WWE Daily

SIZE matters less and less in professional wrestling these days.

Take a look at the global landscape and you’ll see smaller talent working longer matches at the head of the card in most promotions.

Until recently, WWE was different, being widely perceived as the Land of the Giants. Heads have come down out of the clouds in the past two years or so, nowhere better illustrated by the Championship reign of one smaller man.

Rey Mysterio Jnr has been conspicuous by his absence since injury robbed us of the diminutive San Diegan in February. EXCLUSIVE: INTERVIEW WITH REY MYSTERIO JNR (sorry, but the Dailystar does not know who Rey Mysterio is, I apologize..lol)

-REY MYSTERIO has spoken for the first time about the disappointment of his WWE championship reign.

The masked fan favourite won the belt at WrestleMania 22 in April 2006 and held it until the Great American Bash in July of that year.

But during that time he was beaten by in non-title bouts by numerous foes including Great Khali, Mark Henry and Rob Van Dam

In our latest Sun and Virgin Radio WrestleCast, Rey confessed: “Now I go back and reflect on it, when I don’t have the title, I think that things could have been handled a different way. Rey: I lost too much as champ

-Since he was eight years old, wrestling, be it the rigors of the amateur sport, or the showcase that is professional wrestling, has defined Kurt Angle. Kurt Angle talks about John Cena’s first WWE match and how Angle was going to win the outcome. The comment is near the bottom of the interview.Sharp Angle: Wrestling legend knows what it takes to stay on top

-Unless WWE is pulling a major swerve, Chris Jericho is about to embrace his inner heel again. Jericho’s bad intentions

- The Times Picaynne out of New Orleans has got an article up on John Cena. Cena at this moment in his life is “The Golden Boy’ of the WWE. Cena is, of course, filming 12 Rounds down in new Orleans and has been jumping back and forth between the set and wherever RAW happens to be, and of course he will be at WrestleMania on Sunday. Read about what little info is said about ‘12 Rounds’ -Wrestler John Cena brings smackdown to Crescent City.

- Askmen.com got an interview with Melina and had the opportunity to ask her a number of questions. One question, in particular, caught my eye:

Are you single? What’s the one quality you look for in a man?
Yes, I’m single. I don’t look for just one thing but a combination of things: a sense of humor because I laugh at everything. If things go wrong you can get upset but, really, what can you do? I start laughing; I laugh things off.

Trust is also a big issue. A guy can be jealous but not insanely jealous because I work around a bunch of guys. These guys are my brothers. Anyone I date has to have an understanding that I work a lot. It’s not against him, and he has to understand I wish I could spend more time with him.

Wow - I believed that Melina was dating Smackdown Superstar Dave Batista, but it appears that they are no longer together and that she is single again. You can see the complete interview with Melina here.

-Carlito answers to the rumors or nota that Carlito was released or not, check it out: WWE superstar, Carlito speaks to phillyBurbs.com

-Wrestlemaniac, starring Rey Mysterio Sr. is available today on DVD. To purchase this dvd go to Amazon.com. To check out and watch the trailer to this movie, go here.

Wow! A few hours away from the computer and all hell breaks loose. First, and probably most importantly, Jeff Hardy has once again been suspended. This is his second violation of the Wellness policy, meaning that he has to spend 60 days away from wrestling. One more suspension and he will be fired. Again. Well, alright, technically last time he chose to leave at the same time that he was going to be let go for refusal to go into drug rehab and because of his bad behavior during shows.

On the other side we’ve got Jake “The Snake” Roberts, who will be getting out of his third stint in rehab. The 52 year old was the first former wrestler to take advantage of the Rehab program that the WWE set up after the Benoit tragedy. He granted an interview to Chris Yandek of CYInterview.com discussing how he feels and his future. Here are a few quick excerpts:

“First off I want to say, thanks to the WWE I have a new lease on life. I feel like I’ve truly exercising the demons I carried for so many reasons. Without the help of Vince McMahon and company I wouldn’t have had it. It’s been very expensive. It’s been very intense. It’s been a whole lot of damn hard work. Truth be known the first time I went to rehab and the second time I went to try to save a job. This time I truly went to save my life.”

CY: Was the time easier for you in there, I know you still have some time left – because you had the company of Scott Hall and Ron Simmons who were also still there with you?

JR: “Well, they pretty much keep us apart from each other and rightfully so. They’re trying to get us to work on our own stuff. We see each other in between breaks and stuff but that’s about it. I can’t cure Scott Hall or Ron Simmons and they can’t cure me. Just as luck would have it we’re all in there together. I will say it’s great seeing those guys in there because they’re man enough to say I need help too. My addictive mind said Jake you’re a pussy if you can’t beat this on your own. Jake you’re not a man just if you can’t say no. Well, Nancy Reagan can kiss my ass. Just saying no is a bunch of bullshit because it is much more than that when it becomes an addiction and you have to do the things the right way. These people have worked hard very hard with me and very hard with everybody there to open all the doors they need to, to clean up those closets to clean up that mess. Not only does it need cleaning up but show us this mess will grow again if we don’t deal with it and deal with it properly and deal with it daily.�?

