There have been rumors on Dolph Ziggler being unhappy in WWE for some time but now the rumors are that he’s looking to leave the company when his contract is up in a few months.
During a recent episode of MLW Radio, available at this link, former WWE creative writer Court Bauer commented on the rumor, referring to Ziggler leaving like John Morrison did. Morrison now works for Lucha Underground as Johnny Mundo. Bauer said:
“Dolph’s deal is up in a few months and he has indicated informally that unless he gets a big push, he may leave like Mundo.”
– ROH is set for a TV taping at Terminal Five in New York City tonight. Samoa Joe, AJ Styles, Christopher Daniels Kaz, Dalton Castle, The Young Bucks, War Machine and Watanabe are all confirmed for the show.
– According to Wrestling Observer Newsletter, many talents were said to be uneasy when the rumor emerged that WWE didn’t want to use ROH talent due to their National exposure.
– As noted on last night’s Ring of Honor: Best in the World broadcast, Okada, KUSHIDA and Shinsuke Nakamura will be returning to Ring of Honor for the August 21 show in Philadelphia and the August 22 show in Brooklyn.
– Just to note, the TV tapings for tonight won’t air on next week’s shows, as the syndication program has already sent out and will air on Destination America as well. This week’s shows feature more matches from the NJPW/ROH joint shows, including Roderick Strong vs. Shinsuke Nakamura.
WWE Hall of Famer Terry Funk appeared on Busted Open Radio to talk about his memories of Dusty Rhodes. You can read the highlights below, and check out the full podcast at this link.
Dusty’s connection with the fans:
“He just had a great amount of charisma. Why did I love going in the ring with him? Was it because I was his great buddy? I was his friend, was that the reason? No. What the great reason was that why I enjoyed so much going in the ring with him… and believe me, as I loved him too and everything else and I love him for those two other reasons … but I loved going in the ring with him because I made more money with him than I did with anybody else. He was a tremendous attraction. That’s why I enjoyed going with him (laughs) ya make more money with him. The Dream was something special. He was a phenomenal in-ring performer but his greatest attribute was his mind and his ability to interact and talk to the people themselves… to the fans themselves.”
His last time speaking to Dusty Rhodes:
“Oh heck, I don’t know when it was. Probably a year or two ago… that’s how we always went. Wrestlers are that way. We say we love each other and we say goodbye then we go onto the next town. We don’t ever really say goodbye,vjust go to the next town… the next day. And whether you see those guys, you see them again. I talked to him a few times through the years… probably a couple times a year. Telling him,vwhatever, you know, or just running into him. We always feel like we are going to run into each other again, we never say goodbye… it’s just like, going down the road.
Having Dusty induct him into the WWE Hall of Fame:
“It was [a special moment]. Of course it was. Like I said, he was a special guy. I just had so much compassion for him. You don’t start out with somebody and go up and down the roads with em and learn together like we did. I would say that it was an education traveling with him and he would have told you the same thing about traveling with me, it was an education traveling with me.”
Dusty Rhodes’ relationship with Vince McMahon, and WWE moving into NWA’s territory:
“If going to the WWE was like going to school, he was just in his freshman year. The WWE is a wonderful, wonderful, great place. And Dusty had so much ability and they realized that too, that’s why he was there. Dusty was the best at talking and teaching people to talk. Dusty was an innovator. Dusty wasn’t just a wrestler, he was a manipulator… and that’s very true. He was great at whatever he did. He had such compassion, such love and he instilled that love into his two kids. You watch those kids, and I call them kids now and they aren’t kids anymore, but they are going into their prime now and you watch them in the next 10 years. They are going to be very well known in the business for one reason: they idolize Dusty, both of them. And they should have idolized him because he was one of the very best in the country. I truly believe both of them are just wonderful pieces of talent that are going to be pushed to a different level than what they have been … at least I’m hoping that they will… I think that’s the smart thing.”
You may want to learn how to spell Joanna Jedrzejczyk’s name…or you can just call her Joanna Champion.
