Star-Ledger documentary 'The Bottom Rope' looks at independent wrestlers far from WWE glory

Danny Inferno stands in the center of a wrestling ring, microphone in hand.

Sweat drips from Inferno’s tasseled black hair down a 6-foot-1, 250-pound frame stuffed inside black wrestling briefs. The word "heel" is sprawled across the back.

"I respect everything you’ve done, and I want to go into this match man vs. man," growls Inferno, 35, pointing his heavily taped fist at Marty Jannetty.

T...

The mansion Stu Hart ran Stampede Wrestling from, trained and tortured wrestlers in the infamous "Dungeon" and raised his family has been designated a "heritage site", the equivalent of a landmark, and will be preserved for future generations. The home is being given that distinction due to its unique structure as well as its importance in local culture.

According to his autobiography "Lord of the Ring", Stu Hart purchased the mansion in 1951. It had originally been used as a home for orphan...

While the initial plan was to release the forthcoming documentary on Extreme Championship Wrestling by Christmas, Producer John Philapavage confirmed  that they have chosen to delay the release of the film until early 2013.

"I always side with quality over quickness, " said Philapavage. "There are several factors to this slight delay, not the least of which is that we made the decision during the Kickstarter campaign to put two versions on the DVD release, and that takes more time. We’re a...

There was a lot of movement in the lawsuit brought against WWE and Vince and Linda McMahon by Martha Hart over the last several weeks, with portions of what remained of the suit thrown out of court.

On 11/16, Judge Stefan R. Underhill dismissed parts of the lawsuit against WWE, although I am not 100% clear what was dismissed and what remains.

What was remaining prior to the hearing were claims that Owen Hart's name would have reverted back to his usage and his usage alone in his passing, th...

Linda McMahon, former president and CEO of WWE, failed in her bid for a Senate seat in Connecticut, losing to Democratic Rep. Chris Murphy on Tuesday. This follows her 2010 loss to Richard Blumenthal in the race for the state's other seat in the Senate.

The total cost of losing two elections has ranged from $90 to $97 million, according to estimates. McMahon spent $50 million of her personal fortune in her failed 2010 campaign, and is believed to have spent $40 to $47 million the second time...

Linda E. McMahon’s campaign for the United States Senate has been good for Bert Volpacchio, who received $494 for a meet-and-greet with about 40 local officials last May at his restaurant, the Hot Tamale, in Seymour, Conn. 

 It has been great for regular suppliers like Best Buy, Staples and BJ’s Wholesale Club; for restaurants that have provided meals for volunteers like No Anchovies in Cromwell and the Sushi Palace in North Haven; for specialty businesses like Bayview Balloons of Milfo...

WWE 3rd Quarter Conference Call Report: WWE Network Update, Discussion of Audience Growth, More

* The call started at 11:02 AM ET.

* They wish those on the east coast well, and Vince McMahon and George Barrios will be on the call.

* The overall WWE financials have been reported and broken down in the 411 news section, which you can check out at this link.

* Vince says they were about where they thought they would be for the quarter. All in all is about where they expected, but PPV is up a...

Here is the breakdown of the WWE's 3rd quarter PPV events for the last four years. Overall, WWE delivered its best 3rd quarter PPV business since 2008:

* Money in the Bank (July):
~ 2012: 188,000 buys
~ 2011: 195,000 buys
~ 2010: 165,000 buys
~ 2009: 267,000 buys ($5 lower PPV price)

* SummerSlam (August):
~ 2012: 358,000 buys
~ 2011: 296,000 buys
~ 2010: 350,000 buys
~ 2009: 369,000 buys ($5 lower PPV price)

* Night of Champions (September):
~ 2012: 189,000 buys
~ 2011: 161,000 buys
~ 2010: 165,000 ...

Michael Gossett, professionally known as Mike Graham, passed away at the age of 61. According to sources, multiple sources have said that his death was as a result of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. He was in Daytona Beach, Florida for "Biketoberfest" and his wife found him deceased.

Graham's father, Eddie Gossett, famously known as Eddie Graham, an influential Florida wrestling promoter, also committed suicide by a self-inflicted gunshot. This occurred on January 21, 1985, follo...

Yahoo.com published a brief article noting that former WWE chief executive Linda McMahon won her GOP Senate primary on Tuesday night after spending almost ten times as much as her opponent and $61 million over the course of two campaigns to try to win the seat for U.S. Senator from Connecticut. When McMahon campaigned in 2010, she broke Connecticut state records for out-of-pocket spending by splurging $50 million of her own money—and still lost. This time around, McMahon spent over $11 mill...

WWE.com posted their latest list, the top 50 wrestling villains of all-time. Check out the full list below:
 
1. Roddy Piper
 2. Ric Flair & Four Horsemen
 3. Mr. McMahon
 4. "Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase
 5. "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan
 6. Triple H
 7. "Superstar" Billy Graham
 8. Bobby Heenan
 9. Gorgeous George
 10. Jake "the Snake" Roberts
 11. Rick Rude
 12. JBL
 13. Fabulous Freebirds
 14. Original Sheik
 15. Chris Jericho
 16. Sherri Martel
 17. Mr. Perfect Curt Hennig
 18. Killer Kowalski
 19. Jim Cornette...

Linda Sánchez, the U.S. Representative for California's 39th congressional district, is being criticized for promoting WWE's multi-platform, nationwide anti-bullying campaign, "be a STAR," at a rally last Friday at Whittier, California's Parnell Park in the Los Angeles area. She had a Twitter exchange with Irv Muchnick, author of CHRIS & NANCY: The True Story of the Benoit Murder-Suicide and Pro Wrestling’s Cocktail of Death and Wrestling Babylon, regarding her appearance, who noted his di...

TMZ.com is reporting that actor Tommy 'Tiny' Lister, who performed in WWE as Zeus and World Championship Wrestling as Z Gangsta, has agreed to plead guilty to a mortgage fraud scheme that cost banks $3.8 million.

The 54-year-old actor entered the plea agreement Friday, the same day prosecutors charged him with conspiring from 2005 to 2007 to purchase homes he could not afford and to withdraw more than $1.1 million cash in home-equity loans that were not repaid.

According to the plea agreeme...

PatriotNewspaper.com has published this article on Kenn Doane, 26, who appeared in WWE as Kenny and Kenny Dykstra from 2006 to 2008. The former Spirit Squad member enrolled in Nichols College in Dudley, Massachusetts this semester and made their football team as a tight end after not playing the game since he was 18-years-old.

“I have always loved football and I always set goals for myself. My first dream was to get to the WWE and I set that and my second goal after wrestling was to get a ...

CelebrityNetworth.com has published this article listing the richest professional wrestlers in the world, with figures acquired from all publicly available information including salaries, real estate holdings, divorces, record sales, royalties and endorsements. The estimated net worths come from a formula that takes out taxes, manager’s fees, agents' fees, and lifestyle. The list states:

1. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's net worth – $70 million

2. Steve Austin's net worth – $45 million

Dark Angel's (a/k/a Sarita in TNA Wrestling) tenured wrestling career in Mexico appears in doubt following her recent excursion to Japan for all-women's league STARDOM's 5 STAR Grand Prix Tournament. According to RingbellesOnline.com, by way of noted lucha libre expert Steve Sims and Super Luchas magazine, CMLL officials are extremely displeased with the champion grappler for taking it upon herself to work a two-month tour for the Japanese promotion when their official women's wrestling partn...

Scott "Steiner" RechSteiner responded to the TNA lawsuit against him on 9/10 in the The Chancery Court of Tennessee in Davidson County, counter-suing TNA and alleging that the company breached their contract with him

Steiner alleged that TNA had failed to properly provide, as they were contractually obligated to do, "an accounting of all Royalty payments" due to him, failed to provide "royalty statements of all merchandise royalties and video royalties" owed to him, and "failed to pay all ro...

The Chancery Court of Tennessee in Davidson County officially ordered an injunction against former TNA and WWE office staffer Brian Wittenstein on 8/20 for Wittenstein's alleged role in the TNA lawsuit against him and WWE.

The order, which was finalized after Wittenstein never responded to the lawsuit (although he did respond to TNA with a signed document giving his version of the situation), ordered Wittenstein to:

*Return all information he downloaded from TNA onto his "flash drive" after...

World Wrestling Entertainment and several other defendants in the lawsuit brought against them by composer James Papas filed a motion in the United States District Court in Dallas requesting that Papas' lawsuit against them be dismissed.

In the lawsuit, Papas alleges that his original registered songs were re-registered to WWE and instead listed Jim Johnston and/or Michael Hayes as the songwriters/composers of the material and Stephanie Music as the publisher, taking away revenue and credit ...

WWE has acquired the Bill Watts video library. The library includes Mid-South Wrestling, Mid-South's Power Pro Wrestling TV and the original Universal Wrestling Federation.

The library was one of the largest known video collections not owned by WWE, and was owned by Bill Watts' ex-wife Ene as part of a divorce settlement. There had been numerous meetings and attempts to purchase the library by WWE but the two sides had been unable to come to terms. With the WWE planning the launch of...

Tensai failed to impress WWE officials in his pinfall victory over John Cena on the April 16 Raw SuperShow in London, England and was deemed "a flop" backstage as a result.

Tensai was brought into the company to face Cena and put him over, at the company's Over the Limit and No Way Out PPV events but his poor showing in the match on Raw led to his push being stopped and Big Show was moved into his place.

WWE have also changed their summer live events which were advertised to be he...

Randy Orton was suspended for his second Wellness program violation (failed drug test).

Orton has been suspended three times, but this is only his second suspension for violating the Wellness guidelines. The third suspension was for behavior issues - from taking dumps in the bags of women in the company, to wrecking hotel rooms and other issues.

Three violations of the Wellness policy results in termination from the company, so if he fails one more drug test, then he's terminated accor...

Full details have been revealed on TNA's lawsuit against World Wrestling Entertainment and Brian Wittenstein. The details look at what exactly TNA thinks Wittenstein gave to the company, why they are suing and why they think WWE tampered with Ric Flair's TNA deal.

The lawsuit itself is 37 pages. TNA says that Wittenstein signed a "severance agreement" in August 2011, which means he was fired in spite of his claims to the contrary. He agreed to a severance package in exchange for not...

At a WWE Live Event in at São Paulo, Brazil, on Thursday evening, Chris Jericho reportedly denigrated the Brazilian flag during a match against WWE Champion CM Punk. Suspended indefinitely, Jericho responded to the incident in his own words.

“I made a bad judgment call in the course of entertaining [WWE] fans in Brazil,” Jericho told WWE.com. “I apologized to the people in the crowd for showing disrespect.”

During Jericho’s match with the WWE Champion at São Paulo’s Ginásio do Ib...

• Former AWA Tag Team champion Doug Somers, aka Douglas Duane Somerson, filed suit against WWE, Vince McMahon and Linda McMahon over the company using AWA footage containing his likeness and matches without his consent. Somers says that he appeared on four DVDs, WWE Classics on Demand, books and other materials but never agreed to do so. WWE owns the AWA library, having purchased it from the Gagnes in 2003 for a seven figure sum.
  
