ESPN anchor Jonathan Coachman ("The Coach" in WWE) says he was held back by ESPN management due to his background as an on-air WWE commentator and wrestling heel prior to joining the sports network.
"It really held me back for a while. There were certain people (ESPN executives) that were fearful of some negative backlash that they hired a guy best known for wrestling," Coachman told the local newspaper in Hutchinson, Kansas. "It was frustrating. I knew where I should be, at and I knew where I wasn't. But I also knew the reason." Coach also talked about being in Kemper Arena when Owen Hart died at the Over the Edge 1999 PPV when he was a sports reporter for Kansas City's ABC affiliate...More?
source: hutchnews.com
May 13, 2012
ESPN anchor says he was held back due to WWE background
Will MMA fans watch King Mo in TNA?
Seventy-seven percent of MMATorch.com readers say they will not be tuning in to Impact Wrestling to watch MMA fighter King Mo in a wrestling ring. The following are MMATorch's poll result on a question of whether readers will tune in for King Mo in Bellator, TNA, neither, or both.
No for both - 40 percent
No for TNA; Yes for Bellator - 37 percent
Yes for both - 17 percent
Yes for TNA; No for Bellator - 6 percent
This Day in Wrestling History
The Boston Garden has its last pro wrestling show, put on by the WWF(E). The show was called "A Night To Remember".
May 13, 1995
May 12, 2012
Cody Rhodes Comments on How He Will Reach the Top of WWE, Wrestlers Coasting in WWE, What Inspired IC Belt Change, More
WWE Intercontinental champion Cody Rhodes says he anticipates reaching the top of WWE because he doesn't see many others in the WWE locker room at his level of dedication and commitment.
"I guarantee you I'm going to make it to the top of this job because I don't think many people here do that any more. Actually, there's very few," Rhodes told Brian Soscia of Mix 106.1 Philadelphia promoting this weekend's Smackdown tour.
Rhodes prefaced his statement by saying the best career advice he received was from Shawn Michaels, who told him getting over and staying over is a full-time job. Rhodes noted many WWE stars are content with riding the middle and coasting to obtain a "good life," but he plans to push to the top.
Throughout the 15-minute interview, Rhodes spoke from a perspective that his mindset is to differentiate his character in a variety of ways. Rhodes said he did not wear kneepads to avoid looking like his father, Dusty Rhodes.
Not wearing kneepads put a lot of pressure on Cody's knees, though, so he began wearing the pads for support. Rhodes also said he felt not wearing kneepads to bug people "wasn't a money-making way to get heat."
Rhodes also talked about working with a mask, bringing back the classic Intercontinental Title belt, and the amount of time and money he puts into his ring gear.
May 11, 2012
Stephanie McMahon Assists her Mother's Campaign with a Mother's Day Email
Stephanie McMahon issues the following via her mother, Linda McMahon's CT senate campaign:
Dear Friend,
My mom is a lot of things to a lot of people. But to me, she'll always be the tooth fairy, the arbitrator of who crossed the imaginary line in the back seat during a long car ride, and my very best friend.
She taught me how to tie my shoes, made me eat my vegetables, and held my hand the first time I had my heart broken.
She taught my brother and me to stand up for what we believe in, to stand with those who can't stand up for themselves and above all, to always stand together.
Now that I'm a mom, I get it. Like so many young girls, I used to laugh at the thought of turning into my mother. Now, I pray my girls see in me what I see in my mom.
This Mother's Day, I hope you'll take a moment to share with all of us on Facebook, Twitter or email the greatest memories, prettiest pictures and biggest lessons you have of your mom. But more importantly, I hope you share them with her.
Happy Mothers Day!
Stephanie
WWE Making Major Change To NXT Tapings Beginning Next Week
WWE NXT will be graduating to its own tapings, combined with WWE developmental Florida Championship Wrestling starting on Thursday 5/17 at 7 PM.
The tapings will be held at Full Sail University in Winter Park, FL (near Orlando) at the Full Sail Live gym. Tickets for the tapings will be free to FSU staff and students with ID as long as they reserve the tickets in advance. No word yet as to how the general public can attend.
I am told one of the reasons the tapings, which will be branded as "WWE Superstar Showdown", are being moved are to make it easier to integrate WWE developmental talent into the mix for NXT. The hope is that the University feel will give the show a chance for better crowd reactions as well as help upgrade FCW TV to a "grander" look than the FCW Arena in Tampa can provide. The plan is to upgrade NXT and give it more attention as opposed to it being a secondary show on the Smackdown tapings.
HHH is behind the moves and will be very involved with the tapings. He was said to be a big fan of the facility when he and other company executives, including Kevin Dunn and Stephanie McMahon scouted last year.
This past December, WWE filmed several potential pilots at the facility and signed an exclusivity deal with the University to prevent any other wrestling-related events from being held there. Full Sail is an entertainment media university with state of the art production facilities.
Triple H is advertised for the initial taping, which will also feature Sheamus vs. Alberto Del Rio and R-Truth & Kofi Kingston vs. Epico & Primo.
Currently scheduled tapings:
May 17, 2012
June 14, 2012
July 5, 2012
July 19, 2012
August 9, 2012
August 23, 2012
September 6, 2012
September 20, 2012
source: pwinsider.com
Update on Vince McMahon's Future in WWE
It's being reported that since Vince McMahon has been "passing the torch" of control of WWE over to his daughter Stephanie and her husband Paul Levesque (Triple H), the next big name babyface star in WWE (such as Hulk Hogan, John Cena, etc.) could very well be the last one to be selected by Vince himself. It's been well-documented over the past couple of years that Vince has taken Triple H and Stephanie under his wing a lot more in trying to prepare them to take over the company.
source: wrestling observer
This Day in Wrestling History
The New York State Athletic Commission lifts a ban on tag team wrestling.
May 11, 1953
New Japan Pro Wrestling stars began arriving in the United States for a three night tour, the first time the promotion had run a tour in the States.
May 11, 2011
May 10, 2012
More Bad Publicity for WWE's Stock Price
During CNBC's "Mad Money", host Jim Cramer was asked yesterday about WWE stock. Cramer's response, "SELL, SELL, SELL, no growth!"
source: wrestling observer
Oderint Dum Metuant: Let Them Hate As Long As They Fear