The UFC Strawweight Champion successfully defended her title at this weekend’s UFC Fight Night 69, absolutely slaughtering former Invicta FC Atomweight champion Jessica Penne. Jedrzejczyk put on a muay thai striking clinic for three rounds before the referee finally showed mercy to Penne. The always charismatic Joanna obliterated Penne’s nose with a huge elbow, which only added to the punishment she delivered. Afterwards she said that nobody was going to take the championship away from her.
Joanna’s third round win continued a streak that’s fallen a little under the radar, as no women’s UFC fight has ever made it to the fourth round. The first female UFC fight occurred in February 2013, with UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion Ronda Rousey defeated Liz Carmouche.
Another bright spot on the card was that of Makwan Amirkhani, who seems poised for UFC greatness. After an 8 second KO debut, Amirkhani finished Masio Fullen in under two minutes with a rear-naked choke. After the bout, Amirkhani gave an emotional speech directed towards his mother. Amirkhani gained a degree of popularity this year after a “Thug Life” parody video was released featuring him, which you can see above.
Full UFC Fight Night 69 results are below:
Main Card
UFC Women’s Strawweight Championship
Joanna Jedrzejczyk (c) def. Jessica Penne (#3) via TKO (strikes) – Round 3, 4:22
Tatsuya Kawajiri (#15) def. Dennis Siver (#12_ via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Peter Sobotta def. Steve Kennedy via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 2:57
Nick Hein def. Lukasz Sajewski via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
WWE Hall of Famer Bret “The Hitman” Hart spoke with Sports Illustrated this week, and was very outspoken about new WWE talent Samoa Joe and his Muscle Buster finisher.
Tyson Kidd, who is married to Hart’s niece Natayla Neidhart, sustained an injury while competing in a dark match with Samoa Joe weeks ago. Many have blamed the injury on the Muscle Buster move, although by many accounts the injury appears to be a freak accident. Hart opened up about the injury.
“I only know that he’s hurt pretty bad and they’re crossing their fingers. I’m not sure if he’s going to need surgery, but it seems to me there was a lot of poor planning involved in that injury. I don’t know whose fault it is or why an injury like that happened, but someone is accountable. The WWE has done a lot in the last few years to improve conditions for wrestlers. They have doctors there and they give wrestlers adequate time to prepare, but in looking at that happened with Tyson Kidd, clearly there is still a lot of room for improvement,” Hart said.
Bret pointed directly at Samoa Joe’s Muscle Buster as being a reckless, dangerous move, and said that a variety of careless factors led to Kidd’s injury.
“It’s (the Muscle Buster) extremely dangerous,” Hart explained. “The move that Samoa Joe did was reckless, and the way they rushed that match beforehand in the back without giving Tyson time to prepare was mistake. Tyson is, pound for pound, one of the best wrestlers in the world. And that includes his mind. If you went behind the scenes at WWE, Tyson is an intricate piece of so many other matches. It’s a shame that a guy who is that talented and given so much to the company is hurt, but I just hope it’s not so serious that his career is over.”
Ken Shamrock and Kimbo Slice are undoubtedly past their primes. Shamrock at 41, Kimbo with a nonexistent ground game, booked in the Bellator 138 main event above a world title fight, and two former Bellator champions. Despite the jokes that surrounded the bout prior, it more than lived up to the hype.
A Shamrock submission or a Kimbo Slice KO was the outcome, and everyone with prior knowledge of the two were well aware. Shamrock, who entered alongside Road Warrior Animal, earned easy takedowns early and locked in a choke. Kimbo Slice looked like he was ready to go out, but battled and broke the hold after an extended period of time. Once on the feet, Kimbo connected with big right hands and stopped the fight.
Kimbo Slice isn’t going to be going after any titles any time soon, but the mystique behind the man and his freak show fights very well could be back. Tito Ortiz was offered a bout with both Slice and Shamrock, but passed them up for a title shot against Liam McGeary instead. It looks as if Kimbo could be on a collision course with current TNA wrestler Bobby Lashley in another circus bout.
