The Royal Rumble announcement plans for WWE Backstage’s preview special have been modified.
It was announced on tonight’s SmackDown that the preview special will now reveal the wrestlers who will be entering the men’s Royal Rumble match at numbers one and two. There will also be a WWE Backstage exclusive match between Natalya and Tamina airing on the preview special, with the winner entering the women’s Royal Rumble match last at number 30.
The preview special had originally been set to reveal the first and second entrants for the women’s Royal Rumble match and the 30th entrant for the men’s Royal Rumble match.
The WWE Backstage Royal Rumble preview special is airing on FS1 at 8 p.m. Eastern time this Saturday night. It’s being hosted by Renee Paquette, Booker T, and Paige and will also feature “exclusive Fox guests and interviews.”
This will be the first episode of WWE Backstage since weekly production of the show was ended in June of last year. It was noted at the time that the show could return for special episodes surrounding major WWE events.
The WWE Backstage preview special will also re-air on FS1 at midnight Eastern time and at 5 p.m. Eastern this Sunday, which is the day of the Royal Rumble.
Some information about the 2021 men’s and women’s Royal Rumble matches will be revealed on WWE Backstage’s preview special for the pay-per-view.
WWE has announced that the two wrestlers who will be kicking off the women’s Royal Rumble match as the first and second entrants will be announced on WWE Backstage’s Royal Rumble preview special. The wrestler who will be entering the men’s Royal Rumble match last at number 30 will also be revealed on the special.
The WWE Backstage special premieres on FS1 at 8 p.m. Eastern time this Saturday, which is the night before the Royal Rumble. The special is being hosted by Renee Paquette (formerly known as Renee Young in WWE), Booker T, and Paige.
The special will also re-air on FS1 at midnight Eastern time the night it premieres and at 5 p.m. Eastern on the day of the Royal Rumble.
This will be the first episode of WWE Backstage since weekly production of the studio show was ended last June. It was noted at the time that the show could return with occasional episodes surrounding major WWE events.
Here’s the updated list of announced entrants for the men’s and women’s Royal Rumble matches:
WWE Backstage is returning for a Royal Rumble special.
Fox Sports announced today that a special Royal Rumble preview edition of WWE Backstage will air on FS1 at 8 p.m. Eastern time on Saturday, January 30. That’s the night before this year’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view.
The special edition of WWE Backstage will be hosted by Renee Paquette, Booker T, and Paige. Paquette (formerly known as Renee Young in WWE) departed WWE in August 2020. She also made an appearance on Fox’s pre-show for SmackDown’s season premiere episode in October.
Weekly production of WWE Backstage was ended in June of last year, but it was noted at the time that the studio show could return with occasional episodes surrounding major WWE events. It was announced in October that WWE Backstage would be returning for a special episode in conjunction with SmackDown making a one-week move to FS1 due to the World Series, but that was changed from WWE Backstage to an episode of Talking Smack.
WWE Backstage’s Royal Rumble preview will re-air on FS1 at midnight Eastern time the night of the episode and at 5 p.m. Eastern on Sunday, January 31.
With SmackDown airing on FS1 this week, WWE Backstage is returning for a special edition of the show.
A one-hour episode of WWE Backstage will air on FS1 from the WWE ThunderDome after SmackDown this Friday night. A replay of this week’s SmackDown will then air on FS1 after Backstage at 11 p.m. Eastern time.
SmackDown is making a one-week-only move to FS1 this Friday due to game three of the World Series between the Tampa Bay Rays and Los Angeles Dodgers being on Fox.
FS1 suspended weekly production of WWE Backstage this June, though it was noted that the show could return with occasional episodes surrounding major events. WWE Backstage launched in November 2019 and was hosted by Renee Young and Booker T. It also featured a panel of contributors that included CM Punk making select appearances.
The hosts/panel for this Friday’s episode of Backstage haven’t been announced.
This Friday’s SmackDown is the brand’s go-home show for Sunday’s Hell in a Cell pay-per-view. The episode will feature the final build to Roman Reigns and Jey Uso’s Hell in a Cell I Quit match for the Universal Championship and Bayley and Sasha Banks’ Hell in a Cell match for the SmackDown Women’s Championship.
FS1 announced Monday that “production is scaling back” on several shows, including WWE Backstage which will no longer be a weekly show on the sports network.
