WrestleMania 22 Blog

Joey Styles – the new voice of RAW

WWE fans may not have known it, but over the past few weeks, they’ve been watching Joey Styles’ audition to become the full-time voice of Monday Night RAW – a job Styles has dreamed about for years. WWE management obviously liked what they saw, as this past Friday, the former voice of ECW had his dreams come true when he signed on to be RAW’s new play-by-play man.

WWE.com: Congratulations of the new contract, Joey. Now that you’re the official voice of RAW, what’s going through your head? Take us through your emotions right now.

Joey Styles: For the people who don’t know, this job is the culmination of my lifelong dream. I decided I wanted to be in the wrestling business after seeing a WWE match on TV in my bedroom when I was 13 years old. When I was in school pursuing broadcasting, I wasn’t one of those aspiring sportscasters that dreamed of calling the Super Bowl. I wasn’t one of the aspiring newscasters that wanted to moderate a presidential debate. Calling WWE matches, specifically WrestleMania, was all I ever dreamed of for 20 years. I never dreamed bigger than this, so I feel like I am truly blessed that God and WWE has given me this opportunity. My wife said she always knew this would happen, even when I thought my wrestling career was over. So I feel truly blessed. I’m so thrilled and so happy. I’m going to make the best of this. I’m going to work very hard both in front of and behind the WWE cameras, and I hope the fans are happy with my work.

WWE.com: Tell us about the specifics of the deal.

Styles: I signed a five-year contract. And I hope it’s the first of many five-year contracts, quite frankly. I asked Kevin Dunn, Executive Vice President of Television Production for WWE, if he wanted to sign me for 10-15 years, but he couldn’t do that. So I hope this is the first of many five-year contracts.

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Christy Hemme is gone from World Wrestling Entertainment. The story making the rounds is that WWE contacted the first Diva Search winner earlier today to inform her she was being released, which likely means she has a 90 day cycle where she is unable to appear for any other wrestling company.

WWE's website noted that WWE and Hemme "have come to terms on her release." The wording is interesting as Hemme had just relocated to Kentucky to begin full-time with WWE developmental territory Ohio Valley Wrestling. She was originally scheduled to start upon returning from a promotional appearance in New Zealand this week with Batista. Hemme arrived early and was booked in a debut OVW angle and match, with her match being taped to air on this week's TV show while she would be overseas. According to sources, Hemme's appearance overseas was canceled late last week and she received a call from management informing her she was being let go this morning.

The announcement caught a number of people within WWE by surprise as Hemme had a reputation for wanting to learn and improve inside the ring and had been heavily promoted by the company during her tenure there as one fo the top Divas in the company. There had been no talk of her release last night at the Smackdown taping in South Carolina among the wrestlers, some of whom were surprised when contacted today.

Hemme won the initial WWE Diva Search contest last year, earning a one year $250,000 contract. She later posed for Playboy as part of the Wrestlemania 21 synergy. She had been moved from Raw to Smackdown several months back and was working under the terms of a new deal at the time of her release.

Hemme's official website at ChristyHemme.com has yet to reflect her release, noting that she would be departing her Smackdown touring schedule to train in OVW. There is no word as to whether she (like Daniel Puder when released) would finish up her OVW storyline.

Credit: PWInsider

Ric Flair wrestles with a divorce

Accusations exchanged; IRS was owed a million

Pro wrestler Ric Flair has been pinned by the IRS over back taxes and is fighting a nasty divorce battle with his wife.

Flair, one of Charlotte's best-known celebrities, owed the federal government $1 million in 1997, according to a statement from his accountant. The IRS began garnishing Flair's wrestling salary this year, seizing more than $200,000 so far.

Flair and his wife Elizabeth separated in February after 22 years of marriage. In a divorce filing, she accuses Flair of "cruel behavior" and says he slapped, kicked, choked, threw, bit and spit on her and pulled her hair.

Her complaint, which was filed in May, also accuses Flair of abusing alcohol and steroids, causing him to become "enraged, paranoid, emotionally unbalanced and violent," and says he exposed himself to her friends and committed adultery.

Flair acknowledges in court filings that he had a "tumultuous" marriage, but he denies the abusive behavior and steroid use and says his wife is trying to humiliate him with the allegations.

He accuses her of destructive behavior and says she hit him -- not the other way around.

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On Hillbilly Jim's Sirius Satellite radio show, he announced that he will be part of the nationwide Wrestlemania 22 Fan Axxess Tour and he will have more updates as the weeks go by.

Credit: PWInsider

For those old enough to remember, Saturday Night's Main Event on NBC was always a big deal. As a little kid, it was the one night where I could stay up to watch my favorite WWF superstars. NBC also had a spinoff called The Main Event, and I still remember the night the Macho Man turned on Hulk Hogan after their match with Akeem and The Big Boss Man, also known as the Twin Towers. I also remember a later SNME on Fox when The Undertaker started his face turn by saving the Macho Man from a chair shot backstage by a waiting Jake "The Snake" Roberts. (You can see this on Jake's new DVD) Im sure that since SNME will return in March, it will have a big part in building up Wrestlemania 22.

The following is from WWE.com

Saturday Night’s Main Event is returning to NBC this March after a 13-year hiatus. In the mid-1980s through early 1990s, WWE fans would scour the television listings each month — making sure they didn’t miss the highly anticipated special that replaced network staple Saturday Night Live on occasion. When Jon Lovitz, Dennis Miller and Dana Carvey weren’t performing comedy sketches, WWE Superstars were squaring off in matches that often took on a pay-per-view feel.

Here are some of the most memorable moments from the original run of Saturday Night’s Main Event:

On Nov. 2, 1985, Hulk Hogan & Andre the Giant defeated King Kong Bundy & Big John Studd by disqualification in a match remembered for the size and stature of its participants.

On March 1, 1986, Hulk Hogan retained the WWE Championship against "Magnificent" Don Muraco via disqualification. But this match was infamous for King Kong Bundy’s interference and assault. In the end, Muraco and Bundy broke Hogan’s ribs.

On May 3, 1986, the British Bulldogs beat Iron Shiek & Nikolai Volkoff in a best two-of-three falls match for the World Tag Team Championship. This was indicative of the strength of the tag team division, which was often spotlighted on Saturday Night’s Main Event in multiple-fall battles.

On Jan. 3, 1987, Hulk Hogan battled “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff in a truly memorable Steel Cage Match for the WWE Championship. Both men scaled the cage and hit the floor simultaneously, causing immense controversy and the restart of the match.

On Oct. 3, 1987, Honky Tonk Man nearly did the unthinkable: strike Elizabeth with his signature guitar during a match against Randy “Macho Man” Savage. Honky was aiming for the head of Savage, but a loving Elizabeth jumped in the way. Ultimately, Honky shoved Elizabeth to the floor and proceeded to smash Savage. Elizabeth rushed to the back and emerged with none other than Hulk Hogan. It was the beginning of the force known as the MegaPowers.