Latest news with #BattleRiotVII
Fox News
02-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Pro wrestling star Austin Aries talks MLW return as commentator, drawing inspiration from some of the greats
Pro wrestling star Austin Aries made a surprise return to Major League Wrestling (MLW) last month as he put a headset on and called Battle Riot VII instead of performing in the ring. Aries, whose real name is Daniel Healy, has been in several different promotions throughout his career, including WWE, TNA, DEFY and others. He was at MLW from 2018 to 2019. Though battling an illness, Aries hopped on the mic with Joe Dombrowski to call the event. "It feels good," Aries said of his return to MLW. "Just kind of readjusting. I hadn't been at MLW for a number of years, worked with them a few times over my career, never anything sustained. It's just been exciting to watch the growth of the company, the momentum they've been building and a lot of the names they've been bringing in. "And so when the opportunity presented itself for me to get back into the fold and to do it behind the commentary desk, it was definitely something I wanted to take them up on." Aries had previous experience at the announcer's table. He called matches for WWE NXT's Roadblock: End of the Line premium live event with Michael Cole and Corey Graves in December 2016 as well as some of their weekly programming. He told Fox News Digital he derived his inspiration from legendary commentators and managers Bobby Heenan and Jesse Ventura. "I'm trying to be the version of myself, but those guys definitely influence my style as far as a heel commentator that's going to add a little bit more of a slant," he said. "I think the other thing I enjoyed about those guys, and I think as a color commentator, is when you can bring the perspective of actually being in the ring having competed. It's a whole perspective that you can give the views that a commentator who hasn't been in the ring can't offer." Aries has been a decorated champion in the ring. He was a three-time TNA world heavyweight champion, a six-time TNA X-Division champion, a two-time Ring of Honor world champion, and he was ranked No. 12 on Pro Wrestling Illustrated's Top 500 wrestlers list in 2013. Now 47 years old, Aries said the role to transition to a commentator was the right move. It doesn't necessarily mean he's finished in the ring just yet. "I had an opportunity to do commentary when I was with WWE. It was something that opened up after I got injured, and I really enjoyed it and I felt comfortable doing it. And so it was something that – at the back of my mind, I thought maybe down the road, as I started to slow down my in-ring career – would maybe be an opportunity I'd like to pursue. "MLW approached me and asked me if it was something I was interested in doing. So I felt, you know, I'm 47, I do still wrestle. I just kind of pick my spots carefully. There's nothing saying that down the road I might not step in the ring with MLW. But for now, it's a great way to get myself back into the fold with the company. The opportunity was to be a color commentator, so I'm going to take that role and do my best with it, and we'll see what happens from there." Aries is set to be on the call for MLW's next event, Azteca Lucha, on May 10 in Chicago. Matt Riddle and Donovan Dijak will battle for the MLW World Heavyweight Championship on May 10. Alex Hammerstone will return to face Satoshi Kojima with other stars from MLW and Mexico's Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre promotion on display. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Newsweek
28-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Newsweek
WWE Legend Rob Van Dam Severely Injured In Latest Match
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Rob Van Dam, aka RVD, has shared some worrying news with fans after working his latest match in the squared circle. Weeks after the injury, the WWE Hall of Famer opens up about what happened. Van Dam, the iconic high-flying wrestler currently under a WWE Legends contract, recently made his debut appearance in Major League Wrestling (MLW) at their Battle Riot VII event. The MLW World Championship was at stake in the Battle Riot match for the first time in the promotion's history. Ultimately, the reigning MLW World Champion, Matt Riddle, emerged victorious. The event took place at Thunder Studios in Long Beach, California, earlier this month, adding another chapter to Riddle's championship reign. The 54-year-old wrestling veteran revealed on an episode of his 1 of a Kind podcast that his MLW debut came at a significant cost. RVD disclosed that he suffered fractures to both of his heels during his elimination from the Battle Riot match. He was the final competitor to be eliminated, a fateful moment that occurred when MLW World Champion and Riddle tossed him from the turnbuckle to the unforgiving floor outside the ring. Recounting the moment of injury, RVD stated, "A couple weeks ago, I had a match with MLW. A lot of people saw that. A lot of people don't know that I got hurt because it was the very last move of the night. Wrestler Rob Van Dam attends the 420 Expo Cannabis Convention at New Jersey Convention and Exposition Center on September 16, 2022 in Edison, New Jersey. Wrestler Rob Van Dam attends the 420 Expo Cannabis Convention at New Jersey Convention and Exposition Center on September 16, 2022 in Edison, New news: WWE News: Steve Austin Reveals Real-Life Vince McMahon Confrontation I went up to the top rope, and Matt Riddle pushed me off, and the way I landed on my feet — normally, I kind of hug the guardrail and my weight goes into it. This time, I must have misjudged it a little bit, and I just landed on my feet. Both heels blew. I thought that my ankles were sprained. I crawled out of there. I haven't been able to walk since. I got the X-rays, both heels broke." The severity of the double heel fracture has understandably impacted RVD's immediate schedule. "It definitely made me cancel a lot of plans that I had for the next few months," he admitted. However, RVD noted that he still managed to fulfill all of his previously scheduled appearances during the busy WrestleCon and WrestleMania week in early April. Throughout his illustrious career, Rob Van Dam has found success, especially during his groundbreaking run in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) in the late 1990s. During this time, he held the ECW TV and Tag Team Titles. Following ECW's closure in 2001, RVD transitioned to WWE. There, he won the WWE Hardcore Championship, WWE Intercontinental Championship (a record six times), WWE European Championship, WWE Tag Team Championship, and World Tag Team Championships. At WrestleMania 22, he won the Money in the Bank ladder match, ultimately leading to his first WWE Championship victory over John Cena at the ECW-themed One Night Stand pay-per-view. More WWE News: For more on WWE, head to Newsweek Sports.
