The Nashville City Paper is reporting that Scott Steiner has sued TNA Wrestling – his second lawsuit against them – saying that the company allowed Jeff Hardy to enter the ring drunk last year against him in Mount Pleasant, Michigan.
According to the lawsuit filed in Davidson County Circuit Court, Steiner suffered nerve damage in his shoulder and neck as well as a bicep injury due to what he called Hardy’s reckless, drunken wrestling.
TNA sued Steiner earlier this year after the former WCW champion went on a Twitter rampage badmouthing TNA and Hulk Hogan. After several notices to stop, TNA filed a lawsuit and Steiner counter sued and now filed this lawsuit as well.
“[TNA] knew or should have known that their agent, employee, representative, and/or servant was too incapacitated, intoxicated and/or under the influence of a controlled substance and should not have been allowed to enter the ring thus endangering the life, health, well being and safety of Scott Rechsteiner,” the lawsuit states.
Steiner is looking for a $750,000 payout in damages.
The traditional Survivor Series match which was assembled last week on RAW had some changes made to it as one team ended up with two less members and the other team had one participant removed.
The Miz quit CM Punk’s Survivor Series team at the start of yesterday’s Monday Night RAW in Birmingham, England, and then Vince McMahon pulled Punk as well, putting him in a triple threat match for the WWE title against John Cena and Ryback.
Paul Heyman was tasked with finding the replacement and found one in a Brit, the former leader of Nexus, Wade Barrett. Barrett initially refused to join the team but then had a chance of mind and told Heyman he’ll join his team on one condition – that Heyman will owe him one. Heyman immediately agreed but then Barrett told him that he wants it in writing, something that Heyman didn’t really like.
Dolph Ziggler was then added to the mix and put as team captain for Team Ziggler, joining Damien Sandow, Cody Rhodes, Wade Barrett, and Alberto Del Rio. Team Foley has Kane, Daniel Bryan, Kofi Kingston, and Randy Orton, with the other final member yet still to be revealed.
Team CM Punk at Survivor Series is no more as Vince McMahon pulled CM Punk from his team and threw him in a triple threat match.
McMahon made an appearance on the show and pulled Vickie Guerrero out, asking her why did she reward Punk with his own team so he can hide behind them at the Survivor Series. He then announced Ryback as his opponent before adding John Cena to the mix as a very unhappy Vickie Guerrero tried her best to smile to please the boss.
The traditional Survivor Series five on five match will still go on however with a new team captain.
Las Vegas, Nev. – The Ultimate Fighting Championship and FOX Sports gear up for an exciting new year of UFC coverage by unveiling the 2013 UFC on FOX broadcast schedule featuring four live events on FOX. Next year, UFC on FOX kicks off on Saturday, Jan. 26 at the United Center in Chicago, with additional events planned on April 20, July 27 and Dec. 14.
Other highlights from the 2013 FX, FUEL TV and Pay-Per-View schedule include UFC: JONES vs. SONNEN, which will be held at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. on Saturday, April 27. Charismatic star Chael Sonnen will get a shot at UFC champion Jon Jones’ light heavyweight title on April 27 after the two serve as coaches opposite each other on Season 17 of The Ultimate Fighter, which will debut in January 2013 on FX.
“2013 is shaping up to be a huge year for the UFC and we can’t wait to bring more great fights to FOX!” said UFC President Dana White. “We’re going to continue to take the UFC all over the world putting on the biggest and best fights. FOX is an amazing broadcast partner and we’re going to do some big things next year.”
UFC 2013 Schedule Highlights*:
Saturday, Jan. 19
Brazil
UFC on FX: BELFORT vs. BISPING
Saturday, Jan. 26
United Center, Chicago, Ill.
UFC on FOX
Saturday, Feb. 2
Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nev.
UFC 156: ALDO vs. EDGAR**
Saturday, Feb. 16
International Event
UFC on FUEL TV
Saturday, April 20
City to be announced
UFC on FOX
Saturday, April 27
Prudential Center, Newark, N.J.
UFC: JONES vs. SONNEN**
Saturday, July 27
City to be announced
UFC on FOX
Saturday, Dec. 14
City to be announced
UFC on FOX
*Please note this is not the full 2013 schedule. Additional FX, FUEL TV and Pay-Per-View events and on-sale dates will be announced at a later time. For more information, visit www.ufc.com/schedule.
Ticketmaster released the seating chart of the MetLife Stadium for WrestleMania 29 just days before the pre-sale starts.
There will be four sections in total – field, concourse 1, concourse 2, concourse 3, and concourse 4. There will also be limited accessible seats throughout the whole stadium.
