Weekend 3 Count 2/26/17

By Brandon Albright, @B_Rock1978

Wrestling Lockup with Brandon, brought to you by Triple Threat CLE brings you the Weekend 3 Count. W3C brings you wrestling news, rumors and recaps from around the wrestling world. You'll find news rumors and recaps involving WWE, NXT, TNA, ROH, Lucha Underground, NJPW, House of Hardcore, ICW, CZW, FIP, EVOLVE, SHINE, SHIMMER and any Indy promotion that I find an interesting story or a cool discovery in. Be sure to check out the W3C every Sunday afternoon at @TripleThreatCLE

*** WWE ***

- Naomi Vacates WWE Smackdown Live Women's Championship: This past Tuesday night, Naomi had to vacate her WWE Smackdown Live Women's Championship due to injury. Daniel Bryan immediately made a match between Alexa Bliss and Becky Lynch to crown a new champion that night.

- Alexa Bliss Wins Title: Alexa Bliss defeated Becky Lynch last Tuesday on Smackdown Live to become a 2 time WWE Smackdown Live Women's Champion.

- #1 Contender Match Announced: Due to last Tuesday's #1 Contender’s Battle Royal ending in a double elimination between AJ Styles and Luke Harper, it was announced that Styles and Harper will meet one on one to determine a #1 Contender this week on Smackdown Live.

- The New Day Hosting Wrestlemania 33: The New Day officially announced on Monday that they will be the official hosts of this year's Wrestlemania in Orlando, Florida. The New Day stated that they like to have fun so their main goal will be to make sure everyone is having fun at Wrestlemania.

- Diamond Dallas Page Hall Of Fame Bound: WWE officially announced this week that DDP will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2017.

- Rumored Summer Slam Title Match: Rumors have begun circulating this past week that WWE may already have their WWE Universal Championship Match planned out for Summer Slam in August. As of now the WWE is planning to run with Brock Lesnar defending the WWE Universal Championship against Braun Strowman. As of now these are only rumors and nothing for sure has been stated yet.

** 205 Live Recap **
This week, Brian Kendrick battled Akira Tozawa in a one on one match. Also #1 Contender to the WWE Cruiserweight Championship, Jack Gallagher, was in action against Tony Nese in the main event.

1.) Brian Kendrick vs. Akira Tozawa: The match closes out with Kendrick attempting to apply the Captain's Hook, but Tozawa blocks it. Tozawa sends Kendrick outside and then takes Kendrick out with a suicide diving headbutt. Kendrick grabs Tozawa's foot and ties it up underneath the ring trapping Tozawa outside. Kendrick gets back in the ring and wins by countout as Tozawa can't free his foot in time.

2.) Backstage, Brian Kendrick says he's teaching Akira Tozawa lessons. RAW it was the beat down and tonight it was the countout loss. Kendrick says there will be more lessons for Tozawa coming soon.

3.) Backstage, Noam Dar mocks Rich Swann and guarantees that he and Alicia Fox aren't having issues, even though she's not with Dar tonight.

4.) Noam Dar vs. Mustafa Ali: The match closes out with Ali hitting a tornado DDT on Dar and then Ali goes to the second rope. Dar cuts off Ali and sends him into the ringpost. Dar connects with a Shining Wizard on Ali and scores the pinfall.

5.) Backstage, Neville says Jack Gallagher made the mistake of touching the king on RAW, now Gallagher has Neville's attention.

6.) Backstage, Jack Gallagher says tonight will be a preview of how he'll win the WWE Cruiserweight Championship, with technique, footwork, and a great mustache.

7.) Jack Gallagher vs. Tony Nese: The match closes out with Gallagher hitting a headbutt and placing Nese in the tree of woe. Nese hits a german suplex on Gallagher and goes to the top rope. Gallagher cuts off Nese and lands a superplex. Gallagher connects with the running corner drop kick and scores the pinfall to end the show.

*** NXT ***

- Heidi Lovelace Given NXT Name: Independent woman's wrestler Heidi Lovelace signed on with WWE NXT over the summer and has officially debuted her new gimmick name for NXT house shows. Lovelace will now be known as Ruby Riot and it's unknown when she'll make her official NXT TV debut.

- Finn Balor Returns: In a huge NXT surprise this week, Finn Balor returned at a live NXT show. Andrade "Cien" Almas and Bobby Roode joined forces in beating down Shinsuke Nakamura when suddenly The Demon King returned and made the save for Nakamura.

- New Developmental Signee: Squared Circle Signings is reporting that WWE has signed 22 year old Canadian olympic weightlifter Isabel Lahela to a developmental contract. It was noted that she took part in a WWE tryout last September at the WWE Performance Center.

*** Impact Wrestling ***

** Impact Wrestling Recap **
This week Cody Rhodes returned to Impact, The Broken Hardy's search for more gold on their Expedition of Gold Tour and we were all invited to the wedding of Braxton Sutter and Laurel Van Ness.

