Rumor Mill - WWE Implements New Rule About Dating Within the Company

WWE officials have a new rule that talent & office workers and talent & production people are not allowed to date. The company does not want staff and talent interacting past the professional level.

New WWE NXT Tag Team Champions Crowned, Update on the NXT #1 Contender's Tournament

Baron Corbin defeated Bull Dempsey and Adrian Neville defeated Tyson Kidd on this week's WWE NXT to advance in the #1 contender's tournament. Next week's episode will feature Neville vs. Corbin and Finn Balor vs. Hideo Itami in the semi-finals. The winners of those two matches will face at the February 11th Takeover special to determine the new #1 contender to NXT Champion Sami Zayn.

1/26 WWE Raw Viewership Soars Despite Royal Rumble Backlash and Canceled Arena Taping

The “Winter Storm Juno” edition of Monday Night Raw on January 26th turned out to be the most viewed episode since July. The show, which was filled with interviews and replays from this weekend’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view, averaged 4,420,000 viewers, which is up 7.8% from last week.

Raw’s first hour started with a strong 4,468,000 people tuned in, then grew to 4,657,000 in the second hour. The third and final hour, which featured the end of the Royal Rumble match, dropped to 4,135,000 to end the night.

While Monday’s show is still the lowest ranked post-Rumble episode in several years, considering there were no live matches and most of the show was pre-taped content, WWE should be content with this week’s numbers.

WWE Network Reaches 1 Million Subscriber Milestone

The WWE Network has signed up more than 1 million subscribers, reaching the number 11 months after its launch, WWE said Tuesday.

At the end of WWE’s third quarter in October, the WWE Network had 731,000 subscribers, with 28,000 coming from foreign markets. It signed up 31,000 new subscribers during the period, but lost 255,000 after the initial six-month commitment ended.

WWE has since dropped that six-month requirement in order to increase subscriptions, which cost $9.99 a month. It offered a free month in November, as part of a trial period, which is being viewed as the cause for many of the new subscriber sign-ups.

Other reasons for the healthy numbers are the launch of the WWE Network in the United Kingdom, the company’s second largest market, as well as Sunday’s “Royal Rumble” pay-per-view.

Surpassing 1 million subscribers since the end of October represents a growth of 37% since the third quarter. Around 24% of that came from new members in the U.S.

The actual number — 1,000,648 — is the current subscriber count, as of Jan. 27, and after “Royal Rumble,” which was available in 170 countries and territories.

That’s after a group of very vocal fans took to Twitter shortly after the event, causing the hashtag #CancelWWENetwork to trend, to voice their disapproval of the show’s outcome.

It’s a significant milestone for a company that is betting big on going directly to its fanbase with its PPVs and vast library of shows — something a number of other content owners are now doing, including the NFL, CBS and HBO.

WWE will report its fourth quarter and full 2014 results on Feb. 12. The WWE Network launched on Feb. 24, 2014.

“We’re thrilled that we’ve surpassed the 1 million subscriber milestone less than a year after launching WWE Network and in advance of ‘WrestleMania,’ our biggest event of the year on March 29,” said WWE chairman and CEO Vince McMahon. “We remain focused on delivering an outstanding value proposition for our fans by adding new content and new features in the coming year.”

WWE said that 90% of its subscribers access the network at least once a week, with 99% doing so at least once per month.

The over-the-top channel is accessible through Sony’s PlayStation 3 and PS4, Microsoft’s Xbox One and Xbox 360 videogame consoles, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Roku devices, Sony and Samsung smart TVs.

Triple H to Face Sting at WWE FastLane

The Authority have a new Twitter account and have announced the following for next month's Fast Lane pay-per-view which will air on the WWE Network:

Per The Authority: @WWE COO @TripleH has challenged @Sting to meet face to face at #WWEFastLane Sunday, Feb. 22, 2015 on the @WWENetwork.

— The Authority (@WWEsAuthority) January 27, 2015

Wrestling Fans Lash Out With ‘#CancelWWENetwork’

The response to Sunday’s Royal Rumble was anything but scripted

Wrestling fans were seething after the World Wrestling Entertainment’s annual Royal Rumble event came to what appears to be an unsatisfactory end in Philadelphia on Sunday night.

