Capitalizing on the popularity of CM Punk in his home town of Chicago, Illinois, WWE will be giving the Chicago fans the first showing of CM Punk: Best In The World documentary at the Portage Theater.
The screening will be held on Thursday, October 4, starting at 7PM, in this 1920s movie house which has been restored and showcases a lot of Chicago-made independent films.
The DVD and Blu-Ray versions of Punk’s documentary will be out on October 9.
If you’re in the Chicago area and want to attend the screening, call on (773) 736-4050 for more information.
With the move to a new design, unfortunately old articles that date back from May 2002 could not be ported over however all 13,500+ articles that are in the archives remain completely accessible to wrestling fans, creating one of the largest archives for wrestling news available on the Internet today.
Articles can be accessed by searching for keywords, with the search handled by the leader in Internet search engines, Google. After clicking on the desired story, each article will have its related articles showing at the bottom of the text depending on the tag used for that particular story when it was created.
There are no images accompanying articles unless the story had multimedia attached to it. This design was chosen for fast loading and to focus solely on content.
Former Nexus leader Wade Barrett returned to WWE television during yesterday’s edition of Smackdown, defeating Yoshi Tatsu in his first match back since the end of February.
Barrett was initially diagnosed to be out only for eight weeks after suffering a partial dislocation of his left elbow. His injury occurred during a RAW battle royal when the Big Show threw Dolph Ziggler over the top rope and onto Barrett and R-Truth.
Barrett eventually decided to undergo surgery to repair his elbow, putting him on a seven month layoff.
In an interview with the Montreal Gazzette ahead of Monday’s RAW at the Bell Centre, Bret “Hit Man” Hart said that it will truly be a special night for him, something that he’s been waiting for ever since the screw job at the Survivor Series in 1997.
Returning to the scene of the crime for the first time in fifteen years, Hart often wondered if it would ever happen. “I wonder what will happen when they’re in Montreal…they’ll have to think that maybe it would be a good idea to bring me into that,” Hart said while reflecting about the time when he got back on good terms with the WWE.
Years ago, WWE teased Hart’s return to Montreal during a segment involving Shawn Michaels. Michaels was in a feud with Hogan for SummerSlam but with a RAW in Montreal didn’t stop HBK from making fun of Bret, riling up the hot Montreal crowd. He said that he would screw Hart all over again before continuing the verbal assault, at which point, the Bret Hart theme song kicked in to a thunderous pop from the crowd as Michaels acted scared. Eventually HBK started laughing as it was all a joke. Bret and the WWE were still not on speaking terms back then.
Former ECW champion Bobby Lashley will be returning to MMA with a fight on November 3 in Las Vegas, the first televised show for the newly-created World Series of Fighting promotion.
His opponent has not been announced yet as the card hasn’t been put together. WSOF announced yesterday a television deal with NBC Sports which will broadcast all their shows in a one year deal.
Lashley has an MMA record of 7-2, with his two losses coming against James Thompson in his last fight this past May for Super Fight League, and against Chad Griggs during a Strikeforce show back in 2010.
It was revealed in an article on the New York Post that Olympic gold medalist and TNA Superstar Kurt Angle will be joining the broadcast team on NBC Sports for the World Series of Fighting MMA promotion.
The WSOF promotion announced during a press conference held yesterday a one year contract with NBC Sports, formerly known as Versus. NBC Sports will air eight to ten WSOF shows starting with the inaugural event on November 3 in Las Vegas.
This will be Angle’s first foray into MMA commentary and will be joining Michael Schiavello, and Bas Rutten.
PWInsider.com is reporting that Bully Ray has signed a new two year deal with TNA Wrestling ending a dispute after the two parties failed to agree on terms for a new contract.
Ray was believed to be on the way out like his former tag team partner Devon, who left TNA as their Television champion last week. The former tag tam title holder will keep his job as a producer/agent as well as wrestling, pulling double duty.
Ray and Devon have been working together since 1996, starting in the old ECW promotion and then moving to WWE in 1999 and eventually to TNA in 2005.