1.) At The Hardy Compound, Matt Hardy talks to George Washington the giraffe and then Vanguard One. Matt tells Jeff he needs to house his abilities in Jeff's vessel until he returns from his teleportation to Egypt. Matt transferes his abilities to Jeff and then transports to Egypt

2.) Cody and Brandi Rhodes Promo: Cody talks about where he's been and how he's now back in Impact. Cody mentions Bobby Lashley attacking him last time, but assures Lashley that he's not here for him. Cody says he's here for Brandi and mentions how proud he is of her. Brandi says she's been spending her time trying to be like Cody, thanks Cody for his inspiration and then thanks Moose for helping train her. Cody calls Moose out so he can join Cody and Brandi. Moose arrives, Cody thanks Moose for his help and considers Moose apart of the Rhodes family. Cody, however, losses his cool when he finds out Brandi has Moose's phone number, because since they train together, eventually they'll sleep together. Moose immediately cuts in, tells Cody he's got it all wrong and he was just there to help. Brandi tries to calm Cody down when Cody suddenly starts laughing and says he was just kidding. Cody kisses his wife, but then suddenly low blows Moose. Cody lays Moose out with Cross Rhodes, grabs Brandi by the arm and forces her to leave with him.

3.) Eli Drake vs. Tyrus: Drake and Tyrus meet in the ring where Drake offers to give Tyrus a raise on his current deal with Drake. Tyrus grabs Drake by the throat, but then releases Drake, gives Drake a hug and accepts the raise and the return of their partnership.

4.) Backstage, Maria, Sienna and Laurel Van Ness are prepping for Laurel's Wedding and wonder where Allie is.

5.) At the Hardy Compound, Matt returns from Egypt with Skarsguard, which is a golden arc now and states he learned what must be done in Egypt. The Hardy's must win all the tag team gold in the whole world. Matt and Jeff grab Vanguard One and teleport to their next destination.

6.) Jade Promo: Jade calls out Rosemary. Rosemary appears and tells Jade that instead of trying to save the Knockout's Division from darkness she should just save herself. Jade says she's prepared to risk everything again and challenges Rosemary to a Last Knockout Standing Match. Rosemary accepts the challenge.

7.) Backstage, Mike Bennett tries to cheer up Braxton Sutter, who doesn't care about Laurel Van Ness or the wedding. All Sutter can think about is Allie.

8.) Bram vs. Jessie Godderz: The match closes out with Godderz trapping Bram in the Adonis Lock submission, but Eddie Kingston distracts Godderz on the apron. Godderz sends Bram crashing into Kingston and then rolls up Bram for the pinfall.

9.) The Hardy's are teleported to the Madison Civic Center in West Virginia and search for the Mid Atlantic Tag Team Champions. Matt and Jeff argue with the #1 Contenders, two men in cowboy hats named Matt and Louis. Another man appears, states that the champions are Mathis and Rage and they haven't been beaten in 12 years, but he thinks The Hardy's can do it. Matt and Louis agree and let The Hardy's have their #1 Contenders spot.

10.) Backstage, Allie finally arrives and gets mocked by Maria, Laurel Van Ness and Sienna. Laurel demands Allie to go book the Honeymoon Suite. Allie leaves, accidentally bumps into Braxton Sutter and asks if this is really what he wants. Sutter apologizes to Allie and says he has to do this.

11.) Backstage at the Madison Civic Center, the champions accept The Hardy's challenge and a huge locker room brawl breaks out between all the wrestlers.

12.) "Mid Atlantic Tag Team Championship Match": Mathis and Rage (c) vs. The Broken Hardy's: The match closes out with Jeff brawling with Rage backstage, where Jeff puts Rage in a dumpster and wheels him down a flight of stairs. Jeff returns to the ring where he and Matt hit the Twist Of Fate into the Swanton Bomb and score the pinfall to win the titles. The Hardy's celebrate with everyone in the ring and then suddenly teleport back to Cameron, North Carolina. Back home The Hardy's place the Mid Atlantic Tag Team Championship inside Skarsguard the Golden Arc.

13.) "The Warmaster" Josh Barnett vs. Bad Bones: Bobby Lashley sits at commentary to watch this match. The match closes out with Barnett hitting a power bomb and a northern lights suplex on Bad Bones. Barnett stares at Lashley, locks on an armbar submission and makes Bad Bones tap out. 

14.) "Impact X Division Championship Match": Trevor Lee (c) vs. DJ Z: The match closes out with DJ Z hitting a reverse hurricanrana on Lee and then goes for the ZDT. Shane Helms distracts DJ Z by grabbing his foot. Lee rolls up DJ Z with a handful of tights and steals the pinfall to retain the title. After the match, Andrew Everett hits the ring, attacks Lee and Helms and then lands a Shooting Star Press on Lee.

15.) The Braxton Sutter/Laurel Van Ness Wedding: The Best Man Mike Bennett arrives with Braxton Sutter to the alter. The Flower Girls Aron Rex and Rockstar Spud arrive next tossing flower pedals. The Bridesmaids Maria and Sienna arrive next to the alter. Laurel Van Ness is out next and then Maria demands the Ring Bearer Allie to come out now. Allie finally appears and heads to the alter. The ceremony begins, Laurel reads her vows and says she doesn't care that Sutter is broke because she's rich and will change Sutter. Sutter says he forgot his vows and just wants this to conclude already. Maria shoves Allie down and demands her to hand over the rings. Laurel says "I do" but Sutter hesitates and finally says "I'm sorry, I don't". Sutter says he can't marry Laurel because he's in love with Allie and he was being forced to marry Laurel or else Maria was going to fire Allie. Maria laughs now that the cat is out of the bag and fires Allie. Allie says Maria can't fire her because she quits. Sienna grabs Allie and Maria tries to hit Allie with her shoe. Sutter stops it and then knocks Mike Bennett down. Allie spears Maria as Brooke Tessmacher arrives and helps Allie fight off Maria and Sienna. Robbie E arrives next and goes after Mike Bennett as Allie and Sutter escape together. Allie and Sutter kiss as Laurel cries and drinks champage to end the show.

