The lineup for the company’s September 23rd show in Springfield, Illinois lists Austin Aries as the X-Division champion and Winter as the Knockouts champion, leading to believe that they will get the belts tonight or at one of the next two Impacts.

Wrestling News

Both Canadian stars are advertised for “special guest appearances.”

WWE announced Friday on SmackDown! that former world champion Edge would appear on this week’s show, which emanates from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. According to the Air Canada Centre website, WWE will be paying tribute to the “Rated-R Superstar” with “Edge Appreciation Night.”

Also advertised for the event is a World Heavyweight Match between Randy Orton and Mark Henry. Overseeing the night’s action will be WWE Chief Operating Officer Triple H.

Wrestling News

Following the event’s poor advance, WWE only sold tickets facing the camera so the Huntington Center would appear full on television. SLAM! Wrestling columnist Matt Bishop, who attended the event, described the venue’s appearance: “Tuesday’s tapings of WWE Smackdown, Superstars and NXT wasn’t notable because of what happened in the ring, but rather because of what was happening outside the ringside area. Or more appropriately, what wasn’t happening.

“Toledo’s second WWE show of 2011, this time at Huntington Center, was notable because of the lack of fans inside the facility, with almost all of the camera side tarped off, along with a large part of the upper bowl, including all of the seats in the end zone.”

Wrestling News

– It has been reported that from August 27th through September 5th, World champion Randy Orton wrestled every day except for one that was used for a travel day from the United States to France.

– Stacy Keibler did not walk the red carpet with George Clooney at the Toronto Film Festival, but was with him during the after-party for his films. TMZ.com has a story up on the new couple.

Wrestling News

The title changes were forewarned prior to the event as a match line-up for the Sept. 23 TNA live event in Springfield, Illinois listed Aries as the X Division Champion and Winter as the Women’s Knockouts Champion. We reported both these title changes in our **SPOILER** report on Sunday afternoon.

Robert Roode defeated Bully Ray via pinfall to win the Bound for Glory Series and earn a match for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship next month at Bound for Glory. Roode beat Gunner via submission earlier in the show, tying Bully Ray’s 52-point total—Ray beat James Storm in the second match of the event. This set up the tiebreaker match between Roode and Ray. It obviously looks like Roode is in for a huge TNA push.

Wrestling News

Fighting Lessons From the Movies Put to the Test as Hollywood Meets Reality on REELZCHANNEL

“The Z Team” To Be Produced by ZOO Productions as the Network’s First Reality Series

REELZCHANNEL today announced that the network is turbo charging its commitment to TV About Movies® by bringing the focus to its first original reality TV series in a development deal with ZOO Productions to create The Z Team. The Z Team stars Lorenzo Lamas, Rudy Reyes, Tommy “Tiny” Lister and Torrie Wilson as a group, led by Lamas, contracted by law enforcement agencies and concerned citizens all across the country to confront real life and death situations on the streets of America. The Z Team, relying on years of experience fighting bad guys on the big screen, in the ring and in real life take on drug dealers, the mob and dirty politicians—no case is too much for them.

“We wanted to make a show that would take the action and drama of Die Hard​ and The Expendables and combine it with the reality of Cops,” said John Stevens ZOO Productions co-founder and Executive Producer on The Z Team. “REELZ knows the world of movies and entertainment better than any network and they are the perfect partner to make The Z Team come to life.”

“Bringing a Hollywood movie sensibility to the fight against crime is a natural for REELZ,” said Matthew Singerman REELZCHANNEL SVP of Programming. “With The Z Team we’re feeding America’s appetite for the action genre by bringing big screen imagination and technique to reality TV in a show that will be fun for viewers, full of opportunities for marketers and be a tremendous building block in our continuing commitment to TV About Movies.”

Adds Lorenzo Lamas, “Ever since Renegade, my fans and I have been waiting for the right opportunity to take on the next challenge in the world of law enforcement. The Z Team is it – and the group of characters I have assembled is like no other. The best part is we get to take our skills as trained performers and apply them to real life situations. What people will see on this show is like nothing else on television today.”

