SEScoops

Author: Anutosh Bajpai

  • The Rock On Why He Retired From Wrestling In 2004

    The Rock was at the height of his wrestling career when he decided to leave the business behind and pursue a full time acting career in 2004.

    The former World Champion recently held a Q&A from his Instagram account where he answered questions related to his WWE career among other things.

    When a fan asked the Great One why he decided to retire from wrestling at the age of 32, The Rock said that there were two reasons why he made the call:

    \”I retired in from the WWE in 2004 at the age of 32, and at that time, well here\’s the why. Why I retired was two reasons. 1) My contract had expired and 2) Which is the most important thing, an agreement that I have with anybody in the world.

    Any company, any individual, it\’s always important to me, to shake that person\’s hand and look them in the eye. In 2004 when my contract expired, I had delivered on my agreement with the WWE\” said The Rock.\” And with my long-time mentor and very, very good friend Vince McMahon. We shook hands, that\’s the way we are.\”

    The People\’s Champion started his career when he was 25 and ended his run 7 years later, at the age of 32. The former WWE star said that 7 is a very important number to him and he claimed that he wanted to retire when he was at the top.

    Apart from this, The Rock also talked about his WWE return in 2011 and what it meant to wrestle John Cena at WrestleMania XXVIII in his hometown of Miami.

  • D-Von Dudley Announces Retirement From Active Competition

    After his three-decades-long illustrated career in the wrestling business, Attitude Era star D-Von Dudley has finally decided to hang his boots and he has announced his retirement from active competition. The former champion made the announcement on the latest episode of his Table Talk podcast.

    He first noted that he was a little frustrated on not being able to wrestle for one more year as he wanted. However, Dudley continued by saying that he is extremely happy being a producer now and while he may do occasional appearances; he is done with wrestling:

    \”Even though I was a little frustrated about not continuing to wrestle for that one more year that I wanted, I’m extremely happy now being a producer and not wrestling. I have officially hung it up, I’m done. Except for different appearances that they may want me to do on the show, but no more wrestling.

    No more fighting for the titles. None of that anymore. I’m done. I’m officially done.\” said D-Von Dudley. \”I’ve had my fifteen minutes of fame and it was a good ride. It really was. The old-timers used to tell me don’t blink, because when you do it’s over. It goes that fast. And it did feel like it went really, really fast.\”

    The wrestling veteran started training in 1991 and made his debut in 1992. He first made his name when he joined the original ECW in 1996 where he also met his partner Bubba Ray Dudley. Both the stars left the company in 1999 to join WWE. Their battles with the Hardy Boys and Edge and Christian during the time are now part of the history.

    D-Von Dudley had a lengthy stint with TNA from 2005 to 2014 as well and he won multiple titles during his time in the company. He returned to WWE in 2015 and the former Champion has been working as a producer for the company since 2016.

  • Lio Rush On His Relationship With Triple H In WWE

    During his WWE stint, Lio Rush made more headlines with reports of his relationship and disagreements with the WWE management than he did with his performance in the ring.

    The recently released star spoke to SportsKeeda on the matter and he talked about things like his firing from the company, his interactions with Vince McMahon and more.

    Discussing his relationship with the godfather of NXT Triple H, Rush claimed that he doesn\’t really know if he ended things on good terms with the Game:

    \”Triple H… I don\’t know if it ended on good terms or not because I feel like me and Hunter, we clashed heads a lot. We were always in disagreement as far as what the plan was for me and how he saw me as a character or how he saw me as an asset to the brand.\”

    Lio Rush continued by explaining that he felt like they were always disagreeing on the things and it was bad because he looked up to the King Of Kings when he was a kid:

    \”I feel like we were just always disagreeing all the time and it sucked because obviously I looked up to Triple H when I was a kid [but] at the same time, I\’m an employee of his and he is my boss.

    So it was hard for me to separate the two and it was kind of disappointing every time I had a conversation with him – but the lack of communication leading up to the initial release was with Hunter.\”

    Lio Rush has been outspoken about his time in WWE since he was released from the company in April alongside other stars such as Kurt Angle and Rusev.

    He had revealed how he found out about his firing and during a new interview, he explained the reasoning behind the company\’s decision to abruptly end his pairing with Bobby Lashley. You can check out his comments on the matter at this link.

  • Reason Why Robert Roode Hasn\’t Appeared On WWE Programming Recently

    Some WWE superstars have decided not to work the shows due to health concerns over coronavirus, but there are others who are not able to appear due to the various restrictions, like Robert Roode.

    Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer provided some update on the absence of the former NXT Champion and revealed the reason why he hasn\’t been featured on WWE programming recently.

    Per Meltzer, both Roode and the Singh Brothers live in Canada and they haven\’t been used by the company for their shows in recent weeks because they are not able to get into the United States due to the current travel bans.

    It\’s worth mentioning here that Brock Lesnar lives in Canada as well but he was able to make an appearance for the WrestleMania 36 event from the Performance Center.

    Regarding Lesnar\’s appearance at the event, it was noted that WWE was able to \’pull strings\’ to make it work so he can compete against Drew McIntyre at the Show Of Shows.

    For those who don\’t know, both Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn have pulled out of the tapings due to coronavirus concerns and latest reports reveal that the WWE management is not very happy with Zayn\’s decision.

  • Earl Hebner Believes The Montreal Screwjob Was A Work

    The Montreal Screwjob is one of the most infamous incidents in the history of wrestling and now Earl Hebner, who was the referee for the match is making some interesting claims about the whole thing.

    The former WWE employee recently appeared on the VOC Nation podcast where he talked about the incident in detail among other things.

    At first, he said that at the time he didn\’t think that the screwjob was a work. However, the current AEW official then claimed that after thinking things over, he now believes that both Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels knew what was going to happen beforehand:

    \”At that time, I really didn\’t think it was a work; today, I think it was, somebody had to be the gopher, somebody had to ring the bell, and to make it look official, it was me.

    It\’s bothered me for a long time. Now that I\’ve been with Bret, talked to Bret, been on some indie shows with him, we\’re great friends now, believe me.\” said Earl Hebner. \”I\’m pretty sure that both of them knew it was a work … the only one that didn\’t know at the time was me … I know I (got screwed), but I don\’t know if they did.\”

    The former WWE referee then claimed that there is a lot behind the story and he is going to put it all into the book he is working on right now.

    What do you think about the claims made by Earl Hebner about The Montreal Screwjob? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.

  • Original Winner For Women\’s Money In The Bank, Plans For Becky Lynch Revealed

    Becky Lynch made the surprising announcement of her pregnancy on this week\’s episode of Monday Night Raw and it appears that WWE had to make significant changes to their plans due to this revelation.

    According to reports from Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the former Raw Women\’s Champion was originally expected to compete at the Money In The Bank PPV and defend her title against Nia Jax.

    This match was obviously nixed after the company learned about Becky\’s pregnancy though this is not the only major change they had to make to the PPV.

    According to reports, the original plans for the women\’s Money In The Bank match were different as well and it was the former NXT Women\’s Champion Shayna Baszler who was initially planned to win the ladder match.

    Since the Money In The Bank matches were taped in mid-April, it means that the company was aware of the situation by then and they adjusted the plans accordingly.

    The changed plans saw Asuka winning the Money In The Bank match and the Japenese star was then awarded the Raw Women\’s Championship after Becky Lynch relinquished the title.

    There are no words yet on what the company is planning for Shayna Baszler now but it wouldn\’t be a surprise if she goes after Asuka for the title in the future.

  • Rey Mysterio WWE Contract Update

    There have been speculations about the WWE status and future of Rey Mysterio after the injury angle the company pulled off on this week\’s episode of Monday Night Raw.

    Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer who has previously revealed that Rey\’s WWE contract is nearing its end has provided some more update on the situation. According to Meltzer, the Mexican wrestling legend had yet to sign a new deal with the promotion as of last week.

    Rey Mysterio signed his current contract for a \’very high\’ amount of money and it\’s uncertain if he will be able to get a similar deal under the current economic circumstances.

    Regarding the injury angle from this week\’s Raw, it was noted that it was a deliberate decision from the company to write Mysterio off the television in case he doesn\’t return.

    Rey Mysterio signed an 18 months contract with WWE back in December 2018 and while the exact date for it is not known, his deal is nearing its end.

    WWE is likely to offer him a large contract to keep him away from the competition but the financial burdens are still there and it would be interesting to see if the two parties are able to come to an agreement.

  • Sami Zayn Not Working Causing \’A Lot Of Unhappiness\’ In WWE

    Sami Zayn made the call to pull out of the WWE tapings due to concerns of coronavirus and it appears that his decision did not sit well with the company officials.

