Here's your wrestling news for February 7th 2022
And your headlines for today include
“People Are Really Upset” Backlash Backstage To WWE Depushing Popular Former World Champion!
“If This Is The Best You Have, It Isn’t Enough!” Former Superstar Details Confronting Vince Mcmahon With Request For Release!
Former Women’s Champion Claims That Athletes Are Using Fake Vaccination Cards To Bypass Rules!
Ex-Superstar Says They Had An “Abusive” Relationship With WWE!
More Details On Shane Mcmahon’s Royal Rumble Incident. Nearly Changed Major Plans!
WWE Has Already Scrapped Plans For Hall Of Famer’s Return!
AEW Wrestlers Rally Behind Tony Khan To Sign Incredibly Popular Former WWE World Champion!
Update On When Will Alexa Bliss Wrestle Next After TV Return Last Month!
Impact Wrestler Wins Huge At Recent Powerlifting Event! And More !
We’re kicking off today with Big E, who after an incredible 2021, has had an underwhelming 2022 so far.
At Day 1, Big E lost the WWE Championship to Brock Lesnar, a last-minute addition to his title match, and has since been moved back to SmackDown and realigned
with the New Day.
It’s since come out that WWE no longer sees Big E as a singles title holder, but he’s back with Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods for good.
On PW Torch, Wade Keller explained just how unhappy the roster is with this decision, believing Big E can be a top singles star if given the chance.
He said: I’ve asked around, and all I’ve gotten is people who are really upset, you know, with the rug being
pulled out from under him, and I haven’t heard anything about there being an awareness of an issue with him and I think the people I have asked would know.
Big E hasn’t done anything wrong to lose the support of WWE’s decision-makers but he’s still lost the main- event spot, and will just have to make do with being a
tag-team wrestler once more from now on.
On November 4th last year, WWE had another wave of cuts, but for one Superstar, losing his job was great news.
Before being released, Lince Dorado had requested to be let go by WWE, and now that his non-compete clause has expired, the former Superstar is free to k
talk about what exactly happened. Sitting down with Sports Illustrated in his first interview since being released, Dorado recalled
the moment he asked to be fired from wrestling’s biggest promotion: I remember telling the WWE office ‘if this is the best
you have for us, it isn’t enough’…I had six years there total, and by the third year, I saw my glass ceiling. One of the things we told Vince McMahon
was that wrestling, for us, was the easy part. We wanted to be superstars Dorado wanted to be seen as more than just a high-flyer,
but have a character with backstory and layers, but WWE’s creative team never gave him that. Despite what Dorado called a ‘great report’ with McMahon,
John Lauriniatis and Michael Hayes, his character never got any opportunities on-screen, and who knows what the future holds for him outside WWE.
Nia Jax was also released from WWE last November, and not long after she was cut, it was reported that her vaccination status was a factor in WWE’s decision.
Jax has said that WWE released her to send a message to the locker-room, as she had requested extra time-off to deal with mental health issues, but
has admitted that she chose not to get the vaccine.
Now, Nia is spilling the beans on others in the sports world, as she fired back to a fan who dug up one of her old posts.
When this fan called out Jax for a post she made in 2020, which uses assumptions, unrelated statistics and disproven conspiracy theories, the former RAW
Women’s Champion said she stands by this post, and claimed that many professional athletes have obtained vaccination cards, despite not being vaccinated.
Jax didn’t specify which athletes she’s referring to, only that they are out there, and we can only hope that fans seek medical advice from their doctor,
not their favourite sports personalities
That wasn’t all Jax has had to say though, as she recently appeared on Oral Sessions, and had plenty to say about WWE.
Sitting down with Renee Paquette, who chose to leave WWE in the summer of 2020, Jax bashed the company, saying she had an “abusive relationship,
and equated her experience to Stockholm Syndrome. Although the former Superstar said there were some good parts to her six-year tenure, she added
that she’s excited to experience life as herself, instead of the character WWE created. Now, Jax is free to work wherever she chooses,
but has teased that her wrestling career is at an end and it’s highly unlikely she’ll compete elsewhere, but whatever happens from now on, it won’t be with WWE.
At the Royal Rumble, Shane McMahon returned to WWE TV, but was released from the company mere days later.