Lorenzo Lamas, veteran of over 70 movie and TV roles was nominated for a Golden Globe for his work on Falcon Crest​ and is the only actor who appeared in all 228 episodes. Rudy Reyes is a Recon Marine with multiple tours of duty in Afghanistan and Iraq who played himself in HBO’s seven-part miniseries Generation Kill​. He was also the host of History Channel’s survival show Apocalypse Man. Tommy “Tiny” Lister has over 150 movie and TV credits, most notably One Night with the King​, The Fifth Element and Beverly Hills Cop II​. Torrie Wilson, a former WWE wrestler, has appeared in several productions including Reality Obsessed​, Project Runway​, Baywatch and WWF Raw.

About ZOO Productions
ZOO Productions is a recognized leader in reality television. Notable shows produced include NBC’s It’s Worth What?, MTV’s Busted, Fox’s Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader, Tru TV’s Southern Fried Stings and the Hub’s Family Game Night. The company was acquired by ALL3 Media in 2008. Gregg Kavet​, John Stevens and Barry Poznick are Executive Producers on Z-Team. In addition to his Executive Producer role on Z-Team, Kavet is best known as a Co-Executive Producer for the Emmy® Award-winning Seinfeld.

About REELZCHANNEL
REELZCHANNEL—TV About Movies® is the only cable and satellite network devoted to delivering entertaining and informative programming that is all about movies, including the celebrities, fashion, music and stories behind the stories. With shows featuring movie and entertainment experts, including Leonard Maltin​, Richard Roeper​, Sam Rubin and John Salley​, viewers get trusted insight into movies wherever they’re playing, whether in theaters or at home.

REELZCHANNEL reaches more than 60 million homes on DIRECTV channel 238, Dish Network​ channel 299, Verizon FiOS TV channel 233, AT&T U-verse channels 799/1799HD and cable systems nationwide. Find REELZCHANNEL in your area by entering your zip code at http://www.reelz.com/watch. Owned by Hubbard Media Group, REELZCHANNEL is headquartered in Albuquerque, NM with an entertainment bureau in Los Angeles and sales office in New York.

Wrestling News

– Former WWE talent Paul Heyman turns 46 years old today.

– Rosa Mendes, who has not appeared on WWE programming since SummerSlam, posted her first message on Twitter since August 20 by ranting about fellow SmackDown Diva A.J. The three-year veteran doesn’t feel the Union City native “looks like a WWE Diva.”

She wrote, “But what one thing I don’t miss is looking at rookies that call themselves divas when they can’t get a hold of some proactive to clear their Awful skin up, and start dressing like actual Divas instead of shopping at consignment stores in the kid section. You want to be a Diva? Look like one AJ. You look like a cashier that works at my local grocery store.

“Why you are on the roster boggles my mind!!!!!!!!”

Wrestling News

“I met with my surgeon today and she said everything is perfect,” she wrote. “There’s a little bit of fluid inside by the incision and where the repairs were done, but its totally normal apparently. The scar healed really good and there is no infection. So the surgery was a total success. I’m sooooooo happy!!!”

The former WWE Divas Champion last competed on the July 25 episode of RAW. She was advertised to compete in the following week’s No. 1 Contender’s Diva Battle Royal, but bowed out after determining days earlier that she would undergoing surgery.

Wrestling News

Here is my Official Statement on my Canada Booking. I hope this clears things up.

I was booked for the Macho Man Memorial Show in Canada. That’s true. I told the promoter I was coming. That’s true. I received my deposit from the promoter. That’s true. Now let me clear some things up…

A few days before the scheduled booking, my mother-n-law had to go into the hospital for an emergency surgery. I sent my wife, Julie, to Nashville to be by her side. I stayed back in Tampa to continue with my weekend booking schedule. I called the promoter when I saw my flight itinerary. He had me on a 715 flight to Miami from Tampa, then Miami to Chicago, then Chicago to Ottawa, then a couple hour drive to the show, plus going thru customs when I land…which can take an hour for me to get thru.