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Rumor Roundup: Charlotte Flair displeased, Young Bucks return, Juice Robinson, more!
Speculating on the rumors surrounding pro wrestling is a favored pastime of many fans, perhaps second only to actually watching the matches. In this daily column, we take a look at the latest rumors being churned out by the pro wrestling rumor mill. Important reminder: Rumors are just that — rumors. None of this has been confirmed as fact, it's just circulating around the pro wrestling rumor mill. We track rumor accuracy in a weekly feature called Rumor Look Back you can find here. Remember, take it all with a grain of salt. Rumors for the Day: Fightful Select says Charlotte Flair 'didn't appear to be pleased' with the segment with Tiffany Stratton that went off the rails, but some wrestlers said 'talent has to be willing' to 'go at Charlotte in that manner.' Meanwhile, it was a directive from above that the YouTube version be edited the way it was. Per Fightful, there were pitches from talent for a story with The Young Bucks prior to their return at Dynasty, and many thought they would be back on AEW TV earlier. The Wrestling Observer Newsletter notes that Juice Robinson is 'a few weeks away from beginning in-ring training' and we should know more about a timeline for his return then. According to PW Insider, Rob Van Dam rolled his ankle during MLW's Battle Riot VII event but he was doing okay the next day. Brock Anderson also suffered a cut that required eight stitches. Sean Ross Sapp says he was told Alex Hammerstone has not signed a contract with MLW despite his return at Battle Riot VII. Advertisement If you have heard of any interesting rumors that you'd like to add, feel free to post them in the comments section below. Just remember they are rumors and not confirmed as fact, so please take them as such. And check our weekly Rumor Look Back here to keep track of how often rumors turn out to be correct. More from
Yahoo
05-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
TNA Reached Out To Anthony Greene For More Appearances
Photo Credit: Anthony Greene Anthony Greene reflects on his short run with TNA Wrestling. Major League Wrestling's Anthony Greene was a recent guest on Fightful Overbooked's In the Weeds. When asked about his brief stint with TNA, Greene revealed that the company reached out to him to do more dates with them but he was already working over in Japan. Advertisement 'I got that call like a week before the show happened,' Anthony Greene said. 'I went down to Miami to do the tapings. I wrestled [Beast Mortos] and Mike Bailey in the same day. I thought me and [Mortos] went well, but me and Mike Bailey was incredible. 'We had a seven-minute X Division sprint-style match. Everyone was really happy with it. Scott D'Amore was super happy with it. Dreamer, Gail Kim, everyone seemed pleased. Stayed in contact with them. A month later, I was on a plane to Japan to do a four and a half month tour (with NOAH). I got a text from Tommy Dreamer as I landed saying, 'Are you available this Friday in Orlando?' 'No, I'm not. I'm in Japan until May.' 'That's kind of where the conversation ended at that point. Up until now, I've been full time with NOAH until December. I haven't really had talks with anybody. December, when I got home, the first thing I did was went to the MLW taping in New York to show face and meet Court Bauer and MSL. That's how this whole thing got rolling. All I needed was the opportunity to be in the United States long enough to have a chance to be in front of a national wrestling company, and MLW happened to be the one I chose.' [H/T: Fightful] WrestleZone recently spoke with Anthony Greene regarding Battle Riot VII You can check out WrestleZone's interview with Anthony Greene in the embedded video below: READ MORE: Anthony Greene Wants To Make A Name For Himself In MLW, Previews Battle Riot VII Advertisement What do you make of Anthony Greene's overall comments? Did you enjoy his brief run with TNA Wrestling? Let us know your overall thoughts by sounding off in the comments section below. The post TNA Reached Out To Anthony Greene For More Appearances appeared first on Wrestlezone.
Fox News
04-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Pro wrestler Anthony Greene's MLW debut long time coming: 'Perfect moment for me'
Anthony Greene has been almost everywhere as a professional wrestler. He competed at WWE for its NXT and 205 Live brands. He was with All Elite Wrestling, performing mostly on "AEW Dark." He's worked at New Japan Pro-Wrestling and Pro Wrestling Noah. But when he makes his Major League Wrestling (MLW) debut on Saturday at Battle Riot VII, it will be a dream come true. "I'm a huge wrestling nerd, always been," Greene explained to Fox News Digital. "And I remember buying on the original MLW DVDs. I watched [Satoshi] Kojima win the title in the tournaments back in like 2002, Reloaded, WarGames, seeing Steve Corino with the Extreme Horsemen, and it's always been a place that I've followed. It's always been a place that I've followed. "And when it came back in 2017, I was wrestling for five years at that point. I decided that was a place I wanted to wrestle, and it's just never worked out. Either I wasn't where I needed to be to get to that level of where MLW was, or when I was there, the schedule just never matched. And the perfect moment for me, Battle Riot – where the MLW World Championship is on the line – is when I finally get to make my debut. So, yeah, you can say I'm very excited." MLW champion Matt Riddle will have to defend his title in the 40-man rumble match. It's no easy task. Even for someone like Greene, who has been in a few rumble-style matches over the course of his career, is thinking realistically. "One thing I am confident in is by the end of the night, MLW and the fans are going to know who Anthony Greene is and I will be back. That's one thing I can promise," he said. "And best-case scenario, I walk out with the MLW World Heavyweight Championship." Battle Riot VII takes place at Thunder Studios Arena in Long Beach, California. The sold-out show begins at 10 p.m. ET. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
