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Former Wrestling Star Threatens WWE With Cease & Desist

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For years, former ECW star Francine has been known as the Queen of Extreme so it has not escaped her notice that WWE has used that moniker for two of its stars recently.

Francine was an integral part of ECW during its nineties heyday and was seen by the side of stars such as Shane Douglas, Justin Credible, and Tommy Dreamer at different times in her career. When ECW was relaunched in the mid-2000s by WWE, Francine joined the revival but only had one televised match during that run against Ariel.

Speaking on her Eyes Up Here podcast, Francine noted that she was well aware that Corey Graves referred to Lita on Raw as the “Queen of Extreme” – a nickname she has used since the mid-nineties and noted that the company had previously tried to use the name for Liv Morgan and says she’s in the midst of trying to trademark it:

“I mean they’ve called her Queen of Extreme before Liv Morgan. We’ve talked about the Queen of Extreme Liv Morgan tried to use it too. And, you know, I [filed to] trademark that. I don’t know, it’s been maybe six months to close to a year now that I’m waiting for. Because it takes some time to go through. You can’t just do it and then tomorrow, you have it done.”

“It’s a big process. It takes time. And I mean, I’ve been using it now — It’s over 25 years going on 30 years… I appreciate the love. Please don’t get me wrong, but so many people were just like, ‘Hey, did you hear Corey Graves said this.’ And I’m just like, Okay, first of all, I’m never mad, I wouldn’t be mad at Amy, or Lita. I wouldn’t be mad at her.

“You know, she’s not going around saying it, finding her niche. Well, maybe she is, I don’t know. Not that I know of. But my concern over this whole thing is, I don’t want them to try and trademark it and then tell me you can’t use it anymore. Because I’ve been using it for almost three decades.”

Francine also noted that she is not bitter but is simply trying to protect her brand and says if forced to she’ll issue WWE with a cease & desist because, she says, that is what the company would do to her:

“Whether I’m in this business another day or another 30 years from now, if I do conventions, I’m going to sign the Queen of Extreme Francine and I’m going to get that trademark. And if they continue to use it, we’re going to file a cease and desist. And that’s it. because they would do it to me.

“It’s not me being bitter or, you know, trying to be a jerk about things. I’m trying to protect my brand and protect what I worked hard for. And you know, maybe I’m not doing a lot now, but that’s my decision. This is my choice. I’m not busy every week and that is by choice. I do get a lot of offers. I can be on the road every weekend, if I want it to be. I cannot because of my family. I physically can’t do it.

“You know, so the little bit that I do, I’m gonna protect it. So I’m not calling the girls out. I’m calling the company out. And I’m saying listen, that’s not your name to use, that’s my name.”

WWE has recently been hit with another cease & desist over a nickname used by Austin Theory that has also been used for a tag team for years.

h/t WrestlingNews.co