Russo is joined on today’s show by his co-host, Jeff Lane.

Lane mentions that Wrestling Observer’s Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer spoke out this past week, criticizing WWE fans who’ve attended recent shows for being quiet and “dead”. Russo says it’s hard to blame the crowd when they’re just going to see a good show, and it’s not their fault if WWE isn’t providing them that.

Alvarez went on to say that Ric Flair had a great career, but Okada has broke the “Observer scale” with 5 and 6-star ratings several times this past year. He says that we’re living through history right now, and there’s no denying that Okada is “the best”. Russo has no idea what history Alvarez is talking about, and he thinks it’s a joke that Alvarez compared Okada to Ric Flair. Russo adds that he wouldn’t be able to pick Okada out in a lineup.

Lastly, Alvarez spoke about Samoa Joe’s promo work, saying Joe is a much better promo than The Miz. Meltzer then agreed, saying Joe constantly cuts great promos and he delivers the goods whether the material is good or bad. Russo disagrees, saying Joe has no range and he cuts the same one-dimensional promo over and over again. Russo worked with Joe in TNA and can speak first hand about this.

The post Vince Russo’s The Brand Recap – Mixed Match Challenge, Booker T’s Commentary Work, Okada Greater Than Flair? More! appeared first on Wrestling News & WWE News, Rumors & Spoilers.

During the latest installment of Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer discussed Chris Jericho’s status for the RAW 25th Anniversary show and described the situation as “up in the air” for right now.

Meltzer said that as of Friday there wasn’t a finalized deal for Jericho to appear at the event. Meltzer said that both parties are still negotiating for the appearance on Monday and WWE will do everything they can to bring Jericho in because they are advertising him for the event.

We will keep you updated if Jericho’s status changes.

NOTE: (If you borrow our stories, please include a hashtag and link back to Ringside News)

The post Chris Jericho’s Status for RAW 25th Anniversary Reportedly “Up In The Air” appeared first on Wrestling News & WWE News, Rumors & Spoilers.

WWE announced this past Monday that Bill Goldberg will be inducted into the 2018 Hall of Fame class. Dave Meltzer discussed the announcement in the last issue of The Wrestling Observer Newsletter and mentioned that the plan right now is for Paul Heyman to induct Goldberg into the Hall of Fame this year.

Other rumored names for this year’s induction ceremony include The Dudley Boyz, Ivory, Bam Bam Bigelow, and Kid Rock going into the Celebrity Wing.

The 2018 WWE Hall of Fame induction ceremony will take place on Friday, April 6th at 7:30pm EST from the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans.

The post Who Will Induct Goldberg Into the WWE Hall of Fame? appeared first on Wrestling News & WWE News, Rumors & Spoilers.

It was rumored this past weekend that EC3 could be headed to WWE now that he’s no longer obligated to Impact Wrestling. Dave Meltzer confirmed these rumors in the latest issue of The Wrestling Observer Newsletter and he is in fact headed to WWE.

In an update, EC3 was actually spotted at the WWE Performance Center on Tuesday. This is a strong indication that he will be arriving in the company very soon. It remains to be seen if he will head to NXT or make a debut on the main roster. We will keep you updated if we receive more details on his WWE return.

The post EC3 Spotted at the WWE Performance Center appeared first on Wrestling News & WWE News, Rumors & Spoilers.

As seen on Tuesday’s episode of SmackDown Live, the finals of the United States Title Tournament was pushed up and  took place on this week’s show instead of the upcoming Royal Rumble pay-per-view event.

Dave Meltzer indicated in the latest issue of The Wrestling Observer Newsletter that it was probably moved up because of time constraints at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view. Two Rumble matches are taking place on the card and those two matches combined will be 2 of the 4 hours on the show.

Meltzer also believes that there could have been a change of plans because of an injury situation and caused the company to deviate from what they originally had in mind. Meltzer didn’t elaborate on what injury could have caused a change in plans but it’s worth pointing out that there have been an abnormal amount of injuries as of late and it could have been any of those.

