Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.
MLW has confirmed the broadcast team for the revival of its weekly television series.
When MLW Fusion makes its return, Joe Dombrowski and “Filthy” Tom Lawlor will serve as the commentators for the show. Rich Bocchini — who has done commentary for MLW and WWE NXT in the past — will make his MLW return in a new role. He’ll be the broadcast’s “MLW Insider” who is tasked with delivering “breaking news, exclusive scoops, and unfiltered insight from inside Major League Wrestling.”
Bocchini was known as Rich Brennan while with WWE and did play-by-play during the early days of NXT.
MLW wrote about his new role:
Bocchini will operate across every layer of MLW — embedded backstage, stationed at ringside, and tracking developments as they unfold in real time. His mission: deliver the news, context, and inside information driving the biggest fights in the sport.
A return date for MLW Fusion has not been announced yet, but the promotion held a TV taping for the show in Atlanta this past weekend. It went on hiatus toward the end of 2023 and has aired on beIN Sports and YouTube.
The next event on MLW’s calendar is Fantastica Mania USA in Charleston, South Carolina on April 12. Taking place in collaboration with NJPW and CMLL, the event is a taping for Fusion. MLW also has upcoming stops in Chattanooga (Tennessee), New York City, and Philadelphia over the next few months.
Bear Bronson hopes to have set an example that other wrestlers can learn from.
Last June, Bronson departed AEW when his contract with the promotion expired. He then spent time reestablishing himself on the indies before joining TNA Wrestling, where he’s received a bigger push than he did in AEW. Bronson was largely off television toward the end of his AEW run. He was best known as one half of the now-defunct tag team Bear Country/Iron Savages while with AEW.
The I Love Wrestling Podcast spoke with Bronson about his time with TNA so far. Betting on himself was scary, but Bronson is thrilled that it has paid off. He does not blame AEW for not utilizing him more. Bronson feels every wrestling promotion is just trying to do their best, and you’re not always going to be in their plans.
“This is just everything that I’ve ever wanted,” he said about TNA. “It’s something that I hope wrestlers can learn from. To where, if you are unhappy somewhere, you could point fingers and you can blame and whatever, whatever. But at the end of the day, every wrestling company is just trying. They’re just trying their best with the pieces that they have, and they’re not always thinking about you.
“So if you are unhappy, you need to leave. And you need to go get yourself battle ready. Because that’s what I knew I needed to do. I left one place and said, ‘You know what? I’m not going to even try to get signed anywhere else. I just need to reconnect with the wrestler that I know is inside here.’ And I think between then and now, I’ve had about 120 matches under my belt since leaving. Then I had places knocking on my door. And that’s where it feels right, and that is where — I’m a completely different animal than I was before. A completely different animal.”
It was officially announced this January that Bronson has signed a contract with TNA. He’s a member of The System with Eddie Edwards, Brian Myers, and Cedric Alexander. Bronson and his mentor Myers are the current number one contenders to TNA Tag Team Champions The Hardys.
MVP loves sharing the AEW locker room with a group of young and hungry wrestlers.
Appearing on the Battleground Podcast, MVP was asked what differentiates AEW from the other locker rooms he’s been in. He pointed to the amount of young talent that’s in the promotion and how they are always striving to put on the best match or segment.
“Youth and spirit. Extremely young locker room and lots of spirit,” the 52-year-old MVP said. “Just some young people that are extremely hungry, and they want to make a name for themselves, they want to make a career for themselves, and they’re constantly battling amongst each other for who can be the absolute best. No one’s skating on past accomplishments. Every week, everyone’s trying to go out there and compete for the best match, the best entertaining segment. And the fans win in the end. So I love the youthful exuberance that I find in the locker room week after week.”
MVP named Kevin Knight and Kyle Fletcher as two AEW wrestlers who have the potential to be the next “guy” in professional wrestling.
After making his AEW debut in 2024, MVP signed a contract extension with the promotion last year. He’s part of The Hurt Syndicate with Bobby Lashley & Shelton Benjamin. Their faction — formerly known as The Hurt Business in WWE — is looking to get back in action after some time off.