One thing that is very odd is that the field could really hold much more seats but for some reason they’re going with an odd style, leaving four large empty sections.
The pre-sale starts on Thursday at 10AM EST and ends on Friday at 11:59PM EST and then tickets go on sale to the general public on Saturday at 10AM EST.
Monday Night RAW tonight will not be live on USA Network however it will be on a few hours of tape delay since the show is being taped in Birmingham, England, at the LG Arena.
The only thing announced for the show so far is the segment involving WWE referee Brad Maddox who will be explaining his actions from Hell In A Cell. Last week the first Survivor Series match was assembled as Mick Foley and CM Punk chose their respective teams. The build towards the Survivor Series continues tonight with more matches likely to be announced.
Smackdown tomorrow will also be taped from the LG Arena in Birmingham and will also air on tape delay on SyFy.
W-O reader Ian Hamilton attended yesterday’s Smackdown live event in London, England, and sent in the following results:
Sin Cara defeated El Local; The Usos defeated Prime Time Players; Kaitlyn defeated Natalya; Randy Orton defeated Alberto Del Rio; Wade Barrett and William Regal defeated Ted DiBiase and Johnny Curtis; Kofi Kingston defeated The Miz; Sheamus defeated Big Show with a disqualification.
Gawker Media – the company which published one minute of the Hulk Hogan sex tape and a full play-by-play of the whole video at Gawker.com – responded to the Hulk Hogan lawsuit saying that Hogan’s claims that they ruined his reputation is bull because his reputation was already ruined!
Attorneys for Gawker said in the response that Hogan admitted that he lied and cheated in his books and admitted he was an adulterer in one of his two books so the video couldn’t have caused any more harm.
Gawker also says that the website didn’t record the tape, it just published it and since Hogan is a celebrity it was newsworthy for everyone.
The company is also trying to invoke the law that protect news sources so they don’t have to reveal the identity of the individual who leaked them the footage.
New television ads in Connecticut supporting Democrat Chris Murphy landed a big blow to Linda McMahon this week after the President himself taped a message to support Murphy.
In a previous McMahon television ad, it was encouraged to vote for McMahon and President Obama on the same ballot, something which was struck as odd since the McMahons are big Republicans and have donated money to the Romney campaign.
The TV ad with Obama talks about Murphy’s job plan, something that the McMahon campaign attacked him for not having during this race.
McMahon is close to spending over $100 million for the two Senate races and while she was ahead in the polls before she has now slipped down considerably and her chances of winning aren’t looking very good.
Here are the results from yesterday’s RAW non-televised event from Manchester, England.
Brodus Clay and Santino Marella defeated Epico and Primo; Michael McGuillicutty defeated Tensai; Eve defeated Layla and AJ in a triple threat match; John Cena defeated Dolph Ziggler; Antonio Cesaro defeated Zack Ryder; Kane and Daniel Bryan defeated Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow; Ryback defeated CM Punk in the main event via disqualification.
Smackdown ring announcer Lilian Garcia spoke to WWE.COM about her accident from last week in Los Angeles where she was struck by car, sending her to the hospital for a couple of nights.
The WWE Diva was hit by an SUV while she was working out and said it has been the most frightening thing that she ever had to go through,
“I’m suffering from head, neck and back trauma. I have lacerations and wounds on the left side of my body,” Garcia said.
Although feeling better, Garcia remains on pain medication and thanked the UCLA medical team for taking great care of her.
There is still no timetable for her return to the ring and will be undergoing further testing next week.
“The most amazing fans in the world are WWE fans. Thank you for the outpouring of love, well wishes and the support.”
WWE referee Brad Maddox will be explaining his actions from Hell In A Cell tomorrow night on RAW.
During the closing moments of that pay-per-view, Maddox low-blowed Ryback as he was about to deliver the Shell Shock to CM Punk. The low blow was then followed by a quick three count from the referee and Punk managed to walk out of the pay-per-view still the WWE champion.
The same referee was in charge of the Brock Lesnar vs Triple H match at SummerSlam and he was congratulated by Paul Heyman the night after the show for his officiating.
MMA Junkie is reporting that Stephan Bonnar failed his UFC 153 drug test and tested positive for the anabolic steroid Drostanolone.
In addition to Bonnar, Dave Herman also botched his drug test and tested positive for Marijuana metabolites. The drug test was performed by the UFC as there’s no Brazil athletic commission.
Mark Ratner, UFC’s Vice President of Regulatory Affairs, told MMAFighting that the company will announce suspensions for both fighters, something which will not really effect Bonnar as he already announced his retirement from the sport.