    According to reports from Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, there is a \’lot of unhappiness\’ within the company that the former champion used the option they gave people who don\’t want to wrestle in the current situation.

    Meltzer added that he knows of \”several people in the company who are not comfortable at all about working right now but were not about to take WWE up on the offer for job security reasons, and this was before all the firings.\”

    Sami Zayn won the Intercontinental Championship at Elimination Chamber in March and he successfully defended the title against Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania 36.

    However, the former NXT Champion has not appeared on WWE TV since the mega event. He was booked for the April 23 episode of SmackDown but the high flying star made the decision to pull out of the tapings over health concerns.

    A decision was then made to strip Zayn of the IC title and the company has announced a tournament for the crowing of a new champion starting from SmackDown this week.

    The company has previously stated that the employees who choose to stay home will not face any consequences but before Zayn, Roman Reigns pulled out of WrestleMania 36.

    Since then, the company has not only ceased the mention of the former world champion on their programming but they also edited him out of the replays for WrestleMania 31.

    Now the treatment of Sami Zayn only complicates the matter further and we will have to see how both these stars are treated when they make their return to WWE TV.

  • Lio Rush On Why WWE Ended His Pairing With Bobby Lashley

    Lio Rush was paired with Bobby Lashley upon his arrival on the main roster and this pairing was beginning to create buzz but the company decided to end the partnership abruptly.

    During a recent interview with Inside The Ropes the now-former WWE star talked about things like his relationship with Paul Heyman, reports about his backstage heat and more.

    Explaining the reasoning behind WWE\’s decision to end his team with Lashley, Rush said that the biggest reason for it were his issues with WWE management over his pay:

    \”As far as the split with me and Bobby, I know that there was some miscommunication and frustration and just me butting heads with the powers that be financially, that was my biggest thing at the time.

    It\’s not just me out here. I\’ve got a wife, I\’ve got two kids, I have other responsibilities that I have to take care of. I just felt that it was unfair in that sense, and I guess they didn\’t like a 25 year old or a 24 year old, however old I was at the time, they didn\’t like me being so outspoken about that so they just cut it.\”

    Rush also explained that he had to tour with the then Intercontinental Champion Bobby Lashley everywhere he went and the expenses were not sustainable because he was still being paid the same amount when he was in NXT.

    Lio Rush was among the dozens of stars which were released by WWE and during a recent interview, he revealed some surprising details about how he learned about his firing. You can check out his comments on the matter at this link.

  • Adam Cole On Possibility Of Otis Cashing The Money In The Bank Contract On Him

    Charlotte Flair set the precedent for main roster stars to come to NXT when she decided to pick Rhea Ripley as her opponent after winning the Royal Rumble match.

    So after Money In The Bank, fans have been wondering if the winner can cash in the contract on the NXT Champion instead of someone from the main roster.

    The NXT Champion Adam Cole talked about the possibility on the latest episode of WWE\’s The Bump and the leader of the Undisputed Era said that anything can happen in WWE:

    \”I have thought about it, anything can happen in WWE. Whether you\’re from Raw, SmackDown or NXT, I think people look at me as one of the most dominant champions in modern history. I mean look at the records I\’ve broken and the records I\’ve beaten.

    \”I very much so could see Otis deciding on challenging me for the NXT Championship.\” said Adam Cole. \”I think it would be a giant mistake of his. I think he would instantly regret that decision. But, I\’m always ready to go. I\’m ready for anything, man.\”

    Former Universal Champion Finn Balor held the record for being the longest-reigning NXT Champion in the history of the brand for a long time and his streak was broken by the Undisputed Era member not too long ago.

    During the interview, Adam Cole also discussed the possibility of Balor challenging him for the title once again after their match in last December. You can check out his comments on the matter at this link.

  • The Undertaker Reveals His Reaction To Learning About The Ending Of The Streak

    The ending of Undertaker\’s WrestleMania streak at the hands of Brock Lesnar still remains one of the most controversial decisions made by WWE. Six years later, the fan opinion is still torn on whether it was the right call or not.

    The Dead Man recently had an interview with Ariel Helwani\’s MMA Show where he talked about a number of things and also opened up about his loss to the Beast.