  The matches Somers has appeared in usually involved him...

Alex Shelley has decided to leave TNA when his contract is up, which is soon.

WWE want to build up a cruiserweight roster for a new cruiserweight show they have planned for the WWE Network and it's being rumoured that Shelley may be a part of that.

Goldust was recently released by WWE after working as a producer for the SmackDown brand. There was an undisclosed incident at the April 24th SmackDown tapings in Grand Rapids, Michigan which led to his contract being terminated.

Goldust was responsible for coming up with the spot on SmackDown where Yoshi Tatsu took a double-team powerbomb finisher from Darren Young and Titus O’Neil. Tatsu landed bad and the bump was said to have looked even worse live than it did on TV.

Young a...

Vince McMahon is furious at the WWE.com staff, and there is a chance that WWE's upcoming releases will include several members of the website staff.

There are issues with soft website traffic, but there is also more to it than that. Vince was very upset that nobody from the WWE.com staff was at the WrestleMania 29 press conference several weeks ago. This is when Vince met with New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.

Also, Vince has told live event coordinators that they have to be pl...

Linda Hogan (52 years old) had an interview with Access Hollywood Live, reported by Yahoo! in which she revealed intimate details about her relationship with 23-year-old Charlie Hill. The two appear on VH1's Couples Therapy.

She was asked if she would consider marrying him. She said: "We're just taking it a day at a time, we're like everyone else. It's exclusive, it has been ever since we met. We're not really ready to take the plunge yet for marriage... it's something we have talke...

Pittsburgh independent promoter Billy Reil has opened a new production company called Highlight Pictures that will be working on a web series starring former ECW star Gary Wolfe. The series is titled "The Pit" and will be about Wolfe, also known as Pitbull #1, opening up a club. Axl Rotten and other ECW alumni will appear as their in-ring characters for the show, which is scripted and will screen the first episode at the Philadelphia Independent Film Festival this Spring. More info can...

Dixie Carter has said on Twitter that Jesse Sorensen is out of action for up to 12 months as he recovers from a fractured C1 vertebrae:

“@TNASorenson met w/doctors this wk & is out for up to a yr. We’re blessed he will be back at all. He’s staying positive. No comment on Zima.”

Sorensen on Twitter: “To all the fans who continue to keep me in your thoughts & prayers, I want to say thank you! I am getting stronger everyday. #TexasTough”

During an interview with WISX FM in Philadelphia last week, CM Punk was asked who his least favorite opponent in WWE was. He said it was Elijah Burke (now wrestles as "The Pope" D'Angelo Dinero in TNA), adding the following:

"Good question. I always get who's your favorite opponent. This is great because I enjoy talking trash. My least favorite opponent; does anyone even remember Elijah Burke? Oh, he was terrible. He is absolutely the worst. Absolutely the worst. Talk about a diva. M...

Timothy A. Smith, aka Timothy Well from the early '90s tag team Well Dunn, passed away today. The WWC's Facebook page announced the news, without disclosing the cause of death. He was 48 years old.

Kin wrestled as Well & Dunn as well as the Southern Rockers, and was part ot the Glamour Boys in WWC in Puerto Rico were he was incredibly over. He also teamed with his Well Dunn/Southern Rockers partner Steve Doll in the Pacific Northwest and USWA in the '90s. He retired in 2002 after su...

WWE Superstar Ted DiBiase Jr. launches official website DiBiasePosseParty.com

NEW YORK, NY (February 21st, 2012) --- WWE Superstar Ted DiBiase Jr has launched an official website at DiBiasePosseParty.com Ted's "DiBiase Posse Parties" are fan organized tailgate parties that take place before each and every WWE Live Event that he is scheduled to appear at. Ted personally attends these gatherings, hangs out, takes pictures and signs autographs all for FREE!

DiBiasePosseParty.com was cr...

Will Russo, the son of Vince Russo, quit the company Sunday via telephone once it was clear his father was leaving the promotion. Will had been working on the production side of TNA.

Jesse Sorensen has been released from the hospital and is now back home in Tampa, FL. He still has a lot of recovery ahead of him but obviously being out of the hospital and back at home is a good sign.

Jerry Lawler has announced that he will be bringing back The Jerry Lawler Show.

The show, a talk show format, was very popular in the 1980s and featured Lawler interviewing guests on TV. It will air on FOX channel 13 in Memphis on Sundays at 6 AM and will include a mix of older Memphis-based wrestlers and celebrities and WWE talents in segments that are pre-taped.

Kevin Nash has had his profile removed from the WWE roster page on their official website. His profile has been moved to the alumni section on the site.

Nash is still on a Legends contract with the WWE, which means he will make future appearances for the company but isn't tied into a full-time schedule.

Earlier today, Nash tweeted on his current WWE situation: "Punk,Cena got Raw covered.While I have my couch covered.My 15 year old so needs a Dad way more than RAW needs big sey [se...

Jesse Sorensen, who had lost feeling in his extremities after being nailed by Zema Ion during TNA's Against All Odds PPV, is still hospitalized but is moving his arms and has feeling in them.
Sorensen has been saying that he feels a tingling sensation in his legs but has not been able to move them yet.

Dixie Carter posted this update earlier:

"Jesse Sorensen has sustained a C1 vertebrae fracture with spinal cord edema. He is slowly regaining feeling and movement in his arms and legs. He want...

Chris Jericho's band Fozzy is currently working on a new album. The group will begin recording next week in Atlanta. Band member Rich Ward recently stated that Chris Jericho, "wrote the bulk of the lyrics months ago, but he has given me updated lyrics as I have needed them, some as recently as last week." The goal is to have the album out by the end of the year.

Tajiri's SMASH promotion in Japan has announced that they will be shutting down in March. Tajiri confirmed that all shows scheduled throughin March would still take place as scheduled and that the promotion was closing due to "issues within management."

WWE are reaching out to cruiserweight talent for a show they were planning for the WWE Network.

Nothing is confirmed but there are rumours that Tajiri may have been invited to return to the US to star in the show.

Crowbar Press has released the official autobiography for former NWA star Nikita Koloff. Here is the official announcement…

"Nikita Koloff, better known as the "Russian Nightmare," stormed the wrestling world as few others have in the history of the sport. Imposing, immovable, and unbeatable, Nikita left a trail of fallen opponents as he brought the Cold War that loomed over the globe into the ring. From a hard-scrabble beginning to rings around the world, Nikita Koloff filled arena...

When Brock Lesnar graduated from the University of Minnesota, the WWF and WCW entered into a bidding war over him. This led to Lesnar getting a very high salary for being a developmental talent, in the area of $200,000. The average developmental talent at the time made $750 per week (39,000 yearly).

World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. : WWE® to Report 2011 Fourth Quarter and Full Year Results

WWE (NYSE:WWE) announced that it will report its 2011 fourth quarter and full year results on February 23, 2012, before the opening of the market. The Company's Chairman and CEO, Vincent K. McMahon, and senior management will host a conference call beginning at 11:00 a.m. ET to discuss the results.

All interested parties are welcome to listen to a live webcast that will be hosted through...

Matt Hardy's court cases from his various arrests last summer have been continued to March 1, according to court records.

Hardy was scheduled for court in Moore County, North Carolina yesterday on charges including driving while impaired & exceeding safe speed, felony possession with intent to distribute, felony possession, felony maintaining a vehicle/dwelling for drugs, misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia and misdemeanor violation of court order.

John Morrison became the World Wrestling Fan Xperience (WWFX) Champion last night in the Philippines by beating Shelton Benjamin. In Morrison’s first post-WWE wrestling appearance, he scooped a brand new championship on a card stacked with former WWE talent.

Morrison played the babyface in a match that saw a ref bump and Benjamin attempt to use the championship belt to help him get the win. Morrison eventually scooped the win with his WWE signature move, Starship Pain.

After the m...

STAMFORD, Conn., Feb 01, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- WWE(R) WWE +1.69% today announced the appointment of Eric Pankowski as Senior Vice President, Creative and Development. Pankowski, previously a senior executive at Reveille and Warner Bros., will report to WWE Executive Vice President of Creative, Stephanie McMahon. In this role, he will be responsible for the creative development of all television content including concepts that go beyond in-ring such as reality and kids programming; th...

Bret Hart recently submitted his DNA to National Geographic’s Spencer Wells, who is director of The Genographic project – a scientific study that is collecting DNA samples from around the world to create a detailed genetically-based map of human migration. Bret is representing Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Bret will be in attendance for Wells’ National Geographic Live presentation on Deep Ancestry from the Jack Singer Concert Hall on February 7th in Calgary.

Mike Tyson has been confirmed for the WWE Hall of Fame, according to TMZ. The announcement is yet to be made by WWE, but Tyson has spoke on his induction with TMZ.

Tyson said: ”I am honored to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame. I was the youngest heavyweight champion of all time, but the most fun I ever had in the ring was with WWE.”

Tyson’s history with WWE is more storied than perhaps any of the celebrities in the current WWE Hall of Fame. His involvement with WWE goes...

The family of the late Nancy Benoit was back in court today for an appeals hearing stemming from their lawsuit against Larry Flynt Publications' Hustle Magazine. In 2009 United States Court of Appeals decision that had overruled a previous judgment in the lawsuit brought against the adult magazine for publishing nude photos of a young Nancy Benoit in the wake of the Benoit family tragedy. Hustler was attempting to have the appeal ruling, which would require them to pay almost $20 milli...

Ric Flair said in an interview with Mike Mooneyham that he will be allowed to talk for seven minutes at the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony honoring the Four Horsemen. Flair said he watched the announcement backstage at the iMPACT! taping on Monday night.

"It's amazing. It's very cool. The whole TNA crew was watching the vignette. I started crying when they aired it"

John Zandig has been added to the final CZW show at the ECW Arena this Saturday. Zandig, who left the promotion last year and more or less retired, has confirmed that he is coming back to do a "proper sendoff" for the company in the arena. He will take on DJ Hyde in a Death Match. The full lineup is below:

CZW Title Match: Devon Moore vs. Adam Cole
Sami Callihan vs. Blkout's Rich Swann
CZW Tag Team Title Match: Azrieal & Bandido Jr. vs. Alex Colon & Ruckus
Matt Tremont vs. Drew Gula...

The WWE Network delay has been confirmed as several key people involved were told this past week. Nobody knows the new launch date yet but people were told to get rid of all April 1st mentions. It is rumoured to launch in the Fall.

Vince McMahon is looking to get more Legends involved with the Network and has reportedly reached out to many people, including Ric Flair....

Legends House will begin filming soon and will go for 21 weeks, including post-production. The house will be in ...

Linda McMahon has found her connection to WWE under attack by her political opponent. Former Congressman Christopher Shays is focusing his campaign on attacks on McMahon's claims of job creation, referencing the oft-reported early deaths of wrestlers.

Shays told reporters on Wednesday: "She's got over 41 people 50 years and younger who've died in her jobs. That's quite a job record that she's created."