CY: There are a lot of rumors going around that you’ll be part of this year’s WWE Hall of Fame group. Can you confirm or deny this?

JR: “I have not heard any truth to this at all. It makes me laugh. The times I use to get pissed off by these things then I go on the internet and for Christ sakes I’ve been dead four or five times and gosh I am still here. It bothers me sometimes a little bit more than others. This especially because it’s a special time in my life, need to clean, get right, and the doors are opening. No I have not been contacted in any way by them about anything that’s going on the net. That’s the damn thing about this damn internet. There is a lot of good things on there but there is a whole lot of bullshit on there too.�?

For more of the interview, and for a pic of our favorite snake wrangler with the interviewer, head here

Original creator and owner of ECW, Paul Heyman. Heyman has got an interview with The Sun UK. Where has Paul been for over a year. Here are a few highlights:

Paul, let’s cut right to the chase. What happened with you and Vince McMahon?

I think what it boils down to is Vince McMahon and I have totally separate and distinct visions for what a wrestling or sports entertainment product should be.

There’s nothing wrong with having those different visions, the problem was that Vince started to take the difference of opinion personally.

And once that personality conflict comes into play, when you’re trying to steer the direction of a product, it becomes a bad work environment.

So Vince didn’t like working with me anymore and I didn’t like working with Vince anymore.

And it’s his company, so obviously he has to stay!

What do you think went wrong and why?

The brand should never have been brought back after the very first One Night Stand in 2005.

The follow-up show in 2006 made money, but only because it served as the platform for Rob Van Dam to beat John Cena.

Then Sci-Fi Channel was willing to give a test run for the brand ECW and they currently pay a lot of money for that TV show.

So the theory of bringing ECW back and making it profitable worked as a business move.

But the expectation from the audience that ECW was being brought back only served to be a monumental letdown.

By comparison, if someone were to resurrect The Beatles and say: “You know what, we want to make them more globally accepted, so we’re going to have a white guy, an Asian female, a Hispanic Bisexual and an African-American with a Scottish accent.�?

In the land of WWE that actually makes sense.

But no matter how you look at it, it’s just not the Beatles.

So in the same light, it’s just not ECW.

‘Extreme’ doesn’t mean blood, or tables, or barbed wire. ECW was always about progression, moving forward, giving more bang for the buck.

For example, a finish in most every match. Simple thought. A winner and a loser. And a story with it that makes sense.

But if you voiced that opinion, Vince would take it personally.

If you look at the attempts to recreate the nWo, to re-create Goldberg and, even now, trying to recreate Ric Flair’s career on the line, Vince’s magic only happens when he creates it from the get-go.

If Vince doesn’t create it from the get-go, he can’t embrace the formula.
For the rest, on Why Heyman left, click here.

Ric Flair had an interview on NZPWI.co.nz, here are a few highlights;

“I see myself as being a spokesperson for this company, a spokesman for this wonderful organisation. And I am already moving in to that role, doing these sorts of interviews, taking time to talk to people, to promote this amazing company. I’ve been blessed with my career, and this company is, and I say this not just for PR to you in an interview, but I say this hand on heart, this company is second to none – literally second to none – in terms of marketing, strategy, knowing the way to sell. And you know we’ve just stepped it up with our High Definition shows now, everything’s in HD, did you know?�?

“Well, you know, I see where you’re going, but for me, there was never any issue with Hogan, his work ethic always impressed me. He worked his butt off to help make wrestling so big, and he was out there through the 80s and the 90s, working 300 days a year, selling t-shirts, selling out arena and he worked hard. Full credit to him. I never said he was the greatest in-ring performer, but that doesn’t matter. That is only part of what wrestling is about�?.

For more on the interview, click here.

Rey Mysterio was recently interview at a Toys ‘R’ Us store in Manhattan recently. Here are a few highlights:

How did you learn to do the move 619?

That is the move I have been practicing for almost 10 years now. I have been wrestling for 18 years, and that move I think was first done by a wrestler named Tigermas who is a Japanese wrestler. I am talking about almost 25 years ago. Sometimes you see something and you just want to learn it. I don’t want to say that I stole it, I just wanted to do a variation of that. The next thing I know I was putting opponents on the rope and I was doing the 619. I named it after the area code for San Diego, which is where I grew up.

Why did you want to cover your face with a mask?

The mask has a lot of history. Growing up south of San Diego and in Tijuana, Mexico, I got to see a lot of Mucho Libre, that is what I grew up with. I have to say that 98 percent of the wrestlers in Mexico wear masks. They cover their identity because it is a tradition. It is because the Aztec warriors used to wear them in battle. When I first came to the United States, the fans thought it was really cool with my style, my size and my physique — I wasn’t really big, but there was something special about Rey Mysterio, and that came with the mask.

Do you play the video game Smackdown with your children?

