In what is now becoming a regular occurrence, WWE has released another group of wrestlers from their contracts with John Laurinaitis citing budget cuts. The talents released were John Morrison, Top Dolla, Ashante Adonis, Isaiah Swerve Scott, Tegan Nox, Shane Thorne, Jaxson Ryker, and Drake Maverick. With the exception of Thorne, who was better known as Slapjack, all had recently been featured on television if you include WWE Main Event.
42-year-old Morrison’s release was surprising, yet with WWE focusing on youth and the long term, it’s likely his age worked against him. After eight years away, he returned to the company in 2019 and had prominently been featured due to being aligned with The Miz and working with Bad Bunny. Additionally, it should be noted his wife Taya Valkyrie was also recently released, and she was told while Morrison was out of the country performing for WWE.
Top Dolla, Adonis, and Swerve Scott’s releases also caught fans by surprise as the group known as Hit Row had only just been called up from NXT to SmackDown. The belief was WWE had big plans for the group due to appealing to a young and hip crowd. However, this past weekend, Top Dolla posted a rap on Twitter that was deemed racist towards those of Indian heritage and was promptly deleted. Whether this played into WWE’s decision-making process isn’t known.
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Ric Flair departed WWE in August, and it had looked certain he was set to join his son-in-law Andrade in AEW. However, an episode of Dark Side of The Ring focusing on the Plane Ride From Hell the following month would see any chance of that happening quickly fade. Although Flair’s antics had been known for decades, it had always been regarded as Flair being Flair.
However, an interview with one of the women who claimed to have experienced his behavior firsthand would put a new perspective on things. Flair would subsequently lose endorsements contracts, have bookings canceled, and WWE would stop selling his merchandise and removed him and his signature Wooooo from their introduction.
It should be noted that Flair has always denied the allegations made against him, and the legendary wrestler is now attempting to rebuild his career and restore his name. One way of doing this is via his just launched Woooo Nation Uncensored podcast, and in an attempt to build interest in his second episode, he has revealed that he has asked WWE to return the two title belts they hold.
While the story behind the Winged Eagle belt isn’t publicly known, the NWA Championship belt that Flair is holding in the photo would be the basis of controversy a decade ago. This is because when Flair took out a loan with Highspots.com owner Michael Bochicchio, he put the belt up as collateral. When Flair defaulted, Bochicchio attempted to sell; however, it would later become known that Flair had put the same belt up as collateral for a previous loan from a plumbing and heating valve company. This meant Bochicchio didn’t have the legal right to sell it, and a lawsuit would follow. Eventually, WWE would step in and settle the debts, so the belief is this gave them ownership of the belt, so it will be interesting to hear Flair’s side when the podcast drops.
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With Ring of Honor going on hiatus and releasing all talents from their contracts, many wrestlers are either free agents or soon will be. Among them was Jay Lethal, who has already moved on and joined AEW, and it’s likely he’ll be joined eventually by many others. Possibly with Jay Briscoe and Mark Briscoe, collectively known as The Briscoe Brothers being next, as Fightful has reported, the duo was backstage at Wednesday’s Dynamite. While it is possible they were just visiting friends, they most likely spoke with Tony Khan about potentially becoming All Elite.
The brothers have wrestled in multiple promotions worldwide but will forever be linked to ROH, where they wrestled on the promotion’s first-ever show in 2002. Over the next two decades, they would be ever presents except for an 18-month period and hold the record for most ROH World Tag Team Championship reigns at 11. Additionally, Jay was twice ROH World Champion.
Back in 2009, the pair looked set to sign with WWE after a tryout before a SmackDown taping but were later rejected based on their look not being considered “cosmetically pleasing.” Later, Jay Briscoe would further decrease their chances of mainstream fame by posting homophobic tweets that fans called out. However, based on a recent tweet by ROH commentator Ian Riccaboni it appears Jay has seen the error of his ways and is now an LGBTQ+ supporter.