    During the discussion, the former World Champion revealed his reaction to learning about the decision. Taker claimed that most of his peers thought that it was a horrible decision and revealed what he said to Vince McMahon about it:

    \”It was always in the back of my mind that it would end.\” said the Undertaker \”Although, most of my peers and people that I work with thought it was a horrible decision, and I just asked Vince, \’are you sure? Is this what you want?\’ He was like, \’if it\’s not Brock, who can beat you?\’ Alright, well, it\’s your call.\”

    The former World Champion also said that he knew that the Streak would end someday because that\’s the way the wrestling business works and in this business, you don\’t walk away undefeated like Floyd Mayweather or Rocky Marciano.

    The Undertaker On Why He Didn\’t Say No To The Loss

    The Undertaker also addressed the notion that he should have rejected the decision saying that he is not the kind of man and for him, the business comes before anything:

    \”Everybody thinks I have all this juice like I can say yes or say no, I could have said no, but what good was that gonna do? That really would have disappointed people. What do I do? I go out and throw a tissy and go, \’if I\’m not going over, then I\’m not going in.\’ That\’s not me. I\’m business, and business comes first before anything personal.

    Taker continued by saying that he double-checked with The Boss to make sure that this was 100% what he wanted and after confirming the plan, he went with it.

    Undertaker had talked some more about the match in the WWE documentary series The Last Ride and revealed that he had lost his confidence after the bout. You can check out his comments on the matter at this link.

  • Rusev Apparently Done Being The Bulgarian Brute

    Rusev was among the names which were released from WWE as part of their budget cuts and he now has the opportunity to do the things he couldn\’t while being in the company.

    The former US Champion has launched a twitch channel and he did a short Q&A from his official twitter account yesterday to promote the new venture.

    One fan thanked Rusev for all the great matches and memories he produced during his time in the company and replying to him, the heavyweight star said that he is not dead and he is just getting started instead.

    When someone asked if his wife Lana will be making an appearance on his Twitch channel anytime soon, the former WWE star responded by saying that you will have to ask Vince McMahon about it.

    Interestingly, a fan called him The Bulgarian Brute and replying to him, Rusev noted that it\’s a phrase owned by WWE which he cannot and will not use:

    Rusev is considered to be one of the hottest free agents after his release from WWE and people like Jim Ross have previously said that signing him would be their top priority.

    Though there is no word yet on what the former champion himself is planning for his future and we should get a better idea of his plans on July 15, when his non compete clause with the company expires.

  • Ric Flair Has Reportedly Signed New WWE Contract

    The reports of Ric Flair\’s WWE contract nearing its end came out late last year but there had been no updates on the matter since then, leaving the fans wondering about his future with the company.

    Now a new reports have confirmed his status with the company and it reveals what\’s in the future of the Nature Boy after his previous contract expired.

    According to reports from WrestlingInc, Flair has signed a new deal with the company and the wrestling legend is currently under contract with the promotion.

    The site does not reveal any further details on his new deal so it\’s hard to say how long the 16-time world champion will be staying with WWE.

    Though the officials have been signing talents to longer deals recently and for someone like Ric Flair, it\’s plausible that they have offered him a lengthy contract to try and keep him away from the competition.

    The former Champion was last seen on WWE TV last month during the 25th-anniversary celebration of Triple H\’s in-ring debut in the company. He sent the Game a special video message congratulating him on the occasion.

    Ric has also been busy with his personal projects and he recently launched the line of \”Nature Boy\” face masks which are available at his online store.

  • Another WWE Release Confirmed, Vince McMahon Congratulates Becky Lynch

    NXT star Rachael Ellering aka Rachel Evers has confirmed that she was released from the company as part of their coronavirus budget cuts that happened last month. Ellering had been rumored to have been released but there was no confirmation of it till now.

    The now-former WWE star finally confirmed the news on social media and she posted the following video from her Twitter account, claiming that she will be making a \”comeback\”:

    https://twitter.com/RachaelEversWWE/status/1260707246239027201?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

    The 27-year-old star was signed by the company to a development contract in January 2019. The released NXT talents have a 30 days non compete clause which will be expiring later this week.

    Vince McMahon Congratulates Becky Lynch On Pregnancy

    Becky Lynch made the surprising announcement of her pregnancy on this week\’s episode of Raw and The Man then went on to relinquish the Raw Women\’s Championship she had held for over a year.

    Many WWE stars and other personalities have since taken on their social media to congratulate the former champion and now Vince McMahon has joined the list.

    The boss took his twitter earlier yesterday and noted how Becky is a world-class athlete. He claimed that she will become a world-class mom as well and the WWE chairman then proceeded to congratulate Lynch on behalf of the entire WWE family:

  • Sid Vicious Says Bret Hart Was Overrated

    Wrestling veteran Sid Vicious had a couple of stints with WWE in the 90s and he got to work with both Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart during his time in the company.

