Welcome to the March 27th Inside The Ropes Live blog, bringing you the latest news from WWE, AEW, NJPW, IMPACT Wrestling and more.
Today’s biggest stories:
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Following on from Stacy Keibler’s interview with PEOPLE Magazine, WWE has confirmed the breaking news that she will be inducted in the Hall of Fame as part of the class of 2023 alongside The Great Muta, Andy Kaufmann and Rey Mysterio.
BREAKING: @StacyKeibler will be inducted into the #WWEHOF Class of 2023, as first reported by @people! https://t.co/Dt3ehBESTg
— WWE (@WWE) March 27, 2023
Stacy Keibler has officially announced that she will be entering the WWE Hall of Fame as part of the class of 2023.
Keibler will be joining the likes of The Great Muta, Rey Mysterio and Andy Kaufmann in the 2023 class.
Speaking with PEOPLE Magazine, Kiebler would comment on her induction, revealing that she almost cried when she found out the news.
“I never thought I would be in the Hall of Fame, to be honest,” she tells PEOPLE. “I was completely shocked when I got the call. I had tears in my eyes.”
There remains only one place in the 2023 WWE Hall of Fame class with a reported five names set to be inducted, former WWE Champion Dave Bautista was initially set for this years class however filming conflicts have prevented this.
Speaking on a VIP audio show, Wade Keller of PWtorch has given an update on the feeling around Punk in AEW, going as far as to say that there is almost no chance that CM Punk and Jon Moxley will ever work together again!
“For one, Jon Moxley and CM Punk do not like each other that much anybody I asked around will say that. It’s very clear. There’s a tension to a degree…certainly, they are not in a position now where anyone would predict that they would want to work together or if they would even feel comfortable working together on a promo or whatever.”
Keller would continue, breaking down the current tensions within the AEW locker room.
“There’s some tension among the top guys, but it’s mostly, Punk doesn’t get along with Hangman, Punk doesn’t get along with Moxley, Punk doesn’t get along with Kenny, Punk doesn’t get along with the Bucks, Punk doesn’t get along with MJF.”
You can read more about the ongoing tension in AEW and CM Punk’s future, here.
For those of you just finishing up work for the afternoon, here is a round up of the biggest stories of the day so far!
WWE continues to go from strength to strength as WrestleMania 39 edges closer!
On March 26th WWE took over Denver for it’s final Road To WrestleMania Supershow ahead of WrestleMania 39 on April 1st and 2nd.
Despite the show not featuring two of WWE’s biggest stars in Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn, the event drew over 9000 ticket sales!
WWE sold over 9,000 tickets for their Denver house show this past weekend.
Over 9,000 for a HOUSE SHOW.#WrestleMania. pic.twitter.com/B7bq052ygW
— Wrestle Features (@WrestleFeatures) March 27, 2023
The show saw Bianca Belair defend her Raw Women’s Championship against Chelsea Green, Austin Theory take on The Miz and Bobby Lashley & The Bloodline (Jimmy, Jey and Solo) take on the trio of Cody Rhodes, Braun Strowman and Ricochet in the main event.
Worried about missing out on any of the incredible WWE programming this week ahead of WrestleMania 39 on April 1st and 2nd?
Well don’t worry! Inside The Ropes has you covered!
Check out the full list of every WWE show between now WrestleMania 39:
Monday 27th March – Monday Night Raw- 8:00pm EST / 01:00am BST
Tuesday 28th March – WWE NXT (Stand & Deliver 2023 ‘Go Home Show’). – 8:00pm EST / 01:00am BST
Friday 31st March – Friday Night SmackDown (WrestleMania 30 ‘Go Home Show’). – 8:00pm EST / 01:00am BST.
Friday 31st March – WWE Hall of Fame (Live on WWE Network following SmackDown). -10:00pm EST / 3:00am BST.
Saturday 1st April – NXT Stand & Deliver 2023 – 12:45pm EST / 5:45pm BST.
Saturday 1st April – WWE WrestleMania 39 Day 1 – 08:00pm EST / 01:00am BST.
Sunday 2nd April – WWE WrestleMania 39 Day 2 – 08:00pm EST / 01:00am BST.
According to a new report from WrestleVotes, published via GiveMeSport, Triple H has approved the design of a new WWE World Championship!
