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July Wrasslin |OT| Summer of Injuries, Arrests and Allegations

UrbanDandy

UrbanDandy

Member
Oct 25, 2017
12,484
I wonder if any paper would use the word 'mark' in their headlines, would Meltzer flip out? According to him, he doesn't like the term and equates it to the n-word.
 
LonestarZues

LonestarZues

Member
Oct 27, 2017
16,192
Fightful has learned that as of now, Bruce Prichard is leading creative, Ed Koskey was also a point of leadership, and Triple H was helping direct traffic at WWE Smackdown on July 22. Producers were told that Prichard was taking over many of Vince McMahon's television roles for the time being, but nothing permanent was announced. Talent we heard from were trying to find out who was going to end up leading thing permanently, with one noting that most talent has a good relationship with Triple H, Nick Khan and Stephanie McMahon and were looking at what creative obstacles they'd need to overcome.

As far as expected changes, nearly all the talent we spoke to said that will be determined by who is in control. Numerous pointed out that if Prichard ends up taking over, it's likely that not much will change by the way of that, but if it's someone else, the likelihood of forward progression is much higher. There was one source within creative that does expect there to be less rematches, as they believed Vince McMahon would like a matchup, think it made sense, and then later forget that they'd done it so many times. There were also those within that circle that claimed McMahon had issues remembering talent names here and there.

There were plenty of people that we spoke to that believed that the impending leadership may not want to deviate from Vince McMahon's vision out of "respect," but think there are small improvements to be made that can make a big difference.

On Smackdown, there were significant changes to the script, which was rewrote to not include Brock Lesnar. However, when he returned to the building in a much better mood, he was added back to the show. We're told originally the script had called for more of a Maximum Male Models presentation, and a more extended Ronda Rousey/Liv Morgan segment. We were told that the backstage area was chaotic due to the nature of the announcement, the 5 PM meeting, and Brock Lesnar leaving. However, we also learned that many considered it a looser show from a production standpoint, and those involved in that end of thing also think that will be the case moving forward.

Many talent that we heard from were outright shocked that Vince McMahon was leaving. There wasn't a unanimous celebration of his retirement, as there were plenty of longtime talent that indicated they were "offput" by the fact that a talent meeting was held at WWE Money in the Bank that repeatedly reiterated that Vince McMahon wasn't going anywhere. There were multiple top stars that seemed dejected by the abrupt news and said they had no idea that it was coming.

One WWE talent said that "it shouldn't have taken a scandal for a shakeup, and it made a lot of people wonder who is next to go, especially in Vince's inner circle." Most talent that we spoke to believe that Kevin Dunn will likely leave the company or be forced out. We have also heard that Wall Street Journal journalists have reached out to former talent since the second story.

Another talent said "I'm not banking on anything being permanent. Triple H was phased out, Stephanie was phased out, Bruce left the company for a decade, Johnny has been in and out, and none of them has the power Vince does. I'm not convinced that he can actually stay away, especially if he feels the heat has died down."

The memo to talent joked about Vince McMahon's calm demeanor at Gorilla, and thanked them.

Below is the memo, not verbatim.

"To all WWE Superstars,

As I approach 77 years old -- am I really that old? I feel it's time for me to retire as Chairman and CEO of WWE. I have enjoyed sharing my passion and wisdom and love of the business with you. No longer will you see the smiling, docile, level headed calm presence at Gorilla every week.Your dedication to WWE will ensure that we will continue to grow and prosper. Our organization is nothing without you, you're WWE's only natural resource, chosen to perform in front of a global audience. You're all WWE global ambassadors. Carry the WWE flag wherever you go and bust your ass to be all you can be as a person and a performer. I won't be with you, but I'll be watching. Remember to keep your hands up, grab a hold and sell. Smackdown will air tonight at 8 PM."

Throughout the years, it's been a privilege to help WWE bring you joy, inspire you, thrill you, surprise you, and always entertain you. I would like to thank my family for mightily contributing to our success, and I would also like to thank all of our past and present Superstars and employees for their dedication and passion for our brand. Most importantly, I would like to thank our fans for allowing us into your homes every week and being your choice of entertainment. I hold the deepest appreciation and admiration for our generations of fans all over the world who have liked, currently like, and sometimes even love our form of Sports Entertainment. Our global audience can take comfort in knowing WWE will continue to entertain you with the same fervor, dedication, and passion as always.I am extremely confident in the continued success of WWE, and I leave our company in the capable hands of an extraordinary group of Superstars, employees, and executives – in particular, both Chairwoman and Co-CEO Stephanie McMahon and Co-CEO Nick Khan.As the majority shareholder, I will continue to support WWE in any way I can. My personal thanks to our community and business partners, shareholders, and Board of Directors for their guidance and support through the years. Then. Now. Forever. Together."

When we asked people in the company what Vince McMahon what he would do moving forward, an overwhelming response was that many staff and talent didn't even know what Vince liked to do in his spare time, because he had very little of it.
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Pretty lengthy Fightful Report which includes McMahon's letter to talent.
 
UrbanDandy

UrbanDandy

Member
Oct 25, 2017
12,484
When we asked people in the company what Vince McMahon what he would do moving forward, an overwhelming response was that many staff and talent didn't even know what Vince liked to do in his spare time, because he had very little of it.
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I can believe this.
 
Keiriks

Keiriks

Omicron Persei 8 Logic
Member
Aug 19, 2021
6,228
Reykjavík, Iceland
My favorite thing about AEW Dark is how quickly it always devolves into Taz and Excalibur podcasting while wrestling also happens. It's a very pleasant listening experience.
 
venom slime

venom slime

Prophet of Truth
Member
Oct 30, 2017
523
Lisbon, Portugal
AstralSphere said:
YOSHI-HASHI has improved a lot the last couple of years.