However, they stopped short of saying the show is outright canceled as there is a strong possibility that it will return around larger WWE events.
Sports Business Journal’s John Ourand first broke the news of the changes which include 20 producers and talents losing their jobs. The boxing show “Inside PBC” and some soccer programming was also cut from the schedule.
The changes do not affect any other WWE programming including SmackDown on Fox and archive content like previous pay-per-views and edited WWE Network documentaries that have aired on FS1 in recent months.
The studio show launched in November 2019 with co-hosts Renee Young and Booker T as constants among a rotating group of regulars that included retired wrestlers Christian and Paige. The show made news when CM Punk was signed on by Fox as an analyst, his first association with WWE in five years. It’s unknown what Punk’s contract status is given the changes, but he hasn’t made any indication that he’s been let go.
The show continued through the pandemic, but overall, Backstage never drew consistently large viewership numbers due to the late night timeslot, pre-empting, and overall interest. A recent edition featuring Bret Hart and Punk did draw the second best viewership in show history with 175,000 viewers.
With CM Punk and Bret Hart both appearing on the show, WWE Backstage drew the second best ratings its ever done.
Last night’s episode of Backstage averaged 175,000 viewers on FS1, up from the 112,000 that the show averaged the previous week. Aside from two preview shows, the only time Backstage has done more viewers was for the November 19 episode. That drew 180,000 viewers and featured Punk’s debut as an analyst.
The viewership was up slightly from the 173,000 viewers that the May 12 episode of Backstage averaged. That also featured an appearance by Punk, and WrestleMania III aired on FS1 leading into the episode.
The rating in the 18-49 demo for last night’s Backstage was a 0.06, up from last week’s 0.03. Backstage ranked 110th on cable in the 18-49 demo last night.
Hart appearing on last night’s Backstage tied in with Survivor Series 1996 airing on FS1 leading into the show. Hart defeated Steve Austin in a classic match at that pay-per-view.
WWE on FOX uploaded Renee Young and Punk’s interview with Hart from last night’s show:
An appearance by CM Punk has been added to this week’s episode of WWE Backstage.
WWE on FOX announced that Punk will be on this Tuesday’s Backstage, which will also include an appearance by Bret Hart. “Joining ‘The Best There Is, The Best There Was, and The Best There Ever Will Be’ @BretHart on #WWEBackstage this Tuesday will be ‘THE BEST IN THE WORLD’ @CMPunk!”
Punk was most recently on Backstage when he was part of the panel for the June 2 episode of the show. That episode featured a reunion between Punk and Daniel Bryan, with Bryan appearing as the featured guest that week.
Hart appearing on Backstage ties in with Survivor Series 1996 airing on FS1 this Tuesday. It will begin at 7 p.m. Eastern time and lead into Backstage at 11 p.m. Eastern.
Hart defeated Steve Austin in a number one contender’s match at Survivor Series 1996. The pay-per-view also included Sycho Sid defeating Shawn Michaels to win the WWF title and the debut of The Rock as Rocky Maivia.
Leading into Backstage on Tuesday, Survivor Series 1996 will air on FS1 starting at 7 p.m. Eastern time. Hart defeated Steve Austin in a number one contender’s match at that pay-per-view.
Survivor Series 1996 also featured Sycho Sid defeating Shawn Michaels to win the WWF title and the debut of The Rock as Rocky Maivia.
WWE Backstage from this past Tuesday was an all-women’s show with Renee Young, Paige, Ember Moon, and Beth Phoenix as the panel and Sonya Deville appearing as a guest. It tied in with WWE’s Evolution PPV from 2018 airing on FS1 prior to Backstage.
Last night’s episode of WWE Backstage featured a reunion between CM Punk and Daniel Bryan.
Punk was back on the Backstage panel for last night’s show, while Bryan was the featured guest for the episode. This was Punk’s seventh appearance on Backstage as an analyst and the first time he’s been on the show since May 13.
WWE on FOX uploaded a 26-minute digital exclusive version of Renee Young and Punk’s interview with Bryan:
Young, Booker T, Mark Henry, and Punk were the panel for last night’s Backstage. They discussed the nationwide protests that have happened since George Floyd was murdered in police custody.
