in front of a sold out Coca-Cola Coliseum. Copeland had some assistance from Matt Menard and Daniel Garcia after the other members of The Patriarchy got involved in the match on Cage's behalf. The ending came when Copeland took out a 2x4 which was wrapped in barbed wire and hit a low blow on Cage with it and tried to follow with a shot to the head but Cage said "I quit" before he followed through. Copeland won the TNT title at Worlds End in December but his title reign was very short-lived after Killswitch came out after the match and Cage took his TNT title match contract which the former Luchasaurus won earlier during the show. Cage pinned Copeland shortly after the match restarted. You can see his win at .

KAZUCHIKA OKADA WINS THE CONTINENTAL TITLE

- Adam Copeland was not the only person to win an AEW title last night on Dynamite as newcomer Kazuchika Okada also defeated Eddie Kingston to win the Continental title. It was a quick turnaround for Okada's first championship in AEW, having arrived in the promotion on March 6. Okada's first opponent was made very clear last night as PAC came out for a stare down with the new champion following his victory. Kingston won the Continental Crown - which unified the New Japan Strong Openweight title and the ROH World title - at Worlds End last December but last night's match was simply for the Continental title, meaning that Kingston is still the NJPW Strong Openweight and ROH World champion and the titles are no longer unified.

AEW RETURNING TO DAILY'S PLACE FOR TWO TV TAPINGS

- AEW is returning home to Jacksonville at Daily's Place for both Dynamite and Collision tapings. The Wednesday, April 24 episode of Dynamite and Saturday, April 27 episode of Collision will be taped at AEW's "pandemic home." These will be the post-Dynasty PPV fallout shows before the company returns to Canada for two weeks of TV tapings there. Tickets for these tapings are available stating from $30.25 each. The Collision tapings are listed to be a double taping with Rampage as well. Tickets are on sale now at AEWTIX.com.

GET FREE SHIPPING ON ALL WRESTLEMANIA 40 MERCHANDISE

- The massive WrestleMania 40 merchandise collection is now online and is available for free shipping for any orders over $24. Reaching the $24 amount will not be difficult as pretty much every single piece of merchandise is over that price. Multiple apparel with different Mania designs, printed on t-shirts, football jerseys, hockey jerseys, basketball jerseys, baseball jerseys and everything else imaginable is already enough to make your credit card tremble, not to mention the title belts, new Cody and Seth merchandise, and more. This is by far the largest collection of WrestleMania merchandise released for the show and you can use the code WWE24 to get free shipping at

RAW AT ALLSTATE ARENA NEARLY AT 15,000 TICKETS SOLD

- Next Monday's Raw will be one of the biggest of the year as nearly 15,000 fans have already bought tickets for the show which will feature CM Punk. And yes, that show is from the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois, the same location where Punk broke the internet and returned to WWE at the Survivor Series this past November. WWE added seats behind the stage, which will surely have to be slightly modified to allow people in the top level to see, although the ramp will probably still be blocked. The Survivor Series last year, with no stage at all, pulled in just over 17,000 fans and nearly replicating this figure for a Raw broadcast just four months later is nothing short of incredible.

NICK ALDIS UNDERGOES SURGERY

- Smackdown General Manager Nick Aldis underwent surgery yesterday for a ruptured bicep. The news was originally broken by PWInsider.com. "Yes, the sheets had it within minutes. God bless 'em. Must be a slow news day," Aldis wrote on X after surgery. "Anyway it was a freak accident, I'm on the mend, and I will continue to fulfill my obligations." Aldis is not expected to miss much, if any, television time and while he is an on-screen character, he is not involved physically, making it easier to keep him around in the current role of GM.

NXT RATING

- NXT this week drew 569,000 viewers, down 19,000 viewers from the prior week and the lowest number of 2024 so far and actually the lowest since July 4, 2023. Not had a 0.18 rating in 18-49, up 0.02 from the previous show and was #8 on the top 50 cable chart for the night. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)

RONDA ROUSEY SAYS WWE WAS A "SHIT SHOW" AND NOT GOING BACK

- During a live stream with LiveSigning's YouTube channel to promote her new book Our Fight, Ronda Rousey didn't hold back on calling WWE a "shit show" and claimed that she will never go back to the promotion. "They can't hold a sword over my head and hold me hostage with my own career," Rousey said during the 18-minute chat. "I don't need anything from them and I don't intend on going back." Rousey said that she is free to say anything she wants because she's no longer held captive by the organization like others. The former Raw and Smackdown Women's champion didn't have nice things to say about John Laurinaitis and Bruce Prichard and blasted them for always interfering in her feud with Liv Morgan. Rousey said that both of them can go "f*ck themselves" and promised to reveal more about them in the future. Laurinaitis was fired from WWE last year but Prichard, who she describer as Vince McMahon's "avatar," still holds a high position within the company.


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Wednesday, March 20, 2024 Issue #7187
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

15 days till I depart to Philly for WrestleMania week! Bring it on!