Spike TV will be airing a one hour special titled Countdown To Bound For Flory on Sunday, October 14, at 7PM ET, giving TNA fans exclusive behind-the-scenes access to the company’s biggest event of the year.
The show – which will air live an hour before the actual pay-per-view – will feature live interviews, a pre-show match, and other behind-the-scenes footage. Highlights of the inaugural TNA Hall of Fame celebration, featuring Sting, will be included in the countdown show.
“This Bound For Glory will be the biggest pay-per-view event in our ten-year history,” said TNA President Dixie Carter. “With so much action set for the night, we are excited to bring this one hour Countdown special to Spike. Its going to be a great way to kick off Bound for Glory.”
Bound For Flory will be airing live from the Grand Canyon University Arena in Phoenix, Arizona.
Impact begins, as it always does these days, with a replay of the Aces and Eights attacks from recent weeks. After the replay, we are informed that the Final Four in the Bound For Glory series will be decided tonight. James Storm has already qualified.
Jeff Hardy and Samoa Joe will face each other first, and later tonight Bully Ray will face RVD. Whoever has the fewest points at the end of the night will be eliminated.
Match #1: Jeff Hardy versus Samoa Joe.
Joe’s arm is still taped up because of the chair shot he recently took from his former partner, Magnus. The two men lock up and Joe gets the early edge, twisting Hardy’s arm. Hardy gets to the ropes to break the hold and then they lock up again. Hardy gets Joe in a headlock and then Joe whips him to the ropes. The crowd breaks out in competing “Let’s go Hardy” and “Let’s go Joe!” chants as Joe shoulder blocks Hardy to the mat.
Joe pushes Hardy to the corner and then beats him down with a series of punches and kicks. Joe throws Hardy to the floor and then goes out after him. Joe hits Hardy in the face with a knee strike and then slams his face into the steel steps. Hardy gets to his feet and slams Joe’s head into the steel steps. Hardy leaps over the steps and hits Joe with a flying leg lariat, knocking him into the security barrier.
Commercial
When we return, Joe and Hardy are back in the ring and Joe knocks Hardy to the mat. Joe goes for a cover but Hardy kicks out at 2. Joe whips Hardy into the ropes and hits him with a running back elbow and a kick to the head. The two men exchange several strikes, with Joe eventually knocking Hardy down. Hardy lands a couple punches and Joe responds with a headbutt. Hardy lands a pair of kicks and then an inverted atomic drop.
Hardy takes Joe to the mat with a double leg takedown and covers him for a two count. Hardy hits Joe with a jawbreaker and then goes to the top rope. Joe gets up and goes after Hardy; Hardy leaps over Joe. Hardy goes for the Twist of Fate but Joe reverses it and gets Hardy in a choke hold. Hardy escapes the choke and hits Joe’s injured arm with whisper in the wind. Hardy hits Joe with the twist of fate and then locks up Joes’ head and arm in a submission hold. Joe’s still selling an arm injury and he taps out.
After the match, TNA champ Austin Aries is talking to Hogan. Aries is sick of being attacked and wants answers. Hogan tells him that they’ve got the guy that flap jacked Aries last week and Aries can try to get answers out of him. Hogan gives Aries permission to do anything he wants to him, including breaking both his legs. Aries seems happy about that.
Commercial
When we return, Christy Hemme is interviewing Samoa Joe. Christy is asking Joe how he feels about losing when they are interrupted by Magnus. Magnus says Joe is obviously devastated, and he seems sympathetic. It’s an act though, Magnus tells Joe he attacked him because he lost his temper after a tough loss, and then proceeds to insult Joe by calling him an egomaniac. Magnus says he’s willing to be the bigger man and just walk away, but instead he cheap shots Joe in the back.
In the back, Hulk Hogan is asking several of the TNA tag teams why they should be given a title shot. The Robbies think they should have the shot because they are young, everyone else claims to deserve the shot because they are awesome. AJ Styles wants a shot to, but he has no partner and Hogan rules him out first.