When I saw this, I called the promoter and left the message that many of you heard. I asked for the remainder of the money if I was going to be jumping on THREE different airplanes to get to this event. And yes, I promised him I would be there. Now what you need to understand is this… My message to him was stern. I was angry. My wife was a bundle of nerves because she is seeing her mother suffer. I was not with her, and I now have a flight schedule that is beyond crazy. Last time I went there I didn’t need to go on THREE planes to get there. So, with all that being said, I was stressed out, and I do apologize to the fans who heard the voice mail that I left. The pressure got the best of me and I used language I shouldn’t have. We all make mistakes.

This is what then unfolded as the reason I did not show up… The promoter sent me the remainder of the money as I asked. I was going to his booking as I promised him…even though I was under a lot of pressure with what has been going on with my mother-n-law (something that the promoter knew about). The morning of the booking came, I was still going. I then got a call from my wife in Nashville that her mom was given 2 days to live. That did it for me. How can I, as a husband, NOT be with my wife and mother-n-law, and the rest of the family? What would you do? If you were a son or daughter of adult age, and had a vacation scheduled, but your Mom or Dad was given two days to live…would you still go away on your vacation, or put things in priority order, and be with your family?

As I write this to you, I am with the family in Nashville, filling my days with my wife and the rest of the family at my mother-n-law’s bedside. It’s been 2 days already and she is still with us, but I attribute that to the many fans and friends who have been praying for her. I have received numerous emails expressing your concern and support in my situation.

If the promoter is angry, and out to try and hurt my reputation, shame on him. I called him and apologized for not being able to come, and TOLD HIM I was not going to make it because of the news we got from the hospital the morning of the show… that her death was expected. I even went as far to tell him that I would return the money he sent…all of it, and I STILL stand by it. When I return to Tampa, I will be heading to my bank and mailing him the money. This was never the issue, so why he had to go off and try to hurt me at a time where we are having a tragedy in our family, I don’t know.

What tends to hurt me the most, is that I asked him to please tell the fans that I was sorry and that i was not going to be able to make it to the event. I purposely made sure that he would express that to the fans who came out to see me, and to celebrate the life of Randy Savage. Instead, he tells everyone that I pulled a “No show”. He didn’t give any reason for my absence, just told people I didn’t show up. This is not how I operate. However, when push comes to shove with family, family will always win out.

That is the truth. This is what happened. Yes, I did not like the flight itinerary, and I did ask him for the balance of my payoff, but that had nothing to do with me not being there. It was getting the news that my mother-n-law was about to die that caused me to decide not to go the day of. As stated earlier, my mother-n-law seems to be doing better, and I thank you all for praying. I believe that is the only reason why. For those that got offended, I do apologize, and I do hope to see you again one day soon. Thank you for your support throughout this time, and for being such dedicated fans and friends.

-Greg “The Hammer” Valentine

Wrestling News

Lanny Poffo, the brother of the late superstar wrestler, posted a video on YouTube challenged the 60-year-old to a mixed martial arts match on December 30 in Gatineau. The wrestler formerly known as The Genius says he will throw cash he received from his recent inheritance to bait Valentine into the fight. He also taunts Valentine by calling him a “mangina” and that he may be left in a body bag.

The video was uploaded at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R53Bkdi2hEA It has since been made private.

Valentine posted an explanation Friday on his Facebook account apologizing for no-showing the event and leaving a nasty voice message to Great North Wrestling promoter Devon Nicholson. Valentine says he no-showed the event because he received a phone call on the morning of the show that his mother-in-law had two days left to live, so he flew to Nashville to be by her side—she recovered. Nicholson said between Valentine’s flight from Tampa, hotel, pay and photos he printed up to sell, he was out $2,000. Valentine said he would return Nicholson the money when he arrived in Tampa.

“This was never the issue, so why he had to go off and try to hurt me at a time where we are having a tragedy in our family, I don’t know,” Valentine wrote of Nicholson releasing his angry voice message and saying he no-showed the event after he was paid.

He continues, “What tends to hurt me the most, is that I asked him to please tell the fans that I was sorry and that I was not going to be able to make it to the event. I purposely made sure that he would express that to the fans who came out to see me, and to celebrate the life of Randy Savage. Instead, he tells everyone that I pulled a “No show”. He didn’t give any reason for my absence, just told people I didn’t show up. This is not how I operate. However, when push comes to shove with family, family will always win out.”

Wrestling News