Some late-Wednesday news:
– Ric Flair called into Howard Stern today, while Chris Kanyon was making yet another guest appearance, and they debated why Kanyon was fired. You can read a recap here. In other Flair news, his ex-wife took him to court to get his Carolina Panthers tickets, to find out that he had let his season ticket package run out.
– JR’s latest blog talks about his friendship with Stone Cold Steve Austin, plus he has an email-answering entry that addresses Mick Foley’s recent work, a potential future draft lottery, Gunner Scott’s release, a possible ladder match DVD, William Regal and more (you can catch up on all of JR’s blog posts here). Here’s an excerpt from the Austin post:
It had been so long since Steve had been able to spend any significant time back stage at a WWE event, I assume Wretlemania was the last, that he mentioned to me that there were so many new faces he did not know it felt a little surreal. Of course, many of the veteran WWE Superstars were familiar faces that had the opportunity to visit with Austin and renew old times and talk of rivalries of days gone by … I hope the younger wrestlers took the time Sunday to pick the brain of one of the most intelligent and analytical Superstars in history … There is no doubt in my mind, and I feel like I know Steve better than anyone in the business, that Austin would love to wrestle again if his neck issues were not as they are … Steve was a big proponent of watching old tapes to see how the masters of other generations honed their skills and perfected their craft. I wonder how many young wrestlers of today take the time to watch these same classic video tapes to learn valuable nuances that are necessary to be the best they can be … I think that some younger wrestlers could learn from the greats of the game by watching videos of stars from other generations rather than spend valuable time figuring out how they can break more tables or better utilize inanimate objects.
He goes on to say that an Austin/Hogan match will not happen, and that he doesn’t feel Stone Cold will wrestle again, although he’s in great shape and “never say never” in this business. He also writes some very nice things about his and Austin’s friendship. You can read the complete entry here.
– WWE has hired 24-year old Jack Korpela as an announcer, according to the Monroe, PA-based Times Express newspaper. According to PWInsider, his official Web site is here. He is expected to debut on the air in a few months.
– A clip of the John Cena/Kevin Federline altercation from RAW was on MSNBC’s Scarborough Country in a quick segment.
– WWE.com asks former WCW stars Chavo, Regal, Torrie, Booker, Show, Finlay and Helms what they think of Eric Bischoff’s book.
– Buck Woodward at PWInsider is confirming that, from his understanding, yesterday’s report that Torrie and Billy Kidman were getting divorced is indeed true.
– MAVTV has officially announced that it will be carrying Deep South Wrestling on its network along with other previously-announced wrestling programming. The first show airs tonight at 9pm, and more information can be found at www.mavtv.com.
– AM Raw did a 0.6 cable rating, with a 2.7 share, according to Nielsen Media Research by way of PWInsider.
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