Two WWE Hall of Famers Appearing at NXT Takeover

On Monday night's edition of WWE RAW, it was announced that WWE Hall of Famers Ric Flair and Bret Hart will both be appearing at this Thursday night's NXT Takeover event on the WWE Network.

They will both play roles in the NXT Women's Championship Match, as Flair will be in Charlotte's corner and Hart will be in Natalya's corner.

This Day In Wrestling History - HBK Loses His Smile

On a special Thursday edition of RAW, Shawn Michaels forfeits the WWF(E) Title in a move that many felt he did in order to avoid losing to Bret "Hitman" Hart at WrestleMania 13. In his promo, Michaels said he needed to go home to quote "find his smile."
February 13, 1997

John Cena, Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, Championship Ladder Match & More Advertised for WWE Network Debut of NXT TV, Special Gets Official Name

WWE is going all out for the live debut of NXT on the WWE Network February 27th. As we have known for quite some time, Antonio Cesaro will face Sami Zyan in a rematch of their epic 2013 match, where the winner must win two out of three falls to gain the victory. Also scheduled is an NXT Championship ladder match between champion Bo Dallas and Adrian Neville.

Tonight at the last NXT television taping prior to the live debut, a huge list of names both past and present was announced for the show. WWE Hall of Famers Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels will join WWE Superstars John Cena, Sheamus and the New Age Outlaws Billy Gunn and Road Dogg.

Additionally, the special will be titled “NXT Arrival.”

WrestleMania Axxess Signing Schedule

TICKETS
Tickets for WrestleMania Axxess go on sale Saturday, Feb. 1, at 11 a.m. ET/10 a.m. CT and will be available on Ticketmaster.com or charge by phone: 800-745-3000.

ATTRACTIONS
This year's WrestleMania Axxess experience includes Superstar signings, photo opportunities, Superstar Q&A sessions, memorabilia displays, WWE Shop and much more. Check back soon for a full list of attractions!

SUPERSTAR SIGNING DATES & TIMES
Thursday, April 3 — 6 p.m.–10 p.m.

Friday, April 4 — 6 p.m.–10 p.m.

Saturday, April 5
Session 1: 8 a.m.–12 p.m.
Session 2: 1 p.m.–5 p.m.
Session 3: 6 p.m.–10 p.m.

Sunday, April 6
Session 1: 8 a.m.–2 p.m.

GENERAL ADMISSION TICKETS — $45*
General admission tickets include:

Autographs and professional photos with WWE Superstars, Divas and Legends
Enjoy viewing matches, Q&As and contests in the main ring

VIP TICKETS — $95*
VIP tickets include:

Autograph and professional photo with a VIP WWE Superstar
Exclusive VIP line at the event entrance
(1) 8x10 glossy photo of the appearing Superstar

VIP SIGNING SCHEDULES
Thursday, April 3
6 p.m. – Randy Orton
8 p.m. – Bret Hart


Saturday, April 5
Session 1:
10 a.m. – Daniel Bryan

Session 2:
1 p.m. – Big Show

Session 3:
6 p.m. – CM Punk
8 p.m. – Sheamus

Sunday, April 6
8 a.m. – Bruno Sammartino
10 a.m. – Rey Mysterio
12 p.m. – Shawn Michaels

PREMIUM VIP TICKETS — $175*
Premium VIP tickets include:

Autograph and professional photo with a Premium VIP WWE Superstar
Exclusive VIP line at the event entrance
(1) 8x10 glossy photo of the appearing Superstar
(1) Copy of the "WWE 50" book: Celebrating 50 Years of Sports Entertainment

PREMIUM VIP SIGNING SCHEDULES
Friday, April 4
6 p.m. – John Cena
8 p.m. – Batista

Saturday, April 5
3 p.m. – The Undertaker
Children two years old and younger are FREE.

*Prices are PER SESSION and do not include applicable fees

WWE Diva Nattie Neidhart carrying on Hart family’s tradition

The Hitman is a Total Divas fan.

That’s word from Nattie Neidhart, who says that her wrestling legend uncle, Bret (The Hitman) Hart, has given her a thumbs-up for the E! reality show she is starring alongside other female stars of the WWE.

The WWE offered up Neidhart for a phone interview Thursday to help promote their show at the Pacific Coliseum on Saturday. The WWE website lists Randy Orton, CM Punk and Daniel Bryan as being part of the card.

Neidhart, 31, went over several topics in the 30-minute chat, but seemed most keen talking about Divas. It is, of course, one of the new brands that the WWE is trying to push.

