Tag: John Morrison

Former John Morrison opens up on replacing Chris Benoit at WWE Vengeance 2007

Posted on by Rosanne Raphael

Tragedy struck the wrestling world in June 2007 when Chris Benoit murdered his wife Nancy and son Daniel before committing suicide. During the weekend the tragedy unfolded, Benoit was scheduled to face CM Punk for the then-vacant ECW Championship at WWE Vengeance. The match was changed at the last minute with John Morrison filling in after Benoit no-showed the pay-per-view.

In his recent appearance on Insight with Chris Van Vliet, Morrison reflected on that confusing night and his ECW Championship victory.

“So we’re at Vengeance 2007, not everyone’s there. It’s a pay-per-view, but I happen to be there. The ECW roster didn’t have a lot of representation at that particular event. Say call time, I think it was maybe 2 p.m.. I was like a standby. I was booked to be there, maybe have a dark match, I don’t know. So, say call time is 1 p.m., everything’s fine. I’m just in catering. Around 3 p.m., I hear Chris Benoit hasn’t showed up, and if he doesn’t show up, I might need to fill in or something. Okay, sure, he’ll be there, though, it’s Chris.

“4:30/5 p.m., me and Mordecai – Kevin Thorne – get called into talent relations, the two of us, and we’re told, ‘Hey, can’t get hold of Chris Benoit. He’s not here, and if he’s not here in another hour or two, it’s going to be one of you two guys versus CM Punk. We don’t want to let the crowd down by having the replacement lose. So whoever it is between you two is gonna win.’ So we kind of like both looked at each other like, ‘I hope it’s me.’ I don’t know who made that decision with that call [for Morrison to win], but I’d had a lot more TV time consistently than he had up to that point. Whoever made that decision? Thank you. I agree. Good call.”

When the details about what happened started to come out, Morrison felt guilty for being happy about his title win.

“I felt like crap. I felt so guilty just for being happy with something that came to be because of the tragedy that we’ve all heard about and talked about ad nauseam,” he said. “It’s still tough for me to be happy about how everything came about. I’m happy that I got that match and my career took like a huge turn upwards because of everything. It’s just a very confusing thing to benefit from a tragedy, even if you really had nothing to do with it.”

After his initial WWE release in 2011, Morrison made a brief comeback nearly eight years later. That run spanned for a period of two years before parting ways with the company again. Since 2022 he has been an active competitor in AEW. 

Johnny TV feels ‘underutilized’ in AEW right now

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Johnny TV’s recent main event match in CMLL helped reinvigorate his love for wrestling — even if he lost his hair in the process.

The former John Morrison lost to Angel de Oro in a hair vs. hair match at CMLL’s Friday night Arena Mexico card on February 27. On a new episode of Insight with Chris Van Vliet, he reflected on the experience and how much it meant to him. Johnny TV feels “underutilized” in AEW right now, which he thinks is something a lot of people in wrestling are going through. Some people are inevitably going to get left out when there are so many wrestlers and only a few spots on television.

“That hair match, I feel like was one of the best matches I’ve had in years. It was the first time in a while that I felt like me again,” Johnny TV said.

“Kind of just being off or feeling unfulfilled, basically. Not just me, a lot of people in wrestling. But for me right now, in AEW, I feel underutilized. Can’t blame anyone, that’s just how wrestling promotions work. There’s only enough TV time for a certain amount of people. Those people at AEW, we’ve coined the term ‘the island.’ Those people are on the island, so to speak. And I don’t feel like I’m on the island with Tony [Khan] or AEW right now. So because of that, I feel like I’m doing like 10-20 percent of what I’m capable of, storytelling-wise, wrestling-wise, in the ring. With CMLL, I’m on their island. And so I got to do everything that I could, and it was cool. It made me realize, like, ‘Hey, yeah, I do love wrestling.'”

Johnny TV signed with AEW in 2023 and has been wrestling in AEW, ROH, and CMLL. He and his wife Taya Valkyrie are featured in the AEW YouTube show “Johnny Loves Taya,” which recently returned with its second season. It’s a scripted romantic comedy series.

During the appearance on Insight, the 46-year-old Johnny TV said he still feels like he’s capable of being a World Champion at this point in his career. Some of his dream opponents in AEW are “Speedball” Mike Bailey, Kevin Knight, Kenny Omega, Jon Moxley, and Will Ospreay.

