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Showing posts with label Corey Graves. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Corey Graves. Show all posts

March 6, 2024

WWE Announcers Are Being Given More Leeway Under Triple H

A ton of things have changed in WWE once Paul "Triple H" Levesque took over creative from Vince McMahon in the summer of 2022 following the hush money scandal. The product has gotten better and morale has increased within those who work for the company. Commentary has also changed after years of McMahon being notorious for yelling at the announcers.


Changes

Corey Graves has been part of the commentary team for years and has worked under both men. Graves took on a new role as the lead SmackDown play-by-play voice last month.


While speaking on the Short and to the Point podcast, Graves talked about the support he has from Triple H, noting he owes a lot, if not his career, due to him supporting his transition from wrestler to commentator.


Experience

“He also is really cool and sort of refreshing in a sense that he gives us [announcers] space. When he's in Gorilla [position] right where the old boss sat, instead of being told and prompted, 'Hey, you've got to say this, you have to do it this way, you have to use this verbiage,' He, I think, understands that we’re all fans and we all love this in different ways. And as the business grows and evolves, you kind of have to let go of the reins a little bit. I still have my guide rails, I just feel like they’re a little bit wider on each side now where rather than trying to stay on a particular path and walk in a certain rhythm and do things a certain way, I have a little bit more leeway to be me and develop my own style.”

October 17, 2019

WWE Announces Premiere Date Of Their First Podcast, First Guest Revealed

WWE announced today that their first-ever weekly podcast series, After the Bell, will launch on Wednesday, October 30. The podcast, which will be hosted by Corey Graves, is the first for WWE Podcast Network, a partnership between WWE and Endeavor Audio.

According to a press release sent to Wrestling Inc. After the Bell will offer fans "an edgy and unpredictable look at the latest in Monday Night Raw, Friday Night SmackDown and NXT." New episodes will drop every Wednesday.

"After the Bell will deliver unprecedented access to the biggest WWE Superstars and storylines week in and week out. No other podcast can say that," said Graves. "As WWE's first podcast we have the responsibility to ask the burning questions and it's going to be a wild ride."

Paul "Triple H" Levesque will be Graves' special guest for the premiere episode.

Listeners can subscribe to After the Bell on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Pandora.

February 18, 2019

Corey Graves Separated From Wife For Months, Divorce Close To Being Finalized

Corey Graves’ ex-wife publicly accused the WWE announcer this weekend of cheating on her with Carmella, but we’re told the truth of the matter is different.

Sources close to Graves tell us he and Amy Polinksy have been in the divorce process for around six months and Corey has been living in a different home for two of those months.

We’re told Corey informed his ex over the weekend that he was now seeing someone else — a relationship that began after he had moved out of their home — and she reacted in a very public way. In case you missed it … Amy posted a photo on Twitter of their family and claimed Graves had been “sleeping with one of my daughters role models all along,” Carmella.

Polinksy deleted the post, but posted others throughout the day about the situation before her Instagram account was taken down.

Our sources say that despite how it was made to sound on social media, Corey did not get caught cheating on his wife with Carmella and their divorce is close to being finalized.


source: prowrestlingsheet.com

February 16, 2019

Corey Graves' Wife Accuses Graves Of "Sleeping With" WWE Star

Amy Polinsky, wife of WWE commentator Corey Graves, took to her Instagram account in an effort to shed some light on an alleged affair between Graves and WWE Superstar, Carmella.

In the since-deleted Instagram post, Polinsky first mentioned Graves' apparent suicide attempts and alcoholism before she brought up that he had been "sleeping with" Carmella.

Polinsky wrote, "This may be totally below me to do but I'm hurt. I'm sad. I've put 11 years into supporting a man to accomplish his dream only for him to punch me in the gut! I've been through suicide attempts, alcoholism, among so much more with him and stuck by his side. The kicker is finding out that he's been sleeping with one of my daughters role models all along. Carmella and Corey Graves I hope you guys are happy. I really do!"

