Jaxson Ryker is part of The Forgotten Sons tag-team on WWE Friday Night SmackDown, having been called up from NXT several weeks ago. They appear to be receiving a push, facing off against some of the biggest teams on the brand, including The New Day, but a controversy is bubbling surrounding the Iraq War veteran.
Ryker has been pro-Trump for a minute, which he has not been shy about stating on social media. In fact, he even praised the President for his efforts during the protests in a tweet from this week.
"Thankful for the @POTUS we have! God bless America. Built of freedom. Forgotten No More," wrote the wrestler.
While that tweet earned backlash from Kevin Owens, Ricochet, Mustafa Ali, and more, a former Facebook post from last year is landing Ryker in even more hot water.
A screenshot of a 2019 Facebook post is being circulated where the WWE Superstar calls the Black Lives Matter movement "garbage."
"Pretty touchy subject but all this black lives mater garbage baffles me. I challenge anyone of any color or race to go watch 12 years a slave, the movie and realize how good you all actually have it," he said. "Learn heritage. Christ, Ghandi, Budda; they all Taught love and caring for others. This is getting out of hand. I Pray for this nation daily."
Considering the fact that WWE owner Vince McMahon is a staunch supporter of Donald Trump, we don't envision any disciplinary action being imposed on Ryker for this.
Tony Khan Bans Hulk Hogan & His Wife From AEW Over Racist Comments
Hulk Hogan and his wife's derogatory remarks towards the Black community has got them banned from AEW events.
The president of All Elite Wrestling has officially placed a ban on Hulk Hogan and his wife Linda from all events. Tony Khan, the president of AEW, made the announcement earlier today in response to the protests in America surrounding the murders of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor.
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As many of the protests escalate into looting and violence in the nation, Linda Hogan took aim at the "afro Americans" who she believes is responsible for the violent turn of the recent protests.
"Watching the looting. It's all afro Americans. not sure how robbing and stealing set the record straight but if they want to be heard they need to be civilized," she wrote in a tweet that she has since taken down. But, of course, not quick enough before the screenshots were captured.
Tweeted on May 30th, Khan responded earlier today with a ban on her and her husband, a former WWE Hall of Famer, from attending any future events. "You've now joined your husband in being banned from all AEW shows," he tweeted. "Congratulations."
The ban on Hulk Hugan is likely from the racist spree of comments he made in 2015 that resulted in getting fired from the WWE and erased from the Hall Of Fame, though he later rejoined the WWE company a few years later.
Mike Tyson Infiltrates AEW Title Match And Steals The Show
Mike Tyson got to present the belt at the title match between Cody Rhodes and Lance Archer.
Mike Tyson has been making quite a few headlines over the last little while thanks to his desire to make a comeback in the boxing world. Fans are very excited about this prospect and they feel as though if anybody can make it work, it would have to be Iron Mike. Having said that, Tyson was shifting his focus to something completely different yesterday, as he got to be a part of AEW's TNT Championship match between Cody Rhodes and Lance Archer.
Tyson's role was to hand out the belt but he went above and beyond that. After Archer was flung from the ring, Tyson got involved and took his shirt off. He flexed for the cameras and as Archer tried to get back in the ring, Tyson kept him at bay and taunted him while saying "Fuck You."
Tyson's antics eventually worked in Rhodes' favor as he won the fight and was presented with the belt. It became immediately apparent that Tyson's appearance was the highlight of the pay-per-view event and it makes us wonder if the boxer could expand his presence in the wrestling world.
Perhaps this cameo was a testing of the waters to see how much interest there truly is in his return to the ring.
Ex-WWE Superstar Shad Gaspard Found Dead At 39
Shad Gaspard, a former WWE superstar, went missing several days before he was found dead.
The professional wrestling community just lost a good one, as it has been confirmed that Shad Gaspard, a former WWE superstar, was found dead at the age of 39.
The wrestler went missing this weekend after a trip to Venice Beach with his wife and their 10-year-old son. Some rough waves reportedly hit the beach and, ever since, Shad could not be found. His family had been publicly wishing for his safe return but, unfortunately, it was confirmed that a man matching Shad’s description was found dead this morning.
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The wrestler’s body was reportedly found by a citizen who called the police at 1:30 AM on Wednesday (May 20.) The Los Angeles Fire Department confirmed that it was the body of the missing star, who stood over 6’6″ and weighed over 240 pounds.
Shad was with his son at the time of the riptide, heroically telling lifeguards to focus on saving the 10-year-old before coming back for him. After returning his son safely, lifeguards were unable to locate Shad.
The 39-year-old was part of the Cryme Time tag team on WWE programming back in the day. He had recently shared a video from the beach with his family, saying how much he loved his life with his wife and son.
Rest in peace, Shad.
Ex-WWE Star Shad Gaspard Reported Missing After Beach Swim
Shad Gaspard was at the beach with his family when some waves came, and he hasn’t been seen since.
Shad Gaspard is a name familiar to WWE fans as he was a part of the Cryme Time tag team back in the day. Unfortunately, Gaspard was out at Venice Beach with his wife and 10-year-old son on Sunday when all of a sudden, some waves came crashing down. Both Gaspard and his son were stranded and lifeguards came in to rescue them. According to TMZ, at first, Gaspard told the guards to rescue his son and that’s just what they did. When they went to go rescue Gaspard, a second wave came and he hasn’t been located since.
As the Los Angeles Fire Department noted, it is very likely that he submerged during the second wave and as of right now, a huge search mission has started. Divers have been sent into the waters and helicopters are trying to search for Gaspard from above. Officials have released a photo of Gaspard just in case a civilian is able to locate him.
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This is an extremely sad situation for everyone involved, and we’re hoping the authorities are able to locate him.