Both Bonnar and Herman were on the losing side at UFC 153 to Anderson Silva and Minotauro Nogueira respectively.
Even though Hulk Hogan settled the lawsuit against his former friend Bubba “The Love Sponge” over the sex tape, Hulk says that the two are not friends anymore.
“Just for the record, Bubba and I are NOT friends and never will be friends,” Hogan wrote in a message on Twitter before once again stating that the two are not friends with not written in capital letters.
Hogan sued Bubba and his ex-wife Heather Cole over their involvement in the sex tape. The lawsuit against Bubba was settled out of court with the details remaining confidential. Bubba issued a press release eating back all the words he said about Hulk and also mentioned it twice on his radio show.
Former WWE champion John Cena helped grant a wish to an eight year old kid who suffers from a condition called hydrocephalus – which is a buildup of cerebrospinal fluid in the skull – after the Kids Wish Network came knocking.
Maurice Wilson met his hero after Kids Wish Network arranged for an all expenses paid trip to Atlanta for Maurice and his parents which included accommodations and the meet-and-greet.
“It was fabulous. It was a dream-come-true for Maurice. This is definitely something we never could have given him and we didn’t expect anything as wonderful as this,” said Maurice’s mother. “Everyone everywhere knew who Maurice was and he was really surprised. Everyone gave us the VIP treatment.”
On the day of the wish, Maurice and his family were picked up by an H2 Hummer limousine and driven to the Phillips Arena. They were escorted backstage and were taken straight to see John Cena.
Maurice presented Cena with a t-shirt and a pin for hydrocephalus awareness, while Cena gave Maurice signed posters and pictures along with t-shirts, hats and armbands. Afterwards, Maurice and his family were seated in the second row for the WWE pay-per-view.
“I was holding back tears the whole wish,” his mom added. “I really appreciate all that you did for my son. Maurice hasn’t stopped talking about it and he’s still wearing one of the hats John Cena gave him. Thank you so much.”
TNA begins with a recap of last week’s show involving Aces and Eights, Kurt Angle and Jeff Hardy. The first person to the ring when the show begins is attorney Joseph Park.
Park wants to fight someone from Aces and Eights to get some revenge after they kidnapped and tortured him. Park says he hasn’t gotten an answer from Hogan, but he doesn’t need one. This week is Open Fight Night and Park is calling out anyone from Aces and Eights. Four members of the biker gang come out and surround Park.
Park gets beat down until Angle comes to the rescue, then Angle gets beat down. Sting comes to the rescue next and he’s got a bat in hand; Aces and Eights scatter. After they leave, Sting promises that someone from Aces and Eights will get unmasked tonight.
Later tonight, we will see Devon versus Bully Ray, ODB versus Jesse, and Christian York competing in this week’s Gut Check segment. Before the break, Magnus tells us he is going to call out former partner, TV champ Samoa Joe.
Commercial
Jesse and Tara are in the back. Jesse seems scared to fight ODB and Tara tries to comfort him. Jesse is afraid he’ll catch an infection from ODB and asks Tara to sterilize him. Tara makes a joke about having to adopt kids if he’s sterilized, but she didn’t sound like she was joking.
Magnus comes to the ring and insults Samoa Joe, calling him the Howard Stern of TNA: He’s popular, but has a face for radio. Magnus calls Joe out as the crowd chants “Joe’s gonna kill you!” That’s probably my second favorite chant after “You’re gonna get your fuckin’ head kicked in!” which is what ROH fans used to chant at Bryan Danielson’s (AKA Daniel Bryan’s) opponents.
Match #1 Samoa Joe versus Magnus.
Joe starts out with a series of strikes and rips of Magnus’ shirt. Joe lands a kick, a headbutt, and another punch. Magnus responds with a kick but Joe hits him with an inverted atomic drop. Joe hits Magnus with a senton and more strikes. After an Irish whip, Magnus leapfrogs Joe and then hits him in the head with a high knee.
The two men exchange several strikes; Joe gets the edge and applies the rear naked choke. Magnus escapes and sends Joe to the corner. Magnus charges at Joe, but Joe catches him and slams him to the mat with an STO. Joe clotheslines Magnus to the floor. Joe pursues and they exchange punches on the floor. Magnus grabs a wrench from under the ring and hits Joe in the head with it, knocking him out. The ref DQ’s Magnus, and the unconscious Samoa Joe is the winner.
Commercial
When we return, Sting, Hogan, and Joseph Parks are talking about Aces and Eights. Angle interrupts and says he wants to fight Devon to payback Aces and Eights for their attack on him last week. Hogan reminds Angle that Bully Ray is fighting Devon tonight, but he says Angle can fight Devon at Turning Point. Garrett Bischoff and Wes Briscoe also express a desire to fight Aces and Eights tonight, and Sting tells them all they’re going to unmask someone tonight.