    The former WWE star discussed his experience of working with both the stars in a new interview with WrestlingInc where he claimed that Shawn Michaels\’ reputation of being hard to work with was unwarranted.

    During the interview, Vicious also recalled his triple threat matches with both the wrestling legends and he made the bold claim that the Canadian star was actually a little overrated:

    \”Some of the first three-way matches that ever took place, at least the first that I\’ve ever done, were with me and Shawn [Michaels] and Bret [Hart]. Really what made those three-way matches was Shawn.

    He didn\’t have an ego like Bret did where Bret would say, \’I don\’t know if this is good for Bret Hart,\’ just silly stuff like that.\” recalled Sid Vicious. \”When people talk in third person, that always is a red flag that things aren\’t gonna be that great.\”

    \”Bret was a little overrated where Shawn maybe wasn\’t rated highly enough.\”

    – Sid Vicious

    The former WCW star also detailed his experience of working with Michaels in singles matches saying that The former World Champion was always really unselfish and giving. He worked really hard to make the other person look good.

    Sid Vicious has started a new podcast called Vicious Circle. New episodes of the show are made available every Sunday and they can be found on all major podcast platforms.

  • Heath Slater On When His WWE Non-Compete Clause Expires

    Heath Slater has the opportunity to take advantage of the current competitive environment for the first time in his career after getting his release from WWE last month and he has a plethora of options to choose from.

    The former WWE star recently had an interview with WrestlingInc where he talked about things like his release from the company, the coronavirus pandemic and more.

    During the interview, Slater discussed his WWE contract and the One Man Band revealed that he will be a free agent on July 18 as this is when his non-compete clause expires:

    \”I know that by July 18, I\’m gonna have to start making some moves and get my name out there again. I can do whatever I want then. I\’m hanging in there until then and just working on myself – mentally and physically and all that good stuff.\”

    When asked what he wants to do in his future, Heath Slater said that he wants to hit all the platforms because he has never had the opportunity to do so:

    \”Honestly, I want to hit all the platforms. The reason why is because I\’ve never had the opportunity to. I wanna do the indies. I wanna go to some of the big indie promotions and have a good time.

    Heath continued by name dropping promotions such as TNA, NWA and AEW as potential places for him to work at and said that he just wants to go out there and have fun.

  • Sami Zayn Stripped Of IC Title, Tournament Announced

    The Intercontinental Champion Sami Zayn has been stripped of the title and WWE has announced a tournament for the crowing of a new champion.

    The news was announced just recently and it was noted that WWE is declaring the title vacant because the former Champion is unable to compete and defend the championship.

    Sami Zayn has been away from WWE programming for a while and he was last seen on WWE TV during WrestleMania 36 where he defended his title against Daniel Bryan in a one on one match.

    It was reported recently that the former NXT Champion was booked for the April 23 episode of SmackDown but he pulled out of the show due to coronavirus concerns.

    This move from the officials is especially surprising because the company has previously told its employees that they would not face any consequences over the decision to pull out of the shows amid the coronavirus outbreak.

    The Intercontinental Championship was Sami Zayn\’s first title in the WWE main roster since his debut on Raw 5 years ago during the May 4, 2015 episode of the show.

    The high flying star is not the only wrestler to have pulled out of WWE shows. Roman Reigns infamously decided against working his WrestleMania 36 match with Goldberg and he hasn\’t been mentioned on WWE programming ever since.

    The now-former champion has not reacted to this change as of this writing but we will keep you posted on any development in the situation.

  • Backstage Update On Sting\’s WWE Status

    The rumors about the relationship between WWE and Sting have picked up steam after some recent developments and now latest reports suggest that there might be some truth to these speculations.

    According to reports from Pro Wrestling Sheet, the former WCW star\’s deal with WWE has expired and as of right now The Icon is not under a WWE contract.

    Though the site notes that this development doesn\’t necessarily mean that the two parties could not work out a merchandising deal in the future.

    The rumors about the WWE status of Sting first became a topic of discussion after he was abruptly pulled from an upcoming WWE action figure lineup of Mattel.

    The statement from the toy company did not provide a clear reason for this change and they just noted that the former champion was being pulled from the series due to \’circumstances out of their control\’.