MVP noted during the Battleground Podcast interview that The Hurt Syndicate is discussing the possibility of adding a new member. He thinks they could use someone with a “youthful spark.”
Rezar is proud of what he accomplished in WWE, but professional wrestling was never really the ideal fit for him.
The former Authors of Pain member made his Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship debut last weekend with a knockout victory over Daniel Curtin. In the aftermath of the fight, Rezar (real name Gzim Selmani) appeared on The Ariel Helwani Show and addressed whether he considered other options in wrestling after AOP were released by WWE in 2025.
“Obviously we always leave the door open, but for me, it was clear. I had to go back to combat sports and do my thing,” he said.
AOP had two separate stints with WWE, winning gold in NXT and on the main roster. Their exit in February 2025 came after an incident with The Wyatt Sicks that took place at a Holiday Tour house show.
“Yes, of course,” Rezar responded when Helwani asked if he’s happy with the time he spent in WWE. “We were World Raw Tag Team Champions. Did some crazy things with Seth Rollins in a group, with Paul Ellering, with Karrion Kross and Scarlett.
“We did a lot of crazy things, and we met good people. But at the end of the day, it wasn’t really my world. I was never 100 percent comfortable. And I need to be fighting. I need to be having that real rush And now I found my home in BKFC.”
Rezar already had a background in martial arts when he was initially scouted by WWE. He started to enjoy wrestling during AOP’s NXT run, but it was tough adjusting to the business. Rezar feels not having prior experience in the ring worked against him when he first joined the Performance Center.
“Against me. They didn’t like me backstage in the beginning, especially the wrestlers who were already wrestling for like 10, 15 years and finally got their way to the Performance Center,” he said. “They didn’t respect it. They didn’t like having guys that weren’t wrestlers or didn’t pay their dues, as they say, in the wrestling business, in little bingo halls and stuff. They didn’t like that. But, yeah, what can I do? I didn’t beg them to go there, so they wanted me.”
Rezar noted that, after his first BKFC win, he’ll be back in training next week. He’s hoping that his next fight will take place this summer. In combat sports, Rezar feels like his destiny is in his own hands. That wasn’t the case in pro wrestling.
“That’s how the business works. Some people get hurt, some people do different things,” Rezar said. “They switch up writers all the time, they switch up producers all the time, and they put other people in control of power and of creative and stuff like that. So nothing is in your hands there backstage.
“And now it is. Now it’s in my hands. You know, I do it in the ring. And, yeah, the outcome that you saw two days ago is going to happen many more times.”
TNA Wrestling is heading to California this May for a live episode of Thursday Night Impact.
It was announced Tuesday that a live episode of their weekly show will take place from the SAFE Credit Union Convention Center in Sacramento on May 14. The venue will also host a TV taping for Impact the following night.
BREAKING: #TNAiMPACT is coming to the Sacramento Memorial Auditorium in Sacramento, California on May 14 (LIVE) and May 15! Pre-sale begins March 25, general sale begins March 27.
Tickets for the May 14-15 events in Sacramento are going on sale to the general public at 10 a.m. Pacific time on March 27 with a pre-sale set to begin two days earlier. Mike Santana, The Hardys, Frankie Kazarian, Nic Nemeth, Leon Slater, Moose, Eric Young, Eddie Edwards, Brian Myers, Mustafa Ali, Lei Ying Lee, Ash By Elegance, Tessa Blanchard, Elayna Black, Rosemary, and Mara Sade are advertised to appear.
These shows are happening approximately one month after TNA Rebellion which is being held in Cleveland with TNA also planning trips to Louisiana and New York in the coming weeks.
Producing more live episodes of Impact has been a goal for TNA in its new television deal with AMC, which began back in January.