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Ric Flair last wrested in 2011 when he was part of TNA. Since then, he has suffered various medical issues and, at one point in 2017, was on the verge of dying. Still, he would manage to get medically cleared to take bumps while in WWE two years ago. His aim was to get involved in the Team Hogan vs. Team Flair match in Saudi Arabia. However, Vince McMahon would go on to refuse any ideas put forward, feeling it was still too risky.
While it seemed Flair’s days competing were long over, with Flair a free agent, he has revealed on his just-launched podcast Wooo Nation Uncensored that he would be prepared to wrestle again. Going as far as to say that he is in better shape now than he was in 2001 when he wrestled his last WCW match against Sting.
That talk hasn’t happened, but could I do it? Absolutely. I’m in better shape now than I was when Sting and I wrestled the last match on Nitro. WWE won’t let me do anything, even though I’m released. I understand, they have so much liability, and I told them I would sign anything, but nobody wants me to die on their watch. I’d rather die in the ring. If I have to go. I’d rather not jump off the 19th floor or spend another 31 days in the ICU.
Ric FlairWhile Flair may be comfortable passing away in the ring, it would be terrible for the wrestling industry, and only an incredible brave or foolish promoter would consider the risk worthwhile. That said, 72-year-old Flair had gotten physical in recent months when he appeared for AAA alongside his future son-in-law Andrade and chopped both Kenny Omega and Konnan before putting the Lucha libre legend in Figure 4. While fans considered this cool at the time, it is likely the most active that any of his fans want to see the 16-time world champion get nowadays.
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Jeff Hardy created the character Willow The Wisp in 1995 when he was in part of his brother Matt’s OMEGA promotion. His dark and mysterious alter-ego would speak in riddles and took its title from the name given in folklore to lights said to appear to travelers at night over bogs, swamps, or marshes. Once he left WWE in 2003, he would bring the character back and used it in Ring of Honor briefly. Then, a decade later, it would receive national exposure in TNA.
Now during an interview with Metro, Hardy has discussed wanting to bring the character to WWE television and feels there is a spot available with The Fiend no longer being with the company.
I can’t help but think how cool it was when I first witnessed The Fiend and the light shutting down. It was so cool to me – that’s kinda my thing too, I was like, “Man, this is so cool!” Now he’s not here anymore, I think there’s something really cool Willow could do similar to that.
Jeff HardyI’ve even had ideas like a Jeff Ross character – like I was a painter, a really silly painter Jeffery Ross, and then Willow would be my Fiend.
Jeff HardyThe Fiend character was incredibly over with wrestling fans, with merchandise sales proving this. However, with the character still fresh in fans’ minds, it’s doubtful whether WWE would want something many would see as a ripoff appear so soon. Although if WWE does intend to bring back a dark over the top character, there wouldn’t be many better to play the role than Jeff Hardy.
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When they were in the WWE, Vince McMahon didn’t want to lose Cash Wheeler and Dax Harwood, and he’d turn repeatedly turn down their requests to be released. McMahon also took the time to personally create a new gimmick for the duo, which involved them wearing flashy colors, having tassels, waving glowsticks, and Wilder wearing a “Shatter Machine” chain necklace. The pair objected to this and were still unhappy with WWE’s portrayal of the tag-team division, citing Braun Strowman and a 10-year old winning the Raw Tag Team Championships as their example.
Currently, the partners are having a successful run in AEW, and it’s doubtful they regret leaving WWE. Now in an interview with DAZN, they would be asked about their new boss Tony Khan and whether he gets the credit for everything he has achieved. Harwood would go on to say that Khan is unfairly criticized and shot down claims he is a money mark and instead claimed that it was McMahon who was actually a money mark.