Henry shared his experience of him and his family attending a protest in Austin, Texas, Punk got emotional while discussing hatred being stoked by those currently in power and his grandfather’s experience fighting Nazis, and Booker T urged people to be leaders and say something when they see racism and injustice:
Daniel Bryan is set to appear on the next episode of WWE Backstage.
WWE on FOX has announced that Bryan will be a guest on Backstage next Tuesday (June 2). CM Punk will also be on the episode as part of the panel with Renee Young, Booker T, and Christian. It will be Punk’s seventh appearance as an analyst on Backstage. He most recently appeared on the May 13 episode of the show.
Bryan is facing Jeff Hardy in the semifinals of WWE’s Intercontinental title tournament on SmackDown this week. Both semifinal matches will air on this week’s SmackDown, with AJ Styles taking on Elias on the other side of the bracket. Bryan defeated Drew Gulak in the first round of the tournament.
After airing at midnight each of the past two weeks, WWE Backstage is returning to its normal 11 p.m. Eastern time slot on FS1 on Tuesday. A replay of WrestleMania 31 will air on FS1 at 8 p.m. Eastern time leading into Backstage.
– CM Punk will be back on the panel for WWE Backstage next Tuesday.
It was announced during last night’s Backstage that Punk will be back on the show next week. After starting at midnight Eastern time each of the past two weeks, Backstage will return to its normal 11 p.m. Eastern time slot on FS1 next Tuesday.
Punk’s most recent appearance on Backstage was on the May 13 episode of the show. Next week will be Punk’s seventh appearance as an analyst on Backstage.
Leading into next week’s Backstage, a replay of WrestleMania 31 will air on FS1 starting at 8 p.m. Eastern time. WWE’s Evolution pay-per-view from 2018 is airing on FS1 at 7 p.m. Eastern the following Tuesday (June 9).
– WWE’s The Bump will celebrate the life of Shad Gaspard when JTG appears on the show next week.
JTG will pay tribute to his late friend and tag team partner on The Bump next Wednesday. The show airs on the WWE Network and WWE’s digital platforms starting at 10 a.m. Eastern time.
Ric Flair has also been announced for WWE’s The Bump next week. The appearance comes in advance of his WWE 24 episode debuting on the WWE Network on Sunday, June 7. The WWE 24 documentary will premiere on demand at 10 a,m. Eastern and will also air after NXT TakeOver: In Your House later that night.
There will be a special episode of WWE’s The Bump at 10:30 a.m. Eastern on the day of NXT TakeOver: In Your House. Shawn Michaels will be appearing as a guest on that edition of The Bump.
On this week’s episode of WWE Backstage, Ember Moon emotionally discussed her injury status.
Moon, who has been out of action since rupturing her Achilles in September, was part of the panel with Renee Young, Booker T, and Mark Henry on last night’s Backstage. They discussed the WWE Network’s Undertaker: The Last Ride docuseries and Young asked the panelists if there were any matches from their careers they wish they could go back and redo.
“I look back at my career in WWE, I’ve been here for five years. And, yeah, I could go and say I should have been the one to defeat Asuka’s streak, or at least I hope that. Or I could say that, aw, man, me and Bayley from SummerSlam, I wish I’d done more,” Moon said.
“But the more and more I sit back and look at everything I’ve done and what I would redo, I think more about my injury currently and realizing that I may have a career-ending injury. I’m coming back from the hardest injury, and I might not have a chance to redeem myself of all the things that I wanted to do and all the things that I want to do in my future. It’s so hard to think back and regret when I try to look forward.”
Booker T and Henry both encouraged Moon to keep going, with Henry saying he’s been there before and telling Moon she’s too great and too wonderful to start talking about stopping.
“I keep looking forward and I keep pushing forward because this is what I love. This is my passion, this is the only thing I’ve ever wanted for myself. And I want that opportunity to not look back but to look forward and be better than ever before. And it’s so hard to look back, like it really is,” Moon said.
“It’s hard, and I hope that I do have more matches. There are so many more things that I want to do. Like I said, I’m trying to get on y’alls level. And I’m going to prove to you guys that I’m worth redeeming those mistakes and worth redeeming those regrets — it’s just going to be a while before I do so.”
Moon said on Booker T’s Hall of Fame radio show in January that her Achilles injury happened during a 24/7 title chase segment. On that podcast, Moon said she was told she’d be out of action anywhere from four months to a year and a half due to the type of rupture she suffered.