- Kevin Sullivan Returns: This past Tuesday, wrestling producer Kevin Sullivan (not the wrestler) announced on Twitter that he has returned to Impact Wrestling, working backstage with the company.

- Dutch Mantell/Zeb Colter Returns: Dutch Mantell announced on Twitter this week that he has signed on with Impact in a creative advisory role. Many expected this to happen as Mantell and Jeff Jarrett are good friends.

- Mike Bennett And Marie Bennett Sign New Contracts: The Bennett's announced this week that they both have signed new one year contracts with Impact Wrestling. 

- New Impact Creative Team Announced: According to PWInsider, the new creative team will be headed up by Jeff Jarrett and officially consisting of Dutch Mantel and Scott D’Amore. The three of them will be assisted by Abyss, Rockstar Spud and Jeremy Borash. There is also the possibility of a writer being hired to be responsible for taking the shows and turning them into scripts to be produced.

*** RING OF HONOR ***

** ROH TV Recap **
This week saw the Finals of the Decade of Excellence Tournament as Christopher Daniels battled Jay Briscoe with the winner earning a future ROH World Championship Match against ROH World Champion Adam Cole.

1.) "The Last Real Man" Silas Young vs. Bull James: The match closes out with the Beer City Bruiser trying to interfere and help Young. James hits a monkey flip on Young and a tornado DDT on Bruiser. James counters Misery, but gets a full nelson knee from Young. Young is able to hit Misery on the next attempt and scores the pinfall.

2.) "Handicap Match": Colt Cabana vs. The Boys: Dalton Castle was on commentary for this match. The match closes out with Cabana tossing one of The Boys into Castle at the commentary table. Castle gets held back by the referee as Cabana hits the Chicago Skyline on Boy #1. Cabana applies the Billy Goats Curse submission on Boy #2 and gets the tap out victory.

3.) "Decade of Excellence Tournament Finals Match": Christopher Daniels vs. Jay Briscoe: Kazarian was on commentary for this match. The match closes out with Daniels hitting a Uranage and goes for the Best Moonsault Ever. Briscoe counters and gets a near fall roll up. Daniels hits another Uranage and misses on the second attempt at the Best Moonsault Ever. Briscoe connects with a super kick and a lariat for a near fall. Daniels counters the Jay Driller and crotches Briscoe in the corner. Daniels and Briscoe end up on the ropes and trade blows back and forth until Daniels again crotches Briscoe on the ropes. Daniels hits Super Angel Wings off the ropes and scores the pinfall to win the tournament. After the match, Daniels and Briscoe shake hands to end the show.

*** NEW JAPAN PRO WRESTLING ***

- Zack Sabre Jr. Signs With New Japan: Dave Meltzer confirmed last week that British pro wrestler Zack Sabre Jr. will be heading to New Japan Pro Wrestling very soon. ZSJ will be joining fellow Brit Will Ospreay in NJPW in the coming months according to Meltzer.

- Kenny Omega Returns: Kenny Omega will make his official return to New Japan Pro Wrestling this weekend at NJPW Honor Rising. There was rumors surrounding Omega since January on whether or not he would sign with WWE or return to NJPW. Omega made the decision to sign a new one year contract with NJPW.

*** AAW ***

** Art of War Recap **
AAW Art of War took place in Merrionette Park, Illinois. The main event of the evening saw a Six Man Tag Team Match with ACH, AR Fox and Fenix battling AAW World Champion Sami Callihan and 014K. The event also featured TNA's DJ Zema Ion, TNA's Trevor Lee, former NJPW wrestler Matt Sydal, former TNA wrestler Low Ki, ROH's Michael Elgin, Lucha Underground's Brian Cage, TNA's Abyss and TNA's Eddie Kingston.

1.) Chuck Taylor and Trent Baretta defeated Davey Vega and Mat Fitchett.

2.) DJ Zema Ion defeated Connor Braxton.

3.) Matt Riddle defeated Jason Kincaid.

4.) "AAW World Tag Team Championship Match": Trevor Lee defeated Matt Sydal. (Lee was forced to defend the titles in a singles match.)

5.) Low Ki defeated El Hijo Del Fantasma.

6.) Michael Elgin and Brian Cage defeated Dezmond Xavier and Zachary Wentz.

7.) Abyss defeated Eddie Kingston.

8.) "Six Man Tag Team Match": ACH, AR Fox and Fenix defeated Sami Callihan and OI4K.