Vince was a money mark if you think about it. He had to buy a company from his dad, and he had the money. Dax Harwood
Whether Vince McMahon would clarify as a money mark is debatable as the typical definition is a wealthy person who invests in a promotion to rub shoulders with the wrestlers. While multiple promoters have been labeled as such over the years, McMahon isn’t usually listed among them due to his ruthless business practices.
McMahon actually grew up poor, and once reconnecting with his father, who owned the then named Capitol Wrestling Corporation, he’d negotiate to purchase it from his fathers and partners Gorilla Monsoon, Arnold Skaaland, and Phil Zacko in 1982. He would pay approximately $1.7 million, which would be almost $4.9 million in today’s money. However, it should be noted he was permitted to pay in installments, allowing him to use the promotion’s ongoing profits to make the payments which are likely terms nobody else would have been given at the time.
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At his past weekend’s Full Gear pay-per-view Kenny Omega’s time as AEW Champion ended with him dropping the title to Adam Page. With it known that Kenny Omega has been banged up for some time, it was anticipated he’d be taking some time off to recuperate. However, in a recently published YouTube video, the extent of his injuries was revealed to be worse than most thought, with him actually suffering from neck issues and vertigo dating back to 2018.
[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”abVuw0DE” upload-date=”2021-11-16T22:46:51.000Z” name=”Kenny Omega Reveals He Is Suffering From Vertigo” description=”” player-type=”default” override-embed=”default”]Now during the latest edition of Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer has shared the news that Omega is scheduled to undergo testing on Wednesday. Seemingly AEW would have been okay with him taking time off beforehand, but Omega himself was adamant about completing his long-term program with Page.
He’s getting everything checked out. There’s a whole litany of things. If he needs to take time off, I mean, it’s the time now. He could have, but he wasn’t going to, basically. He could’ve, and they would’ve let him. Nobody would’ve been happy about it, but he was pretty much determined that he was going to work through and lose the championship to Adam Page when the time came, and the time came on Saturday.
Dave MeltzerThe fact that Omega has been wrestling while suffering from vertigo is scary and shows what a dedicated wrestler he is. It also shows what a talented performer he is, with him still able to put on great matches without anyone suspecting an issue. Hopefully, now Omega’s results will come back, showing that surgery isn’t required, and a combination of rest and rehabilitation is enough for him to make a full recovery.
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When AEW launched, Cody Rhodes was one of the promotion’s most loved stars, and along with Chris Jericho, was instrumental in helping establish the company in the eyes of fans. Now though, he is routinely booed when appearing and regularly on the receiving end of negative comments on social media despite being a babyface. Exactly why fans have turned on him isn’t totally clear. However, taking absences to work on other projects is likely an issue, and he is sometimes perceived as using his status to put himself over other talents.
Now, after previously stating on Busted Open Radio he was planning on leaving Twitter, he has followed through and deactivated his account. It isn’t known if there was a specific incident or tweet that promoted Cody to decide. However, over the past few years, Twitter has become a more and more toxic platform, with social media bringing out the worst in people.
Over the past few years, Cody’s wife Brandi, Seth Rollins, Kylie Rae, Scott Hall, Mick Foley, Maruo Ranallo, The Young Bucks, and Naomi have joined Cody in deciding to leave Twitter, although most have since returned. Whether Cody returns remains to be seen, but given he has a verified account, all he needs to do is reactivate the account within the next 12 months to retain his followers.
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At Full Gear, Eddie Kingston and CM Punk wrestled a hard-hitting match which clearly took a lot out of both men. Subsequently, Northeast Wrestling revealed on Facebook that Kingston, who was set to appear at their conversion, was unable to due to requiring medical testing. This news caused much concern among fans; however, Kingston has since taken to social media and revealed he is doing OK and will be at Northeast Wrestling’s next show and won’t be missing any time from AEW.
Kingston has been busting his ass since 2002 to entertain fans, and over his career, he has experienced many ups and downs. Before making his AEW debut, he contemplated selling his boots. Still, thanks to fans clamoring for him to receive an opportunity with Tony Khan’s promotion, he would get the chance to show the world what he could do.