Shays noted that wrestling's record of health issues isn't off limits for his camp...

Major Pain, Minor Glory - By ANDY WEBSTER

The taunts in the ring may be make-believe, but the slams against the mat are agonizingly genuine in Robert Greene’s vivid documentary “Fake It So Real,” which examines the weeklong preparations for a Saturday night independent-wrestling match in Lincolnton, N.C.

Mr. Greene follows members of the Millennium Wrestling Federation — burly performers with stage names like Solar, Pitt, Van Damage and Mikado — as they mercilessly punish t...

According to TMZ, Hulk Hogan is having some issues, following a doctor accidentally ripping out 50 stitches from his mouth. Back in October, Hogan had dental surgery for an implant. The doctor performed a sinus graft, placing a bone in the mouth to support the implant. But when Hogan went to his cosmetic surgeon to begin the implant process, the doctor ripped out 50 stitches from the donor bone procedure.

Since that time, Hogan has been dealing with several problems. His mouth had b...

Former WWE Women’s Champion Bull Nakano officially retired yesterday in Japan at the Tokyo Dome City Hall in front of 3,000 fans, on her 44th birthday.

Nakano retired back in 1996 and became a professional golfer. She dropped most of her weight and got down to 130lbs, but put on weight for the retirement ceremony and was up to 220lbs.

Nakano would not wrestle on the retirement show but hand-picked the matches on the card and later re-enacted moments from three of her biggest matc...

Most fights in 2011 / (2010):

Randy Orton 202 (Kofi Kingston 183)
John Cena 201 (Sheamus 182)
Alberto Del Rio 193 (John Cena 179)
The Miz 190 (Jack Swagger/The Miz 176)
Kofi Kingston 185 (Randy Orton 174)

Most wins in 2011 / (2010):

John Cena 163 (John Cena 138)
Randy Orton 146 (Randy Orton 127)
Kofi Kingston 126 (Rey Mysterio 106)
D...

Madusa who was known as Alundra Blayze in WWF, says she still owns the title belt that she trashed on WCW Monday Nitro years ago and would like to do one final angle with WWE and let Beth Phoenix wrestle for it.

Madusa says Beth may be the best women's wrestler out today but says WWE is "stifling her" from hitting the pinnacle of her career.

CM Punk's appearance in walking Chael Sonnen to the ring at the next UFC on FOX from Chicago is not a deal made between UFC and WWE, but something Sonnen and Punk put together on their own.

This is not a promotional agreement between the companies as part of a working agreement, or a plan to set up Brock Lesnar's return to WWE.

WWE and UFC have worked together in the past.

When Ken Shamrock first came to the then-WWF in 1997, WWF licensed footage of him fighting in UFC to explain ...

There is backstage heat on Evan Bourne..... Triple H confronted him a few weeks ago, blaming him for the story getting out about R-Truth’s suspension being for fake marijuana (spice) as well as how they were smoking it together.

Triple H doesn't like Evan Bourne and although Stephanie McMahon thinks he brings something unique to the table, there are rumours in that Bourne is going to be broken mentally by the WWE system by doing jobs until he is released.

There is also heat on B...

Dick Slater, 60, was arrested on December 31, 2011 in St. Petersburg, Florida for retail theft.

The former WCW World Tag Team Champion has past history with the law as he was convicted in June 2004 for stabbing his girlfriend. He was sentenced to one year of house arrest and two years of probation.

Mick Foley will return to the UK & Ireland for his “Nights in Red Flannel” comedy tour. Here are dates and locations:

Friday 24th February/Saturday 25th February – The Leicester Square Theatre, London
Monday 27th February – The Glee Club, Cardiff
Tuesday 28th February – The Glee Club, Birmingham
Wednesday 29th February – Memorial Hall, Sheffield
Thursday 1st March – The Olympia, Liverpool
Friday 2nd March – The O’Reilly Theatre, Dublin

Jillian Hall mentioned in her new shoot interview for RF Video that although she has had no official discussions with the TNA office, Tara has been asking her to join the company. Jillian does not feel she is in shape to continue wrestling full-time since she has gained a lot of weight due to her pregnancy last year.

Dixie Carter has announced that Kurt Angle will be appearing on Fox News's Fox and Friends, tomorrow (Friday) morning.

Angle will be promoting TNA Genesis, as well as his 2012 Olympics attempt.

Kurt Angle's wife Giovanna posted on Twitter:

"My hubby has an important meeting today about a 2012 project!!!! Our big family is going to have one interesting but EXCITING year :)"

Shawn Michaels:

"I have a contract with WWE. It's not a Legends contract, it's not a wrestling contract. It's just something special they gave me. That's one of the ways I make a living. I will never end up going anywhere else. I won't be wrestling somewhere else and I won't be showing up on someone else's TV show."

Randy Orton to a Twitter follower who asked why he started to follow someone who was tweeting negative things about him:

“Why not? It’s not like I gave em my address or phone #. if anything I just motivated them to spend more time tweeting garbage. Stuff like this used to upset me, but Sam is the one the made me realize these people have no impact on my life, and the things they say mean absolutely nothing.”

Following his UFC 141 loss to Alistair Overeem, Brock Lesnar has been medically suspended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

According to the announcement by the NSAC, Lesnar is, "suspended until June 28 due to an abdominal injury, though he can be cleared early by a physician."

This is perfectly normal and UFC fighters are often medically suspended after their fights, as a way to protect them.

Lesnar retired from MMA after his match with Overeem.

Mickie James was the most searched for female wrestling talent on Google.com in 2011.

She is followed by TNA Knockout Velvet Sky, Michelle McCool, Vickie Guerrero, Beth Phoenix, Eve Torres and Gail Kim.

Barry Windham is still hospitalized in Florida after suffering a heart attack/stroke back in October. Windham had to have knee surgery because of an injury he suffered during the attack but is doing much better now and has been walking around his hospital room. The Windham family is hoping Barry will be able to continue to heal at home soon.

RVD is rumoured to be returning to WWE when his TNA contract expires in March 2012.

Here are some words from RVD during an interview:

"One thing that's for sure is that WWE and I do have a good-faith understanding that if and when I'm ready to return that I’ll be talking to them. They look forward and hope that we'll be doing business again"

WWE.com:

“After weeks of cryptic “1-2-12” videos on Raw SuperShow, Chris Jericho made a shocking return and was warmly welcomed by the WWE Universe, greeting some with high-fives at ringside. As he urged them for more cheers, “#Y2J” instantly became the No. 1 worldwide trend on Twitter. But as the Superstar – who was dressed in a dazzling, light-up, blinged out jacket – prolonged his homecoming, the WWE Universe’s chants of “welcome back” soon turned to boos. A sm...

TNA's first house show of the year will take place on January 6th in Westbury, Long Island and will include a collection for non-perishable food items as part of a food drive with the "Rock CAN Roll" charity. Check out the full press release below:

TNA IMPACT WRESTLING TEAMS UP WITH "ROCK CAN ROLL" IN WESTBURY, NEW YORK, TO BEAT HUNGER
On January 6, bring healthy and nutritious non-perishable food items to the TNA IMPACT WRESTLING live event at The NYCB Theatre in Westbury, New York...

When looking through the archives of World Wrestling Entertainment, it is without doubt that the year 1997 is one of the most important in its illustrious history.

During this period, WWE was a place where things were rapidly changing, the rise of "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, the situation with Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart which led up to Montreal and the ECW Invasion were just a few factors which all contributed to WWE finally moving in the right direction to once aga...

ESPN’s E:60 documentary on Scott Hall from earlier this year is nominated for Sports Illustrated’s “Best News Feature on a Sports Program” award in their 2011 Media Awards.

SI.com wrote:

“The superhero physique he had during his days in the WWE is long gone. Scott Hall is now 53 and says he takes 11 heart and seizure medications daily. He has a pacemaker and says he suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder. He looks shockingly frail. In October, E:60 aired a 16-minute...

Available now as an eBook, Diary of a Heartbreak Kid shadows Shawn Michaels for an immensely poignant occasion of reflection, introspection and celebration as The Heartbreak Kid is inducted into the esteemed WWE Hall of Fame.

Diary traces HBK throughout Atlanta for the festivities of WrestleMania, an event that began the same year as Shawn Michaels' unparalleled career. Such a grand setting could not be more appropriate for WWE’s one and only Showstopper to add "Mr. Hall of Fame" to his myri...

D’Angelo Dinero has a small role in the upcoming blockbuster Batman movie, The Dark Knight Rises.

The Pope will be playing a henchman of the film’s main villain, Bane. Themancavedaily.com has released the following picture of Bane’s goons – you can spot Dinero in the front row wearing a hoodie.

WWE.com posted that Alberto Del Rio's groin injury from last week's RAW was a groin tear and will require surgery.

WWE physician Chris Amann said:

"We were able to look at an MRI, and it appears as though he has a groin injury that's severe enough to require surgery. Fortunately for Alberto, the surgery is minimally invasive and the recovery time is usually four to six weeks."

Del Rio was pulled from the week's house shows as of this last weekend.

Sean Waltman on Twitter, addressing his arrest last week on drug possession charges:

"I read what has been reported about me. I learned the other day that I had a warrant over something that happened months ago.

I was never in jail. I did get my pic taken & printed.I want to elaborate more, but I should talk to my lawyer about what I can say"

The official website of the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office confirmed that Sean Waltman was arrested Wednesday at 1:02 p.m. for possessi...

Chris Jericho:

“Sick of all the questions so this is it…from now on I’m not answering anymore wrestling related questions. I’m done w WWE. Deal with it"

Here is WWE.com's list of the top 25 WWE matches of 2011:

25. Rey Mysterio vs. Cody Rhodes from WrestleMania 27
24. Yoshi Tatsu vs. Tyson Kidd from WWE NXT
23. Edge vs. Kane - Last Man Standing Match from Smackdown
22. CM Punk vs. The Miz vs. Alberto Del Rio from WWE TLC
21. Randy Orton vs. Cody Rhodes - Street Fight from Smackdown.
20. The Miz vs. John Morrison - Falls Count Anywhere WWE Championship match from RAW
19. Smackdown Elimination Chamber match
18. Randy Orton vs. CM Punk ...

“Advice to RAW. Stop having everyone point out each others flaws, especially legit ones. Why is everyone burying the talent and the product?”

WWE's Survivor Series PPV buy figure is lower than the initial estimate of 280,000. It was reported that of that figure, 180,000 purchases came from the United States.

The updated estimate drops the buy figure to 260,000 as only 160,000 PPV purchases came from the United States for The Rock's first wrestling match in over seven years.

The estimate compares to 244,000 buys for Survivor Series in 2010 and 235,000 in 2009, which nearly got the show scrapped from the annual PPV line-up!!

NEW YORK, Dec. 21, 2011 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Everlast Worldwide Inc., the global leader in fight sports and fitness, today announced the signing of an exclusive, multi-year equipment contract with former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar. One of the most dominant heavyweights in the world, Lesnar has electrified MMA fans across the globe with wins over Shane Carwin, Frank Mir and the great Randy Couture.