Upcoming TNA Wrestling schedule —
Friday, March 27: Sacrifice at the Alario Center in Westwego, Louisiana
Saturday, March 28: TV taping at the Alario Center in Westwego, Louisiana
Saturday, April 11: Rebellion at the Wolstein Center in Cleveland, Ohio
Tuesday, April 14 and Wednesday, April 15: TV taping at Upstate Medical University Arena in Syracuse, New York
Thursday, May 14: Live Impact episode at SAFE Credit Union Convention Center in Sacramento, California
Friday, May 15: TV taping at SAFE Credit Union Convention Center in Sacramento, California
A house show incident led to The Authors of Pain departing WWE in early 2025.
Coming off his successful Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship debut, Gzim Selmani (Rezar) was a guest on The Ariel Helwani Show on Tuesday. He opened up about AOP’s WWE release and said it stemmed from something that happened at a house show tour in December 2024. AOP were working matches against The Wyatt Sicks on the loop, and one of the members of The Wyatt Sicks tried to change things up mid-match.
“Yeah, there was an incident. Very unprofessional from one of those guys, I don’t know their names,” Selmani said. “I don’t want to go into it too deeply, but there was an incident at one of the Holiday Tours that we did. Somebody tried to switch up the match during the match. And that’s just a no-go for me, especially if you’ve just been in the company for a little bit and we were already there for a long time. You know, you don’t do that. And, yeah, I just had to let somebody know. And that was the end of it.”
Selmani did not name which member of The Wyatt Sicks he was talking about. He said the mid-match change had nothing to do with the actual result of the bout. It concerned certain moves that the Wyatt Sicks member no longer wanted to take, which led to an argument backstage following the match.
“They tried to switch up the match in the middle of the match,” Selmani said. “So, you know, I’m a professional, even if I gotta take a beating in the wrestling ring, I do it. And if you’re going to be a scared little, you know, b*tch, then it’s not my fault, you know? I will let you know backstage.”
Selmani said he’s happy with what AOP accomplished in WWE, and he’s at peace with how their run ended. He was never 100 percent comfortable in pro wrestling and feels shoot fighting organizations like BKFC are the right place for him.
AOP spent two separate stints with WWE. During their latter run, they were part of The Final Testament with Karrion Kross. Selmani told Helwani that he thinks WWE dropped the ball by not giving Kross a bigger push during his time there.
“Same thing with him, man. He got promised so f***ing much,” Selmani said. “They dropped the ball on that guy. Very sad.”
At AEW Revolution, The Young Bucks got to cross something off of their bucket list.
Sunday’s pay-per-view included an AEW Tag Team title match where FTR retained over The Young Bucks. It was a big moment for Matt & Nick Jackson with the two wrestling at Crypto.com Arena for the first time. Formerly known as the Staples Center, the venue is where the Bucks went to see pro wrestling when they were growing up in Southern California.
In a new video uploaded to the Being the Elite YouTube channel, Nick Jackson said Crypto.com Arena was one of only two venues remaining on their bucket list of places to wrestle at. All that’s left is Madison Square Garden in New York City.
“We went to many wrestling shows prior, years ago in this same exact building. WrestleMania 21, I want to say. And that was 20-something years ago,” Nick Jackson said before the PPV.
“And to do it all tonight with our kids, their cousins, our family. We have 30 people coming here tonight. It’s going to be a big, emotional day,” Matt Jackson added. “I think we may be a mess. Maybe the most emotional day of our career, possibly. I have nerves that I don’t normally have. I always have butterflies, but they’re fluttering around a lot today. So it’s going to be a big night for us.”
The Young Bucks brought their children and other family members to the ring when they made their entrance at the PPV. They had special gear for the occasion, using the Los Angeles Lakers’ color scheme while FTR dressed in Boston Celtics colors.
AEW’s post-Revolution episode of Dynamite will also take place from California, with the Save Mart Center in Fresno hosting Wednesday’s show along with a taping for AEW Collision.
WWE is opening up new WrestleMania tickets with a “one-of-a-kind elevated viewing experience.”