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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
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DYNAMITE PREVIEW

- Dynamite is live from Toronto tonight and it will be followed by a live Rampage as well on TBS since the show is pre-empted this Friday, making tonight a three-hour block for AEW. Headlining the broadcast will be an I Quit match for the TNT title as Christian Cage defends the title against Adam Copeland in the third match against each other in the promotion. The Continental title is also on the line as Kazuchika Okada tries to become the fastest star to get gold after signing with the company in a match against champion Eddie Kingston. Other matches announced are Chris Jericho vs Hook, Thunder Rosa teams with Deonna Purrazzo against Toni Storm and Mariah May, a street fight between Willow Nightingale and Kris Statlander versus Julia Hart and Skye Blue, and Orange Cassidy and Trent Baretta battle Powerhouse Hobbs and Kyle Fletcher in the tag team title tournament. Plus, AEW's newest arrival, Mercedes Mone, will be in the house to address the Toronto fans. The last time Mone returned in Toronto for WWE, she turned heel by attacking Natalya and unveiled her blue hair.

ADAM COPELAND DISCUSSES I QUIT MATCH AND MONE'S ARRIVAL

- In an interview with Sports Illustrated, AEW's Adam Copeland discussed tonight's episode of Dynamite from his hometown of Toronto and the arrival of Mercedes Mone. Copeland vs Cage for the TNT title will headline Dynamite tonight and Copeland said that this three-part series feels like there's a finality to the feud which has occupied Copeland's time in the promotion since he arrived. "We’re going to go out and feel the audience, react, and take chances. When you watch Christian, he’s such an asshole, I can’t wait to feel the energy from the crowd," Copeland said. He said that he didn't know if his last match in Toronto - against Sheamus this past August - was going to be his final match but now, wrestling Christian there feels like this is where their 40 years have led them. "There is a lot of special meaning in this one. When I made the decision to continue wrestling, I came back for a match like this," he continued. Copeland also discussed Mercedes Mone, who made her debut last week on Dynamite: Big Business. He said that for Mone, AEW is a blank canvas, just like it was for him when he arrived.
"It’s the same with Mercedes, think of how much fun she’s going to have here. Think of all the new opponents," he said, noting that the arrival of others such as Kazuchika Okada and Will Ospreay also adds a great depth to "one hell of a roster."

DYNAMITE IN TORONTO ALMOST SOLD OUT

- Following last week's solid crowd at Boston for Big Business, AEW will have another good crowd at the Coca-Cola Coliseum tonight in Toronto, Canada. Over 6,000 tickets have been distributed so far for the show which is around 50% more than what Dynamite has been doing lately. The show will be headlined by an I Quit match between Christian Cage and Adam Copeland for the TNT title. It will also be Mercedes Mone's first official advertised appearance on Dynamite. Tickets did pick up at a faster rate following Mone's announcement. The last time AEW had a Dynamite show in the same arena was on October 12, 2022 where they sold almost 7,400 tickets.

COLLISION RATING

- Collision on Saturday night on TNT drew 393,000 viewers, down 34,000 viewers from the prior week and the third least-watched episode of the show of 2024 so far. In 18-49, the show had a 0.12 rating, down 0.01 from the previous show and was #16 on the top 50 cable chart for the night. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)

WWE EVP OF LIVE EVENTS JOHN PORCO DEPARTS

- PWInsider.com is reporting that WWE's Executive Vice President of Live Events, John Porco, has left the company. His departure came last month. Porco had been working for WWE for almost 25 years, starting as PR Coordinator in 1999 before being promoted to Director of Live Events Marking in 2002. In 2014 he was assigned the role of Senior Director of Live Event Marketing before becoming Vice President in 2016. In 2018, Porco was promoted to SVP of Live Events and in 2022 got his final promotion as EVP of Live Events. Justin Scalise, who's been with WWE for the past 17 years, has been promoted to the role of EVP of Live Events in Porco's absence. Scalise, just like Porco, rose through the ranks from Junior Live Event Marketing Rep to Live Event Marketing Manager to Senior Live Event Manager, Regional Director, Senior Director, Vice President of Live Events and lately, Senior Vice President of Live Events. It's unclear why Porco departed and it's not known if this was a personal decision or something else.

RONDA ROUSEY UNLOADS ON VINCE MCMAHON IN BIOGRAPHY

- In excerpts released from her upcoming biography book Our Fight, Ronda Rousey slammed Vince McMahon in her wrestling chapter, calling him the company's "Emperor Palpatine," where it was hard to distinguish when the on-screen character and real-life McMahon stopped and started. "It’s hard sometimes to know where the evil, unethical, slimeball character of Vince McMahon played out for the cameras ends and the actual questionably ethical, many times sued, and multiple times accused of sexual misconduct Vince McMahon begins," Rousey wrote. "That blurred line between character and reality is a recurring theme within the WWE Universe.” Describing WWE premium live events, she said that shows are now also held twice a year in Saudi Arabia, "a nation that restricts the rights of women in a way that I’m certain Vince McMahon wishes he could." But while she tore McMahon a new one, she described Triple H as "one of the better people on the business side" who was also her in-ring WrestleMania nemesis and "arguably one of the best professional wrestlers in history." The book, released on April 2, is co-authored by Maria Burns Ortiz, a New York Times best-selling author and former ESPN journalist.