Speaking of Lashley, he moved to 13-2 in his MMA career with his second round TKO victory over Dan Charles. Lashley wanted no part of the stand up game of his 9-2 opponent, who had five career knockouts. Lashley earned a takedown and smothered Charles for the first round, followed by a repeat second round. Lashley finished off his opponent with less than a minute left in the round to earn his sixth straight win. He’s now 3-0 since joining Bellator MMA last year.
Other big winners on the card were former champions Michael Chandler and Daniel Straus dominating their overmatched opponents. Featherweight Champion Patricio Pitbull retained his championship in a back and forth battle with Daniel Weichel.
“The Man Behind The Mask” otherwise known to wrestling fans as Del Wilkes “The Patriot” joins The Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling Podcast to discuss his new Kickstarter campaign for the Michael Elliot (Ellbow Productions) Directed Documentary on the life of the All American Superstar. This is the story of Del “The Patriot” Wilkes an All-American Collegiate Football star at the University of South Carolina and international wrestling Star. The story of Del’s life is one of dreams and hopes that came true and a story of falling from grace due to the life on the road that he chose to live. Del’s greatest in ring triumphs and worldwide recognition are spotlighted as we cover his greatest matches and most memorable feuds. We also would like to announce that The Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling will serve as the Executive Producers of the Del “The Patriot” Wilkes “The Man Behind The Mask”. Please visit www.kickstarter.com and search The Patriot for more information.
The Patriot Del Wilkes on signing with the WWF in 1997:
Please visit www.kickstarter.com and search The Patriot for more information. Please Subscribe to The Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling on iTunes and via YouTube by searching the Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling or visit the OFFICIAL Website of the Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling: www.tmptofwrestling.com & twitter.com/twomanpowertrip
The Kickstarter campaign for the documentary Del Wilkes “The Man Behind The Mask”:
This is the whole story. This isnt just about The Patriot or Del Wilkes the professional wrestler. This story starts at birth. It starts with my Mom and Dad and goes all the way back to my grandparents. It covers my high school football, college football and my very brief NFL career and transitions right into my wrestling career. Also some of the dark periods that happened after my wrestling career was over it and brings us up to this very day. I think there really is a story here for people. No matter who you are or no matter how successful youve been if you make some bad decisions you can put yourself in bad situations and this shows that there can be life after those dark moments. I think it is an inspirational story that people can take from. Especially those who may be struggling in life.
Time in WCW:
It may not have been the best timing for me to be there but I went in initially to work as a singles wrestler. But then the booking committee had the idea of putting me with (Marcus) Bagwell and teaming us up and making us Stars and Stripe, which I was fine with because tag teams were still an important part of the business back then. The Nasty Boys, Paul Orndorf and Paul Roma, Harlem Heat were all there at the time so we had tremendous tag team matches and those tag team belts still meant something. But what I think hurt most was the timing of everything and I happened to be there when they decided to bring in (Hulk) Hogan from the WWF, they brought in (Randy) Savage from the WWF and (Brutus) Beefcake and it focused all of the attention on those guys and it seemed like everybody else didn’t matter as much.
The abrupt end of his angle with Bret Hart in the WWF.
My health issues brought the feud with Bret to an end. I had just major serious injuries. I had totally blown out my right knee, which has since been replaced twice. I literally couldn’t work without the help of a big knee brace that I had to wear and that brace limited what I could do in the ring and my movement. I had torn my triceps, it was literally ripped off the bone and rolled up the back of my arm and these injuries were creating big problems for me. Unfortunately it brought an end to my career and to that angle we had going on. I was just physically unable to continue to perform.
The pulse of the locker room in 1997:
It was obvious things were heating up. The relationship between some of the guys and specifically Bret and Shawn (Michaels) and people were taking sides. There was Bret, Owen, Davey Boy and those guys and then you had Hunter, Shawn and that faction and Bret was very vocal to me about his displeasure with the way things were going. We spent a good bit of time talking to each other and talking about things we wanted to do in matches down the road that we were going to have and he really didn’t mind sharing with me his displeasure with the way things were in the company and his relationship with Shawn.