Why did you have to ask me that? I play against my son! We have a PSP, PlayStation2 at home. We have the Xbox and the Wii. It seems that my son spends more time playing than I do, because every time I sit down and play with him he always beats me. It is frustrating and it gets me mad! It is pretty cool; imagine playing yourself in a video game.

Here is an video with the interview, click here.

For more of the interview, click here.

Batista had an intervie at The Post and Currier by Mike Mooneyham.

As a kid growing up Batista witness 3 murders on his front lawn. This was just a slice of what Batista had to deal with. He grew up where murders happened to seeing crack cocaine. Batista has said he had admitted to shoplifting to even running awayas a small child to such aggrivation.

Batista despite his succes in WWE. he regrets leaving school with 2 credits shy of graduating.

“Education is the most important thing you can get. I always preach that to my kids. I don’t want them like me … making a living with my body.�?

“That’s the thing. If I get hurt, I really don’t have anything to fall back on,�? he says. “It’s a regret of mine. I did well in school. I’m not dumb by any means. I’m very capable. But back then I was struggling. I was struggling with my family life. School just wasn’t very important to me.�?

For the complete interview, click here.

The Miami Herald snagged an interview with everyone’s favorite “sexy boy”, Shawn Michaels. The interview talks about how he’s become a steady man. Michaels married Rebecca Curci, who was a Nitro girl in WCW, and now has two children: a son named Cameron Kade, who’s 7, and a daughter named Cheyenne Michelle, who is 3. Michaels says that it’s only recently that he began allowing his son to watch wrestling.

”Now we TiVo, and he can watch daddy. He came to his first wrestling match at the last WrestleMania where he sat front row. We took him out during the divas match, but he came back. Now his favorite wrestler is John Cena. After the match, I went over to him, and he asked, if I was OK. Then I said, `Yes,’ and he said, `I’m glad, but I wanted John to win.”’

Shawn also talked about teaming up with Triple H for DX (which we all LOVE).

”I enjoy doing it, but I know Hunter wants to move on,” said Michaels. “I’m fine with whatever because for me it’s always a creative issue — as long as it’s stuff that is amusing and funny. Doing the DX thing, I have to poke fun at my age and things like that because I would insult anybody thinking I’m kind of a hip rebel back when I was 30. I think that has come across, but I wouldn’t want us to abuse it because I think that would be foolish to do, and I think we need to start to build other folks and stars for tomorrow. The more we go back to the past, the more difficult it is to move forward.”

To read the entire interview, check here.

I have been watching wrestling for 20 years, and it’s pretty easy to spot which wrestlers have the stuff to make it, and which are only on the mat thanks to gimmicks. Chris Masters is one of those wrestlers who has the talent and the build to be in wrestling for a long, long time. I recently had the chance to ask Chris a few questions. Chris was recently let go from the WWE due to violations in the Wellness policy. He was gracious enough to take a few minutes out of his extremely busy schedule in order to let his fans know how he’s doing, and what his immediate plans are!

So Chris, how’s married life treating you so far?

Not legally married, but its great haha

Lots of wrestling fans want to see behind the scenes. Can you give the fans a little insight as to how much you’re on the road when you’re a professional wrestler?

Man, we travel/wrestle 4days out of the week w/ 3 days off..gets a bit hard…overseas tours can be up to 2 weeks

I’ve read that your wrestling heroes were Shawn Michaels and Ric Flair – what was it like being able to get in the ring with them?

Definitely one of my best accomplishments!! Dreams do come true I got to wrestle my childhood heroes and not many get to do that…its great!

Your in-ring character, Chris Masters, was very serious, and yet other pictures I’ve seen of you show a guy who likes to goof off – which is the real Chris Mordetzky?

Definately a bit of both, but I don’t like taking myself too seriously….I do like to make an ass out of myself for a laugh

Do you believe that it would benefit the wrestling world if there were more large corporations out there televising wrestling?

I definitely think it would benefit the wrestlers!

Do you see yourself in wrestling in ten years?

Not sure what the future hold, but I still have passion for it and it’s not something I’m going to give up on but at the same time I’m keeping an open mind!!

How’s your new kitty BoBo doing?

Haha she’s putting on a pound /day…I put her on my diet ;)..nah she’s great!!

Do you feel that policies, like the Wellness Policy, are helpful to athletes, or do you feel that it’s not a perfect system yet?

It’s definitely helpful for long-term health of athletes, but there could be tweaks made to make it better

Can you let your fans know what your plans for the immediate future are?

Ah, just working on getting my elbow better, indy bookings are def in the works…some autograph signings and the rest is top secret for now ;)haha

I notice that you’ve been doing a lot of interviews lately – is there any question that you haven’t been asked that you wish you would have? What would the answer to that question be?

That’s a hard one…I’m not really sure there has been SO SO many questions from everyone…from goofy to real and I think most have been covered for now

I’d like to thank you very much for taking the time for this interview, Chris. Is there anything else that you’d like your fans to know?

Just appreciate all the support and that “IT”S ALL GOOD”!!!

Chris