Latest news with #DoubleorNothing
Newsweek
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Newsweek
Iconic WWE Gimmick Is Officially Retired For Good
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. AEW star Dustin Rhodes has made it clear that his iconic "Goldust" character is permanently retired. He also stated that he has no desire for another match against his brother, WWE's Cody Rhodes. Rhodes delivered the news to fans on social media. He responded to suggestions about bringing back the "Bizarre One" and stepping in the ring with his brother one more time. 'Goldust Is Retired' A fan on the social media platform X suggested a unique faction idea. The fan proposed a team-up of Goldust, Cody Rhodes' old "Stardust" character, and AAA star Mr. Iguana. Dustin Rhodes politely but firmly shut down the idea. He noted he is happy with his current position in AEW. "Goldust is retired. Sorry. Happy where I am at," Rhodes responded. Dustin famously shed the Goldust persona for his emotional debut match in AEW against Cody in 2019. He currently holds the ROH World Tag Team Championship with his "Sons of Texas" partner, Sammy Guevara. Triple H starts the show during Monday Night RAW at Intuit Dome on January 6, 2025 in Inglewood, California. Triple H starts the show during Monday Night RAW at Intuit Dome on January 6, 2025 in Inglewood, California. WWE/Getty Images No More Matches With Cody Rhodes Dustin also addressed calls for a third match against his brother. He has recently expressed great pride in Cody's success since his return to WWE. When a fan suggested their story wasn't over until they had another match, Dustin disagreed. He explained that their classic 2019 encounter should not be revisited. He stated that he has no interest in having another match because he doesn't want to "touch something so magical." The Legacy Of Rhodes Vs. Rhodes The match Dustin refers to is his bloody and emotional battle with Cody at the inaugural AEW Double or Nothing event in 2019. The match was critically acclaimed and is considered by many to be one of the best in AEW history. That performance helped establish the tone for the new promotion. It also served as a major career-defining moment for Dustin outside of the Goldust character. More news: WWE News: Steve Austin Reveals Real-Life Vince McMahon Confrontation The Goldust character is one of WWE's most enduring and versatile gimmicks. Debuting in 1995, the provocative and androgynous "Bizarre One" used psychological mind games and unsettling mannerisms to get under the skin of his opponents and the audience, pushing creative boundaries during the Attitude Era. Over several decades, the character evolved dramatically. He became the comedic "Artist Formerly Known as Goldust" and later formed a beloved, fan-favorite tag team with Booker T. This ability to transform from a controversial, boundary-pushing heel to a comedic babyface cemented Goldust as a truly unique and legendary gimmick. More WWE News: For more on WWE, head to Newsweek Sports.
Newsweek
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Newsweek
Fan-Favorite AEW Superstar Missing From TV Due To Injury: Report
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. A new report has revealed the reason for Jamie Hayter's current absence from All Elite Wrestling programming. The former AEW Women's World Champion is once again sidelined and is not medically cleared to compete. This marks another unfortunate setback for the star, who has a history of significant injuries. Her latest issue comes after a long road to recovery from a previous career-threatening ailment. Hayter Sidelined Following Recent Attack According to a report from Fightful Select, Hayter is not medically cleared for action, which is why she has been off television. Her last appearance was on the episode of AEW Dynamite following the Double or Nothing pay-per-view. On that show, Hayter was written out of storylines via an attack by the debuting Thekla. The report notes that AEW would be featuring Hayter on programming if she were available, and that creative plans involving Thekla have been adjusted due to Hayter's status. Hayter Previously Detailed Grueling Injury Recovery This current absence is especially concerning given the severity of the herniated discs that kept Hayter away from the ring for over a year. In a past interview with Renee Paquette, she detailed the grueling nature of that recovery. All Elite Wrestling ALL IN at Wembley Stadium in London on August 27, 2023. All Elite Wrestling ALL IN at Wembley Stadium in London on August 27, 2023. Courtesy of AEW "I wasn't even aware of the injury until it was really bad. I couldn't walk," Hayter recalled. "I couldn't even stand up straight. My body was at an angle, I just couldn't do anything." She explained that the pain was constant and debilitating. The injury made even simple daily tasks nearly impossible to complete. "I couldn't laugh, I couldn't sneeze, I couldn't cough, I couldn't sit down, I couldn't stand in the shower, I couldn't lay down on my back, I couldn't really do anything." More news: WWE News: Steve Austin Reveals Real-Life Vince McMahon Confrontation The Mental Toll Of Recovery The physical pain also led to a significant mental and emotional struggle. Hayter admitted that she began to question her passion for the wrestling business. "It got to a point where I was like I don't know if I even want to do it again. I don't know why," she said. "I think it was the pain and everything that happened. I just really wasn't sure. It was almost like I had to find myself again, find my purpose, and find my passion to do it again." She was bed-bound for months before she could begin to feel like herself again. "When the pain from my injury kind of subsided a little bit, that's when I could see the light a little bit more... When the pain subsided, I could start moving again. For me personally, being physical is my enjoyment; that is what I do best." More WWE News: For more on WWE, head to Newsweek Sports.
