WWE Superstars Bayley, Grayson Waller, and Intercontinental champion Penta will be touring with NXT this weekend for three non-televised live events in the North East.
The three stars will be at the live events in Buffalo on Friday, May 15, Canton on Saturday, May 16, and Johnstown on Sunday, May 17.
In a post on social media, Nattie wrote that after John Cena announced the John Cena Classic, she’s going to use this opportunity to go and scout the talent.
Tickets for all shows are available at Ticketpeak and Ticketmaster.
The one-hour Fairway to Hell themed episode of Collision on Saturday night drew 342,000 viewers, down 87,000 viewers from the Wednesday show which followed Dynamite and just 5,000 viewers down from the prior week. The show had a 0.05 rating in 18-49, down 0.02 from Wednesday and 0.01 from last week. (Ratings credit: Programming Insider)
Former WWE star Jimmy Wang Yang sat down with Chris Van Vliet in Indianapolis, Indiana to discuss how meeting DDP on Halloween led to the start of his pro wrestling journey, Vince McMahon forgetting he had fired him, how he was pitched the Jimmy Wang Yang character, wrestling as a flying Elvis in TNA, running a party bus company, his daughter Jazzy Yang now wrestling, and more!
Could you kind of see that the end was near for WCW? Could you tell that things were going downhill there?
“Not at all. That’s the thing, I grew up on WCW. No more WCW? That was never in my mind. But it was crazy, but I’m 18 years old. I don’t know what’s normal. I went from that bar wrestling and seeing New Jack stab somebody in the parking lot. Seriously, that’s the first time I met him. But then, yeah, going to WCW, and seeing some of the guys and seeing the environment, like I said, Oh, this is just pro wrestling, this is crazy life, the wild wild west. But I just knew I was very young, and didn’t know any better. I had about five different bosses during those two years. I’m like, this doesn’t sound right, but I didn’t think WCW would ever end. That’s a stake with my life.”
Why didn’t your time in WWE at that time last very long after you got picked up?
“So what I think, because they bought WCW, they had bought our contracts, they just bought ECW, and then they had the WWE roster. At the time, they didn’t have the separate brands; they had just one show doing Raw and SmackDown. So I just think the roster was overloaded at that first time in WWE. I don’t know how many people were on the roster, but you can only have so many matches on Monday, you can only have so many matches on Friday, and then whatever else. But that first run, I think it was just so many people and they couldn’t find me a spot.”
Did you have any idea for what this gimmick would be for you?
“No. So all I was told was you’re being an Asian redneck coming to SmackDown. I was like, cool. When they pitched the character to me at that time, I was like, sweet, I’m gonna be the new Doink the Clown, comedy character kind of thing. That will be cool to have. As a Korean kid in Georgia, I got my material a lot from the people I knew, and I just made it as ridiculous as possible. So then the debut, and then having a match, all of a sudden it was this switch of being kind of like a celebrity, I didn’t know how that would take off so well. Because I just remember after debuting, and then I’m going to the airport and wear my goofy ass cowboy hat, I get mobbed by everybody. I’m like, holy crap, this really took off. I was kind of surprised how well that took off.”
So what did you think when you heard your theme song for the first time?
“I know people love that theme song, but I hated it. I hated it as a wrestling theme because I couldn’t get fired up to some bluegrass. I was like how am I supposed to get fired up to this song? I need to get fired up for this match that we’re about to have. But it is a good song when you’re sitting on the porch and all that kind of stuff.
But as wrestling music, it was kind of too slow for me.”
You got vignettes, and not everybody gets a vignette. That sets the character up so that by the time you do debut, people know exactly what to expect. When you were reading these vignettes, were you like, ‘You want me to say what?’
“Yeah, that’s really because they didn’t know how the audience was gonna react to me. But it was different times. When I see it, I kind of am ashamed of some of the stuff that they wanted me to say, because it is like, ‘Oh it’s funny when you say it because you’re half Korean. I couldn’t say it, but you can say it because you’re Korean.’ No, it’s gonna be funny to you guys. I understand what’s going on. I say this is funny to you guys. But for my culture and my people, it is offensive.”