*** PWG ***

** Only King's Understand Recap **
The main event of the show saw Zack Sabre Jr. defend his PWG World Championship against Chuck Taylor. The show also featured Cody Rhodes, TNA's Trevor Lee, former Lucha Underground wrestler Ricochet, ROH's  Lio Rush, Jay White, Michael Elgin and Marty Scurll, Lucha Underground's Brian Cage, ROH World Champion Adam Cole, ROH World Tag Team Champions The Young Bucks and Sami Callihan.

1.) Trevor Lee defeated Cody Rhodes. The biggest story coming out of this match was what Lee said during his in ring promo. Apparently Lee said "F*** Dusty Rhodes" which upset Cody Rhodes, who wasn't aware that Lee was going to say that in his promo.

2.) Trent defeated Rey Fenix.

3.) Matt Riddle and Jeff Cobb defeated Michael Elgin and Brian Cage.

4.) Ricochet defeated Lio Rush.

5.) Marty Scurll defeated Jay White.

6.) "Six Man Tag Team Match": Adam Cole and The Young Bucks defeated Sami Callihan and OI4K.

7.) "PWG World Championship Match": Zack Sabre Jr. (c) defeated Chuck Taylor. After the match, Sabre turned heel and joined with Marty Scurll. Both men beat down Taylor until Trent made the save.

*** Other ***

- The Rock Calls CM Punk While In A WWE Ring: If you haven't heard, this past week while filming his new movie about Paige's life, The Rock called CM Punk while standing inside a WWE ring. The call unfortunately went to voice mail and of course rumor is Vince McMahon was furious backstage about The Rock's publicity stunt. (I originally was going to post the actual video, but WWE keeps deleting everyone's videos that taped it because obviously they still want nothing to do with Punk)

Punk took to Twitter later and stated that he was out walking his dog that's why he didn't pick up the phone. He appreciated all the love that Los Angeles gave him though.

And that's this week's W3C! Join me every Sunday afternoon as I bring you news, recaps and rumors all around the wrestling world!

Wrestling Lockup with Brandon Presents.... Wrestling Q&A 2/9/17

By Brandon Albright, @B_Rock1978

Wrestling Lockup with Brandon brought to you by Triple Threat CLE brings you Wrestling Q&A.

Wrestling Q&A is my way of getting into social media, whether Facebook, Twitter, or any other means of communication to hear other fans' wrestling ideas on how they would book a match or an angle. I am currently apart of a few different wrestling groups on Facebook where we talk about nothing but wrestling and of course I am vocal on Twitter. My idea basically is to fire a question into the groups on Facebook or onto Twitter and sit back and read what other fans would do and of course with this article that you're reading I will share hopefully some interesting and I'm sure off the wall answers, but that's what makes social media great! So let's get to this week's question.

** Question Of The Week **

"What was your favorite Elimination Chamber moment?"

** Answers **

- The first ever elimination chamber match. One of the few times Shawn Michaels' hair was short lol

- The ECW Elimination Chamber Match. I wish they had more elimination chamber matches where they enter with weapons.

- The 2002 and 2003 Elimination Chamber matches.

- The night John Cena retained the WWE Championship inside the Elimination Chamber only to lose the Championship to The Rated R Superstar EDGE!

- When Santino almost won the title.

- HBK returning and winning the title in the chamber.

- Edge winning the 2011 Chamber match.

- When hbk attacked the undertaker.

- Taker reverse choke slam on MVP off the chamber pod it was brutal.

- The 1st one, with HBK winning the WHC.

- Being there for the first one and watching my two favorites Jericho and triple h team up in it for a bit. Also the ending sequence to the smackdown one 2009 triple h vs taker

- Evolution destroying GOLDBERG!!!!

- Taker and Batista flipping over the ropes into a Taker tombstone.

- Goldberg killing everyone.

- Goldberg slipping on his entrance.

- Edge taking Kofi's spot in the second chamber match and winning the world championship after losing the wwe title earlier in the night.

- Goldberg spearing & jackhammer slamming everyone with a heartbeat in summerslam 2003

- John Morrison doing his Spider-Man impersonation.

** My Top 3 Favorite Moments **

1.) Shawn Michaels wins the World Heavyweight Championship in the debut Elimination Chamber Match: What a moment it was for Shawn Michaels back in 2002. After being retired for 4 years due to a back injury, Michaels made his return to the WWE at 100%. Michaels lasted to the very end of the Chamber match with his real life best friend Triple H, countered the Pedigree and scored Sweet Chin Music to win the World Heavyweight Championship. Michaels would go on to entertain us for 7 more years until finally being able to retire on his own terms.

2.) Shawn Michaels again makes my list at number two, but this time it was what he did during the match that he wasn't even in. The final two superstars came down to Chris Jericho and The Undertaker with the World Heavyweight Championship on the line. Just as it looked like Taker was about to retain his title, Shawn Michaels popped out one of the outside steel grates and climbed into the chamber from below. Michaels would go on to hit Sweet Chin Music on Taker and help Chris Jericho score the pinfall to win the World Heavyweight Championship. Michaels did it because Taker refused to give him a match at Wrestlemania of that year. After costing Undertaker the title, Michaels got his match.