Polinsky posted a photo of her family along with a text conversation with Graves. In the text conversation, Graves writes out multiple messages where he states, "I'm dead. I'm at home in my room and I have all of the food. I just kinda wanna disappear forever. Legit, I can't do any better than what I've got. I think this is it for me. I can't top it what I've got, so Why try? I just wanna fade away. Give them whatever they need. I've come to terms recently, that I need to shut it all down. All of it. I'm going to sleep. Maybe I'll wake up. Maybe I won't. I don't wanna wake up anymore. Just make sure the kids know I loved them."

After the initial post, Graves apparently responded to her, and Polinsky posted it on her latest IG Story. Graves wrote, "I suggest taking that post down, because WWE is gonna sue you. I just got a call."

February 4, 2018

Corey Graves Says Triple H Tipped Him Off That Graves' Wrestling Career Was Over

Corey Graves revealed that Triple H tipped him off that Graves would not be cleared to wrestle again, before the officially scheduled meeting where WWE management would tell him the news.

Graves, who retired from in-ring action in 2014 due to concussions and then made a successful transition to commentary for WWE, discussed the circumstances surrounding the end of his wrestling career during an appearance on a recent episode of E&C's Podcast of Awesomeness with Edge and Christian.

"Hunter, to his credit—at the time I hated him for it—a few days earlier kind of gave me a head up in the nicest way he possibly could. I got the initial heartbreak out of the way that day," Graves recalled.

The official meeting happened prior to an NXT taping at Full Sail University, at which Graves was told WWE doctors would not clear him to return to the ring after multiple concussions, he quickly shifted gears determined to find a new role with the company, saying:

"I imagine it must be what people feel like at any job that they put their time into and have a happiness in their life. Even being hurt and banged up and frustrated in NXT … I was still getting paid by WWE to wrestle. It was literally a dream job. So to have that dashed in such a quick period of time, it was hard to deal with but I also looked at it as, I've got a family to take care of. I'm still here. I don't think they're mad at me, I didn't do anything wrong, I didn't screw up. This is a really unfortunate thing. I just started doing anything and everything I could. ... The Monday following, I started working with the guys on production and learning how to play music at live events. I started paying my dues all over again from the ground up. Before the shows, I was running the cables under the ring for the speakers at the NXT live events. ... It was desperation, it was fear but at least if I'm doing nothing but production here [at NXT], I'm still with WWE."

Graves then found his niche on commentary and now finds himself commentating both Raw and Smackdown every week -- the only WWE broadcaster currently pulling that double duty.

January 28, 2017

Corey Graves Leaving NXT Announce Team


Announced tonight on the NXT Takeover kickoff show, Corey Graves will be stepping away from his duties as NXT commentary and announcer following tonight’s big show in San Antonio. He will be replaced by veteran wrestler and former Ring of Honor announcer Nigel McGuinness, who made his debut for the company at the recent WWE UK Championship Tournament, and was praised for his work alongside Michael Cole.

Graves will maintain his role on WWE Monday Night Raw, as a part of the commentary team with Michael Cole and Byron Saxton.

December 21, 2016

Michael Cole Says Corey Graves Is 'The Next Jerry Lawler'


ESPN has a new article online featuring quotes from Michael Cole. In it, he sung the praises of Corey Graves. Below is an excerpt:

"We knew he was gonna be good, I just didn't know he was gonna be this good, this fast," Cole said of Graves. "We gave him a chance and he really worked hard at it. This didn't come to him easy. He put a lot of time in at the Performance Center, and hours and hours of work.

"We put him on Raw, and he took off. He's the new guy, he's the new heel. He's the next JBL, the next Jerry Lawler," Cole continued. "He's got a unique presence, he's got sarcasm and he's got wit, and he also has the experience of being in the ring, being a former NXT tag team champion. He has everything. A good looking young kid - he's the future of what we do here.”

November 11, 2016

Corey Graves On Transition To Announcing Being Tough


"To see the guys I came up with in the ring bothered me a lot worse before, but now, I think the familiarity lends itself to doing my job better. I was in the ring in FCW and NXT with guys like Seth Rollins and Bray Wyatt and that helps me, but it took a lot of time to get to this point. I don't think the love for being in the ring will ever go away and be completely gone, but it's a lot less. I'm enjoying being surrounded by guys I know so well."