Somewhere else in the back, an even less interesting Hogan is also talking to the talent. Brooke Hogan is talking to Tara about her title shot against her former student, Miss Tessmacher. They are interrupted by Gail Kim, who thinks she deserves a shot. Hogan tells her she can wrestle Tara tonight.
Commercial
Match #2: Gail Kim versus Tara.
The two women lock up and Gail gets Tara in a headlock and takes her to the mat. They get back to their feet and Gail takes Tara down again, this time with an armdrag. Gail hits Tara with a dropkick and Tara goes down again. Tara gets to her feet, lands a punch and then backdrops her. Gail goes for a flying armbar, Tara punches her way out.
Gail shoulder blocks Tara into the corner and then hits her with a leg drop to the back while Tara is in the ropes. Tara gets out of the corner, takes Gail down and then mounts and pounds her. Tara goes for a pin and Gail kicks out at 2. Gail regains the edge and goes for a cover and gets two. Gail charges Tara but Tara sidesteps and then powerslams her to the mat.
Tara hits Gail with a series of strikes and a delayed vertical suplex. Tara goes for another cover and gets 2. Gail grabs Tara’s leg and takes her down. Gail goes to the top but Tara cuts her off. Tara gets Gail up on her shoulders and then hits her with widows peak for the win.
After the match we see a replay of Joey Ryan’s Gut Check match with Austin Aries and his failure to impress the Gut Check judges. Of the three judges voting, (Pritchard, Snow, and Taz) only Al Snow voted to give Ryan a contract, which is interesting because Al has been attacked by Ryan a couple times now.
Al Snow goes to the ring and calls Ryan out. Ryan comes out and Snow offers him another Gut Check match, and if he wins, he’s in, if he loses, he’s out. There will be no judges this time. Ryan says he already earned a contract when 87% of the fans voted for him to get one.
Snow thinks that means Ryan is scared. Ryan finally agrees and Snow tells Ryan that he will have to face…Al Snow. Ryan laughs and says “This isn’t the 90’s and no one wants to see you in spandex.” Al replies that he’ll kick Ryan’s ass in jeans and then punches him. Ryan screams that he’s going to sue and leaves.
In the back, Bully Ray asks Joseph Park what he’s discovered about Aces and Eights. Park replies that he’s not allowed to say because of attorney client privilege. Park has apparently been hired by Sting and Hogan to investigate Aces and Eights. Bully Ray tells him to be careful.
Elsewhere in the back, Aries has started questioning the Aces and Eights captive, who we now know is named “Mike.”
Commercial
When we return from the break, Hogan is still trying to figure out who will face Kaz and Daniels for the tag titles tonight. Hogan eliminates Gunner and Kid Kash from contention.
Match #3: RVD versus Bully Ray.
Ray shows off his massive calves, and RVD kicks them. Bully Ray hits RVD with a few strikes. RVD gets Bully in a headlock. Ray whips RVD to the ropes and hits him with a back elbow and then stomps on him. RVD trips Bully and rolls him up for a two count. RVD puts Bully in a headlock and holds it for a long time. Ray grabs RVD’s ponytail and pushes him to the ropes.
RVD misses with a kick but then lands two of them, knocking Ray to the floor. RVD hits Bully Ray with a baseball slide dropkick and then a flip dive outside the ring. RVD rolls Ray back into the ring and then climbs to the top rope. Ray grabs the ropes, causing RVD to lose his balance. RVD gets hung up in the corner and Ray pounds on his leg repeatedly.
After punishing RVD’s legs with strikes and a leg lock, RVD finally gets to the corner. Earl Hebner yells at Ray to give a clean break, and then RVD lands a series of strikes, a pair of clotheslines, and rolling thunder. RVD hits Bully with a big monkey flip and a springboard body press. Ray hits RVD with a big boot to the head and then goes for Swagger bomb, but misses.
RVD lands a kick and climbs to the top rope. RVD goes for a 5 star frog splash but Ray counters with a Bubba cutter for the win! Bully Ray makes it to the Final Four, but RVD is eliminated.