Under the agreement, Lesnar will exclusiv...

Ring of Honor has officially begin advertising former WWE Diva Maria Kanellis for Final Battle 2011. The show takes place this Friday night from the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City. This will also be an i-PPV which you can order at GFL.tv. The promotion made the following announcement:

"We can officially confirm that Maria will indeed be in New York City this Friday in the corner of (Mike) Bennett. Bennett's confidence level will be through the roof this Friday as he seeks to c...

TNA's India Project, Ring Ka King (which means King of the Ring) is currently in its second day of taping for The Colors Network in India.

The show is set to air 26 episodes over 13 weeks, starting on January 14th. 20 American wrestlers and 10 Indian wrestlers, trained by Savio Vega, Sonjay Dutt, and Nick Dinsmore, will be featured on the show.

According to some of the talent on the tour, the production value and the set are said to be amazing. The tapings have also drawn big crowd...

TMZ.com is reporting that former WWE talent Jesse "the Body" Ventura was pulled over for tailgating in the San Fernando Valley this past Monday night.

When cops asked why he was driving so close, Jesse replied that "the damn driver was going way too slow."

Cops then let him go with a warning.

On Wednesday 12/7 WWE held a TV Taping at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida utilizing mostly developmental talents.

They used the talents to film different pilot ideas that could be used for the WWE Network. One was a traditional one hour show about the developmental program (they filmed two episodes) and one was a shorter 30 minute show that would focus on one specific match or rivalry.

Triple H and John Laurinaitis were both in attendance at the taping, which was free t...

WWE have posted a job listing on Monster.com for a "Vice President, Digital and Social Media" in the sports section of the site. The listing states:

The tour, an international media and entertainment company, is launching a new television network which will be THE most interactive channel to be leveraged across all media platforms.

Tour is looking for a VP of Digital and Social Media who will be instrumental in the creation and launch of a fully multiplatform television network –...

WWE's long term plans are for the WWE Network are to be much more than just professional wrestling themed programming. While the company is trying out several different concepts for pro wrestling related programming, including behind the scenes discussion shows similar to what VH-1 presents for music, there is a much grander, long-term plan already in place.

Their plan is to use the WWE fan base to create a push to request the Network on their providers (remember the "I Want My WWE N...

WWE has rescinded their contract offer to Ring of Honor star Chris Hero, allegedly due to results from his drug test showing elevated testosterone levels.

Brock Lesnar recently plead guilty to "improper tagging of an animal". The charges stem from a hunting trip in November 2010. Lesnar had two other charged dropped. Brock will pay a fine of $1,725 and his hunting license will be suspended for the next six months.

ESPN the Magazine is reporting that UFC heavyweight fighter Brock Lesnar made $5.3 million from fighting in 2010.

Lesnar is getting paid huge money to crush his opponents in the ring – and that’s because when he’s fighting on a UFC event, it’s virtually guaranteed to be a blockbuster success.

In 2010, Brock Lesnar joined Mike Tyson as the only fighters to ever draw over 1 million pay-per-view buys in a single year. Tyson actually did it three times in 1996.

While Lesnar’s h...

From someone in attendance during the show....

"I just got back from Chyna's show. The club was packed, hardly any room to move around.

Chyna's first show was at 10 PM and she did a four song set. The last song she danced to was indeed the DX theme.

I'd compare her dancing ability to Hulk Hogan's wrestling ability. She was not too great technically, but able to put on a show and use what she has to entertain to get the crowd to react loudly.

At one point, she pulled another stripper...

Brock Lesnar was scheduled to appear in court today in Canada on three wildlife-related charges. However, he did not appear since he is in training for his UFC fight on December 30.

Lesnar is charged with three counts of violating the Alberta Fish and Wildlife Act, including improper affixation of tags, spoilage of skin and edible flesh and possession of a controlled animal.

The case has been continued to January 19, 2012.

Jimmy Snuka is currently in need of ankle replacement surgery. Former ECW Diva Dawn Marie is try to do some fundraisers to help pay for Snuka’s $24,000 cost to replace his ankle joint. Snuka is in rough financial shape as well.

Reby Sky tweeted that fans can send Matt Hardy letters and cards through the holidays to the following address:

Matt Hardy
P.O. Box 713.
Vass, NC 28394

Hardy isn't expected to be home for Christmas.

80′s wrestler “Pretty Boy” Doug Somers has filed suit against WWE and the McMahons over claims that he is owed royalties for WWE using his name and likeness. Somers’ suit names WWE’s DVD on Shawn Michaels’ career and the Greatest Cage Matches of All-Time DVD. Somers says that WWE failed to contact him and ask permission to use his name and likeness, and never made any attempt to compensate him. The lawsuit also states that Somers’ health is suffering from his pro wrestli...

MondayNightMayhem.com sent along the following ...

Monday Night Mayhem DVD Review: "YouShoot: Chyna"

DVD Review Written By: Shawn "The Angry Hero" Marek

With the Christmas season upon us, it's always a hard gig to find the perfect gift for the wrestling fan in your life. This fan, let's say his name is, oh I don't know, Mark, has everything and has seen everything: the typically jaded wrestling fan. Thankfully for us (yeah, I'll lump myself in here),...

After recounting the lawsuit, Abdullah the Butcher commented on the revelation that Nicholson's lawyers dropped about Butcher being positive for Hepatitis C, commenting, ""The only thing I will say is that when we meet again in court, to be in a month and a half or so is going to take a big surprise. Soon we will know the whole truth...

WWE Tough Enough contestant and former Miss USA Rima Fakih was arrested Saturday morning in Highland Park, Michigan on suspicion of drunk driving.

WXYZ.com reports Fakih took a breathalyzer and blew a 0.20, more than twice the state's legal limit. She spent most of Saturday in jail.

Fakih originally tried to deny that she was arrested by stating on Facebook and Twitter that it was actually someone else with the same last name. Let's clear things up now.... I'm NOT in Michigan and I...

Chris Masters stated Friday during a recent interview that he will be among the troupe of wrestlers traveling to India to tape the first footage for TNA Wrestling's planned debut on the television network Colors. The wrestlers have been booked for seven days, including travel days, the week of December 15. A mixture of recognizable faces and independent wrestlers are scheduled for the project. The project will not utilize the TNA logo or name.

Sarita suffered bruised ribs after taking a scary fall during a two out of three falls tag team match at Arena Mexico on November 22, 2011. She will be unable to compete for a few weeks as a result of the injury.

Sarita, who appears as Dark Angel for Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre, slipped on the top rope while attempting to dive and fell flat on her face onto the wooden floor. She was placed on a stretcher while the match continued and immediately hospitalized. The TNA Knockout has ...

TNA will be taking a group of wrestlers to India to start taping TV for the Colors Network. They will be there for seven days, including travel days, starting on December 15th.

While a list of names has not been confirmed, the talent will include a number of known names and independent talent. Many performers will have new and or original names and gimmicks to avoid any trademark or copyright issues.

This project will not use the TNA letters, logo or name. Jeff Jarrett, Dutch Mantel,...

Travis Tomko has formally been charged by the state of Florida with robbery by sudden snatching from the incident back on October 11th where he allegedly stole 210 tablets of Oxycodone from a CVS. Tomko, who is currently going through a WWE-sponsored rehab program, was later found in a Chili’s bathroom where he told police he took 178 crushed pills. Tomko will be arraigned in March of 2012.

CBC Smackdown angers former wrestler
OTTAWA - The CBC's booster club is launching a new campaign to get the state broadcaster more money.

Friends of Canadian Broadcasting produced two spoof spots -- dubbed Stop the CBC Smackdown -- portraying the worst case scenario for CBC connoisseurs: The corporation sold to a professional wrestling promoter. And, he's American.

In this imagined hell, the broadcaster is staffed with beauties and burly men: The wrestlers voice radio ads whilst the r...

Former WWE performer Vito LoGrasso (Big Vito) responded to WWE.com listing him among the seven biggest turkeys to ever trot the squared circle.

He stated Friday on Facebook, “A lot of people are upset with the WWE today. They spoke of me in a negative way which put the fans in shock. How would they post something like this on a holiday?! I have a family and the kids are all upset. I thought they had an anti-bullying policy.”

The former WCW World Tag Team Champion posted dozens of...

Resistance PRO LIVE results

Report 1:

1/25 Resistance Pro: Creative director Billy Corgan's promotion debuts featuring former WWE wrestler Harry "D.H." Smith vs. Kevin Steen, The Briscoes vs. Teddy Hart and Gran Akuma, Colt Cabana vs. Necro Butcher vs. Petey Jay Williamsesistance Pro
Chicago, Ill.
Report by Dot Net reader Aniviel

Announcer Joel Gertner did a good job getting the crowd ready for the first match. It was announced that The Sheik, El Generico, Kevin Steen, and Harry Smith a...

Regarding Maryse Ouellet's departure from WWE last month, company officials had been looking to cut ties with the French-Canadian glamour model for over a year since she did not fit their commitment to wholesome, family-friendly, PG content. Her "history of non-PG activity" was of concern to WWE executives.

Ouellet was not initially endeavored due to her relationship with The Miz. WWE parted ways with Ouellet shortly after she asked to be released from her contract.

Friends of Ouellet...

WWE Hall of Famer Dusty Rhodes will be appearing in a new independent Christmas horror movie called Hell Elves this January. The campy movie follows a small group of rogue elves who turn on Santa Claus. They kill everyone and put their body parts in jars to give out to kids as presents. Rhodes briefly appears as a grandfather to one of the children, running out of the shower nude and confronting the elves as they come down his chimney. The scene was filmed earlier this month. Hell Elv...

Dragon Gate USA and EVOLVE sent out the following today:

Dragon Gate USA and EVOLVE have unified. We have some of the details and ramifications in this press release.

The Black Friday Specials are in full effect for DGUSA and EVOLVE right now in the www.DGUSA.tv Store or by calling 267-519-9744. All in stock DGUSA DVDs are 50% off and only $10 including several 2011 titles. All Dragon Gate Infinity DVDs are 50% off and only $25. All EVOLVE DVDs are 33% off and just $10 including the new...

Plaintiff Shane Hawley, who was working a 2/14/09 WWE Taping at the Key Arena in Seattle, Washington as "an employee of the city of Seattle" claims that negligence on the part of Broome, who was working at an elevated location in the venue during the set-u...

Billy Corgan's Resistance Pro will have their debut event this Friday in Chicago at the Excalibur!!

Scheduled for the debut is a tournament to crown the first World Champion, featuring former Harry Smith, The Sheik and ROH stars El Generico and Kevin Steen.

Also scheduled is Necro Butcher vs. Petey Williams vs. Colt Cabana.

The first round of the Tag Team Championship Tournament will kick off, featuring: The Briscoes vs. Teddy Hart and Akuma as well as Kyle O'Reilly & Tony Kozina v...

The official Twitter feed of the WWE Insider stated this evening that Sin Cara suffered a ruptured patellar tendon and will be sidelined for six to nine months, following surgery.