3. CM Punk and Daniel Bryan both survive their 2012 EC matches and go on to Wrestlemania 28: It's hard to believe that at one time in the WWE, two independent wrestling icons Daniel Bryan and CM Punk both held the top two titles in the company, the WWE World Title and the World Heavyweight Championship. Another favorite moment of mine was when both Bryan and Punk were forced to defend their titles in Elimination Chamber Matches. Both men entered the chamber and both men walked out still holding their world titles.

- Honorable Mentions #1: Edge losing the WWE World Title in the first Elimination Chamber Match of the night and then attack Kofi Kingston, enter the second Elimination Chamber Match in Kofi's spot and winning the World Heavyweight Championship.

- Honorable Mentions #2: Edge cashing in Money In The Bank on John Cena after Cena survived the Elimination Chamber.

That wraps up my Wrestling Q&A session. Hope you enjoyed and thanks for reading.

WLWB Special: CM Punk vs. Mickey Gall at #UFC203

By Brandon Albright, @B_Rock1978

Wrestling Lockup with Brandon, brought to you by Triple Threat CLE brings you a special edition of the CM Punk vs. Mickey Gall fight from UFC 203.

Normally I'm the wrestling guy that brings you your wrestling recaps and news on a weekly basis. But today I'm bringing you something special. Former WWE World Heavyweight Champion Phil "CM Punk" Brooks finally made his UFC debut last night, after almost a two year wait after signing on. Injuries and a minor debate on who would be Punk's first opponent sidelined the "cult of personality" from any UFC action during that two year hiatus. After returning from injury, marrying his wrestling crush April Jeanette Mendez (AJ Lee), and getting back into fighting shape, UFC finally decided on Mickey Gall as Punk's first opponent, at UFC 203, live from Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.

Punk, the popular former WWE main eventer had very little to no significant martial arts experience at all before signing with the UFC in December of 2014. Punk signed on with Roufusport in Milwaukee for about a year and a half, where he did his MMA training. In Punk's own opinion he feels that he has improved a lot since first walking in the door. Punk was ready to debut at UFC 200, where UFC planned to have the two former and current WWE superstars Punk and Brock Lesnar compete.

Punk's training and debut against Mickey Gall were put on hiatus, however, as a herniated disc in Punk's back forced him to drop out of training and UFC 200 altogether until getting his back issue taken care of. After surgery and getting back into training, Punk credited the surgery as giving him a new lease on life and feeling better than ever.

"I think once I had an opponent, once I had a date and once I was free of that damn herniated disc I was walking around with for who knows how long, I was a different person, It's one thing to train, it's another thing to train with a singular purpose and that's what I got in Mickey Gall. I know this is a difficult sport to master. I look forward to mastering it sometime and I realize that will probably never happen, but I will get as good as I possibly can."

*** Tale Of The Tape ***

Mickey Gall entered his third professional MMA fight, holding a record of 2-0. Both of Gall's wins were by submission, which makes Gall a huge threat in submission style wrestling. Gall is 24 year's old, 13 years younger than Punk, which forced many to already give the advantage to Gall. Gall stands in at 5' 11" and weighs 170 pounds, where Punk came in at 6' 1" and weighed 170 pounds, 40 pounds lighter than what he wrestled under in the WWE.

*** The Weigh In ***

This past Friday in Cleveland, both men weighed in for their battle on Saturday night. After the weigh in, Mickey Gall extended his hand for a hand shake, but CM Punk snubbed him and instead gave him a death stare. Gall had a few choice words for Punk's disrespect before walking away, as UFC President Dana White smiled in the background like a cat that just ate a canary.

Punk was asked what exactly did Gall say to him during the weigh in and Punk answered in his usual cockiness.

"I don't know, he was stuttering. He kept repeating, ‘Oh you don't want to shake my hand, you don't want to shake my hand' or something like that. I'm not here to shake anybody's hand. I'm here to punch people in the face."

Punk was also asked how happy he was with his weigh in and Punk stated he wasn't happy with the 170 pound weigh in.

"Cutting weight was not fun, but I had coach Duke Roufus and teammates like Anthony Pettis and Erik Koch for advice. I'm not gonna say it was easy, there's a level of difficulty that goes along with it and I'm a fat kid at heart and I love food and that's obviously the hardest part."

** CM Punk vs. Mickey Gall UFC 203 **

- Round One: Unfortunately for Punk, his debut was not one to remember. Gall takes down Punk and immediately got in some ground and pound. Gall went around to Punk's back and locked in a rear naked choke submission. Punk was able to escape for a brief moment, but Gall locks in the rear naked choke submission again. Gall locks it tight and Punk taps out at 2:14. Punk's face wasn't too pretty when it was all said and done.

So there you have it, CM Punk's long awaited debut ending with a loss by submission. What lies ahead next for Punk in UFC? Only Dana White knows.

"You go BIG or you go home" - @CMPunk #UFC203 https://t.co/H4LEnkXwmI

— UFC (@ufc) September 11, 2016

Weekend 3 Count 3/2 - 3/8 #WWE #TNA #IMPACTWrestling

By @B_Rock1978

The Weekend 3 Count is brought to you by Triple Threat CLE. This week I bring you all the news and rumors around the WWE, TNA, GFW and the Independent wrestling scene for March 2nd - March 8th.