Stay tuned for updates on this situation as we will be sure to bring you all of the latest information.
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Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson Praises Daughter For WWE Signing
Dwayne Johnson has a lot of fatherly pride when it comes to his daughter.
Dwayne Johnson is one of the most legendary wrestlers of all time and part of the reason for his sustained success has been his ability to change careers and maintain his relevancy. Johnson is one of the biggest movie stars in the world right now and for good reason. His movies rake in millions of dollars and his face is one of the most recognizable. Even if you never watched a wrestling match in your life, you probably know who “The Rock” is.
During an appearance on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon, Johnson spoke about his daughter Simone who recently signed a contract with the WWE, at just 18 years old. As he explained, Simone has been working very hard at her craft and he truly couldn’t be prouder.
“She signed her contract with the WWE, it just blows my mind,” Johnson said. “First of all, I mean, what an honor that my daughter wants to follow in my footsteps. But, more importantly, ‘follow in my footsteps’ sounds cliché, but she actually wants to blaze her own path, which is just so important. She wound up being the youngest signee in the history of the company.”
Simone will have a lot of work to do to climb the ranks of the company but with her father cheering her on, we’re sure she will be just fine.
WWE’s Becky Lynch Announces Pregnancy & Gives Up Her Title
Becky Lynch announced that she is expecting a baby with Seth Rollins on Monday Night RAW, relinquishing her title belt.
Becky Lynch has been in charge of the women's division on WWE for the last year. She main-evented WrestleMania and was even a double champion for some time. However, she has been off of Monday Night RAW for the last several weeks and, although many assumed she was not comfortable working during the COVID-19 pandemic, the real reason was revealed on last night's episode of RAW.
Hitting the ring following one of the most unique pay-per-view events in the company's long history, Becky Lynch made her return on the post-Money In The Bank episode of RAW. She made a huge announcement with the fans at home, which would explain why she's been missing in action.
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Becky Lynch is pregnant and will be relinquishing the RAW Women's Championship. She is expecting her first child with fellow WWE Superstar Seth Rollins. The two have been dating for over a year.
"Tonight is no ordinary night for me," said The Man, Becky Lynch. "I'm torn between joy and sadness, 'cause I'm at a place in my life where things are about to change and I needed to do something about it. I have to go away for a while."
Asuka, who won the Money In The Bank briefcase on the weekend, will now hold the title.
"You go and be a warrior, 'cause I'm gonna go be a mother," said Lynch to the new champion, who gave her a big hug and congratulated her.
Congratulations to Becky Lynch and Seth Rollins!
Rob Gronkowski Has Hilarious Thoughts About WWE Title Defense
Rob Gronkowski is coming back to the NFL but that won’t stop him from competing in the WWE.
Rob Gronkowski is one of the NFL’s most colorful characters and this season, he will be coming out of retirement to play with Tom Brady on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. During his brief retirement, Gronkowski kept himself occupied with various projects, including a stint in the WWE. Just last month, Gronk won the 24/7 title at WrestleMania and now, it’s up in the air whether or not he will ever get another WWE fight.
During a podcast with his brother Chris, Gronkowski expressed interest in defending his 24/7 title and noted that he has no clue how it would go down. Gronk had some pretty funny theories of how it could all go down; theories that included his new head coach, Bruce Arians.
“Imagine coming out of the meeting room, I’m like looking to my left down the hallway … looking to my right to make sure no one is out of the meetings yet, and then all of a sudden … Coach Arians just comes out of nowhere with a flying elbow and takes me out and pins me and becomes the 24/7 champ. That would be legendary. That would be an honor to lose to him,” Gronkowski said.
Balancing a career in the NFL and a WWE title is going to be very hard but if anyone can do it, it would most certainly be Gronk.
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WWE’s Velveteen Dream Responds To Allegations From Underage Girl
Velveteen Dream was recently accused of sending sexually explicit photos to a minor.
WWE fighter Velveteen Dream has been getting a bit of a push as part of the NXT division as of late although now, he is facing some serious allegations. Recently, a user took to the platform to expose some Instagram messages they allegedly exchanged with the wrestler. As the story goes, Velveteen Dream said his DMs were open on his IG story. That's when he allegedly began to message the underage girl and sent her a nude photograph. As soon as he allegedly began to ask for photos back, the girl took her story to .
Some people began to claim that the wrestler may have been hacked although audio provided by Ringside News suggests he was allegedly sending voice memos to an underage girl and even asked where she went to school.
These allegations quickly began to circulate on social media and now, the Velveteen Dream is responding. As he explains, he never sent any crude photos himself and that he is talking to Instagram to see what may have happened.
"Be assured I did not communicate inappropriately with anyone" he wrote. "A private photo of mine was shared without my consent or knowledge and I am working with a third party to look into this matter."
Legendary WWE Announcer Howard Finkel Dies At 69
Howard Finkel was the first employee of the WWE back in 1980.
There are numerous people responsible for making the WWE as great as it was at the beginning. Of course, Vince McMahon's company was founded in 1980 and their first employee was none other than ring announcer, Howard Finkel. Finkel was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame and was beloved by many who grew up hearing him announce some of the most legendary matches of all time. Unfortunately, it was announced earlier today that Finkel has passed away at the age of 69.
The WWE took to their website where they offered up a quick tribute to Finkel, saying "When considering the greatest ring announcers in the history of sports and sports=entertainment, you'd be hard-pressed to name one better than Howard Finkel."
This is certainly a huge loss for the wrestling community. Numerous wrestlers and WWE personalities took to social media where they paid their respects to the man affectionately known as "The Fink." Finkel had been involved with wrestling since at least 1977 when the WWE went by the name WWWF. He was a pioneer in the sport who inspired many to follow in his footsteps.
A cause of death was not revealed.