The report states that a new World Championship belt is waiting to ‘debut soon’ before noting that it is not currently known if the belt will have a new name or if it is a repackaging of an existing belt but the design has been approved and could debut as early as tonight should WWE desire.
This report aligns with previous reports stating that Triple H is not a fan of the Universal Championship and would like to see the belt scrapped following the end of Roman Reigns historic WWE Championship reign.
Wrestling fans have taken to Twitter to reveal their picks for the funniest moment in WWE history!
Replying to a post on the Inside The Ropes Twitter account, fans would highlight a broad range of choices for WWE’s funniest moment ever, some intentionally funny and some… accidentally (looking at you Shockmaster).
Here are some of our favourites:
“Titus O’neal sliding under the ring. Cracks me up every time.” – @sarnoldofficial
“I always loved when Santino and Kozlov had tea with Sheamus.” – @Vince_WF
“The Shockmaster” – @JamesBloodfeast
Disagree with any of these picks? Let us know your favourite WWE funny moment over on Twitter!
Current IMPACT Wrestling Star and former Intercontinental Champion Matt Cardona [FKA Zack Ryder] has revealed that he is planning a return to the WWE…but not yet.
Speaking on Casual Conversations with The Wrestling Classic, Cardona would open up about a potential WWE return noting that it is something he definitely wants to do for a plethora of reasons (including, of course, for the action figures) but that he wants to find his own way back to the company and that will take time.
“I would be lying if I said I never wanted to wrestle at Madison Square Garden again, Or I never wanted to have a WrestleMania moment again, or I never wanted to walk into Walmart and see my fucking Mattel Elite [action figure] on the shelves, of course. Yeah, of course, I do, but, I’m gonna find my path back there,” [H/t Fightful]
Do you want to see Matt Cardona make his return to the WWE? Let us know over on Twitter!
Former WWE Tag Team Champion Charlie Haas today celebrates his 51st birthday!
Haas is best known for his work as part of the iconic Team Angle faction and for his phenomenal tag team run with Shelton Benjamin as ‘The World’s Greatest Tag Team’.
In an exclusive interview with Inside The Ropes, Haas had previously revealed that he believes Team Angle was split in order to protect Triple H after the trio started garnering huge reactions on Monday Night RAW.
🎉Happy Birthday Charlie from everyone at ITRWrestling.com! 🎉
Cody Rhodes may have the biggest match of his career later this week but that doesn’t mean he is showing any signs of slowing down in the meantime!
During a recent WWE LIVE Event, the 2023 Royal Rumble winner, Cody Rhodes would show off his incredible strength by hoisting fellow WWE Superstar Braun Strowman up on his shoulders following a six man tag team match against The Bloodline in Denver.
An IRL maniac, @CodyRhodes#WWEDenver pic.twitter.com/9YFcmJpWqs
— Will Washington (@WilliamRBR) March 27, 2023
Braun Strowman weighs a monstrous 385lb (174kg for those of you who use the superior metric system) meaning that Cody Rhodes lifted over double his own bodyweight over his head after wrestling in the shows main event.
Mark Andrew’s has paid tribute to his best friend and tag team partner Eddie Dennis following his shock retirement.
The former NXT UK Tag Team Champion took to Twitter sharing an emotional goodbye to ‘The Welsh Dragon’.
“Thank you, Eddie.”
Andrews & Dennis teamed regularly around the UK independent scene as FSU (Friends Stand United) and was a key part of Eddie Dennis successfully capturing the PROGRESS Championship from GUNTHER (FKA WALTER) at Super Strong Style 16.
Former NXT UK Superstar, and PROGRESS Wrestling Champion, Eddie Dennis announced his retirement following yesterdays RevPro Revolution Rumble.
The Welsh wrestling star and former headteacher yesterday confirmed his retirement from professional wrestling after 15 years in the business and nearly 500 career matches.
Commenting on his retirement, Dennis encouraged fans to not be sad that his career ended but instead be happy that it ever happened.
“Don’t be sad. Be happy the last 15 years happened. I am!”
Dennis enjoyed a successful career as part of the booming British independent scene both as part of FSU with best friend Mark Andrews and as a singles star in Attack, PROGRESS, RevPro and more.