WWE on FOX uploaded the clip of Moon discussing her injury on last night’s Backstage:
Next week’s episode of WWE Backstage will feature CM Punk’s sixth appearance as an analyst.
It was announced on last night’s Backstage that Punk will be part of the panel for next Tuesday’s episode of the show. It will be Punk’s second appearance since the show switched to being done remotely due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Punk’s most recent appearance on Backstage was on the April 14 edition of the show.
Next week’s Backstage will be the show’s first episode after Money in the Bank. It was hyped that Backstage will include Punk giving his thoughts on the pay-per-view.
Aleister Black and Rey Mysterio both appeared as guests on Backstage last night ahead of Money in the Bank. They’re two of the men’s participants for Sunday’s Money in the Bank ladder match, with them being joined by AJ Styles, Daniel Bryan, Baron Corbin, and Otis in the match. The men’s and women’s Money in the Bank ladder matches are taking place simultaneously.
Backstage airs on FS1 at 11 p.m. Eastern time on Tuesday nights.
We’ve got one of our biggest news issues of the year out this week, a double-issue with a number of bios and history features, updates on all the major promotion moves when it comes to scheduling and WWE business notes.
The issue also covers:
Changes in the WWE schedule, why the company changed plans after just one week, who benefits the most, as well as AEW going back too taping and details of that. We also look at the next AEW PPV show, an employee complaints about WWE continuing, differences between what AEW, UFC and WWE are doing, what firing hurts the WWE perception and thoughts of people sitting it out, a doctor talks about what is needed to do these shows without a health risk and the WWE event schedule for the next few months.
A number of recent new WWE cuts, including some surprises, how the WWE dividend and Vince McMahon’s share fits into these cuts, projections for 2020 profitability if house shows don’t return for the rest of 2020, and why several people got cut.
The most in-depth coverage of WWE business, covering each department of the company, lots of Vince McMahon reaction to the numbers and the future, what McMahon said that is and isn’t true, the story behind the ratings and the story behind increases and declines across the board. Plus we examine the WWE network numbers.
Changes in the business going forward.
Joe Pedicino and pro wrestling, how he got in, his early innovative ideas, how Nigerian scram, his promotion of Global Wrestling, how it fell apart, stars who got breaks there and lie after wrestling.
Oliver Luck’s lawsuit against Vince McMahon, what is it all about and how much the XFL actually lost before it folded.
HHH’s thoughts on two-night WrestleManias going forward, A.J. Styles talks Gallows & Anderson losing their job, Roman Reigns update, Ronda Rousey update, Arn Anderson talks why Cesaro doesn’t get pushed, Canadian wrestling TV ratings, story on a surprise on Raw this past week who was canceled after the show started, update on Drake Maverick, the Smackdown announce team, and the most-watched shows on the WWE Network.
PFL closing down for the year, why what they said publicly was somewhat misleading and why they are still paying fighters, as well as thoughts on shutting down.
A number of new stories on Howard Finkel, both people who helped out and people who bullied him and looking back on those situations.
The first UFC fighter announced COVID-19 positive.
Brawl for All, going behind the scenes, a look at the Dark Side of the Ring coverage, examining the coverage and looking back at the entire scenario.
Look back at the Jimmy Snuka/Nancy Argentino death case, look at Dark Side coverage and add a lot more that wasn’t covered.
A back-of-the-book feature on Dick Steinborn, who was a big star in the 60s and 70s, and his father Milo, one of the strongest men in the world and a wrestling promoter. We look at Milo’s amazing feats of strength, as well as both the positive and negatives of the legacy of Dick in pro wrestling.
Full coverage of all the WWE and AEW television shows from the past week.
In-depth looks at the ratings of all the major shows, the key demos and quarters for AEW and WWE, what happened head-to-head and what can be learned from them.
Results of all the major pro wrestling events around the world over the past week.
ORDERING INFO: Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to [email protected] or by going to www.paypal.com directing funds to [email protected].
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If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order to P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228, you can get $1 off in every price range.
WEDNESDAY NEWS UPDATE
WWE
Today’s episode of The Bump featured Rey Mysterio, Carmella, Big E, Becky Lynch and “Billions” executive producer Brian Koppelman. Announced for next week is Tamina, The Miz, and Maryse.
NXT tonight will have Drake Maverick vs. Tony Nese in an interim cruiserweight title tournament match. Both currently have a 0-1 record in group A.
