WWE News: Updates and Analysis on the Week's Top WWE News and Storylines
All you WWE fans should know the drill by now.
Bleacher Report is going to hit you up with major updates regarding the wonderful world known as the WWE all week long, and put them in one convenient place—right here.
We’ll make sure to take a look at the biggest stories from around the WWE, including anything from RAW’s main event storyline between CM Punk and Kevin Nash, to the possible end of the brand extension and to rumors of which free agents might be headed to the WWE.
Check back here throughout the week for analysis of the WWE's top news from yours truly and some fellow Bleacher Report columnists.
You’ll get the news you want, with a bit of an opinionated twist from writers who love the pro wrestling business.
Enjoy it, guys and gals.
WWE News: Will Triple H Put CM Punk Over?
Monday Night Raw’s main event storyline between Triple H and Kevin Nash could go a thousand different directions, but will it end up putting Triple or Punk over?
A former WWE employee thinks he knows the answer.
Ex-WWE creative team member Seth Mates commented on Twitter on the ongoing angle between Triple H and Punk, and here’s what he had to say.
Essentially, Mates believes that the angle should play out like this: Triple H defeats Punk at Night of Champions, Triple H forms a stable that does everything in its power to destroy Punk for the next several months and then Punk gets the win back against Triple H at Wrestlemania 28.
That’s the type of booking that makes the most sense to me. As Mates notes, “the thrill of the chase” would make for some compelling TV as the baby face Punk tries like hell to topple the heel boss, Triple H, before eventually doing it.
However, Mates goes on to say that he thinks the end result will be Triple H getting the best of Punk, with Punk never actually beating Triple H in a one-on-one match.
Let me translate that for you: What everyone feared would happen (Triple H putting himself over Punk) could very well be what happens.
Please, no.
Look, everyone in pro wrestling—whether they want to admit it or not—has a huge ego. If they didn’t want to be at the top, then they wouldn’t even be in the business. I can’t knock them for that, either.
But, if Triple H really gets the best of Punk in this feud, then that is absolutely ridiculous. Triple H is no longer a full-time wrestler, and even if he was, he has no more than a few years left as an active competitor.
Considering that he already has 13 World title reigns, he has zero need for any type of massive push at this point in his career. Especially when you consider that he’ll still be working for the WWE when he retires, he should be putting over as many of the company’s up-and-comers as possible.
If not, then that’s just “bad for business.”
WWE News: How Long Will Former WWE Star Jeff Hardy Be in Prison?
It’s not a good time to be a Hardy.
Just a couple of weeks after former WWE star Matt Hardy was arrested on a DUI charge and then released by TNA, his brother Jeff has been sentenced to serve time in prison.
From Wrestlenewz.com:
TNA star Jeff Hardy was back in a Moore County, North Carolina courtroom on Thursday and plead guilty to three felony drug charges, including:
* Two counts of intent to distribute a controlled substance
* One count of conspiracy to traffic in a compound containing opium.
Hardy was sentenced to serve ten days in jail and also fined $100,000.
In addition to the fine and jail time he was also sentenced to 30 months probation.
In the event that Hardy violates the terms of his probation, he could be sent back to jail.
No word yet on when his jail sentence will begin.
After what seemed like 37 years of Jeff having his case continued, the court has finally reached a resolution: Jeff will be in jail for a week and a half.
Now, call me crazy, but doesn’t Jeff’s sentence seem pretty damn lenient? I’m not a legal expert or anything like that—and I don’t claim to be—but I’ve seen people get more prison time for a DUI than Jeff got for not one, but three felonies.
Maybe his record was clean before then, but there’s something in this report that really catches my eye: that $100,000 fine. It seems to me that the fine was so hefty because the jail time time was so little.
I mean, let’s put this into perspective—Jeff was actually convicted of having the intent to sell drugs. If an ordinary citizen like me got caught trying to deal something like ecstasy and weed, you think I would have gotten just 10 days in jail? Hell no.