Neidhart said she recently spent some time with Uncle Bret and said he told her that he doesn’t miss a show. For what it’s worth, when Hart, 56, came to Nat Bailey Stadium for a Vancouver Canadians promotion a few years back, one of his favourite topics was his niece, who’s the daughter of his former tag-team partner, Jim (The Anvil) Neidhart, 58.

“Bret doesn’t like reality TV normally and he didn’t used to be a fan of women’s wrestling,” said Neidhart, who’s working in the ring these days under the name Natalya.

“When the Hitman tells you it’s cool, you know it’s cool.”

Family isn’t the only wrestling royalty she’s keeping contact with seemingly, either. Neidhart says that when she has days off she frequently visits NXT, which is the WWE’s farm team, as it were, based in Orlando, Fla. She works with the female up-and-comers, but she says she’s also been receiving tutoring from Triple H, the multi-time world champion, on her match storytelling.

Triple H’s real name is Paul Levesque, and he’s one of the WWE executives by day. He’s also married to Stephanie McMahon, daughter of WWE boss Vince McMahon.

“I don’t want to give away too much of what he’s told us,” Neidhart said.

“It has been really eye-opening.”

More?

Bret Hart Wishes He Never Left WWE, Talks Montreal

The Metro website has posted a new Bret Hart interview where he discusses his great rival, greatest achievement, the new WWE 2K14 game, and more.

One of the interesting highlights was Bret's response to how he views The Montreal Screwjob today.

"I’ve calmed down a lot," Bret said. "There were a lot of things I did to escalate that whole thing with Shawn Michaels and Vince McMahon. I wouldn’t change anything I did in terms of my own conduct but I regret all of it. I wish I had never left the WWE but I’ve moved on. I went back and shook Shawn’s hand and it was good for everyone to bury the hatchet."

This Day In Wrestling History - Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, Montreal

Happy Birthday to Chris Jericho
November 9, 1970

The infamous "Montreal Screwjob" occurs as Vince McMahon, Shawn Michaels, Earl Hebner and others, screwed Bret Hart out of the WWF(E) title. Bret Hart immediately spat in Vince McMahon's face and later knocked him out backstage with a punch.
November 9, 1997

Steve Austin defeated Owen Hart for the WWF(E) Intercontinental title.
November 9, 1997

WWF(E) filed suit against the Parents Television Council for harassment.
November 9, 2000

This Day In Wrestling History

Dan McLeod defeats Martin Burns in Chicago, Illinois, to win the American Heavyweight Title.
October 26, 1897

The Executioners (Killer Kowalski & John Studd) were stripped of the WWWF World Tag Team title when they had a third member (Nikolai Volkoff) participate in a title defense against Chief Jay Strongbow & Billy White Wolf in Hamburg, Pennsylvania. Strongbow & White Wolf would go on to win the belts in a three team tournament with the Executioners and, ironically, Volkoff & Tor Kamata.
October 26, 1976

Sweet Brown Sugar defeats Ernie Ladd to win the Florida version of the NWA Southern Heavyweight Title in Lafayette, Louisiana.
October 26, 1979

Bret Hart announces his retirement from professional wrestling on his official website, ending his 23 year run in the business.
October 26, 2000

This Day In Wrestling History

Mayor Bosse and the Sheriff of Evansville, IN confiscate the $2,756 in ticket sales from the previous night's match on the basis that they believe the Stecher-Lewis match was "not on the square" and was in fact "rigged." Mayor Bosse then proclaims that there would be no more wrestling in Evansville. Show promoter W. F. Barton is left with just $13 after the incident and claimed to owe $400 to the wrestlers.
October 21, 1915

All Japan Pro Wrestling holds it's first ever show at Machida City Gym in Tokyo, Japan. The show is headlined by a two out of three fall tag team match, with Bruno Sammartino & Terry Funk defeating Giant Baba & Thunder Sugiyama. Funk pinned Sugiyama to win the first fall, Sugiyama pinned Funk to win the second, and Baba & Sugiyama were counted out in the final fall.
October 21, 1972

Ernie Ladd defeats Carlos Colon in San Juan, Puerto Rico for the WWC North American Heavyweight Title.
October 21, 1974

Ken Patera defeats Tony Atlas to win his second NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Title in Greensboro, North Carolina.
October 21, 1978

Bret Hart, ending months of rumors and speculation, signs a 20-year contract with the World Wrestling Federation, turning down a lucrative offer from WCW. As part of the agreement, which will see Hart become a part of the WWF office following his in-ring career, Bret is allowed to go into the ring during a live edition of Raw and discuss his decision. Hart does not blast WCW (as some within WWF were hoping), but does reveal that he is staying with the WWF. One year later, Vince McMahon would be asking Bret to drop the WWF Title to Shawn Michaels at the Survivor Series and releasing him from the contract, beginning the most famous story in wrestling history, the Montreal Screwjob.
October 21, 1996