The ESRB website, which gave a “T” rating to the upcoming WWE 2K Battlegrounds, lists the game as coming to the PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and Stadia platforms.
WWE Backstage last night once again failed to enter the top 150 rated programs last night on cable television. WWE’s Best of shows, however, did rank. The Best of John Cena at 7 pm ET had 124,000 viewers, Triple H at 8 pm did 220,000, Undertaker at 9 pm did 270,000 and Shawn Michaels at 10 pm did 217,000. The shows placed 147th, 112th, 94th, and 113th for the night respectively.
Conan O’Brien took shots at WWE being deemed an ‘essential service’ on his show last night.
Jeff Hardy will be the guest on Corey Graves’ After the Bell podcast this week.
Titus O’Neil turns 43 years old today. Vince McMahon wrote the following on Twitter: “A stellar athlete, a best-selling-author, a dedicated father and a world-class human being whose generosity knows no bounds. Happy Birthday, @TitusONeilWWE!”
Other Wrestling
Chris Jericho spoke to Newsweek about AEW returning to live taping in May. “I think everybody kind of wants to get back to work,” he said. “We’re trying to start slowly and integrate back into life and I think it’s perfect. Obviously, we’ll take precautions and all that sort of stuff but it’s time to get back on track and I’m looking forward to it.”
Matt Cardona, the former Zack Ryder, is teasing the return of the Internet championship. He recently filed a trademark for that term.
MLW today announced a partnership with INDEMAND that will bring MLW events to PPV starting in May.
Notable birthdays for today include Jay Lethal (35), Paul Roma (60), and Aksana (38).
MMA
In an interview with Sports Illustrated, UFC Women’s Bantamweight and Featherweight champion Amanda Nunes expressed interest in a future WWE run once her MMA career is over. “Not right now, but maybe later when I retire. I’m open to it. Why not? I could try something new.”
Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos is donating his PRIDE trophy, with all proceeds going to help people affected by COVID-19 in his hometown of Rondonopolis, Mato Grosso, Brazil.
Don’Tale Mayes vs. Rodrigo Nascimento, Cortney Casey vs. Mara Romero Borella and Giga Chikadze vs. Mike Davis have been added to the May 16th UFC card.
The life and times of Howard Finkel in the most details article on his life and wrestling career, as well as coverage of one of the biggest news weeks in the history of the industry highlight the current issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
We go through WWE financials to look at cash on hand, cash available, the decision to continue tapings and the schedule which has since changed, why they made the call, the cuts, the Florida decision to make WWE an essential service, why, how the Governor’s explanation makes no sense at all, what WWE did that make no sense health wise, reactions from other companies in the industry, the story behind the WWE’s first Coronavirus positive and how the story the talent got and the public got were different. We also look at the stories behind the cuts, looking at who different companies may or may not want, some NXT releases, sports owners look at WWE decisions, the monthly cost savings of talent cuts, and the first Corona virus death in pro wrestling.
In our story on Howard Finkel, we trace his career from his first connection with the McMahons in 1977, his first MSG ring announcing date, his late 70s ring announcing, his attempts to be a TV announcer, the decisions to take him off television, WWE doing national, his being the butt of Vince McMahon’s jokes, his taking a blood test for Hulk Hogan, many in the business talk about Finkel, as well as angles he worked.
The new issue also covers:
AEW and UFC plans going forward.
Folding of the XFL, how it was handled, who did and didn’t know, biggest creditors and why the decision to shut down was likely made.
Departure of the Revival and their new names, Bill Goldberg gives a WrestleMania blow-by-blow and talks Roman Reigns, DVR viewership of Raw, Ronda Rousey compares WWE to UFC, compares methods of pay, talks unionization, Rousey’s last UFC contract terms, wrestlers respond to Rousey saying wrestling was fake, Lawler controversy, Canadian ratings, cruiserweight title tournament, UFC star talks going to WWE full-time in a few years, Dwayne Johnson talks pro wrestling, and most-watched shows on the WWE Network.
An explanation as to why UFC was so desperate to get back up and running.
The meeting between the Japanese government and many of the major business players and top stars in Japanese wrestling. We look at who presided over it which explains why it happened, the talks on COVID-19, ability to return, plans to return and more.
The AEW vs. NXT battle and go through different demos, and how the viewers reacted to the different key matches.