*** Weekend Flashback ***

- Growing up, my favorite wrestling family to watch were the Von Erich's. I remember watching the old WCCW episodes on ESPN and cheering them on every week. My favorite of the family was and will always be Kerry Von Erich. I remember it hit me hard the day I found out Kerry took his own life. Here was one of my childhood idols that passed away and now knowing I'd never see him wrestle ever again. I'm going back to 1984, one day after my sixth birthday. Ric Flair defended the NWA World Heavyweight Championship against Kerry Von Erich.

*** WWE News and Rumors ***

- Where oh where will Brock Lesnar end up in April?? Last week, Lesnar, stormed out of WWE, apparently upset over the offer that Vince McMahon gave him on a new contract. Last Saturday night, Lesnar, was present at UFC 184 to watch the fights. UFC President, Dana White, stated that Lesnar was there to just watch the fights and White not once talked contracts with him. White, however, stated that Lesnar mentioned Frank Mir and whether or not Mir truthfully stated he wanted to fight Lesnar again. Rumors surfaced a few months back at White pushing for Lesnar vs. Mir 3 in UFC. May the best promoter win.

- With Lesnar walking out of the RAW that he was scheduled to appear at, WWE is planning on making Lesnar make up that missed date. Lesnar has made no comment on when or if he plans on making up the date that WWE says he owes now.

- Comedy Central's own Jon Stewart, showed up at RAW last week to confront Seth Rollins. Check out my recap of RAW to see how that went down.

- Another inductee into the 2015 WWE Hall of Fame was announced this past RAW. Former WWE Women's Champion, Alundra Blayze (aka Madusa in WCW), was announced as the newest inductee. Correct me if I'm wrong, but did WWE forget all about Blayze's stunt she pulled, tossing the WWE Women's Championship in the garbage on WCW Nitro?? Blayze, was one of the last women I figured would ever get in the Hall of Fame.

The Madusa Stunt:

- As of now, the 2015 WWE Hall of Fame class is as follows: "Macho Man" Randy Savage, Rikishi, The Bushwackers, Alundra Blayze and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

- This past Monday on RAW, A.J. Lee, made her return to the company.

- Bray Wyatt is bringing The Undertaker's urn to RAW, tomorrow night. The past few weeks, Wyatt, has used druids, caskets, Taker's theme music and has torched a casket, to try to draw out the deadman for Wrestlemania. Wyatt has failed so far.

- 15 Time WWE World Heavyweight Champion, John Cena, will be inducted into the Springfield College Athletic Hall of Fame on Saturday, April 18.

- Sources have said that Samoa Joe is in fact negotiating with the WWE. Joe is currently contract obligated to work a few Ring of Honor shows at the moment. Joe has stated that the rumors are true and he has been in talks with WWE.

- Independent wrestler, Uhaa Nation, is headed to WWE. Nation, who was on WWE's radar since the late summer, has official signed and we be appearing in NXT soon.

- As of March 1st, if you have WWE Network, you are now no longer allowed to have the Network streaming on two seperate devices. Only one device at a time can be used to watch the Network.

- Rapper Wiz Khalifa has been announced as a special guest for tomorrow's RAW live from his hometown of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

- NXT trainer, Bill DeMott has been the talk of the company this week. Many current and former NXT/WWE superstars have opened up about Bill DeMott and his unprofessionalism, while training the new NXT talent. Many have stated that Demott, was very abusive, physically and mentally to the NXT talent. Former WWE developmental talent, Kevin Matthews, sent a copy of a letter he wrote on his experiences with Bill DeMott. You can read Matthews' letter HERE./

- As of Friday March 6th, DeMott, officially resigned from the company. Makes you think that all the complaints were true. As of now, Matt Bloom (aka Albert, Tensai) has been announced as DeMott's intern head trainer.

*** TNA News and Rumors ***

- This week on Impact, The Wolves became 2-Time TNA World Tag Team Champions, as they defeated James Storm and Abyss.

- Also on Impact, Kurt Angle became the new #1 Contender to the TNA World Heavyweight Championship. Angle defeated Eric Young and Bobby Roode in a triple threat match.

- TNA Impact has taken a hit in ratings, two weeks in a row now, as viewership has dropped back to back weeks.

- TNA longtime producer, Bryan Edwards and producer/editor Stu Marchetti have left TNA.

*** GFW News and Rumors ***

- Quiet week in Jeff Jarrett land with GFW.

*** Other Wrestling News ***

- Rey Mysterio has officially announced he will be returning to the promotion that made him famous when he was young, AAA Mexico.

- Phil "CM Punk" Brooks has been recently spotted with a camera crew, following him around. Sources are saying that Punk has been filming a documentary on his switch from professional wrestler to MMA fighter.

-Punk recently had his first MMA scrimmage fight, preparing him for his first UFC bout.

- Jonny Candido, the brother of the late Chris Candido, is making a documentary. The documentary, currently being titled "No Gimmicks Needed", will be about his brother, Chris and Chris' life in professional wrestling before his life ended too soon.

- Chris Dickinson of Beyond Wrestling, is making news this week and not in a good way. Beyond Wrestling had an Intergender Match this past weekend at their "King of Arts" show, with Chris Dickinson facing female star Kimber Lee. At the end of the match Dickinson, low blows Lee, hits her in the head with a chair, then delivers a viscious "Outsiders Edge" power bomb, that causes Lee to slide under the bottom rope and almost smacking her head on the steel ring post. The company is under fire now for the viciousness of how female performers are being treated and Dickinson himself is under fire on social media for committing the violent actions. You can check out the closing moments of that match below, but viewer discretion is advised.

