WWE
– WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin has stated in a number of recent interviews that he has at least one more big match in him. Austin’s WWE career ended back in 2003 after a final match against The Rock at WrestleMania XIX, but almost a decade away from the ring has allowed his badly injured neck to heal. Austin has talked about wanting to wrestle CM Punk if he did return – and both men have gone back-and-forth on Twitter speculating about what would happen if they ever did square off.
The match would almost certainly not happen at WrestleMania 28 for a number of reasons. First off, the focal point of WrestleMania 28 is The Rock’s showdown with John Cena. Austin’s first wrestling match in a decade is a big enough event that it could and should be the headline match of any WrestleMania. Secondly, CM Punk is currently a face and the feeling in WWE is that there’s much more money in a face vs. heel match between the two men. WWE is getting firmly behind CM Punk as one of the top babyfaces in the company, so setting the stage for this match is a little complicated.
Lately, talk has shifted to Austin wrestling Brock Lesnar at a future WrestleMania. Brock Lesnar is currently scheduled to fight Alistair Overeem on December 30th at UFC 141. A win for Lesnar would put him back in the UFC Heavyweight title picture and out of WWE for at least another year.
On the other hand, Lesnar is not seen as somebody who would stick around UFC if he was on a losing streak – and has expressed interest in returning to WWE under the right conditions for a limited run after his MMA career is over. While his eventual opponent is still up in the air this point – it does seem that there’s a strong possibility that Steve Austin will wrestle again at some point – which is a phenomenal prospect for everybody.
– The Miz was interviewed on WOIO, the CBS affiliate in his hometown of Cleveland, OH. Here are some highlights of what The Miz said about:
If The PG Era Has Watered Down The Quality of WWE: “I don’t think it’s watered down… It’s certainly PG. I don’t think the story lines are hurt by it because we have to basically go within the extent of what we have and I think we’re getting great TV. Even though it is PG I actually like it better because I don’t have to bleed and I don’t have to take chair shots to the head. These are just precautions that we take now. I mean if you look at football they’re no longer to do helmet to helmet contact, they’re watching out more, there’s a lot more rules. With rules it’s like, okay, now we have restrictions. How can we still make this amazing brand? I think we are absolutely doing it.”
“Right now we have the biggest WrestleMania sale that we’ve ever had in the entire WrestleMania. Rock versus Cena, with just one match announced, is the biggest WrestleMania ever. It’s not even done yet. We’re not even done selling but it was the fastest ever.”
Zack Ryder’s Popularity: “I want to ask you -who were the first people who let Zach Ryder put his phrase out on air? [It was Miz and John Morrison] Do you know where ‘woo woo woo you know it’ was created? This is Zach Ryder’s catchphrase. ‘Woo woo woo you know it’, which is the stupidest catch phrase of all time. However, people are starting to get into it. The first time he ever did that was when we were all in a bar in Loreto. Zack Ryder started doing this, ‘woo woo woo woo we woo woo’ and it was the most annoying thing we ever heard in our life. Me and Morrison go, ‘We’re putting him on the Dirt Sheet and he’s doing that. He goes, “Okay bro. Bro, I’ll do it, bro. Let’s do it, bro. Woo woo. Woo woo we woo.’
“It started there and now he has progressed to have his own internet show, Z! True Long Island Story, which is getting a cult following. Once 10 people of a group start chanting something, the entire arena will start because they’re a bunch of followers. Me, I like to be a leader. I like to be the person that starts things. So the fact that Zach Ryder is now one of the people that is a fan favorite is amazing to me. He did it on his own. He was going to get fired; he was on the cutting list and he said, ‘You know what, if I’m going out then I’m going out with a bang,’ and you have to respect that. Now granted he will be on the receiving end of a beat down if he ever steps in my way because nobody ever steps in my way.”
If He Would Ever Work For TNA: “No, I’ve always loved WWE from Hulk Hogan to Ultimate Warrior to The Rock to Demolition to Legion of Doom. I was always a WWE fan, even when WCW and ECW… I was not a WCW fan. I liked ECW better than WCW. WWE was always my number one. I don’t know why. I just always felt like it was a huge production, there was larger than life characters, I loved the story lines, I fell in love with the characters and I’ve always wanted to be a WWE Superstar.”
The UFC: “I can understand why some people are really into it. I’m more driven to WWE for its soap opera storylines, the larger than life characters. I enjoy promos. Whenever I watch UFC I feel like the main event goes 30 seconds and I’m like, ‘Really? It was interesting for 30 seconds but 30 seconds? Really? I paid $60 for this?’ but I can see why people love it. You can have a 30 second match or you can have this amazing bout. You never know what you’re going to have.”
His Favorite Arena to Perform In: “Madison Square Garden or Chicago or Quicken Loans Center because it’s my hometown. The loudest are always Madison Square Garden and Chicago. In Cleveland it usually goes this like, ‘And from Cleveland, Ohio…’ ‘Yay!’ ‘The Miz.’ ‘Boo!’ Thanks a lot guys. I’m the one who brought the championship to Cleveland, not Lebron James or Peyton Hillis.”