After Roman Reigns emerged victorious for the evening’s highly anticipated battle royal finale, fans sounded off in mass on social media outlets with the hashtag: “#CancelWWENetwork” that was trending worldwide by the night’s end.

According to wrestling blogs, spectators at the event were chanting for refunds as rumors swirled that the WWE Network cancellation page had crashed as fans bombarded the site.

source: time.com

Total Divas Recap 01/25/15

It has been a while since things got really, really awkward on E!’s “Total Divas.” Happily for everyone, that calm comes to a screeching halt this week when Rosa Mendes, who’s still on the market, misinterprets Paige’s general flirtatiousness as a romantic overture. One ill-advised advance later, and Paige and Rosa are no longer speaking. This is more because of Rosa’s general embarrassment than a lack of empathy on Paige’s part, though it takes Alicia Fox to bridge the gap between the Divas and bring them to an understanding (Paige in particular is advised to bear in mind how flirty she can be), thus restoring their merry band to full strength.

In our slightly scarier second storyline, Brie Bella is increasingly concerned with home security after a botched burglary of her and Daniel Bryan’s home. Bryan is content with some subtle-yet-effective security measures, but Brie prefers to go all-out, installing a full-on razor wire fence that turns the “Braniel” home into a compound. Bryan, of course, is not consulted on this, and once again, an 11th-hour compromise is needed to bring the couple to common ground.

Eva Marie is physically on the mend from her recent surgery, but an upcoming photo shoot for “Muscle & Fitness Hers” sends her into a crazy workout regiment and brings some deep-seeded body image issues to life. Despite Cameron and Jonathan’s best efforts to curb Eva’s increasingly negative view of herself, it takes a unique experiment with a local artist to get Eva to see the alarming divide between perception and reality. With self-confidence back under her belt, Eva hits the photo shoot for “M&F Hers” and absolutely slays it.

WWE Royal Rumble PPV Results 2015

Roman Reigns wins the 2015 Royal Rumble Match

Brock Lesnar (c) def. Seth Rollins and John Cena (WWE World Heavyweight Championship Triple Threat Match)

The Bella Twins def. Paige & Natalya

The Usos (c) def. The Miz & Damien Mizdow (WWE Tag Team Championship Match)

The Ascension def. The New Age Outlaws

Cesaro & Tyson Kidd def. Kofi Kingston & Big E (Kickoff Match)

Steve Austin's Live Podcast Returning to the WWE Network with Triple H

WWE announced tonight during the Royal Rumble that Steve Austin's live podcast will return to the WWE Network on Monday, February 2nd after RAW goes off the air

Austin's guest will be Triple H.

Enzo Amore on Being a Product of WWE NXT, What Triple H Told Him When He Signed, Promo Work

Chad Dukes of CBS Radio Washington DC 106.7 The Fan and ChadDukesWrestling.com spoke with WWE NXT star Enzo Amore. The full interview is at this link but here are a few highlights:

Developing his promo work as a journalism major at Salisbury University:
“None of this happens overnight and Rome wasn’t built in a day. I’ve always put the pen to the pad and I’ve always had aspirations of doing what I’m doing today. Basically when you’re a writer and have a mind like mine, my mind has gone platinum multiple times and I have got a heart of gold, my heart’s in the right place. I’ve wanted to do this my whole life, promo material, when you’ve basically got a bible of promo material, I’m telling you I got so much promo material written down, I’ve forgotten more promo material than people will ever come up with. So, it’s all in my back pocket.”

Being a product of WWE NXT:
“I never was in a wrestling ring before I stepped foot into a WWE ring, so I am a product of NXT. I trained under Bill DeMott. I did a lot of my promo work with Dusty Rhodes. Those two guys were so instrumental in my career, I feel like I never could just completely take that step out of NXT. I owe it to the fans, I owe it to the people around me, the trainers, the coaches. That’s what you see in our product, you see people who are hungry and those people who are coming back, pulling double duty, they’re hungry, they wanna compete. The NXT environment is so competitive.”