- Kimber Lee was interviewed a day after the match, had no regrets and didn't blame Dickinson at all for how the ending of the match went. You can read that interview HERE.

And that is this weekend's 3 Count. Join me every Sunday afternoon, where I give you the major stories in WWE, TNA, GFW and the independent wrestling scene. Till next time, tap or snap.

~B~

Weekend 3 Count: 11/24 - 11/30 #WWE #TNA

By @B_Rock1978

The Weekend 3 Count is brought to you by Triple Threat CLE.

*** Weekend Flashback ***

This week's flashback will be a highlight video of two up and coming superstars in the WWE. One is the current Mr. Money In The Bank and possible future WWE World Heavyweight Champion. The other made his name in Japan and on the independent scene and is currently wrestling on NXT.

Tyler Black (Seth Rollins) vs. KENTA (Hideo Itami) Ring of Honor 2006


*** WWE News and Rumors ***

- The major story of the week is the "Icon" Sting. Unless you've been living under a rock all week, I'm sure you've heard that Sting made his debut for the first time ever in a WWE ring. Sting arrived and helped Team Cena defeat The Authority at last Sunday's Survivor Series.

- What's next for the Stinger? As of now, WWE are throwing around two different storylines. Option number one is a Sting vs. Triple H match at Wrestlemania 31. Which makes perfect sense due to Sting dropping Triple H with a "Scorpion Death Drop" and costing The Authority their jobs. Option number two is the WWE might still go with Sting vs. The Undertaker at Wrestlemania 31. That is if Undertaker is even healthy enough to go one more match. So we will see where the WWE decides they will go with The Stinger.

- My opinion on Sting? I'd like both matches please. I was thinking they should keep Sting as a pay per view appearance only character with maybe one or two RAW appearances. Here's what I would do if I was booking Sting. At WWE TLC, I'd have Sting get involved with a Seth Rollins match and cost Rollins the match, keeping the screw The Authority angle going. Royal Rumble in January, we'd get Sting's first ever WWE match as he faces a pissed off Triple H. Sting beats Triple H and reappears at WWE Fast Lane in February and plants the seeds for his Wrestlemania match with Taker. We get one or two RAW appearances by Taker and Sting to build the match then get the payoff match at Wrestlemania. Now who wins that match, really doesn't matter to me with the streak gone. But I'm thinking WWE would put their guy over (Taker) before an outsider (Sting). WWE could possibly induct Sting into the WWE Hall of Fame this year, as a reward for losing to Taker.

- As for who is running RAW with The Authority gone now? It appears WWE is going back to the surprise GM of the night angle again at the moment. Daniel Bryan was this past RAW's GM and and tomorrow's RAW will be the return of the Anonymous GM that emails his decisions throughout the show.

- Tomorrow's RAW will be entitled "Cyber Monday". The WWE Universe not only gets the Anonymous GM computer calling the shots but also gets to vote on matches and stipulations throughout the evening by the WWE app.

- This week's Smackdown finally seen the debut of Big E, Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods. The trio are calling their faction The New Day.

- There was a new WWE Divas Champion crowned at Survivor Series last Sunday. Nikki Bella defeated A.J. Lee in under 10 seconds to take home the gold. Also at Survivor Series, The Miz and Damien Sandow walked out the new WWE World Tag Team Champions. Be sure to head back and read my Survivor Series Results.

- Rumors were circulating that A.J. Lee may have asked for her release from the company, after the way she lost the WWE Divas Championship at Survivor Series. According to sources close to A.J., these rumors are false and she is planning on finishing out her contract. A.J.'s contract with WWE expires after the WWE TLC pay per view in December.

- Speaking of the Divas. Rumors are saying that WWE may be moving current NXT Women's Champion, Charlotte Flair, to the main roster in December. WWE have been very happy with Charlotte's progress and feel it may be time to use her on the big stage.

- CM Punk news!! Punk was recently on his best friend, Colt Cobana's, podcast and finally opened up about why he left the WWE, last January. Colt Cabana's podcast link is also in this article if you want to listen to the CM Punk interview

- Ryback, who was one of the men that Punk took shots at in the Podcast, responded on Twitter with a picture of eight Ryback action figures, surrounding a CM Punk action figure, which was put through a table. Ryback has since deleted all Twitter posts directed at Punk.

- And how does WWE feel about Punk's podcast? The boys in the locker room are happy this leaked. Vince, Triple H and all the higher ups, of course are denying all of it and are pretty pissed off with Punk right now. I think it is safe to say that CM Punk not only burned his bridge with WWE, but he blew the thing up.

- Bad News Barrett had some good news this past week. Barrett finally received his green card. Which gives him the right to compete in the United States without issues. Barrett has had issues in the past with his work Visa not letting him in the United States to compete at wrestling shows.

- Bully Ray was interviewed recently this week. Bully stated that he would be open for a WWE return and do a singles run. Bully stated that he would love to wrestle Brock Lesnar and John Cena. If used right, Bully could be a good addition to any storyline with his "I don't give a damn" attitude.

