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Jinder Mahal Almost Quit Wrestling To Open Subway Sandwich Shop?

Apparently Jinder Mahal had plans at one point to hang up his wrestling boots and put on an apron to dish up some of Subway’s finest sandwiches.

The Wrestling Observer Newsletter reports that a while back Mahal had decided that he was looking to get out of the wrestling business and open up a Subway sandwich shop instead. Very little details were provided but if I had to speculate this was probably some time after his first release from WWE when things weren’t working out for him. Obviously this never happened as he gave wrestling another go and the rest is history.

We were also told that Real estate was another option for him as well.

Who Is Currently the Favorite to Win the Money in the Bank Briefcase?

While the Wrestling Observer Newsletter reported last week that Nakumara was the favorite to win the Money in the Bank briefcase this year, betting odds would have you thinking otherwise.

Early betting odds suggest that Baron Corbin will be leaving the June 18th as the rightful holder of the briefcase. Here are the odds for the match:

* Baron Corbin -165
* Kevin Owens +500
* AJ Styles +600
* Sami Zayn +600
* Shinsuke Nakamura +700
* Dolph Ziggler +2500

Former WWE Superstar Santino Marella Making Wrestling Comeback

It looks like Santino Marella is coming out of retirement to wrestle once again.

According to The Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Santino will wrestle later this year for his own Battlarts promotion. He runs the promotion out of his gym in Mississauga, Ontario.

For those not aware, Santino declared his retirement on July 6th, 2014 at a house show in Toronto, Ontario after he suffered his third neck injury. He was released in 2016 from WWE.

Vince McMahon Says Chris Jericho Is The Only Person Who Could Get “Stupid Idiot” Over with Fans

Chris Jericho recently spoke with Rock 100.5 ATL’s Bailey and Southside. Here are some highlights:

The Creation of The List: “Working with this guys who’s a writer in the WWE named Jimmy Jacobs. He used to be a [pro] wrestler. He came up to me one day and said, ‘what if we do something where you put somebody on this list?’ I’m like, ‘I knew this guy once who had a list of people he didn’t like.’ I’m like, ‘oh, that sounds funny.’ So I said it and it kind of got a reaction.” Jericho said, “the whole concept of The List went through the roof. The List is more popular than 85% of the guys on the show. The List is more popular than I am! And you just never know what’s going to make an impression with fans.”

Getting Stupid Idiot Over: “They’re chanting it now, ‘stupid idiot’ and I remember when I started saying that, Vince was like, ‘nobody could say this, nobody can get away with this, but you can. You’re the only guy in the world who could do this’ because when I started using ‘stupid idiot,’ it got heat. I would call the fans, ‘you’re a stupid idiots’ and they’d be like, ‘boo!’ and then, like everything else, suddenly people loved it.”

Speculation on Lana Competing on SmackDown Live Before MITB

WWE confirmed on their website that Lana will not be competing before the Money in the Bank event in her match against Naomi for the SmackDown Women’s Championship. There was speculation online this week in regards to her facing in a match before hand but that obviously won’t be happening.

WWE wrote the following, confirming that her match at MITB will be her first official match on the SmackDown Live brand:

“At SmackDown LIVE’s WWE Money in the Bank pay-per-view, Lana will make her blue brand in-ring debut when she challenges Naomi for the SmackDown Women’s Championship in a match that was made following the turbulent events of the June 6 edition of SmackDown LIVE.”

CM Punk Eliminated from MTV Show

Former WWE Superstar CM Punk was eliminated on this week’s episode of MTV’s The Challenge: Champs vs. Pros. Punk lost his elimination challenge, which was against Gus Kenworthy. He received $1,000 for P.A.W.S. Chicago, his charity.

For those wondering about Punk’s future, there is no official word yet as to what the UFC actually has plans for him and if they are going to release him from his contract or not. We will keep you updated.

Sheamus Going After the Intercontinental Championship?

Sheamus indicated on Twitter that he wants to hold the Intercontinental Championship, the one title that has eluded him to date. Here is his twitter, which sparked a response The Miz:

Bischoff on Wrestling Recap – Bischoff’s Time in WWE, Kissing Linda McMahon, Hogan Returning to WWE? More!