Getting a shot from Triple H:
“He had started training with my strength coach. From the age of 14 I had been training with Joe DeFranco from DeFranco’s Training Systems out of New Jersey, they do a lot of combine training. I had played college football, I had always lifted and was a huge fan of the sports entertainment business, more particularly the WWE. Huge fan of DX- Shawn Michaels and Triple H. One day I was working out at DeFranco’s gym and Joe came up to me and said, ‘I got a phone call from a guy named Paul Levesque, who wants me to train him.’ My jaw just hit the ground.”

“After about a year of him training with Hunter, I made a YouTube video… I was always training so basically I gave Joe a link to a YouTube page that had a compilation of me lifting, running, boxing, and then I cut a promo at the end of it on the Hudson River around the time the Jersey Shore was popular. Came at the Jersey Shore people’s necks, a little disrespect, hit ‘em with a little 1-2 combo, the haymaker pancaker and badaboom, the realest guy in the room was born.”

“He showed it to Hunter and Hunter just gave me a tryout. He’s our boss and he’s very approachable out here at NXT. He gave me my first opportunity and I’ll never forget the words that he said to me when I met him, he simply said, ‘don’t screw this up.’ He probably wouldn’t remember it, but for me I hung onto those words, because that’s all he said.”

Justin Gabriel Quits WWE

Former 3-time WWE Tag Team Champion Justin Gabriel quit WWE this weekend. There are currently no details or specifics on the situation.

Gabriel had been picking up victories over Adam Rose on WWE's live events tour, but the success ended there. The 33 year old South African didn't have a televised win since a victory over Sin Cara on Superstars in September.

Gabriel signed a WWE developmental deal in 2008 and was assigned to Florida Championship Wrestling, where he became Heavyweight champion. He also had a reign as tag team champion before being announced as a contestant on the first season of WWE NXT.

Following the conclusion of NXT, Gabriel debuted on the main roster as a member of Nexus, attacking John Cena and the Straight Edge Society. While a member of Nexus, he'd become WWE Tag Team Champion with Heath Slater.

After leaving Nexus, Gabriel and Slater would join former Nexus leader Wade Barrett in the Corre, where they would enjoy two more WWE Tag Team Championship reigns. Since then, Gabriel had mostly been relegated to Superstars and Main Event, staying away from any major storylines.

**UPDATE**
Following reports that Justin Gabriel quit WWE over the weekend, the sports-entertainment organization announced Sunday that he has been released from his contract.

WWE issued the following statement to F4WOnline.com today confirming the release of Gabriel: "WWE has come to terms on the release Justin Gabriel effective as of today."

God's Last Gift: How Seth Rollins became the future of WWE

The first people Seth Rollins brought to tears — before The Shield, before the WWE Universe, before anyone — were his mom and dad.

That’s a rough note to begin on, but it’s necessary because originally, we had planned to write about Seth Rollins in June 2014, and our story — his story, really — was going to be your usual underdog yarn about a guy who worked hard from humble beginnings, reached his goal, almost lost his goal, and eventually found himself sitting on the mountaintop through grit and hard work. Not entirely unlike Daniel Bryan’s tale. But that all turned on its head the night Rollins took out his fellow members of The Shield with a steel chair and set himself on a catapult career-trajectory that led to the Money in the Bank briefcase and helped him waltz right into a WWE World Heavyweight Championship Match against John Cena and Brock Lesnar at the 2015 Royal Rumble over about the course of six months.

Given all that, it seems appropriate to begin the story we’re telling now, the story Seth Rollins forced us to tell instead, with the fact that he had a penchant for defying expectations and breaking hearts —including his family’s — before he’d even formally laced up a pair of boots.

“When I told my parents and saw the look of disappointment on their faces, it was like a real moment,” said Rollins, recalling the uncomfortable night he sat his parents down as a teenager in Iowa and told them he would be pursuing a career in sports-entertainment. “I remember walking away from the dinner table and just being like, ‘Man, I don’t care what anybody says, I’m going to do this. I don’t care if anybody believes I can do this or not.’”

