Here's more wrestling news for February 12th 2022
And your headlines for Afternoon include
Vince McMahon has new rule for popular tag-team! Another term is now banned!
Gable Steveson says he’s close to being full- time with WWE, already exploring life after wrestling
WWE has their eyes on current Champion in AEW. Will they jump to McMahon’s promotion?
Update on Tyson Kidd after he missed the Royal Rumble. Is the WWE producer quitting the company?
WWE’s strategy to win back the New York City market revealed after being outsold by AEW
The Rock makes WWE return on latest SmackDown in touching video And more!
We’re kicking off this video with the New Day, who has been one of WWE’s most popular and successful teams, having won multiple Tag Titles
on RAW and SmackDown, as well as hosting WrestleMania 33. Recently, Big E’s singles push was ended as he
was moved over to SmackDown and is teaming with Kofi Kingston once more, but now has to abide by certain new rules set by Vince McMahon.
Fightful Select has learned that McMahon is adamant about the duo not being billed as the New Day, and have so far been introduced for matches
as ‘Big E and Kofi Kingston.’ There seems to have been some miscommunication backstage, as on YouTube and internal lists
the duo were being called the New Day, but that has since been changed. It was also reported that McMahon himself was the
one who made the call to have the group reunite, with a source inside WWE saying the chairman “missed the magic that they created together.”
Interestingly, it was also McMahon who decided to split them during the past two years of drafts, and although various pitches at the time were made for the
New Day to stick together, they were all refused by the Chairman. We can only assume that the group will officially be
the New Day once King Xavier Woods is back and competing alongside his friends, but until then, it’ll be Big E and Kofi Kingston who fans will
watch each week, not the New Day.
During the WWE 2021 draft, fans were shocked to see Gable Steveson drafted to RAW, as he’s had no professional matches so far in the company.
Instead, the Olympic Gold Medalist has been one of WWE’s unique NIL signings, allowing him to continue his studies and competing at the University of
Minnesota, while also working to become a WWE Superstar. Speaking to KSTP Sports this week, Steveson
discussed his collegiate career, and made it clear that he’ll soon be committing all his time to WWE, as he’s getting his last matches in for the University of Minnesota.
WWE has spared no expense in catering to the Olympian, as they’ve set up a remote training facility on campus for him, and even Kurt Angle has said
he’d love to manage Steveson. It remains to be seen what Steveson’s WWE career will look like, but the company is ready to cater
to whatever he needs, and it looks like his career will be starting very soon
Gable’s career in WWE is very close to beginning, but he’s already looking to what will happen after he’s finished working in Vince McMahon’s Sports
Entertainment empire.
In that same interview, Gable discussed his future plans and said that in 10 years, he could see himself fighting for the UFC.
Calling himself a “showman” the Olympic Gold Medalist even said he has plans to be the next Rock, teasing a career in Hollywood after his
time in the ring is done. Steveson also said he could theoretically compete for the NFL, though we imagine a decade as a
WWE Superstar and the various injuries and issues being a Superstar entails would severely hurt his chances of getting drafted
After his incredible win in the Tokyo 2021 Summer Olympics, Steveson had a lot of options on the table, including WWE, AEW, UFC and the NFL, and although
the young Superstar is now fully committed to WWE and his role as a RAW Superstar, its telling that he’s already considering life after the ring.
AEW news now, as Jade Cargill has proven herself in a very short time, becoming the very first TBS Champion earlier this year.
Cargill has made huge leaps in her career in very little time, so it should come as no surprise that AEW’s biggest competition have their eye on the 29 year .
old wrestler. Andrew Zarian of the Mat Men Pro Wrestling podcast reports that WWE are very interested in
signing Cargill to a deal, after now seeing what she can do on TV. It was only a few years ago that Cargill had a tryout
for WWE, but was put off when the company questioned how dedicated she could be to a career as a wrestler given that she’s also a mother.
Cargill has gone on to prove WWE wrong, showing she can be both a mom and a highly-successful wrestler, and after this experience at her tryout, and her success
in AEW, Vince McMahon will need something huge to lure her away from the All-Elite promotion.
For last month’s Women’s Royal Rumble match, WWE used a total 14 former Superstars, but those spots were only filled after some ex-talent turned them down.
Many former women of WWE reportedly said no after learning that TJ Wilson, aka Tyson Kidd, would not be producing the match, as he’s been the producer
of women’s matches for years now and we now have an update on the former Tag Team Champion. There’s been plenty of speculation on his status after
it was reported that he didn’t produce the Women’s Rumble, with some sources stating that Kidd was planning on quitting WWE.
That isn’t the case, as the Wrestling Observer Newsletter reports that Kidd is still with WWE, and on good terms with the company,
and is taking time to heal his neck. In 2015, Kidd suffered a career-ending neck injury during a RAW dark match with Samoa Joe
and although he’s since made peace with his in-ring career being over, the Observer notes that his neck remains in terrible shape, and can flare up from time
to time. It’s also noted that in his place, Fit Finlay was called in to produce the Women’s Rumble, and the
former U.S. Champion also worked for years producing women’s matches during the Ruthless Aggression era
Tyson Kidd hasn’t wrestled in nearly seven years, but his 2015 neck injury will continue to follow him his entire life, and we wish him a speedy recovery
on route back to his role as a WWE producer.
Now, next month, WWE will return to Madison Square Garden, which was once considered the home of the company.
The host of WrestleManias 1, 10 and 20, WWE has lost it’s grip on the New York City market as of late, with their December 26th MSG show only filling
half the available seats, and AEW outdrawing WWE on Long Island. In the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer
reports that WWE is doing all they can to win back to New York city market, with the March MSG show selling only 3,979 seats so far.
Meltzer added that it’s only a matter of time before WWE starts discounting tickets, and said how with Brock Lesnar on the show, the event isn’t expected
to be cost-effective, but that’s not WWE’s concern. Whenever WWE brings Lesnar to a show, especially an untelevised live event, his high-ticket price
brings down the show’s profits, but right now, all WWE are focussed on is getting fans back in New York and reclaiming the market they once dominated
And we’re ending today with The Rock, who is often kept too busy for WWE due to his Hollywood career, and even had to miss the 25th anniversary
celebration of his career at last November’s Survivor Series. During this week’s SmackDown however,
the Rock did make a notable, off-screen appearance, as he recorded the voice over for a very special tribute to his father, the late Rocky Johnson
In a video celebrating Black History Month, Johnson spoke about his father’s skill and physique in the ring, and thanked the Soulman for inspiring him on his
journey, both in wrestling and in life. Rocky Johnson was known in his day as one of the most athletic and charismatic wrestlers
and it’s clear that the apple didn’t fall far from the tree, as The Rock has had an incredible career in
entertainment, but will always remember the man who helped push him to be the best.