The masked grappler suffered the injury while performing a dive outside the ring during the Traditional Survivor Series Elimination Tag Team Match. He was left unable to compete and therefore eliminated.

Evan Bourne's suspension for his first violation of WWE's Talent Wellness Program has generated a great deal of controversy amongst talent as some feel a double standard is in place.

Bourne, who's real name is Matthew Korklan, was suspended for thirty days on November 1, 2011 after testing positive for Spice, a synthetic marijuana brand. Bourne and another wrestler higher up the card smoked the marijuana substitute drug at a party, yet he was the only one of the two to be suspended. ...

Matt Hardy is still being held in the Moore County, North Carolina Detention Center under a $1,000,000 secured bond. Hardy has a new court date on November 28th for the misdemeanor violation of a court order. By all accounts, Hardy is expected to do at least some jail time beyond what he’s doing now. Unless Hardy can post bond, he will sit in jail until his court date on the 28th.

WWE developmental Diva Shaul Marie Guerrero (Raquel Diaz) won the Queen of FCW Championship from SmackDown’s Aksana at the FCW tapings this past Thursday night. The match will air on December 18th. Guerrero, the daughter of Eddie and Vickie Guerrero, won the match with the Three Amigos and a Gory Bomb.

Vickie wrote the following on her Twitter: “Shaul is “queen of FCW”. I’m so proud of her!!!!”

The Queen of FCW title isn’t the same as the FCW Divas Championship, which is ...

The full roster for THQ’s WWE ’12, which officially hits stores on Tuesday....

Superstars:
Alberto Del Rio (WWE Champion), Alex Riley, Big Show, Booker T, Chavo Guerrero, Christian, CM Punk, Cody Rhodes, Daniel Bryan, David Otunga (Tag Team Champion), Dolph Ziggler (US Champion), Drew McIntyre, Evan Bourne, Ezekiel Jackson (IC Champion), Goldust, Heath Slater, Husky Harris, Jack Swagger, John Cena, John Morrison, Justin Gabriel, Kane, Kevin Nash, Kofi Kingston, Mark Henry, Mason R...

Matt Hardy was arrested as soon as he got off a plane last night in Moore County, NC. He was booked at 1:30AM ET for violation of a court order. Hardy had a new mugshot photo taken when booked.

Matt Hardy was kicked out of rehab on Friday after he failed a breathalyzer test. A member of staff at the center where Hardy was at rehab got suspicious of his behavior and gave him an impromptu breathalyzer test that he failed.

Hardy said he wasn't drinking and that he failed because he'd ...

"The Charasmatic Enigma" Jeff Hardy is known in the ring for his fast-paced and high-risk ability...but out of the ring he has a passion for art. His mind is a virtual canvas of ideas and, regularly, he puts his ideas to a visual medium such as paintings or music. We invite you to be a part of that creativity in a living piece of Jeff Hardy artwork to celebrate the release of his Best Of Jeff Hardy Vol. 2 DVD from ShopTNA.com and major video retailers.

Create your own Jeff Hardy ar...

Rick's Cabaret sent out the following today…

Former WWE Superstar Chyna celebrated the release of her new Vivid Entertainment adult hit movie "Backdoor to Chyna" by hosting a party in her honor at the famous Rick's Cabaret New York gentlemen's club.

She signed copies of her new DVD and posed for photos with her fans. "The club was packed," said Rick's Cabaret Girl Monique. "Chyna has a lot of fans."

A group of Wall Street bankers who were sitting nearby in the VIP Champagne Room s...

WWE Hall of Fame Wrestler Sgt. slaughter to Serve as Grand Marshal for Saturday's Ford 300 at Homestead-Miami Speedway

WWE Hall of Famer Sgt. Slaughter will be the Grand Marshal for Saturday's NASCAR Nationwide Series championship race, the Ford 300, at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Track President Matthew Becherer made the announcement.

"I am really excited to start the Ford 300," said Slaughter. "Ricky, Elliott, Justin and Aric have made the 2011 Nationwide Series special and I can't wa...

From ROHWrestling.com:

On the recent episode of "Ring of Honor Wrestling" where it was officially announced that Eddie Edwards would be challenging for the ROH World Title at "Final Battle 2011" on December 23rd in New York City, the former World Champion alluded to having a new trainer in his camp to help prepare him for the opportunity to regain the championship. Speculation of course began to run rampant as to who Edwards was talking about, but it looks like that guessing game can...

video.thescore.com/watch/arda-ocal-with-tatanka.

Looking back on the two-year undefeated streak and why it didn’t lead to something bigger than it did:

"It did lead to a big thing, it lead up to Yokozuna, lead up to Ludvig Borga. Ludvig Borga was the one who actually defeated me. But Ludvig Borga, (WWE) had big plans for him, they really wanted to push him to the sky. They really wanted to do some real big things with Ludvig Borga, but it just never caught with him."

Does Tatanka t...

WWE is conducting a survey asking for feedback on 17 show concepts for the upcoming WWE Network.

* Stone Cold Steve Austin and his counterpart, a refined beer expert, visit a different local brewery, pub, or beer fest/competition each week in different U.S. cities. Follow the tour bus online by accessing the show’s interactive GPS map and Join Stone Cold as he meets the owners of different establishments around the country; learns how the beer gets made, learns what to eat with speci...

1960s and 1970s legend Killer Karl Kox passed away this morning at the age of 80. He suffered a heart attack on October 22, which was followed by a stroke a few days later. The family has not decided on services yet but you can send along your condolences to the family via Kox's son Cody at codymichaels@gmail.com.

Mark Canterbury (Henry O. Godwinn), 47, was hospitalized following a car wreck Tuesday in Lindside, West Virginia.

Canterbury drove his car over a cliff. He suffered two punctured lungs, thirteen broken ribs and a broken leg.

He was flown to an intensive care unit and remains in critical condition.

TNA IMPACT WRESTLING ANNOUNCES EXCLUSIVE TRAINING PROGRAM AT OVW
Focus On Development Key To TNA

NASHVILLE, TN (November 7, 2011) – TNA IMPACT WRESTLING announces that they are entering into an exclusive relationship with Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW), effective immediately, as the official training and developmental facility for TNA’s current and future stars of TNA IMPACT WRESLTING. Former wrestling star and OVW owner Danny Davis will work closely with TNA SVP of Programming and Tal...

WWE® Reports 2011 Third Quarter Results

STAMFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--WWE (NYSE:WWE) today announced financial results for its third quarter ended September 30, 2011. Revenues totaled $108.5 million as compared to $109.6 million in the prior year quarter. Operating income was $15.9 million as compared to $20.3 million in the prior year quarter. Net income was $10.6 million, or $0.14 per share, as compared to $14.3 million, or $0.19 per share, in the prior year quarter. Impacting comparabi...

Mick Foley:

"There's no place like home. There's no place like home. There's no place like home.

Thanks to all in Dublin for a great time tonight. I might be stopping by a few @WWE shows on my days off.

Sorry - those days off are actually November 5,7 and 8. See you out there on the road."

WWE® announced today that tickets for its annual pop culture extravaganza, WrestleMania XXVIII, will go on sale this Saturday, November 5 at 10 AM ET. WrestleMania XXVIII will take place Sunday, April 1, 2012 at the Sun Life Stadium in Miami, FL. The event will be headlined by the highly anticipated main event featuring "the most electrifying man in all of entertainment," The Rock® against WWE Superstar John Cena®.

Ticket prices range from $25-$850. There will also be a limited nu...

Here is a transcript of The Rock's RAW promo:

John Cena, ya want The Rock to be your tag team partner, ya wanna team up with The Rock. Can it be done? Should it be done? John, you and The Rock have been the most polarizing men on this planet. Cena represents an era and a generation. The Rock represents an era and a generation. Last Monday, you asked The Rock from the heart to be your tag team partner. Here's The Rock's answer back to you....HELL NO! Hell! No! You want The Rock to be y...

Ringside Collectibles held their 2011 Ringsidefest at Carolines in New York City over the weekend., drawing around 600-700 fans for signings with CM Punk, Zack Ryder and Daniel Bryan. The line to enter actually stretched around the corner of a NYC City block.

At the event, Bryan joked that the action figures were really dolls and joked he could say that because no one was going to fight him if they were upset about it. Punk told the crowd that he actually jogged past them waiting o...

Former WWF performer Jacques Rougeau was diagnosed with prostate cancer last Tuesday, reports Québec Hebdo.

Rougeau, who is 51 years old, was diagnosed with the disease after undergoing tests but is undergoing further testing to reaffirm the diagnosis.

Québec Hebdo reports his prostate was "the size of a grapefruit" and that his family has history with the disease. Rougeau, however, has also had problems with kidney stones, which could also be a contributing factor to the state of h...

The Post and Courier in South Carolina has an interview up with Cody Hall, the son of Scott Hall. Cody confirms that he is still training to be a pro-wrestler. He said that he no longer lives with his father though after he realized that nothing he did could help Scott deal with his addictions.

Cody's mother Dana says in the article that she hopes her son doesn't become a pro-wrestler and end up like his father.

TNA executive producer Eric Bischoff praised the idea of taking the Impact Wrestling tapings on the road. "Great TV's last night," Bischoff wrote. "Crowd was super hot. Special thanks to the team at TNA that promoted the market. The crowd were the stars of the shows!

"Taking Impact on the road full time will grow this brand faster than anyone knows. Now is the time!" Follow Bischoff on Facebook at Facebook.com/TheEricBischoff.

WWE’s website has an article up concerning the Hardcore Title:

“If the Hardcore Title ever does make a comeback, alliances will crumble and insanity will rule in its place, with an iron fist stronger than any potential Raw General Manager could ever dream of wielding. Whoever will place it around their waist will instantly be painting a target on their back. Everybody will be their enemy. Big, small, Superstar, Diva: all will be potential challengers, ready to pounce to win their ...

Mick Foley is not expected to appear at the Survivor Series PPV on November 20th because of a previous charity commitment.

Foley will still appear on the November 14th RAW from Boston and the November 21st RAW from Hershey, PA. Foley is expected to become a regular on WWE TV, in a non-wrestling role, beginning early next year.

After rumours that Gerald Brisco had passed away after suffering a mild stroke recently, Jim Ross has confirmed the rumor is not true:

"Just talked to Jerry Brisco and he is ALIVE and doing well."

Diamond Dallas Page believed the rumor to be true as he posted a message online in remembrance of the legendary wrestler.

DDP wrote: "Gerald Brisco was a Great Wrestler! A Great TV character but most of a Great Man! And he will be Extremely missed! RIP Brother!"

He later posted: "Just found...

Linda McMahon has contributed over $600,000 of her own money to get her 2012 Senate campaign going. The amount was reported in her campaign's first fundraising report, Which listed a total of $1.2 million in initial expenses. The main expenses were for consulting firms, a research and polling company and campaign consultants.

Media outlets in India are reporting that The Great Khali is in the middle of a land dispute there. Khali reportedly purchased land to build a wrestling school but a neighbor says his 1 acre of land is within the area that was purchased by Khali. Khali left to return to the United States after purchasing the land so police are investigating the land dispute.

