If any of the quotes from the following podcasts or video interviews are used, please credit those sources, and provide an H/T and link back to POST Wrestling for the transcriptions.
** A new episode of Jim Ross’ Grilling J.R. podcast was pushed out and he revealed that he gets to choose the first recipient for Cauliflower Flower Alley Club’s Jim Ross Announcers Award for the August 2024 ceremony in Las Vegas, Nevada. Ross plans to pick Tony Schiavone but had not talked to him as of the recording. He continued to speak highly of Schiavone and mentioned that when Britt Baker was making light of Schiavone being a barista, Jim was not happy about that and it made him uncomfortable.
I love working with Tony (Schiavone). I’ll work with Tony anywhere, any time. The Cauliflower Alley Club is naming their announcer award, the Jim Ross Award. That’s kind of cool and I’m very blessed, I was very happy. So, I get to pick out the first recipient and I probably already played my hand but, I’m hoping that scheduling-wise, that Tony Schiavone can join us there and be the first recipient of that award. You’re getting a little news break here. I haven’t talked to Tony. But I think that he will do a great job, quite frankly, and he deserves it. 40 years in the business and he’s still productive and he’s still viable and I just have a great regard and respect and fondness for Tony Schiavone. We’ve been through a lot together and we’ve never not been friends. We’ve never not let any of those office politics and God knows there’s plenty of ‘em — in WCW — get in the way of our relationship. So, he’s very much deserving. Hope I can sell him and convince him to come in for one day, get your award, say a few words and I’m very pleased. That’s a great honor. I just talked to Brian Blair the other day and he’s really excited about this opportunity so it looks like I’ll be at the Cauliflower Alley Club this year, which I’m happy to do and excited… I love Tony like a little brother and he’s still a hell of an announcer and does a great job. I’m really, really proud of him. I didn’t like — there was an interlude there where, it might’ve been The Baddest B*tch on the Block’s idea, but when they made fun of him for being a barista, I didn’t like that. I didn’t like it at all. Because I felt like it was degrading to Tony and all Tony was trying to do was make a living. That’s all, simple as that, same as the rest of us, make a living and him being made fun of to a certain degree about his coffee shop experience, Starbucks experience, whatever it may be was uncomfortable for me.
Looking back at his first AEW contract, J.R. said it was the most money he’s ever made.
Tony Khan took very good care of me on that (first) scenario. The three-year deal was for the most money that I’d ever signed a contract for, including any of my deals with Vince (McMahon). Now I made a lot of money for WWE. I did. I got put in the video games. That earned me more royalty money. So I did really well with Vince and had no ill feelings. It’s just that I knew that from my past record there, being replaced and reinstated and being replaced, all that sh*t, that I needed to figure out plan B and I thought this was a very viable plan B and then when the numbers came in from Barry (Bloom) after his negotiations with Tony Khan, I felt very comfortable that we were making the right decision.
Oh yeah, I was good (Ross responded when asked if he received a no-cut contract). I think, if I’m not mistaken and I’m not gonna lie to you but I don’t think I’m lying or making a mistake. I think that my contract with AEW, that first — the biggest one I got, was one whereby my contract was guaranteed by the Khan Family Trust and considering Mr. Khan was worth $8.2 billion, I felt like I was covered (he laughed). It worked out real well.
** The latest guest to join Insight with Chris Van Vliet was the reigning AEW TNT Champion Adam Copeland. Looking back at the lead-up to his Hell in a Cell match with Finn Bálor at WrestleMania 39, he teased a ‘Brood’ presentation and with that came the expectations of a Gangrel appearance. Copeland tried to make that happen but was consistently told that no one would remember.