About the only one who believed he could succeed was Rollins himself, a lapsed Hulkamaniac who rediscovered his passion during the Attitude Era and had already proven himself a natural boundary-pusher in mock wrestling shows with his buddies where he created a character named “God.”

“[I wasn’t] the God, not a god of anything, just straight-up God,” laughs Rollins, who based the lighting-rod persona off the controversial antics of his favorite Superstars, Shawn Michaels and Triple H. “I wasn’t descending from the heavens or anything like that. It was just one of those deals where, ‘How am I gonna [tick] people off? Oh, I’ll just call myself God.’”...More?

source: wwe.com

Kevin Owens Talks About His NXT Debut, Working With Triple H

Alex Obert of JourneyofaFrontman.com is featuring an interview with WWE NXT star Kevin Owens where he talks about making his NXT debut back in December and what it is like working with Triple H in developmental in Orlando.

On what he was thinking just before his NXT debut:

"I wish I could tell you exactly what I was thinking about, but there were so many things going through my mind. I thought a lot about my family because they got me to the point. It sounds really corny because it seems like that’s what people would say when there’s a big moment in their lives. I thought about my kid, my parents and my wife. I remember at one point, I stopped midway through the ramp before I got in the ring and I clearly remember having a flash of running to the ring in my first match. It was just such a culmination. It’s always been my dream. It’s really hard to describe how memorable that was."

On working with Triple H in WWE:

"All I can say is that Triple H is literally the most dedicated man in sports entertainment, nobody works as hard as he does. I only see glimpses of it when he’s at the NXT tapings and the specials, but he’s always available for ideas. We were talking about what I was gonna do and how I was gonna be presented, he was very hands-on. It’s not just me, he’s got his finger on the pulse of everything we do here. And we do a lot of stuff, there’s seventy people here and he keeps track of everyone. I don’t know when he sleeps, I don’t know when he works out, but he’s alive and he’s in great shape. From what I can tell, he’s a machine. His dedication is really something to behold. I’m lucky to have somebody like him willing to work with me, just like everybody else I mentioned earlier. He’s another great mind who knows so much more more about this than I do and he’s willing to share it with me and share it with anybody who wants the knowledge. It’s pretty awesome."

He also noted the extreme difference in how segments are produced in WWE, and how much time and effort go into planning even the shortest of vignettes.

“The vignettes are thirty seconds to a minute.. I think it took three to four hours to shoot all the stuff … There’s so many creative minds working together to make this special. I was really lucky, I can’t overstate that enough. Chris Chambers, Christopher Watts, Brian Kunsman, Ryan Katz and Bill DeMott, they were all helping me and gave great suggestions like “Do this. Do that. Turn your head this way.” It’s all intricate stuff it’s stuff that I’ve never done. Ring of Honor had TV, but nothing like this.”

WWE NXT Recruiting at the Arnold Classic

There are now plans for WWE to have a recruiting booth at the upcoming NXT Live show on March 5th during The Arnold Classic, which obviously attracts a ton of athletes and bodybuilders. Tickets go on sale to the general public this Friday at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Video: The Kliq reunites backstage: Raw, January 19, 2015

WWE Tough Enough 2015 Casting Call Released

WWE issued the following casting call for the upcoming season of Tough Enough:

WWE and the USA Network are bringing back the hit reality competition show Tough Enough! One competitor will earn a WWE contract and be the next WWE Superstar!!!

If you believe you have what it takes to not only earn the contract, but excel in World Wrestling Entertainment… Apply now.

Casting Producers are searching the world to find extraordinary men and women to be the next WWE Superstar with the following qualities:

CHARISMA
PERSONALITY
ATHLETICISM
AGILITY
STAMINA
STRENGTH
And an INTENSE DESIRE to be the next WWE SUPERSTAR!