Former WWE star Bull Buchanan,  now works as supervisor at a SONY distribution and packaging center in Carrollton, Georgia. He believes his transformation from a serious enforcer to the more light-hearted B2 character who briefly seconded John Cena turned off Vince McMahon, leading to his departure from WWE in 2003.

"The fun part of it probably boomeranged on me. Everything I had done to that point in my career had been so serious. I took this as something where I could be a little mo...

Viacom, which is Spike TV's parent company brokered a deal where they now own a majority stake in Bellator Fighting Championships. Bellator Fighting Championships currently airs on MTV2, but starting in 2013, the programming will move to Spike TV.

If you are a fan of Bellator or TNA, there has been a lot of cross promotion between the two companies. Bellator is always promoting Impact Wrestling, while on Impact, Bellator Champions Eddie Alvarez and Joe Warren have both made special app...

TNA sent out the following on their Turning Point VIP Party…

Join us from November 13th through November 15th in Orlando, FL for TNA's annual Turning Point Pay-Per-View in VIP style.

Date: Sunday, November 13, 2011
Time: 2:30 PM
Location: BLUE MAN GROUP Entrance at Universal Studios ® Orlando
Event: Check in
Details: This will be your first stop and is where you will receive your credentials for the weekend. Note: No tickets are mailed for this event.

Date: Sunday, November 13, 2011
...

WrestleMania(R) Makes Record $62 Million for Atlanta

STAMFORD, Conn., Oct 24, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- WWE(R) announced today that WrestleMania XXVII generated $62.1 million in economic impact for the city of Atlanta, according to a study conducted by the Enigma Research Corporation.

This is a new record for WrestleMania's economic impact, and a $17 million increase over WrestleMania XXVI. WrestleMania XXVII also generated approximately $7.8 million in local, state and county taxes.

...

2CWWrestling.com made the following announcement today…

Nigel McGuinness Retirement Tour:

On Friday, November 11th, 2011 in Watertown, NY will begin the Nigel McGuinness Retirement Tour. This is Night 1 of the the Nigel McGuinness Retirement Tour. After 15 months out of the ring Nigel McGuinness steps back into the ring, into a 2CW ring, at 2CW's Eleventh Hour in Watertown, NY on Friday, November 11th, 2011 at 8 p.m. Nigel has decided to do a so...me shows as a part of Retirement T...

The November 2011 issue of Maxim features an article on CM Punk (who dubs him wrestling's "next megastar") and it is publicly confirmed for the first time that Beth Phoenix is his real-life girlfriend. "The Glamazon" is quoted in the piece as she recalls the reaction backstage to his scathing on-air speech on the June 27 RAW concerning the way in which WWE is run and its owner, Vince McMahon.

"I was in the dressing room," recalls Phoenix, "and everyone sprinted over to see what would...

Former WWE star Gangrel walked away from a terrifying motorcycle accident this week -- but suffered a gruesome elbow injury as a result ... and TMZ has the disgusting photo.

Gangrel (real name David Heath) tells TMZ he was riding his motorcycle in Burbank when he turned a corner was struck by an oncoming car. Heath says he absorbed more of the impact than his actual bike.

He was eventually rushed to the hospital where doctors diagnosed him with a fractured elbow. The bike will su...

Former WWE Diva Serena suffered a nasty concussion at the recent SHIMMER TV tapings. She says her doctors have advised her to think about other lines of work and she is out of action indefinitely. She noted on Twitter that she has more tests coming up this week and wrote the following message:

“A message to all my supporters- I recently sustained a rather serious concussion and following my doctors instructions, will not wrestle for a period of time. I apologize to those who were ...

John Cena has been topped as WWE’s top merchandise seller by CM Punk. For the first time in five years, a regular wrestler has topped John Cena. The Rock had previously accomplished this during his short return, but in addition to topping Cena, Punk has also topped the single day sales record of the Rock. This is the first time in 5-years anyone has topped Cena from within the company and not only has Punk done so at WWE Shopzone, but also at live events Punk is the merchandise king.

Fit Finlay Brings His Kind of Pain to Crossfire Entertainment

Wrestling fans have seen the kind of destruction that can happen inside a wrestling ring.

Blood, guts and gore have always been a thing of the history making in each match that graces the squared circle inside the hallowed halls of the Tennessee State Fairgrounds Sports Arena. But one thing that the fans of that legendary arena have yet to see is the kind of pain that Fit Finlay is going to bring when he enters on Saturday, N...

James Storm defeated Kurt Angle at last night's Impact Wrestling taping in Orlando, Florida to capture the TNA World Heavyweight Championship. Yes, James Storm.

Storm defeated Angle in approximately three minutes via Last Call. He celebrated his title victory with the crowd and members of Fortune.

James Storm on Twitter, after winning the TNA World Title last night at the TNA iMPACT! tapings:

"One hell of a belt buckle I won tonight. Thanks to all the fans,family and friends. This is ...

The Federal Election Commission ruled (by a vote of 6-) that there was no wrong-doing with WWE trying to help Linda McMahon win a senate seat last year. The ruling was actually made in August and made public on Friday.
The investigation was made following a complaint filed last year by State Democrats, who had claimed that WWE illegally helped McMahon by holding a 'Fan Appreciation Day', doing a 'Stand Up for WWE' campaign, and taping a commercial for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

The...

This Scott Hall Documentary will be on US TV tonight....

The early portion of the story paints the story of Hall’s life before he entered pro wrestling, being raised in a family of “hard drinking rednecks” that places Hall as the self-professed head of the household at the age of only 15. As if that wasn’t enough to mentally process, Hall is charged with second degree murder after getting into a fight with someone over a woman he was dating. While the charges were dropped, the...

In an update on Travis Tomko's arrest last week, he is still in jail at the "advice of his lawyers".

Tomko has reached out to WWE and will be taking them up on their rehab offer.

Tomko was arrested last Monday in St. Augustine, Florida on a felony robbery charge.

At approximately 5:00 p.m. Monday, Tomko entered the CVS Pharmacy at 175 Florida 312 and demanded a pharmacist give him all the 15 mg and 30 mg oxycodone in the safe. The pharmacist told detectives Tomko held his hand under hi...

Christopher Daniels was interviewed by the Sun in Canada about his match with AJ Styles at Bound for Glory.

He said their match has the potential to steal the show. When asked about his future in the business, he said:

"I haven't put a time limit on it. But, I'm close to being in the best shape of my career. Despite being in it for 18 years, I feel like I'm putting on pretty good matches. I've always said I'll stop when I stop having fun."

Mixed martial artist Kim Couture stated Wednesday during an interview with Steven Muehlhausen for SportsTownChicago.com that TNA Wrestling has approached herself and Strikeforce Women's Featherweight Champion Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos about possibly working for the promotion.

Couture and Tara engaged in a shoving match at 2009's Bound for Glory PPV.
The TNA Knockout later claimed that the scuffle was legitimate.

I leave Ring of Honor Wrestling to tackle new challenges. I’ve accepted a position as Director of Creative Writing with TNA Wrestling. My duties will be to focus solely on the development of new wrestling shows beyond the Impact Wrestling show. I’m excited to see what the future holds and thank everyone for the support over not only the last nine months of this site but through my entire career.

Sincerely,

David Lagana
@Lagana


TNA hired Dave Lagana not to work on the existing Impac...

ROH sent out the following today… With his first World Title defense in an ROH ring under his belt a second looms on the horizon when Ring of Honor returns to Chicago Ridge, IL on Saturday night November 19th. But the question is: just who will challenge Davey Richards at the Frontier Fieldhouse? Today ROH officials provide the answer…

The man who will challenge "The American Wolf" will be a former ROH World Tag Team Champion, a former ROH World TV Champion, "The Generic Luchador"...

The Wrestling Revolution project started tapings yesterday at the Henson Studios in Los Angeles.

- There were 20 matches taped over the course of day.

- The studio was designed to look like a modern day version of "Wrestling At the Chase" with a chandelier hanging and the fans in attendance grouped at tables while watching matches.

- Former WWE star Shawn "Gavin" Spears was pulled from the tapings, due to VISA issues. Spears is from Canada.

- Prince Devitt did not work the tapings, on...

While it's been reported that Linda McMahon is attempting to distance herself from WWE, the Journal Inquirer in Connecticut says she still has a huge financial stake in the company.

The article says: "While McMahon quit that post (WWE CEO) and resigned from WWE's board of directors in 2009, she perhaps would be better described now as the co-owner of the publicly traded company. That's because her husband (Vince McMahon) controls 88 percent of the voting power of its common stock and...

Here is a report for the TNA Impact Wrestling World Tour show last night at the Complexe Sportif Claude-Robillard in Montreal, Quebec.

*The building seemed to be about 90% full and it is a much smaller venue than the one they ran in 2007. I would estimate about 800-900 fans, though it could be more.

*D’Lo Brown was the agent at the show and he was seen talking to wrestlers in an office near the entrance.

*Local wrestlers Jeremy Prophet and Dru Onyx were watching the show as was K...

Hulk Hogan is rumoured to have signed a new TNA contract last week.

The Hulk Hogan retirement speech on iMPACT! Wrestling was nearly word for word the speech he gave about his life and his career he did in Greensboro, NC when pitching supplements and doing the multi-layer marketing deal.

On Saturday at the Chicago International Film Festival, the documentary Sadermania will debut. Here is the description of the film… "Know that celebrity you were obsessed with as a kid? That you wrote ...

UFC fighter Brock Lesnar will be appearing in the new "WWE '12" video game as a mystery star, according to video game news reports. Lesnar, through UFC, has engaged in talks with WWE this year to create a partnership to capitalize on Lesnar's history with WWE. THQ, which produces WWE and UFC's video game lines, is expected to make an official announcement on Lesnar's inclusion in the WWE game this coming week.

The Morning Call newspaper in Pennsylvania covered Hulk Hogan's appearance in Allentown, Pa. on Saturday for a "Hulk Hogan and Friends" event that drew "a few hundred" people. The story noted Hogan was joined by "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan, Koko B. Ware, Brutus "the Barber" Beefcake, Greg "The Hammer" Valentine, and the Nasty Boys. The newspaper interviewed a handful of fans in attendance.

Good news for 16-time world champ “Nature Boy” Ric Flair.

Flair, 62, who was told two weeks ago that he would have to undergo surgery due to a torn triceps suffered during a match with Sting last month, may not have to have surgery after all.

“It’s postponed right now, but I may not even have to have it,” says Flair. “The doctor looked at it and said the thing was healing itself.”

Flair had already signed in at the hospital and had a brace fitted when the doctor checked on him. “...

Rey Mysterio began physical therapy on his knee yesterday after his most recent surgery. Mysterio is still hoping to be back in the ring in time for Wrestlemania.

The trial of Melody Sanford in the first degree murder of Canadian independent wrestler Ivan (John) Radocaj, who performed as "The Croatian Giant. Sanford is also charged with conspiracy to commit murder.