I’d probably be in prison until I was 40 years old. But not Jeff. He somehow manages to serve less than two weeks in jail even though he’s now a convicted felon.
Let this be a lesson to you, folks: If you’re rich and famous, you can do whatever you want and not have anywhere near the consequences that the average person would have.
WWE News: Why We May See HBK and Bret Hart Back on WWE TV Soon
After the infamous Montreal Screwjob took place in 1997, we never thought we’d see Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart back in a WWE ring together.
Of course, that changed in early 2010 when Hart and HBK “buried the hatchet” on Monday Night Raw in one of the most memorable moments in the show’s history. It was unforgettable for wrestling fans who have followed the careers of two of the WWE’s best wrestlers of all-time, and it left many pining for more between those two.
Well, guess what? It just might happen.
From the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (via Wrestlenewz.com):
Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels may be appearing on RAW in November to do an angle promoting the release of their Greatest Rivalries DVD.
Yes, please.
I know some of you might be thinking that—with The Rock wrestling John Cena at Wrestlemania 28 and Kevin Nash involved in Raw’s top storyline—the WWE might be relying too heavily on big names from the past, but having Hart and Michaels would undoubtedly help the WWE attract more viewers and thus, help them in the battle against Monday Night Football.
Interestingly enough, one of my favorite wrestling bloggers, John Canton, recently posted an article in which he called for Hart and HBK to be involved in a feud involving two of WWE’s brightest young stars.
I really like his idea. Check it out:
I think it would be great to bring Bret back in a role not as a manager necessarily, but as the mentor to (Tyson) Kidd. They can put him in some matches with Bryan. DB can win them cleanly via tapout and then you do a segment where Bret tells Kidd to be more aggressive. They have one more match, Bryan wins again and this time Kidd attacks him post match. He applies the ringpost figure four (a move Bret made famous in WWE in 1997) at the encouragement of Hart and that injures Bryan. Hart turns heel along with Kidd. When Bryan comes back after a few weeks of selling the beating, guess who is in his corner? His mentor Shawn Michaels.
Count me in for that angle, as it would bring old school viewers to Raw and also help put over both Bryan and Kidd in a big way.
Will the WWE ever do this? Probably not. But, if the company truly wants to build new stars, then this would be a damn good way to do that
WWE News: Whatever Happened to Raw’s Anonymous General Manager?
For months upon months, there was something about Monday Night Raw that drove me absolutely crazy. Here’s a hint: It used the iPhone’s ring tone to interrupt the show about ten times per night.
Yeah, I’m talking about the anonymous General Manager.
It was an integral part of Raw for the better part of a year before Triple H took over as WWE C.O.O. Now, it’s nowhere to be found.
So, what happened? F4WOnline.com (via SEScoops.com) has the latest on Raw’s anonymous GM:
Regarding the mystery RAW General Manager, creative has not been told anything about the character except not to do anything with it each week. Some believe the angle is done with but it hasn’t been confirmed within the company. There have been recent RAW shows where the General Manager’s podium is set up and never used, and some weeks it’s not set up at all.
This has bothered the heck out of me for the last couple of months.
If the anonymous Raw GM is not coming back, that’s fine. It sucked anyway. But I hope the WWE doesn’t do what if often does and simply let the GM—and its physical manifestation in the form of a laptop computer—fade away without any storyline explanation whatsoever.
It’s insulting to the smarter WWE fans for the company to drop a major storyline without giving us a reason why it went away, even if the reason is complete and utter B.S. I suspected all along that the WWE had no clue who was going to be behind the anonymous GM angle, and all the WWE is doing is proving me right.
If Vince McMahon was smart enough to care about what the fans think, then he would at least have Triple H come out on Raw and announce that the anonymous GM has been fired.
The guy doesn’t even have to tell us who it was—although I’d prefer he did—but he can at least give us the courtesy of ending the dumb gimmick some way or another.
WWE News: The Rock Wrestling More than One Match Next Year?
The Internet has been abuzz this week after advertisements at Madison Square Garden promoted The Rock’s “return to action” at Survivor Series in November.