Bischoff opens today’s show speaking about Bruce Prichard’s recent episode of ‘Something to Wrestle With’, which focused on Bischoff’s time in WWE.

Bischoff says that he thinks about his initial WWE interview quite often, when Vince McMahon asked him to interview a broom. He didn’t know that Bruce Prichard was there that day; in fact he couldn’t even see McMahon, he only heard his voice. Looking back now, he thinks this was a genius move by McMahon because by putting people in uncomfortable positions, you’re able to test their confidence and see their ability to improvise.

When Hogan arrived in WCW, Bischoff says that he and Hogan spoke often about his departure from WWE. From Bischoff’s perspective it was easy to see that there was a strong personal relationship between Hogan and McMahon. Although they had their differences, Hogan seemed to regret the way everything played out, and Bischoff didn’t sense any distain or hatred from Hogan when he was talking about McMahon. It was easy to see that there was still some affection there.

During his show, Prichard said that he believes McMahon would have done a lot of the same things Bischoff did during the Monday Night Wars if the roles were reversed, such as giving away the finishes of taped matches.

Austin Aries Taking Time Off from WWE

While appearing on Busted Open Radio, Austin Aries mentioned that he will be taking time off from WWE to heal some nagging injuries.

“I’ve got some stuff going on, but just to be fair you could probably say that for a lot of the locker room. It’s kind of part of what we do, I don’t think anyone is ever 100%. So I got a couple things going on and obviously at this point it might be a good time to take a little break which really could consist of two days to just adjust some of those things, try and get my mind and my body right and then come back and figure out what’s gonna be next and what the direction’s gonna be.”

You can listen to the full interview here.

Jim Cornette Challenges Vince Russo to Face-to-Face Meeting

The following audio clip of Jim Cornette challenging former WWE writer Vince Russo to a face-to-face meeting was published to his Talking Sense YouTube channel. For those not keeping track, the two have been bad mouthing each other on their podcasts ever since the “Table for 3” episode aired on the WWE Network that saw both Eric Bischoff and Cornette making remarks about Russo.

“Here it is finally! Jim Cornette issues a challenge to meet up with Vince Russo at a time and place of his choosing, away from police, an audience and public announcement, for a final showdown between the two bitter enemies. THAT is how to cut a promo!”

Why WWE Should Give Mojo Rawley More Screen Time

This may seem an odd petition to many, but hear me out. WWE, please give Mojo Rawley more screen time. There, I’ve said it.

You may be wondering just why I would request such a thing. After all, who cares about him? Well, I do, apparently. I also believe that with the right circumstances and time, Mojo could turn into a big deal. He has most of the tools needed, and with some improvement, he could be very, very good. But these things will not happen until he gets more screentime.

He Needs to Improve

Right now, Mojo isn’t exactly setting the world on fire, particularly with his move set. Power-based repertoires are hardly the most exciting, but if they are done right, then they look spectacular. Mojo is quite far away from being spectacular.

Was he called up too early? Probably, but he was brought in to bolster the tag team division. He was going to be the hot tag, cleaning up while Zack Ryder wowed the audience with his 450 splashes. However, Ryder got injured. They didn’t want to leave Mojo hanging around like a bum, so they pushed him as a singles star, where his flaws and limitations were exposed.

What’s done is done. However, this can be corrected by giving Rawley more matches, which means he’d be on our televisions more often. It worked for Strowman. He couldn’t wrestle to save his life back before the brand split. Fast forward to not even a whole calendar year, and he’s one of the best parts of Raw. Some people just need to be put in a sink-or-swim scenario. Corbin wasn’t exactly good when he was called up in April. At the end of the year, he had one of the best Chairs matches against Kalisto, had an entertaining match with Jack Swagger, and was in one of the best matches of the year against AJ Styles and Dolph Ziggler.

If WWE wants Mojo Jojo to improve, then they’ve got to have him fight more people, even if its jobbers from the city.

Mojo Rawley Is Surprisingly Eloquent

When Mojo first appeared on Talking Smack as a singles guy, I was pleasantly surprised to hear him speak. He was quite well-spoken, a far cry from the man in the ring screaming for hype or whatever. I knew he was the youngest graduate from the University of Maryland or something like that (that’s what the graphics in his entrance told me). Well, I thought to myself, Talking Smack really can make anyone sound good. There’s less scripting, more creativity, etc. Then I heard his backstage promos.

