- Smackdown Heavyweight Champion Edge's perhaps the most opportunistic superstar on the Smackdown roster. But in reality, Adam Copeland presents opportunities to those less fortunate. Edge made his return to Toronto last Wednesday to pack boxes @ the daily bread food bank. He also made his return to Live Audio Wrestling last Sunday to discuss this & other things, such as the release of his new DVD, taking time off from wrestling & his almost year-long program with The UnderTaker. The Rated-R Superstar was @ the food bank last week with WWE Diva Natalya Neidhart & WWE Hall of Famer Rocky Johnson to not only promote an upcoming WWE event in the city on December 22nd, but also to give back to the community that made him who he is today. "We're trying to raise awareness, especially this time of the year. You don't want to just say on the holiday season, because you want people to remember this all year through. They said they had 900,000 people in the GTA that came to the food bank throughout the year, so its helping people. Its pretty cool." Edge says that in the old days, it would ordinarily be unusual for the companys biggest heel to break character & contribute to a charitable event. But times change. "When our cameras are on, I'm the guy who's known to press your buttons. But its a different world now. I think people kind of understand that for the most part." The Conniving Canuck says that his role as a top heel in the wrestling business is to get fans emotionally involved. But for an event like this, hes sure they'll understand that theres a separation between his wrestling persona & the guy he is in real life. "I think people understand that we're going to do things like this & whether or not I'm a bad guy on TV, I'm still going to do things like this." Edge got some well-deserved time off @ the end of the summer. During the time, he says hes been trying to stay active & waiting for his opportunity to jump back into things in the WWE. "I have the nagging aches & pains that every 1 of our guys & girls have, but this 1 wasn't surgery related. It was really just to clear my mind. I surfed, I went hiking up in the mountains. My beard froze. It was so much fun & I needed it." The Rated-R Superstars program with The Dead Man's arguably a front-runner for feud of the year. He thinks it may be his best feud of all time. "I think my rivalry with Cena up until this 1 might have been my most heated rivalry, but the 1 with 'Taker, I think, has surpassed that. You're in there with a guy who has literally done it all & to main-event WrestleMania against UnderTaker with the championship on the line. Its something you'd think would never happen, but it did." The Smackdown Heavyweight champion also has a DVD coming out with highlights of his career. He got to choose most of the matches, but says it was hard to pick any that weren't already put on other DVDs. He enjoyed making it nonetheless. "Its neat to think back about my match with Owen Hart, because theres not a lot of guys on the roster that can say that they've had matches with Owen Hart. The 1 with Mister Perfect's also on there & it was only 4 minutes long, but for me, being such a Hennig fan, had to put it on there." Edge says that some of his greatest career highlights were teaming with "Instant Classic" Christian Cage. He couldn't exactly speculate on if Cage has signed with the WWE, but he'd love to work with him again. "It'd be great to have him back. I'd love to have him involved, just to be able to ride together & any time you can have your best friend with you, I'd definitely take that." To listen to this entire interview & others, please visit http://www.liveaudiowrestling.com For future interviews, be sure to tune into Live Audio Wrestling, which airs every Sunday night @ 11pm EST on Newstalk 1010 CFRB in Toronto, as well as Sirius 98 Hardcore Sports Radio, online @ http://www.liveaudiowrestling.com or on Rogers cable, channel 960. Listen Edge, shut up a second, so we can all check out what Natalya thought about her experience @ the food bank ~ http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Wrestling/2008/12/05/7647341.html
- RAW's Dave "The Animal" Batista's on the cover of the latest issue of Fighting Spirit. The headline reads "Batista -- 'I'm 39. . . Getting Injured Would Be A Life Sentence.'" The magazine features an interview with him & he speaks out on Chris Benoit. He's asked if the guys still talk about him & if so, how is he remembered. "Nobody's over the Benoit thing, not @ all. Nobody who loved or knew him or Nancy or Daniel will ever get over it. We talk about Chris all the time, but out of respect for what he accomplished as a wrestler dedicated to his craft -- the ultimate professional who mentored others. The guy that did all those horrible things wasn't the Chris we knew & loved. We didn't know that Chris, so maybe we're in denial. That's not the way I chose to remember Chris. I despise what he did, but I don't choose to remember him for the killings & negative stuff. He was 1 of the best people I ever knew, in terms of helping others, his accomplishments in the ring & that's how I chose to remember him. It still hurts & is still a tremendous loss for all of us. He left a real void in the business."