What was the most offensive thing?
“The most offensive thing is me wearing the Confederate flag on my back. They said, ‘Hey, we want you to be an Asian redneck.’ Okay, what do you think of? I think of rodeos. I think of NASCAR. I think of Dukes of Hazard and General Lee. I’m like, Oh yeah, I’m an Asian redneck, so I gotta wear the Confederate flag on the back of my vest and go out there. But if anybody knows what that symbolizes, it’s God-awful, and it’s horrible. I wish I hadn’t done that. Undertaker is the one that told me. He saw me wearing it, ‘Jimmy, take that f*cking sh*t off!’ I said I’m playing a character, an Asian redneck. ‘That sh*t means some horrible sh*t. Take it off.’ All right. Then I take off, and they said, ‘Hey, where’s your jacket at?’ [I replied] ‘Undertaker told me to take it off.’ ‘Okay.'”
Rogelio Reyes, the ex-boyfriend of WWE Superstar Stephanie Vaquer, was sentenced to 12 years and eight months in prison after he was found guilty of domestic violence and attempted femicide.
RECORD Mexico reporter El Planchitas wrote that Reyes, who wrestled under the name of El Cuatrero in AAA, already served two years in prison, so technically he has 10 years left and could do much less if he’s on good behavior.
Vaquer’s legal team is already planning an appeal to force a harsher sentence.
The incident took place in 2023 when Vaquer was wrestling for CMLL and Reyes for AAA. He was arrested following an AAA event a few days after Vaquer’s police report.
Smackdown this past Friday drew 1,279,000 viewers, up 126,000 viewers compared to the prior week. The show had a 0.29 rating in 18-49, up 0.04 from the previous episode and was #2 in the top 50 cable chart and in all of television for the night behind the NHL Playoffs. (Ratings credit: Programming Insider)
The MyAEW streaming service is now available on Roku and Roku TV.
The app was already available on Apple TV, Fire TV, and Android TV, so this was basically the last major platform that MyAEW had to add compatibility to.
In the United States, the AEW FAST channel is available to stream for free along with past episodes and other content, but the service is really worth it for those outside the U.S., Canada, Mexico, or India.
If you’re not a resident in any of the above countries (or use VPN, wink wink), there are three plans available:
The cheapest subscription is $7.99 per month and covers AEW podcasts, live episodes of Dynamite and Collision, the ROH HonorClub TV episodes, live Ring of Honor pay-per-views, and the AEW TV archive.
The $19.99 per month option includes AEW podcasts, the AEW pay-per-view airing that particular month, live episodes of Dynamite and Collision, ROH HonorClub TV episodes, live Ring of Honor pay-per-views, the AEW TV archive, and select AEW pay-per-view archives.
The $119.99 per year option features AEW podcasts, all the 2026 AEW pay-per-views, live episodes of Dynamite and Collision, ROH HonorClub TV episodes, the AEW TV archive, and select PPV archives.
The May 4 episode of Raw drew 2,700,000 global viewers on Netflix, down 100,000 from the prior week and the least-watched since February 16.
The show took the #7 spot on the Netflix global top 10 chart and had a total of 4,600,000 global viewing hours, down by 600,000 hours based on an episode edited to just 1 hour and 36 minutes.
Raw was in the top 10 chart in 21 different countries for the week, charting in Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Bulgaria, Canada, Ecuador, El Salvador, Egypt, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Jamaica, Mexico, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Panama, Sri Lanka, Trinidad and Tobago, United Kingdom, and United States.
Barry Blaustein, the director of the critically acclaimed documentary Beyond The Mat, passed away at age 72 yesterday.
His death, following a long battle with Parkisnon’s disease and stage four pancreatic cancer, was announced by the Chapman University’s Dodge College of Film and Media Arts, where Blaustein served as a professor.