‘The Welsh Dragon’s final WWE appearance came in July 2022 when he teamed with Saxon Huxley to take on Chase U on the penultimate episode of NXT UK.
Thank you Eddie.
WWE has an expansive photograph collection, with shots from every WWE event over four decades featuring some of wrestling’s biggest names; Hulk Hogan, Dwayne Johnson, John Cena, Ric Flair and more.
But did you know that WWE also has a series of rather… bizarre photo albums available on WWE.com, including this album showcasing WWE Superstars with cat heads (Yes, you read that right).
The incredible album features photos of Becky Lynch, Kofi Kingston, Alexa Bliss, Seth Rollins and more , all merged with various breeds of cat.
What more could you want on a Monday afternoon?
In previously unseen footage from Inside The Ropes 2018 live event with Shawn Michaels, ‘The Heartbreak Kid’ talks candidly about his retirement (prior to his one off return against The Brothers of Destruction later that year) and the pressure of taking on The Undertaker not once but twice at WrestleMania.
Fans of Bray Wyatt rejoice as the former WWE Champion looks set to return to our screens in the coming weeks!
It has been reported by WRKD Wrestling that fans should expect to see “glitches and QR codes this week.”
Although it is very possible that these “glitches and QR codes” are not related to Wyatt, they have been a key component in the ongoing character development of both Wyatt and Uncle Howdy since Extreme Rules back in October 2022.
Although the former ‘Fiend’ looks set to miss out on WrestleMania 39, with planned opponent Bobby Lashley now in the WWE Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, he was in high spirits when an unexpecting fan bumped into him while driving home from work.
Ahead of her record setting WrestleMania 39 clash with, 2023 WWE Royal Rumble winner, Rhea Ripley, Charlotte Flair spoke with CBS about her career so far and her status as a ‘living legend.’
Flair would state that she feels like she is being ‘pushed out’ of wrestling, with everyone treating her as if her career is coming to an end when in her eyes ‘The Queen’ is just getting started.
“I feel like we’re trying to push me out now. I’m not really sure. I feel like I haven’t even hit my prime yet or I’m just starting to get there. I love saying in a promo that I’m a living legend, but I don’t feel like it.
When I think of legend, I think of The Undertaker’s career. The status he’s at. It means retired and drinking pina coladas on the beach somewhere in Tulum.”
After everything that has gone on from CM Punk’s injuries, to the AEW media scrum and the All Out brawl – it’s crazy to think that CM Punk’s return to wrestling was less than two years ago.
While we follow the latest news coming out from Punk’s now deleted Instagram tirade, let’s revisit one of wrestling biggest ever moments – when CM Punk debuted on AEW Rampage in his hometown of Chigaco to an enormous reaction.
The clip has now amassed 15m views on AEW official YouTube channel making it the 15th most viewed video of all time on the channel, behind only three Orange Cassidy AEW clips from 2019 and the ending to AEW’s sixth ever episode of Dynamite back in 2019.
Is this the greatest wrestling return of all-time?
Last week saw CM Punk make headlines again when he took to Instagram to blast AEW stars Jon Moxley and Chris Jericho, as well as branding noted wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer a ‘liar’ following a report on the Wrestling Observer forum that Punk had almost didn’t turn up for the episode of Dynamite where he lost to Moxley, noting that “you can’t argue he willingly did what he was asked in that scenario.”
Speaking on Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer has now responded to the controversy:
“When I said it, I wasn’t writing a news story or anything like that, but when I said it, I never said a lot of it had to do with his injury. And it did. In his defense, he was coming back from a broken foot, and it was a serious injury. That played into it as far as when he was gonna be ready.”
Meltzer has also clarified the initial plans for Moxley vs Punk in AEW, after Punk revealed that it had been likened to Rocky 3 with Moxley allegedly refusing to lose to the Former AEW Champion.
Good Morning!
CM Punk continues to be the dominant force in wrestling news ahead of WrestleMania 39 and now following his scathing message on Instagram last week, noted journalist Dave Meltzer has hit back at claims he is a “liar.”
We will have all the fallout from the CM Punk Instagram rampage for you this morning alongside the latest WrestleMania 39 news, John Cena’s latest tell all interview and much more.