Commercial
When we return, Joe tells us he wants to face Magnus in a no DQ match at Turning Point. The crowd chants Joe’s gonna kill you. Jeff Hardy is in the back with his eyes closed, but we can still see his eyes because he has two sets; one over the lids and one under. We can also hear his voice even though his lips aren’t moving. You know who else has lips that never move, and has multiple sets of eyes? Mr. Potato head! Could they be related? … (no, they can’t be)
Kaz and Daniels come to the ring next. They complain about new tag champs Chavo and Hernandez and then call out…Hector Guerrero and Willie Urbina, the Spanish announce team.
Commercial
Kaz and Daniels are still trying to get Hector and Willie to fight and some pushing ensues. Kaz accuses them of being MexiCANTs instead of MexiCANs. Chavo and Hernandez come out to help (Hector is Chavo’s uncle, of course) and Kaz and Daniels retreat.
Commercial
When we return, ODB is trying to call her husband, Eric Young, to get him to come and watch her match with Jesse. She also wants some fried chicken.
Gut Check Match: Christian York versus Zema Ion.
York starts the match off with several strikes, Zema responds with a hurricanrana. York responds with some more kicks, including a flipping kick, and then takes Zema down with a half nelson suplex. York climbs to the top rope and Zema retreats to the floor. York tries to pull Zema back in, but Zema snaps his head down on the top rope and then follows up with a DDT. Zema lands a kick, York lands a few punches.
Zema rakes Yorks eyes. Zema hits York with a suplex, a leg drop, and a moonsault. York responds with a clothesline, a kick, and his finishing move “mood swing” that looks sort of like CrossRhodes. Zema kicks out at 2. Zema goes out to the floor and York pursues and Zema backdrops him back towards the ring. York bounces of the ropes and takes Zema down with a hurricanrana.
The two men re enter the ring and Zema knocks York to the mat. Zema applies his submission finisher “Submission Impossible” and York taps out. Zema Ion wins.
Commercial
When we return, Garrett Bischoff tells Bully Ray that he’s got his back if he needs it tonight in his match against Devon. Bully is appreciative. Bully and Bischoff hear that Aces and Eights is nearby and they go looking for a fight. Bully, Bischoff, Sting, and Angle all start brawling with aces and eights until the biker gang flees.
Match: ODB versus Jesse.
ODB gets the early advantage and lands several chops. Jesse is missing with every punch he throws, and eventually ODB is able to use her vagina as a weapon by slamming Jesse’s face into it repeatedly. ODB jumps off the top rope but Jesse sidesteps and ODB hits the mat hard. Jesse bodyslams ODB and the crowd boos. Jesse and Tara kiss, and ODB bodyslams Jesse. ODB puts Jesse on her knee and spanks his ass! Tara jumps up on the ring apron and distracts ODB. Jesse comes up from behind and rolls ODB up, pulling on her tights to get the win.
Robbie E and Robbie T walk to the ring in their adorable matching argyle sweaters. Robbie says that he’s calling out TNA champ Jeff Hardy. Robbie reminds us that he did beat Jeff once during the BFG series, and then he points out “Lighting always strikes twice!” Hardy gets the early advantage with some strikes and then slams Robbie to the mat.
Hardy goes to the top rope and hits Robbie with a frog splash and gets a 2 count. Robbie retreats to the floor and then pulls Hardy to the floor. They exchange punches and then Hardy slams Robbie into the steel steps. Jeff hits Robbie with poetry in motion by jumping over the steel steps and knocking Robbie into the security barrier. Hardy rolls Robbie back into the ring, and Big Robbie T yanks Hardy back to the floor.
Commercial
Hardy lands a couple flying forearm shots and then hits Robbie T with a baseball slide dropkick. Hardy knocks Robbie down and tries Twist of Fate, but Robbie retaliates with a DDT. Hardy responds with some punches, a kick, and a front suplex. Hardy puts Robbie down with twist of fate and then gets the win with a swanton bomb.
After the match, Austin Aries comes out with the original TNA title and insists he’s still the best. Hardy challenges him to prove it by facing him in a ladder match. Aries claims he’s a wrestler not a ladder climber.
Hulk Hogan is shown selling merchandise at his new beach shop. Hogan gets interrupted by Matt Morgan. Morgan looks at Hogan’s memorabilia and steals the robe he wore at Shea stadium. Hogan says “You can’t take that, it’s mine” and Morgan says “I just did. Do you really want to get embarrassed in front of your fans?”
