s noted, WWE Hall of Famers Booker T and Jerry Lawler will now serve as key analysts on the WWE Network Kickoff specials and pre-shows due to announce team changes in the WWE Draft. They will be joined by Amy "Lita" Dumas and likely host Renee Young.
Lita's role within WWE is shifting from that of a Producer to an on-air panelist for the RAW, SmackDown and pay-per-view pre-shows. As of this coming week, Lita will no longer work as a producer and will work the RAW and SmackDown pre-shows on the WWE Network.
No word yet on who, if anyone, will takeover Lita's previous duties but there has been talk of some of the trainers and coaches from WWE NXT getting called up to work with the main roster.
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July 23, 2016
Lita's New On-Air WWE Role Revealed
July 22, 2016
Stephanie McMahon Talks Upcoming Book, Why She Loves Playing Heel, Being a Part of the WWE Creative Process, Triple H Proposal & More
Stephanie McMahon did another Q&A with the official WWE Facebook page talking about the process behind her upcoming book. She noted that she does have a ghost writer for the autobiography, his name is Pablo, and he created a structure that Steph is currently going through and re-writing, filing in details and telling her story in her own words.
You can check out the interview in its entirety above, which I actually recommend because it shows a very out-of-character Stephanie that’s very passionate about her family, her kids, and the work she does with WWE behind the scenes and as a character, which she loves doing. Here are the key details:
She will be talking about her home life and her experience as a mother and relationship with her daughters, which is something that doesn’t come out with Stephanie McMahon the character very much.
There will be a book tour and signings that likely correspond with WWE live tour dates.
There will be some details and stories that “shock” the WWE Universe.
Her inspiration for writing this book is that she is turning 40 soon.
Steph says that Vince is very excited for the book and has read the first half so far.
The book has a tentative release date of October 4th.
Triple H does NOT cook dinner at home, unless it can be grilled.
Steph says her kids understand that she plays a character on TV but they don’t understand why she would choose being a villain. She says it’s the most fun, and loves being a heel because the better she is, the better she can make the babyface look.
Her most embarrassing moment was having the wardrobe malfunction where Triple H gave her a Pedigree and her breasts popped out of her top, and then having Howard Stern bring it up on his show.
July 21, 2016
July 20, 2016
WWE Announces New Roles For Booker T And Jerry Lawler After Commentary Team Changes
As noted, WWE announced new commentary teams earlier today but left Jerry Lawler off RAW and SmackDown. They just announced that Lawler and Booker T will be key analysts on WWE Network pre-shows and Kickoff specials:
In addition to the commentary booth updates on Raw, SmackDown Live and more, WWE Hall of Famers Booker T and Jerry "The King" Lawler will bring their decades of experience in sports-entertainment to recurring Pre-Shows and Kickoffs as key analysts, among other names still to be announced.
Jonathan Coachman Comments On WWE Concussion Lawsuit
ESPN posted the following video featuring Jonathan Coachman appearing on ESPN First Take to discuss the recent news of a concussion related lawsuit against WWE by a large number of former talents.
Coachman talks about his own experiences with concussions and his relationship with Vince McMahon, then says he does not like how people blame Vince for their issues. He says Vince paid them for years and has still helped them out, and in response they sue WWE and blame the company for not taking care of them.
List of WWE Names Left Off Tonight’s Draft
The following is a list of WWE.com roster names who were left off tonight’s draft due to injury or special circumstances. As noted, Heath Slater was labeled “not drafted” by WWE, and no reason was given.
Emma (out with a back injury)
Heath Slater (not drafted)
Luke Harper (Injured with a torn ACL)
Nikki Bella (out with a neck injury)
The Rock (Only makes special appearances)
Rosa Mendes (Currently on maternity leave)
Ryback (Currently amidst a contract dispute)
Tamina Snuka (Injured with torn ligaments)
Triple H (Only makes special appearances)
Tyson Kidd (Out with a spinal cord injury)
The Undertaker (Only makes special appearances)
WWE commentary gets a facelift for the New Era
It’s a New Era for the entire landscape of WWE, which continues to change and evolve with the WWE Brand Extension Draft. That includes the announce teams for WWE programming. The teams for Raw, SmackDown, "WWE Superstars" and WWE Main Event are all experiencing a major shakeup, including one major voice changing shows and several rising commentators being inserted into the lineup.
The new announce teams for WWE’s New Era will feature Michael Cole, Corey Graves and Byron Saxton Monday nights on Raw, while Mauro Ranallo, JBL and David Otunga handle the commentary for SmackDown Live every Tuesday night.
Also receiving a makeover will be the announce teams for WWE Superstars and WWE Main Event. Both shows will be led by Tom Phillips, and he will be joined each and every week by Graves on WWE Superstars and Otunga on WWE Main Event.
July 19, 2016
Brock Lesnar Reportedly Fails Second UFC 200 Related Drug Test
According to MMAFighting.com, in addition to failing an out of competition drug test taken by USADA from a June 28th sample prior to his UFC 200 fight, Brock Lesnar also failed an in-competition drug test prior to defeating Mark Hunt at UFC 200.
To clarify, in-competition is a window of 12 hours before and after a fight.
The report added Lesnar failed both tests for the same banned substance, and the name of the substance will not be revealed unless Lesnar first reveals it himself.
The second test will very likely be folded into the first one and be considered a single potential doping violation.
UFC’s anti-doping policy states two positive tests could be considered aggravating circumstances, potentially leading to further sanctioning.
Lesnar passed multiple drug tests before failing the one taken from a June 28th sample, and as we noted he was tested eight times in the month leading up to the fight and passed the first five tests. Lesnar has now failed at least two of the last three tests. As noted, Lesnar faces a possible two year ban from UFC.
Rumor Mill - WWE To Crown Cruiserweight Champion in the CWC?
According to PWInsider.com, the live WWE Cruiserweight Classic finale, airing on September 4th, will likely be to crown the new WWE Cruiserweight Champion. The report added no talents have officially been signed for the division as of yet, but as we noted over the weekend, CWC talents Kota Ibushi and Gran Metalik have signed WWE deals.
WWE will likely be looking to sign additional CWC talents such as Zack Sabre, Jr., Lince Dorado, Jack Gallagher, Akira Tozawa and Cedric Alexander for the returning Cruiserweight division, and they might also use veteran Cruiserweight talents such as Brian Kendrick and Tajiri so there are some familiar faces on Raw in the division.
Full List Of 51 Plaintiffs Involved In WWE Lawsuit
As noted, Bloomberg reported that WWE was sued by "dozens" of retired wrestlers who are claiming that the WWE was responsible for neurological injuries they suffered from years of wrestling.
The full lawsuit is available at this link. Wrestling Inc.'s own Chris Harrington posted the full list of plaintiffs involved in the suit, which you can check out below:
A full list of all 51 Plaintiffs in the latest WWE lawsuit over CTE injuries.https://t.co/g74SmOcikk #wwecte pic.twitter.com/XkVSDlzNGG
— Chris Harrington (@mookieghana) July 19, 2016
Oderint Dum Metuant: Let Them Hate As Long As They Fear