Yahoo
14-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Is WWE Still Being Run by the Spirit of Vince McMahon?
Is WWE Still Being Run by the Spirit of Vince McMahon? originally appeared on Athlon Sports. WrestleMania 40 featured one of the biggest feel-good moments in WWE history. Cody Rhodes had finally dethroned Roman Reigns for the WWE championship. Triple H was now running the company. This was the beginning of a new era that would lead WWE into a prosperous and fan-friendly future. Advertisement Just over a year later, WWE has squandered much of that goodwill with the fans. The company is still making truckloads of money and is the clear leader in the pro wrestling world. But the public relations department seems to have taken an extended vacation, with several moves taking place that evoke the cutthroat spirit of deposed WWE leader Vince McMahon. R-Truth (Getty) When R-Truth announced on Sunday that WWE was not renewing his contract, many fans thought he must be joking. After all, he had just wrestled John Cena on Saturday Night's Main Event. Truth's fans and co-workers poured out their love and support for the beloved and versatile star, who had just spent 17 years with WWE. Then, the other shoe dropped. Carlito announced that he was also being let go, despite appearing every week on TV as a member of The Judgment Day. Truth is 53 and Carlito is 46, and they can't be employed as wrestlers forever. But the timing and optics are terrible. Also, with the release of Braun Strowman, Dakota Kai, and several other wrestlers last month, we seem to be back in the Vince McMahon days when wrestlers and staff members are expendable and dropped from the payroll just to please the WWE (now TKO) shareholders. Advertisement Another example of WWE acting like the old days its aggressive tactics in counterprogramming AEW pay-per-views. WWE scheduled three shows on the weekend on Double or Nothing and will do the same in July against All In Texas. When AEW moved the All In start time to the afternoon, WWE scheduled the Great American Bash head-to-head! It all looks bad. WWE management is not acting like the confident leaders of the pro wrestling world. Instead, they are putting profits before people and acting like they are scared of any real competition. We'll see if they can right the ship or whether they continue to waste the goodwill they have built since WrestleMania 40. Related: John Cena Should Face a Different Opponent at Saturday Night's Main Event Related: Will Ospreay Issues Unique Challenge to Released WWE Wrestlers This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 2, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
WWE vs. AEW: Who's winning 2025's wrestling war?
If there's one thing that titillates wrestling obsessives, it's when one of the major promotions — WWE or AEW — makes an explicit reference to the other. These days the digs and attacks tend to be much rarer than in the past, but that doesn't stop them from being thrilling when they happen. Witness the social-media flutter this past May when an enterprising journalist used AEW's Double or Nothing press huddle to ask Tony Khan his opinions on WWE's none-too-subtle tactic of booking NXT premium live events against AEW's most important pay-per-view shows — one of the most aggressive competitive moves WWE has made against Khan's company. Advertisement That the AEW founder delivered an impeccably diplomatic answer did little to quell the excitement of those who spend their hours musing on the state of competition between WWE and AEW. Of course, here at Uncrowned, we have much less reason to mince our words on these things. So here's an analysis of the status of the battle between the two big promotions. The valuation gap Before making any kind of comparison between the two promotions, you need to acknowledge the 10-ton elephant that squats over this topic. Whatever you make of the rival products, WWE is objectively a much larger company than AEW in terms of money in the bank (no pun intended). Advertisement Even the most flattering estimates value AEW at around $2 billion, which is still less than a quarter of what TKO paid for WWE two years ago. And that latter number was before WWE finalized its massive Netflix deal, which has helped add some billions to TKO's overall market cap in the past year. None of this means there aren't specific areas where the numbers are closer (television viewing figures, for example), but it would be silly to pretend WWE doesn't have a massive edge due to its size and history. Media rights and viewing figures For all the focus on live shows, the modern pro-wrestling game is a television business: Both WWE and AEW make most of their money by selling their product to television and streaming networks. Advertisement For a rough comparison, WWE's various deals (Netflix, Peacock, NBCUniversal, etc.) bring in somewhere in the region of $1 billion per year. By contrast, AEW's recent media deal with Warner Bros. Discovery is valued at around $185 million per year — so less than a fifth of what WWE brings in. The big prize here is the Netflix deal, which was rightly hailed as a bit of a game-changer for wrestling when it was confirmed last year. The slight wrinkle on that front is WWE's Netflix viewing figures haven't been as huge as some expected, prompting some whispers about whether the streaming giant paid too much. As for viewership, AEW's U.S. television audience is around half of WWE's. 