But don’t get your hopes up, guys. The Rock isn’t going to wrestle at the pay-per-view.
From F4WOnline.com (via wrestlenewz.com):
As noted before, The Rock will be appearing at this year’s Survivor Series pay-per-view but won’t be wrestling. Sources expect him to deliver a promo and get physically involved somehow with Cena, but not wrestle a match.
Good call, WWE. All that would accomplish is taking away from The Rock’s match with John Cena at Wrestlemania 28.
That’s not the only bombshell that F4WOnline dropped, however. The site also notes that Cena and The Rock will likely be wrestling more than once.
The Figure Four Weekly Newsletter reports that there has been talk of doing a best-of-three series between The Rock and John Cena to solve the problem of who wins the WrestleMania main event. It’s talk right now but if it happens, Rock and Cena would wrestle at WrestleMania, the following pay-per-view and then a third time at SummerSlam 2012.
Woah! That’s fine by me.
I also wondered if The Rock would be willing to work with the WWE only to put Cena over, but this will indeed “solve the problem” so to speak. I’d expect Cena to go over at Wrestlemania, The Rock to get the win at the next pay-per-view and Cena to “win the series” with another W at SummerSlam.
Obviously, you don’t want The Rock to get the best of Cena if he’s not returning full-time, but you also don’t want The Rock to lose three straight matches to Cena.
No matter what happens, though, it’s definitely a good move to keep The Rock around as long as possible. He’ll draw plenty of viewers to any pay-per-view he appears on, and if he consistently appears on WWE TV throughout most of 2012, interest in the WWE product will only increase.
Let’s hope that The Rock will indeed be around throughout most of next year. Come on—you know you want him back, you jabronis.
WWE News: Is the Brand Extension Over?
When Triple H announced on Raw last week that Smackdown stars would be appearing on Raw “for the foreseeable future,” I—like many others—assumed that it signaled the unofficial end of the WWE’s brand split.
Apparently, I was wrong.
In an interview with Sirus satellite radio show “Busted Open,” Triple H said that just isn’t the case:
Well I don't think the end of the brands is here at all. I think it's for a period of time, it's trying to give the best shows that we can. If I was a mid-card guy or lower end, certainly I would look at that and go "Oh man, the spot that could have been mine is now Randy Orton's". To me, I'm a big believer, You know everyone thinks we make the stars. The guys make themselves. We follow what the fans want. Make yourself relevant. Go out and make yourself relevant. If you have been doing the same thing for years, and you have been getting the same reaction, and you're in the same spot, change. We tell the guys that all the time and yet they don't do it.
I have a problem with what Triple H says here.
The guy openly admits that someone like Randy Orton—who has been pushed to the moon and is already over hugely with the crowd—is going to continue to get a ton of TV time, while the WWE’s lesser known stars will get pushed aside.
How is that “good for business?”
If WWE stars are going to “make themselves,” then they need some sort of avenue to do that—they need to actually be on TV, Triple H.
The only exception to that rule is Zack Ryder. He managed to get over with the WWE Universe largely because of what he did on his own time on the Internet, but Triple H can’t realistically expect every lower and mid-card worker to do that.
These guys need a chance to appear on Raw and Smackdown if they’re ever going to make an impact in the WWE. I mean, Ryder’s worked his tail off for the better part of a year now, but he just got a win on Raw this week and still isn’t getting huge pops (though they’re pretty good).
Triple H needs to realize that, while a particular worker controls most of his own destiny, he controls some of it, too.
WWE News: Will New WWE Films President Help Turn it Around?
Vince McMahon and the WWE do a lot of things right, but there’s one aspect of the company that hasn’t exactly succeeded like many thought it would: WWE Studios.
For the most part, the WWE’s film division has been a complete and utter failure. The movies that were in theaters for an extended release generally didn’t make a profit or actually lost money, causing McMahon to turn to limited releases or straight-to-DVD films.
Those have resulted in less monetary losses, but WWE Studios still hasn’t exactly been making blockbusters. That might be changing, though, now that the company has hired a new President of WWE Studios.