- Here's the complete list of winners for Monday night's WWE Slammy Awards: WWE Superstar of the Year (presented by Stephanie McMahon) Chris Jericho. . . DAMN! Moment of the Year (presented by Ron Simmons & Mickie James) The Great Khali's Kisscam. . . Match of the Year (presented by Ken Kennedy & Eve Torres) WWE Hall of Famer "Nature Boy" Ric Flair versus 2016 WWE Hall of Famer "HeartBreak Kid" Shawn Michaels @ WrestleMania 24 {accepted by Michaels}. . . OMG Moment of the Year (presented by Joey Styles & Alicia Fox) CM Punk cashing in his Money in the Bank #1 Contendership to win the RAW Heavyweight championship. . . Diva of the Year (presented by Melina Perez & Theodore R. Long) "Glamazon" Beth Phoenix. . . Couple of the Year (presented by Kane & Kelly Kelly) Smackdown Heavyweight champion Edge & General Manager Vickie Guerrero. . . Most Extreme Moment (presented by ECWWE Heavyweight champion Matt Hardy & Tiffany) Jeff Hardy's 'Swanton' Arching Centon Bomb off the RAW scaffolding onto "Legend Killer" Randy Orton. . . Best Finishing Move (presented by Candice Michelle Beckman & Cryme Time's JTG & Shad Gaspard) ECWWE's Evan Bourne's 'Air Bourne' Shooting Star Press. . . Tag Team of the Year (presented by Maria Kanellis & Festus Dalton) ECWWE's Altered Reality {John Morrison & Mike "The Miz" Mizanin}. . . Best Impersonator Charlie Haas as Beth Phoenix. . . Best Announce Team ECWWE's Matt Striker & Todd Grisham. . . Best Musical Performance "R-Truth" Ron Killings. . . Best http://www.WWE.com Original The Dirt Sheet. . . Breakout Star of the Year Smackdown's Vladimir Kozlov
- RAW Heavyweight Champion John Cena was in New York City Tuesday night for the movie premiere of "The Day the Earth Stood Still", which opens today. The 20th Century Fox sci-fi thriller stars Keanu Reeves & Will Smith's son. http://www.AceShowbiz.com reports that WWE recently forged a partnership with 20th Century Fox, which will distribute several upcoming WWE Studios projects, including Cena's "12 Rounds" movie, that opens just before WrestleMania 25 on March 27th, 2009.
- Regarding the recent firing of "Doctor of Desire" Bruce Prichard, it was ultimately as a result of a behavioral incident on the road. ECW Owner Stephanie McMahon made the call to let him go, which WWE Owner Vince McMahon didn't overrule. Prichard's firing wasn't as a result of cost-cutting deal or a drug issue, although some in creative believe they're better off without Prichard, because he was always trying to nix pre-taped segments so he'd have less work to do. A number of people believe he'll be brought back to the company @ some point, but with less power & no involvement with creative.
- There was a major backstage altercation that took place between former ECW announcer Joey Styles & former Smackdown Heavyweight Champion John Brad$haw Layfield while WWE was overseas in Iraq over the weekend. JBL's known for being a lockerroom bully & he was giving it to Styles all week. Over the weekend, Joey'd had enough & got in Layfield's face. Several WWE employees jumped in to break it up & Brad$haw, who'd been drinking, broke free. He then charged @ Styles, who punched him right in the face & knocked him down. JBL ended up with a black eye & a cut under his eye, which were somewhat visible on Monday's RAW. JBL wore heavy make-up during the broadcast & tilted his cowboy hat down a bit, to conceal his face. Apparently, there were a number of different things that JBL did to Joey during the course of the Iraq tour, all of which would've set a normal person off. Some of JBL's hazing was verbal & some was physical. At last night's RAW tapings, JBL was unusually quiet, while Styles tried to play down the incident & didn't want to talk about it. While some companies would fire an employee for an incident like this, there are actually some people within the company that feel Joey standing up for himself might actually score him some points with the McMahonopolizer. In a related note, there's an unwritten rule among WWE superstars that anybody who falls asleep on the airplane en route to an overseas tour's subject to pranks. It was reported last week that WWE ring announcer Lillian Garcia fell asleep on the way to Iraq & JBL dumped a bucket of ice on her. John Brad$haw Layfield has a new blog entry on the WWE Universe site, but doesn't bring up the incident with Joey Styles. Instead, JBL says he'll send people his Layfield Energy product for free, because he believes it'll change their lives. @ 1 point, he weighed 330 pounds. "I got up 1 morning after that, weighing 330 pounds & realized I needed to do something, because I didn't like the way I looked or how I felt. So I took the product I developed; Layfields Energy-Plus No Pain & Focus, went across the street to do cardio @ my local gym here in NYC. For the 1st time since I could remember, I felt good, I didn't hurt and I had energy. I