Putting his hair on the line is something Johnny has been thinking about for a long time. He initially thought about doing it in a hair vs. mask match while Fenix was still with AEW.

“You know, I’m liking it. I like all the feedback,” Johnny responded when asked if he’ll be keeping the shaved head going forward. “It’s a weird question. I’m a grown man — deciding if this is ‘my look’ moving forward.”

John Morrison attacks Billy Gunn on AEW Rampage

Posted on by Bryan Rose

John Morrison returned to AEW on Rampage, aligning himself with the QTV crew.

The Acclaimed & Daddy Ass (Billy Gunn) were celebrating after winning a match when Harley Cameron and two masked men came out. Cameron proceeded to do a rap, saying she was better at it than The Acclaimed. QT Marshall came out on the stage and distracted The Acclaimed, who exited the ring. One of the masked men then attacked Billy Gunn, revealing themselves to be Morrsion. Excalibur referred to Morrison as “Johnny TV” as QT and Aaron Solo attacked the Acclaimed from behind, the segment ending with the QTV crew celebrating in the ring.

Morrison made several appearances for AEW in 2022 under the name Johnny Elite. He was a part of last year’s Owen Hart Foundation men’s tournament, losing to Samoa Joe in the first round. He later defeated Marq Quen in a match for AEW Dark, then lost to Miro on the June 1 edition of Dynamite. In the last year, he’s also made appearances for AAA, MLW, Warrior Wrestling, and GCW.

Former WWE star John Morrison wins boxing debut at Creator Clash 2

Posted on by Bryan Rose

John Morrison won his first boxing match at Creator Clash 2 on Saturday night.

Morrison, who was cornered by Josh Barnett and introduced by Hacksaw Jim Duggan, knocked out Epic Meal Time’s Harley Morenstein in the third round after scoring knockdowns in the first two rounds. After the fight, he dismissed the idea of facing the Paul brothers in a post-fight interview and instead called out KSI.

Taking place at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida, Creator Clash 2 featured influencers facing off in boxing matches. The show was headlined by Alex Wassabi defeating Idubbbz by majority decision.

Morrison was last seen in WWE from 2019 through 2021, where he reunited with former tag team partner The Miz. In November of 2021, he was cut from the WWE, with the company citing budget cuts stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. Since then, Morrison has made appearances in GCW, Major League Wrestling, AAA, and AEW.

Morrison vs. Fatu title match set for MLW War Chamber tapings

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Jacob Fatu is getting a National Openweight Championship shot at MLW’s next set of television tapings.

It was announced today that John Hennigan (the former John Morrison) will defend his National Openweight title against Fatu at MLW War Chamber on Thursday, April 6. The show is taking place at the Melrose Ballroom in New York City.

This will be the first time Hennigan and Fatu have ever faced each other one-on-one. They took part in a triple threat match against each other for indie promotion All Pro Wrestling in 2019.

At MLW Blood & Thunder this January, Hennigan won the National Openweight Championship from Davey Richards. That match aired on MLW Underground last week.

Fatu is a former MLW World Heavyweight Champion but has never held the National Openweight title.

Here’s the updated card for the War Chamber tapings:

  • MLW National Openweight Champion John Hennigan defends against Jacob Fatu
  • MLW Women’s Featherweight Champion Taya Valkyrie defends against Delmi Exo
  • Mandy Leon makes her MLW debut

John Hennigan on being nervous for boxing debut, training with Josh Barnett

Posted on by Denise Salcedo

John Hennigan has had a long list of names in working for every major wrestling promotion out there including WWE, AEW, Impact and others.

However, the current MLW National Openweight Champion is adding a new bullet point on his lengthy resume outside the wrestling ring and in the boxing ring instead. On Saturday, April 15th, Hennigan will have his first officially sanctioned boxing match at Creator Clash 2 at the Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida.

Hennigan will be facing Harley Morenstein, a Canadian actor and host of the YouTube show Epic Meal Time. Morenstein took part in the first Creator Clash event and successfully defeated Arin Hanson via TKO. 

Creator Clash 2 features YouTube influencers taking part in boxing matches for charities such as the Paralympic Sports Association, The Longest Day Alzheimer’s Association, American Kidney Fund, The National Alliance on Mental Illness, and several others. 

