Several WWE Figures Took Issue With Vince McMahon’s Return; Wrestling News July 21st

Jim Ross has been missing from AEW programming following the debut episode of AEW Collision where he suffered some health issues, primarily with his voice.

Speaking on the latest edition of Grilling JR, Good Ol’ JR detailed his current health issues, revealing he is currently battling against sciatica on top of his leg wound caused by his cancer treatment back in 2021.

The veteran announcer went on to say that his plan is to get healthy in time for AEW All In at Wembley Stadium next month.

“I want to get back on the road. I still say my goal is [AEW All In at] Wembley, but if I get back quicker than Wembley, I’m happy to do that. I want to work.”

We wish Jim Ross all the best in his recovery!

h/t to WrestlingInc

It’s been a bumpy road to ROH Death Before Dishonor with the show facing enduring multiple card changes over the last few weeks – including one being caused by the ongoing Hollywood writers’ strike!

According to a new report from Fightful Select, both the ROH World Championship and World TV Championship matches have deviated from their original plans on multiple occasions. The original plans for both bouts were Eddie Kingston vs Claudio Castagnoli and Mark Briscoe vs Samoa Joe respectively.

Kingston was pulled from his match due to his G1 Climax commitments in Japan and Joe was expected to miss the show in order to fulfil media appearances for his role as Sweet Tooth in Peacock’s Twisted Metal. Therefore, the two matches were combined with Mark Briscoe then planned to face Claudio Castagnoli.

Unfortunately, Briscoe suffered a knee injury that required surgery, causing those plans to be scrapped as well. Due to the writers’ strikes, however, Joe’s appearances were cancelled and he became available to appear on the pay-per-view once again.

Therefore, Claudio will now defend his title against PAC following the events of Blood & Guts whilst Samoa Joe will face #1 Contender Dalton Castle.

You can check out the full card for tonight’s show below and purchase the pay-per-view worldwide on WatchROH!

Ring of Honor (ROH) will present “ROH: Death Before Dishonor” this Friday, July 21 at 7 p.m. ET (4 p.m. PT).

For the first time, the new https://t.co/8dcdtxqvDf will carry the pay-per-view for subscribers worldwide. pic.twitter.com/bo7JW2VSZs

— ROH – Ring of Honor Wrestling (@ringofhonor) July 21, 2023

Will you be watching ROH Death Before Dishonor? Which match are you most excited for? Let us know by sharing your thoughts on Facebook or Twitter down below!

…I don’t even know how to open this story.

In a tweet previewing an upcoming edition of UpNXT, Rhea Ripley gave a stunning response to a fan on social media asking what her favourite thing to do with Dominik Mysterio was.

You know where this is going.

The Women’s World Champion simply smirked at the camera, cheekily replying that “I think you already know that” and cackled. She quickly followed that up with an explicit 4-letter remark that forced both the audio and her mouth to be censored.

All we can think is… poor Buddy Matthews.

TOMORROW @RheaRipley_WWE answers the internet…#WWENXT #UpNXT pic.twitter.com/VovapVn5G6

— WWE NXT (@WWENXT) July 20, 2023

LA Knight has stirred up a frenzy in the WWE Universe over the last few months, receiving incredible crowd reactions – particularly earlier this month in London – and has even inspired a brand-new Twitter movement in support of him!

With all that in mind, it’s safe to say Knight has had a meteoric rise like no other over the past few months and now the former Million Dollar Champion has even surpassed Cody Rhodes to reach a huge new milestone!

According to Wrestle Features, Knight currently has the #1 best-selling shirt on WWEShop, overtaking Rhodes who sits at #2. But Knight’s accomplishments don’t end there as he also holds the #3 and #4 best-selling shirts on the store as well!

LA Knight currently has the top selling t-shirt on WWE shop.

In-fact, he hasn't just got the top selling t-shirt, he also has the third and fourth top selling shirt too. pic.twitter.com/ACvc1yhjt1

— Wrestle Features (@WrestleFeatures) July 21, 2023

WWE have divided fans by breaking rule #1 of the internet: Don’t ask what the internet thinks about something!

In a new tweet, WWE asked fans which WWE Tag Team Championship title belt design is the greatest of all time.

The best WWE Tag Team Title design of all time belongs to… pic.twitter.com/eyyEOcPIFx

— WWE (@WWE) July 20, 2023

Whilst most fans seem to love the original belt, I’ve always thought the World Tag Team Championship design in C looks the most prestigious. But what do you think?

Which tag title belt design is your favourite? Let us know by sharing on Facebook or Twitter below!

WWE fans in the United States will have to pay slightly more to get their wrestling fill in the very near future.

NBCUniversal are set to increase the price of Peacock for the first time in the streaming service’s 3-year history, as first reported by Deadline. The pricing changes will see the service’s Premium tier monthly rate increase by $1 whilst its Premium Plus tier will increase by $2.

The increase will come into effect on August 17th for both existing & new subscribers and will affect access to all content on the platform, including that of WWE. After the 17th, the platform will charge $5.99 a month for its Premium tier and $11.99 for Premium Plus.

What do you think of WWE content on Peacock? Is it better value for money or should WWE have stuck with their own streaming platform? Let us know by sharing on Facebook or Twitter using the buttons below!

WWE are said to be very interested in RUSH as his one-year contract with AEW approaches its end.

The two-time Ring of Honor World Champion signed with AEW following his debut in the promotion at Double Or Nothing 2022, where he aligned himself with his former Los Ingobernables partner Andrade El Idolo.