    Sting made his WWE debut in November 2014 during Survivor Series and he was inducted into the Hall Of Fame in 2016. His last WWE appearance came during the February 25, 2019 episode of Raw where he took part in Ric Flair\’s 70th birthday celebration.

    There have also been rumors about the wrestling legend\’s future and some latest developments suggest that he could be making his AEW debut soon. You can check out a detailed report on the matter here.

  • Kofi Kingston On How He Feels About Working WWE Shows Amid Coronavirus

    There have been mixed feelings among the WWE roster about the company\’s decision to run shows amid the coronavirus outbreak but it appears that at least Kofi Kingston is in support of the decision.

    The former WWE Champion recently had an interview with WrestlingInc where he talked about things like spending time with his family in quarantine and more.

    Talking about the company\’s decision to run the shows, Kingston claimed that he takes a lot of pride in providing the escapism for people in these trying times:

    \”We do take a lot of pride in providing this escapism for people because I do think it\’s important to allow people to think about something else besides what is going on, we want to provide a sense of normalcy, provide something that puts smiles on people\’s faces.

    We need that. If we\’re on just news lines all day, there is so much negativity out there.\” said Kofi Kingston. \”Maybe rightfully so because of all the uncertainty, and we don\’t\’ really know what\’s going on.\”

    The New Day member went on to say that there should be some positive stuff out there and he takes a lot of pride in being part of the positivity.

    Kofi Kingston and Big E successfully defended their SmackDown Tag Team Championships at the Money In The Bank PPV. We should get an idea about what\’s next for them on this week\’s episode of the Blue Branded Show.

  • Becky Lynch Addresses Fans After Raw Announcement

    WWE had confirmed that Becky Lynch will be making a big announcement on this week\’s episode of Raw but the company had not revealed any details about it.

    So the announcement of her pregnancy came as a big surprise to all the fans of The Man and her speech during the opening segment of Raw left them emotional.

    The now former Raw Women\’s Champion took on her twitter after the show and addressed the fans who have helped in making her dreams come true.

    Becky said that she doesn\’t know what will happen in the future but recalled how she entered the Performance Center in 2013 not knowing anyone and now she has a family:

    https://twitter.com/BeckyLynchWWE/status/1260004619150864386?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

    Asuka won the Women\’s Money In The Bank match this past Sunday during the namesake PPV and she was named the new Raw Women\’s Champion after the announcement on Raw.

    There is no word yet on what Becky Lynch is planning for her future and there is no news on when or if she will return to wrestling after her pregnancy.

    The former Champion gave some more details about her pregnancy and revealed when she found out about it in an interview before this week\’s episode of Raw. You can check out her comments on the matter at this link.

  • Gallows & Anderson In Talks With Impact Wrestling

    The recent WWE releases has opened the doors for other companies to add some star power to their roster and it appears that Impact Wrestling is in the race to sign at least two such talents in Gallows and Anderson.

    The now-former WWE stars were talking about their future and other things on the latest episode of their Talkin Shop podcast which is hosted by the duo and Rocky Romero.

    What\’s interesting to note here is that Impact Vice President Scott D’Amore ended up making an accidental appearance during the broadcast of the episode.

    As first noted by The Combat Republic, D’Amore called Gallows while the show was still being recorded and they put him on speakerphone. You can check out their conversation in the clip below:

    Gallows and Anderson signed a three year deal with WWE in 2016 and they had renewed their contracts with the promotion in July earlier last year.

    However, the company released the duo alongside numerous other stars such as Kurt Angle and Rusev as part of WWE\’s coronavirus budget cuts last month.

    There is no news yet on what the former champions are planning for their future but we should get a better idea about their plans after July 15 when their non compete clause with the company expires.

  • The IIconics Return On Raw, Earn Championship Opportunity For Next Week (Video)

    This week\’s episode of Monday Night Raw was the follow-up episode of Money In The Bank and the company followed the PPV with a number of interesting announcements and the return of the former women\’s tag team champions The IIconics.

    The duo appeared as the guests on \”A Moment of Bliss\” show hosted by the current Women\’s Tag Team Champions Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross and they demanded a title shot from the current champions.

    While Bliss and Cross did not grant them a title match, they did agree to a nontitle clash and the IIconics ended up winning this bout after Peyton Royce pinned Alexa for the win.

    This win earned them a title shot and the company later announced that the former NXT stars will be challenging the current champions for their titles at next week\’s episode of the Red Branded Show.