In the back, Aries is getting ready to start torturing “Mike” (the captured Aces and Eights member) with a pair of pliers. Hogan interrupts, but only because he also wants to torture Mike. Hogan gets a phone call from Aces and Eights. Apparently they want Mike back, so Hogan tells them he’ll trade Mike for the big guy that recently tried to break Austin’s arm. Hogan and Aries want Aries to fight the big guy at the PPV on Sunday, and Aces and Eights agree.
Commercial
After the commercial, James Storm comes to the ring. Storm finished first in the Bound for Glory series, so he gets to pick his opponent for Sunday. Storm invites the other three finalists (Bully Ray, Jeff Hardy, and Samoa Joe. Bully Ray was one of the people claiming Storm was the man behind Aces and Eights, so Storm chooses him.
Commercial
Match #4: Kaz and Daniels (champions) defending against…Hogan’s choice.
Hogan comes out to the ring to announce his final decision for the tag title match, and he chooses Chavo Guerrero and Hernandez. Things break down before the match even begins, with all 4 men brawling inside and outside the ring. Eventually the match starts off with Hernandez and Daniels. Hernandez body slams Daniels and tags in Chavo. Chavo dives in and hits Daniels with an uppercut. Chavo tags Hernandez back in.
Hernandez puts Daniels in a bear hug and then throws him overhead. Hernandez takes Daniels down with a snapmare and tags in Chavo. Chavo dropkicks Daniels, tags Hernandez back in and they double team Daniels in the corner. Hernandez bodyslams Chavo onto Daniels as they keep Daniels isolated. Daniels eventually gets free and tags in Kaz. Chavo hip tosses Kaz and tags in Hernandez. Hernandez hits Kaz with an elbow and tags in Chavo. Chavo and Hernandez knock Kaz down with a double back elbow.
Kaz tags in Daniels and Daniels goes after Chavo, but Chavo takes Daniels down with a flying headscissors. Chavo follows up with a pair of dropkicks. Daniels tags in Kaz and Chavo tags in Hernandez. Hernandez lands a kick and then a backbreaker to Kaz. Hernandez gets Kaz up in the air for a LONG delayed vertical suplex.
Daniels comes in to save Kaz, but Chavo cuts him off and hits him with the three Amigos (three vertical suplexes, one of his Uncle Eddie’s classic moves) holding him up on the third suplex for a delayed vertical. Hernandez still has Kaz up in the air, so Chavo and Hernandez actually complete their suplexes at the same time. Chavo and Hernandez throw Kaz and Daniels to the floor.
Commercial
When we return, Chavo has Daniels in the corner. Daniels whips Chavo to the ropes; Chavo hits Daniels with a big boot. Kaz hits Chavo with a cheap shot and Daniels mounts and pounds Guerrero. Daniels tags in Kaz and then slingshots himself onto Chavo. Kaz slingshots himself onto Chavo right after Daniels does it. Kaz hits Chavo with a neckbreaker and then Daniels throws Chavo to the floor. Kaz rolls Chavo back in and then Daniels knocks him down again.
Daniels tags Kaz and then hip tosses him onto Chavo. Kaz gets behind Chavo and ties both of his arms up behind his back. Chavo gets to his feet and fights his way out. Kaz lands a couple strikes and tries to keep Chavo from making a tag, but Chavo rolls to his corner and tags in Hernandez. Hernandez downs Kaz with a flying shoulder block.
Daniels comes in and kicks Hernandez, but Hernandez downs Daniels with a shoulder block. Kaz lands a kick to Hernandez, but Hernandez responds with a sit out powerbomb. Hernandez goes to the top rope but Kaz cuts him off. Chavo knocks Kaz out of the corner and then superplexes Hernandez onto Kaz. Daniels comes in to save Kaz, and Kaz rolls out to the floor. Chavo slingshots himself out of the ring onto Kaz.