In 1999, Blaustein wrote, directed, produced, and even narrated the Beyond the Mat documentary, gaining unprecedented access at the time to the WWE and ECW locker room. The documentary is famous for highlighting the lives of a few stars outside their wrestling personas and also had a big spotlight on the Royal Rumble I Quit match between The Rock and Mick Foley, where Rock blasted Foley with powerful unprotected chair shots to the head as Foley’s wife and two kids watched at ringside.
The filmmaker had an extensive list of credits and also worked with Eddie Murphy to write his scripts for Saturday Night Live.
Naraku, the former IWGP Heavyweight champion known as EVIL in New Japan Pro-Wrestling, made his in-ring debut on NXT last night.
Naraku defeated Lince Dorado in his first match, a match which has to be considered a squash match to get the former NJPW star over with the crowd and the television audience.
Dorado serves as one of the WWE Performance Center trainers so he was the perfect opponent to work with Naraku in a WWE-style match.
Naraku is expected to be one of the top players in NXT as the brand undergoes a change after so many of its talent were moved to the main roster this year.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office from the Middle District of Florida issued a press release announcing that Melissia Gauthreaux, Hulk Hogan’s former accountant, has been charged by federal indictment with six counts of wire fraud.
If convicted, Gauthreaux faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison on each count.
Gauthreaux used her her company, Accounting Resources and Management Services, to allegedly steal more than $890,000 from one of her clients, a public figure who lived in the Middle District of Florida.
The client was not named in the press release, although TMZ says that the fraud happened between 2017 and 2021 when Hogan was using her as an accountant. Gauthreaux had signatory authority on her client’s bank accounts and was able to remove the funds without the client’s knowledge or consent.
This case was investigated by the FBI and will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Merrilyn Hoenemeyer.
Speaking with TMZ Sports, AEW Women’s champion Thekla praised AEW and her boss Tony Khan and mentioned that Khan is the reason why she decided to sign a new deal with the company.
Describing AEW as the perfect fit for her, Thekhla said that she loves Tony Khan and loves working with him. She said the locker room is peaceful and all the girls in the back are nice.
“I don’t think the grass is greener anywhere else because I’m sitting in a f*cking flower garden, you know?” Thekla said.
Talking about her new deal, the champ said, “When boss man asked me, ‘Hey, would you mind staying with us for a little longer than we originally said?’ I was like… “Yeah, if the circumstances are right and allow it for me to feel lucrative enough, I’m definitely thinking that could be a very good idea!’”
The 33-year-old Austrian star arrived in AEW last May after a four-year stint with Stardom in Japan.
TKO Group Holdings, Inc. together with the Arizona Sports & Events Alliance, today announced a multi-year agreement that will stage a series of premier UFC, WWE, PBR, and Zuffa Boxing events in Arizona.
The seven-event agreement will span three years and feature some of TKO’s most high-profile live events, creating new opportunities for fans to experience UFC, WWE, PBR, and Zuffa Boxing events in one of the country’s leading sports and entertainment markets.
“We’re excited to build this long-term partnership with the Arizona Sports & Events Alliance to bring some of our biggest events to the state,” said Peter Dropick, Executive Vice President, Event Development and Operations for TKO. “We look forward to creating unforgettable moments for fans across the region over the next three years.”
“Arizona has proven time and again that we are built to host the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and we are proud to join forces with TKO on this multi-year partnership,” said Jay Parry, President & CEO of the Arizona Sports & Events Alliance. “This partnership reflects the momentum and innovative spirit of our community, and the dedication to creating high-impact experiences that drive tourism, economic impact, and global visibility for our state.”
Additional details, including event-specific information, dates, and ticket information will be shared at a later date.
TKO’s agreement with the Arizona Sports & Events Alliance is one of a growing number of partnerships between TKO and government and private partners in communities around the world that are eager to host TKO’s marquee live events. Through these partnerships, TKO is reaching more fans in more markets, delivering memorable experiences while generating meaningful economic and cultural impact for host communities.
WrestleCon is returning to SummerSlam weekend in Minneapolis this August and Sting has been announced as the first guest.
The Hall of Famer will be making his first appearance without his face paint and will be in Minnesota on Friday, July 31 from 4PM to 8PM.