The WWE issued a press release earlier today, announcing the hiring:
WWE (NYSE:WWE - News) today announced that Michael Luisi has been named President, WWE Studios, effective immediately. In his new role, Luisi will oversee WWE Studios and all of its motion picture productions and initiatives worldwide. Luisi will continue to report directly to WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon.
The press release notes that Luiis has had a successful career in the movie business, working as Executive Vice President of Worldwide Operations for Miramax, where he spent a total of 12 years with the company.
Could Luisi be the guy who saves the WWE Studios ship from sinking? I sure hope so.
After an initial review for the WWE’s latest release, Triple H’s “Inside Out,” had less than stellar things to say about the movie, I went off on how much of a joke the WWE’s movie-making division is. As much as we like to complain about the creative team, that division is undoubtedly the worst part of the company.
It uses recycled ideas and, for the most part, only uses a few WWE wrestlers—typically Triple H and John Cena—in its films. WWE Films has to expand what it does, and that means using a wider array of WWE stars, using scripts that aren’t exactly the same as previous WWE Films projects and not relying mostly on actions flicks.
Maybe this Luisi guy can be the one who does all those things and starts turning a profit for Vince McMahon.
If he isn’t, then it’s simply time to pull the plag on an aspect of the WWE that’s already on life support.
WWE News: Did Kevin Nash Really Get Released by the WWE?
Kevin Nash has been released by the WWE. Or at least we think he has.
WWE.com wished Nash the best in his “future endeavors”earlier today, in the same manner in which the company typically announces the legitimate announce of a WWE superstar.
So, the question is: Was Nash legitimately released, or is this simply another twist to his ongoing storyline with Triple H?
Here’s what SEScoops.com reported on the situation:
Kevin Nash wrote the following on Twitter today regarding WWE’s announcement that he’s been released and “future endeavored”:
“To set the record straight, I passed physical w/ flying colors. Cardiologist was amazed at my lipid profile. Couldn’t reach financial terms.
I will not be addressing this matter again. I am moving forward with my life. Cena, it was great having the chance to get to know you.”
Based on what we’re hearing – this is a storyline “release” and Nash was never under a talent contract to begin with. Nash signed a Legends deal back in January following his surprise return at the Royal Rumble and has been working under that deal ever since.
I tend to think that this report is probably correct, as letting Nash go less than a month after he came back would be a monumental letdown for a storyline that once had so much promise. Even the WWE can’t be that dumb, can they?
I mean, it’s not that I think Nash has been especially great since his return or anything like that. CM Punk has been blowing him out of the water on the microphone, he can hardly walk and he’s still yet to even wrestle.
But Nash is the glue holding together Raw’s main event storyline, and without him, the beef between Triple H and CM Punk loses a lot of its luster. I think he’ll be back within the next few weeks, though, especially when you consider that his last appearance on Raw was a bit of a cliffhanger (when he left in a limo with John Laurinaitis).
I guess there’s a slight chance that Nash wasn’t medically cleared to compete and there was nothing left for him to contribute to the angle with Triple H and Punk, but like I said, the chances of that are slim to none.
My guess is that Nash will return at Night of Champions with Laurinaitis at his side and screw over Punk or Triple H (likely the latter). Anyone wanna bet on that?
WWE News: Why More Stars Could Try to End Triple H’s Conspiracy
This Monday’s Raw was a lot of the same old, same old.
We saw Randy Orton demolish Heath Slater in three or four minutes and John “Super” Cena standing tall at the end of the show after eliminating both Jack Swagger and Dolph Ziggler in the main event. There were no surprises there.
But, despite the typical booking of Cena and Orton, I saw a light at the end of the tunnel. That light came in the form of several forgotten faces who surprisingly appeared on Raw.
There were plenty of backstage segments on the show, and in those segments, we saw a number of guys who some of us probably forgot were still employed by the WWE. Lo and behold, we actually got to see Curt Hawkins, Tyler Reks and Drew McIntyre on our TV screens!
