Rumor Mill - WWE Rescinds Offer to Chris Hero

WWE has rescinded their contract offer to Ring of Honor star Chris Hero after results from his drug test showed elevated testosterone levels, reports WrestlingNewsWorld.com.

USA Scores "Upset" Over ESPN

In a rare occurrence during the NFL season, USA Network, backed by a three-hour WWE Raw episode, beat ESPN in the weekly cable TV rankings for the week of December 12. ESPN featured a weak Monday Night Football game last Monday, which helped USA to a victory in adults 18-49 ratings and overall viewership.

source: tvbythenumbers.com

Video: WWE "Phopetless"

The Treasures of WrestleMania

If the future WWE Hall of Fame were ever to open a wing devoted to The Show of Shows, here are items that will hopefully find their way inside:

Piper’s Boxing Gloves
Seen At: WrestleMania 2

Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake’s Scissors
Seen At: WrestleMania V

Battle Royal Trophy
Seen At: WrestleMania IV

Arrogance Atomizer
Seen At: WrestleMania VI

Blindfold
Seen At: WrestleMania VII

Zipline
Seen At: WrestleMania XII

Mike Tyson’s Pants and Shirt
Seen At: WrestleMania XIV

Undertaker’s Cape
Seen At: WrestleMania XV

Shawn Michaels’s Confetti Cannons
Seen At: WrestleMania XIX

Rey Mysterio’s Headdress
Seen At: WrestleMania 22

John Cena’s Mustang
Seen At: WrestleMania 23

Triple H’s Mask
Seen At: WrestleMania XXVII

source: wwe.com

This Day in Wrestling History

Bret Hart defeated Bill Goldberg for the WCW World Heavyweight Title and Chris Jericho and Chyna pinned each other to become co-holders of the WWF(E) Intercontinental title
December 20, 1999

Raw Results 12/19/11

Rumor Mill - Budget for the New WWE Network

The 2012 budget for payroll for the new WWE Network is estimated at around $20 million for the first year and $25 million in the second and third year. Production facilities and technical equipment will run the company another $18 million per year along with satellite uplinking estimated at around $13 million. This puts the first year budget anywhere from $60 to $90 million.

Income will be based on carriage fees, which is largely dependent on how much they will be able to charge cable operators for programming. Given the amount of money being invested, many wrestling media writers and others covering the network launch in the mainstream have dubbed this Vince McMahon's "next flop." McMahon reportedly has seen this network launch as a necessity dating all the way back to 2005.

This was largedly in part to Raw's contract expiring with Spike TV and felt he could make far more money in rights feeds by bidding all of the major cable networks against each other. When Spike dropped out early, everyone but USA and WGN weren't interested. The company went with USA given the low clearance for WGN. In going with USA the company ended up gaining a worse financial deal than they had on Spike. McMahon reportedly was vocal around this time about how the company could never risk a time where they weren't on American television.

source: wrestling observer

WWE Wins Six Mashable Awards

WWE won six social media Mashable Awards for 2011:

Must Follow Actor: Dwayne Johnson

Must Follow Athlete: John Cena

Must Follow Brand: WWE

Digital Company of the Year: WWE

Game of the Year: WWE '12

Best Social Good Cause Campaign: be a STAR

Bonnie Hammer on What She Thought WWE Should Be, Vince Comments

The New York Times ran a feature today on NBCUniversal executive Bonnie Hammer that featured quotes from WWE CEO Vince McMahon. Vince said about working with Hammer:

"She just came in and rolled up her sleeves. She taught us a lot about network quality writing, story arcs, character development. She really helped the overall brand."

Hammer told The Times that she thought WWE should be a male soap opera and decided that a heavy sports emphasis of WWE's programming limited its audience.

The Queen of Cable TV

CM Punk Comments on "Change" in the WWE

"Very proud right now. Proud of @WWEDanielBryan proud of @ZackRyder proud of my crew of young, talented hard workers. @findevan @TrueKofi and a ton of others. Tonight was a great step toward the future of the wrestling business. That change I've been talking about? Started. My march to Wrestlemania doesn't begin after the rumble. It's starts today. You're in or you're out. If you're out, you'll be left behind."

Kevin Nash Thanks Triple H

According to a source close to Kevin Nash, in his mind his match with Triple H at TLC was his retirement match. WWE could always decide to bring him back for another feud but Nash is under the impression that's it. He wrote on Twitter last night:

"Thanks Paul,nice to end it with someone I love."

This Day in Wrestling History

Frank Gotch is buried in Humboldt, Iowa with Iowa Governor W. L. Harding delivering the eulogy.
December 19, 1917

WCW held its 17th-annual "Starrcade" pay-per-view at the MCI Center in Washington, DC. WCW World Heavyweight Champion Bret Hart defeated Goldberg by "submission" in a No Disqualification match to retain the title. Many referees were taken out during the match. Roddy Piper ended up taking over officiating duties, and called for the bell while Goldberg was locked in the Sharpshooter without Goldberg submitting, in Montreal Screwjob fashion. Hart's win ended a four-year losing streak for WCW World Heavyweight Champions at "Starrcade". Bret Hart suffered a severe concussion during the match, due to a mule kick by Goldberg. Unaware of the severity of the injury, Hart continued to wrestle, but was soon diagnosed with post-concussion syndrome. The injury would prove to be career-ending, as Hart retired from wrestling soon after.

Madusa defeats Evan Karagias to win the Cruiserweight Championship at Starrcade. This was the first time a woman was crowned with this title.
December 19, 1999