repeated the process the next day. Same thing happened. After about 6 months, when I finally weighed in below 250 pounds, I realized I was on to something. My concoction of Layfield Energy was, in my opinion, the fountain of youth." Layfield has lost 100 pounds & he plans on doing a photo session later this month documenting his weight loss. "I want you to try it too. I'm so convinced it'll make your life better, that I'll send you some for free. That's how much I believe in this product. I'll send it to you for FREE! Go to http://www.layfieldenergy.com & check it out now. I can tell you from personal experience, a better life's to be had for those who try Layfield's Energy." Check out his whole blog @ http://fans.wwe.com/jbl/blog/2008/12/10/jbl_blog_dec_10_2008
- Mike Mooneyham has an interview with ECWWE Heavyweight Champion Matt Hardy Sunday. He believes brother Jeff will soon receive a title run. "I think WWE will pull the trigger on him. I hope they do, because it's something he totally deserves. He's sacrificed his body & everything he has for the professional wrestling/sports entertainment business through WWE. I think it'll happen sooner rather than later. Jeff has really grown up & matured a lot inside." Matt also said he has no worries for his brother. "I think these days, Jeff gets a bad rap for some of these things, because Jeff's really good & he's in a great place in his life. There was a time, if you go back to 2003, had you asked me if I was worried about Jeff, I'd have told you that I really was worried about Jeff. Now I have 0 worries about him." Matt also said he's not worry when Jeff takes high risks in the ring. "It's no big deal for him to take some kind of huge risk & he really doesn't worry about the consequences. Sometimes in life, that's how it is. It's hard for him to live in a system, to a degree. But Jeff's actually doing real well right now." He also commented on his former girlfriend Amy "Lita" Dumas, saying they maintain an amicable relationship. "She's doing okay. I talk to her every so often. We're friendly & get along. It's all good. You can't sit back & hold on to something forever. It's bad on you. It's going to affect you going forward." To read the whole thing, head on over to http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/dec/07/mooneyham/
- WWE released a new book this past Tuesday, called Showdowns: The 20 Greatest Wrestling Rivalries of the Last 2 Decades As the title says, the book looks @ the greatest wrestling rivalries from the last 20 years. Among the rivalries profiled include Rock versus StoneCold Steve Austin, Hulk Hogan versus "Macho Man" Randy Savage, the Monday Night Wars & Austin versus WWE Owner Vince McMahon. To read the official description of the book & see the cover, check out http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1416591737
- WWE legend Howard Finkel has the following to say about his premiere blog on WWE Universe: "Well as promised, our 1st guest for my new live blog has been confirmed! I'm delighted to announce that WWE Legend "$1,000,000 Man" Ted DiBiase will enter "The Finkel Factor". It debuts on Thursday, December 18th, taking place from 7-8 PM EST. Changing a familiar phrase around a tad, I'd believe that "everybody has a question for the $1,000,000 Man" & you'll have the opportunity to do just that with 1 of the all-time greats in less than 2 weeks' time. Please join us." Check it out @ http://fans.wwe.com/howardfinkel/blog/2008/12/06/first_guest_confirmed_for_the_factor
- Harry Smith & TJ Wilson will make their debut on Smackdown as a tag team soon. Owner Vince McMahon decided to bring Smith up to the main roster 2 months ago while on a flight coming back from a terrible RAW show & he looked @ a roster sheet & noticed his name. He went off on the creative team for having a "Pedigree kid" working in development. He was said to be upset with the creative team for wasting young talent or being jobbed out.
- Former Smackdown Tag Team co-Champion Zack Ryder has a blog, talking about a certain fan sign appearing during his match on SmackDown last week. He also asks people to buy their very own Zack Ryder action figure for the holidays. Check that out @ http://fans.wwe.com/zackryder/blog/2008/12/08/woo_wooo_wooo_you_know_it
- WWE's signing of Travis Tomko isn't related to the return of "Instant Classic" Christian Cage. TNA offered Cage what's said to be a good offer & he hasn't accepted it yet. The general feeling within TNA's that there's less than a 50% chance of him staying. WWE officials haven't received confirmation that he's returning, but are under the assumption he's coming back. There has been talks of a possible Edge/Christian/Tomko group, though.
- To update Rey Mysterio Junior's WWE contract status, both sides are still negotiating. WWE wants to lock up Rey-Rey for 5 years, while Mysterio would prefer a 3 year deal.
