After sending out several surveys over the past few months, WWE has changed the name of a few upcoming pay-per-view events.

* The October 4th No Mercy pay-per-view is now called Hell in a Cell. This show is expected to have the top matches take place in a Hell in a Cell. At one point there was a plan to have Randy Orton vs. Triple H at SummerSlam in a Hell in a Cell match but that plan might be changed now.

* The Cyber Sunday pay-per-view on October 25th has been changed to WWE Annihilation. Presumably this will be the event with the top matches on the card having submission stipulations.

Labels: 20009 WWE Annihilation, 2009 Hell in a Cell

Posted by Matt Loede at 4:37 PM | Permalink | Comments

WWE Hall of Famer Billy Graham was hospitalized on Friday night after his legs went numb. He went in and x-rays showed 2 of the discs in his lower back fused on their own with the obliteration of a disc separating them. Graham underwent traction and is back at home but will miss an independent event in Massachusetts today he was scheduled to appear at.

The event he was going to appear at is a benefit show from the Millenium Wrestling Federation for “Mermaid Girl” so she can get into a summer camp. Stars like Awesome Kong, ODB, Spike Dudley, John Cena Sr., The Kat and others will be appearing. There will also be some taped stuff from JBL. The promoters are trying to get Graham to do a Q&A session with the fans by phone. The promotion is offering all ticket purchasers a free autographed photo by Graham, two new wrestling books and a free Graham action figure in an attempt to make good. For fans who pre-purchased the autographs and photos with Graham, refunds will be sent via PayPal this week.

Labels: superstar billy graham

Posted by Matt Loede at 4:37 PM | Permalink | Comments

Lilian Garcia made the following announcement on her official website this morning:

Hi Everyone,

I hope all of you are doing well! I am writing to address the situation in which WWE is looking for a Female Ring Announcer/Singer. The truth of the matter is that they are looking for someone new because I have given them my notice that I will be leaving at the end of my contract this year. It is with a heavy heart that I have made this decision because WWE has been my family from day one and you, the WWE Universe have always been incredible to me. The fact is that I am getting married later this year and have decided to enter into a new phase of my life but I will truly miss all of you and the WWE tremendously.

Love you all & keep rockin!

Forever Rockin’,
Lilian

Labels: lilian garcia

Posted by Matt Loede at 4:36 PM | Permalink | Comments

Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

- Even though the issues between Rey Mysterio and WWE may or may not have been worked out yet, he is not leaving WWE although at one point he was on the verge of doing so. The whole Mysterio situation was a big deal within WWE a week ago with the fear that he would leave but it’s all considered settled now. Mysterio has brought up to WWE the idea that he thinks he can make more money in Mexico. Rey has been making somewhere in the $1.5 million range with WWE over the past few years and might not be able to pull that in Mexico. Supposedly the AAA promotion in Mexico had offered him a $1 million signing bonus and in excess of $1 million per year back when he was on the open market.

Mysterio is likely in the group of WWE talents who are probably down 15% on their pay because the revenue streams used to pay those talents are down 15% although the decline in WrestleMania revenue from last year is significantly less than the overall business, about 8%, and WrestleMania pay is a big part of the talents annual income.

Right now Mysterio is happy about where things are going with him in the future and happy with the Chris Jericho angle. He also was pleased with how everything went down this past week in the storylines. One thing that might come up in the future is the fact that Rey wants to take advantage of his huge popularity in Mexico. Rey wants to monetize his popularity there. doing mainstream media appearances and getting product endorsements like a Tiger Woods or Michael Jordan would in this country. These are avenues that wouldn’t be available to wrestlers here in the United States but those in Mexico say Mysterio could get them there.

Labels: rey mysterio

Posted by Matt Loede at 11:01 PM | Permalink | Comments

- Here’s the updated card for WWE’s The Bash pay-per-view coming out of tonight’s RAW:

Best of 3 Falls Match for the WWE Title
Randy Orton vs. Triple H
The first fall will be a regular singles match, the second fall will be a Falls Count Anywhere match and if necessary, the third fall will be a Stretcher match.