When’s the last time any of those guys have shown up on Raw, much less all three of them? I’m pretty sure the answer to that question is never. Yep, never.
So, now I have another question: Is there a reason we saw Hawkins, Reks and McIntyre, or was it just a coincidence?
Well, I’m not quite sure right now, but Hawkins and Reks will unite as a tag team on tomorrow’s edition of WWE Superstars, and I think there’s more to these guys appearing on Raw than meets the eye.
They all hinted at being overlooked, and that couldn’t be more true.
Now, If I remember correctly, there’s another duo on Raw that’s done the same thing for the past several weeks. Oh yeah, it’s The Miz and R-Truth.
They feel unappreciated, and so do Hawkins, Reks and McIntyre. You see where I’m going here—why not let those three join The Miz and Truth in their crusade against Triple H’s conspiracy?
They’re obviously not doing a whole lot on WWE TV right now, and this could be a good way to bring back one of the lost arts of professional wrestling: the stable. Not the new Nexus or Corre stable. Rather, stables that are actually good.
I’ve speculated in the past that we could see some overlooked Raw roster members join The Miz and Truth, and the WWE might very well be going that route.
Or they could do what they always do, and have those backstage segments lead to absolutely nothing.
WWE News: What Can We Expect From the Latest WWE Films Movie?
There comes a point in time when you fail at something so many times that you eventually learn your lesson: Stop doing what you’re doing.
Maybe the WWE—and its WWE Films division—will finally realize that you can’t produce the same crap over and over again and still expect it to be successful.
The WWE’s latest attempt at making a movie, this time in the form of Triple H’s “Inside Out,” seems to have failed miserably. Well, at least according to the Orlando Sentinel, it did:
And the single resonant line about prison comes too late to give the movie the tone they might have been going for. Asked, fearfully, about jail time, A.J. intones, “You just sit there — and it passes.”
That’s a pretty fair description of “Inside Out,” too.
The newspaper actually gave the movie 1 out of 4 stars, which is like getting a 25 out of 100 on a test. In other words, WWE Films should be a high school senior, but it’s still in third grade because it can’t manage to get even 50 percent of its question right.
And why do the WWE-produced movies keep failing, you ask? Because they make the same movie—they just give it a different title and change up some up of the cast.
I mean, John Cena’s “The Marine” was a essentially a remake of his second film, “12 Rounds,” and just judging by the trailer of “Inside Out,” you’d swear that it has the exact same script as “The Chaperone.”
Call me crazy or delusional, but it doesn’t seem that hard to make different types of movies rather than the same “action flick with a message” movie that I could make with a Flip camera and a group of my friends who have never been trained as actors.
Vince McMahon needs to do a complete reboot of WWE Films, or just get rid of it. If he doesn’t, we’ll be watching “The Marine 7” starring Evan Bourne by 2014.
WWE News: Why Has Michael Cole's Commentary Been So Bad?
Vince McMahon has the brightest mind in the history of professional wrestling, and that's precisely why I can't understand it when he does something that really hurts the WWE product.
Yet, that's exactly what he's doing with Michael Cole and his commentary on Raw Supershow.
From F4WOnline.com (via SEScoops.com):
Word backstage is that Vince McMahon was feeding Michael Cole more lines than usual on commentary last night during RAW.
Has McMahon lost all touch with reality? I mean, there's no way he can possibly think that anything Cole's been doing on commentary as of late has been good for the WWE.
In fact, Cole's commentary has gotten so bad recently that I find it damn near unbearable to watch Raw. It's one thing to have a heel announcer who actually adds to the product, but it's a whole different animal to have one who absolutely kills the announcing on the show.
Cole's bickering with Jim Ross has gotten to the point of utter ridiculousness. When J.R. returned to Raw a couple of months ago, I was actually excited about seeing and hearing the greatest announcer in wrestling history back where he belongs.
Now, I could give a crap about Good Old J.R.
Why? You can't even hear the poor guy talk because the second he opens his mouth, Cole has to make some asinine comment directed toward him.