Hennigan has been a fan of boxing for a long time but says he never thought about doing it. The whole thing came about because he attended the first show, cornering fighter Nathan Barnatt.

“At the time, I didn’t realize how big the event was gonna be, but I was excited to watch him fight in his first fight. When I went and saw how well he did and how excited everyone was…all the influencers who fought in Creator Clash 1 had a really good time,” he explained.

It was when the showrunners were putting together the card for Creator Clash 2 that Hennigan was asked if he would take part in it. 

Hennigan said he felt additional pressure to win the match given that he is a wrestler, especially from his wife, Taya Valkyrie.

“My wife (said) if I lose, expect to get knocked out twice on April 15th because she’s gonna knock me out,” he joked.

Hennigan said he’s been training with former UFC heavyweight champion and fellow pro wrestler Josh Barnett for the fight and also shared the very honest thing Barnett told him beforehand.

“When I asked him to train me, he said, ‘Sure John, I’ll train you but just so you know, boxing is your worst thing,'” he laughed. “He’s not wrong. I was like, ‘Josh, I know it’s my worst thing. That’s why I need you train me.” 

Hennigan describes training with Barnett is like “trying to box a grizzly bear.”

Hennigan feels he is getting better, but know he has a long way to go. Regardless, he hs is having a fun learning new skills for a different type of performance.

“It’s been fun: not just learning a new skill, but being under the gun, being forced to learn. I forced myself (into this) by putting pressure on myself by taking this fight which I feel is kind of a fun thing to have this crazy goal and this date hanging over my head which makes me extra motivated to train every day,” he said.

Because this is an entirely new sport for Hennigan, he said he is more nervous for this fight than any of his recent wrestling matches. 

“I think I am more nervous for this than I have been for a wrestling match in a long time because when I wrestle, I am very confident in my ability. I don’t have that confidence yet since I am just learning this craft. It’s fun and I like learning,” he said.

John Morrison vs. Willie Mack added to MLW SuperFight

Posted on by Joseph Currier

The former John Morrison is set to face off with Willie Mack at MLW’s next set of television tapings.

MLW has announced that John Hennigan vs. Willie Mack will take place at MLW SuperFight on Saturday, February 4. The event is being held at the 2300 Arena In Philadelphia.

MLW is promoting Hennigan vs. Mack as a matchup between two people who grew up in Los Angeles under different circumstances, stating that Mack has always had to fight for everything while Hennigan has enjoyed a life of privilege.

“Partying in the Hills of Hollywood with reality stars, actors, and influencers, John Hennigan has enjoyed a big spotlight and a true rockstar life. Requesting his own locker room and hairdresser, Hennigan has ruffled feathers for his loud, obnoxious entourage, flanking him wherever he turns up,” MLW wrote.

“Meanwhile, Willie Mack comes from the streets where he fights to live and lives to fight.”

Hennigan is the current MLW National Openweight Champion. He defeated Davey Richards for the title at MLW Blood & Thunder earlier this month.

Willie Mack recently made his AEW debut, losing matches to Brian Cage on both AEW Dark: Elevation and Rampage.

The updated card for SuperFight is listed below:

  • MLW World Heavyweight Champion Alex Hammerstone defends against Jacob Fatu
  • Lio Rush vs. Davey Richards
  • Dumpster match: Real1 vs. Microman vs. Mance Warner vs. TBA
  • John Hennigan vs. Willie Mack
  • DragonGate Open the Twin Gate Champions Big Boss Shimizu & Kzy defend against TBA
  • MLW Featherweight Champion Taya Valkyrie defends against Delmi Exo
  • Hardcore match: Rickey Shane Page vs. 1 Called Manders
  • B3CCA debuts

John Morrison to challenge for Openweight title at MLW Blood & Thunder

Posted on by Joseph Currier

In his return to MLW, the former John Morrison is getting a title shot.

It was announced today that John Hennigan, who is going by the name “Johnny Fusion” for the match, will challenge Davey Richards for the MLW National Openweight Championship at MLW Blood & Thunder on Saturday, January 7, 2023. The event is taking place at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia and is a television taping for MLW Fusion.

The match will be the first time Hennigan and Richards have ever faced each other. It’s Hennigan’s first time wrestling for MLW since 2018.

Richards won the MLW National Openweight Championship from Alex Kane this June. He’s since defended the title in MLW, the NWA, and at an NJPW event in the United States.