TKO SETTLES CLASS ACTION LAWSUITS WITH FORMER UFC FIGHTERS

- TKO stocks got a bump today on Wall Street after the company announced via a SEC filing that it has reached an agreement to settle all claims against two class action lawsuits filed against them by former UFC athletes which alleged violations of the Sherman Act. The lawsuits were filed against Zuffa, LLC, but now fall under TKO since the merger of WWE and UFC. "On March 13, 2024, TKO reached an agreement to settle all claims asserted in both class action lawsuits (Le and Johnson) for an aggregate amount of $335 million payable by the Company and its subsidiaries in installments over an agreed-upon period of time," the filing said. "The terms will be memorialized in a long form agreement and then submitted to the court for approval. The Company anticipates that the settlement amount will be deductible for tax purposes." The $335 million figure is much, much less than the $1.6 billion that the plaintiffs were seeking.

RAW RATING

- It was not a particularly good night for Raw heading into Mania this week as the show had 1,686,000 viewers, down 65,000 viewers from the previous week. The show started with 1,719,000 viewers in the first hour, then increased to 1,767,000 viewers in the second hour, but went down to 1,573,000 viewers in the final hour for a Becky Lynch vs Nia Jax last woman standing main event. Raw was #1, #2, and #3 in the top 50 cable chart for the night among the in 18-49 viewers with 0.58, 0.55, and 0.53 ratings respectively for an average of 0.55, down 0.01 from the previous week. It was #2 in overall TV behind The Bachelor on ABC. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)

WWE ON A&E RATING

- Week four of WWE on A&E saw the night start with WWE Rivals: John Cena vs Randy Orton at 8PM followed by Biography: WWE Legends focused on former WCW champion Diamond Dallas Page. Rivals did 330,000 viewers and a 0.07 rating in 18-49, placing in #46 on the chart. That is down from the Taker vs HBK episode which did 368,000 and 0.12 last week. Biography followed with 368,000 viewers and a 0.09 rating in 18-49 and was #30 on the top 50 cable chart. It was down from the 407,000 viewers the Scott Hall episode did last week and down from the 0.13 rating. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)


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Tuesday, March 19, 2024 Issue #7186
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

Nia Jax and Becky Lynch had a great match on Raw last night. Jax has especially stepped it up since returning and took two nasty bumps during the match. I know she gets a lot of criticism most of the time, but she deserves the praise too.


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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
Web version at

THE ROCK ADDED TO APRIL 1 EPISODE OF RAW FROM BROOKLYN

- Brooklyn, get ready to get electrified! WWE announced that Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson will be appearing on the April 1 Raw from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn on the last Raw before WrestleMania. The Rock plugged his appearance on social media, telling fans to sit back, shut their mouths, and enjoy the ride The Rock is taking all their candy asses on. Tickets for Raw at the Barclays Center are available now on Ticketmaster.com with the cheapest price of $105.35 plus tax for non-resale tickets.

CM PUNK SAYS HE WILL BE AT WRESTLEMANIA

- CM Punk said in a video promoting his appearance on Raw next week in Chicago that he will be at WrestleMania 40 despite his injury. "What are the first four letters in Philadelphia? Phil. You can't have WrestleMania without Phil," Punk said. "Whether I'm invited or uninvited, it never matters to CM Punk, he’ll be there." This will be Punk's first appearance at a WrestleMania since his WrestleMania 29 match against The Undertaker back in 2013. Unfortunately for him, he won't be wrestling so that has to wait another year. Punk has been kept off WWE television ever since he injured his shoulder at the Royal Rumble and appeared on Raw the next night to announce his injury. He was a panel member at the WrestleMania 40 press conference in Las Vegas in February.

SHAYNA BASZLER TO TAKE ON TNA STAR AT BLOODSPORT X

- Shayna Baszler will be taking on Masha Slamovich during WrestleMania week at the Josh Barnett Bloodsport X event on Thursday, April 4. The event, promoted by GCW, gained some additional word of mouth after Baszler, a WWE-contracted Superstar, was announced for the show. WWE rarely allows their talent to show up at indie events, especially during Mania week where it's all-hands-on-deck doing media and appearances. The former NXT Women's champion is a close friend of Barnett and Barnett and GCW owner Brett Lauderdale also share some kind of friendship with Triple H, which obviously helped in facilitating this. It's rumored that other WWE Superstars might be announced for this show in the next few days. Slamovich is currently signed to TNA Wrestling and is a two-time TNA Knockouts Tag Team champion with Killer Kelly.