July 20, 2016

WWE commentary gets a facelift for the New Era


It’s a New Era for the entire landscape of WWE, which continues to change and evolve with the WWE Brand Extension Draft. That includes the announce teams for WWE programming. The teams for Raw, SmackDown, "WWE Superstars" and WWE Main Event are all experiencing a major shakeup, including one major voice changing shows and several rising commentators being inserted into the lineup.

The new announce teams for WWE’s New Era will feature Michael Cole, Corey Graves and Byron Saxton Monday nights on Raw, while Mauro Ranallo, JBL and David Otunga handle the commentary for SmackDown Live every Tuesday night.

Also receiving a makeover will be the announce teams for WWE Superstars and WWE Main Event. Both shows will be led by Tom Phillips, and he will be joined each and every week by Graves on WWE Superstars and Otunga on WWE Main Event.

June 23, 2016

Notes on Tonight’s WWE Cruiserweight Classic Taping; Accident Causes Delay, Seating Chaos, Top Names Backstage, More


-The show was delayed from its original start time as, according to officials in the arena, there was a traffic accident that delayed some fans getting to the arena and they didn’t want to start the taping with a half-empty house. While there are conflicting statements going around about this, with some suggesting that WWE was covering for a low turnout, local news reports confirm that there was a serious two-lane blocking accident in the Orlando area slowing down traffic considerably.

-Because of the delay and fans arriving late, there was a bit of an issue with seating in the building. Apparently close to the original start time, arena workers had started to tarp off areas and move people into hard camera seats to fill in gaps. However when people began to arrive late, it caused a problem with many of their seats already being taken, and workers having to rearrange reserved seating sections to accommodate for the chaos.

-Both Smackdown announcer Mauro Ranallo and Daniel Bryan, who will be co-hosting the tournament together, received huge reactions from the crowd when introduced.

-WWE did a live stream introducing all of the CWC competitors on their Facebook account, which you can check out at this link.

-There were several WWE and NXT names backstage for the taping, including Finn Balor, Corey Graves and Becky Lynch, Hideo Itami and Funaki (who is still with the company doing Japanese commentary for the PPV’s). Obviously Triple H was also backstage in production as well.

-They will be taping four episodes at tonight’s taping event which will include all 16 of the first round tournament matches. We are hoping to have a bracket for what the second round will look like later tonight.

-Possibly killing the rumor of a WWE Cruiserweight Championship return that has been floating around since the announcement of the tournament several months ago, Mauro Ranallo noted during the Facebook-exclusive talent parade earlier tonight that the winner would receive a Cruiserweight Trophy. No mention of a championship of any kind.

November 4, 2015

Triple H Presents Check to the Concussion Legacy Foundation


As noted, Corey Graves is hosting Chris Nowinski's Concussion Legacy Foundation's 8th annual Impact Awards tonight in Boston and Triple H also attended. As seen below, they presented the foundation with a check:

October 7, 2015

Corey Graves' Announcement Revealed


The Corey Graves announcement he has been teasing is a new monthly column, "Stay Loud," for Alternative Press. Their website has details at this link. Graves appeared at the AP Music Awards this year to interview musicians and present the Album of the Year Award to Black Veil Brides. Graves commented to AP:

"In my life, there's only been one thing I've loved as much as wrestling, and that's music. Music has always played an essential role in the wrestling/sports entertainment world. From signaling the arrival of your favorite stars, to evoking raw, deep emotion in video packages, WWE wouldn't be what it is today without loud music. I grew up working in record stores and reading Alternative Press, and it's an honor for me to help bring these two worlds together in my new monthly column. Stay Loud!"

September 30, 2015

Corey Graves to Host the 2015 Concussion Legacy Impact Awards


The Concussion Legacy Foundation will honor former NFL Player Chris Borland with the Impact Award at the 8th Annual Impact Awards Dinner on Wednesday, Nov. 4, at the Revere Hotel in Boston.