Show Information:

WWE Tough Enough, is a professional wrestling reality television program produced by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and MTV wherein participants underwent professional wrestling training and competed for a contract with WWE. There were two winners per season for the first three seasons, all of which aired on MTV. A fourth competition was held in 2004, with only a single winner, but was integrated into UPN’s SmackDown!. In October 2010, it was announced that The USA Network will be reviving Tough Enough for a fifth season. It will be paired with WWE Raw. No premiere date scheduled.

Videos: Sting Debuts on Raw and The Authority Reacts

WWE Attorney Responds To New 'Concussion Lawsuit' Filed By Former WWE Talents

As noted, former WWE talents Vito Lograsso (Big Vito) and Evan Singleton (Adam Mercer in developmental) have filed a class-action "concussion lawsuit" against WWE in Pennsylvania. The lawsuit seeks unspecified economic damages and medical monitoring. They are being represented by the same lawyer who was hired by former WWE star Billy Jack Haynes in his lawsuit against the company.

WWE lawyer Jerry McDevitt issued the following statement in response to the lawsuit this evening:

"This lawsuit is virtually identical to one filed by the same lawyers in Oregon, neither of which have any merit. WWE has never concealed any medical information related to concussions, or otherwise, from our Talent. WWE was well ahead of sports organizations in implementing concussion management procedures and policies as a precautionary measure as the science and research on this issue emerged. We will vigorously contest this lawsuit."

Triple H Broke Character During Raw To Make A Crying Child Feel Better

On WWE Raw, Triple H is an evil COO and the head of The Authority, a group hellbent on making lives miserable for the company’s do-gooding wrestlers. On the Internet, he’s either a hero for his work in NXT or the literal Christian devil for the brutal, multiple-shovel-job burial of our favorite performers. He’s either a sinner or a saint. Tonight, we’ll push him a little closer to “saint.”

According to multiple sources at tonight’s show in Dallas, Triple H made a kid in the front row cry and immediately broke character to make it all better.

AT&T Stadium to host WrestleMania 32

WrestleMania 32 will be held at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Sunday, April 3, 2016. Later today, a media event will be held at the stadium featuring WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon, WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan, WWE Superstar John Cena and other WWE Superstars and Divas, to celebrate the announcement.

Game smash! Triple H voices The Hulk in Marvel Experience interactive adventure

Don’t make Triple H angry. … You wouldn’t like him when he’s angry.

The 13-time World Champion brings to life one of Marvel’s most iconic characters as the voice of The Hulk in The Marvel Experience, the world’s first “hyper-reality” tour. Every grunt, growl and, of course, “Hulk smash!” in The Marvel Experience was recorded by Triple H, who had the opportunity to step into the role previously inhabited by such entertainment greats as Lou Ferrigno, Edward Norton and Mark Ruffalo.

The attraction — which has just begun touring — invites visitors to train and join up with heroes like Iron Man, Spider-Man and The Avengers’ green, gamma-irradiated powerhouse across seven colossal domes on a mission to save the planet from the evil organization Hydra.

The Marvel Experience features an exclusive 360-degree projection dome, an immersive motion ride, state-of-the-art 2-D and 3-D projection and appearances by 26 of Marvel’s most exciting heroes.

This Day In Wrestling History

Hulk Hogan becomes the first ever 2 time winner of the WWF(E) Royal Rumble.
January 19, 1991

Ric Flair wins the Royal Rumble and the WWF(E) Heavyweight title
January 19, 1992

Shawn Michaels defeated Psycho Sid for the WWF(E) Heavyweight title
January 19, 1997

WWF(E) New York Restaurant opened in Times Square
January 19, 2000

Total Divas Recap 01/18/15

There is some silliness, some seriousness and some sultriness on this week’s episode of E!’s “Total Divas.” We’ll begin, as ever, with the fun stuff: Nikki Bella and John Cena’s competitive genes come to the forefront when a playful argument leads to a truly absurd competition between the two consisting of go-kart racing, mini golf and the like. Not only does Cena wipe the floor with his overwhelmed S.O., but the fratty finale that completes his clean sweep frustrates Nikki so much that she straight-up douses him with a beverage, and then has to be sweet-talked down to earth.

