ROH COO Talks About Ring Of Honor Deal With Destination America Being Kept Secret, Advertisers

Ring of Honor COO Joe Koff spoke with Against The Mat, talking about Ring of Honor's new television deal with Destination America. You can read the highlights below.

On ROH's deal with Destination America:

"It actually began sometime late last year, I can't remember if it was November or December… it was right around the time that Spike decided not to carry Impact Wrestling anymore, and they ended up moving over to Destination America, and around that time, once that was announced, because we're [Sinclair Broadcasting] a broadcasting company, and we're in the television business, we have a lot of contacts at other broadcasting companies, and one of my colleagues high in the organization made a contact over at Discovery, which owns Destination America, which turned into a lunch with the Destination America people, from there we conversed about the possibility of making Destination America the destination for wrestling in America. That's really how it all started."

On how the deal was kept under wraps:

"Well, good question, good point. I think I have a little bit of experience in this, in that, when we [Sinclair] bought Ring of Honor that also was not leaked until it was announced when we bought it. I'm from a business background and we are a big company that does lots of deals and transactions and we just know how to keep things to a minimum, and keep people to a minimum as far as their involvement and I think we're pretty good at it and I think this bears that out."

On wrestling's reputation with advertisers:

"I think the answer is really apparent. So I'm just going to put it into terms for our community, the wrestling world, which we're a part of. It's a really small world. It's big to us because we're living in it, and we're thriving in it, and we're enjoying in it, and we can have this conversation and talk about the business so openly and get excited about it, and talk about the excitement of what we do in the ring, but if you were at a party, and you tried to engage somebody in this conversation, they would probably, maybe walk away and go get a drink and probably talk to somebody else. We have a niche audience. We have a very loyal audience. I love our Ring of Honor fans. They come to the events, they buy the t-shirts, they buy the DVD's, they come up to me and thank me, they say hello, they take a picture with me, etcetera, etcetera. But they're comfortable, it's our environment, they're safe in there. There's going to be an advertiser, and there's some advertisers that seek out that male 18-24, 18-34 audience… but it's professional wrestling. We're not going to change some of that stigma that exists with being in professional wrestling or what the sport might represent. So, I just don't think it's high on the list of advertisers' wants or needs. But the advertisers' who do, and have the foresight to go after this demographic nail 18-24, and I don't want to be too technical, but this is a gold mine for an advertiser. So if there's any advertiser's listening, or of a national scope, who I know that there are because there fans everywhere… this is a chance to reach these audiences…"

Former WWE announcer Justin Roberts buries Triple H in SI interview

Former WWE ring announcer Justin Roberts is making media rounds promoting both his appearance at Legends of the Ring tomorrow night in New Jersey, and the release of his upcoming autobiography detailing his life and career in professional wrestling. That includes a lengthy interview with SI.com.

In it, it's revealed Roberts talks about Triple H extensively in his book. Well, he buries him in the interview.

Here's an excerpt:

"Hunter is portrayed as the savior of wrestling, and people think he'll save the business once he's in charge. We all thought that, too, until he started running things. Paul started overseeing a bunch of divisions and one of them was live events. When he took over, our live events schedule was brutal. We'd start in one place and flew all over. Since he used to be one of the boys on the road, we thought he'd stand up and stop that, and he didn't. The schedule got worse.

"Hunter started squashing stuff that really started getting over. If you notice, it's all about the future, and the future is NXT. But focusing on the future shouldn't mean ignoring the present. Zack Ryder got over huge to the point to the point where the crowd was cheering for him at Madison Square Garden while The Rock was standing in the ring. Dolph Ziggler got over. Primo and Epico [now known as Los Matadores] are fantastic wrestlers, but they get lost in the shuffle. There is a glass ceiling, and anybody they don't want to get over is squashed despite the fans strongly getting behind them. Daniel Bryan is a rare exception, despite the company fighting it over and over."

Rumor Mill - TNA Force Talent To Cancel Bookings With Jeff Jarrett's Global Force Wrestling

TNA management have barred any talent working for them from working for any promotion on broadcast television, which includes the traditional ones such as WWE and Ring of Honor, as well as Lucha Underground. However, they are also no longer allowing talent from working for Jeff Jarrett's Global Force Wrestling promotion even though it has no TV deal. The premise of this comes from Tyrus (formerly Brodus Clay in WWE) taking bookings with GFW this summer, who had to cancel the bookings and posted the following on Twitter:

Due to contractual obligations I will not be working for GFWs up coming shows #CardSubjectToChange sorry for any inconvenience #NuffSaid

This comes not because of GFW taping for television, but in Dave Meltzer's words, "because he'd be working for Jeff Jarrett". TNA officials reportedly threatened to fire him if he didn't cancel the bookings. Karen Jarrett, Jeff Jarrett's wife, tweeted out the following in response:

Sounds like someone is throwing a temper tantrum in Nashville. Oh you can't control the world darlin!