In fact, his promo work was so impressive WWE actually reached out to him, but Kingston would decide to stick with AEW. Since then, he has become a featured talent and proven he isn’t out of place when sharing a ring with the likes of Miro, Punk, and Jon Moxley. Had he been injured, it could have been disastrous for his career as he would have lost all the momentum he had built up, but thankfully, that shouldn’t be an issue now.
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Former Seattle Seahawks and Washington Football Team player A.J. Francis transferred over from the world of football to wrestling in 2018 and signed with WWE in 2020. Four months later, he’d debut in NXT and formed a rap group called Hit Row who caught management’s attention and were drafted to SmackDown last month.
This past Friday night, the group would begin feuding with Jinder Mahal and Shanky after the pair would mock Hit Row via a purposely terrible rap. Now Top Dolla has fired back with a video he uploaded to Twitter to make fun of the team himself. However, it didn’t receive the reaction he had anticipated, with many fans calling the video racist for mocking the pair’s Indian heritage with lines about curry and rupees. This prompted Top Dolla to delete the video, although with anything that gets shared on the internet, it is never possible to remove it entirely, and in his case, Maffew of Botchamania fame would reupload it.
Top Dolla would later tweet, saying he removed the video because he wasn’t happy with his mentions being flooded and said Mahal was fully aware it was coming. While it’s doubtful WWE will take any action, it likely isn’t a good idea to upset fans so soon after being called up, especially with WWE so willing to release talent at present.
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On Saturday night Eddie Kingston and CM Punk would face off in a featured match at Full Gear. The duo would put on a hard-hitting and exciting match which delighted fans, although it now seems Kingston, unfortunately, came out of the contest injured. This was announced by Northeast Wrestling, who let those attending the Big Event NY convention know that Kingston wouldn’t be attending due to a shoulder injury which he was going to get examined.
Eddie Kingston contacted us late last night. Due to an injury to his shoulder in his match with CM Punk last night at the AEW PPV, he will be unable to appear at Big Event NY Convention today. He is having his shoulder checked out and having a series of medical tests this morning. If you preordered any of his meet and greet items you will be refunded later today. Sorry for the inconvenience Northeast Wrestling
Northeast WrestlingThe match was incredibly hard-hitting, so in retrospect, it isn’t surprising that someone came out of it banged up. However, with Kingston at the height of his popularity at present, the timing couldn’t be worse for him to suffer an injury. Hopefully, though, it ends up not being too severe, and the amount of time he misses from the ring is minimal.
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Former NXT North American Champion Bronson Reed has been looking for a new home promotion since being let go by WWE this past August. He had spoken to Ring of Honor, but with them going on hiatus, nothing came from that, and his Impact Wrestling booking for Bound For Glory had to be canceled when his work permit wasn’t ready. Now though, the Australian wrestler who is currently using the name Jonah Rock has debuted for New Japan Pro Wrestling.
His debut came after a match between Moose and Juice Robinson at New Japan’s Battle in the Valley event and saw Jonah stare down Moose before splashing Robinson. Jonah would also lay out David Finlay, who tried to save his tag partner. Finally, Jonah would take the mic and declare that he was New Japan’s top dog and that the real violence was beginning.
Jonah began his career on the Australian independent scene in 2007 before traveling aboard to compete for promotions such as NOAH, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla, and Westside Xtreme Wrestling. He would go on to sign for WWE in 2019, and due to his size and in-ring ability, it was believed he would have a big future in the promotion ahead of him.
However, with his main roster call-up seemingly inevitable, he would wrestle a dark match prior to a SmackDown in June and apparently didn’t impress WWE management. Now though, the 33-year-old has a fresh start ahead of him with New Japan, and he may also be able to resume discussions with Impact Wrestling due to the promotions having a working relationship.
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