The company announced today that, beginning this Friday (March 20) at 1 p.m. Eastern/10 a.m. Pacific, fans will be able to purchase tickets to WrestleMania with seats placed atop of the Mania stage. In WWE’s announcement, the company hyped that this is the first time it has ever sold these kinds of seats. Only a limited number will be made available.
WWE today announced that fans can purchase seats positioned atop the iconic #WrestleMania 42 set for the first time EVER when the Premium Live Event takes place on Saturday, April 18, and Sunday, April 19, at @AllegiantStadm in Las Vegas!
WWE, in partnership with the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, today announced that fans can purchase seats positioned atop the iconic WrestleMania 42 set for the first time ever when the Premium Live Event takes place on Saturday, April 18, and Sunday, April 19, at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
Pricing details for these stage seats has not been revealed.
This is the second straight year Vegas has hosted WrestleMania. For WrestleMania 41, the stage was modeled after a Vegas hotel and did have some seats located in that area, though they were not available for purchase.
WWE notes that the WrestleMania 42 stage will be unveiled in the days prior to the event.
“Each year, WrestleMania features a theme-based set that transforms the host stadium and enhances the live event experience,” WWE wrote. “In 2025, the custom-built WrestleMania 41 set leaned into the tradition of Las Vegas, incorporating a resort-inspired design to reflect the city’s iconic entertainment culture.”
So far, there have been five matches officially announced for the WrestleMania card:
World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk defends against Roman Reigns
WWE Champion Cody Rhodes defends against Randy Orton
Women’s World Champion Stephanie Vaquer defends against Liv Morgan
WWE Women’s Champion Jade Cargill defends against Rhea Ripley
A press release announcing the partnership states that WWE and Front Office Sports will “collaborate on the creative development and execution of storytelling projects” surrounding WWE’s PLEs and international growth. The partnership will begin with WrestleMania 42 this April, where Front Office Sports will showcase the behind the scenes of the event on its website and social media platforms.
“Front Office Sports is known for its innovative approach to storytelling, and we look forward to partnering to produce new and dynamic content that underscores the evolving business of WWE,” Alex Varga, WWE’s Co-Head of Revenue, said.
“Front Office Sports is the leader in the coverage of the business of sports, and we’re excited to collaborate with the WWE,” said Front Office Sports CEO Adam White. “The sports media landscape is increasingly driven by off-the-field happenings, and this partnership will bring fans closer than ever to their favorite athletes, entertainers and moments in a unique way.”
The press release notes that WWE joins the NFL and National Women’s Soccer League among the sports organizations who have formed content partnerships with Front Office Sports.
WrestleMania season is WWE’s busiest period of the year for business. The company has partnered with Drumstick for a new Cody Rhodes-themed ice cream product, along with releasing a new casino game in collaboration with White Hat Studios and Fanatics.
Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas is hosting Mania for the second straight year, with the two-night event going down on Saturday, April 18 and Sunday, April 19. CM Punk vs. Roman Reigns, Cody Rhodes vs. Randy Orton, Stephanie Vaquer vs. Liv Morgan, Jade Cargill vs. Rhea Ripley, and Brock Lesnar vs. Oba Femi have been confirmed so far.
Chris Masters and John Cena never got along well when they were both coming up together in WWE.
Appearing on a new episode of Insight with Chris Van Vliet, Masters addressed whether he ever came close to winning a WWE championship. There were plans for him to win the Tag Team titles and Intercontinental Championship that never came to fruition. Masters feels like Vince McMahon was even giving him some consideration for a World Championship run. That never happened either, and Masters thinks the differences between him and Cena could have played a part in McMahon’s decision.
“Oh, all of them,” Masters responded when asked if he ever came close to winning a title. “There was a point, I mean, Carlito and me were supposed to win them at that WrestleMania [22], but it literally got switched like the day before. We were penciled in to win it, but then Carlito, they wanted him to turn baby. And the Spirit Squad, they kind of wanted to get the belts on them somehow to give them some steam. And so that was that.