The Impact Award recognizes individuals and organizations for their commitment to solving the concussion crisis. Borland led the San Francisco 49ers in tackles as a rookie linebacker in 2014, but retired from the NFL in March at age 24 after independently researching the long-term effects of repetitive head trauma, and deciding continuing to play was not worth the risk.

“Since his retirement in March, Chris Borland has been tirelessly working to share his knowledge and experience to raise concussion awareness,” said Concussion Legacy Foundation Executive Director Chris Nowinski. “His advocacy will help athletes and parents throughout the country make more informed decisions for themselves and their children.”

In addition, Margy McHale and her partner Marnie Abramson will be recognized with the Legacy Award, which is given to family members of a Legacy Donor (brain donor) who have honored their loved one’s memory by supporting the mission of the Concussion Legacy Foundation. Margy is the sister of former NFL lineman Tom McHale, who died in 2008 at age 45 and whose brain was donated to the Foundation and Boston University, where he was diagnosed with CTE.

The 2015 Impact Awards will be hosted by WWE announcer Corey Graves, and will include a special guest appearance by HBO Real Sports correspondent Andrea Kremer. Proceeds will benefit the nonprofit Concussion Legacy Foundation’s advocacy, awareness, education and research programs. Last year, more than 225 supporters and distinguished guests from across the country attended the event and raised $300,000 to support Concussion Legacy Foundation programs.

Previous honorees include WWE, The Ivy League, the National Football League, neuropathologist Dr. Ann McKee, former soccer players Brandi Chastain and Cindy Parlow Cone, former NFL player Ted Johnson, former boxer Micky Ward, and former professional hockey player Keith Primeau.

Paul Levesque is on the Board of Directors of The Concussion Legacy.

August 29, 2015

Paul Heyman Praises Corey Graves and Compares Him To UFC Commentator, Talks ECW and NXT Comparisons, What Makes NXT Unique, More


Sam Roberts Live featured Paul Heyman , who gave his thoughts on Corey Graves and his duties within WWE.

“Corey gets the whole roster over and that’s the key,” Heyman said. “The job that he’s doing is so phenomenal that sooner than later, we’re going to say that Joe Rogan is the Corey Graves of UFC.”

According to Heyman, ECW was all about showcasing professional wrestling styles that were new and progressive and tomorrow”, which is what NXT is about”.

Paul Heyman stated that “it was always what we didn’t have.” He compares having too many of similar style wrestlers and says he was always looking to do something different.

July 27, 2015

WWE Unveils the Ultimate SummerSlam Experience at Barclays Center


WWE (NYSE: WWE) and Barclays Center announced today the addition of several fan events to take place at Barclays Center as part of the Ultimate SummerSlam Experience in Brooklyn. Tickets will be available this Saturday, August 1, at noon EST through Ticketmaster.

On Friday, August 21 and Saturday, August 22, WWE will host “WWE Superstar Meet and Greets” at 40/40 CLUB & Restaurant at Barclays Center. These exclusive sessions will give WWE fans an opportunity to get autographs and photos with their choice of WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins™, Randy Orton®, Roman Reigns®, Dean Ambrose®, Bray Wyatt™, WWE Divas Charlotte™, Paige™ and Becky Lynch™, WWE Legend Sting™ and WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels®.

On Saturday, August 22, a special “SummerSlam Panel” will take place at Barclays Center, giving fans a chance to ask questions directly to WWE Superstars. The topic of the panel will be NXT®, where WWE Executive Vice President of Talent, Live Events and Creative Paul “Triple H®” Levesque, WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins™, NXT Champion Finn Bàlor™, NXT Women’s Champion Sasha Banks™, WWE Superstar Kevin Owens™, WWE commentator Corey Graves™ and host Byron Saxton™ will discuss the evolution of one of the hottest entertainment brands in the world seen every Wednesday night at 8 p.m. on WWE Network.

