Here's your wrestling news for June 9th 2021
And your headlines for today include
Why Lio Rush Announced His Retirement From Pro Wrestling!
Aleister Black Opens Up About His Feud With Brock LENSAR , The Undertaker & Samoa Joe!
Aleister Black’s First Post-WWE Booking Announced!
Total Bellas In Line For Cancellation!
John Cena Reacts To Former WWE Champion Wanting To Face Him At WrestleMania 39!
Eva Marie Set To Be A Heel For WWE RAW Return!
Released WWE Wrestler Joins The NWA!
Former WWE Champion Grills WWE’s Poor Creative Storylines!
Major Drama Over Ownership Of Wrestler’s Name!
WWE Wrestler Reveals Injury After WWE RAW And more!
We’re starting today with Andrade El Idolo, who debuted for AEW last week with a deal that wasn’t exactly
what the former WWE Superstar had wanted. As we previously reported, talks,
which began the same week Andrade left WWE, ultimately stalled as the former NXT Champion wanted creative control,
and the power to veto losing matches. Though several news outlets reported that a compromise was reached,
meaning Andrade has some creative control, that isn’t the case according to Wrestling Inc, who note:
We are told that Andrade’s deal with AEW does not have any creative control. It was also noted that no one in AEW
has creative control in their contracts, as Khan has total control over creative.
Whilst AEW wrestlers can make suggestion, it’s ultimately Tony Khan who decides what happens, and given
that TNT lost WCW 20 years ago thanks to, amongst other reasons, wrestlers having creative control, Khan being the
ultimate decision-maker probably isn’t a bad thing.
Lio Rush also recently marked his AEW debut by competing at the Casino Battle Royale at Double or Nothing, and fans
have been wondering what his situation is given that he’s a New Japan contracted performer.
This week, those questions were answered in the first way, as on social media, Rush has confirmed that he’s
retiring from in-ring competition. The former WWE Cruiserweight Champion cited an undisclosed arm
injury suffered at Double or Nothing as the recent for his decision, as his injury was so bad he struggled to put
on a shirt and couldn’t pick up his new-born son. He added that he’s sad to not compete
anymore, saying he was close to becoming the first wrestler ever signed to two major promotions, as AEW were
willing to offer him a contract that’d allow him to keep working for New Japan. Rush added that he’ll fulfil his contracted
New Japan dates, but he’s done after that, and whilst this isn’t the first time he’s announced his retirement, he
certainly sounded serious in this announcement.
Over to WWE, and since his release from the company, Tommy End has been vocal on his time in the company.
The former Aleister Black has already discussed the new character fans saw, mere weeks before he was let go,
and now he’s talking about plans fans never got to see. Speaking to Renee Paquette on her
Oral Sessions podcast, End discussed some of the ideas pitched to him, including being a part of the incredible
Boneyard match from WrestleMania 36, helping even the odds on the Undertaker’s side, after the Deadman
was given a three-on-one beatdown by AJ Styles and the Good Brothers. End said it was very cool that WWE
even considered him for that role, even though it didn’t happen, and the Deadman instead fought off all three
adversaries by himself. A known favourite of Paul Heyman, End was in line for a push before
Heyman was ousted as RAW’s Executive Director, and in that same interview, the former Superstar said
Heyman pitched for a programme between himself and either Brock Lesnar or Samoa Joe.
The story would’ve been that a backstage altercation between himself and Lesnar would start a feud, and one highlight
would’ve been the Beast emerging from the dark during one of Black’s promos, choking him out.
Fans never got to see Black Vs. Lesnar, and with the Beast once again listed as RAW Superstar, it seems this dream
match will remain a dream.
Speaking of Aleister Black, Tommy End’s first post-WWE appearance has been announced
Yesterday, Rock Attack Promotions confirmed that End will be appearing on Saturday, November 13th at the
Big Event in East Elmhurst, NY, from the LaGuardia Airport Marriott. Tickets are already available for the
meet and greet, with $70 netting you both a photo with the former NXT Champion, and an autograph.
Right now, Tommy End is under a non- compete clause, which is set to expire at the end of August, and though he’ll
presumably be snatched up somewhere before November, fans now know where they can find him.
Reality TV news next, as Total Bellas is the Total Divas spin-off that focuses on the lives and relationships of Nikki and
Brie Bella, but that show may soon be coming to an end. While speaking to E! Brie Bella said that
whilst they love filming the show, her husband Daniel Bryan doesn’t enjoy it, nor does their daughter Birdie.
Nikki Bella added that she doesn’t want to raise her 10-month-old son Matteo in front of the world either, saying she
wouldn’t want him to resent her for having his life documented without giving him the choice.
During Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer discussed the Bellas wanting to quit the show, revealing they not have
much of a choice, as E! is considering not bringing the show back for another season, and that it’s been pretty much
known since last season that the show is over. Total Bellas told the story of the twins
final years wrestling and their time after the ring, and with viewership falling dramatically since John Cena left the
show don’t expect any more episodes of the series.
Drew McIntyre news now, as though the Scottish Superstar is preparing to face WWE Champion Bobby Lashley
at Hell in a Cell, the Almighty isn’t the only Superstar on his radar. Recently, in a T-Mobile Center video,
McIntyre spoke about wanting to face John Cena at WrestleMania 39, which’ll be near Hollywood, with the story being
that Drew will be champion by then, and Cena, going for his record- breaking 17th World Championship.