“And then the Intercontinental title, I was actually supposed to win that, but it was the same point where they had given me an intervention for my prescription painkiller abuse at the time. And they even told me, I remember having the meeting with Johnny [Laurinaitis], because there was a four-way match that night. It was in Vegas for the Intercontinental title that I was slated to win, but then they have caught wind that I had the issues I had and I had a little intervention. Basically told me, ‘You’re going to rehab.’ And so, I screwed that.”
Masters said he thinks McMahon was feeling out a lot of options at one point in the 2000s to see if they had World Champion potential. Though he doesn’t know for sure if Cena was against him getting a World title push, Masters suspects that he was.
“Tag belts, I had no control over, that just happened. [Intercontinental], I effed up. And then, there was a point there, cause you can even watch back to those old Raws where Vince was playing with the idea of making me the youngest champion. But he was feeling out a lot of guys at that point. And I’m pretty sure Cena gave me probably the thumbs down at some point. So I don’t know, maybe,” Masters said.
“We never mixed too well, for whatever reason, you know what I mean? I don’t know. Massachusetts guy, California guy, I don’t know. Just kind of oil and water. But I don’t take away anything from the fact that he’s this generation’s [Hulk] Hogan. And he definitely worked harder than anybody probably would have in that spot, especially for that long.”
Reflecting further on the time he was sent to rehab, Masters said he was initially bitter about it but is happy about the ways the wrestling industry has changed for the better.
“The business is such a cleaner place than it was when I entered,” he said. “It’s nice to not walk into a locker room and have somebody who has issues like that going on or passing out in the locker room. And it’s just a cleaner business now.”
Masters and Cena both trained together at UPW in California when they started out their wrestling careers. Masters still competes on the indies and was formerly part of the NWA roster.
In December of 2025, Cena retired from the ring with a loss to Gunther. He remains under contract with WWE as an ambassador as he transitions into post-wrestling life.
Though the Continental Classic won’t be happening until late 2026, AEW made a trademark filing this week that could be related to the tournament.
AEW applied to trademark the term “Continental Cup” on March 16. In the application details, it’s listed that the filing is to cover goods and services related to pro wrestling performances:
Entertainment in the nature of wrestling contests; Entertainment services in the nature of live professional wrestling performances; Entertainment services in the nature of production of professional wrestling programs and events; Entertainment services, namely, production and distribution of ongoing television programs in the field of professional wrestling
The Continental Classic was introduced in 2023 and has become an important part of AEW’s end-of-year calendar. It’s not known whether this trademark is for a trophy or some kind of other element for the round-robin tournament.
Since its debut, the Continental Classic has been won by Eddie Kingston, Kazuchika Okada, and Jon Moxley. Moxley is the current AEW Continental Champion and is coming off a successful title defense against Konosuke Takeshita at Revolution on Sunday night. Following that match, Will Ospreay made his return from neck surgery and targeted Moxley and the Death Riders.
New Japan Cup 2026 is down to its final four competitors.
The semifinals are now fully set after the completion of Tuesday’s event in Fukushima. Shota Umino and Callum Newman earned their spots in the next round of the tournament, joining Yuya Uemura and Oleg Boltin. Both semifinal matches will take place this Friday.
Umino pinned Zack Sabre Jr. to advance to the semifinals, while Newman used a low blow to help advance over Hirooki Goto. Uemura and Boltin had already secured their semifinal spots with respective victories over Shingo Takagi and Ren Narita.
Of the four semifinalists, none have ever won the New Japan Cup before.
The final two nights are happening this Friday and Saturday with both shows being held at Aore Nagaoka in Niigata. An IWGP Heavyweight Championship shot is at stake. The winner challenges Yota Tsuji for the belt in the main event of Sakura Genesis on April 4.
At this point, Diamond Dallas Page no longer even has to worry about Jake “The Snake” Roberts relapsing and returning to his old demons.