The updated card for MLW Blood & Thunder is listed below:

  • MLW World Heavyweight Champion Alex Hammerstone defends against Yamato
  • MLW Tag Team Champions EJ Nduka & Calvin Tankman defend against The Samoan Swat Team (Lance Anoa’i & Juicy Finau)
  • MLW National Openweight Champion Davey Richards defends against Johnny Fusion
  • Jacob Fatu vs. Ben-K

John Morrison announced for MLW Blood & Thunder

Posted on by Ian Carey

John Morrison is returning to Major League Wrestling. 

MLW announced Thursday on social media that Morrison will participate in Blood & Thunder next month in Philadelphia. It will be the first time he has performed in an MLW ring since 2018. He is being advertised for the show as “Johnny Fusion.” 

Two matches are confirmed for the event thus far. Alex Hammerstone is scheduled to defend his MLW World Championship against Yamato and Jacob Fatu is set to wrestle Ben-K. 

MLW Blood & Thunder takes place Saturday, January 7, 2023, from Philadelphia’s 2300 Arena. Matches on the show will be taped for future episodes of Fusion. The announced lineup is as follows:

  • MLW World Heavyweight Championship: Alex Hammerstone defends against Yamato
  • Jacob Fatu vs. Ben-K

Also announced for the show: 

  • Alex Kane and the Bomaye Fight Club
  • Real1
  • Davey Boy Smith Jr. & The Billington Bulldogs
  • World Tag Team Champions Hustle & Power (EJ Nduka & Calvin Tankman)
  • Lince Dorado
  • Women’s World Featherweight Champion Taya Valkyrie
  • Microman
  • Davey Richards
  • Mance Warner
  • Delirious
  • Sam Adonis
  • Cesar Duran
  • The Samoan SWAT Team
  • The FBI
  • La Estrella of DRAGONGATE

Three matches announced for next week’s WWE Raw

Posted on by Bryan Rose

Three matches have been added to next week’s Raw in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Chad Gable will face Braun Strowman, while Johnny Gargano is set to take on Otis. Candace LeRae, who made her return to WWE TV on Raw Monday, will face Dakota Kai on next week’s program as well.

After Alpha Academy failed to defeat Kevin Owens and Johnny Gargano on Raw, they were confronted backstage by an upset Austin Theory. Gable said that if it wasn’t for Braun Strowman, they would have easily won, hurling insults at Strowman. Theory’s phone than rang. When Gable answered, it was Strowman, who said he would be coming to Raw next week in Gable’s hometown.

Following the phone call, Theory told Otis that he would face Gargano next week, and wanted to make sure that he would put an end to Gargano. Otis was excited about his match, while Gable was not.

LeRae made her return to WWE on Monday, defeating Nikki A.S.H in a match. Later, she met Bianca Belair, Alexa Bliss, and Asuka backstage and wished Belair luck against Bayley at Extreme Rules. Bayley and Damage Control overheard and the groups exchanged words, with LeRae eventually challenging Kai.

Here is the lineup so far for next week’s Raw:

  • Chad Gable vs. Braun Strowman
  • Johnny Gargano vs. Otis
  • Candace LeRae vs. Dakota Kai

John Morrison unable to wrestle at GCW No Signal in the Hills 2 due to injury

Posted on by Ian Carey

John Morrison will not be wrestling at GCW No Signal in the Hills 2 but will still be attending the show. 

On Thursday, the promotion revealed that the 42-year-old is injured and has been removed from his scheduled match with Gringo Loco. Rocky Romero will now face Loco on the show. The event takes place Friday, July 15 from the Ukrainian Cultural Center in Los Angeles, California.

Morrison took to social media to comment on the news. 

“Hey guys I’m really bummed about missing the show and the shot for a singles match with @GringoLocoOG – the GCW card is stacked I am still planning on attending to check out the show and meet the GCW fans,” he wrote on Twitter. 

The nature and severity of Morrison’s injury are not known. The 42-year-old recently returned from a tour of Australia with World Series Wrestling. He performs as Johnny Downunder for the promotion and currently holds the WSW Heavyweight Championship.  

John Morrison teams with Matt Hardy at AAA Triplemania XXX Tijuana

Posted on by Bryan Rose

John Morrison appeared at Lucha Libre AAA’s Triplemania XXX Tijuana tonight as Matt Hardy’s tag team partner.

