00:00Issues with CM Punk and WWE.
00:03An update on that Cody Rhodes heel turn.
00:06Spoiler!
00:07Nobody thinks it's a good idea except The Rock, WWE potentially changing a bunch of
00:11champions in Triple A, and more.
00:14I'm Oli Davis, and this is the WrestleTalk News.
00:20Luke and I recently predicted WrestleMania 42 a whole year in advance, and then over
00:25on Patreon, we also did the card for WrestleMania 52, 10 years more away.
00:31But both our cards mostly focused on actual wrestlers.
00:35My 42 main event was The Rock vs. Roman Reigns vs. Cody Rhodes vs. CM Punk, for instance.
00:40But that was my mistake.
00:42Because the future of WrestleMania is douchebag YouTubers.
00:48So you're telling me I've got a chance?
00:50AEW's Kenny Omega, so maybe take his words with the appropriate level of irony, has said
00:55in an interview.
00:56I think we're headed on a path where it's like a couple WrestleManias down the road,
01:00the main event's gonna be Logan Paul vs. Mr. Beast.
01:04Omega is really making an exaggerated point about how sports entertainment is becoming
01:08more about how big your influencer reaches, rather than how good you are in the ring.
01:13Which might be backed up by reports that WWE is currently considering a John Cena and Travis
01:18Scott tag match for Money in the Bank, even though none of us want that to happen.
01:23Especially because we were all very clear we want Cena to face CM Punk at the event they're
01:28most famous for.
01:29But Punk might be too preoccupied with, his words not mine, sucking a blood money covered dick
01:33in Saudi Arabia.
01:35Punk infamously tweeted that to The Miz back in 2020.
01:38And that, along with Punk's very public stance on many socio-political issues, led many to believe
01:43he wouldn't wrestle on any WWE shows in Saudi Arabia.
01:47Last year, for instance, Punk was written off TV following his Hell in a Cell match against
01:52Drew McIntyre, conveniently missing WWE's Crown Jewel show in Saudi the following month.
01:58And Fightful had previously reported that WWE were not planning on approaching Punk about
02:03their Saudi events.
02:04Which is why Punk winking into the camera as the final shot of the Saudi-hosted Night of
02:09Champions promo was quite surprising.
02:12Several days after that promo first aired a backlash, Punk answered a question about
02:16why he hates coming to Saudi Arabia on an Instagram live stream, replying,
02:21I've never been to Saudi, I don't hate coming to Saudi.
02:25But Riyadh Season, which is Saudi Arabia's official sports washing brand, has now reposted
02:29the promo, but the final shot of Punk has been replaced with Seth Rollins.
02:36Both promos could just be showing WWE's biggest names, and shouldn't be taken as actual promises
02:42that those names will be on the show.
02:44The card is always subject to change.
02:47But the Wrestling Observer did report that WWE give their talent an option whether they
02:51work the Saudi Arabia shows.
02:53But they are pressured to go, like, pretty hard.
02:57And Mike Johnson of PWInsider, who has a long track record of accurate Punk stories, has commented,
03:02well, Card is always subject to change, but I would certainly believe that he's going
03:08to work that pay-per-view.
03:10What do you think about CM Punk working a Saudi Arabia show?
03:13Let me know in the comments down below where I'll be replying to people FROM OUTTA NOWHERE
03:17SAYING EVERYBODY'S GOTTA RICE…
03:21Meanwhile in Mexico…
03:22Here's a clip that appears to be from the Todo XL Todo show in Mexico on the 14th May.
03:28The former WCW star L.A. Park playfully chopped a fan in the crowd, so that fan playfully chopped
03:34him back, so L.A. Park beat the piss out of him.
03:37While that was from a Mexican indie promotion and not one of the two major companies, Triple
03:42A and CMLL, it shows the differences between the wrestling cultures in the United States,
03:47and Mexico.
03:48And WWE now have the task of acquiring Triple A and running joint shows with them, while
03:54navigating the culture clashes between the two.
03:57They've already reportedly encountered this on a contract law level, where TKO, WWE's
04:02parent company, is in the process of offering you TKO-approved contracts, as the Triple A
04:07ones weren't robust enough for a stock market listed US company.
04:11And as we approach the promotion's first joint show together, Worlds Collide, just several
04:15weeks away, which will feature both NXT and Triple A talent, this clash of cultures will
04:21play out in the biggest way possible.
04:24As in, who will Triple A's champions be going into the new WWE acquired era?
04:30Aside from being able to beat up fans in the crowd, another difference between the two countries
04:34is that someone cancelled in the United States might not necessarily be cancelled in Mexico.
04:40Which is why, right now, Triple A's mega champion is Alberto Del Rio, who has been pretty much
04:45blacklisted from the major US wrestling promotions because of past controversies, including being
04:50arrested in 2020 for the alleged battery and sexual assault of his girlfriend.
