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WRESTLING GLOBE NEWSLETTER
Tuesday February 2, 2010
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Wrestling Globe Newsletter by Mike Aldren – All the latest professional wrestling news, gossip and occasional opinion direct to your mailbox.
WGN is read by industry power players, many top wrestlers and thousands of fans from all around the world.
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WORLD WRESTLING ENTERTAINMENT NEWS
2/1 Raw TV results from Nashville, TN: John Cena over Cody Rhodes; Triple H over Jack Swagger; Randy Orton over Shawn Michaels; Ted DiBiase Jr. over Mark Henry; Kofi Kingston over Big Show via DQ. All the matches were qualifying matches for a spot in the Raw Elimination Chamber for a title shot at Sheamus at the pay-per-view in St. Louis. The show drew 15,184.
The SD/ECW tapings are tonight in Memphis. Vince McMahon will appear on tonight’s ECW broadcast to address the future of the brand, and Smackdown has qualifying matches for the Smackdown Elimination Chamber for a title shot at The Undertaker.
***
TMZ obtained the police report in regards to the arrest of Chris Jericho and Gregory Helms for public intoxication last week in Northern Kentucky. Helms was found to be in possession of a single white pill which he identified to police as Soma — the muscle relaxer Carisoprodol. He said he had a prescription at home for the medication.
The police used their discretion and didn’t charge him because it was such a small amount.
Vince was said to be thrilled with Raw and the general consensus was that they produced one of their best television shows in quite some time. The show did a 3.6 rating and 5.29 million viewers. Viewership was up three percent on last week.
The Divas title match last night was cut due to time constraints. I assume they will try again next week. Oh, and for those who were wondering, Maryse told Gail Kim: “Just want to let you know that, at the end, I will win the championship!”
Howard Finkel spoke his mind during a WWE.com web chat before Raw. He was critical of ring announcer Angela Fong [Savannah] for her performance during the Royal Rumble. He said: “Did anyone catch Savannah’s two goofs last night announcing Ezekiel Jackson? Well, she did not announce Zeke as the challenger… Furthermore, she announced him as weighing 209 pounds… Folks, I might be a little tough on the announcers, but let’s face it… You are on a WWE PPV, you DO NOT screw up.” Finkel admitted that he too made mistakes during his career but claimed he never flubbed his lines during a live television broadcast.
He added: “Savannah is getting better, agreed, but as the BEST ring announcer ever, I can speak my mind!”
Jim Ross noted that last night’s tribute to Jack Brisco reduced him to tears. He described Jack as, “One of the greatest in ring technicians to ever lace up a pair of boots. Through hard work and dedication he became one of the most famous men to ever wrestle for a living.”
The St. Petersburg Times has a story on Brisco at http://tinyurl.com/yaxjnza with quotes from Brian Blair and Dusty Rhodes.
The Tampa Tribune has a story at http://tinyurl.com/yztlqzw including quotes from brother Jerry who described Jack as a modest guy who identified with his fans. Funeral services have not yet been finalized.
The Fox news affiliate in Tampa also ran a story on Brisco at http://tinyurl.com/yh6octo.
Another absentee from Sunday’s Rumble match was William Regal. He was originally advertised as an entrant but was never in the match.
Shawn Michaels has now smashed Steve Austin‘s record of most Rumble eliminations with 41.
Joanie “Chyna” Laurer said she couldn’t care less about Beth Phoenix‘
post-Rumble comments about her. She said she wishes nothing but the best for all the Divas in WWE.
Tyson Kidd was disappointed that he didn’t get a Royal Rumble opportunity. He wrote on his Facebook page: “Guess they found 30 guys better, either that or I drew number 31.”
NASCAR driver Carl Edwards will guest host Raw next week in Baton Rouge.
A New Orleans Saints parade planned for next Tuesday means that SD/ECW will also tape in Baton Rouge at the River Center.