The “SummerSlam Panel” will feature a 90 minute discussion and Q&A with fans in attendance. General admission and a limited number of VIP tickets will be available. The VIP ticket includes priority floor seating, a professional photo with select panel Superstars and an exclusive, autographed limited edition poster.

Tickets for “WWE Superstar Meet and Greets” and the “SummerSlam Panel” will be available this Saturday, August 1, at noon EST and can be purchased online by visiting http://www.barclayscenter.com, http://www.ticketmaster.com, or by calling 800-745-3000. Tickets can also be purchased at the American Express Box Office at Barclays Center on Monday, August 3 at noon. For more information on SummerSlam Week activities, please visit www.SummerSlam.com.

In addition, WWE NXT will make its historic debut in New York City on Saturday night, August 22, as NXT Takeover: Brooklyn will emanate live from Barclays Center. NXT Takeover: Brooklyn is NXT’s biggest event to date, and will be broadcast live on WWE Network. The main event will feature Finn Bàlor™ defending his newly crowned NXT Championship against former Champion Kevin Owens™. The event will also include appearances by NXT Women’s Champion Sasha Banks™, Samoa Joe™, Rhyno™, Enzo Amore™, Big Cass™, as well as a special appearance by international superstar Jushin “Thunder” Liger. Tickets for NXT Takeover: Brooklyn are currently available through Ticketmaster.

May 13, 2015

Most Popular WWE Network Shows from Last Week, What Weekly Show Doesn't Do Good, Other Favorites


The most-watched WWE Network content from last week are as follows:

1. WWE 24: Roman Reigns
2. Chris Jericho interviews Stephanie McMahon
3. WWE NXT, May 6th episode
4. Jerry Springer Too Hot for TV: Love Hurts
5. Extreme Rules

The Cinco de Mayo special with Los Matadores didn't do well and Superstars episodes also don't do too well.

The special on Floyd Mayweather vs. Big Show, the previous week’s NXT episode, Culture Shock with Corey Graves, Unfiltered with Renee Young, Mick Foley's Cheap Pops, the ECW Uncensored Volume 3 sneak peek, and a second Jerry Springer episode were also popular among viewers, as well as the last season of Tough Enough and 2014 episodes of Total Divas.

May 6, 2015

ESPN E:60 WWE "Behind the Curtain" Recap


March 28, 2015

Recap of WWE NXT at San Jose State University


WWE NXT held their biggest event yet on Friday night at San Jose State University with between 4,500 and 5,000 fans in attendance. Thanks to Ryan Aziz and Corey Montgomery for the following results:

* JoJo sang the National Anthem and even before that there was a crazy buzz in the air. The crowd was fired up and ready to go. Corey Graves came in the ring to kick off the show but was met with "you f--ked up" chants because his mic didn't work. Graves talked about how far NXT has come and got a chant going.

* Hideo Itami defeated Tyler Breeze in the opener after GTS. This was an awesome match, maybe it was just the setting but this was a lot better than their recent TV matches. The crowd was chanting for GTS early on and Itami went for it during the match, finally nailing it after a big corner dropkick. Itami got the win and was really fired up feeding off the crowd.

* Jason Jordan defeated Bull Dempsey after an Exploder suplex. Dempsey got decent heel heat for this entrance and controlled most of the match. Jordan looked alright in the ring but he didn't get much of a reaction at all.

* Alexa Bliss and Bayley defeated Dana Brooke and Becky Lynch in a great Divas bout. Bayley came out to a huge hometown reaction that carried on. Bayley hit her suplex on Becky for the win and had a pretty big celebration after the match. She was interviewed by Greg Hamilton I believe it was and called it the coolest night of her life. Becky Lynch was really impressive in this match and played the heel role well.

* Solomon Crowe defeated Kalisto by submission with a Stretch Muffler. They did a lot of back and forth wrestling and a lot of mat wrestling but it was done well. They eventually made their way to the ropes and the floor. Crowe blocked a splash and put Kalisto into the Muffler for the win. Crowe also got a good reaction.