- As reported recently, RAW wrestler Ted DiBiase Junior has been filming scenes for WWE's next straight-to-DVD movie, The Marine 2. The film's scheduled to be released sometime in 2010. WWE CEO Linda McMahon said @ Wednesday's UBS Conference in New York City, that filming's taking place in Thailand. McMahon didn't say when DiBiase will return to television after filming has completed. Lindo-Mac also noted the 1st Marine movie, starring John Cena, as the company's most successful film to date. No word yet as to how long her nose grew to become after that whopper! You can listen to the conference @ http://events.streamx.us/US/Event/PresentationList.aspx?id=65&rid=145089&s=633645169693831755
- For people wondering about Montell Vontavius Porter's losing streak (now @ 19 consecutive losses on television), he was told it was being done because the company's mad about giving guys such as Brock Lesnar & Bobby Lashley huge pushes, only to see them leave. The word going around's that they're doing this to MVP now, not as a booking reprisal, but as a way to make sure he's willing to stick out for the long haul. Porter feels this is the real reason for the losing streak, apparently not realizing every1 else they're high on & grooming for the future, also don't have losing streak storylines. Well I, for 1, hope he sticks it out for the long run, because I find him to be 1 helluva entertaining wrestler!
- "All-American American" Jack Swagger's getting strong reviews for his work @ house show events. When he was in developmental, WWE Hall of Famer "American Dream" Dusty Rhodes singled out Swagger as the 1 with the most potential.
- The Military News Network posted a 7-minute video on YouTube, showing the WWE's arrival in Baghdad & some "sight-seeing" WWE Superstars did while spending a few days there in Iraq, before taping the 6th annual Tribute to the Troops show. Superstars such as RAW's Dave "The Animal" Batista, Shad Gaspard & JTG, CM Punk, Rey Mysterio Junior & Chris Jericho, Smackdown's Big Show, ECWWE's Mike "The Miz" Mizanin & John Morrison & of course WWE Owner Vince McMahon, while others also made the trip. Several WWE Divas also joined in to bring the extra smile to the mostly-male military personnel. It's quite an interesting video, which you can see @ http://www.wrestling-online.com/news/News_9/MNN_Tribute_video.shtml
- Ron Simmons was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame during a dinner & induction ceremony Tuesday night in New York City. "It really hasn't sunk in yet. This is a tremendous privilege & honour. I was recruited hard by all the Georgia schools & grew up in South Georgia & they all told me I was going to an all-girls' school without much tradition @ Florida State. We proved a lot of people wrong & it was a fantastic experience playing for coach Bobby Bowden." Simmons' Florida State number #50 was retired in a ceremony in 1988.
- An anonymous person who recently worked inside WWE's writers room as an intern assistant & got to sit in during a few creative team meetings, had some things to say regarding his experience observing the McMahons -- Vince, Stephanie & Shane -- @ work. On Nipple H: "The woman's so passionate & hard-working I have no idea how she keeps up. Despite all the pressures of alive production & constantly having to deal with mega egos from her male counterparts, 1 thing that always stood out about her was that she always remained down to Earth & approachable. In production meetings, numerous writers would pitch ideas. It was her job to decipher what would go to Vince, he'd have the final say & often make several changes in the end. Not all ideas were great. Some were downright ridiculous. What most impressed me about Stephanie was that if there was something or somebody she truly believed in, she really stuck to her guns. That didn't always rub people the right way. Seemed every1 always had their own agenda & every1 always seemed to think they knew what was best for the company. Her job's to play the bad cop & decide which direction to go. I truly believe her decisions were based solely on making the WWE a better product, within the realm of pleasing family-friendly advertising giants, as well as wrestling fans, always pushing for cutting edge material." On Vinnie-Mac: "He, like Stephanie, is very passionate & hard-working, but unlike Stephanie, he's very neurotic & intense. Not saying this is a bad thing. It's his company, but he does demand respect." On Shano-Mac: "He never seemed to grasp the big picture from a creative standpoint & always seemed more self-preserving in his ideas & thoughts." The intern also described the WCW Owner as a "polished ego-stroker" who likes to think of himself as "1 of the boys" The intern said Shane's always pushing ideas for Dave "The Animal" Batista, while Stepho-Mac was always trying to come up with ideas for the younger performers.