THREE TEAMS ADVANCE TO TAG TEAM LADDER MATCH AT MANIA

- DIY, Awesome Truth, and The New Day earned their spot in the WrestleMania six-pack ladder match for the undisputed WWE Tag Team titles last night on Raw after they each won their own qualifying matches. Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano defeated The Creed Brothers to advance, The Miz and R-Truth defeated Indus Sher, and The New Day defeated Akira Tozawa and Otis to get the other spot. Two more spots remain in this match and they are each going to a Smackdown tag team. This Friday, Austin Theory and Grayson Waller take on The OC while AOP take on The Street Profits with the winners of those two matches facing each other for one spot. Tyler Bate and Pete Dunne will take on Humberto Carrillo and Angel Garza in the other match to see who takes the other spot.

RAQUEL RODRIGUEZ TAKEN OFF THE ACTIVE ROSTER LIST AGAIN

- PWInsider.com is reporting that Raquel Rodriguez has been taken off the internal active roster list once again, meaning that she is not in a position to compete at the moment. Rodriguez has been battling MCAS, Mast Cell Activation Syndrome, a condition where she experiences multiple episodes of allergic reactions like hives and swelling. She documented what happened to her on the flight to Perth for Elimination Chamber where she had an MCAS flare up but was still able to compete by not putting any makeup whatsoever. Rodriguez went missing in action for several weeks and was not on WWE TV for two months before she put out a social media post explaining her battle with MCAS. She last wrestled on the February 26 Raw against Chelsea Green, two days after the Elimination Chamber.

DREW MCINTYRE AND JEY USO ADDED TO WWE WORLD VIP MEET & GREET

- Drew McIntyre and Jey Uso will be appearing at WWE World at WrestleMania as VIP Superstars, with McIntyre doing meet and greets on Saturday, April 6 and Uso on Monday, April 8. Tickets are on sale now for both Superstars for $200 each plus taxes and fees. The previously announced Superstars who are also doing VIP meet and greets have all sold out. They include Randy Orton, Rhea Ripley, Rey Mysterio, Becky Lynch, Cody Rhodes, Seth Rollins, Charlotte Flair, CM Punk, and Bianca Belair. A general admission ticket to WWE World is required on top of the VIP meet and greet ticket. Tickets can be purchased at .

BECKY LYNCH BECOMES AN AMERICAN CITIZEN

- The Irish Lass Kicker is now an American Lass Kicker as well! WWE Superstar Becky Lynch announced in her post-Raw speech to the crowd that she can now call herself an American. "As of a few hours ago, I became an American citizen," Lynch told the crowd to a huge pop and "USA" chants. During the broadcast, Michael Cole noted that Lynch had passed her citizenship test earlier. The announcement comes just 24 hours after Lynch was invited to the White House for their St. Patrick's Day celebration along with other Irish dignitaries.

SMACKDOWN RATING

- Smackdown did its second lowest viewership for 2024 last week despite The Rock concert with 2,340,000 viewers tuning in, down 139,000 from the previous week. The show had a 0.68 rating in 18-49, which was down 0.01 from the prior show and was the #1 rated show on network and #1 on all of television for the night. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)

MLB-INSPIRED WWE REPLICA TITLES NOW FOR SALE

- WWE today announced the launch of MLB-inspired WWE Championship title belts for all 30 teams ahead of Opening Day 2024. The officially licensed MLB products feature the official colors and branding of all 30 teams. It follows the same deal that the company did with the NFL where all teams - except the Jacksonville Jaguars - have a WWE Championship replica. The WWE Championship title belts are available for purchase now via MLBShop.com, WWEShop.com, and Fanatics.com.

MATT HARDY AND WIFE REBY ATTEND RAW

- Matt Hardy and his wife Reby were at Monday Night Raw last night in a box at the PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina. The location is just an hour away from the Hardy Compound in Cameron and his attendance comes at an interesting time as he is still without a new deal in AEW, a deal which expires later this month. Michael Cole even name dropped Matt and Jeff Hardy during the broadcast as two brothers who wrestled each other at WrestleMania. Matt was never shown on camera but photos of him in the box made the rounds online. His wife Reby even posted a video on her TikTok of the two enjoying themselves at the show. Matt left WWE in March 2020 after his contract expired and showed up in his broken gimmick on Dynamite in the same month coming to the aide of The Elite in their battle against The Inner Circle.

RAMPAGE RATING

- Rampage this past Friday night on TNT drew 327,000 viewers, down 37,000 viewers from the prior week. The show had a 0.11 rating in 18-49 demo, down 0.02 from the previous show and was #28 on the top 50 cable chart for the night. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)


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Sunday, March 17, 2024 Issue #7185
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

It was a bit of a slow weekend but things will surely pick up in the next few days as we get closer to WrestleMania.