How Much He Sleeps Each Night: “On average, I’ll sleep when I’m dead. I’m that kind of person. For instance, right now I’m here doing this with you. After this I go to MMS to do a radio interview. After that I go do my radio show on Sirius XM and then after that I go do this autograph signing at the Sip-N-Post restaurant for my uncle. After that Mizfest begins, which is something I created. I take out all my best friends from high school all over Cleveland. We rent a bus. There’s like 70 of us and it’s one of those times where all of my friends get together that I don’t get to see ever. It’s a 10 year anniversary so Cleveland will never be the same again… I’m on maybe three hours if I get any sleep. I don’t need to sleep. It’s one of those things – when you’re a superstar, you want to be the best and biggest of whatever you can do and that’s what I’m trying to be. I’ll sleep when I am the biggest superstar in the world.”
NHL
– Rangers’ F Andre Deveaux has been suspended three games for his hit on Panthers’ F Tomas Fleischmann on Wednesday. He will be eligible to return December 1.
– The Flames have claimed F Blake Comeau off waivers from the Islanders. Comeau has no points and a minus-11 rating in 16 games this season, but had 24 goals and 46 points in 77 contests in 2010-11.
– Avalanche’ F Peter Mueller (post-concussion symptoms) also has a groin injury. He remains out indefinitely.
NBA
– Sam Amick reports that league sources and NBPA executive committee members have expressed “unprecedented optimism” that a new CBA deal is within reach. Friday’s talks aren’t actually CBA negotiations since the players’ union has disbanded, but they are “settlement talks” regarding the players lawsuit. A deal could be in place as early as Monday. If not, the season isn’t likely to be cancelled outright until sometime in January. The 2011-12 season has already lost one month of time, and a second month will be lost as well once the actually begin playing. Stay tuned.
– F Tyreke Evans has reportedly agreed to a deal with Virtus Roma with an NBA-out clause. The deal won’t be finalized until Wednesday, and he would make his debut on December 3, assuming the lockout has not been lifted. Evans was one of four rookies to ever average 20 points, five rebounds and five assists, along with Oscar Robertson, Michael Jordan and LeBron James. His sophomore season was plagued by injuries, but he remains a very high-potential talent.
NFL
– Lions’ FS Louis Delmas (knee) wrote on Twitter Thursday night that he expects to miss “a few weeks” with an injury sustained against the Packers.
TNA
– Former WWE Women’s Champion and TNA Knockouts Champion Lisa Marie Varon spoke with DivaDirt.com. Highlights are as follows:
Talking about her longevity in wrestling and being on TV for nearly 10 years: “I’m very lucky. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve had injuries — a torn ACL in 2002, my elbow in the cage match with Mickie — but I don’t know how nothing has taken me out. I do work out hard and listen to my body when I need rest. It was hard in WWE to travel four days a week and maintain the healthiness in your body. I was very lucky to get seriously put out.”
“It’s very unusual for a 40-year-old to be competing against 20-year-olds coming in the ring. It’s tough. It’s a bit intimidating for me. I’m looking for the fountain of youth as well. But I think I have accomplished a lot, because I’m still good out there in the ring. I don’t feel like I’ve lost my flow.”
“My age was 29 and a half when I started in this business. I get a lot of people on Twitter, they always ask me, “Am I too old to get in the business?” and I hate saying that you’re never too old to get in the business, but when they look for the wrestlers, they do generally look for the 18-25 year olds that they can mould and create into their own. There’s always that special 30-year-old. I was better in my 30s than in my 20s, like being physically in shape and at my peak. I like to be a positive role model for people my age, even though I don’t act my age. [Laughs]”
Her future in wrestling & wanting to stay at her best: “When I do sign my contract, I sign year-to-year with TNA. I had the option [to do that] which I was very lucky [to have]. I have to listen to my body. I want to be on TV as long as I’m at my best. I don’t want to be where you see me limping down to the ring and feel sorry for me. That’s kind of why I left WWE. I don’t know if you remember the last couple of years of my career at WWE, what did you think of me? You kind of felt, “Oh my gosh, she’s not a champ”. I was helping the new talent look good in the ring, so that wasn’t really my best. I was really flattered that I was able to do that and everybody had confidence in me to make people look good in the ring but that didn’t make me feel like I was giving the fans the best Victoria. I wasn’t happy doing that, so I moved on. But I had a terrific, terrific career there.”
On Gail Kim’s TNA return: “You know what? That girl! I’m gonna kick her butt. I text her and I said, “I heard you’re coming today”. She goes, “Where’d you hear that from?” I didn’t want to say who I’d heard it from so I said, “Oh, just a rumor on the internet” and she goes, “You can’t believe everything you read”. I know that was my favorite saying. You can’t read every internet site. There are some things that are reported wrong. I saw her at the show and I go, “What the heck?!” and she goes, “Hahaha!” I said, “I knew you were coming! I don’t know who you’re trying to pull one over!”
“But I’m so excited to have her back. Her and I were travel partners. We get along so well and I’m so happy to have an old friend back in the ring. I wanted to win that number one contender’s match, though. I’ll be honest with you, because Gail Kim and I can really throw down in the ring. We never got the opportunity in WWE. We had a couple of matches but it was just a match thrown here and there, but I think we can really work up to something dangerous. I’d like to do another cage match, maybe, with her. That’d be awesome!”