    This week\’s episode of Raw was an eventful episode and apart from the return of the IIconics, the show featured a number of buzzing announcements and segments.

    The episode started with Becky Lynch announcing her pregnancy and relinquishing the Raw Women\’s Championship. After this, the Money In The Bank winner Asuka was named the new champion.

    The company also reintroduced the wild card rule with a new format. The shows can now challenge the other brand and the first match under this new rule has already been announced which you can check out here.

  • Drew McIntyre To Face SmackDown Star Next Week, Charlotte Flair To Make Cross Brand Appearance

    It was reported earlier yesterday that WWE is looking to reintroduce the wild card rule and the company confirmed the same during the latest episode of Monday Night Raw.

    WWE Champion Drew McIntyre defeated the US Champion Andrade in a champion vs. champion non-title match on this week\’s episode of the show.

    After the bout, the Scottish superstar announced that a Brand-to-Brand invitation had been extended to SmackDown and the Blue Branded Show has accepted the challenge.

    He then announced that SmackDown has chosen King Corbin as his opponent and the two will be battling in an inter-brand match at next week\’s episode of the Red Branded Show.

    Though this was not the only announced cross-brand appearance and the company also confirmed that the NXT Women\’s Champion Charlotte Flair will be making an appearance on SmackDown this week.

    Charlotte has been a regular of NXT since winning the title at WrestleMania 36 but she is still considered a Raw star and the Queen continues to make appearances for the brand.

    There is no word yet on what she will be doing at the show this Friday night but like Baron Corbin, it\’s possible that she will be making this appearance for a match.

    While not confirmed, it\’s believed that WWE has decided to bring back this new version of the wild card rule due to the plummeting ratings. You can check out a more detailed report on the matter here.

  • Lance Archer On Why He Signed With AEW

    Lance Archer ended his eight-year-long relationship with NJPW when he chose to leave the promotion and sign with AEW from the many opportunities he had at the time. During a recent interview with TalkSport, the former IWGP US Champion talked about his decision to join the upstart promotion and revealed the reason behind it.

    Archer admitted that there was lots of stuff on his table and claimed that his decision was not a quick one. He explained that it was a long thinking process for him and according to the former NJPW star; it ultimately came down to the fact that the people in AEW were much more attentive:

    \”It ultimately came down to the people in AEW were much more attentive to having me apart of AEW. The numbers were adding up in the right way. As I said, the prayers I was doing were leading me towards AEW and just everything was leading me towards it.

    The opportunity to be a part of something that is growing, help that and help AEW become even greater than it already is, that challenge was just too enticing.\” said Lance Archer. \”Nothing was quick about the process. It took it’s time and I made some tough decisions, but ultimately the right decision in my opinion. That’s what led me to AEW and now we’re here, I’m ready to kick some ass.”

    The former TNA star signed a deal with AEW in February earlier this year and he made his debut for the promotion in March when Jake \”The Snake\” Roberts introduced him as his new client. Archer has been given a push in AEW and he is currently scheduled to face Cody Rhodes in the finals of the TNT Championship Tournament at the upcoming Double Or Nothing PPV on May 23.

  • The Street Profits On The Advice They Got From Paul Heyman

    The Street Profits have received a push since their arrival in the main roster and reports have suggested that the Raw Executive Director Paul Heyman is behind the success of the former NXT stars.

    During a recent interview with TalkSport, the current Raw Tag Team Champions talked about their interactions with the ECW founder and revealed the advice they received from the advocate of Brock Lesnar.

    According to the duo, Paul talked to them as soon as they got to the main roster and his advice for the former NXT stars was to be themselves and do what they usually did:

    \”As soon as we got up there, he was like ‘ay, ya’ll be ya’ll. We brought you up here for a reason, ya’ll be ya’ll. Don’t do anything else, just be the Street Profits. Do what the Street Profits would usually do. This is just like NXT for you’. And we’re like ‘alright, cool!’ He gave us the keys and we ran with it.

    Any time we began to teeter and not really be like the Street Profits a little bit, he’d be like ‘woah, woah, woah! Remember, you’re the Street Profits, keep that same energy’.\”

    The former NXT Tag Team Champions also talked about their WrestleMania 36 match and Montez Ford discussed how he got to work with his wife Bianca Belair in the bout.

    The Street Profits started making appearances on Raw back in July last year. They have been given a push since officially being called up to the main roster and they won the Raw Tag Team Championships in March earlier this year.