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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
Web version at

LAST WOMAN STANDING MATCH HEADLINES RAW TONIGHT

- The road to WrestleMania continues tonight on Raleigh, North Carolina where Monday Night Raw will be headlined by a last woman standing match between Becky Lynch and Nia Jax. Jax has managed to beat Lynch already and this is the one that will probably close the feud before Becky turns her attention to Mami. Three qualifying matches for the six-pack tag team ladder match at WrestleMania will also take place tonight. These are Awesome Truth vs Indus Sher, DIY vs The Creed Brothers, and The Alpha Academy vs The New Day. The PNC Arena is close to another legit sellout which would make it the 9th consecutive sold out television taping.

BRAY WYATT DOCUMENTARY TO BE RELEASED ON APRIL 1

- A WWE original documentary on Bray Wyatt will be released on Peacock on April 1 ahead of WrestleMania week. Titled Bray Wyatt: Becoming Immortal, the documentary will take you behind the scenes and in the world of one of the greatest minds that the industry has ever seen, with new sit-down interviews specifically shot for this documentary including with Triple H, John Cena, Braun Strowman, his sister Mika Rotunda, and his fiancee JoJo Offerman. "Windham Rotunda had a brilliant mind. There was no wall he wouldn’t break down in the name of storytelling," Triple H posted on X. "You had no choice but to believe in him. He was just that good. It’s time for his story to be the one that’s told." Bray Wyatt passed away unexpectedly this past August at the age of 36.

ASUKA SUFFERS KNEE INJURY

- PWInsider.com is reporting that Asuka injured her knee during Friday Night Smackdown and was pulled from all weekend non-televised live events to be medically assessed. At this point it's unclear if Asuka's injury will prevent her from wrestling or if it was a minor issue but it looks like the curse of the WWE Women's Tag Team titles has struck again. While Asuka and her tag team partner Kairi Sane don't have a match at WrestleMania yet, it was rumored that the two, along with Dakota Kai, could be involved in a six-woman tag match against Bianca Belair, Naomi, and Jade Cargill. If her injury will keep her out of the ring for an extended period of time, the tag team titles will once again be declared vacant, something that has happened very often over the last couple of years.

CODY RHODES PROMISES YOUNG FAN TO ATTEND HIS 5TH BIRTHDAY PARTY

- At a non-televised live event in North Charleston, South Carolina yesterday, Cody Rhodes made a promise to a young fan that he will be going to his fifth birthday party in a few months time. After the main event match against Drew McIntyre, Cody took some time to inspect signs as he usually does and there was one that said, "Cody come to my fifth birthday party." Cody asked when is it and the response was June 25, which is a Wednesday. "Okay, should I go to his birthday party?" Cody asked the fans, who of course said yes. "Am I supposed to bring anything, a gift? I could bring a casserole. I’m supposed to bring a casserole to his 5th birthday which is gonna be on a Wednesday. North Charleston, should I do it?" The fans cheered, but it was not enough for Cody, who asked again, and got a bigger response. "My answer is...yes," Cody said as the dad and son celebrated at ringside! Rhodes keeps getting himself into these situations lately, with recently being part of a gender reveal and earlier this year agreeing to be the best man at a fan's wedding as well which will take place this week! You can see the footage at .

WWE ANNOUNCES FIVE-DAY TOUR IN EUROPE BEFORE BASH IN BERLIN

- WWE today announced a five-day tour leading up to the Bash in Berlin premium live event in late August which will see WWE Superstars travel to the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany ahead of the first WWE PLE in the German country. The tour starts on Sun?day, Au?gust 25 at the Ahoy Arena in Rotterdam, Netherlands. It continues Monday, August 26 at the Forest National in Brussels, Belgium. On Tuesday, August 27 it's off to Germany for a show at the Rudolf Weber Arena in Oberhausen, on Wednesday, Au?gust 28 it's a show at the Porsche Arena in Stuttgart and the final show before the PLE is on Thursday, August 29 at the Festhalle in Frankfurt. WWE will have a live Smackdown on Friday in Berlin followed by the Bash in Berlin premium live event on Saturday. These events will mark WWE’s first return to Stuttgart in two years, the first return to Brussels in five years, the first return to both Frankfurt and Oberhausen in six years, and the first return to Rotterdam in seven years. A pre-sale will commence this Wednesday, March 20 at 10AM CET.

BECKY LYNCH MEETS PRESIDENT BIDEN

- Becky Lynch attended the St. Patrick's Day celebration at the White House yesterday, met President Joe Biden, drank a pint of Guinness in one of the nice rooms, and hilariously added her new book "The Man" to the White House library! The WWE Superstar was one of the few Irish stars to be invited to the White House along with the Irish Prime Minister and other politicians. "It was an honor to represent Ireland & @WWE for St. Patrick’s Day at the @whitehouse," Lynch wrote in a post on Instagram. "@POTUS said Becky Balboa is winning it all in Philly, had myself a pint, and even classed up the library with a little gift." Lynch shared a photo with President Biden as well as her book in the library.