RUSH has yet to re-sign with AEW and Dave Meltzer notes in the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter that whilst the promotion is believed to have a “very strong offer” laid out, WWE has also discussed potentially signing him. However, there are concerns the company already have too many stars within NXT and simply wouldn’t have a spot for him.

“Rush has been talked about a lot in WWE given his contract situation although he is believed to have a very strong AEW offer to stay. But the general feeling is that they’ve got so many people in NXT ready that they’ve invested in, have put on TV, that for just guys on the roster, they have too few spots as it is.”

Where would you like to see RUSH go – stay with AEW or sign with WWE? Let us know by sharing on Facebook or Twitter using the buttons below!

Since returning to WWE at Wrestlemania 38, Cody Rhodes has ensured that he will never forget his roots – referencing his time on the independents and his major role within AEW several times throughout his second WWE run.

WWE, and talents contracted to the company, have become reluctant to mention other promotions throughout the wrestling world in recent years, with Rhodes becoming a rare exception to the rule. The American Nightmare won’t be stopping anytime soon and now, he looks set to dive into his time away from WWE more than ever before.

A new WWE Peacock documentary ‘American Nightmare: Becoming Cody Rhodes’ will focus on Rhodes’ WWE departure in 2016, his time away from the company and his triumphant return in 2022. Ahead of its release on July 31st, some behind-the-scenes details have come to light ahead on how the show will handle Rhodes’ 3 years in AEW.

Writing in the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer noted that AEW Executive Vice Presidents Matt & Nick Jackson greenlit the use of footage from Being The Elite for the documentary. Many of the interviewees also detailed Rhodes’ time in AEW but Meltzer is sceptical of how much of those discussions made the final cut.

“There was footage from BTE that Matt & Nick Jackson gave permission to use regarding the first All In show and signing contracts with AEW. There was no footage of Rhodes in AEW. We do know that several interviewed talked a lot about AEW but we don’t know how much will survive the editing process.

But it would be impossible to tell a true story of Rhodes without it so I presume it will be covered and it will be interesting to see how it is covered.”

Click here to read more about this story.

Since its inception 4 years ago, AEW has been producing classic match after classic match: From the promotion’s first critically-acclaimed bout in Cody vs Dustin Rhodes to more recent fights like The Elite and Blackpool Combat Club’s Anarchy In The Arena clash. But now, another match has been added to their repertoire.

In the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer awarded 5 1/4 stars to FTR vs Bullet Club Gold’s 58-minute classic on the July 15th edition of AEW Collision.

Whilst the match itself is already history-making, becoming AEW Collision’s first-ever 5-star+ bout, the rating also brings AEW as a whole one step closer to reaching an incredible milestone.

With this latest rating, 23 AEW matches have now been rated 5 stars or higher by Dave Meltzer, leaving the promotion just two matches shy from tying WWE and WCW’s combined record of 25.

Click here to read more about this story.

After years of recruiting many top talents from the independent scene, WWE have significantly slowed their signing efforts – leading to reports that the company had recently initiated a ‘hiring freeze’.

With NXT maintaining a stacked roster, thanks partially to the influx of NXT UK talent following the British brand’s closure, as well AEW slowing down their own recruitment efforts, WWE have instead focused on hiring collegiate athletes into their ‘Next In Line’ program.

Despite all this, however, the company is reportedly still very interested in signing big names. Dave Meltzer discussed this in the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, stating outright that WWE have not enacted an all-out hiring freeze.

Instead, the company are simply hiring fewer talents versus previous years but would still be interested in signing free agents with big-name value – with AEW’s Kenny Omega being specifically referenced as an example.

“Aldis had been in talks with WWE before coming to Impact. WWE, which while talks about a hiring freeze aren’t true, has not been hiring many new people. We were told if, just as a name, that if Kenny Omega was a free agent and he wanted to come it’s not like he couldn’t or anyone who could come in and the belief was make a difference.”

Who would you like to see join WWE next? Let us know by sharing on Facebook or Twitter using the buttons below!

2023 has quickly become one of wrestling’s most historic years in recent memory: From Endeavour purchasing WWE to the announcement of AEW All In in London, there’s been no end to the surprising stories coming from WWE, AEW and elsewhere.

But none have been quite as shocking as Vince McMahon’s return to power this past January, once again taking on his Executive Chairman position following a sudden retirement from the role in the midst of several sexual misconduct allegations in July 2022.

The move hasn’t come without consequences: Eric Young, one of many to re-sign with WWE last year, requested his release from the company following McMahon’s return and Endeavour’s purchase of the company. The former SaNiTy leader has since discussed his departure, stating that “morally, I couldn’t work there anymore.”

Young may not be the only one feeling apprehensive about McMahon’s return, however. Writing in the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer noted that there are others within the company who have expressed “misgivings” over the situation.

“The illusion was it was Vince McMahon’s return to power that he had a moral issue with. There were others who had expressed to us misgivings over that, some serious, but none who were going to quit their jobs over it.”

Click here for more details on this story.

Morning all!

We’re back once again with the TJRWrestling live blog! If you missed the first edition earlier this week, you can check it out here!

Every Wednesday and Friday, I’ll be with you from 7am to 1pm EST covering the latest stories & breaking news from WWE, AEW, NJPW and elsewhere across the wrestling world!

We’ve got some big stories coming your way this morning, including:

• Several WWE figures took issue with Vince McMahon’s return
• Reports of WWE ‘hiring freeze’ said to be false
• Cody Rhodes’ AEW run heavily discussed in WWE documentary
• WWE interested in AEW star as contract expiry looms