— Karen Jarrett (@karenjarrett) June 2, 2015

TNA Receives Lowest Viewership Since Changing Cable Networks

Last night's (6/3) episode of Impact Wrestling garnered 297,000 viewers in the first hour, down from the 413,000 from the 5/29 episode, which was a Friday. It is speculated that the night change from Friday to Wednesday caused this viewer-drop.

This is the lowest amount of viewers TNA has had since switching Cable Networks.

Samoa Joe Talks His Unique WWE Contract And Being In WWE

We've noted how Samoa Joe had reportedly signed a full-time WWE contract after impressing officials with his work at the recent NXT tapings and due to the success of his t-shirt sales.

The new deal will not see Joe go straight to the main roster as he will be a focal point of NXT for a few months. Obviously Joe is expected to end up on the main roster, possibly fast-tracked as they've done with Kevin Owens.

Regarding Joe and Ring of Honor, he is still teaming with AJ Styles to face Kazarian and Daniels at the July 20th ROH TV tapings and this will likely be Joe's farewell but the company was looking at using Joe for more dates until the news came out about the full-time deal with WWE. We've noted that Joe will still be fulfilling all indie dates that are scheduled but WWE will likely come first if they needed him on a date that was already booked for an indie.

Samoa Joe on now being 'WWE Super Star Samoa Joe' and his unique contract:

"Careers and fate have a funny way of working, and I guess a lot of people, myself included at some point, didn't think that those were words that would be said together - but here we are now and I'm very happy with it."

"It's a real new concept and I was definitely the test case for the new deal that I have. And it was definitely something that they felt would be beneficial for wrestlers who have an established career and aren't really new to the game, in a sense of speaking. […] I was really mattered that I was a part of that first initial run of test cases to try that concept out, and I hope it leads to over very talented individuals getting a chance to join the ranks of WWE."

WWE Responds To Lawsuit From Widow Of Big Daddy V, How Much Money Did He Make While With WWE?

WWE lawyers recently tried to move Cassandra Frazier's wrongful death lawsuit to Connecticut. Frazier is the widow of Nelson Frazier Jr., who worked as Viscera and Big Daddy V. Lawyers noted that Frazier died from a heart attack with contributing causes being morbid obesity and diabetes on his death certificate and he had alcohol and drugs in his system.

WWE also noted that Cassandra contacted them and said she was destitute so they sent her a check for $10,000 as an advance on future royalties. In the suit, it was revealed how much Frazier earned in the years that he was regularly employed with WWE:

1994 - $127,659.15
1995 - $100,648.78
1999 - $159,001.44
2000 - $136,951.85
2005 - $124,252.74
2006 - $152,659.55
2007 - $178,359.64
2008 - $251,223.65

UFC announces anti-doping plan

UFC announced today the unveiling of its new, ground-breaking Athlete Marketing and Development program, introduced to provide athletes with programs and tools to help them maximize their careers and succeed long-term, both inside and outside the Octagon®. In coordination with key organizations such as the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), Fusionetics, and EXOS, UFC continues to be at the forefront of athlete development, making a significant investment into the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA) and, most importantly, the athletes who step into the Octagon.

"Earlier this year, we vowed to take a leadership position on key areas impacting our sport, fighter health and fighter safety," UFC Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Lorenzo Fertitta said. "After months of hard work, and the addition of Jeff Novitzky, we have taken the opportunity to not only launch an elite anti-doping policy, but to invest, develop and deploy a year-round Athlete Marketing and Development program focused on the preparation, performance and education of our athletes."

As UFC continues to evolve as one of the world's leading sports organizations, it has engaged USADA to run the first all-encompassing, independently administered, anti-doping policy for a professional sports organization. The policy is a central part of UFC's expanded efforts to protect the health and safety of its athletes, and to protect their right to compete with natural ability on an even playing field.

USADA, universally recognized as a premier anti-doping agency, will act as the independent administrator of the anti-doping policy, beginning July 1, 2015. As the policy ramps up, UFC and USADA will provide athletes with multiple levels of education including: written copies of the policy and accompanying materials, in-person presentations, hands-on demonstration of online and mobile applications, and on-line education courses. Jeff Novitzky, UFC Vice President of Athlete Health and Performance, will spearhead the roll out of the anti-doping policy.