* Baron Corbin defeated Rhyno with End of Days. Rhyno got a huge pop when he came out and ECW chants. They brawled like two big men should after Corbin got warmed up. Rhyno finally went for the Gore but Corbin countered and hit End of Days. Corbin turned around after the match to a Gore from Rhyno to another big pop. The crowd really loved Rhyno as he was not advertised before.

* Intermission

* Corey Graves comes out and introduces Triple H, who gets a massive reaction and "thank you" chants. Triple H is clearly having fun. Triple H called NXT the hottest thing in town and said everyone from Vince McMahon to Shawn Michaels to Sean Waltman, Stephanie McMahon and others are backstage watching. He also pointed out Jim Ross in the front row and JR's name got a massive pop, way bigger than Vince and the others. He praised NXT as the future and got another big NXT chant going.

* WWE NXT Tag Team Champions defeated Enzo Amore & Big Cass and The Vaudevillians in an Elimination Match. Carmella, Enzo and Cass got a reaction that rivaled that of Rhyno and Itami, their schtick is over like crazy. All three teams worked well and played their roles with the crowd really well. That's one of the best parts about NXT is just about everyone seems to connect in some way. Big Cass pinned one of The Vaudevillians and they were eliminated first. Carmella then tried to get involved but it backfired and Cass got hit with a cheap shot while he checked on her.

* WWE NXT Women's Champion Sasha Banks defeated Charlotte by submission with the Bank Statement. The crowd has stayed hot all night but cranked it up a notch for these Divas. They chanted "this is wrestling" and "this is awesome" more than once. Lots of back and forth action several times but Charlotte's babyface comebacks were really cool. Sasha broke a pair of Figure Fours and they traded several pin attempts before Sasha dropped Charlotte into the Bank Statement and made her tap out. This was an amazing match, like Natalya vs. Charlotte. It's hard to do justice with words but hopefully this becomes available somewhere in the near future. Charlotte got a "thank you Charlotte" chant after the match.

* Sami Zayn came out to a big pop and a chant. He admitted he ha some health issues that aren't too serious but he's not cleared to compete. He talks about the NXT revolution until NXT Champion Kevin Owens interrupts on the stage. Owens cuts a promo on Sami and then the fans after they give him the "what?" treatment. Owens brags about taking Sami's title and they had more words. Sami took credit for Owens even being in NXT. They teased a fight but Owens backed off and mentioned his own recent surgery. Sami promised to get the NXT Title back once Owens is cleared. With both of them injured, they made the best of things and pulled off a really good promo segment.

* Finn Balor came out in full body paint for the main event against Adrian Neville and got a "holy s--t" chant from the crowd, who was still hot. There was a better than WrestleMania chant at one point and many other chants as they tore the house down. Balor ended up moving out of the way of Red Arrow and hitting the big stomp for the win.

February 24, 2015

Corey Graves Responds to #GiveDivasaChance Twitter Backlash


Early today, NXT announcer Corey Graves commented on the #GiveDivasAChance hashtag that trended worldwide during Monday Night Raw last night.

While I dig #GiveDivasAChance, I truly believe that our divas will make their own chances in time. Have you watched @WWENXT lately?!

Since then it seems Graves has caught quite a bit of grief over his opinions.

Remember that time I tried to speak rationally to the Internet? Yeah, that'll never happen again. #sicksadworld I’d be willing to bet that most of the people blowing up my Twitter right now also believe everyone should get a trophy for playing. You make a point. I make a point. Repeat until issue is resolved. They call it conversation. Try it. It’s less exhausting. What you all have done, is take a guy (me) trying to DEFEND your cause, and turned me off by being idiots. I hope you all fail.

February 7, 2015

Corey Graves Hosting Special NXT, Rival Kickoff Pre-show News


A special edition of WWE NXT will premiere this Tuesday night at 9pm on the WWE Network. Corey Graves will host the show and look at the events leading up to NXT Takeover: Rival.

The NXT Takeover: Rival Kickoff Pre-show is now confirmed for 7:30pm EST on the WWE Network on Wednesday night. It will feature Renee Young, Byron Saxton, Jason "Tensai" Albert and Graves.

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