*** TNA News and Rumors ***

- TNA will begin doing TV tapings for their new TV home, Destination America, in January. Those shows will be taped at the Manhattan Center in New York City.

- TNA is making plans in doing a reboot when they premiere on Destination America. Not sure if that means they are rebooting champions or just rebooting the layout of the company.

- One change TNA is being rumored to be making, is at the announcers table. Sources are saying that TNA may be replacing Mike Tenay with former WWE announcer Josh Matthews.

- TNA is also discussing doing their first show on Destination America live. Honestly, TNA needs to do all their shows live. I really hate knowing what's going to happen two months before it actually happens. For example, if you read spoilers, we all knew Bobby Roode was going to win the TNA World Championship, Samoa Joe was vacating the TNA X Division Championship and James Storm and Abyss were going to win the TNA World Tag Team Championship, two months before it happened. Knowing this, for example, took a little bit out of that great series of matches for the tag titles that Team 3D, The Hardys and The Wolves delivered. We all knew The Wolves would retain after it was all said and done. All I'm saying, if you want to compete with the WWE then TNA needs to treat Impact like it is their RAW and go live every week.

And that's this weekend's 3 Count. Join me every Sunday afternoon as I post news around WWE, TNA and GFW. Till next week, tap or snap.

The Weekend 3 Count 10/6 - 10/12 #WWE #TNA

By @BSA1978

The Weekend 3 Count is brought to you by Triple Threat CLE.

*** WWE News and Rumors ***

- "Stone Cold" Steve Austin making a come back? That's what rumors have been stating. Austin, himself, has even said on his podcast that he's been training for a comeback. Sources have said that Austin wants to have a huge involvement with WWE in 2015.

- Where's the Deadman? The Undertaker was spotted at the Wizard World Austin Comic Con in Austin, Texas this past week. Questions about Wrestlemania 31 and Sting were asked to the Death Valley Demon. Taker stated "never say never" about Wrestlemania but had no plans. As for Sting, Taker hasn't really thought about having a match with the Stinger.

- Happy Birthday Smackdown!! WWE Smackdown turned 15 this month. 15 years ago, Smackdown debuted on the UPN network with Triple H vs The Rock for the WWE Championship as the main event. Shawn Micheals served as special guest referee. I still have that show on VHS tape somewhere back when I used to collect matches on video tape.

- New Bray Wyatt followers? There have been rumors circulating that Bray Wyatt may be taking in NXT's tag team The Ascension as new Wyatt Family members. Which would explain why Bray is setting Erick Rowan and Luke Harper free in recent tv segments.

- If you don't want your luggage lost, than don't fly United Airlines. This week Dolph Ziggler's bags were lost, then found in Canada. What's interesting is that the WWE Intercontinental Championship was one of the items lost. Imagine finding a WWE title, how hard would it be to give back?

- After this Friday's backstage segment on Smackdown between The Rock and Triple H, talk of a match has surfaced. The WWE may possibly go with The Rock vs Triple H as one of the co-main events at Wrestlemania 31.

- Rumors are circulating that WWE World Heavyweight Champion, Brock Lesnar, won't return to defend his title until the Royal Rumble. What happended to the so called "30 Day Rule", where a superstar was stripped of the title if he failed to defend within 30 days??

- It has been officially announced that the 2015 Royal Rumble in January will be a 40 Man Rumble.

- Chris Jericho sent out a tweet on Twitter stating he'll be back in WWE in November.

- When you get time, check out this article written by Rob Simmons. It basically sums up how all of us feel about WWE's current product. Rob wrote a letter to Triple H and posted the link to it on Triple H's Twitter page. Very heart felt and very true.
Chair Shots Presents: Dear Triple H (A Letter From A Struggling 35 Year Fan).


- WWE's Hell In A Cell Card -
** John Cena vs Dean Ambrose
** "Hell In A Cell Match": Seth Rollins vs Winner of Cena/Ambrose

*** TNA News and Rumors ***

- Bellator MMA has officially announced that TNA World Heavyweight Champion Bobby Lashley will face Karl Etherington at Bellator 130, on Friday, October 24th.

- TNA recently made a play for the hottest free agent in wrestling, CM Punk. TNA offered Punk a Hulk Hogan type deal and promised him he would be the face of TNA. As of now, CM Punk, still has no interest whatsoever in wrestling again. TNA currently is denying this.

- TNA President, Dixie Carter, celebrated her 50th birthday this week.

- TNA recently announced new TV deals in Malaysia and Singapore. There has still been no word on if they are close to a new deal with a tv station to show Impact on in the U.S.

- After failing to win the TNA World Tag Team Championship this week on Impact, Bully Ray went to Twitter. Bully Ray stated that even though he and Devon failed to win the titles, they still have their sights set on winning their favorite titles. Rumors are saying that he is talking about the New Japan Tag Team Championship.

- More Kurt Angle free agent talk has surfaced. Sources have said that Angle would stay with TNA if they meet his requirements. Sources are also saying that Angle has also had a sit down with WWE and would be more than willing to return to the company that made him famous, if they give him a part time contract.

More news and rumors next week on Weekend 3 Count.

Tap or snap