Update on the matches scheduled for the Money in the Bank show.
Kevin Sullivan responding to Dark Side of the Ring, alleging Nancy stabbed him, as well as a planned WCW angle and how Chris Benoit came to ECW and then WCW.
Full coverage of all the WWE and AEW television shows from the past week.
In-depth looks at the ratings of all the major shows, the key demos and quarters for AEW and WWE, what happened head-to-head and what can be learned from them.
Results of all the major pro wrestling events around the world over the past week.
ORDERING INFO: Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to [email protected] or by going to www.paypal.com directing funds to [email protected].
Rates in the United States are $14.50 for 4 issues, $35.50 for 12, $70 for 24, $116 for 40 and $149.50 for 52.
In Canada and Mexico, the rates are $16 for 4, $27 for 8, $38.50 for 12, $76 for 24, $126 for 40 and $162.50 for 52.
For the rest of the world, rates are $18 for 4, $48.50 for 12, $93 for 24, $155 for 40 and $201.50 for 52.
If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order to P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228, you can get $1 off in every price range.
WEDNESDAY NEWS UPDATE
WWE
WWE posted on their social media just prior to tonight’s NXT: “Ahead of tonight’s episode of #WWENXT, officials have learned of a possible incident involving @FinnBalor inside the @WWENXT locker room. This is a developing story, more information will be provided when available.”
Mike Chioda, who had been employed by WWE for 35 years prior to his release last week, commented on his firing on Twitter: “Want To Say Thanks To the WWE & To All My AMAZING WWE FANS & Universe! 35yrs & 31yrs Refereeing Working for the WWE has been a FANTASTIC RUN!! I Am So PROUD to have Worked with So Many ICONS & AMAZING TALENT IN THIS INDUSTRY!! I THANK YOU ALL!! 1Luv!”
Fox Sports 1 ratings had Becky’s Lynch’s five most favorable moments (9:00 pm) drawing 299,000 viewers, while the WWE 24 documentary on Ronda Rousey (8:00 pm) drew 214,000 viewers. The WWE 24 special on Becky Lynch and WWE Backstage did not chart the top 150 most watched cable shows for the night.
Britt Baker appeared on today’s episode of Talk is Jericho. Baker spoke about people saying she stole her “role model” gimmick from Bayley (via Post Wrestling): “While we’re on the topic of that, no, we did not steal the ‘Role Model’ from Bayley because that’s like a daily thing and I know we’ve talked about it too, how the inspiration came from you, from Chris Jericho for the ‘Role Model’ gimmick. I’m not… I don’t wanna say I don’t know totally what’s going on with RAW and SmackDown because I try to stay in touch with it but at the same time, I’m a dentist and a professional wrestler. I don’t know every single storyline or [what’s] going on each week. So, it wasn’t until I actually said the words ‘Role Model’ on TV and then I got the Bayley army coming at me. ‘You’re stealing her gimmick’ [like] I even knew she was calling herself that too. Granted, totally different uses of the words, totally different gimmicks as we call it. But I just kinda wanted to set the record straight that no, we didn’t steal that from anybody. Well I stole it from you [Chris Jericho], not from her.”
Billy Caputo, a former referee for the WWE and a former NYSAC official, passed away on Tuesday at the age of 72.
Darby Allin was interviewed by Sports Illustrated ahead of his TNT Championship tournament first round match against Sammy Guevara airing on Dynamite tonight.
Pro Wrestling NOAH announced that they have canceled all of their events for May.
The BBC has a story of luchadores sewing face masks during the COVID-19 outbreak.
Gia Miller, a 22 year old pro wrestler in the Alabama area, made her debut as an Impact interviewer last night.
Epico and Primo will make their first appearances post-WWE for a scheduled Legends of the Ring convention on October 3 in South Iselin, New Jersey. They will be appearing as The Colons as well as under their former Los Matadores personas.
PFL CEO Pete Murray told Fansided that the organization has made roster cuts but is keeping “the significant majority, over two-thirds” of their fighters. Murray said about the cuts: “We haven’t announced those fighters, so we’re not at liberty to share all those details. But the Coronavirus had an impact on businesses in all industries including sports and we’ve had to make some difficult decisions during a very difficult time.”
Brett Okamoto of ESPN is reporting that the PFL is paying a $1,000 a month stipend to athletes.