WRESTLEMANIA 40 GETS CLOSER TO 60,000 TICKETS EACH NIGHT

- WrestleMania 40 is getting closer to 60,000 tickets for each night, with night two slightly ahead of night one in terms of attendance according to @WrestleTix. With just approximately 20 days to go for the shows, WrestleMania Saturday is at 58,593 tickets out while WrestleMania Sunday is at 59,861 tickets. The Lincoln Financial Field is set up for 60,910 seats. Prices remain very expensive, even with the limited view seats behind the stage. The lowest-priced tickets for the two nights are $200 in the rafters and limited view. Tickets in the top level are going for a minimum of $450. Even secondary-market tickets are going for a very high price, with night one tickets starting at $338 and night two at $352. All tickets are expected to be gone by the time the show comes around.

FORMER AEW PRODUCER BJ WHITMER'S ASSAULT VICTIM SIGNS AEW NDA

- Recently published court documents show that AEW were in contact with the victim of a domestic violence assault by one of its former producers and offered her a cash settlement and made her sign an NDA. BJ Whitmer, who worked for AEW as a producer since 2019, was fired by the company after he was arrested in June of last year. The 45-year-old was taken into custody on June 4 by the Boone County Sheriff’s Department in Kentucky and charged with first degree strangulation and second degree burglary. The court document says that after investigations in consideration to offer a plea bargain to Whitmer, the most significant information was that the victim received a cash settlement and signed a non-disclosure agreement with AEW. "The Commonwealth was aware that the victim had been in contact with AEW shortly after the incident however the extent of these discussions were unknown," the document says.

MONEY, MAGIC, AND HISTORY DRIVES MERCEDES MONE TO AEW

- In an extensive interview published today on ESPN.COM, Mercedes Mone said that she signed with AEW because of the opportunity to create magic, not necessarily only in the company, but also expanding her brand in ways that it would not have been allowed in WWE. "I'm all about creating history," Mone said. "I'm all about creating magic, and I'm all about creating so much more. And that's what AEW brings - so much more, more opportunity, more chances and more chances just to stand out and to be seen and noticed." WWE's grip on talent is no secret and the former WWE and IWGP Women's champion has built a brand, a brand which she owns in terms of trademarks, again, something that she would not have been allowed to continue as a WWE Superstar. Mone didn't hide the fact that the financial offer from AEW was good and it also played a part in her decision on where to go. "I mean, I'm not Mercedes Mone for no reason," she said. "Money changes everything. I'm always about that bag. Absolutely." But money aside, global domination is something that interests her and with AEW, she will have the freedom just for that. "You can do so much more in AEW - you can do everything," she continued. "And for me, I want to do everything. So, this is the place for me to be, and this is the place that I call home." Mone is believed to be the highest-earning female star in the industry today, with many seeing it as a positive for other women on either roster since it opens the possibility of stars like her demanding more money and be paid equally as their male counterparts.

MERCEDES MONE'S THEME HIT STREAMING SERVICES

- Mercedes Mone's newest theme song CEO has hit digital services such as Apple Music and Spotify. The song, published under SoulNado House Record and Tape Club, is a remix of Dvorak’s Symphony No. 9 with Mone doing the rapping herself. Perhaps you might recognize the song in wrestling as Gunther used it for most of his career when he wrestled as Walter and still has some hints of it in his new theme. The "CEO" chants, which encourages fans in the arena to sing along, come part of the theme song as well.

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Saturday, March 16, 2024 Issue #7184
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Visit our website at
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

Loving this heel Rock but he needs to stop posting promos on social media if he's going to repeat it on Smackdown!

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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
Web version at

THREE NEW MATCHES ANNOUNCED FOR WRESTLEMANIA

- Three new matches were announced for WrestleMania 40 on last night's Smackdown. The United States championship will be defended in a triple threat match as Logan Paul puts up his gold against both Randy Orton and Kevin Owens. LA Knight was disappointed that he's not in any title picture at this year's mega showcase but he got an opponent that you could hardly argue over in the form of AJ Styles. The match was made official last night with Styles accepting Knight's challenge by beating him with a steel chair. And brothers will collide as Jimmy Uso also accepted Jey's challenge for a one-on-one match at WrestleMania. The two, who main evented night one of last year's WrestleMania, spoke in an interview that their dream would be to face each other on the show and they're getting just that come next month.

SIX-PACK LADDER MATCH QUALIFIERS

- Two teams from Smackdown advanced in the WrestleMania Tag Team Championship tournament which will see Judgment Day defend their titles in a six-pack ladder match. Legado Del Fantasma beat the LWO in one qualifying match while New Catch Republic defeated Pretty Deadly later in the show to earn the other spot. Now, the winning teams will face each other to earn a spot in Philadelphia. Other matches from the blue brand side will see The Street Profits vs AOP and The OC vs Waller and Theory. These matches will take place on Smackdown next week and the winners of these matches will face each other on another week. The tournament continues on Raw next Monday with Raw teams taking center stage.