Radocaj was beaten to death in September 2007 at the age of 43. Sanford and Radocaj were married for three brief weeks. Radocaj's family has claimed that Sanford had threatened Ivan's life several weeks prior to the murder and believed she had coerced him into the brief marriage to ...

Jonathan "Jimmy Uso" Fatu was arrested at 3:14 a.m. today for driving under the influence. A police officer stated that Uso was observed traveling the wrong way on a street. The report stated that his blood alcohol level was .18, more than double the legal limit of .08.

ROH’s TV show will begin airing for free today at their official website.

The FCC has approved Sinclair Broadcasting’s purchase of two stations in Salt Lake City, three stations in West Palm Beach, FL, as well as stations in Austin, Texas, and Providence, RI. Once the transitional period ends, those markets will carry the new Ring of Honor series as well.

There is talk of returning to Philadelphia in early 2012. The promotion had purposely avoided the market in recent months afte...

CM Punk got a new tattoo on Tuesday at 'Family Tattoo' in Chicago.

"I did a tattoo of a dead fish on the back of his (left) shoulder" tattoo artist Matt Wes told the Chicago Tribune.

"It was a friendship tattoo he got with Natalie Slater of bakeanddestroy.net. There's a story behind the tattoo that means something to their friendship."

In an interview with WWE.com, Mason Ryan comments on his return to RAW after been sidelined since June due to injury.

"I've been training very hard, but being out through injuries is a tough thing for anyone because you obviously want to be in the ring competing," Ryan said. "Being out of action made me even more focused than I was before to come back and be a bigger, better, stronger, faster and all around better Mason Ryan."

Hulk Hogan is still trying to sell the mansion that Hogan Knows Best was filmed in.

The appraiser's officer says the market value is $5.4 million, but back in 2006 the house was put up for sale for $25 million. The price has been dropped a few times, down to $13.9 million and then to $10.9 million.

Today's asking price is $8.87 million.

Rey Mysterio had another knee surgery today to reinforce his PCL. Mysterio already had knee surgery in August, which was supposed to keep him out 6-9 months. Mysterio tweeted the following earlier this morning before the surgery:

"Getting ready 4 surgery # 2.....should b knocked out in about 30mn! Talk to all of you when I wake up!1 luv 619"

No one know how much longer Mysterio will be out of action since he had to have the extra surgery.

SyFy sent out the following today…

WWE'S Friday Night Smackdown WAS #1 IN CABLE ON SEPTEMBER 23

STAMFORD – September 28, 2011 – WWE Friday Night Smackdown was the # 1 show on Cable with 3.25 million total viewers on Friday, September 23. This was the highest rated Friday episode of Smackdown on Syfy among Adults 18-34 and #2 among Adults 18-49. The 2.1 household rating is up +17% versus last week garnering 1.35 million Adults 18-49 and 1.36 million Adults 25-54.

Other ratings hi...

Blood, sweat and fears

Wrestling legend Abdullah the Butcher may cut himself, but he didn’t give rival Devon Nicholson hepatitis C

His large bald head is covered with scars. The deep vertical grooves on top were self-inflicted—or at least, consensual, by the sure, drive-my-head-into-the-ring-post standards of his profession. Others testify to the passions Larry Shreve, a.k.a. Abdullah the Butcher, a.k.a. the Madman from the Sudan, a.k.a. Kuroi Jujutsushi (the Black Wizard), was ab...

UFC president Dana White recently confirmed that the winner of the upcoming Brock Lesnar vs. Alistair Overeem fight on December 30 at UFC 141 will indeed become the instant number one contender to the UFC heavyweight championship.

This means with a victory in December, Lesnar could find himself in a title match against either Cain Velasquez in a rematch of the fight where he lost the title, or against Junior Dos Santos, the man he coached opposite on The Ultimate Fighter and was forc...

Bobby Lashley is now accepting bookings for future wrestling events and appearances. If you're interested, you can email lashleybookings@yahoo.com with any information you have on the event and/or your promotion. Be sure to follow Bobby Lashley on Twitter @FightBobby and look out for his new website coming soon!

In addition to virtually every national and local news outlet covering former WWE CEO Linda McMahon's announced Senate run on Tuesday, there has been in-between coverage ranging from Comedy Central poking fun at a former "wrestling executive (this is an actual job)" running for Senate and McMahon grilled on tax reform. McMahon, asked whether the rich (such as herself) should be taxed more than middle class citizens, gave a non-answer on whether she believes her tax rate is fair, accord...

Ric Flair is scheduled to undergo surgery next week to repair a torn left triceps. Flair was originally told that he had a broken bursa sac in his left elbow, but the injury turned out to be more severe. "I thought it was getting better, but the swelling just wouldn't go away," Flair told Mike Mooneyham of PostAndCourier.com.

Flair noted that the injury became worse when he threw out the first pitch at the Boston Red Sox game. "When I threw Tuesday, the arm blew up to about twice the ...

Hardy was release on a written note to appear. His first court appearance is set for Sept. 29.

Hardy was charged with possession with intent to sell/deliver schedule III controlled substance (anabolic steroids), possession of schedule I controlled substance (Ecstas...

Former NWA President Announces Formation of New Wrestling Company

Fort Lauderdale, Fla. – Former National Wrestling Alliance President Howard T. Brody, former NWA World Tag Team Champion Larry Brannon (a.k.a. Vito DeNucci) and longtime pro wrestling supporter and Fortune 500 business executive Paul Jones, today announced the formation of a new wrestling company – Ring Warriors, LLC.

Based in South Florida, the plan for the new organization is to run shows across the Sunshine Stat...

WWE has taken out $200 million line of credit with JP Morgan Chase Bank. WWE said they would be doing this because interest rates are low right now and it would be used to help finance the new television network which is set to launch sometime in 2012. Vince McMahon stated earlier this year that the company would be willing to go into debt spending, which is something they have avoided doing in past years for any project.WWE is pushing hard for its new "Network" to debut by the end of...

Troubled wrestling star Matt Hardy is facing a tag team of legal troubles this week after being charged in Wake County with driving while impaired - his second arrest in less than a month.

Police at Raleigh-Durham International Airport stopped Hardy's car after receiving reports of a 2011 red Chevrolet Camaro swerving through traffic.

A caller said the car nearly hit two vehicles three times, according to a police report.

When officers pulled over the Camaro, they found 36-year-old Matthe...

Matt Hardy was arrested on Monday by airport police at the Raleigh-Durhan International Airport. Airport Authority Officer Smith-Wynter pulled Hardy over after a concern was made about the way he was driving his vehicle.

Hardy passed a breathalyzer test on the scene and had no alcohol in his system at the time of his arrest. He blew a 0.00. North Carolina State Trooper Hans Ellefson, who is a Drug Recognition Expert, was then called to the scene to further examine Hardy.

Trooper Ell...

Lanny Poffo, the brother of the Macho Man, is putting up his own money, challenging Greg Valentine to a shoot MMA fight after the way he handled Randy Savage's Memorial Service....


Great North Wrestling President Devon Nicholson had the following to say after WWE Hall of Famer Greg "The Hammer" Valentine no-showed last Saturday night's Macho Man Randy Savage Tribute Show in Hawkesbury, Ontario, Canada:

“It is one thing to no-show a pro wrestling event. It is another to demand all your ...

The New York Times has reported that Linda McMahon will again be running for US Senate next year, hoping to represent the state of Connecticut.

Angle, 42, of Corapolis, Pa., was headed east on Interstate 66 following a performance at the Shenandoah County Fair in Woodstock.

The wrestler's first test, conducted at the scene of the traffic stop near Linden, came back above the legal limit of 0.08. On a second test at the Front Royal police hea...

Legendary midget wrestler Little Tokyo (real name Shigeri Akabane) passed away earlier today at the age of 70. It is believed Akabane suffered a heart attack, although he had been battling tongue cancer for much of the last year.

Akebane was a regular member of the troupe of midgets who worked a number of territories in the United States in the 1970s and early to mid 1980s, where midget matches were used semi-regularly as comedy undercard attractions. Tokyo pretty much always worked ...

Regarding the events of September 4, 2011 in Warren County, Virginia, Mr. Angle gave the following statement:

"Recently, there has been a lot of attention related to the incident which occurred Saturday night in Virginia. I was returning from an iMPACT Wrestling show in an unfamiliar place, late at night and was trying to find the exit for my hotel.

I did not believe my driving behavior was reckless or otherwise improper. Apparently law enforcement may have believed otherwise and pull...

BELLMORE, N.Y. -- Mick Foley took the stage recently at The Brokerage Comedy Club wearing his trademark flannel shirt over several layers of self-deprecation.

Pro wrestling's "Hardcore Legend", who is also a best-selling author, is seeking a third career as a stand-up comic, and is willing to take an emotional pummeling that would put his bruises from Dominic DeNucci's wrestling school to shame.

On a recent night, Foley followed comedy stalwarts Mick Thomas, a former pro kickboxer, a...

TMZ is reporting today that sources close to Kurt Angle feel that he has been framed by Virginia police after being arrested for DWI yesterday. Angle stated that he passed a breathalyzer test, meaning he was not legally drunk, when he was arrested for driving erratically on Interstate 66 yesterday morning after a TNA house show. Angles lawyer stated, "We understand Kurt will be entering a plea of not guilty in response to any infractions and/or offenses."

TMZ.com is also reporting:

...

TMZ.com is reporting that TNA champion Kurt Angle was arrested early this morning and charged with DWI in Virginia. Virginia State Troopers responded to a call from another motorist who observed Angle's vehicle alleged swerving between lanes on I-66. Angle was traveling from that evening's TNA house show, where he had defeated AJ Styles.

Angle was arrested but later released from Warren County Jail after posting a $2,000 bond.

Angle has been arrested for similar charges several times ...

UFC president Dana White stated in a press conference on Friday that rumors that Brock Lesnar will have to retire from the sport are not true. White said Lesnar has been working on a farm in Canada all summer. "He is 100 percent," White said.

White added that Lesnar will resume training for his next fight within the next couple of weeks. The target date for Lensar's return remains early 2012. Lesnar has been sidelined since he underwent colon surgery related to diverticulitis back i...

A lawsuit WWE filed against J.F. Ramos, a company based out of Portugal that had acquired the license to produce WWE licensed clothing was dismissed by United States District Court of Connecticut on 8/30 as a result of an interesting defense by Ramos - that WWE couldn't prove it was responsible for the allegations brought against them until a lawsuit filed AGAINST WWE in France was resolved.

Here's the back story: WWE filed the lawsuit against Ramos in September 2010 as a result of a...

New Jack to Terri Runnels: I destroyed your nude photos, but now I'm going to sue you....

SANFORD – The legal fight between pro wrestling diva Terri Runnels and the ex-lover she's suing over sexually-explicit photos was ratcheted up a notch today when the man's lawyer told a judge to expect a counter-claim.

Retired wrestler New Jack, whose real name is Jerome Young, will counter-sue Runnels, alleging that she infected him with a sexually-transmitted disease, said his lawyer, Derek Bre...