The seriousness next, and it is, in fact, very serious for Eva Marie when she discovers one of her silicone implants is leaking into her bloodstream. With her career picking up steam, Eva decides to ignore doctor’s orders and tough it out in the ring to keep her momentum running. As a result, Jonathan takes matters into his hands and alerts WWE officials to her condition. It’s only a heart-to-heart from The Bellas that convinces Eva to bite the proverbial bullet and have the procedure that will shelve her for months but ensure her continued health and eventual return to form.

As for the last bit? Natalya and Paige are in the midst of a series of matches and Paige, in an effort to rile up both the crowd and her opponent, has been resorting to an unusually sultry form of mind games. Natalya isn’t exactly comfortable with the tactic, which borders on pure PDA, but Paige defies her request to dial back and instead takes it one step further in their rematch by licking the entire side of Nattie’s face. All of this seems destined for a backstage brawl between the two Divas until Paige explains that the match — and Natalya herself — are that much more interesting to watch when The Queen of Harts is really riled up. Nattie, moved to compromise, agrees to a happy medium of harassment in all future contests. Everybody wins.

Two Former WWE Wrestlers File Class-Action 'Concussion Lawsuit' Against WWE

Former WWE stars Vito Lograsso (Big Vito) and Evan Singleton (Adam Mercer in developmental) have filed a class-action "concussion lawsuit" against WWE in the state of Pennsylvania. They are being represented by the same lawyer as former WWE star Billy Jack Haynes, who also has a lawsuit out against WWE.

The complaints from Haynes and Lograsso/Singleton appear to be virtually identical except for short paragraphs about the complainants.

Singleton's complaint mentions wrestling WWE Superstar Erick Rowan in developmental as Singleton claims, "After approximately 15 matches, during which he sustained multiple traumas, he suffered a serious head injury during a match with Eric Rowen [sic]. The WWE cleared him to continue wrestling after inadequate rest time and downplayed his injury."

Singleton was apparently out of action for five months after a match against Rowan. He then worked one more match and was released from his developmental deal. Singleton has suffered from a number of severe neurological symptoms and later found out that he had bleeding in the left hemisphere of his brain.

Lograsso noted that he "suffers from serious neurological damage, including severe headaches, memory loss, depression and anxiety, as well as deafness."

Chris Jericho Comments On Randy Savage Going Into The WWE HOF

It is much deserved and now, finally, I feel the WWE Hall of Fame is legit. Everybody that needs to be in there — and wasn’t because of politics or petty bullshit — is now in there, including [Bruno] Sammartino, Bret Hart, the Ultimate Warrior and now Randy Savage being the last on that list."

WWE NXT Tournament Announced

A #1 contenders tournament has been confirmed to kick off on next week's WWE NXT. The winner will receive a title shot at NXT Champion Sami Zayn.

Seth Rollins Talks Curb Stomping Lesnar & Cena, Triple H Following His Progress, NXT, Taker, Savage

Seth Rollins joined The Rack this past Thursday Night. During the interview, Rollins discussed what it was like to be in the ring and curb stomping both Brock Lesnar and John Cena on RAW, his thoughts on Smackdown moving to Thursdays, who is he looking forward to working with from NXT in the future, what it was like working with The Undertaker, Randy Savage being inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2015 and more. They sent us the highlights below, you can listen to the full interview by clicking here.

What it's like working with both Triple H and Stephanie McMahon on TV weekly:

"Oh, they're phenomenal; two of the greatest mind in the history of our industry. You've got one, born and bred a McMahon so she knows all there is to know about what we do and she knows all the little tricks of the trade. She sees things from a completely different perspective, so you have that. On the other hand, you have 'The Cerebral Assassin', a man who's been WWE Champion multiple times, who is clearly the heir-apparent to the company itself and already running the ship for the most part. There are really no better mentors; if you're not learning something every single day, every single time you go out there, then you're really just making a mistake trying to progress yourself. If people have kept track over the past 6-8 months, they'll have noticed a lot of improvements in my game, at least I have, and a lot of that is due to having Triple H and Stephanie on my side, nurturing me all the way through."