Daniels hits Hernandez with a palm thrust. Daniels goes for a split leg moonsault but gets knocked to the floor. Hernandez does a suicide dive out of the ring onto Daniels and Kaz. Hernandez rolls Kaz back in, and then Chavo whips Hernandez into Kaz. Daniels re enters the ring and backdrops Chavo to the floor. Hernandez picks Kaz up on his shoulders and Daniels hits Hernandez in the gut with the title belt while the ref is checking on Chavo. Kaz pins Hernandez for the win.
Hogan comes out and congratulates Daniels and Kaz on their tainted victory. He also tells them that AJ Styles thinks he can beat them both by himself. Hogan doesn’t agree, that’s why he’s having AJ team up with Kurt Angle to face Kaz and Daniels at the PPV this Sunday.
Commercial
When we return, Austin Aries has “Mike” from A&8s in the ring, tied up and on his knees. Aries tells Mike he would like to keep beating him, but since he seems to have some value to A&8s, he’s going to make a deal instead: Aries wants to fight the big guy that tried to break his arm this Sunday at the PPV.
After waiting a while, Aries starts to run out of patience and finally decides he’s just going to start beating Mike again until he talks. The big man from A&8s runs in and knocks Mike out with a hammer before he can start talking. Aries flies out of the ring at the big guy and they start brawling. As they re-enter the ring, Aries kicks the middle rope up into the big guy’s nuts.
The big man gets to his feet and they start brawling in the ring. Aries and the big guy from A&8s keep trading punches as Impact goes off the air.
WWE.COM has confirmed that Bret Hart’s appearance this coming Monday in Montreal won’t be just for the fans in the arena, but the WWE Hall of Famer will also appear during the televised show.
The official WWE website uploaded a video of AJ Lee announcing the return of the “Hit Man” to Montreal after 15 years, his first time back in the Bell Centre after the Montreal screw job at the Survivor Series in November 1997.
While no longer under contract, Hart has been making appearances on TV every few months for the company and seems to be enjoying his time after patching things up with the WWE. He recently appeared on the RAW 1000 episode as the ring announcer for the Intercontinental title match.
When asked on Twitter about his involvement on RAW this coming Monday, Bret wrote, “Yes, I was asked by WWE to be in Montreal this Monday and I’ll be there. That’s one off the bucket list.”
Randy Orton has started working on the upcoming WWE Studios movie 12 Rounds: Reloaded and has been removed from all future non-televised live events till production finishes. According to several trade magazines, filming will actually kick off on September 26 in Vancouver, Canada, and he’s expected to work some television dates.
Orton will star in this sequel to John Cena’s 12 Rounds after he was dumped from the third installment of The Marine, titled Homefront, following complaints from his previous USMC platoon which Orton served with. WWE eventually pulled Orton after some pressure from the Marines Corp and he was replaced by The Miz.
In 12 Rounds: Reloaded, Orton will play an EMT who finds himself caught up in a deadly 12-round game thanks to someone tied to his paramedic’s past.
David Benullo wrote the script with Roel Reine directing this second WWE Studios film deal with Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. This is Orton’s second WWE Studios movie as he previously appeared in That’s What I Am.
LAS VEGAS – Undefeated STRIKEFORCE Grand Prix heavyweight champ and former Oklahoma State wrestler Daniel Cormier takes on former UFC heavyweight champ Frank Mir, when STRIKEFORCE heads to Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Okla. on Saturday, Nov. 3. The event will air live on SHOWTIME at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast).
“As a former Oklahoma State wrestler and two-time Olympian, Cormier has used his wrestling background to immediately put himself among the sport’s elite,” said STRIKEFORCE CEO Scott Coker. “On November 3 he faces his toughest opponent to date in former UFC heavyweight champ Frank Mir, who has beaten legend after legend on his own path to the title. We’ve had a lot of big heavyweight bouts in the history of STRIKEFORCE, but I can tell you, without a doubt, that this is the one that you don’t want to miss.”