The post Possible Reasons Why WWE Changed the Finals of the US Title Tournament appeared first on Wrestling News & WWE News, Rumors & Spoilers.

Dave Meltzer reported in the latest issue of The Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Bret Hart is hoping for WWE to induct The Hart Foundation into the Hall of Fame. Bret would like it to happen for Jim Neidhart because Neidhart is currently battling significant health issues and if it doesn’t come soon, he may not be able to enjoy it when it does.

The Hart Foundation is not one of the names rumored for this year’s Hall of Fame class, so it likely won’t happen this year.

The post Bret Hart Hoping for Hart Foundation Induction appeared first on Wrestling News & WWE News, Rumors & Spoilers.

It was rumored this past weekend that EC3 could be headed to WWE now that he’s no longer obligated to Impact Wrestling. Dave Meltzer confirmed these rumors in the latest issue of The Wrestling Observer Newsletter and he is in fact headed to WWE.

In regards to the EC3 name, he owns the rights to it and Impact has made it clear that they will allow talents to use their gimmicks in other promotions.  As of this writing, there is no indication if WWE is interested in using the gimmick when they do decide to bring him in. We will keep you updated if we receive any new details on EC3’s status with WWE.

Meltzer didn’t elaborate when he could debut for WWE but many are speculating it could be sometime around The Royal Rumble as he recently canceled an indie booking on the exact same date as The Rumble.

The post Confirmed: EC3 Headed to WWE appeared first on Wrestling News & WWE News, Rumors & Spoilers.

– Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Reports that Ronda Rousey’s dinner meeting with Triple H that was reported by TMZ was a plant. It’s believed they did the story to get publicity for her pending arrival to WWE.

– The 25th Anniversary of RAW is expected to have two-hours from the Barclays Center and one-hour from the Manhattan Center. It’s believed that some talent may appear at both locations.

– There is talk that WWE may be filming backstage at the 25th Anniversary show for a documentary for the event.

– Ticket demand for the Royal Rumble event in Philadelphia is said to be an “all time record high.”

The post RAW 25th Anniversary Plans, Did WWE Plant the Ronda/Triple H Story?, Rumble Tickets appeared first on Wrestling News & WWE News, Rumors & Spoilers.

It was announced earlier this week that Bobby Roode and Charlotte would be pairing up for the upcoming Mixed Match Challenge series that will air on Facebook Watch directly after SmackDown Live for the next several weeks.

BREAKING: @MsCharlotteWWE and @REALBobbyRoode have been named a team by #SDLive General Manager @WWEDanielBryan for @WWE Mixed Match Challenge! #WWEMMC https://t.co/G1f66a7Qmo

— WWE (@WWE) January 3, 2018

Dave Meltzer reported in the latest issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that WWE decided to pair the two together so that they could be called “The Robe Warriors.”

The post Reason WWE Paired Bobby Roode with Charlotte for Mixed Match Challenge appeared first on Wrestling News & WWE News, Rumors & Spoilers.

As previously reported, 19 women on the main roster will be competing in the Women’s Royal Rumble match at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view event. Those names include Natalya, Naomi, Ruby Riott, Alicia Fox, Mandy Rose, Sonya Deville, Liv Morgan, Sarah Logan, Dana Brooke, Asuka, Sasha Banks, Bayley, Carmella, Tamina, Lana, Nia Jax, Becky Lynch, Mickie James and Paige.

Dave Meltzer reported in the latest issue of The Wrestling Observer Newsletter that he’s been told that nine 9 women from the NXT brand are expected to make appearances in the match. That only leaves 2-3 surprise entrants in the match (3 if Paige doesn’t get cleared, 2 if she does). The belief is that the remaining spots could be The Bella Twins or Ronda Rousey. PWInsider reported earlier this week that those spots could also go to Michelle McCool and Molly Holly.

We will keep you updated if we hear anything new regarding Paige’s status for the match or rumored names for the match.

The post Number of NXT Talents for Women’s Royal Rumble Match Revealed appeared first on Wrestling News & WWE News, Rumors & Spoilers.