Last year, Sting went on the “now or never” tour, appearing at fan conventions with his ring gear and war paint for the last time.
WrestleCon will take place from the Hilton Minneapolis on 1001 Marquette Ave South between July 31 and August 2. For more information visit WrestleCon.com.
The AAA Mega Championship was defended on a WWE broadcast last night for the first time ever.
The match on Raw featured champion Dominik Mysterio taking on the Original El Grande Americano, a match which Mysterio won to retain the gold.
The title was created in 2007, with the inaugural winner, El Mesias, winning an eight-man single-elimination tournament which unified the IWC World Heavyweight championship, Grand Prix Championship Wrestling SUPER-X Monster championship, Mexican National Heavyweight championship, and UWA World Light Heavyweight Championship.
There have been only 14 champions who held the title since 2007 and 23 reigns in total, with El Texano Jr holding it the most with 1,073 days across two reigns. El Hijo del Vikingo came close with 937 days and two reigns as well.
Dominik Mysterio is currently at 242 days and counting, winning it from Vikingo on September 12 last year at Worlds Collide: Las Vegas.
WWE announced the purchase of AAA during WrestleMania 41 weekend in Las Vegas last year. The Undertaker is now in charge of the promotion.
Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods, formerly of The New Day, will be making their first post-WWE appearance at GalaxyCon in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma this month.
The duo will be appearing under the names of Kofi and Austin Creed on Saturday, May 23 and Sunday, May 24 and will be posing for photos and signing autographs as well.
Autograph prices vary depending on what item you are bringing but photos are $82.42 each or $143.79 for both, with prices including all taxes and fees.
The New Day shocked the wrestling world a couple of weeks ago after refusing to renegotiate their WWE deals to fit the TKO structure and decided to part ways with the company.
Tickets for Kofi and Creed are available to purchase now at GalaxyCon.com.
POSTwrestling.com is reporting that AEW has filed a lawsuit against TrillerTV claiming that they are owed almost $5 million in payments.
The lawsuit was filed on April 29 in Duval County Court in Florida according to Brandon Thurston.
The payments come from TrillerTV’s offering of AEW pay-per-views and the monthly AEW Plus service, both of which have been discontinued.
“[Triller Group Inc.’s] strategy of robbing revenues generated by TrillerTV’s distribution of AEW content to cover other of Defendants’ operating expenses (much of which was spent on the social media platform endeavor) negatively impacted its relationship with and payments owed to AEW,” the lawsuit stated.
AEW was supposed to receive 75% of the net revenue from domestic pay-per-view sales and 65% of the net revenue from international sales. When it came to AEW Plus, AEW got 60% while Triller got the remaining 40%.
TrillerTV no longer offers AEW on its service and it was replaced by AEW’s own MyAEW streaming service.
WWE announced that Roman Reigns has been officially added to three Raw events in June after he was removed from the advertising for all June broadcasts last week.
The Tribal Chief and WWE World Heavyweight champion will now be appearing on the June 1 episode live from Turin, Italy, the June 15 episode from Baltimore, and the June 29 episode from Atlantic City.
It’s unclear if Reigns will also be part of the Night of Champions premium live event from Saudi Arabia, set for Saturday, January 27, but he usually does the trips when WWE goes to The Kingdom.
After winning the title at WrestleMania from CM Punk, Reigns said that he will not have a part-time schedule this Summer and we would be seeing more of him every month as a champion.
Asuka appeared on Raw in a backstage segment with Iyo Sky and left with her suitcase as Michael Cole said that her future is up in the air.
Asuka was shown coming into the locker room and meeting Sky. Asuka said that for years she had been looking for someone to take her spot and Sky is now the person to do it. Asuka hugged Sky and told her that she was very proud of her.
Sky talked some in Japanese and then said that even when they’re fighting in the ring, Asuka would always be family for her.
The two hugged again and Sky said, “Goodbye, Asuka-san,” as cameras showed Asuka exiting the building carrying her suit case.
This is Asuka’s last appearance for a while as the Empress of Tomorrow is rumored to be going back to Japan for family matters. She remains part of the company but there is no return date for her.