World Heavyweight Title Match
CM Punk vs. Jeff Hardy

ECW Championship Scramble Match
Tommy Dreamer vs. Finlay vs. Christian vs. Jack Swagger vs. Mark Henry

Mask vs. Title Match
Rey Mysterio vs. Chris Jericho

WWE Unified Tag Team Title Match
The Colons vs. Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes

WWE Women’s Title Match
Melina vs. Michelle McCool

John Cena vs. The Miz

Labels: 2009 bash, john cena, rey mysterio

Posted by Matt Loede at 9:15 PM | Permalink | Comments

WWE wrestler John Morrison recently spoke to ESPN.com to promote the SmackDown vs. RAW 2010 videogame. Here are some highlights:

Inspirations for his moves: “I watch other wrestlers, I watch movies with Jackie Chan and Jet Li and Tony Jaa, then there’s breakdancing and Capoeira. Just anything I see that looks awesome that I think I could adapt in the ring. Just your typical Kung Fu, breakdancing, Capoeira moves.”

On being drafted to SmackDown: “I think Smackdown is the cooler show in a lot of ways. Like you said, it’s the more athletic show, it’s faster paced. And then when you look at Raw, they have a lot of the established guys. They have Batista, John Cena, Triple H, The Big Show, HBK when he comes back. Look at the Smackdown side. We have all of the up-and-comers, but we also have (Chris) Jericho and Edge who are established, but they haven’t been around as long as guys like Triple H and the stuff that they have to say is generally fresher. There are more opportunities for match-ups people haven’t seen yet on Smackdown.”

His favorite wrestlers: “HBK (Shawn Michaels), loved him. Rick Rude, Ricky Steamboat, Hulk Hogan, Macho Man… all those guys. I can go on and on.”

Labels: john cena, john morrison, triple h

Posted by Matt Loede at 9:14 PM | Permalink | Comments

Undertaker is said to be working out very hard in preparation for his return. WWE hopes to have him back in time for a meaningful match at SummerSlam. Undertaker’s surgery was a success, but he is still a little banged up. He is pushing hard to get back and is said to be very dedicated to performing at a high level for WWE.

He feels that the company needs him and he wants to get back and help WWE, and more specifically, help the SmackDown brand. Undertaker has his mind set on returning sooner than later, despite sources within WWE feeling that at this point in his career he should be more cautious and make sure he is completely healthy before returning.

Labels: undertaker

Posted by Matt Loede at 9:13 PM | Permalink | Comments

Labels: brooke hogan

Posted by Matt Loede at 7:54 PM | Permalink | Comments

WWE stock dropped as much as 6.7 percent on Tuesday and at least one stock exchange analyst is blaming the drop on the new storyline with Donald Trump.

Dow Jones News Plus’ Maxwell Murphy says: “For starters, public companies don’t announce mergers and acquisitions involving one of their most lucrative brands as part of staged, circus-like events. And if, heaven forbid, they do, they certainly must file with alacrity an 8-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission to announce and explain the pact, which WWE hasn’t done.”

Murphy also noted that he contacted the USA Network after they sent out the press release for the angle. Murphy wrote, “A USA spokesman referred questions to WWE about whether the release could mislead WWE investors who don’t get the joke, or run afoul of Securities and Exchange Commission disclosure rules. An SEC spokesman wasn’t familiar with the situation, but doubted the agency would have a comment one way or the other about the propriety of such a press release.”

A WWE spokesperson noted in the article that the storyline Trump sale “will make for great television,” but wouldn’t directly admit that the sale was indeed a storyline.

Labels: donald trump

Posted by Matt Loede at 7:50 PM | Permalink | Comments

Labels: donald trump, vince mcmahon

Posted by Matt Loede at 7:48 PM | Permalink | Comments

This isn’t confirmed but there was a rumor going around at Extreme Rules and RAW that new ECW Champion Tommy Dreamer has signed a new three to five year deal with WWE. It’s been believed by some that Dreamer would be offered some kind of agent deal by WWE in the future.

Labels: tommy dreamer

Posted by Matt Loede at 7:56 PM | Permalink | Comments

In a shocker - Umaga was released Monday from his WWE contract. PWInsider.com reports that WWE sources say it was “a situation where he just had to be let go.” What that quote means is anyone’s guess because the sources didn‘t specify, but there have apparently been behavior-related issues with Umaga in the past.

Umaga is telling people he left under his own free will, and while that could be true, it seems unlikely as he just made his return and worked hard to come back.

There have been a lot of people in the company worried about losing their jobs as of late. Vince is said to be even more hyper or “insane” than usual and it’s a very tough time to be a member of the WWE staff. Vince is said to be more short-tempered than usual and is changing his mind on issues very frequently and frantically. Vince is usually much nicer to the wrestlers than the staff, possibly due to the fact most of them are physically bigger than him. Some sources feel that when Vince is mad at a wrestler for doing something, he doesn’t chew out the wrestler but rather takes it out on a staff member like an assistant or a TV announcer. Vince is famous for taking out his anger on Michael Cole and former WWE announcer Mick Foley, both of whom are described as very nice guys by their co-workers. This treatment is what apparently lead to Foley leaving WWE for TNA and becoming one of TNA’s top draws. Mick Foley, alongside Sting, helped set new TNA iMPACT viewership records leading into the company’s Lockdown 2009 PPV.