UFC and USADA will release the finalized policy to the athletes, the media and the public by mid-June.

Fusionetics, developed under the leadership of Dr. Micheal A. Clark and a group of scientists, sports medicine professionals, coaches, athletes and business leaders, is a system that was designed and is utilized in the world of professional sports to help athletes improve their performance, speed up their recovery and avoid future injury. The newly announced partnership will allow UFC athletes to access Fusionetics facilities and interact with their staff, providing individualized digital plans that can be utilized on the athletes' tablets and phones.

EXOS, the leaders in training, nutrition and physical therapy for elite athletes, have worked with some of the best professional athletes in sport and will now begin working closely with UFC athletes. The goal is to help UFC athletes maximize performance and minimize injury risk. During the last week of May, middleweight Luke Rockhold, former light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans and newly signed middleweight CM Punk became the first UFC athletes to take part in a full week of training at the EXOS facilities in Phoenix learning innovative ways to train, plan and prepare for competition. Phase two of the program will include sending additional athletes to the EXOS facilities, as well as deploying a mobile EXOS team to some of the top gyms in the sport.

Goldberg: ‘I Recently Spoke With Triple H About A Return’, More

In an interview with Sports Illustrated, Goldberg revealed he spoke to Triple H about a possible WWE return but doesn’t think it worked out well. Here are highlights:

On never being one to back down from a fight, even with Vince McMahon: “[Hulk] Hogan once said to me, ‘Hey brother, you’re going to have to play the game. If Vince calls you in the middle of the night to get on a plane, you’re going to have to do it.’ I said to him, ‘You obviously don’t know me.’”

On Sting getting him into the business: “Sting was the guy who changed my mind. He and Lex Luger used to own a gym called Main Event Fitness in Atlanta. When I was with the Falcons, I used to work out there. I would have never imagined in a trillion years that I would have followed this path, but what made the decision realistic for me was the way Sting carried himself. When I met Sting, and observed him leading his family, business, and social life, it was completely different than what I’d ever seen in the past. I thought, ‘You know what? I can do this.’ So I bought thousands of dollars of old tapes trying to perfect moves that nobody had ever done before. I saw something that I liked, then I’d change it and make it my own.”

On WWE trying to dismiss his impact on wrestling: “That’s the way I feel. I’m surely not going to be somebody who pounds his chest and professes I was somebody who couldn’t be replaced, but I think I made a difference. For that character, nobody could do it better. So to not get the credit for the impact that I helped make is frustrating.”

On a recent talk with Triple H: “I had a conversation with Paul [Levesque] recently and I said, ‘Listen, I’m willing to put everything aside. If you guys want to sit down and make some money and have some fun, then let’s do it. My son wants to see me wrestle, and I’m willing to put all the bad feelings aside. If you guys want to move forward and do this thing the right way, then let’s talk.’ And that’s the way it ended. There’s nothing there. Truthfully, I don’t even think they want me to come, period. I’m just not one of them. The fact that I’m not far outweighs the financial gain, which they truly may not even believe is there. And I’m good with that. I’m absolutely fine with that.”

On WWE possibly inducting him into the WWE Hall Of Fame: “I don’t have a time limit and age is just a number for me. If the Hall of Fame presents itself, then I’ll do it in a heartbeat. But it’s not something where I sit here and go, ‘Man, I wish the WWE would induct me in the Hall of Fame.’ I don’t think about what I would say in my speech or who would induct me. I don’t think about that, by no stretch of the imagination.”

Kentucky Arenas Fighting Regulation Of Pro Wrestling In The State, WWE Declines To Comment

Insider Louisville posted a story today which revealed that major Kentucky arenas such as Lexington's Rupp Arena and Louisville's KFC Yum! Center are hoping that the state's athletic commission abandons professional wrestling regulation or severely reduces the amount of restrictions.

Kentucky is among the roughly half of states in which pro wrestling is regulated, and the state is widely considered the most strict. If a competitor bleeds in a match, the contest has to be stopped until the bleeding subsides. Also, blading is considered illegal. The same rules don't apply for MMA and boxing bouts in the state. Also, oddly enough, one license allows you to promote MMA, boxing or pro wrestling despite the vast differences in the three. The issue is costing the state millions in missed revenue due to the fact that companies like WWE and TNA pass up the state in favor of nearby Cincinnati and Indianapolis. MMA fights aren't stopped due to blood, as all amateurs and pros must have blood screenings submitted prior to the fight and are required to update them annually.

