TNA

Bischoff on Wrestling Recap – Russo’s Restraining Order, RAW & Smackdown on WWE Network, Should Joe Defeat Lesnar? More!

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Bischoff is joined on today’s show by his co-host Nick Hausman.

Bischoff comments on the news that Vince Russo filed a restraining order against Jim Cornette recently. He simply calls this action by Russo ‘bizarre’, and he’s getting sick and tired of talking about Russo. At first it was fun to poke fun at Russo because he’s so easy to get fired up, but at this point it’s just silly.

Hausman mentions that initially fans thought all these verbal jabs between Russo, Cornette, Bischoff and Prichard were a work, which would ultimately result in some live debate tour featuring all men. It’s obvious now that was never the case. Bischoff mentions that we was offered a pretty good pay day recently to do an in-ring segment with Russo for an indie promotion in P.E.I.,Canada. Even though the money was good, he turned it down because Russo is just too weird to be around.

Bischoff thought the Samoa Joe/Brock Lesnar segment from RAW this past week created some mystique, and that’s something that has been sorely missing from WWE’s product lately. Joe is a great character, and luckily WWE has made a commitment to Joe’s character because now Joe comes off as a believable threat to Lesnar. Bischoff thinks Joe will give Lesnar some of the best matches he has had in recent memory.

WWE Changes Plans for SummerSlam Main Event

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As previously reported, SummerSlam was expected to be headlined by Braun Strowman vs. Brock Lesnar for the WWE Universal Title this year. Those plans have changed and WWE has decided to go a different direction, according to the Wrestling Observer.

Dave Meltzer reported on Wrestling Observer Radio that Lesnar vs. Strowman is not the plan anymore. Meltzer mentioned that Lesnar will defend his WWE Universal Championship against Roman Reigns or Samoa Joe at SummerSlam instead of Strowman.

If WWE decides to book Reigns against Lesnar at SummerSlam, it’s expected that Roman will carry the championship all the way until WrestleMania 34, where he would then defend it against the “free agent” John Cena. This could be one of the reasons as to why Cena is now working both RAW and SmackDown Live shows.

Alberto Del Rio & Paige Reportedly Still Broken Up

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It was reported over the weekend that Alberto Del Rio dumped Paige over after the two had another argument. After these reports surfaced online, Paige took to her Twitter account to debunk those reports.

Del Rio also sent out a message but deleted it on Twitter. It read:

OK MARKS LEAVE US ALONE
INTERNET SHIT IS INTERNET SHIT WE ARE PERFECT AS ALWAYS

Dave Meltzer discussed this topic on today’s installment of Wrestling Observer Radio. Meltzer mentioned that he has spoke to people close to the situation and he can confirm that as of yesterday that the two are not together.

Possible Return Feud for John Cena Revealed

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As many of you are aware, John Cena will be making his return to WWE programming on the July 4th episode of SmackDown Live. WWE has been hyping his return for around a month now, however it’s unknown exactly who he will be feuding with upon his return.

Dave Meltzer speculated on today’s installment of Wrestling Observer Radio that once Cena returns to television, he will enter into a feud with the returning Rusev. Meltzer attributes this speculation to the company not having anyone available for either individual to work with. This feud would eventually leave to a blowoff match at either WWE Battleground or SummerSlam. Meltzer didn’t specify which event.

X-Pac 1, 2, 360 Recap – The Ball’s Appearance on RAW, Joe vs. Lesnar, X-Pac Almost Stars on GLOW? More!

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X-Pac opens today’s show speaking about Cody Rhodes’ recent ROH World Title victory. He says that he’s very proud of Rhodes, who took a huge risk and left the safe surroundings of WWE in order to bet on himself. It’s safe to say that Rhodes’ bet is paying off right now. X-Pac says that he heard a lot of friends criticize Rhodes’ decision, some even calling him a mark for doing this, but X-Pac was happy to see Rhodes follow his heart.

X-Pac mentions that he was lucky enough to be backstage at RAW this week in Los Angeles, where a lot of interesting things were happening. He was able to sit and talk with guest star Josh Duhamel for a while, and he was able to experience the backstage reaction during the MizTV segment featuring LaVar Ball and his two sons.

He says that WWE should have known that this was going to be a disaster and they very well might have, but they obviously didn’t care. He says that LaVar Ball went off script nearly right from the start and was jumping all over everyone else’s lines. In spite of all that, and even after the youngest son used derogatory language, McMahon was still urging cameramen to follow them to the backstage area and through Gorilla, because he didn’t want the cameras to miss anything good.

Scott Steiner Says Triple H & Stephanie Need to Leave Wrestling

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The following are highlights from Scott Steiner’s media call promoting Sunday’s Slammiversary event:

Legal issues with Dixie Carter: “I mean, [Dixie Carter] is a joke. She was basically a pain [in the butt]. Talked the truth about Hogan. She dropped the case and we’ll see what happens. It’s not over.”

Favorite TNA moment: “My favorite moment was the Main Event Mafia. The champions were all together, and that was a lot of fun because you had a lot of history in the ring every time we stepped in the ring. A lot of us had been around for a long time, so the stuff that we did backstage, the stuff that didn’t make it on TV was also entertaining and funny. To date, that’s been the highest rated portion of TNA’s existence. A lot of people bought into it because of the reality of everything. It was a lot of fun.”