A video aired during tonight’s show with Matt Hardy apologizing for Jeff Hardy not being able to make it to Tijuana for their match against Dragonlistico and Dragon Lee. He then introduced “Johnny Hardy”, John Morrison, as his tag team partner for tonight. The two went on to lose to Lee and Dragonlistico in the main event of tonight’s show after Morrison turned on Hardy, laying him out with the moonlight drive.

After the match, Hardy laid out Morrison with the twist of fate. The show ended with Hardy, Dragonlistico, and Lee celebrating together.

Jeff Hardy was pulled from Triplemania this week after being arrested Monday morning for a DUI charge in Florida. The following day, AEW indefinitely suspended Jeff without pay until he “completes treatment and maintains his sobriety”. AAA then announced that Matt Hardy would be teaming with a surprise partner at Triplemania.

Jeff was originally set to team with his brother against Jurassic Express and The Young Bucks in a three-way ladder match for the AEW World Tag Team titles on this week’s Dynamite. The Hardys were pulled from Dynamite after Jeff’s arrest.

Speak Now: AEW Dynamite recap, Denise’s birthday party podcast

Posted on by Denise Salcedo

It’s a BIRTHDAY PARTY PODCAST! Come join Denise Salcedo as she recaps/reviews the May 18th edition of AEW DYNAMITE on Speak Now Pro Wrestling! This is a very fun show and there is plenty to talk about! 

Topics include: Owen Hart Foundation results from both the men’s and women’s tournaments, plus the surprise jokers, Hangman Page vs. Konosuke Takeshita, MJF’s 10 lashes, plus lots more!

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John Morrison vs. Taya Valkyrie set for WrestleCon SuperShow

Posted on by Ethan Renner

A husband vs. wife “dirty dishes” match has been added to Thursday’s WrestleCon Mark Hitchcock Memorial SuperShow, as John Morrison will take on Taya Valkyrie.

WrestleCon announced the new match today on social media. Eight matches are now official for the SuperShow, which take place Thursday, March 31 at 9 p.m. Central time. 

The SuperShow will stream live on FITE TV, with Ian Riccaboni and Veda Scott on commentary for the event.

Fans in attendance at the SuperShow will vote on the best match, with the winning bout earning a $5000 bonus. 

Here is the lineup for the SuperShow: 

  • Dirty Dishes match: John Morrison vs. Taya Valkyrie
  • Minoru Suzuki vs. Biff Busick
  • The Briscoes (Jay & Mark Briscoe) vs. The Rottweilers (Low Ki & Homicide)
  • Bandido vs. “Speedball” Mike Bailey
  • Tomohiro Ishii vs. Timothy Thatcher
  • Mia Yim vs. Athena (formerly known as Ember Moon in WWE)
  • Josh Alexander, Black Taurus & Ace Austin vs. Michael Oku, Rey Horus & Laredo Kid
  • Team Atsushi Onita vs. Team PCO 10-man tag match (other participants in the match have yet to be revealed)

John Morrison vs. Simon Gotch booked for Josh Barnett’s Bloodsport 8

Posted on by Ian Carey

John Morrison will make his Bloodsport debut as he takes on Simon Gotch at GCW Josh Barnett’s Bloodsport 8. 

The event takes place Thursday, March 31, as part of The Collective during WrestleMania Week. Morrison will compete under his real name (John Hennigan).

On Sunday, Gotch posted an eerie video online requesting a match with Hennigan, seen below.

“So I suppose this should be directed at Josh Barnett, Game Changer Wrestling, and Brett Lauderdale. I would like to offer my services to settle the debate of what John is going to be called inside that ring because I don’t think it’s going to be Johnny Bloodsport. I don’t think it’s going to be Johnny Game Changer, I don’t think it’s going to be John Hennigan. You give me the match and I promise, he’s going to be Johnny F***ing Morgue.” 

After Morrison accepted, Barnett made it official. He was announced for the card last week while Gotch (2-4) will be making his seventh Bloodsport appearance.

The updated lineup is as follows:

  • Minoru Suzuki vs. Chris Dickinson
  • Jon Moxley vs. Biff Busick
  • Masha Slamovich vs. Janai Kai
  • Ninja Mack vs. Yoya
  • Alex Coughlin vs. Slade
  • John Hennigan vs. Simon Gotch