The imitations of The Patriot character on the Independent Circuit:
For a long time there was this rumor that I had sold the gimmick to (Tom) Brandi. I in no way, shape or form did that. I think he took it upon himself to use that character. Recently, I posted on Facebook that I had been receiving messages from fans who were saying how nice it was to meet me at a wrestling event and enjoyed watching me work. I haven’t been in a ring in 13/14 years. I have worked one time since 2000. If you see someone in a ring working that is evidence enough that it’s not Del Wilkes because I don’t do that and I can’t do that I am actually unable to do that now. Tom isn’t the only one, he’s probably the most known but there are several guys out there that are running around pretending to be The Patriot and when you put the mask on your face you hide your identity. The things that chaps me the most about it is fans have told me they were suspicious about the person they saw wrestle so they asked outright, Are you Del Wilkes? The response they get back is Yeah, I’m Del. They sell my pictures, Tom did a shoot interview and the cover of it is a picture of me, not of him. That’s just bad. There isn’t a lot I can do but if you are going to pretend to be me and dress up like me is one thing, but to outright lie and sell pictures of me and not of you, that just takes it to another level and it’s really pathetic.
In addition to the Man Behind the Mask Kickstarter campaign Del also discusses his lengthy career overseas, all of the legends he faced while competing in Japan, his time wrestling for Global, the AWA and his greatest matches.
Today SpartaCon (redserpents.com) presents The Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling welcoming former WWE Superstar and MMA fighter, Daniel Puder. In 2012, Puder founded My Life My Power World, an anti-bullying and youth development program. Puder is also known for being the winner of the $1,000,000.000 Tough Enough as part of the season of Tough Enough to take place on WWE Smackdown. Since leaving wrestling, Puder now is on a mission to help the next generation make their lives better and make a difference in their life. However, he looks to return to the ring on June 21, 2015 as part of his My Life My Power Entertainment Wrestling Event in Pasadena, Texas.
Daniel Puder on the failure of his WWE Tough Enough win:
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Treatment by the WWE:
It is what it is at the end of the day. To me, when it’s what you do for work and after a year the company says, well we aren’t going to pay you $70, 000 a year we are going to pay you $10,000 a year. I don’t believe life is fair at all but it’s not respectful and it is very dishonest. I don’t have any respect for them.
The Kurt Angle Incident:
I was really mentally prepared for that sort of thing. One of my coaches, was one of the guys that lost to Kurt Angle on his way to the 96 Olympics. He basically had taught me a bunch back in the day so I figured that Kurt can’t be that much tougher then him. When I tested it out and with their rules when I went into the ring there was no striking. Kurt just admitted it that I did have him. It’s interesting to see that people say that it’s not true but Kurt Angle himself says 8-10 years later that “Puder had me”. I just wanted to win. Would I have broken his arm? It was as tight as it could go without coming off.
The presentation of the $1,000,000 Tough Enough:
I loved the format. About the fifth week in they told us we could talk smack about who you were going to vote off and there were a few people that were saying we have to vote Puder off. I didn’t know who I wanted to vote off but they made me say one person and I knew what they were doing. If they were doing that to me then I knew that they were doing it to everyone else. Because I was so close with Dave Meltzer I was on the phone with him for probably an hour a day on average. We went over promos, what to address, how to dress and what to do. So I gave it my all.
Did he see the Miz or Ryback becoming the stars they are today:
All of them had a lot of potential. They narrowed it down from 10,000 down to 50 and out of 50 they had them all at a tryout to get a top 8. They all had skills and had potential. None of them have values. Four of them said they didn’t drink and they were all drunk and plastered cheating on their wives or girlfriends within the first couple of weeks. Can they wrestle? Sure. Can they build a wrestling career? Sure. Are they unique individuals? Sure. But it is what it is.
His appearance in the 2005 Royal Rumble:
They were trying to teach me a lesson. And that’s the challenge. In the world of MMA you might have a theory about how you train, because you train smart and you are training to not hurt each other. In that whole experience right away they pounded on me. That just showed me that if they (WWE)wanted to they could have actually built me and I would have been very loyal to them.
Daniel Puder also discusses in great detail his return to the ring, his MMA career, his relationship with Dave Meltzer, his time in Ring of Honor, bullying, My Life My Power and much more