We still came off as an eloquent speaker. He showed he could hang with the likes of Dolph Ziggler, who is no slouch on the mic either. Even with that weird, pointless segment where he gave some kids a tour and told them how hard Andre could kegstand, he sounded very natural. Yeah, the segment kinda sucked, but Mojo did his best.

When I saw/heard his promo on Smackdown with Shane, I genuinely felt for the guy. I’m probably just weak, but he seemed so sincere. He had been a ghost, he had been doing a whole lot of nothing. He just wanted one opportunity.

Then he lost to Jinder. I get it. You can’t have lower card guys beating the champ, and Jinder’s gotta get that Heel Heat™. But still, I felt bad, and I think that’s the most important part.

He Could Become Genuinely Likable

Right now, a lot of people don’t like Mojo Rawley. He’s got a limited move-set, and his hype shtick can rub people the wrong way. I get that. With some time, though, he could really turn some people around. Give him more promo time to show how genuine he is. Give him more matches to improve his move-set. This can be easily fixed.

In a show that runs for a whole year, you can’t tell me there’s no time for Rawley. This is the same company that made Jinder Mahal champion, has shown the Fashion Files for a month now, and had R-Truth challenge for the WWE Championship. These things aren’t bad; they’re just some of the more “out there” things WWE has done.

Lots of people say Mojo is a nice guy, whether it’s because they saw him on Breaking Ground, or because they follow him on Twitter. Give him a chance to show that he could be a big deal. If it fails, then that’s alright. These things happen. However, if it does take off, then you can make damn sure that I will be the conductor of this Hype Train.

The Miz Puts His Los Angeles Mansion Up for Sale

The Miz is selling his Los Angeles home for $3.65 million, according to Forbes.

The Hollywood Hills West property located at 1944 Laurel Canyon Boulevard includes a Mediterranean-style home with 4 bedrooms and 3 1/2 bathrooms. The home has more than 4,500 square feet of space with a swimming pool, a spa and a basketball court.

The complete house listing reads:

“PARADISE FOUND! PRESENTING THIS MAGNIFICENT NEWLY RENOVATED AND EXPANDED SHOWPLACE SITUATED ON 3 LEGAL FLAT LOTS – TRULY A RARE OFFERING IN THE PRESTIGIOUS HOLLYWOOD HILLS. GATED AND SECLUDED BEHIND 8FT WALLS, THIS TUSCAN-INSPIRED VILLA OPENS TO LAVISHLY MANICURED PARK-LIKE GROUNDS WITH TOWERING MATURE TREES, AND LUSH TROPICAL LANDSCAPING. THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE DOUBLE OUTDOOR STAIRCASE IS THE DRAMATIC WATERFALL FEATURE THAT FLOWS DIRECTLY INTO THE SPARKLING POOL WITH AN ADJACENT ALFRESCO DINING AREA. CUSTOM GLASS SPA, FIRE PIT AND A BASKETBALL COURT FURTHER HIGHLIGHT THE RESORT-LIKE GROUNDS OF THIS OASIS IN THE CITY. ADDITIONAL FEATURES INCLUDE A TOP OF THE LINE SECURITY SYSTEM, HOME THEATER ROOM, NEWLY BUILT GAME ROOM WITH WALLS OF GLASS THAT OPEN TO A LARGE PATIO WITH BUILT IN BBQ AND A SPECTACULAR WALL FOUNTAIN. BEAUTIFUL KITCHEN WITH VIKING APPLIANCES AND SUB-ZERO REFRIGERATOR. THE ELEGANT MASTER SUITE HAS A SITTING ROOM, WALK-IN CLOSET AND PRIVATE BATHROOM WITH A RELAXING SOAKING TUB. FULLY PAID FOR SOLAR PANELS DRASTICALLY REDUCE YOUR ENERGY BILLS! THIS IS A RARE OPPORTUNITY TO ACQUIRE A ONE OF A KIND HOME WITH EXPANSIVE FLAT LAND AND UNWAVERING ATTENTION TO DETAIL IN A PRIME LOCATION MINUTES TO THE SUNSET STRIP.”

Here are photos of the house: