Bloomberg is reporting that Take-Two Interactive has agreed to take over the development and production of future WWE games from the dissolved THQ.
Court documents filed yesterday revealed that the agreement between THQ and Take-Two will save the company millions in bankruptcy claims.
Yuke’s, which develops the WWE video games for THQ, will continue working with WWE and Take-Two in a new agreement which will also see the makers of the “Grand Theft Auto” franchise take over the THQ employees that worked on the WWE video games.
As part of the deal, WWE has agreed to waive its pre-bankruptcy claim of $45 million and royalty advances of $7.5 million. THQ will now pay WWE $650,000 in royalty payments for the games sold while under bankruptcy protection.
Yuke’s 14% equity have been returned by THQ – valued at $4.5 million – in exchange of pre-bankruptcy claims waiver. The video game developers will also get $250,000 in royalties.
The pre-show match for the Elimination Chamber has been announced and it will be a tag team match that will probably contain some comedy.
The 30 minute pre-show, airing on the WWE YouTube channel and Facebook page will feature the team of Brodus Clay and Tensai taking on Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow, despite Team Rhodes Scholars announcing that they would be splitting up.
It’s six nights until Elimination Chamber! We obviously know the main event of the pay-per-view, so the question is how will C.M. Punk and WWE Champion The Rock duke it out one final time before their showdown on Sunday?
Who will Brock Lesnar assault next, if at all?
Apparently, their is a certain “Deadman” hanging around Nashville – will “The Phenom” make an appearance and/or start an angle toward Wrestlemania?
And, what other matches could be added to February’s annual show?
One thing is for sure, according to WWE.com, Paul Heyman is expected to make a HUGE announcement, so on that note, let’s find out what it is right now! Read on below ….
Monday Night Raw Report for February 11th, 2013 – “Elimination For Motivation”
Introduction Segment: Recap and Welcoming
Footage of last week’s ending with John Cena, Sheamus, and Ryback standing up to The Shield plays, plus highlights of C.M Punk VS. The Rock’s feud for the WWE Champion.
Michael Cole introduces us to Nashville with over 13,000 fans in attendance.
Segment #1: Arena Promo
Paul Heyman is already in the ring and reiterates who he is. His “shocking” announcement is that tonight will be the last time you see him. He totes about his career and passion, claiming that he has made great sacrifices of family and friends to bring us the single greatest product in “professional wrestling and sports entertainment.”
He then sacrificed for a rookie in 2002 that he saw the utmost potential in, the man now known as Brock Lesnar. Paul E. then saw his next protege as someone that could gain a grasp on the WWE for a long, long time to come and should still be WWE Champion tonight. He is C.M. Punk.
Heyman declares that he can see the future, and something that is hanging around will happen to everyone, including C.M. Punk. Those are “the sins of his mentor,” and they are bad. This is the reason that Heyman is resigning. He rips the fans for not showing him compassion and tells them that he won’t miss the fans at all.
Heyman is stepping down, so that he does not stand in C.M. Punk’s way of becoming WWE Champion again. “At this moment, I’m sorry, I say ‘goodbye.'”
C.M. Punk then walks out with a look of confusion and disbelief. He asks Paul what’s up, and Heyman restates that he is in Punk’s way. “The Straight-Edge Superstar” tries to convince Heyman otherwise, saying that fans actually do love him like Punk does. “There’s a lot of ‘Paul Heyman guys’ out there.”
Punk calls what’s going on right now a “bad dream” and after Elimination Chamber, it will all go back to “normal,” when he beats The Rock for his 455th day as WWE Champion. Heyman has a change of heart, and hugs “The Second-City Saint” after convincingly telling Punk that he will be the reigning WWE Champion and that Paul will be in his corner to witness it.
Heyman holds C.M.’s arms high and looks up to the Heavens, mouthing “thank you.”
Commercials.
Match #1: Single – The Great Khali (with Hornswoggle and Natalya) VS. “The World’s Strongest Man” Mark Henry
(Give you three guess on who’s winning this quickly!) Clubbing blows from Khali begin fast and he corners Henry with kicks and chops. Mark reverses with a running clothesline, knocking the 7-footer on his back. “The World’s Strongest Man” picks up Khali with the “World’s Strongest Slam” for the victory!
Winner via Pinfall: Mark Henry
Post-match, as Hornswoggle is checking on his friend, Henry sneaks up from behind and drop shim with the “W.S.S.” too. He yells “that’s what I do!”
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Segment #2: Backstage Promo
Teddy Long and Smackdown General Manager Booker T. are talking about Mark Henry when Chris Jericho walks in. He advertises his successes as a six-time World Champion and that he has been in more Elimination Chamber matches than anyone else in the history of WWE.
He wants to be in this Sunday’s match and requests, on sensibility and fairness. Long agrees, but Booker makes a match with Teddy’s suggestion, to prove he belongs. The man Jericho has to face is Tag-Team Champion Daniel Bryan, and “Y2J” looks forward to it, beating him and then winning the Chamber bout for a shot to become a 7-time World Champion.
Segment #3: Office Promo
Paul Heyman meets with Managing Supervisor Vickie Guerrero. He wants a stipulation added to the WWE Championship bout, but before she can respond, the only man who can make that decision gives her a call on her cellular phone.
Mr. McMahon listens to Heyman’s suggestion that The Rock would be stripped of the WWE Championship if he gets himself counted-out or disqualified. Vince agrees then promptly hangs up as Heyman begins to suck-up some more.
Tag-Team Champion Daniel Bryan makes his entrance to take on Chris Jericho next!
Commercials.
Match #2: Single – Tag-Team Champion Daniel Bryan VS. Chris Jericho (Non-Title)
Jericho catches Daniel with a couple quick roll-ups then a couple of armdrags. Bryan reverses into a hammer lock and delivers a running knee-to-the-gut, with two kicks following. They trade wrist locks, but Jericho gets dumped over the top rope after an attempted running clothesline. He also misses a springboard turnbuckle dropkick, then Bryan flies through the ropes with a suicide dive.
Ads.
Back live, Daniel drops out of a suplex and rolls-up Jericho for a two-count! Jericho puts Bryan in the corner and chokes him with his boot, to huge “Y2J” chants. Chris runs the ropes with some shoulder blocks, but misses a diving standing attack, allowing Daniel to hit him with a running elbow clothesline.
Daniel almost gets caught in a Walls Of Jericho, but he rolls out of it and blocks the Lionsault too with knees in Jericho’s gut.
Bryan ascends the top rope, but gets cut off. He ends up shoving Chris to the canvas and nail a diving headbutt! 1 – 2 – Jericho kicks out/gets the shoulder up! Bryan connects with a couple more knees, but then does get caught in a full-on Walls Of Jericho submission!
Daniel pushes himself up and rolls through into the “No Lock!” Jericho battles out of that and almost into another Walls, which is countered by Bryan. He stiff-kicks Jericho in the head to knock him out! 1 – 2 – 2 1/2 – Chris gets the shoulder up!
Daniel misses another kick and Jericho rolls him up, 1 – 2 – Bryan kicks out! Out of nowhere, Jericho clocks Bryan with the “Codebreaker” double-knee facebuster for the hard-earned and respected spot in the Chamber!
Winner via Pinfall: Chris Jericho
Commercials.
Match #3: 6-Man Tag-Team – “3.M.B.” (Heath Slater, Jinder Mahal, and Drew McIntyre) VS. Sheamus, Ryback, and John Cena
(I’m sorry, I can’t stand “3.M.B.” and I think (hope) we all know who’s going to pick up the win here.) Bottom line, “The Supergroup” gets the duke with a White Noise, Shell-Shock, and Attitude Adjustment!
Winners via Pinfall: Sheamus, Ryback, and John Cena
Post-match, the faces all declare what they are going to do Sunday and tonight to “The Shield.”
Segment #4: Backstage Promo
Yoshi Tatsu and Alex Riley are chatting about Big Show’s mishap with paint from Friday’s Smackdown (read that fine report on this fine website!), then they are fastly taken out by Big Show himself.
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Segment #5: Arena Promo
Matt Striker is set to interview Big Show in the ring, but the 7-foot giant knocks him out right away. A frustrated Big has trouble getting his words out, then slams the microphone down and stomps off.
Segment #6: Hall-Of-Fame Recap
Rightfully so, the montage of Bruno Sammartino’s life and career replays, proving why he is truly one of the greatest of all time and that grudges can be buried and people can come together for better reasons.
Commercials.
Match #4: Single – “Long Island Iced-Z” Zack Ryder VS. “A Real American” Jack Swagger (with Zeb Coulter)
Much like his last few matches, Jack out-wrestles Zack and finishes him off with the gut-wrench powerbomb and the “Patriot Act” ankle lock for the tap-out!
Winner via Submission: “A Real American” Jack Swagger (with Zeb Coulter)
Post-match, Swagger introduces his new manager. Zeb takes the microphone and states what’s wrong with American. He says the war in Vietnam proved that those men were real Americans, whereas today, no people will talk to them.
He wants to get rid of these people and Coulter claims that he and Swagger “knows the truth.” He goes on a tirade about defending “our land” and America, claiming “we the people.”
Segment #7: Backstage Promo
Booker T. and Teddy Long agree to put Jack Swagger in the Elimination Chamber. Dolph Ziggler, A.J., and Big E. Langston walk by. “The Showoff/Mr. Money In The Bank” protests Jericho being in there, as he won a match with Jericho’s contract at stake last August.
He wants to be in the Chamber too, as Big E. says, to attain two World Championship shots. Booker complies, only if Ziggler can get past “The Big Red Machine!”
Up next, “The Awesome One” The Miz is in a match.
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Match #5: Single – “The Awesome One” The Miz VS. Cody Rhodes
(Note: United States Champion Antonio Cesaro is on commentary). Elbow/collar tie-up by both, then The Miz executes a hammer lock. He rolls out of a sunset flip attempt and kicks Rhodes in the head. Cody drops down with an uppercut and kick to Miz’s stomach.
He takes control, stomping on Miz’s back, then snapmaring him with a running knee. Miz battles out of a submission with clotheslines and a flapjack. He yanks Cody head-first to the apron, then boots Cesaro as the U.S. Champ tried an attack. He is successful next time, running Miz into the steel post, causing Rhodes to get DQ’ed.
Winner via Disqualification: The Miz
Post-match, Cesaro grabs Miz’s legs and swings him back and forth into the barricade.
WWE hypes their “WrestleMania Reading Challenge.”
Commercials.
Match #6: Tag-Team – Primo and Epico (with Rosa Mendes) VS. Tensai and “The Funkasaurus” Brodus Clay (with “The Funkettes” Naomi and Cameron)
Again, much like the earlier 6-man tag, I know who is taking this contest! Tensai finishes off Epico with his splash on the mat!
Winners via Pinfall: Tensai and “The Funkasaurus” Brodus Clay (with “The Funkettes” Naomi and Cameron)
Post-match, all faces dance and “The Funkettes” send Rosa to the outside with a baseball slide.
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Segment #8: Arena Promo
“The Shield,” Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, and Roman Reigns are in the ring. They declare that John Cena has been a problem of injustice for the past decade. Ambrose calls Cena living in his “John Cena smiling world,” the “John Cena problem.”
Cena has paved the way over the last 10 years for guys like Ryback and Sheamus, which does not sit well with the trio. This Sunday, Ambrose, Rollins, and Reigns claim they will serve justice. A blackout ensues and Cena, Ryback, and Sheamus are in the ring, breaking out in a brawl with “The Shield.” They take them out and run up the crowd to the pleasure of the fans.
Commercials.
Match #7: Single – “The Intellectual Saviour Of The Masses” Damien Sandow VS. World Heavyweight Champion Alberto Del Rio (with Ricardo Rodriguez)
Prior to the bout, Sandow rips on Nashville for their culture of country music. Damien is aggressive early with fast knees to Del Rio’s gut. a Russian legsweep, and then drops the “Elbow of Distain.” Alberto fires back with clotheslines, and a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker.
The World Champ gears up for a mini-superkick for a nearfall, then quickly clutches on the Cross Armbreaker for the submission victory!
Winner via Pinfall: World Heavyweight Champion Alberto Del Rio (with Ricardo Rodriguez)
Post-match, The World Champion is happy with Big Show’s promo, as he said nothing! Del Rio says the time for talking is done, as after the Elimination Chamber, Alberto will defeat Show and go on to “Wrestlemania!”
Up next, Intercontinental Champion Wade Barrett is in action. Before he can get to the ring, Bo Dallas attacks him backstage until referees can pull him off.
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Match #8: Single – Kofi Kingston VS. Intercontinental Champion Wade Barrett (Non-Title)
Kofi tries to take advantage of a hurting Barrett with kicks, but the Intercontinental Champion soon fires back with short-arm clotheslines and a choking submission. Kofi counters and nails some chops and a dropkick.
Kofi tries an S.O.S. but Wade shoves him into the corner. Kingston counters and flies off the top with a standing-esque splash. 1 – 2 – Barrett shoves off! Another crossbody a bit later from Kofi nets another nearfall! Barrett ducks a springboard attack and slams Kofi down with “The Winds Of Change.” 1 – 2 – Kofi kicks out!
Wade gears up for the elbow, but misses as does Kingston with the “Trouble In Paradise” spinning kick. Barrett tricks Kofi, using the ring apron (literately) to cover Kingston and hit him with “The Bullhammer” elbow. 1 – 2 – 3!
Winner via Pinfall: Intercontinental Champion Wade Barrett
Up next, the last Elimination Chamber spot will be determined!
Commercials.
Match #9: Single – Tag-Team Champion Kane VS. “The Showoff/Mr. Money In The Bank” Dolph Ziggler (with A.J. and Big E. Langston)
Ziggler hammers away at Kane with kicks and punches but gets quickly booted down. Kane drives him down with a float-over suplex and cover for two! Ziggler counters with a high dropkick to Kane, then kicks him in the back.
He corners Kane with punches and kicks again, but gets a few uppercuts in return. Ziggler quickly gets out of the ring for a break.
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Back live, Kane fights out of a grounding rear chinlock with his own snapmare. Kane runs at Dolph with a clothesline in the corner then tosses him to the outside. Kane faces off with Big E., giving Dolph an advantage to chop at Kane then drops him with a swinging neckbreaker as he had climbed back in.
Repetitive elbows are dropped by Ziggler for a two-count. Kane catches Dolph in a crossbody position, but Ziggler wiggles out and plants “The Big Red Machine” with a jumping DDT. 1 – 2 – Kane kicks out!
Ziggler measures and runs at Kane with a splash, but misses. Big boot by Kane for another two-count, then Kane runs at him in the corners with clotheslines. Dolph gets out of the side slam and turns it around into the sleeper hold, but Kane throws him over.
Ziggler comes back with the Fameasser for another nearfall! Dolph runs at him for a Zig-Zag attempt, but Kane tosses him off and drops him with a side-slam. 1 – 2 – Ziggler kicks out!
As Kane climbs the turnbuckle, A.J. hops up on the apron to help out. Kane jumps down out of the way and Dolph hits A.J. into Big E’s arms! He turns around into a Chokeslam and Kane gets the final Chamber pod!
Winner via Pinfall: Tag-Team Champion Kane
Langston, A.J., and Dolph retreat while Kane celebrates.
Commercials.
Segment #9: Arena Promo
The WWE Champion is back and The Rock is happy to be in Nashville. He calls it “storytime” and recalls his life in Tennessee. The point of story was for him to say that after Elimination Chamber, he still will be the WWE Champion.
C.M. Punk and Paul Heyman walk out to the stage, and before they say a word, The Rock tells them to bring it and that he will “beat your ass at Elimination Chamber and beat your ass all over Nashville.” The Rock ditches his shirt, ready to fight, and after contemplating with Heyman, Punk runs into the ring and begins the fight!
Rock turns it around into a spinebuster and almost People’s Elbow, as Heyman grabbed his ankle. Punk knocks out Rock with the Go To Sleep, to the delight of Heyman. “The Straight-Edge” Superstar holds the WWE Championship and walks away with the title and Paul Heyman to the ramp. “Story time’s over Rock.
I want you to understand one thing: every time you want to ‘bring it,’ because it belongs to me, I’m just going to take it.” Punk holds the Championship high, taunting The Rock as he struggles back to his feet to close the show.
End Of Raw.
Reporter’s Rumblings – By Moe Tapp
This was a much better show than last week and greater build to Elimination Chamber. There was an excellent amount of matches, which is always good, and most of the promos were well-communicated to push their respective storylines. Onto the particulars:
Excellence: Paul Heyman’s “resignation” speech. I think this was some of his best work for “faking” it, but yet hammering home all believable and reasonable points as to why he wanted to. Obviously, it wasn’t for real as he used the oratory for motivation to C.M. Punk, which was a great “bait-and-switch.” He also plays the “ass-kisser” role beautifully.
Speaking of “ass,” I do like Mark Henry being back to his “ass-kicking” ways and dominating. Yes, he’s only squashed the little dudes, but he did beat Randy Orton on Smackdown and is already in the Elimination Chamber.
I honestly think and am hoping he’d be a great choice to battle Alberto Del Rio for the World Championship at Wrestlemania. Same with Jack Swagger, I am enjoying the “reboot” in him – however, I’m not sure on Zeb yet, dunno this dude/reference from the past?
Awesome wrestling by Bryan/Jericho (of course), Del Rio/Sandow, Ziggler/Kane, and Barrett/Kingston (creative finish too!)
While I didn’t like The Rock’s promo (really was pointless), the ending with big fight between them was satisfying.
Bogus: The Shield & Cena/Sheamus/Ryback is really just the holding pattern for Cena until ‘Mania 29. It will be interesting to see where the outlaw trio will go after this, as you know the “Supergroup” is going to win in order to propel John to his main-event match with The Rock.
My how far and fast Tensai has fallen. He’s back to his early 2000 days of “Too Cool.” So much for the big push of another “monster.” (Not that I wanted that anyway).
Dolph Ziggler – not sure what’s going on. He’s also kind of in “limbo” right now, it seems at least until he cashes in his Money In The Bank briefcase. I think it would’ve been better for him to be in the Chamber, may be not win, but at least be in there for a match on the pay-per-view. As of now, what is his role?
Picks for Elimination Chamber:
The Rock will retain his WWE Championship over C.M. Punk. (unfortunately).
Alberto Del Rio defeats The Big Show for the World Title.
John Cena/Ryback/Sheamus either win or draw against “The Shield” of Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, and Roman Reigns.
Mark Henry becomes the #1 Contender for Alberto Del Rio’s World Heavyweight Championship.
As always, until next week, Be Excellent Wrestling-Online Readers and Wrestling Fans!
TNA Wrestling issued a press release today announcing its intention to help the fight to keep wrestling on the Olympics after the IOC dropped it starting from the 2020 Games.
“The IOC has decided to keep recreational sports such as badminton, handball and table tennis in the ’25 Core Sports’ category and to delete one of the oldest Olympic sport that premiered in the first modern Olympics in Athens in 1896,” the press release stated.
Kurt Angle, the former WWE and TNA champion and Olympic gold medalist is ready to fight this decision and “organize a battalion of like minds” to save this Olympic sport.
“Wrestling is one of the most competitive sports in the world today. Winning the gold for my country in one of the original Olympic sports was one of the greatest moments in my life,” Angle said.
“The wrestling community is in a state of shock with this decision – we can not sit back and allow this to happen. I will do whatever it takes and work with my company TNA WRESTLING and the competitive wrestling community to determine what we need to do to reverse this decision.”
TNA President Dixie Carter said in the press release that everyone in the pro wrestling community need to join together to fight this.
“We need to join together right now. We encourage our own IMPACT Wrestling community, WWE and wrestling organizations worldwide as well as competitive amateur coaches and athletes to have a unified voice to make sure wrestling will be an Olympic sport in 2020.”
Today, the International Olympic Committee took the decision to withdraw the sport of wrestling starting from the 2020 Olympic Games. Wrestling has been part of the Olympics since 1896.
One person who didn’t take the decision nicely was former Olympian himself, the one and only Iron Sheik. TMZ caught up with Sheiky to get his opinions on the IOC for dropping wrestling and well, how can we put it, he wasn’t happy!
“After 1000 years they take away the best sport in the world? This is the first time the dumb motherf**kers have no balls for they make the walking an Olympic sport,” Sheik told TMZ.
He also threatened to harm IOC members if he sees them in the street. “If I see anybody on the street that work from the IOC I swear to the Jesus I suplex them put them in camel clutch break their back make them humble.”
Sheik was involved in the 1968 Olympics representing his country Iran and then joined Team USA as a coach afterward.
On his Twitter, the former WWE champion is on a rampage, telling the IOC to go and f**k themselves and that they have “rice dicks.” Comedy gold. God bless the Iron Sheik.
“Go f**k the Badminton and the walking they are not sports like wrestling,” Sheik said.
A tweet that The Rock sent to Jeff Jarrett after RAW was over was deleted from The Rock’s timeline however the actual tweet still comes up if you search for it.
“@JeffJarrettTNA Had to tell a few of our USWA stories tonight on #RAW my friend. From 40 bucks a night to @WWE Champ. #NashvilleDreams,” Rock wrote to Jarrett, a message which was retweeted 164 times.
“Congrats on all your success! #DowntownBruno,” Jarrett replied, adding the hashtag of Downtown Bruno, who WWE fans might now better as Harvey Wippleman. The Rock name-checked him during the promo which closed RAW yesterday.
The current WWE champion mentioned the former TNA champion on the broadcast while he was recounting stories from when he started wrestling in Nashville when he was 25 years old. Jeff Jarrett was fired in a TNA storyline at the end of 2011 following a steel cage match against Jeff Hardy at the Final Resolution pay-per-view.
Jarrett also wrote that after The Rock mentioned him on RAW, people made sure he knew about it!
The final two – or actually three – members for the Elimination Chamber match to determine the number one contender for the World Heavyweight title at WrestleMania were chosen last night on RAW.
The first one to qualify for the Chamber match was the returning Chris Jericho who defeated tag team title holder Daniel Bryan to earn his spot. The other one to go through was Bryan’s tag team partner Kane, who defeated Dolph Ziggler. Rey Mysterio, who was previously in the match but pulled out after Mark Henry’s attack, was replaced by Jack Swagger.
With the new three entrants, the match now has Randy Orton, Mark Henry, Daniel Bryan, Chris Jericho, Kane, and Swagger, all competing for a spot in one of the main events of WrestleMania.
Dutch Mantel returned to WWE television yesterday on Monday Night RAW under the name of Zeb Coulter following an absence of ten years.
The man formerly known as Uncle Zebekiah accompanied Jack Swagger to the ring for his match against Zack Ryder and then cut a promo on how patriot he is.
The 63 year old Carolina native has a long wrestling career dating back to 1973 and worked for WCW and TNA as well.
Mantel started with WCW in 1990 and then moved to Smokey Mountain Wrestling a year later where he spent till 1994 before making his debut with the then WWF. In 2003 he started working for TNA as a writer and producer and left the company in 2009.
W-O reader Darren Hallesy from Australia attended the “Good God Almighty” stand-up comedy show in Brisbane featuring soon-to-be WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley along with Australian comedian Brendan Burns and sent in the following report:
Foley has been touring the country doing his stand up comedy show, and there were several hundred die-hard wrestling fans to see the Hardcore Legend do his thing.
Burns is a long time wrestling fan, and his set was mostly based around wrestling which hit the spot with the fans in the audience. He said himself during his set that he can tell Randy Orton jokes and it’s nice to have the audience understand what he’s talking about.
He told stories about some of his legendary signs at PPV’s (including the ‘Randy Orton Orange-O-Meter’ at WrestleMania) and the time he got the Great Khali to break character in the ring.
Better known in the UK than he is in his own country, Burns met Foley in the UK and the tour was his idea. Burns told stories of staying at the Foley household while preparing for the tour.
After a 40 minute set by Burns, Foley took to the stage and owned it. Most comedians are told to work on getting a good five to ten minutes, and Foley did over an hour, telling stories from his life on the road, his time in all the wrestling companies, and took questions from the audience.
It was an intimate, and very funny evening, as Foley tried out material that he admitted himself was still a work in progress. He told stories of failing to call his wife after a hardcore match, his time in ECW/WWE/TNA, some of the great pranks he’s played on other wrestlers, and talked about the Hell In A Cell match against the Undertaker. He says he feels like he’s in Groundhog Day as there isn’t a day that goes by where someone doesn’t ask him about THAT match.
Foley made fun of some wrestlers, but never mean, as it was clear that he has a great love for the people he has worked with and a genuine affection, still, for the industry.
Foley also brought along some clips to expand on his stories, including the spear Edge gave him into a flaming table which looks even more painful in slow-mo.
Burns joined Foley on stage towards the end to help Mick re-enact a classic ‘wrestlers on the road’ story, and without giving too much away, it was the highlight of the night. So funny.
For a man who is just beginning as a stand up comic, Foley had the audience laughing from start to finish, and it is just impossible to not like the man. He is just what you expect. Genuine, funny and interesting.
After the show, Foley stayed behind for a meet and greet, and was happy to pose for photos and sign items that fans had brought in. Foley said that he dated an Australian girl in his youth, and has always had an affection for the Australian sense of humor.
Foley wraps up his Australian tour at the end of this week, and as a long time fan, it was a joy to hear the great man talk about his life, which is told in a manner that you can’t help but laugh at.
Foley also promised that this Hall of Fame speech will be something to remember at this year’s ceremony.
If Foley comes to your town, don’t miss this show. It is a very rare chance to hear a living legend tell stories about wrestling, and is guaranteed to put a smile on your face. It did for me. Tour dates are on his website.
PS – Foley didn’t tell a single Al Snow joke.
PPS – And yes, the crowd did stand and chant “FOLEY! FOLEY! FOLEY!” when he came on stage.
Former WWE champion CM Punk might have pissed off some of his Catholic fans after he called the Pope a “nazi.”
The argument came on Twitter when someone that Punk follows said that he “did nazi that coming” regarding the Pope resigning from his post as head of the Catholic church. Punk liked the joke so much that he retweeted it and said that the joke was “magic!”
A fan pointed out that his tweet might have been “an envelope-pushing” one for a company employee.
“Oh pis off. Pope was a nazi,” fired back Punk.
Another fan expressed his disgust that Punk called the Pope a Nazi and said that as a long time fan, he’s offended. Punk was quick to reply, pointing out that there’s an unfollow button if he wants.
The Pope was part of the Nazi youth squad when he was young.
The Undertaker was present at the Nashville Predators NHL game yesterday at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville and that same arena happen to be tonight’s site for Monday Night RAW.
While the deadman was no luck to the Predators since they lost 3-0, wrestling fans might be lucky to see the Undertaker on the broadcast tonight in what would be his first appearance since the RAW 1000 episode.
His appearance however is not confirmed and he might be in town for different reasons. If he will be wrestling at WrestleMania, tonight might be a good night to start an angle.
While roaming backstage, the former WWE champion took a photo with GNASH, the mascot of the Nashville Predators. You can see the photo below.
W-O reader Eric Huyck attended the non-televised RAW event in Springfield, Missouri, on Saturday night and sent in the following results:
Zack Ryder defeated Corey Graves from NXT; Tensai defeated Alex Riley; Kaitlyn defeated Tamina Snuka; The New Age Outlaws defeated Rhodes Scholars; Justin Gabriel defeated David Otunga; Chris Jericho defeated Dolph Ziggler in a no DQ match; The Miz and Ryback defeated CM Punk & Antonio Cesaro.
TNA will tape six of their ‘One Night Only’ shows over a period of three days at Universal Studios in March which will mark the final shows at the IMPACT Zone.
Two shows will be taped on Sunday, March 17, with the first one starting at 1PM and the second one starting at 7PM. The second set of tapings will be held on Saturday, March 23, and the third set of tapings on Sunday, March 24. Both second and third tapings will follow the same start time for each session.
These will be the last shows to tape at the IMPACT Zone as TNA is packing up and going on the road for all their other shows. The last IMPACT will be held in Orlando on March 7.
WWE Hall of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin has signed a new two-picture deal with Anchor Bay Films where he will also help produce under his own Broken Skull Ranch Productions brand.
The first movie will be called ‘Kill Em All, John,’ where Austin will play an ex-hitman who is pulled back into action to terminate a number of crime bosses in a race against time. Filming will start this Summer.
There is no info yet on what the second movie is.
These will be the fourth and fifth movies that Austin has filmed for Anchor Bay. He previously starred in Maximum Conviction, Hunt To Kill, and the upcoming video The Package.
Prowrestling.net is reporting that DirecTV is considering carrying the WWE Network as a new premium network according to a survey issued by the company to its subscribers.
The survey states that the proposed WWE Network would involve a separate monthly fee on top of the DirecTV subscription and eleven out of the twelve current WWE pay-per-views would be shown on the network “free” for subscribers, or better yet, as part of their monthly fee.
The other pay-per-view, WrestleMania, would not be airing on the network but only as a pay-per-view. The remaining eleven shows would still air on pay-per-view for those individuals who do not subscribe to the Network.
Four Superstars have been named for the Elimination Chamber match which will determine the number one contender for the World Heavyweight title at WrestleMania.
These four individuals are Randy Orton, Rey Mysterio, Mark Henry, and current tag team title holder Daniel Bryan.
Two more are still yet to be announced by Smackdown General Manager Booker T.
Brock Lesnar will be appearing on the March 18 edition of Monday Night RAW, one of his only few appearances set between now and WrestleMania 29.
The former WWE and UFC Heavyweight champion has appeared twice in a row on RAW so far since his return, first delivering the F5 on Vince McMahon and then destroying The Miz on this week’s RAW.
Lesnar is so far scheduled for the February 25, March 11, March 18, and April 1 RAW shows. He is rumored to be taking on Triple H at WrestleMania in a re-match from SummerSlam.
A WrestleMania 30 announcement is expected to be made this month with all signs pointing to New Orleans, Louisiana, and the site of this year’s Super Bowl – the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
During this week, several sites reported that a local radio in New Orleans announced that WrestleMania was coming to town however the name of the radio station or the show were never announced.
New Orleans has been the favorite as a location to host next year’s 30th WrestleMania, edging out other cities who have done their best to bring the pay-per-view to their place.
WWE will be holding the Elimination Chamber from New Orleans next week and with WWE already in town it would be the perfect time to make the announcement.
It will be interesting to see what kind of numbering they will use to promote the event, 30 or XXX, considering that triple X is usually associated with adult-related items.
UFC aired its first of three episodes of Primetime: Rousey vs Carmouche yesterday, a documentary following the lives of women’s Bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey and the challenger Liz Carmouche leading up to the historic UFC 157 pay-per-view.
You can see the first episode which runs for 20 minutes below.
Along with the announcement of Hardy’s new deal with TNA, Dixie Carter also announced three new locations for IMPACT on the road.
TNA will tape two episodes of IMPACT in each location, one live, and one which will air the following week similar to what WWE used to do with RAW in the late 90s.
On March 28, the company will be in Jonesboro, Arkansas at the Jonesboro Arena with tickets going on sale February 26. On April 11, it’s a stop at the American Bank Center in Corpus Christi with tickets going on sale on March 25. On June 6 it will be Duluth, Georgia’s time at the Gwinnett Center with no on sale date yet.