The Kentucky Boxing and Wrestling Authority sent a letter following a 2010 WWE event containing blood, saying they would only be permitted to return if KBWA officials were there to stop any match with bleeding. Yum! Center GM Dennis Petrullo says this is the reason that televised events don't often happen in the state anymore.

"The live TV events with WWE are very large and they draw a lot of people and viewers, so there's too much money involved to allow someone to stop one of the bouts," Petrullo told Insider Louisville. "It's insane. I mean, look at Mayweather vs. Pacquiao, or mixed martial arts, there's blood all over the place. And for some reason they have stopped them from coming into Kentucky because of blood in the ring."

The situation also affects independent wrestlers and promotions, who are required to pay fees to run events in the state. There have been instances where the KBWA also doesn't have enough staff to handle all of the events in the state.

I reached out to the Kentucky Boxing and Wrestling Authority, who refused to comment on the matter further, but board administrator Angela Robinson. did tell the Insider "wrestling is a real sport, Even though the outcome might be choreographed, it's still a real sport. People still do get injured." By that same notion the KBWA should also seek regulating film fight scenes in the area. Ultimately, it comes down to the commission wanting their cut of profits.

WWE's spokeswoman declined to comment to Insider on the story, but it was also revealed that WWE's Damien Sandow has also worked in the past on trying to get the situation sorted out.

Steve Austin On What He Likes About NXT, Says Monday Night RAW Is 'Dumbed Down'

WWE Hall of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin has had an up and down relationship with WWE since debuting with the company in late 1995. While he'll be hosting another edition of his acclaimed podcast on the WWE Network tonight, he was still quick to offer his candid thoughts about the current WWE product. He spoke about some of his issues with Raw on his own podcast last week.

In particular, Austin pointed out that he thinks Raw insults the intelligence of the viewer because they don't leave anything to the imagination. He feels like the main roster show has been dumbed down and portrayed as if nobody has ever watched wrestling before.

"It's [NXT] simple, it's to the point. It's not dumbed down like Monday Night Raw," Austin said. "On Monday Night Raw it's like they want to fill in every blank for you. It's like wrestling for morons. They've overthought it."

Austin noted that comparing the show isn't necessarily fair, since Raw is a three hour program and NXT is one hour. Still, Austin said that he enjoyed the way that NXT is laid out because there isn't much wasted motion during the broadcast.

"It's a one hour show, I get it. I like the format of the NXT show," Austin said.

Triple H's Food Prep

Growing ain't easy... #FoodFor3Days pic.twitter.com/kqXozCreoQ

— Triple H (@TripleH) May 29, 2015

Samoa Joe on his storied independent career, coming to NXT and his plans for the future

Samoa Joe recently spoke to WWE's website about his arrival at NXT, getting into wrestling, Ring of Honor, Seth Rollins, CM Punk, Daniel Bryan and more. Below are a few highlights:

WWE.COM: You’ve been in some independent locker rooms lately. What’s the reputation NXT has outside of WWE?

JOE: The reputation NXT has is hard to describe. It’s this newness, there’s a tremendous hype to it. People are seeing the leaps and bounds that are being made with the types of talent filtering through NXT. Like the women, I watched one of the best matches I’ve seen all year with Becky Lynch and Sasha Banks [at NXT TakeOver: Unstoppable]. There’s a lot of hype and I know a lot of guys now on the indies would like to see themselves in NXT. They don’t view it as a B-level, AAA ball club. They see it as an exciting place that people are talking about and love the matches coming out of NXT.

WWE.COM: Is there anyone else [besides Kevin Owens] in NXT you have your eye on?

JOE: Absolutely. Finn Bálor is someone I’ve had experience with. I helped start the New Japan Dojo in Los Angeles. I remember seeing him and what he was able to do. And now, he’s No. 1 contender, so if it’s not going to be Kevin, it’s going to be [Bálor]. Tyler Breeze is a tremendous athlete, but he’s far too pretty. It bugs me. Eventually, when he comes back, Hideo Itami, too. We’ve locked up over the years and had our fair share of wars. I’m more than happy to have another with him. There are a lot of unresolved personal issues there. Hopefully, we can get into the ring and sort them out.

WWE.COM: Beyond the NXT Title, do you have any other goals in WWE?

JOE: At some time, I would love to make a trip up to the main roster and wreak my brand of havoc. So many people I’ve come up with have succeeded in WWE. Though I thought the opportunity would never present itself, I’m here now. I’m in the best shape of my career and I’m more than happy to fulfill the destiny that has eluded me for far too long, and that’s to be the WWE World Heavyweight Champion.

Full interview