Page, speaking on Wrestling Life with Ben Veal, said we’re now coming up on 14 years of Roberts being sober. He spent a few years worrying that Roberts’ sobriety wouldn’t stick, but now it’s not even an issue. You could drink around Roberts and he wouldn’t be tempted to join you.
“There’s certain guys you wonder, ‘Oh God, I hope he doesn’t go back again.’ And I felt like that about Jake for about five years. But now we’re coming up on the 14th year of Jake being sober, and I don’t even think about it anymore,” Page said. “Like, I could have a drink around him or whatever. He don’t care.
“He used to say, ‘I’m a man. I deserve three beers. I could have three beers.’ And at some point I said, when you’re really a man, it’ll be, ‘I don’t need three beers. I don’t want three beers. Because I know what comes after that, and it’s never any good.’ You know? He’s doing so good.”
DDP worked with Roberts on his sobriety journey, showcasing the process in the 2015 documentary “The Resurrection of Jake The Snake.” Roberts was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2014 after getting sober.
One of the biggest benefits for Roberts has been getting back together with his wife Cheryl.
“The fact that him and Cheryl are back, and anybody who’s an 80s fan who watched Jake and anything, you know, his wife was involved,” Page said. “His gorgeous wife was involved with the storyline with him and Rick Rude. And so now they’re doing signings together, Jake and Cheryl Roberts.”
DDP has produced a new YouTube series “Change or Die” where he works with people going through different types of struggles. Former WCW wrestler Buff Bagwell — who is now three years sober — is among the cast members. Bagwell is recovering from a leg amputation that he underwent in 2025 due to injuries from a past car accident.
It’s still not clear when or where we’ll see Chris Jericho in a wrestling ring next. But Jericho will be making a television appearance this Sunday night.
Jericho has announced that he’ll be guest starring as a villain on the March 22 episode of the CBS drama series “Tracker.” The show airs from 9-10 p.m. Eastern time.
“Stoked to announce I’ll be playing the lead bad guy on this Sunday’s episode of @trackercbs, the NUMBER ONE SHOW on network tv!!!,” Jericho posted. “The episode is called #Breakaway also starring @justinhartley, @fionarene, @davidpaulramsey & @durance.erica and was directed by @davidmbarrett395!
“I play #VirgilDean and let’s just say, he’s not a nice guy. Can’t wait for you all to see it, THIS SUNDAY at 9pm EST on @cbstv & @paramountplus!”
After Baxter, a veteran stuntman, disappears following a risky stunt, his girlfriend, Laura, calls Colter to investigate a B-movie set, uncovering shady producers and a trail that leads into a dangerous underground world.
Jericho has now been away from pro wrestling since April 2025. At the start of this year, there were rumors that he could be returning to WWE upon expiration of his AEW deal, but he remains on the AEW roster and is believed to have had his contract frozen.
The WWE NXT roster is facing some travel difficulties as they attempt to get to Houston, Texas for this week’s television episode.
On the road to Stand & Deliver, NXT is scheduled to take place live from 713 Music Hall in Houston this Tuesday night. Our Bryan Alvarez notes that delays at the Orlando airport have left the talent stuck as they attempt to fly out.
“NXT talent apparently stuck at the Orlando airport which is currently at a ground stoppage with flights delayed so far above four hours,” Alvarez writes. “NXT is in Houston tomorrow and WWE is monitoring the situation in case they can’t get out of Orlando.”
There have been thunderstorms in the Orlando area today, which has impacted flights with delays and cancellations.
NXT has three more TV episodes before Stand & Deliver 2026 takes place in St. Louis on April 4. Here is the announced lineup for this week’s show:
WWE NXT (Tuesday, March 17) —
Booker T Appreciation Night
Triple threat match: NXT Women’s Champion Jacy Jayne defends against Sol Ruca and Zaria
Steel cage match: Women’s North American Champion Tatum Paxley defends against Izzi Dame
NXT Tag Team title number one contender’s tournament: Hank & Tank vs. Birthright
Women’s WWE Speed Champion Fallon Henley defends against Wren Sinclair