Yes (I knew everyone was expecting Gangrel when I did ‘Brood Edge’). Man, I tried, I tried and I just got shut down. Every person shut it down… So, and this isn’t a knock on WWE but, I’d always get the, ‘Well, nobody remembers.’ I’m like, ‘People remember, wrestling fans remember’ and I think wrestling fans want to be rewarded for remembering and that’s a way to reward them. That’s what I’ve always felt. You fast forward to me and Matt Cardona doing a Cope Open and his music hits and he comes out. I mean, they remembered, and so, I’ve always been a fan of pulling in things from the past and kind of integrating them into current things. But yeah, that was one, I kept getting shut down. I realized, okay, that’s not a hill to die on because it ain’t gonna happen… I agree, I agree (it would’ve been a cool moment). But again, it’s not my sandbox. So I just gotta do what I can with what I’m given.
** J.B.L. (John Bradshaw Layfield) and Gerald Brisco welcomed Spike Dudley onto their Stories with Brisco and Bradshaw show. Spike remembers when he was first brought into WWF/E and was ribbed. Jim Ross asked him to come to the venue in a suit to make himself stand out because of his size and in case security did not recognize him.
The office rib, there’s one for ya, that I haven’t told much. When I first got brought in to New York, it was right before ‘Mania 17 so they’re doing the angle with — it was me, Bubba (Ray Dudley) and D-Von (Dudley), Edge and Christian had Rhino and The Hardys had Lita so there was like a third person for each one of those teams for the TLC match. So they brought me in right into ‘Mania. But there was a couple of weeks of TV tapings and my debut was in Albany at the Knickerbocker Arena and I drove up there because I was close by. Got my debut and all of that and then the next night, we’re actually in the Providence Civic Center and J.R. calls me and says, ‘Spike, could you wear a suit and tie when you go into the arena?’ And I was like, ‘Well yeah, but why?’ ‘Well because of your size, none of the personnel can recognize you so we want you to stand out.’ It was like, are you freaking kidding me? And this was before the dress code. ‘Yes sir,’ do what I gotta do. I show up in a suit and tie. Lasted about a week or so but that’s just them busting balls. Really? I gotta wear a suit?
** To promote WWE SummerSlam in Cleveland, Ohio, Johnny Gargano was interviewed by Fox News Digital. He was asked about the idea of Logan and Jake Paul facing Travis and Jason Kelce at the event on August 3rd. Both sets of brothers are from the Cleveland area.
Yeah, that’d be big. You never know (he laughed). Look, it’s in Cleveland Browns Stadium, I will say. There are members of the Cleveland Browns roster that are wrestling fans. I’ll mention David Njoku especially. I know Myles Garrett’s done a Shawn Michaels pose a few times as well. I would not rule out any Cleveland Browns being in attendance that night. But Paul brothers versus Kelce brothers, that is definitely box-office. Big headlines. You never know.
** While in Lyon, France, SO CATCH by Hal 2 conducted an interview with A.J. Styles.
** An interview with Giulia is on ENCOUNT’s website.
** The June issue of Men’s Non-no magazine includes a feature on Shota Umino.
** Dragongate Japan Pro-Wrestling Results (5/9/24) from Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan
– Luis Mante & Hyo def. Madoka Kikuta & Ryoya Tanaka
– Don Fujii, Toru Owashi & Takashi Yoshida def. Punch Tominaga, Ryu Fuda & Daiki Yanagiuchi
– Jason Lee & Gianni Valletta def. Yasushi Kanda & Kenichiro Arai
– Último Dragón, Masaaki Mochizuki, BxB Hulk & Dragon Dia def. Dragon Kid, Naruki Doi, Genki Horiguchi & Shuji Kondo
– Kzy def. JACKY KAMEI
– YAMATO & Susumu Yokosuka def. Kota Minoura & Ben-K via DQ
– Open the Tringle Gate Championship: BIGBOSS Shimizu, Strong Machine J & U-T def. Shun Skywalker, KAI & ISHIN (c)
** To promote SummerSlam, WWE World Tag Team Champion The Miz appeared on WKYC in his home state of Ohio.
** BBC conducted an interview with Joe Hendry.
** Guest appearing on Busted Open was Matthew Rehwoldt.
If any of the quotes from the following podcasts or video interviews are used, please credit those sources, and provide an H/T and link back to POST Wrestling for the transcriptions.