Hunter Hearst Helmsley defeats Marc Mero the WWF Intercontinental Title, his first title in WWF/E.
October 21, 1996

Chris Jericho defeated The Rock for the WCW Heavyweight title.
October 21, 2001

Triple H simulated sex with a mannequin while dressed as Kane, in the infamous Katie Vick necrophilia skit.
October 21, 2002

This Day In Wrestling History

Happy Birthday to Scott Hall
October 20, 1959

WCW fired Bret Hart due to his incapacitating injury - Hart announced his retirement.
October 20, 2000

Triple H defeated Kane at No Mercy to unify the World Heavyweight Championship & Intercontinental Title. The IC Title would later be re-instated in May of 2003.
October 20, 2002

Miami Marlins Bringing in WWE Legends to Boost Attendance

Bizofbaseball.com is featuring an article about the MLB's Miami Marlins hosting a slew of appearances by WWE Legends like Bret Hart, Jimmy Hart, Jim Neidhart and other noteable names like Bill Goldberg, Mr. Anderson, Chavo Guerrero and more to boost attendance. The Marlins boast the worst attendance among all MLB teams despite a brand new ballpark...More?

Wrestling News Reporter Profiled By The New York Times, Bret Hart Offers Comment

The New York Times has published an article profiling longtime wrestling news reporter Dave Meltzer, editor of the frequently-attributed Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

Meltzer has been publishing his newsletter since 1983, which was initially considered groundbreaking since he divulged insider news and various behind-the-scenes happenings in the professional wrestling industry when its secrets were heavily guarded. The intriguing publication, which was referred as a “dirt sheet” by wrestlers, was passed around in locker rooms, with some even subscribing under their birth names in an attempt to hide their identity.

“They didn’t think I knew their real names,” said Meltzer. “I did.”

While legendary wrestler, promoter and trainer Stu Hart was an avid subscriber to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter—he would have wife Martha read it to him at their Calgary home—iconic grappling son Bret Hart, on the other hand, wasn’t fond of Meltzer revealing the secrets of professional wrestling.

“I wanted to punch him out,” Hart said. “I didn’t like the idea of somebody trying to tell everyone what was going on.”

J. J. Dillon, who worked as a front office executive for Vince McMahon in the World Wrestling Federation from the late-eighties through the mid-nineties, added, “There would be a board meeting and information that was only discussed in that meeting with key people and Dave would report on it. It drove Vince nuts.”

An “exasperated” McMahon began communicating with Meltzer when he was hired in 1990 as a wrestling columnist for short-lived The National Sports Daily, elevating his reputation and readership.

“That was the difference from eking out a living to making a good living, that exposure,” Meltzer said.

In 1997, Hart signed a contract to perform for World Championship Wrestling after having been affiliated with the World Wrestling Federation since 1984. McMahon sought to prevent Hart from leaving the organization as the champion, but Hart was unwilling to lose the title to Michaels—with whom he had been irritated by—at Survivor Series in his home country of Canada. McMahon then conspired to ring the bell prematurely, awarding the strap to Michaels. When McMahon went to Hart’s dressing room and tried to explain himself, Hart angrily rebuffed him and warned him to leave immediately or risk being punched. An altercation ensued, with Hart dropping McMahon with a single punch. Hart contacted Meltzer shortly thereafter, with the entire scene being relayed in an issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

“I knew then why I needed Meltzer,” Hart said. “It wasn’t a story line, it wasn’t pretend. Wrestling writes its own publicity. I was always grateful for someone allowing the truth to come out.”

While many of Meltzer’s readers digitally subscribe to the newsletter at F4WOnline.com, about 30 percent of his audience prefer the printed version.

“Things haven’t changed that much,” said Hart, who still visits locker rooms after retiring as a wrestler. “Everyone fights for The Observer just to see if they’re in it. Sometimes you’re in it and sometimes you’re not. Sometimes you like what he writes and sometimes you don’t. But I think wrestlers realize it’s good to have someone speaking for you.”...More?

Update on Bret Hart's Comments Concerning Triple H

Over at his official Twitter account, Bret Hart has said his initial remarks have been misinterpreted by people and the comment about "4/10" was actually a reference to a Raw sign, not to the match. He says that in fact he enjoyed the Lesnar/Triple H bout.