That match did highlight a pet peeve of mine with NJPW. They really need to finish matches with wrestlers signature non-finishers or other power moves more often to create a sense of surprise. Every single Shingo match the commentary freaks out with "Pumping Bomber!!! YOSHI-HASHI has to be don... HE KICKED OUT!!!" and I'm sitting here like, no shit, he never wins with that.

The industry in general needs to be better with that, but NJPW is by far the worst. It's one thing that makes ZSJ matches such a delight to watch compared to the rest of the roster, because he has so many ways that he can end a match and he switches it up often.
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I was away from all things njpw for a good part of this year (and a big chunk of 2021 too...), but YOSHI-HASHI has been an absolute pleasure to watch since, well, I'd say 2019. This match with Shingo was the best of the show, no doubt, and it sure wasn't all due to Shingo. His work is good and you can tell he cares.

YOSHI-HASHI - and Taichi - being personal favorites of mine at this point is something I did not expect, but here we are.

And yeah, I agree with your observation, 100%. Like, I'm excited about Tana and Naito tomorrow, but I'm afraid it will suffer from that exactly. Why does Naito bother to go for a cover after a running destino anyway?
 
Ivol

Ivol

Member
Dec 12, 2017
1,005
When are we getting a Conrad podcast with Vince?

'Chat me up Vince, how was it to wrestle God?…..but before we hear from Daddy Mac, do you know about Blue Chew?'
 
LonestarZues

LonestarZues

Member
Oct 27, 2017
16,192
Max Dupri will no longer be a part of Maximum Male Models, per a report from Wade Keller of PWTorch.

Fightful Select hasn't yet confirmed that news, but Keller's report indicated that Vince McMahon made the decision a couple of weeks ago to write the former LA Knight out. Sofia Cromwell is now portraying Max Dupri's sister Maxxine. Keller said that Dupri was rubbing people the wrong way and wasn't fitting in.

We're told that Max Dupri was unbooked last minute and people associated with the segment weren't given real concrete information on his status as of now. McMahon had taken a particular interest in the Maximum Male Models angle, as it was all his idea. Mace and Mansoor were said to have been on board with the angle but Eli Drake had some reservations about things.

McMahon came to the ring to produce the Maximum Male Models debut segment, which is said to not happen often. McMahon had a distinct vision for how Max Dupri would sound and worked with him quite a bit on it, even saying he wanted the character to sound nothing like LA Knight.

When Fightful Select asked around about Dupri, one source indicated that the former Eli Drake "ruffled some feathers with a couple of scripts" in that he had challenged what some of the writers had come up with. Another source indicated that the best thing that could possibly have happened to Max Dupri was Vince McMahon retiring, because he does still have some supporters in WWE that enjoy his work, hinting that the door wasn't closed for the decision to be reversed.

We've heard from numerous people within the company who put over Dupri's delivery.

There were significant changes to the Smackdown script for July 22 that adjusted plans for the stable, as well. Originally, the beachwear segment that was promoted for next week was supposed to take place on July 22.
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Fightful update on LA Knight.
 

lupin23rd

Member
Oct 27, 2017
591
AstralSphere said:
YOSHI-HASHI has improved a lot the last couple of years.

That match did highlight a pet peeve of mine with NJPW. They really need to finish matches with wrestlers signature non-finishers or other power moves more often to create a sense of surprise. Every single Shingo match the commentary freaks out with "Pumping Bomber!!! YOSHI-HASHI has to be don... HE KICKED OUT!!!" and I'm sitting here like, no shit, he never wins with that.

The industry in general needs to be better with that, but NJPW is by far the worst. It's one thing that makes ZSJ matches such a delight to watch compared to the rest of the roster, because he has so many ways that he can end a match and he switches it up often.
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I felt exactly the same way every time I would see a Sami Zayn blue thunder bomb.
 
ReadyorNot

ReadyorNot

Member
Jan 6, 2018
1,390
What a mess that is.

I went on YouTube today to check out the opening segment from Smackdown last night with Stephanie and boy was it bad.

I don't honestly know what's more weird at this point. That segment or the wrestlers on twitter thanking Vince like this retirement is some pure thing. It's really fucking dumb.
 
OP
OP
asmith906

asmith906

Member
Oct 27, 2017
27,455
I have an exclusive scoop on WWE's new CEO

Ezekiel McMahon

o0dZdKQ.jpg
 
UrbanDandy

UrbanDandy

Member
Oct 25, 2017
12,484
ReadyorNot said:
What a mess that is.

I went on YouTube today to check out the opening segment from Smackdown last night with Stephanie and boy was it bad.

I don't honestly know what's more weird at this point. That segment or the wrestlers on twitter thanking Vince like this retirement is some pure thing. It's really fucking dumb.
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When one's engrossed with the WWE culture for a while, it happens. The company is a cult at this point.
 
UrbanDandy

UrbanDandy

Member
Oct 25, 2017
12,484
Rivenblade said:
I decided to make art today. Enjoy, folks.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSRF98Wmf-Q
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This was well done. Thank you.
Classicrock78 said:

View: https://twitter.com/thesuperjcast/status/1550929793612496898?s=21&t=gRwPZCZKGqx8WGJZKD_beA
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If this match happens, who goes over? If there is heat, I doubt Ospraey would put Kenny over.

also

I guarantee Vince will be headlining next year's HoF. It would be impossible to edit a tribute film with what Vince has done in the past. Most likely, it will just be him being stunned and humiliated by Stone Cold.
 
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