The co-main event will feature current STRIKEFORCE middleweight champ and training partner of Cormier, Luke Rockhold, who makes his third consecutive title defense against undefeated rising Kung Fu prospect Lorenz Larkin.
“Rockhold is rapidly approaching his first full year of being middleweight champ and he’s definitely opened a lot of eyes in that time,” said Coker. “He’s beaten three top contenders, successfully defended the belt twice and looked extremely impressive in doing so. This bout could easily be the toughest matchup he’s seen yet due to Larkin’s equally impressive standup.”
STRIKEFORCE: CORMIER vs. MIR will air live on SHOWTIME at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast), while preliminary fights will be shown live on SHOWTIME EXTREME at 8 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on West Coast). Additional fights scheduled for the event are expected to be released shortly.
Tickets for STRIKEFORCE: CORMIER vs. MIR go on sale to the public on Friday, September 14 at 10 a.m. CT. Tickets are available at the Chesapeake Energy Arena box office, all Ticketmaster locations, at Ticketmaster.com or 1-800-745-3000. Ticket prices will be announced in the coming days. Applicable service charges may apply.
UFC Fight Club members will have the opportunity to purchase tickets to this event Wednesday, September 12 at 10 a.m. CT, via the website www.UFCFightClub.com. A special Internet ticket pre-sale will be available to UFC newsletter and STRIKEFORCE Insider subscribers Thursday, September 13, starting at 10 a.m. CT. To access this pre-sale, users must register for the UFC newsletter through www.UFC.com and the STRIKEFORCE Insider through www.STRIKEFORCE.com.
In addition to being the current STRIKEFORCE Grand Prix heavyweight champion, Daniel Cormier (fighting out of San Jose, Calif.) is also a former Oklahoma State University NCAA wrestler and two-time U.S. Olympic wrestler who now trains alongside the likes of former UFC heavyweight champ Cain Velasquez, Jon Fitch and Mike Swick. On November 3, he takes on his second former UFC titleholder, having most recently defeated Josh Barnett in the finals of the heavyweight tournament last May. Additionally, the undefeated 10-0 AKA-trained fighter owns decisive victories over Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva, Jeff Monson and Devin Cole. Vowing to prove he is truly one of the best heavyweight fighters in the world, “DC” will look to add Mir to that list.
Frank Mir (fighting out of Las Vegas, Nev.) is set to make his STRIKEFORCE debut after fighting his last 20 bouts in the UFC’s Octagon. Being a former UFC heavyweight champ, as well as a former interim UFC heavyweight champ, Mir knows what it’s like to be at the top of the heap and the level of talent that you have to face every time you step into the cage. With wins over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Brock Lesnar, Roy Nelson, Mirko Cro Cop and Tim Sylvia, the 16-6 Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt has gone toe-to-toe with best and has proven he is among the division’s elite. Fans can expect fireworks when these titans meet on Nov. 3.
Also training out of the famed American Kickboxing Academy, Luke Rockhold (fighting out of San Jose, Calif.) steps back into the STRIKEFORCE cage for the tenth consecutive time, including his third straight title defense. At 10-1, the Santa Cruz-native and former surfer has let the MMA world know that he’s serious about not letting anyone take the title that he feels belongs to him. Having earned recent wins over Tim Kennedy, Keith Jardine and “Jacare” Souza, Rockhold’s next opponent is in for a long night if he’s willing to stand and trade with the renowned striker.
Finding continued success after a recent drop to middleweight, Lorenz Larkin (fighting out of Riverside, Calif.) recently defeated UFC and STRIKEFORCE veteran Robbie Lawler to earn his shot at the title. At 13-0, 1 NC, “The Monsoon” remains undefeated having survived tough bouts with Gian Villante and Nick Rossborough. A practitioner of Kung Fu, Larkin is known for his intense striking, having finished eight of his opponents via KO, and may be the perfect test for the current belt holder.
The Labor Day edition of RAW this week drew a 2.8 rating with an average of 4,203,000 viewers for the three hour broadcast. Hour one did 4.3 million viewers, hour two did 4.39 million viewers and hour three went down to 3.9 million viewers. It’s interesting to note that hour three, compared to last week, lost 600,000 viewers overall.