PWInsider.com reports that people in the company feel RAW is “boring” is right now, but since Vince is directing creative, nobody says anything. The feeling is that even if you suggest something minor that is logical and would improve the show, you could get chewed out by the boss for it.

On a side note, WWE management is back on a kick to prevent leaks to the internet. Finding moles within the company staff and creative team is back to a top priority.

Labels: umaga

Posted by Matt Loede at 7:54 PM | Permalink | Comments

WWE's website has just confirmed that WWE Champion Batista is injured and will be out of action for four months, putting his return sometime around October. WWE says that the injury is indeed a completely torn left bicep. No word yet on what will come of the WWE Championship. Stay tuned for more details.

Batista has been diagnosed with a torn tendon in the biceps. The good news is that it's not believed to be a full fledged muscle tear, which means less time out of the ring for him. The injury is believed to have occurred about three weeks ago, but that's not confirmed. Batista is still scheduled to undergo surgery tomorrow. Many are under the impression that the injury was caused just by wear and tear.

There is no word yet on how long he is expected to be out of action, but those within WWE are hopeful that it will be a minimal amount of time while yesterday they were expecting the worst. It appears Batista is still the WWE Champion after tonight's RAW. He didn't show for his match with Randy Orton, but the referee stopped the 10 count right before Triple H made his return to destroy Orton. We may get a better understanding of the whole Batista situation tomorrow after surgery.

Labels: batista, randy orton, triple h

Posted by Matt Loede at 7:53 PM | Permalink | Comments

From WWE.com:

World Wrestling Entertainment has come to terms on the release of Smackdown Superstar Umaga as of today, June 8, 2009. WWE wishes Umaga the best in all future endeavors.

Labels: umaga, WWE, wwe smackdown

Posted by Tymo55 at 5:29 PM | Permalink | Comments

Candice Michelle wrote on her Twitter account that she expects to return to the ring this month. With that being said, it's interesting to note that there is a ton of heat on her right now similar to which just caused Vince to fire Mr. Kennedy; the perception that she is always injured and a lousy worker.

One source told The Sun: "She doesn't exactly help her cause when she's running around in LA hanging out at bars and going to Dodger games... What happened to rehab and getting back in shape? There are guys on our roster with far worse injuries sucking it up and still coming to work."

On the flipside, one of her biggest supporters in WWE is said to be Stephanie McMahon.

Labels: candice michelle

Posted by Matt Loede at 1:50 PM | Permalink | Comments

In an interview with B95 FM in central California, Jeff Hardy spoke on his current WWE contract status, saying “There’s nothing concrete. There’s rumors out there about me not re-signing, but we haven’t decided that yet. They’re real cool with giving me time. There’s a very good chance (I’ll still be on TV in six months), but we’ll see.”

He also spoke on 2008 being a tough year for him when he lost his house and dog while serving a wellness policy violation suspension. “I was tested like crazy,” Jeff said. “Really hard time for me to get through those 60 days. Had to pee in a cup to prove myself to them (WWE) again.” He denied reports that he was doing an MTV series.

Hardy closed out the interview by saying he’s going to try to be creative to come up with new moves with Edge in the ladder match at the Extreme Rules PPV on Sunday.

Labels: jeff hardy

Posted by Matt Loede at 1:43 PM | Permalink | Comments

Chris Masters is telling promoters that he has not cancelled all of his future bookings and will still work those shows, indicating that the recently re-signed WWE star won’t be returning to TV in the immediate future.

Labels: Chris masters

Posted by Matt Loede at 1:42 PM | Permalink | Comments

One source close to Mr. Kennedy notes that he is looking forward to going to TNA in September, once his 90 day non-compete clause with WWE ends. The same person notes that Kennedy has a lot of confidence and believes he can really be a top guy, but felt like Vince McMahon didn't see him at that level.

Kennedy's goal is to become a top guy in TNA. He thinks TNA will allow him to be the character he thinks he can be without always trying to get him to change. It is believed that TNA has an interest in him. TNA would likely be interested in signing Kennedy to a three-year deal.

Labels: mr. kennedy

Posted by Matt Loede at 1:41 PM | Permalink | Comments