MMA fighter "King Mo" Lawal will sign with TNA and the Bellator MMA promotion, according to Sherdog.com. As part of Spike TV's partnership with TNA and Bellator, Lawal is expected to perform simultaneously for the organizations. His debut is unknown at this point, as Lawal is currently recovering from knee surgery.
May 10, 2012
MMA fighter reportedly signs with TNA
WWE reveals in-person social media test
WWE marketing executive Jason Hoch recently participated in a social media panel with representatives from ESPN, Major League Baseball, and other sports groups discussing the influence of social media on live sporting events. Hoch pushed WWE's recent pre-PPV offerings on YouTube. He also claimed that 25 percent of attendees at a house show last weekend voted in the "fans's choice stipulation" for the show's main event as part of a test on "in-person social engagement."
Rumor Mill - Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H Plans
The Wrestling Observer Newsletter is reporting the creative plans for Brock Lesnar vs Triple H are being kept very secretive. Vince McMahon, Stephanie McMahon, John Laurinaitis, Triple H, Brock Lesnar, Paul Heyman and a few others are aware of the plans but nobody else.
The WWE creative writing team hasn't even been informed on the specific direction of the angle. Those high ranking WWE officials are claiming Triple H vs Brock Lesnar will NOT happen at SummerSlam but reportedly sources still say the match will take place in August.
This Day in Wrestling History
Happy Birthday to Tito Santana
May 10, 1953
Happy Birthday to William Regal
May 10, 1965
Verne Gagne retired as AWA Heavyweight Champion.
May 10, 1981
Vince McMahon officially announces the end of the failed XFL football league.
May 10, 2001
May 9, 2012
Kassius Ohno Suffers Injury
FCW star Kassius Ohno, the former Chris Hero, is reportedly out of action due to a cervical sprain that happened at the April 26th FCW tapings in a match against his former partner Antonio Cesaro. Ohno did a twisting dive onto a bunch of guys but landed short and on top of his head. He was able to finish the match but was taken to the hospital for x-rays.
source: wrestling observer newsletter
Martha Hart files an updated lawsuit against Vince and Linda McMahon and WWE
Martha Hart filed an updated lawsuit against Vince and Linda McMahon and WWE in the ongoing battle over WWE's usage of Owen Hart's name and likeness. The new claims include:
*Owen's name would have reverted back to strictly his usage after his passing.
*That Owen's legal name is not a "ring name" and therefore WWE does not have the rights to use, market and promote that name in their materials and DVD releases.
*That WWE released eight DVDs and other items (including the WWE Encylopedia) without proper payments to Owen Hart's estate per his contract with Titan Sports, which required that royalty payments continue after his death.
*WWE used original intellectual property such as family photos without the estate's permission.
*That the Owen Hart Foundation has been hurt its unwanted association with WWE through their usage of Owen Hart video and material.
Linda McMahon filed a motion on May 2nd asking for more time to respond to the updated complaint. There was a settlement conference on the 4th via telephone to try and settle out of court. No word on how that went. A court date for a potential settlement was set for this September.
source: kokosports.com
And people wonder why Owen Hart isn't in the WWE Hall of Fame.
A Revolution Is Coming....
WWE's new viral marketing campaign is already underway. The campaign, which states, "A Revolution Is Coming," has launched on the WWE website and will be pushed more heavily starting on Monday. No word yet on if the campaign will air on television - or whether it is promoting a superstar return/debut, the WWE Network launch or something else.
The video, which is hidden on the WWE.com and appears randomly before certain video content on the site, appears to show flashes of citizen uprisings.
Rumor Mill - SmackDown Incident That Led To WWE Terminating Goldust's Contract
As noted before, Goldust was recently released by WWE after working as a producer for the SmackDown brand. Word came out that an undisclosed incident at the April 24th SmackDown tapings in Grand Rapids, Michigan led to his contract being terminated.
F4Wonline.com now reports that the belief is that Goldust was responsible for coming up with the spot on SmackDown where Yoshi Tatsu took a double-team powerbomb finisher from Darren Young and Titus O'Neil. Tatsu landed bad and the bump was said to look even worse live than it did on TV.
May 8, 2012
Another Bad Sign for the WWE Network
After reports came out that Oprah Winfrey's new OWN Network would lose over $300 million at the start, Discovery CEO David Zaslav said that he feels that the network will be at break even status by the second half of 2013. Discover co-owns the network with Winfrey. While I don't think WWE will see losses even close to that level on their network given that they own so much of the product that they will be delivering, it's still a pretty scary proposition for them when someone as popular and attracts the affluent audience that Winfrey does has such problems with a start up.
source: pwinsider.com
Change Being Made For WWE RAW Taping Schedule
WWE is changing the start time of their Monday night tapings. Beginning July 2nd, many of the Monday tapings will start 90 minutes before the live Raw broadcast. Currently, the tapings begin 30 or 45 minutes before Raw. No word yet on why WWE is extending the Monday tapings.
How Long Is Paul Heyman Back On WWE Television For?
PWInsider.com is reporting Paul Heyman will be appearing on WWE semi regularly until SummerSlam.
It is reported that Brock Lesnar and Triple H will have a SummerSlam match in August and Heyman continues to represent Lesnar up until that event. WWE feels Heyman is able to speak for Lesnar and keep the storyline going while not having to use up too many dates for Lesnar's appearance.
Reportedly Heyman has agreed to do this storyline to work with people he genuinely enjoys such as Lesnar, make some money and get his name back out there in regular conversation.
Oderint Dum Metuant: Let Them Hate As Long As They Fear