Shane was released by his father after drawing major heat backstage as he constantly focussed on his own spot rather than his role as a producer and
now more has come out about his final days with the company. According to Fightful, several sources have
confirmed that Shane was fixated on him having a memorable showing in the Men’s Rumble match, and at one point, pitched entering first in the
match to have a lengthy run. When Vince McMahon and Brock Lesnar heard the plans Shane had pitched, neither man was
happy, nor was Randy Orton, who nearly had to enter to Shane’s theme. The report explains that there was a time when
Shane and Orton had swapped entry numbers,, but a mishap with the theme song sequence meant Orton nearly had to walk out to Here Comes the
Money, something the Viper was unsurprisingly against.
Thankfully, that didn’t happen, and no matter if it’s Shane or Orton, fans won’t be hearing that particular theme song for the foreseeable future.
Shane McMahon won’t be a factor in WWE’s plans on the road to WrestleMania, and he’s not the only blast from the past to be gone.
Last week, Kurt Angle revealed on his podcast that he’ll be returning very soon as an on-screen character with WWE, and was backstage at last
month’s Royal Rumble. It appears that fans have changed, as on the latest edition of his podcast, Kurt said that his planned
return has been scrapped, saying it was going to be a three-week program. The Olympic Gold Medalist didn’t specify what plans
WWE had for him, only that it’s over, and added that his obligations are now solely to his podcast and his fans.
After being released from WWE in 2020, Kurt has refused to go to AEW or other promotions, saying he’ll always be loyal to Vince McMahon, but that l
loyalty is being tested now that his planned return won’t be happening.
We’ve got news from Jeff Hardy next, who was released by WWE last December under controversial circumstances.
After a worrying performance at a live event in Edinburg, Texas, WWE wanted Jeff to go to rehab, and released him after he refused, but it’s since
come out that he had no drugs in his system.
Many believe that Jeff will go to AEW when he can, and If so, will likely realign with his brother Matt Hardy in the company.
Matt Hardy has already teased that his future will go to the Xtreme, a reference to their days as Team, and now the Young Bucks have made it clear that
they want Jeff to be an AEW wrestler. Changing their Twitter bio, the Bucks demanded that ‘Jeff Harvey’ be brought to them, a nod to
former WWE announcer Mike Adamle botching Jeff’s name over a decade ago. The Hardys have already been announcing
appearance on the indies together, with their first match back together happening on March 12th for Big Time Wrestling, but the duo may be on AEW TV
together soon enough.
The Bucks and Matt aren’t the only ones wanting Jeff in AEW, as Isiah Kennedy has also teased facing the former WWE World Heavyweight Champion.
Last week it was confirmed that Kennedy will face a mystery opponent in a Face of the Revolution Ladder match qualifier on this week’s Dynamite,
with Tony Khan promising that his opponent will walk through the Forbidden Door. On Twitter, Kennedy teased that his opponent will be Jeff,
saying he’s been calling Matt Hardy constantly about the upcoming ladder match, and that if it is the veteran wrestler, he’ll put Jeff out for good this Wednesday.
Kennedy may want it to be Jeff Hardy, but his non- compete clause means he can’t wrestle until March, but there’s plenty of options out there.
Keith Lee and Karrion Kross both became free agents last week, and either would be a huge score for AEW this week, but for Isiah Kennedy and many more in AEW
he has his sights set on Jeff Hardy.
Back to WWE, as Alexa Bliss returned to TV on the January 10th 2022 RAW, but it wasn’t in the ring.
Since her return, Bliss has appeared in segments with a therapist, trying to understand her crazed behaviour, and we’ve seen 4 of these therapy
so far. We now have a better idea of what the plan is, as Fightful is reporting that WWE filmed a total
9 segments so far, and it’s unlikely she’ll wrestle again before all have aired. If WWE continues airing one a week, with the fifth
fifth on tonight’s RAW, then Bliss won’t wrestle until mid-March at the very earliest. Bliss hasn’t wrestled at all since Extreme Rules 2021,
where she lost to then RAW Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair, who destroyed the Lilly doll after the match, and we’ll just have to keep
waiting to see who Bliss feuds with when she eventually is back in the ring.
And we’re ending today with Impact’s Jordynne Grace, who is a former Knockouts Champion, Knockouts Tag Champion and the company’s
inaugural Digital Media Champion, and now has even more accolades to her name. On Twitter, Grace revealed her dominance at a r
recent powerlifting competition, saying she had a clean sweep, winning all the events she participated event.
Grave won first place in her weight class, 1st p lace overall and was the strongest female lifter, and was awarded a medal, a sword and shield
for her efforts. The first ever Knockouts Triple Crown Champion, Grace has proven herself both in and out of the
ring, and we expect plenty more powerlifting accolades like these in her future.