Grantland.com, a sports and pop culture affiliated with ESPN.com, has published a major expose on Ric Flair comparing him to a real life version of The Wrestler......

Ric Flair has been physically attacked by at least three of his four wives.

In a 2005 divorce case with Elizabeth Harrell — wife no. 2 — Flair's lawyers detailed their accusations. "On more than one occasion," they wrote, "Plaintiff (Beth) has assaulted the Defendant (Flair), striking him about the head and body in an ef...

TMZ.com reports that Matt Hardy was rushed to an emergency room in North Carolina this morning after falling down in his home.

Sources close to the wrestling star tell TMZ that he hadn't been feeling well, however, it's unclear as to what caused him to fall down. The extent of his injuries are unknown, but he is expected to be released from the hospital tomorrow.

On Saturday, Hardy crashed his convertible into a pipe and tree driving between 55 and 70 MPH. He was subsequently arrested and...

Between The Ropes interview with Shane Helms
Interview available at BetweenTheRopes.com

Shane Helms has been through a lot over the past year and a half. He spoke with Brian Fritz of BetweenTheRopes.com about his recovery from his motorcycle accident and the legal issues he must now deal with, the pros and cons of social media, the Shane Helms app, what is going on with both Matt and Jeff Hardy, leaving the WWE, if and when he may return to the ring and more.

Here are some highlights of wha...

TNA has posted a statement on their website announcing Hardy has been let go.
"TNA today released Impact Wrestling star Matt Hardy from its roster. Hardy was already under suspension from the company."

TMZ.com is reporting that TNA star Matt Hardy was arrested by a North Carolina State Highway Patrol trooper after having run his car off the road, striking a tree.

Hardy, who was alone at the time, was not injured. The Trooper arrested Hardy after "observing signs of impairment". TMZ.com is ...

Kevin Nash is expected at Raw this Monday and will be a regular character going forward on WWE TV. Nash will be doing a program with CM Punk, including having matches against each other.
The backstage reaction to the Punk-Nash back and forth Monday was that Punk got the better of Nash and that Nash's comebacks came off too inside and antiquated in comparison. Nash did not receive a big reaction coming out on Raw and the feeling after the taping was that the company needed to do a stro...

It was reported last week that former ECW star Axl Rotten was seeking donations on Twitter because he would be evicted from his home if he didn't come up with $5,000. He caught wind of the report and says it is absolutely untrue.

Rotten released the following statement: "Yes, I am having financial issues right now (along with millions of other Americans) I DID NOT EVER post anything asking for fans to give me $5000. I have asked for support from "friends and fans" alike. I want this to...

Atlanta police are investigating the allegations that SmackDown! star Heath Slater assaulted a female security guard at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Atlanta during WrestleMania weekend.

Security officer Corinne Oliver claimed in her report that Slater thought she was pretty and then grabbed her in a chokehold while trying to get her back to his hotel room. She had fought to get loose and identified Slater later.

A source within the wrestling world claims that according to Slater, the alle...

WWE announced on Friday's episode of SmackDown that Sin Cara returns next week, which seems that he is returning before the full length of his 30-day suspension for a violating the Talent Wellness Program. Developmental wrestler Hunico will play Sin Cara at live events until the real Sin Cara's suspension is over, on August 17.

Kevin Nash Hosting Another Party; Live Q&A Session

Kevin Nash's "Party Tour " will be rolling into Cleveland, Ohio on Saturday, August 6th at the Harpo's Sports Cafe (Brook Park, OH). If you missed his huge bash in Atlanta during WrestleMania 27 weekend and you live in the Cleveland area, you won't want to miss this! In conjunction with Pro Wrestling Ohio's biggest event of the year, Wrestlelution IV, where Kevin will be in action, Harpo's presents a "Party w/ Kevin Nash!" on August 6th...

WWE.com announced Saturday that Kane will be sidelined for at least three months due to a fractured fibula. He sustained the injury while being attacked by Mark Henry, which occurred moments after Randy Orton defeated the multi-time champion in a Street Fight.

Brian Gewirtz is no longer the RAW head writer and Michael Hayes is no longer the SmackDown head writer as both have been moved a step above the head writer position.

Gewirtz's role now is to give ideas and set up the main direction for both shows, and transmit the ideas Vince McMahon and Stephanie McMahon have for what they want on the show. Hayes' new role is to be the guy who also gives ideas for both RAW and SmackDown, but he's also the guy who oversees the agents and tells them wh...

Sarita is still feeling the effects of facial paralysis as she donned a protective mask at this past weekend's World Wrestling Council Aniversario 2011 events in Ponce and Bayamón, Puerto Rico. The mask was specifically designed to protect her face as it entirely covered her mouth and left eye.

Sarita competed against Puerto Rican women's wrestler Black Rose at both events as a heel. She won Friday in Ponce but lost Sunday in Bayamón.

Jeff Hardy is charged with the following offenses:

Source: PwInsider, written by Matt Carter

JCW Above The Law iPPV Report 

I think this is a new venue for JCW.

The screen showed a JCW banner until about 7:15 and then switched to a live shot with the countdown music.

Lots of new banners and a new entrance.  It even sports a disco ball, is Disco Machine here?

As DJ Clay, Shaggy 2 Dope, and KG Kevin Gill are introduced...you can really tell that they spent som serious cash on this new entrance.  Man this looks really good.  These iPPVs just keep...

Kevin Nash Personalized Videos Go On Sale Tonight!

Kevin Nash is heading to Cleveland for Pro Wrestling Ohio's "Wrestlelution IV" event on Sunday, August 7th. He's also throwing another VIP party at Harpo's in Brook Park, OH on Saturday, August 6th from 6:00-10:00. There are only about 25 more VIP tickets available that guarantees you a chance to party with Nash, get an autograph and picture from him, participate in the live Q&A session, plus watch him wrestle on the Sunday event.

Visi...

Shawn Michaels discussed the new Outdoor Channel Show Shawn Michaels' MacMillan River Adventures during an interview with FoxNews.com. The WWE Hall of Famer justifies his endeavor by saying that he eats what he kills.

A representative for the animal rights group PETA said in response, "Jeffrey Dahmer ate everything he killed, too, but that didn't justify taking innocent lives."

Michaels, however, isn't concerned about any backlash pertaining to the show or his passion for hunting. He issu...

Joey Styles:

"Controversy abounds tonight so I'll take this opportunity to let the world know that I am finally returning to announcing on Thursday."

Joey Styles will be announcing WWE Superstars from this this week...

In accordance with its Talent Wellness Program, WWE has suspended Luis Ignascio Urive Alvirde (Sin Cara) for 30 days for his first violation of the company’s policy

Sin Cara (Urive Alvirde) has been suspended for 30 days for violating the company's Wellness Policy, he reportedly failed a steroid test back in early June. Sources close to WWE have confirmed that the test failure was discovered "some time back." WWE.com quietly removed the report about his suspension in favor of runnin...

Hulk Hogan Offers Training Tips Right from Your iPad, iPod or iPhone

The WWE legend talks about his career and how sports shaped his life.

Get In The Game is available exclusively on Itunes and is a FREE download. Aspiring athletes can unlock any coach from inside the APP for $9.99 which gets you close to 1 hour of exclusive coaching tips from your favorite sports star.

“Growing up I played Little League baseball and I also bowled, I was in the bantams,” says Hogan on his Get in...

Sin Cara had his first WWE loss on Friday night on SmackDown! when he was deafeated by Christian with a spear. Sin Cara had thirteen consecutive wins on TV and PPV before the loss.

Zack Ryder was announced as the WWE Internet Champion at today's RAW live event in Melbourne, Australia and had a replica belt with him that he successfully defended against Primo.

Authorities have determined that "Macho Man" Randy Savage died of cardiovascular disease, reports TMZ.com and St. Petersburg Times.

Savage, whose real name is Randy Mario Poffo, suffered a serious "cardiac event" moments before crashing his vehicle into a tree in Seminole, Florida on May 20. Savage was taken to Largo Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

An autopsy by the Pinellas-Pasco Medical Examiner's Office revealed Savage had an enlarged heart with severe atherosclerosis of...

All Wheels Wrestling will be taped today at the Impact Zone in Orlando, FL. They are taping a pilot in the hopes that the series will be picked up by the Speed Network for 2012. The show will feature a team concept with the men competing as teams to win the All Wheels Wrestling Cup; here are the teams and their captains…

* Team Defiance: Dubai (Former WWE, TNA and ROH star Shawn Daivari)
* Team 720: Schwagg Dutt (Former TNA and CZW star Sonjay Dutt)
* Team Dyno: "The Human Cyclone" Awesom...

Mason Ryan suffered an injury outside the ring and is expected to be out anywhere from six weeks to six months.....

Congratulations to the "Queen Of Extreme" Francine and her husband Joe, who have announced that they are expecting their second child.

WWE paid Roddy Piper $5,000 for his appearance on the June 13th RAW. He was involved in a "Piper's Pit" segment with The Miz and Alex Riley.

ROH sent out the following today…

ROH officials are excited to announce that the ROH World Tag Team Champions Charlie Haas & Shelton Benjamin, collectively known as Wrestling's Greatest Tag Team, have signed their names on the dotted line and are officially under contract to Ring of Honor Wrestling!

Haas & Benjamin debuted for ROH at "Glory by Honor IX" when the unsuccessfully battled then-Tag Team Champions The Kings of Wrestling in a non-title bout. It would be several months before ...

Jeff Hardy was back in court today in Moore County, North Carolina. Jeff arrived earlier this morning with his lawyer. The hearing was scheduled to begin at 2:00 p.m. ET. The judge met with Hardy's attorney and the assistant district attorney for Stanley County in North Carolina.

Hardy's attorney (James Van Camp) then waved Hardy out of the room while the judge told him he had one-hour to return to court for his hearing. There has been another continuance until later in the week....

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson has signed on for Fast and Furious 6, which is scheduled to be released in theaters on May 24th, 2013.

Ric Flair has paid up the $35,000 he owed Highspots.com. The site posted the following to their Facebook page:

"Letting our own social media get the scoop, we have FINALLY been paid by Ric Flair for the debt dating back years ago. No jail time for Naitch. Whichever Angel pitched in the $ for him THANK YOU."

Gene Snitsky was backstage at Tuesday's WWE SmackDown taping.... There are rumours that he may well be back with the company....

Yesterday was the was the 4th anniversary of the WWE Vengeance PPV in Houston, where Chris Benoit didn't show up and today is the anniversary of the his tribute Raw....

Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart have both tweeted on their upcoming DVD project:

Shawn Michaels:

"Its not a Montreal Screwjob DVD. Since we're in it can we deci...

WrestleReunion have issued the following statement, offering Hulk Hogan and Ultimate Warrior $100,000 to do a face-off interview:

"I expect 2012 to be a very exciting year for WrestleReunion and its fans. We are back to running 3 events a year and have some fabulous plans for 2012. As always we keep our eyes and ears open to what is going on in the industry. So WrestleReunion in conjunction with its lead vendor Highspots.com want to make a standing offer for any of our 2012 convention...