It's complete B.S. and a huge slap in the face of the only announcer on Raw who's still competent enough to announce a match without making idiotic comments (like Cole) or being completely out of touch with the WWE product (like Jerry Lawler).
Vince McMahon needs a reality check: He needs someone in the WWE to tell him to cut the crap and tone down Cole's outrageous heel antics.
Maybe he'll listen to what Joey Styles tweeted on Monday night:
Can we have @MichaelCole vs. @JRsBBQ with the loser leaving Raw? Their bickering has me turning down the volume and reading the live chat.
I agree, Joey. Cole's commentary is atrocious, and Vinny Mac is the main reason why.
WWE News: WWE Advertising The Rock ‘Returning to Action’ at Survivor Series
The Rock is scheduled to make in-his ring return at the WWE’s flagship pay-per-view, Wrestlemania, next year in Miami.
Or is he?
From SEScoops.com:
Advertisements in the New York City area for tickets to the Survivor Series at Madison Square Garden feature The Rock and say he is “returning to action” for the first time in 8 years alongside John Cena.
The Rock last competed in March 2004 at Wrestlemania XX, where he and Mick Foley lost a Handicap Match to Randy Orton, Batista and Ric Flair.
Let the speculation begin as to whether or not The Rock will actually be wrestling at Survivor Series just over two months from now. There are plenty of wrestling fans who will want to see The Rock get in the ring before his monumental match against John Cena at Wrestlemania 28.
I’m not one of them.
What exactly would having The Rock wrestle at Survivor Series accomplish other than taking away from his match against John Cena? Nothing really.
Sure, there would like be a huge increase in the pay-per-view’s buyrate if The Rock wrestles, but that’s also the case if he simply appears at the pay-per-view. The Rock is going to draw no matter what—he doesn’t have to wrestle before his bout with Cena to do that.
If he does, we’re going to be left with nothing but disappointment. Let’s say The Rock wrestles The Miz and loses. Are we supposed to believe that The Rock’s going to beat Cena if he doesn’t beat The Miz? Hell no.
On the flip side, let’s say The Rock wrestles The Miz and wins. What exactly does that do for The Miz? Unless it’s an extremely competitive, length match, then all it’s going to do is hurt The Miz in the long run.
We don’t need The Rock to come in and bury people on his way to Wrestlemania. There are enough wrestlers in the WWE who already do that.
WWE News: Does the Stipulation for Punk-Triple H Make the Outcome Obvious?
Last night’s episode of Monday Night Raw—excuse me, Raw Supershow—was quite newsworthy, with Kevin Nash getting “fired” and the team of R-Truth and The Miz announcing that they will be challenging for the WWE Tag Team Championships.
But the biggest blockbuster(s) on the show came courtesy of Triple H, when the WWE C.O.O. announced that his match with CM Punk at Night of Champions would be a No Disqualification match. After Triple H made the change to the bout, Punk said he would only agree to it if Triple H, should he lose, resigns as C.O.O.
Well, I have to admit—I really wasn’t expecting that.
That’s exactly what has me worried. It seems like the WWE has played out the “I’ll be fired” or “I’ll quit” stipulation as of late.
They did it with John Cena last summer, and once again this summer, and guess what? Cena’s still alive and kicking in the WWE.
Maybe that’s why I’m not really buying into the new stipulations added to the Punk vs. Triple H match at Night of Champions. We’ve seen similar stories play out before, and one of two things usually happens. The stipulation makes it obvious who the winner will be (in this case, Triple H), or the stipulation winds up meaning absolutely nothing.
My guess is that we’ll see the second one this time around. Again.
Given that Triple H and Punk have already signed their contract for the match—and that Triple H can do whatever he wants as C.O.O.—he doesn’t have to resign if he loses to Punk at Night of Champions.
I’d love to see Triple H put Punk over clean, but I doubt that’s going to happen. Punk will likely win thanks to some inadvertent interference from Kevin Nash, which will add some more fuel to that storyline and give Triple H a legit gripe to rendering the stipulation completely worthless.