Jon Robinson has a Q&A with MVP at http://tinyurl.com/yasvhj7 where he describes his character as, “An amalgamation of T.O. [Terrell Owens] and Ochocinco and Allen Iverson and Ron Artest… All the bad attitudes and misbehaviors of overpaid, pompous athletes rolled into one.” He also talks meeting Bret Hart for the first time, breaking through the glass ceiling, video games, and wrestling websites.
An updated finance report revealed this week that Linda McMahon has already spent around $6.5 million of her own money on her campaign for the U.S. Senate. The report, which was posted on the Federal Elections Commission website, shows Linda has loaned $6 million to her campaign and has spent $500,000 on expenses and in-kind contributions. The report also noted that she has received at $11,582 in contributions from voters.
TNA WRESTLING NEWS
Bret Hart met briefly with TNA staffers last night after Raw at Bailey’s, an Irish pub in downtown Nashville.
Vince Russo was interviewed last night on the Monday Night Mayhem radio show. Full audio at www.mondaynightmayhem.com.
Hermie Sadler interviewed Samoa Joe at http://tinyurl.com/yzjrn5k. He talks about relocating to Florida and recently becoming a father. He also touches upon all the changes the company is going through right now.
The Iron Sheik calls Hulk Hogan and Kurt Angle “gold diggers” and has a message for Tiger Woods at http://tinyurl.com/ygwvcun.
OTHER WRESTLING NEWS
The WrestleSlam convention in England this past weekend encountered some
issues with wrestlers attempting to enter the country. Those turned away
were all former WWE names — Nora “Molly Holly” Greenwald, Bushwhacker
Luke, The Barbarian, Tugboat, Nikolai Vollkoff, and 74-year-old Mr Fuji.
They were detained and questioned by immigration agents for several
hours. It was determined that they didn’t have the correct documentation
required to work in the UK. They were later granted temporary entry but
ordered to return to the U.S. on available flights the next day. Their
passports were confiscated and each were given a charge that stays on
their file for ten years. Anthony Thomas, promoter of WrestleSlam, met
them at the host hotel afterwards and had them sign 8X10s for fans who
had prepaid for autographs. Those that made it into the country without
issue were Terry Funk, Lanny Poffo, The Warlord, Bryan Clarke, and
Howard Finkel. Promoter Thomas claimed that a rival group called
immigration and said some of the wrestlers were terrorists in an effort
to sabotage his event. However, UK Border Agency reps vehemently deny
that story saying it’s pure fiction. Steve Brassington, Regional
Director of the UK Border Agency, said in an email: “Under the
Government’s tough new Points Based System, paid professionals must
obtain a valid Certificate of Sponsorship prior to arriving in the UK.
These rules are designed to make sure that a legitimate sponsor is
linked to each application to enter the UK for work purposes.
Responsibility rests with applicants to have the correct documents in
place to allow them to work in the UK before traveling. This is a firm
and fair approach and it applies to everyone. All applications are
considered on their merits and in accordance with the Immigration Rules,
taking into account all the circumstances and supporting evidence.”
The Honky Tonk Man posted a new blog today. He backtracked slightly from
his comments of a few days ago and issued an apology to John Laurinaitis
of WWE: “He dealt with me as a first class gentleman and what we in the
business call ‘one of the boys.’ John was up front with me from day one.
He has a difficult job as a middle man trying to negotiate for the final
say in everything that happens in the [WWE]. The final say comes down to
Vince McMahon. Can you imagine the number of phone calls John has to
make on his day off or the number of calls he receives on a day off from
Vince?” Honky also promised that a rebuttal to the recent comments Eric
Bischoff made about him would be forthcoming.
Former WWE wrestler Ken Doane made it past the first round eliminations
on new Fox Reality series Seducing Cindy. There is a replay tonight at
9pm ET.
Jackie Haas has entered a contest to be on the next cover of Status
Fitness magazine. You can vote for her at http://tinyurl.com/y863gzt.
Eric Escobar has returned to Puerto Rico and is working for the World
Wrestling Council.
Today’s Diva of the Day is Beth Phoenix at
http://www.thewrestlingpress.com/DailyDiva.
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