Here's more wrestling news for June 13th 2022
And your headlines for today include
Scammers using Paige’s WWE departure to con promoters
Update on WWE’s reasons for releasing Bray Wyatt – ruining babyfaces
WWE moves serious tickets after announcing John Cena’s return
Ronda Rousey names one person she’d step back in the Octagon to fight
Former World Heavyweight Champion makes case for WWE Hall of Fame induction
Japanese pro wrestling legend the Great Muta announces retirement
AEW talent evacuated after shocking weather scare before latest Dynamite
Virgil apologises for the mistakes he’s made amid ongoing health battles
Kane reveals that WCW made an attempt to sign him – Why he said no And more
We’re starting off today with Paige, who announced her impending departure from WWE last weekend, after the promotion opted not to renew her current contract.
July 7th will mark Paige's final day with WWE, but the former Divas Champion is having to deal with one final obstacle before she says goodbye.
Not long after Paige made her announcement, a scammer has emerged online, and has contacted multiple news sites posing as Paige's manager.
This scammer is using an email address that doesn't match the URL Paige is using to take bookings, which can be found on her official Twitter account.
After a decade with WWE, several title reigns and even a movie about her life, it's no wonder why Promoters are interested in her, and this scammer is trying to take advantage of those wanting to
work with her. With no non compete clause to her name, we imagine Paige's inbox will be filled with offers and
opportunities come July 7th, but anyone wanting to work with her should be extra careful when reaching out to the retired wrestler
When WWE released Bray Wyatt in July 2021, fans were shocked, as his Fiend character had become one of the most universally beloved characters the company had produced in years characters the company had produced in years.
Since then, a lot has come out about Wyatt’s release, with reports of a multi-million dollar a year contract and a bad attitude reportedly playing into WWE’s decision to cut the former Universal Champion.
Last week, it was reported that Wyatt did more harm than good by defeating babyfaces so handily, and we now have more about the backstage consensus.
In an update from Ringside News, it’s reported that this idea that Bray ruined a lot of babyfaces by destroying them is shared within WWE, with one source saying:
“Most everyone here agrees with the thought his character killed everyone he worked with.”
During his time as The Fiend, Wyatt decimated the likes of Finn Balor, The Miz and Daniel Bryn, making quick work of all three former World Champions.
If WWE didn’t like how dominant the Fiend was against faces, then perhaps they shouldn’t have booked him to destroy them, but don’t expect this attitude to change.
In two weeks time, John Cena will make his return to WWE, exactly 20 years after his debut for the company.
It’s been nearly a year since fans last saw Cena live on the com pany’s programming, and audiences are itching to see the 16- time WWE World Champion in person.
That’s according to WrestleTix, who report that WWE just have 446 tickets left for the Laredo, Texas show, and it’s likely to be far fewer than that now.
In the first 6 days after they announced Cena’s return, over 1300 tickets were sold, a clear sign that Big Match John still has plenty of star power.
WWE have gave no indication on what Cena will do on the show, though it’s being rumored that a confrontation with Theory will lead to a United States Championship match between the two at Summerslam.
Whatever WWE does, Cena is once again proving to be a hit with the crowd, in what’ll certainly be an interesting return for the Hollywood star later this year.
Now, in 2018, Ronda Rousey made her WWE debut, and after years away from the ring, returned at this year’s Royal Rumble Premium Live Event.
Prior to joining WWE, Rousey was a dominant force in UFC, having destroyed multiple opponents in the octagon, and the reigning Sma ckDown Women’s Champion may be eyeing up a comeback.
“There’s only one person I would come back for… Gina Carano, she’s the reason why I got into fighting, she’s the reason why I knew it was a possibility. I will always be forever grateful… and if she
ever was like, ‘Ronda, I wanna fight you tomorrow… I’m in!”
Like Rousey, Carano is also retired from MMA, and is best known outside the octagon for her role in The Mandalorian, which ended after a series of controversies on social media.