04:54He was formally charged, but they were ultimately dropped.
04:58Inside seats point out that it's interesting timing, then, that Triple A have announced
05:02a card for their 31st May TV taping the week before the Worlds Collide show.
05:07And it features several major championship matches, aka opportunities to move the belts
05:13from the current champions to less controversial wrestlers WWE wants to build the promotion around
05:18moving forward.
05:19These include a World Mixed Tag Team title bout, a Triple A World Tag Title match, and, for
05:24the mega championship, the controversial champion Del Rio vs. the guy WWE likes so much they
05:30featured him at WrestleMania 41, The Kingo.
05:33It'll be interesting to see if any title changes take place, as that will give a big
05:37clue over the direction WWE wants to take Triple A in.
05:41Additionally, WrestleVates is reporting, we're told WWE is planning to run multiple live events
05:46in Mexico in the near future, all centered around the featured Super Show Mexico event.
05:51Date and location are still being finalized.
05:53As we all know, it isn't John Cena who's ruined wrestling this year, it's The Rock.
05:57He's the one who ruined Cena's heel-turn storyline.
06:00He's the one who didn't show up at WrestleMania.
06:03He's the one who invented Travis Scott.
06:05There's a version of events where The Rock is actually a partly innocent bystander in
06:14all this.
06:15He had reportedly let WWE know for ages that he wouldn't be at WrestleMania 41, and he
06:20said in his Pat McAfee interview that he only showed up at Elimination Chamber as a favor
06:24to TKO's ultimate final boss, Ari Emanuel, to help ticket sales.
06:29He apparently didn't know until the day that Cena was going to turn heel at that same
06:34show.
06:35But I kind of believe him, because the most compelling evidence has also come out.
06:40If The Rock truly was behind this all, it would have been even worse.
06:44The Rock himself told McAfee that his first idea was to turn Cody Rhodes heel, but Triple
06:49H pitched Cena instead, which is obviously who they went with.
06:52Now Fightful has added more about the backstage reaction to The Rock wanting to turn Cody heel.
06:57Those that we asked about it said that they didn't want to put too much of a spotlight on
07:00the situation shortly after Rock's interview, but that a number of people were against
07:05the idea of turning Cody Rhodes heel, noting his heavy contributions to the company's ticketing
07:11and merchandise success.
07:13Fightful claims that the company has created plans to keep Cody a babyface throughout the
07:17rest of the year.
07:18Over in AEW, Mariah May has prompted more speculation over her wrestling future.
07:23May hasn't appeared on AEW since losing the Hollywood ending match against Toni Storm at
07:28Revolution back in March.
07:30Following that, reports started to come out that her AEW contract is up this summer, where
07:34the belief is, she'll go to WWE.
07:37Mariah has now posted on Instagram.
07:40Finally, someone let me out of my cage.
07:43Now time for me is nothing cause I'm counting no age.
07:46This feels a lot like the situation AEW found itself in with Rey Fenix, who was taken off TV
07:51when it was obvious he would be leaving for WWE.
07:54They also vented his frustration on social media.
07:57If AEW keeps Mariah the length of her contract, there could be at least three more months of
08:02frustration building.
08:03But a lot of people very much do want to be in AEW.
08:07Like potentially Cedric Alexander, who was released by WWE back in February, and is now a free
08:12agent.
08:13Fightful has reported that Alexander rejoining the Hurt Syndicate faction in AEW has always
08:18been a thing that has been discussed.
08:20With the storyline of MJF trying to join the faction, Alexander coming in could be a surprise
08:25swerve or save.
08:27And in more positive news for AEW, in addition to famed wrestling podcast, the WrestleTalk
08:32podcast reviewing AEW Dynamite again, that coverage has clearly led them to their biggest
08:38TV rating of the year.
08:40The Beach Break special averaged 682,000 viewers, which is an 8.4% increase on the previous week,
08:47and the best number since last September's Grand Slam show.
08:50It finished third overall on cable, and in a very good sign, is the first time since November
08:562023 that Dynamite is up year on year.
09:00These numbers don't include max streaming viewers, which is anywhere between zero and
09:04five billion.
09:05Unfortunately, AEW commentator Jim Ross has posted an update on his health.
09:10Diagnosed this week with colon cancer.
09:13Surgery being scheduled in the next week or two.
09:15I appreciate your concern and support.
09:18You can send your well wishes to JR over on Twitter at JRsBBQ.
09:22Now please click the video on screen now to watch the brand new episode of the WrestleTalk
09:26podcast, while Luke and I remember the career of Sabu, review AEW Dynamite, and get really
09:31quite annoyed about WWE having John Cena with Travis Scott at Money in the Bank rather than
09:36CM Punk.
09:37What a very rice time.
09:38What a very rice time.
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