Now, Cena has responded to the challenge on his Instagram, as he recently posted a picture of the Scottish
Superstar, and like all posts on Cena’s Instagram, it comes without a caption. Though Cena didn’t explain his latest
posts, fans were quick to figure out it related to McIntyre’s challenge for a title match at WrestleMania 39.
There’s a lot that could stop this match from happening, as Drew may not be champion by that time, or Cena, who is
rumoured to face Universal Champion Roman Reigns this August, could’ve already become a 17-time World
Champion by then. Whether this match happens or not remains to be seen, but it’s clear that
McIntyre’s challenge has caught the attention of Big Match John.
Next week, Eva Marie will return to RAW after a four-year absence, following weeks of video vignettes teasing her
comeback. In those videos, the former Total Divas star has said that she will be a Role
Model to all the fans, but it seems she won’t be as inspiring as she lets on.
During Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer said the plan is for Eva to be a heel, which makes sense given the
hostile reaction from fans since WWE confirmed her return. The idea is that WWE will give her
babyface lines, but they’ll be so fake that nobody will buy her as a face, making her a heel.
With some muscle, reportedly either Piper Niven or Mercedes Martinez by her side, Eva Marie is set to return in
a big way next week, and will receive a chorus of boos if WWE gets their way.
We’re focussing on the National Wrestling Alliance, as the company is set to host their first-ever all-female
Pay-Per-View. This news was broken by Fightful Select, who report that the NWA’s
all-female show will be on August 28th, but no name has been given yet. Fightful’s report has been confirmed
by Billy Corgan, and the show will face stiff competition in the Pay-Per-View market, as it’ll air the same night as the
Jake Paul Vs. Tyron Woodley fight for Showtime Boxing. WWE Evolution was a popular event i
in 2018, but WWE has yet to host a sequel to their first all-female show, with Maria Kanellis reportedly being told by
Mark Carrano that WWE will never hold an all-female event again. That may be true, but the NWA is certainly
ready to host an all-female show, an on Twitter, Corgan confirmed that Mickie James will serve as executive producer
for the show. This was a big announcement and James was excited to accept this honour, as the
former WWE Superstar is making major moves as part of the National Wrestling Alliance.
Becoming a producer for NWA’s all-female event is a huge responsibility for James, who was released by WWE in April 2020
Whilst speaking recently to Busted Open Radio, James spoke about her time in WWE, especially how she, like many talented
stars, was barely booked in the year prior to her release. Saying that WWE has the best talent in
the world, and that the company has a monopoly on both production and the market, the former Superstar said it’s
unfortunate that so many Superstars are held back from being their best. She said:
It’s unfortunate when, creatively, you’re held back from your true potential. Whether it’s because there’s a certain
vision for this one thing. Because a lot of people just become afterthoughts, and that’s a terrible thing.
She added that this isn’t done on purpose by WWE, but instead because the company are single-minded when it comes
to what their vision is, comparing it to a golden egg. The former Women’s Champion recalled
times she asked WWE what the payoff for her matches and performance would be, adding that the WWE is being written
in the short-term, with no long-term storyline perspective except for one or two angles.
Using the old adage that WWE is cutting it’s nose off to spite their face, James said how WWE easily flip-flops between
burying a talent to having them win a title out of nowhere, because of what she sees as shortsighted booking.
James even speculated that maybe it’s the fans that have changed, and speculated that this short term booking may be a
reflection of fans growing more impatient, and wanting major moments soon, rather than waiting a long time for
an eventual payoff. She added: “I started to feel like ‘okay maybe my long-term vision or that kind of thing of
thing of building in those story aspects or moments and emotions, maybe that’s just not the way we work wrestling
anymore.’ I don’t really know.” James is still under a non-compete clause with WWE, but that hasn’t stopped he
from producing for the NWA, and with Chelsea Green teasing a possible obsessed fangirl feud with Mickie in
Impact, there’s a lot on offer for her outside WWE.
Earlier this week, we reported on Gangrel, who’s left the Gangrel Wrestling Academy, which came as a
shock to those who know the former WWE Superstar well. When Ringside News looked into the
situation, they learned that Gangrel told his students on June 2nd that the rest of their training with him will be at Magic
City Wrestling, a far smaller facility than they had. Gangrel is also telling people that he
doesn’t own the Gangrel name anymore, and it’s not owned by WWE either. The last recorded use of the Gangrel
name is for ‘Gangrel’s Wrestling Asylum,’ and given that his name may have gone with the sale of his school, it’s hard
to say who currently owns the name. We know the owner isn’t Craig Charne, as he was the owner of the school
before recently selling it. Hopefully, a solution for this situation can be found so Gangrel doesn’t have to
drop the name that he’s been going as for practically his entire career, but for the time being, David Heath isn’t
Gangrel anymore.
And we’re ending today with WWE’s Gran Mettalik, but fans won’t be seeing the high-flyer for a while.
After fans found it odd that only one member from the Lucha House Party competed in this week RAW’s multi-team
battle Royale, Metallik confirmed that he’s injured, but didn’t specify the nature of the injury.
It really shows the depth, or lack thereof, of RAW’s tag-team division, that two teams, the Lucha House Party
and the Miz and John Morrison, only had one member compete in the match.
We’ll have to see how long it takes for the Lucha House Party to reunite, but for now, Lince Dorado will be doing things on his own.