- The Winnipeg Sun has an interview with SmackDown wrestler Ken Kennedy Saturday & he told them he's grown tired of being labeled injury-plagued. "People say I'm snakebit, I'm plagued by injuries. It's the nature of our business. Injuries happen. It was a freak injury for me. {Dave "The Animal"} Batista clotheslined me & I injured my triceps when I hit the mat." Kennedy then points out other WWE stars who've spent time on the shelf due to injuries like him. "If you look @ Rey Mysterio Junior, The Undertaker. He's out once a year, HHH, John Cena. He was out twice in the last year. It's frustrating for me. I'm not as accomplished as those guys. They accomplished a lot more before they got injured. I hope I don't get a moniker attached to the end of my name." Kennedy's expected to be able to return to the ring on February 28th, but. . . "I may be back sooner than you think. Besides relaxing & spending time with my wife & my dog, I've been playing lots of games -- Wii, Xbox 360 & on the computer. I'm a nerd, a geek. I love Warcraft. I've crossed into super geekdom. I just beat Gears of Wars 2. I played 130 hours of Zelda when it came out." Check it out @ http://www.winnipegsun.com/Sports/OtherSports/2008/12/06/7652086-sun.html
- After WWE television shows were temporarily halted on German TV, Premiere released a statement Saturday saying that they finally reached an agreement with WWE to resume the popular shows on its channel. The pay-TV broadcaster signed a new 2-year deal, which will have better WWE action than ever before. All 14 pay-per-views will be shown live & all the other shows --
RAW, ECWWE, Experience & Afterburn -- won't be on a week delay, but rather will broadcast current, just like in the United Kingdom. Premiere TV wanted the full 2-hour version of RAW, rather than the 1-hour International version, which WWE didn't agree to & it led to more negotiations, with the broadcaster even pulling the shows temporarily from the schedule as some sort of leverage. However, WWE still didn't give them the 2 hours of RAW they wanted, but decided to offer them up-to-date shows in return. Premiere sports-executive Roman Steuer said that the company's pleased to continue their partnership with WWE. "Premiere's still the #1 Wrestling broadcaster in Germany," he concluded.
- WWE's signed yet another 2nd-generation wrestler. They've signed Dakota Darsow, 21, to a developmental contract, who's the son of Barry Darsow (aka Demolition Smash, Krusher Darsow, Krusher Khruschev, Repo Man, Blacktop Bully, Barry "Hole in 1" Darsow) He took part in a week-long tryout with WWE a few months ago, but only recently signed a contract. He's profiled in the latest issue of The Wrestler/Inside Wrestling & said he was still hoping to land a deal with WWE. Darsow reported to Florida Championship Wrestling this past week. Unlike certain 2nd-generation signings, Dakota has prior wrestling experience, as he started wrestling in the Midwest about a year ago. But quite like other WWE developmental talents, he has a strong build, various tribal tattoos & a short haircut.
- "Innovator of Violence" Tommy Dreamer has a blog on the WWE Universe site answering the fans' top 10 most asked questions. Dreamer's asked if he watches TNA, with the ECWWE Superstar actually proclaiming himself a loyal TNA viewer, as he watches their show every week. "I do every week. I really am impressed with the way Rhino & Team 3D have (sic) stepped up their already-impressive game." Dreamer then pokes fun @ Brother Ray's weight. "Brother Ray seems to even have lost some weight. A Christmas miracle. An angel has gotten their wings." He's also asked why he loses all the time, "especially to guys who suck." Dreamer said, "Well, just like in life, every time you get knocked down, it's most important to brush yourself off & get up & fight back." Dreamer's also asked where Colin Delaney & the ECW Originals are. He still keeps in touch with them, usually via text-messaging. "I do keep in touch with them, usually through texts. For some reason or another, all are no longer in WWE. They're all doing well & miss their fans."
- WWE has signed Michael Hutter to a developmental contract. He was in Ohio Valley Wrestling sometime last year, but had to return to his home in Ohio after tearing his ACL. Hutter will be moving to Florida. You can see his photo & all the proof you need as to why WWE's signed him @ http://flickr.com/photos/aaronsalo/2910836314/
- Eugene Snisky -- better known to WWE fans merely as Snitsky -- has been released from the company effective yesterday. http://www.WWE.COM confirmed the news in a short message posted on the website wishing him "the best in all future endeavours." Snitsky joined WWE in 2003 & was sent to Ohio Valley Wrestling before being brought back to the RAW roster & making his TV debut in late 2004. In 2007, he was moved to ECWWE & in June of that same year, was drafted back to RAW, where he remained until he was released. Well, I guess Owner Vince McMahon wasn't that high on him anymore, huh? . . .
Posted on Dec 15, 2008, 5:42 AM from IP address 134.153.20.97