Triple H following his progress through NXT, The Shield and now:

"Yeah, clearly, the man has an eye for talent, you know? It's been good; NXT was a good experience for me. We were really the first group of guys who were involved in that project and if you look at what it's become now, it's pretty impressive to think about where it started and how it began, very humbly, in a warehouse in Tampa and now, basically, it's its own brand. To have Triple H's support, through and through the entire way, has meant more to me than people will ever understand. It's really helped position me to where I want to be and helped me grow as a person and as a performer."

Is there anyone in the new crop of NXT talent that he's looking forward to facing in the future:

"I have a lot of friends down there; a lot of people who I traveled the road with in my previous life and I think those guys, the Adrian Nevilles and Sami Zayns, Finn Balor, Hideo Itami, Kevin Overs; these are the guys obviously making a name for themselves now in NXT. There's also a lot of young guys too, who are pushing the envelope as well, really trying to make a name for themselves in the shadow, a little bit, of some of those bigger names.

"You've got someone like CJ Parker, who's been down in NXT for a while making waves. You've got Tyler Breeze, who is on the cusp of something big and stuff like that. So, there's a lot of talent down there; I'm looking forward to seeing how the landscape up here in the WWE looks like in 2-5 years, with all of those names I mentioned, up here working with us. It's going to be a very interesting period for the future of WWE."

How Did WWE SmackDown Fare In Its New Timeslot?

Last night's episode of WWE SmackDown on its new night averaged 2.675 million viewers. Viewership was up 10% from last week's episode on Friday night, which averaged 2.432 million viewers. SmackDown was also the number one show on cable last night.

Stephanie Talks Missing Shane In WWE, Why No More Elimination Chamber, More

Stephanie McMahon was a guest on The Wrestling Compadres Slamcast on Nerdist.com to promote the new WWE fitness DVDs. She also talked about Total Divas and other elements. Below are some highlights:

Stephanie talked about Total Divas connecting with their large female audience (she said 1/3 of the audience of WWE’s core programming is female) as well as attract new viewers. She also put over the series being the second most popular on E (behind the Kardashians).

When asked whose idea was Total Divas, Stephanie said it was “hard to say” but it was created with E.

Stephanie talked about her return to the ring at SummerSlam, saying she knew that with her return to TV that she eventually had to get her comeuppance. She called it a pleasure working with Brie Bella. Stephanie said it was fun but challenging.

When asked about the company eliminating the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view, Stephanie said from a reality standpoint, the elimination chamber was 10 tons and was becoming increasingly hard to hang in arenas that had scoreboards. She explained that more and more arenas were getting these big beautiful displays and they were unable to hang the structure.

As for what to expect from WWE Fast Lane, Stephanie said they will deliver with the pay-per-view before Wrestlemania.

She said that she missed having Shane McMahon in WWE. Stephanie said she was “stretched quite often” by wrestling with her brother growing up. She said the only way she could win was by not giving up. Stephanie fully supports Shane and put over him being Chairman at You On Demand. He’s also a co-owner of a motorcycle shop.

Click here to listen to the podcast in its entirety.

Assault charges against WWE star Heath Slater dropped

MyFoxAtlanta.com is reporting that the simple assault charges brought against current WWE star Heath Slater have now been dropped. A security guard claimed that Slater had assaulted her back in 2011 during a post-WrestleMania part. The charges were dropped because the statue of limitation expired according to the report.

Kevin Nash reinstated by WWE

WWE has officially reinstated Kevin Nash after he was cleared of all charges in his recent domestic assault case where authorities ruled he was not the instigator of the incident on Christmas Eve involvnig his son Tristen.

WWE issued the following statement tonight:

"Now that Kevin Nash’s legal matter has been resolved with all charges being dropped, his “legends” contract has been immediately reinstated."

Nash had been scheduled for Monday's Raw until his suspension.

Next Live WWE NXT Takeover Special Revealed

The next live WWE NXT Takeover special will take place on Wednesday, February 11th at Full Sail University in Winter Park, FL.

It will air live on the WWE Network.