Bret Hart Comments On His Relationship With Triple H

Arda Ocal interviewed Bret Hart and sent in the following recap where The Hitman discusses his strained relationship with Triple H:

Ocal asked him about comments he made when the pair last spoke in an interview a few weeks ago about Triple H not being in his Top 1000 wrestlers and giving Undertaker vs Triple H at Wrestlemania 28 a 4 out of 10.

Bret is aware that this has become a phenomenon among the internet wrestling community and also gave the match between Triple H and Brock Lesnar at Wrestlemania 29 a 4/10. He also reveals that he and Triple H dont speak today and when they see each other its typically nothing more than “Hi, bye”. Though he does keep in contact today with Shawn Michaels.

Shawn Michaels & Bret Hart Appearing Together During WrestleMania Weekend

WWE Hall of Famers Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels will be reuniting at Wrestlemania 29 weekend for a special signing and Q&A Session together in New York City. This will mark the first time the duo have ever appeared together for a signing

The event will take place on Thursday 4/4 at Dave & Busters in Times Square at 6 PM, priced at $225 a ticket, which includes a photo and autograph with both, as well as the Q&A.

For ticket information, visit ShawnandBret.com.

WWE Looks at Moments We Never Expected

WWE's website has a new article looking at 10 moments you never expected to see in WWE.

Shane McMahon appearing on the final WCW Nitro in 2001 topped the list, followed by Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart reconciling on RAW in 2010, Bruno Sammartino accepting a WWE Hall of Fame invite, Vince McMahon hugging Eric Bischoff on RAW in 2002, and the nWo invading WWE in 2002.

This Day In Wrestling History - HBK Loses His Smile

On a special Thursday edition of RAW, Shawn Michaels forfeits the WWF(E) Title in a move that many felt he did in order to avoid losing to Bret "Hitman" Hart at WrestleMania 13. In his promo, Michaels said he needed to go home to quote "find his smile."
February 13, 1997

Chris Jericho Defends Triple H Following Bret Hart's Comments

From Chris Jericho's interview on Busted Open Radio:

Jericho on Bret Hart’s comments on Triple H:

"It was funny because when I saw that comment that Bret had said, I was kind of surprised because I think that Triple H has had a lot of great matches, dozens of great matches. I could think of two or three that I was in with him myself, so, maybe, I don’t know why Bret would say that, maybe it’s still a little bit personal or some bad vibes or taste in his mouth from what happened years ago. But I’ll tell you face to face that Triple H has had many great matches and I always enjoyed watching him work, even up to the match he had with Lesnar. I don’t know if that was a great match, it was definitely a very good one, so I would definitely never ever bury Triple H’s wrestling talent for sure I think he’s one of the best we’ve ever seen."


What benefit does it have for Bret Hart to make those comments?

"He’s saying it just because, old, old, old wounds die hard, or whatever the cliché is. You know, I’m sure Bret has made his peace with Shawn over the Montreal Screw Job; maybe he still has some lingering issues with Triple H as part of that. I don’t know, cuz I think Bret is very much one of my favorites of all time, one of my top two or three as a matter of fact, but maybe there’s a little bit of bias in this or something like that for him to say that Triple H has had no great matches. Cuz I don’t think anybody could ever say that he’s had no great matches.

You might say 'well this guy’s a jerk' or 'I don’t like him personally' or 'backstage I don’t like him' or 'politically I don’t like him', but there’s one thing you can never doubt with Triple H and that’s his wrestling ability, especially as a main event performer, like you said earlier, in the early 2000’s as the top heel in the company, I think you could throw any baby face’s name out there and you could probably match up a quote unquote great match that he had with that person, for sure.

Triple H may be a little bit underrated as far as the amount of flak that he takes over the years, but, as a performer, I’ll tell you straight up he was definitely one of the best, from that era and even up until last year. The match he had with Undertaker, the match he had with Undertaker the year before, both WrestleMania matches, were both amazing matches. Maybe not the same levels as the ones Shawn had with him but definitely in the exact same ballpark.

Triple H is just one of those guys, he’s got it, he always has had it, he’s a great ring general, he’s very smart in the psychology of putting together his matches, believable when he works, so definitely definitely definitely. Like I said, I could give you 3 matches that I had with him, personally that I thought were great. The Last Man Standing that we had in Dallas, the title match we had at State College where I won the title, and then the tag match with me and Benoit versus Triple H and Austin. All of them were what I would consider to be some of my best performances, some of my best matches that I ever had for sure."