BECKY LYNCH INVITED TO THE WHITE HOUSE TOMORROW

- For St. Patrick's Day tomorrow, WWE Superstar Becky Lynch is giving up partying at an Irish pub and instead, she accepted an invitation to be at the White House. Lynch will be there along with other Irish personalities including Prime Minister Leo Varadkar according to the New York Post. The White House St. Patrick’s Day reception will include the traditional shamrock ceremony and President Biden will be presented with the traditional shamrock bowl, extending St. Patrick’s Day greetings from the people of Ireland to the people of the United States. "I got invited to the White House, because I’m Ireland’s national treasure," Lynch told the NY Post. "It’s a big Irish celebration, so I’ll be there."

MERCEDES MONE'S AGENT SAYS SHE GOT A "GENEROUS OFFER" FROM WWE

- Keven Underago, who has been by Mercedes Mone's side ever since she left WWE as her agent, told the Heal Squad podcast that while WWE made a generous offer for Mone last year, she went with her gut in choosing AEW. "They put out a generous offer. A rival company that exists now also put out an offer," Underago said. "Mercedes is really smart. She went with her gut and she felt the other offer was right. I agreed with her." He said that the AEW had a lot more and not necessarily money, but had more opportunity, creative, and mental help. "It's nice that, where Mercedes is now, she's not tolerated, she's truly celebrated," he continued. "They see her for what she is, which is a star. This is a girl that, even just being on Mandalorian in her small role, they made nine action figures for her. They don't do that out of charity, they do that because they sell!" He continued saying that Mercedes now is in a home that "gets it" and he's glad that he was able to deliver that for her. Underago is the husband of Maria Menounos, who also hosts the Heal Squad podcast, and the creator of broadcast network AfterBuzz TV.

AEW TAG TEAM TITLE TOURNAMENT KICKS OFF TONIGHT

- A tournament to crown the new AEW World Tag Team champions will kick off tonight on Collision. There are two wildcard matches to see who advances to the quarter finals on each side of the bracket. Best Friends vs Powerhouse Hobbs and Kyle Fletcher is wild card match one while House of Black vs Infantry is wild card match two. The left side of the bracket has The Young Bucks vs Private Party and Undisputed Kingdom vs the winner of wild card match one. The right side of the bracket features Ricky Starks and Big Bill vs Top Flight and FTR vs the winners of wild card match two. The final of the tournament will take place at the newest AEW pay-per-view, Dynasty, on Sunday, April 21.

DARBY ALLIN BREAKS FOOT, MOUNT EVEREST CLIMB POSTPONED

- Darby Allin's expedition to climb Mount Everest later this month has been postponed after he broke three bones in his foot. The incident happened this past Wednesday at the Big Business Dynamite in his match against Jay White, with TMZ saying that he broke it when he went for the senton from the top rope to the floor. Allin continued his match despite the broken foot and was then attacked after the match in a way to write him off TV. Now, the daredevil will have to put his dream of climbing Mount Everest on the back burner as one of his crazy spots caught up to him, leaving him out for many weeks. Allin told TMZ that he will make another attempt next year but obviously has to redo all the training again for that mammoth occasion.

THREE-HOUR AEW BLOCK NEXT WEDNESDAY ON TBS

- AEW will have a three-hour block this coming Wednesday on TBS as Rampage will air live immediately following the conclusion of Dynamite. The Rampage pre-emption is due to the NCAA programming on TNT on Friday night and Collision will also be pre-empted on Saturday and will not air at all. For next week only, Rampage will also air on TBS instead of the usual TNT. Next week's Dynamite and Rampage will take place from the Coca-Cola Coliseum in Toronto, Canada.


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|_|\_|___| \_/\_/ |___/____|___| |_| |_| |___|_|_\


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Friday, March 15, 2024 Issue #7183
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Visit our website at
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//->> OPENING WORDS FROM THE EDITOR


Nothing to say today, back tomorrow!


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//->> NEWS FROM THE WRESTLING-ONLINE NEWSWIRE
Web version at

SMACKDOWN PREVIEW

- Smackdown is live from the FedEx Forum tonight in Memphis and will be headlined by another appearance from The Rock. It's going to be a special night for The Rock as he called Memphis his home during his early wrestling career so it will be interesting to see what he's going to be cooking for the crowd! Advertised matches for tonight's show include Bayley vs Dakota Kai, Randy Orton vs Grayson Waller, Dragon Lee vs Santos Escobar, and New Catch Republic vs Pretty Deadly in a WrestleMania qualifying match. Also, Hall of Famer Rey Mysterio returns to Smackdown as well!

THE ROCK LAYS THE SMACKDOWN ON CODY...AND HIS MOM!