In just a few months since returning, Rousey has once again reached the pinnacle of WWE’s women’s division, but we can never rule out a return to MMA if Carano is ready to throw down.
We’ve got news from Alberto Del Rio next, who had an impressive run during his years in WWE.
While Del Rio may have had his share of controversies over the years, it’s impossible to deny his WWE success, and now the former World Champion is looking for another accolade.
On Twitter, Alberto made the argument for a WWE Hall of Fame induction, highlighting his success as a four-time World Champion, and two-time United States Champion.
Del Rio also pointed out his win in 2011’s 40-Man Royal Rumble, and while it was the largest Rumble at the time as Del Rio claims, that record was surpassed in 2018.
It wasn’t too long ago that Del Rio was facing serious jail time, though the kidnapping charges against him were later dropped, and while he may have earned an induction, or at least being
considered, WWE may remain hesitant to work with the controversial former World Champion
Now, in the world of Japanese Professional wrestling, few names are respected more than the legendary Great Muta.
With his hard-hitting style, Muta is seen as an inspiration for countless wrestlers, both Japanese and non-Japanese, but his legendary career will soon come to an end.
During the CyberFight festival event in Saitama, Japan, Mutah appeared to announce his impending retirement, saying he will ha ve just five more matches before retiring for good in Spring 2023.
Muta is the only man to have held AJPW’s Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship, NJPW’s IWGP Heavyweight Championship, Noah’s GHC Heavyweight Championship and the NWA’s World
Heavyweight Championship.
Western fans may know him best for his time in WCW, where he led the NWO Japan faction, but after a legendary career, the Great Muta’s time is coming to an end.
Back to AEW now, as last week’s Dynamite was another big show for the company, but nearly didn’t happen due to forces beyond their control.
Fightful Select reports on their patreon that there was a tornado scare shortly before Dynamite, with all the guests at one hotel AEW talent were staying at having to be evacuated for their own safety.
Natural Disasters are known to having disrupted wrestling in the past, with 1996’s In Your House 8: Beware of the Dog, ending after just two matches due to a severe thunderstorm cutting the power.
Thankfully, last week’s Dynamite was able to go ahead in full, but it goes to show that there’s some issues even Tony Khan’s vast fortune wouldn’t be able to fix.
Recently, we reported on Virgil, who is facing some serious issues at the moment, including dementia and stage 2 colon cancer.
Last week, the former WWF Superstar called out Ted DiBiase for not checking up on him, referencing the Mississippi fraud case that the Million Dollar Man has been implicated in, but now Virgil is in a
much different frame of mind
As seen across several tweets, Virgil apologised for the mistakes in the past he has made, ranging from fans to the people he’s worked with.
Virgil also made special mention to Chris Jericho, who donated $1500 to Virgil’s fundraiser, as well as the son of Paul Orndorff, in addition to the many fans who have helped in different ways.
At this time, Virgil’s fundraiser to help with medical costs has raised $3970.27 and we’re continuing to wish him the very best at this incredibly difficult time.
And we’re ending today with Glenn Jacobs, who after several awful characters, including the Christmas Creature and fake Diesel, eventually made his name in wrestling as Kane.
While Kane debuted in 1997, Jacobs would actually make his WWF debut in 1995 as Isaac Yankem, just as the Monday Night Wars with WCW were getting started.
Speaking to Eric Cervone of Honest Offense recently, Jacobs disc ussed WCW, and said that the company did “make a play” to sign him, adding that they had a lot of money on the table.
Obviously, Jacobs didn’t jump to WCW unlike several other WWF names, and justified his decision by saying how all signs at the time pointed to the WWF being the better run company.
Even with a huge offer on the table, Jacobs said he never felt like leaving, which certainly proved to be the right decision for the Big Rid Machine, who would enjoy a one-day WWF Championship
reign less than a year after Kane’s debut.
Who knows what could have been had Jacobs jumped to WCW, but it was ultimately the WWF and Vince McMahon who enjoyed the services of the Devil’s favourite demon for decades.