Commercial
When we return, Bobby Roode makes his way to the ring. Now that Austin Aries is no longer champ, Roode wants to get back in the title picture. Roode is interrupted by AJ Styles. AJ is in a bad mood. AJ tells Roode that while Roode spent a year as TNA champ, he was busy with his own issues: being photographed entering an elevator with a member of the opposite sex and accused of having an affair with his boss.
AJ thinks this must be a new fad if your name is AJ. Styles is of course referring to the storyline over at WWE in which John Cena was set up to look like he was having an affair with his boss, AJ Lee. I actually do like WWE more than TNA, but WWE has flagrantly stolen some storylines from TNA lately. AJ challenges Roode to a fight right now as part of Open Fight Night.
Roode refuses, but then hits AJ with a cheap shot from behind. AJ hits Roode with a punch and then clotheslines him to the floor. Hogan and James Storm come out. Hogan says that at Turning Point, there will be a 3 way match between Storm, Roode, and AJ. The winner of the match becomes the #1 contender, the person that gets pinned will not be allowed a title shot until next year’s Bound For Glory.
Commercial
Joey Ryan and Matt Morgan make their way to the ring; Morgan is wearing the robe he stole from Hogan. It’s a nice robe, not up to Flair’ standards, but not bad. Morgan promises to take out everyone on the TNA roster until he is the world champion. Joey Ryan tells us that he usually tries to avoid VD, but tonight he’s going to get him some R VD. Ryan challenges RVD to a fight.
Match: RVD versus Joey Ryan with Matt Morgan.
RVD starts the match off with a clothesline. Joey Ryan lands a punch, but then RVD lands several strikes and slams Ryan into the corner. RVD hits Ryan with a LOT of shoulder blocks and then a spin kick. RVD hits Ryan with rolling thunder and then goes to the top rope. RVD tries a frog splash but Morgan pulls Ryan out of the way. Ryan rolls RVD up, pulls the tights, and gets the win.
After the match, RVD goes after Joey Ryan, but Morgan knocks him out with the Carbon Footprint.
Commercial
When we return, Bully Ray walks to the ring to challenge Devon. Devon comes out and enters the ring, and then promptly leaves again, smiling. Devon re enters the ring as Bully Ray sets up a table in the ring. Devon exits the ring again and calls for backup. Several members of Aces and Eights show up, but Bully Ray is able to keep them at bay with his chain.
Sting comes out followed by several other TNA wrestlers to help Bully Ray out. Eventually the ring clears and only Bully and Devon remain. Bully lands a big punch, but one of the larger Aces and Eights members comes into the ring to save Devon. Devon and Bully Ray leave the ring and legendary lawyer Joseph Park enters the ring to confront the large Aces and Eights member (who is actually not quite as large as Joseph).
The biker beats Joseph Park down, but Joseph grabs his mask and pulls it off. The big man under the mask is Luke Gallows! They don’t call him that, they’re probably going to come up with some new name for him. Luke puts Joseph Park through the table just before Sting and the others come to the rescue. Luke, Devon, and the rest of Aces and Eights retreats as Impact goes off the air.
The proposed WWE Network will be a premium subscription model according to WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon and it will be carried by all major cable providers.
McMahon called it the “most interactive network in the world” however stopped short in announcing when the Network will eventually launch.
The Network was supposed to launch earlier this year on WrestleMania Sunday however it got pushed back with no date set.
WWE did massive upgrades to their television facility and is hiring up to 200 employees to work on it.
WWE today announced that Brad Armstrong, the son of WWE Hall of Famer Bob Armstrong and the brother of WWE employees Road Dogg Jesse James and referee Scott Armstrong, passed away at the age of 51.
A short story on WWE.COM said that Brad was found unresponsive this morning and last week he went to see a physician for a medical issue.
Armstrong spent most of his wrestling career in the NWA and WCW and joined WWE in 2006 as part of the ECW brand.
Only Money In The Bank performed worse than last year in the past quarter as far as pay-per-view numbers go with SummerSlam and Night of Champions both registering a nice increase in total buys.
The July Money In The Bank show did 188,000 buys this year compared to the 195,000 of last year. SummerSlam in August did 358,000 with Lesnar vs HHH as the main event compared to 296,000 of last year. In September, Night of Champions had 189,000 buys, an increase of 28,000 buys from last year’s show.
Pay-per-views was one of the only four key departments that registered an increase in the last quarter for the company.
“Our fundamental operating metrics showed continued strength. Average attendance increased 6% at our live events in North America and Pay-Per-View buys increased 13% for the three comparable events in the quarter,” said George Barrios, Chief Financial Officer.