The differences between Dixie Carter’s management and Jeff Jarrett’s management: “If you talk to anybody, there’s a huge difference. When people see Jeff, they know that he knows what he’s doing. Clearly, everyone knew that Dixie didn’t know what she was doing. She was a mark wanting to be on TV. It’s night and day. People wanna come to work, they’re excited about what everyone is doing, and it is a totally different atmosphere.”

What changes should occur in pro wrestling: “The first change they should make is getting rid of Stephanie McMahon and Hunter McMahon, because they’re two idiots who are running the whole place up there. It’s like, I feel sorry for the wrestlers nowadays. They’ve got to follow the instructions of these two idiots that clearly don’t know what they’re doing. They’re not watching because the ratings are down, and the reason why I call him Hunter McMahon is because she obviously wears the pants.”

Why he’s not going in the WWE Hall of Fame: “I’m not going into the WWE Hall of Fame, because I’m not going somewhere where there’s nowhere to go. GPS the WWE Hall of Fame. Where’s it at? See, I’m not going somewhere where if I get in trouble or something, I can’t call 911. I can’t have a beacon call, or call the coast guard. Cuz, who knows? It could be in Atlantis for all I know. Or it could be in parts unknown. It’s a joke. How can you go somewhere that is non-existent? I’d be better off if the WWE Hall of Fame was on the moon… cancel your reservations if you want to see me, because it’s not happening.”

The Taz Show Recap – Smackdown Analysis, Carmella Wins Again, Where’s Tye Dillinger? More!

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Taz opens today’s show speaking about last night’s episode of Smackdown Live.

He says that it was nice to see Carmella scale the ladder and claim the Money in the Bank briefcase on her own this time, but James Ellsworth found a way to get back into the building and got involved in the match again, even after being banned from the building by GM Daniel Bryan.

Taz thinks that Daniel Bryan and/or Shane McMahon need to do something to maintain their credibility moving forward, such as suspending Ellsworth for some amount of time. Bryan specifically ordered Ellsworth to stay out of the building and Ellsworth ignored him. Taz says that Bryan needs to show Ellsworth who’s boss.

He thought that Randy Orton cut a good, convincing promo last night and Mahal’s interruption was well done as well. He’s exciting to see the return of the Punjabi Prison match, but if he was WWE he wouldn’t have had Mahal talk nicely about The Great Khali. Taz says that Mahal should be a dirty, nasty heel who shouldn’t talk nicely about anyone.

NXT Tag Team Championship Match Announced

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WWE has announced that Heavy Machinery will receive a shot at The Authors of Pain for the NXT Championships on the July 12th episode of NXT. Here is the preview they posted for the match:

NXT Tag Team Champions The Authors of Pain to defend against Heavy Machinery on July 12

The Authors of Pain have built their NXT Tag Team Title Championship upon a foundation of brute force and physical dominance. However, against Heavy Machinery — AOP’s newly confirmed challengers for the July 12 episode of NXT — Ellering’s menacing monsters, for once, find themselves against opponents who can more than match their immensity.

For Tucker Knight & Otis Dozovic, the battle cry of “steaks and weights” isn’t just playful banter; it’s a way of life. The numbers tell the story: 320-pound Knight boasts a 365-pound bench press and 500-pound squats and deadlifts, while 330-pound Dozovic lays claim to a 475-pound bench press, a 610-pound squat and a 710-pound deadlift. Beneath the muscle and outsized personalities are two elite grapplers who torched collegiate competition before turning to NXT, where their success has been just as great.

Not that any of those facts will intimidate The Authors of Pain. Akam & Rezar are 300-pounders, and they have MMA and world-class wrestling backgrounds, too. Their WWE Hall of Fame manager appears to have his misgivings about the burly challengers, even if he won’t admit it, but AOP only has one thing in mind: Adding Knight & Dozovic to The Book of Dominance.

Which super-heavyweight tandem will prevail? Don’t miss this huge NXT Tag Team Championship battle when it takes center stage Wednesday, July 12, on NXT, streaming exclusively on the award-winning WWE Network at 8/7 C.

Talk is Jericho Recap w/ Baron Corbin – Money in the Bank Win, Transitioning from NXT to WWE, Getting Yelled at by The Undertaker, More!

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Jericho welcomes Baron Corbin to the show.

Corbin informs that he lives just down the street from Jericho, in a house that was previously owned by both Big Show and The Undertaker. He says that the house was definitely built for a big man as the doorways are enormous and the ceilings are 18-20 feet.

Jericho congratulates Corbin on his big Money in the Bank ladder match victory, and Corbin thanks Jericho for coming up with the idea many years ago. Jericho informs that he and then-writer Brian Gewirtz were brainstorming ideas on how to utilize a bunch of talents who were getting a push within the company.

Jericho suggested that they have a ladder match where they’d fight over a contract for a Title shot the following night. Gewirtz took that idea to McMahon who adjusted it so the talents could cash in the contract at any point during the next year, and he also insisted that the contract be in a breifcase.