Sorry Bret But You Opened The Door On This One

I wasn't going to post about Bret Hart's tirade against Triple H because I saw it as typical bullsh*t from a former wrestler. Apparently, I'm not the only one that feels this way. Camel Clutch Blog posted a great response:

Bret Hart has turned into a grumpy, at times bitter ex-WWE superstar. Bret can’t get enough of slamming his peers while telling you how great he was. Bret’s latest critique takes aim at Triple H. That is why it should be of surprise to nobody that when asked about Triple H, Bret took the opportunity to slam his legacy down. Now whether or not this was more about bitter feelings regarding Trips involvement in the Montreal Screwjob (it was his idea), well you can probably come to your own conclusion. Regardless of the influence, Bret Hart doesn’t think Triple H was really that good.

“What has he ever done that was great? I don’t think that he’s ever had a match that was great.” He also called the WrestleMania 28 match between Triple H vs. The Undertaker “predictable” and “mediocre, at best.”

So what has Triple H ever done that was so great? Well, what has Bret ever done that was so great other than his match with Austin? At the end of the day we are all talking about a worked business so who is better inside the ring is all a matter of what your tastes are as a fan. I look at money as the bottom line and in this case Triple H was the bigger business success than Bret ever was or ever will be.

Sorry Bret but you opened the door on this one...More?

WWE 'Shooting Straight' Panels Recap

It wasn’t long after Michael Cole politely reminded the members of D-Generation X that WWE is now in a post–Attitude Era during their “Shooting Straight” panel that Triple H fired out a word that would have had network executives pulling out their hair had it been uttered during a live Raw broadcast.

From that moment on, it was clear that WWE’s new “Shooting Straight” panels were going to be every bit as uncensored as the advertisements promised.

Introduced to the WWE Universe as part of Royal Rumble’s Fan Fest weekend, the three sessions — which focused on 1997’s Montreal Screwjob, D-Generation X and WCW — gave an intimate crowd of WWE fans the opportunity to hear inside stories about some of the most pivotal moments in sports-entertainment history from the men who lived them.

“I think it’s something we should have done a long time ago,” Booker T told WWE.com shortly after participating in Sunday’s WCW panel. “Letting our fans get a chance to ask those questions they’ve been wanting to ask for years and getting a true answer from someone who was there — I think it’s priceless.”

It was early Saturday night when WWE Hall of Famers Shawn Michaels, Bret “Hit Man” Hart and Jerry “The King” Lawler sat down with Michael Cole to discuss the infamous events of the 1997 Survivor Series. Although it has been nearly 16 years since the most notorious night in WWE history, it was clear that the controversies of that evening still resonate with WWE fans. As for HBK and Hart, both have matured considerably and have let go of any animosity. Still, The Excellence of Execution took pleasure in graphically describing the loogie he spit in Mr. McMahon’s face seconds after he was conned out of the WWE Title.

“That was like a 10 egg white omelet,” the “Hit Man” said with a laugh.

The next panel got just as messy as D-Generation X members Shawn Michaels, Triple H, X-Pac, Billy Gunn and The Road Dogg got together with Michael Cole to reminisce about the most anti-authority group in WWE history. In between crude jokes and bouts of riotous laughter, The Game revealed that he was nearly paired up with The Honky Tonk Man before DX took off. Another untold tale aired out for those in attendance was how, following DX’s infamous “attack” on WCW in Norfolk, Va., a subsequent invasion of WCW’s Atlanta headquarters nearly got the boys thrown in jail.

“They called the police and told them they were under attack from a militia group,” Triple H said, still in disbelief. “A hundred cops came with riot squads!”

The weekend’s final panel got underway on Sunday morning when former WCW competitors Booker T, Big Show, X-Pac and Kevin Nash talked with moderator Matt Striker about the rise of The New World Order and The Monday Night War. As expected, nothing was left unsaid as Nash revealed that Sting was nearly the third man to join the original nWo and that the reckless Goldberg was his least favorite competitor to face. On the topic of Goldberg, X-Pac added that the former WCW Champion wanted to call himself “The Hybrid” before his impressive winning streak began.

By the time the WCW panel ended, it was clear that WWE had taken a revolutionary step in inviting the audience behind the scenes. For the traditionally guarded world of professional wrestling, it’s a major shift, but one that is welcome.

“Whoever came up with this idea is an absolute genius, because the goal of WWE is to grow and I saw children out there who don’t remember The nWo and now they’re going to go back and learn about them,” Striker told WWE.com.

If you weren’t able to be in Phoenix for the first “Shooting Straight” panels, don’t fret. Chances are WWE will be bringing these innovative sessions to your town in the near future.

“I think it was a hit,” The Game said during the final moments of the DX panel. “And I think it’s something we’re going to do more often.”

source: wwe.com