This week’s show was down from the 3.1 of last week and around a quarter of a million viewers less. (Ratings compiled by Nielsen Media Research and put online by PWInsider.com)
WWE issued a press release today announcing that the company will be traveling to Egypt for three nights, starting October 18, for shows at the Cairo Stadium Complex in Cairo. Egypt is the sixth new country that the WWE has traveled to in 2012.
WWE will be working with Egyptian live events promoter, Creative Design, to bring WWE World Tour to local fans. Creative Design previously brought WWE to Doha, Qatar last year.
“WWE is one of the largest names in family entertainment, and it’s a great honor to hold such an enormous event in a wonderful country like Egypt,” said Assem Al Sheikh, Chairman of Creative Design.
“We’re thrilled to announce this three-day, live event tour in Egypt,” said Ed Wells, Managing Director and Senior Vice President of WWE International. “These shows in Cairo are further testament to the strength and popularity of the WWE brand throughout the MENA region and build on our efforts to expand our business internationally.”
Tickets for the three shows – on October 18, 19, and 20 – will go on sale on September 8 at Ticketsmarche.com or by calling the hotline +2 01008425387.
Next time you see Triple H on WWE television he will look like a different man. The former WWE and World Heavyweight champion decided to do something many people thought he wouldn’t do – chop off his hair!
Yep, TMZ.COM published a few photos of Triple H posing with fans outside the WWE Headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut, sporting a brand new haircut, with the always-present long hair now completely gone. Triple H always rocked the long hair while in the WWE, a career that started in 1995 as Hunter Hearst-Helmsley.
CelebrityNetWorth.com published an article yesterday with a list of the richest wrestlers in the world. The list is not validated by anyone and may not be accurate.
The figures listed were acquired from all publicly available information including salaries, real estate holdings, divorces, record sales, royalties and endorsements. The final net worth come from a formula that takes out taxes, manager fees, agents fees, and lifestyle.
Topping the list is The Rock with $70 million, followed by Steve Austin at $45 million, John Cena at $35 million, Big Show at $30 million, Triple H in fifth at $25 million, Kurt Angle at $20 million, Chris Jericho with $18 million, Shawn Michaels at $17 million, The Undertaker with $16 million, and Mick Foley wrapping up the top 10 list with $15 million.
The site listed Hulk Hogan down in the 24th place with just $5 million worth, losing an estimated $25 million in his divorce from his ex-wife Linda. Ric Flair is also in the 24th place with $5 million as well. You can see the full list here.
FX and the Ultimate Fighting Championship organisation today unveiled the identities of the sixteen Australian and British mixed martial artists set to represent their nations in The Ultimate Fighter: Australia vs UK – TheSmashes.
The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) finalists are among the top fighters in both nations’ lightweight and welterweight divisions, with the Australian team comprised of representatives from NSW, QLD and WA, while the UK team features fighters from all over England as well as Northern Ireland.
“These guys have definitely made the second international TUF show ‘can’t miss’ TV,” said UFC President Dana White. “Going into this thing, I had no idea just how much the Aussies and the Brits can’t stand losing to each other. Now I know.”
Premiering Wednesdays at 7:30pm AEST on FX in Australia from September 19, the 13-episode, Australian-produced series follows the selected fighters as they live together in The Ultimate Fighter house, training and competing against eachother for a prized contract with the UFC, culminating with a live three-hour finale in December.