- It's Friday and you know what that means...another Rock promo on social media! Ahead of tonight's Friday Night Smackdown, The Rock dropped an eight-minute promo directed at Cody Rhodes and his mother following last week's events where Cody slapped The Rock. The Rock said that he had been waiting for Cody to "man up" and give The Rock a challenge worthy of the great one. "That was a good slap, too. What did The Rock do? He didn't pretend like he was angry. He didn't get a bunch of goofs and jabronis trying to hold him back," Rock said. "No, no, no. The Rock took your slap like a man. As a matter of fact, The Rock started smiling. Because The Rock likes pain. But that's a whole other conversation!" He then ripped Cody for crying during his promo on Monday Night Raw when he said that while he couldn't present the title belt to his father, he could give it to his mother. "Are you f*cking kidding me," Rock told Cody. "You start f*cking crying? You start crying? That's how you respond? No wonder all your fans are crybabies. Cody Crybabies!" But Cody wasn't the only target in his promo as Cody's mother Michelle also got a smackdown from the People's Champion. The Rock said that Cody's story will end at WrestleMania crying in a pool of his own blood and his weight belt sitting on his mother's lap. "And Mama Rhodes, don't worry, there's two things that you can do about it: Nothing and like it," The Rock continued. "Cody Rhodes, at WrestleMania, your story is going to end courtesy of Roman Reigns and courtesy of your nightmare: The Rock. The Final Boss. If ya' smell what The Rock is cooking. Now Mama Rhodes, don't go crying too much now. See you at WrestleMania." You can see the promo at .

SHAYNA BASZLER ADDED TO BLOODSPORT DURING MANIA WEEK

- In what is probably a first, WWE Superstar Shayna Baszler will be appearing at Josh Barnett's Bloodsport X event on Thursday, April 4 during WrestleMania week. The show is promoted by Game Changer Wrestling. Barnett hyped Baszler's appearance with a message on X, writing, "What does it mean when a Queen takes up the sword and marches to war? Blood. Victory. Glory." Barnett listed Baszler's credentials and added, "The Warmaster's disciple, 'The Queen of Spades' Shayna Baszler, comes to Josh Barnett's: Bloodsport X." Reacting to the news, Baszler wrote, "You people merely adopted Bloodsport. I was born in it, molded by it. From Billy Robinson the the gene seed of the Warmaster himself…..BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD!! #LimbByLimb." Letting wrestlers compete at other promotions is usually a big no-no for WWE but a new regime is in town and rules have seemed to be relaxed, at least in this case.

8TH CONSECUTIVE SOLD OUT TV TAPING TONIGHT

- WWE is heading into tonight's Smackdown from Memphis keeping the sold out streak alive with an eighth consecutive full house for a television taping. The FedEx Forum in Memphis had a big uptick in sales over the last several days with The Rock advertised to appear on the show. Over 12,000 fans are expected to be at Smackdown. The streak is likely to continue into next week as Raw in Raleigh, North Carolina is also less than 1,000 tickets away from a sellout.

REBELLION MAIN EVENT SET

- The Rebellion pay-per-view main event was made official last night as TNA champion Moose will defend his title against Nic Nemeth. Nemeth made his TNA debut at Hard to Kill by super kicking Moose in the closing moments of the show and now the two will get to go toe-to-toe on the second TNA PPV of the year, also happening at the Palms Casino in Las Vegas where Hard to Kill took place. Since departing WWE, Nemeth went on to win the IWGP Global title but that will not be on the line come April. This will be the first time that the two will meet in the ring for a match.

MERCEDES MONE SAYS SHE'S THE HAPPIEST SHE'S EVER BEEN

- Mercedes Mone did the media rounds in Boston yesterday following her AEW debut at Big Business which was held at the TD Garden. Speaking to NBC10, Mone said that she's the "happiest she's ever been" in AEW and her debut went incredible. "My fans from all over the world, it wasn't just fans from Boston. They came from all over the world, legit, to celebrate such a beautiful and amazing moment," Mone said. "To have it here in Boston was so incredible. To be out in the crowd and to see my brother's face, my mom, it's so crazy to see how far I've come." Mone was invited for the Boston Celtics game yesterday which aired on TNT and was shown on screen while commentators plugged next week's Dynamite. She also did an interview with Sports Illustrated where she said that 10 minutes before the show she was in gorilla position and could feel the energy from the crowd. "When my music hit, I felt the energy and I knew I was home," Mone told SI. Mone revealed that when she had her ankle injury last May, the surgeon told her that it was career-ending, which was the biggest shock of her life. "But I always knew I would be back, and I told that to my surgeon," she said. "Now I’m healthy and my surgeon is calling his mentor saying, ‘Look at what happened here, it’s incredible.’ I don’t like being told no. I always believed I would be back, and now it’s true." Mone even sat down with Renee Paquette for a 12-minute interview to discuss her debut which you can see at .

DYNAMITE RATING

- Dynamite: Big Business with the debut of Mercedes Mone drew 798,000 viewers this week, up 19,000 viewers from last week's episode and ties the third least-watched Dynamite of 2023 so far. The show had a 0.27 rating in 18-49, the same number of last week and was #3 on the top 50 cable chart for the night. (Ratings credit: SpoilerTV)


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