Come on, you know Triple H’s tenure as C.O.O. isn’t going to end this soon.
WWE News: WWE Gets Its Own Television Network
What Vince McMahon wants, Vince McMahon gets.
After rumblings started in 2009 that the WWE head honcho wanted his own cable network, he finally has it.
During last night’s episode of Monday Night Raw, a commercial ran announcing that the WWE will launch the “WWE Network” in 2012. Obviously, that’s a little behind McMahon’s original schedule, but that’s neither here nor there.
The WWE just took a huge step in the right direction with a cable TV station that assumedly will be dedicated entirely to WWE programming. The company has a vast tape library with footage from WCCW, ECW, WCW and so on and so forth, and this is a great way to give wrestling fans a chance to watch some historic moments all in one place.
The commercial that aired during Raw showed highlights from past TV shows and pay-per-views, and one would assume that the “WWE Network” will rely primarily on airing such shows. But, this also gives the WWE the perfect opportunity to air new, original programming.
Make no mistake about—Vince McMahon is a visionary, and logic says that he already has plenty of ideas in mind for his new cable network. Perhaps we’ll see some “behind the scenes” type shows that give us an inside look at how WWE superstars train, prepare for a match, etc. Who knows.
At the very least, though, the “WWE Network” could give both NXT and WWE Superstars a new home. Both shows were dropped by their respective networks earlier this year, and the exposure (or lack thereof) that they get on WWE.com isn’t exactly drawing a ton of viewers.
A spot on the “WWE Network” likely awaits them, but what other types of shows would you guys like to see on the WWE’s new station?
My guess is that Vinny Mac will look to crossover even more so to the world of entertainment, with shows that don’t necessarily focus on professional wrestling. McMahon is always looking to expand his business to new avenues, and this new network will certainly allow him to do just that.
WWE News: TNA Reportedly Feeling Pressure Following Kurt Angle’s Arrest
It was a relatively boring weekend as far as wrestling news is concerned. Well, at least it was until I read that TNA World Champion Kurt Angle was arrested for DUI over the weekend.
Immediately, I thought to myself how Angle would probably deny it at all costs before eventually being found guilty. Only time will tell if I’m right, but that’s beside the point.
Following news of Angle’s arrest, I began looking around for TNA’s reaction to the incident. Surprise,surpise—I found it.
From WrestleZone.com:
WrestleZone has learned exclusively that a number of TNA executives are "very concerned" regarding the arrest this weekend of the company's World Champion, Kurt Angle.
"This is the second time Kurt has been arrested for DUI while the TNA Champion," a company exec told WrestleZone this evening, "and after letting go of Matt Hardy, we need to be consistent in our policies towards talent."
We've been told the company also feels vulnerable to the media on this arrest because they recently brought back Jeff Hardy, who did not go to company-suggested rehab, and the fact TMZ picked up the story so quickly. "There's a definite spotlight on this arrest," the company exec told WrestleZone, "and the Carters have to be aware of how that plays to the business community and even to Spike TV and our global television network."
What do you know—TNA has found itself needing to do some damage control, and it doesn’t involve Matt or Jeff Hardy. Well, kinda sorta.
The fact that this is Angle’s second DUI arrest in less than six months makes him look both bad and guilty. But, really, it’s a reflection of the atmosphere and workplace environment in TNA.
It’s no secret that TNA is not nearly as strict as the WWE when it comes to things like drug testing and subsequent suspensions, and that’s got to change at some point. While I commend TNA for sending Jeff and Matt Hardy home earlier this year after they essentially went crazy, I’m not going to be satisfied unless they do the same to Kurt Angle.
Sure, Angle could be found innocent when it’s all said and done, but TNA needs to send a message that no one—not even the company’s top star in Angle—is above the law or the rules of the company.
I seriously doubt that they’d release the most well-known star they have, but Angle needs to drop theTNA Championship and be suspended immediately. Then, he may finally learn his lesson
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