Guided by Australian coach George Sotiropoulos, Team Australia comprises of:
Lightweights:
Grant Blackler, 23, Sunshine Coast
Patrick Iodice, 19, GoldCoast
Richie Vaculik, 29, Sydney
Ben Wall, 23, Brisbane
Welterweights:
Ben Alloway, 31, GoldCoast
Xavier Lucas, 31, Perth
Manuel Rodriguez, 27, Sydney
Robert Whitaker, 21, Sydney
English coach Ross “The Real Deal” Pearson takes charge of Team UK:
Lightweights:
Colin Fletcher, 29, Sunderland
Norman Parke, 25, Bushmills, Nth Ireland Michael Pastou, 30, Essex
Mike Wilkinson, 24, Leigh
Welterweights:
Luke Newman, 22, London
Bola Omoyele, 30, London
Valentino Petrescu, 30, Essex
Brad Scott, 23, Melksham
The two lightweight coaches – both alumni of The Ultimate Fighter television series in the Unites States – will also go head-to-head in the Octagon at the live finale.
Of mentoring his charges, Australian coach George Sotiropoulos said: “It’s a really diverse group of guys on the team, but the thing that’s uniting them is that everyone’s motivated and focused. There’s a lot of personal and national pride at stake but they’re going into the competition with a positive attitude and are really pulling together as a team. I’m very impressed by their maturity.”
British coach Ross Pearson is confident about Team UK’s chances: “Having been where they are, I know exactly what the guys are facing. They’re taking it all in their stride and, despite being so far from home, they’re eager to prove themselves, so morale is high. They each bring unique strengths to the team so the sparks are really going to fly when they meet the Aussies in the Octagon.”
This is only the second time in TUF’s seven-year history that teams will represent their country of origin, the first taking place in 2009 when Team USA took on Team UK.
Viewers outside of Australia will be able to tune-in and watch the series on TUF.tv.
Join the conversation on Twitter using the hashtag: #TUFSmashes #TeamAUS #TeamUK
TNT has given the greenlight for the reality TV show called The Hero which will be headlined and executive produced by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. His ex-wife and producing partner Dany Garcia will also executive-produce the show.
Set for a Summer 2013 premiere, The Hero will bring 10 ordinary people together in a house with various missions assigned to them which will test their brains, browns, and morality. The show will challenge their limits to see what they are willing to overcome, under, or sacrifice, for the sake of their fellow contestants to be the hero.
The show will incorporate the use of social media into everything from pre-production, to casting, to live broadcasts.
“Dany and I couldn’t be more excited to enter into our first official foray in TV production,” said Dwayne Johnson. “The Hero speaks to everything I believe in when it comes to challenging ourselves, to becoming better people every day and to making the right choices while growing from the wrong ones. Bridging the digital and physical world on the small screen in a way that’s never been done before will enable fans to use social media and on-screen decision making to determine the fate of the show’s contestants, and our goal is to make each TV moment impactful and exciting.”
The people behind the show include Craig Armstrong, Rick Ringbakk, Ben Silverman, and Charles Wachter who between them have create shows such as Survivor, Fashion Star, The Biggest Loser, The Office, and others.
WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart will be at RAW this coming Monday night at the Bell Centre in Montreal, the site of the infamous screw job which happened at the 1997 Survivor Series.
Hart is being advertised on the Bell Centre website as his first return to the arena in fifteen years. It is not known if he will make a television appearance or his segment will be limited to those in the arena.
The site also is advertising this particular RAW as the Pat Patterson Appreciation Night, something similar to what WWE did to Shawn Michaels in San Antonio last month. With HBK, all the good stuff happened after the show went off the air so this might be a similar deal and maybe one of the reasons that Hart will be in attendance.
It is being reported that Paul Heyman signed a new deal – or an extension – to his original contract when he showed up as Brock Lesnar’s legal adviser a couple of months ago following the attack on Triple H.
On Twitter, Heyman refused to say what would happen to him after the SummerSlam pay-per-view and told fans to just enjoy it, saying his return was even a surprise to him because he didn’t see himself being back on WWE television.
As you know already, the former ECW mastermind returned to RAW on Monday, driving the car that left the arena with CM Punk in it after he attacked John Cena backstage.
Heyman is a big supporter of CM Punk and never kept it a secret, usually using Twitter as the means to voice his opinion on the WWE champion.
This is not the first time that the two worked with each other as Heyman was there when Punk started on WWE’s version of ECW and Heyman was already a big fan of his back then.