'AEW Collision' typically draws around 600,000 viewers in the U.S., compared to 1.2 million for 'WWE SmackDown.' That said, AEW's numbers have dipped over the past year or so, but now appear to be stabilizing. (Hat tip to the excellent Wrestlenomics, who publish detailed numbers on this.) The verdict: Advantage WWE John Cena and CM Punk face off during "WWE Raw." (Craig Ambrosio/WWE via Getty Images) (WWE via Getty Images) Live shows and ticket gates As much as we get tired of TKO's obsession with announcing all these record gates at every PLE, there's no denying WWE's audience revenue is seriously impressive at the moment. It just did $3 million for 'WWE Raw' in London, for example. Advertisement On top of that, TKO's current focus is persuading cities to pay hefty 'site fees' for the right to host bigger events — like New Jersey paying $7 million to host this year's WWE SummerSlam double-header. That's almost certainly a big factor in why WrestleMania is heading back to Las Vegas in 2026. On the other hand, AEW's gate revenue is much lower. Double or Nothing made $600,000 last month, for example. That said, their overseas events are still big league: All In at London's Wembley Stadium made $9 million and $6 million in 2023 and 2024, respectively. Gate revenues are one thing, but what about the crowds? On average, AEW's weekly shows draw around one quarter of the WWE audience (around 3,000 compared to 11,000 fans) — a ratio that has gotten steeper in WWE's favor over the past two years. AEW's bigger shows are still drawing decent crowds (in the 10,000 range) that are on par with the smaller WWE PLEs. At the end of the day, though, there's one wrestling promotion that can fill giant American stadiums like Allegiant in Las Vegas or MetLife in New Jersey — and it isn't Khan's. Advertisement The verdict: Advantage WWE The talent Defining a great wrestler is always going to involve subjective judgments. But on a business level, I'd argue that it usually boils down to one particular metric: the strength of the personal brand in terms of drawing viewers. If we're taking stock of the two promotions, there's no question both have some massive talents. But does AEW really have anyone who matches the Hollywood-level star power of The Rock, John Cena and Rhea Ripley? I'd venture not. It's that kind of clout that allows WWE to poach talent from its rival when it wants to. Just look at Mariah May and Jade Cargill, for example. Both had plenty of momentum in AEW and were likely making decent wages, but when the bigger brand came knocking, they were happy to make the jump. Advertisement That said, we shouldn't fully discount AEW's tagline of being 'where the best wrestle.' It's a good insight into how Khan sees his brand — and plenty of wrestling aficionados would agree that he's doing a great job on that front. Just look at the rave reaction to 2025's Double or Nothing show, for example. The verdict: Advantage WWE Kenny Omega's return has bolstered AEW's roster. () (Etsuo Hara via Getty Images) The product In many ways, this is the big question: Is the product any good? Television deals, gate revenue and site fees might bring in the bacon, but, at the end of the day, they're all downstream from the quality of the product. So how do the promotions compare right now? Let's start with WWE. Going into 2025, the company was widely regarded to be on fire — particularly with the Netflix deal incoming and the anticipation of John Cena's retirement tour. But there's a growing sense the product has been losing steam over the past few months. Advertisement Perhaps the success of the Bloodline/Cody Rhodes era gave us unrealistic expectations, or maybe we're all overreacting to the anticlimactic payoff to this year's WrestleMania. But it doesn't change the fact there's been a significant vibe shift from the fan base. And what of AEW? It's had some rough moments, for sure, but the most recent shows have begun to turn a corner. Double or Nothing was an absolute slam dunk and seems to be setting things up nicely for their biggest show of the year with July's All In. On a long-term view, though, the fundamentals haven't changed: WWE is still the granddaddy of pro wrestling. But if we're talking strictly about momentum — i.e. where things are moving right now — then AEW's lines are pointing in the right direction, while WWE's are floundering slightly. The verdict: (Slight) advantage AEW
Newsweek
09-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Newsweek
AEW Star Suffers Devasting Setback After Undergoing Surgery
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. AEW star Bryan Cage is facing a long road to recovery after undergoing a second major surgery in just eight weeks. The powerhouse wrestler revealed he recently had a knee replacement. This procedure comes shortly after he had surgery to repair a torn quad tendon suffered in March. Despite the significant setbacks, Cage is already back in the gym, showcasing his trademark intensity and determination. Cage made his AEW debut at Double or Nothing in 2020, winning the Casino Ladder Match and later becoming the FTW Champion under the management of Taz. As a founding member of Team Taz, he was a dominant force before being kicked out of the group. More news: WWE News: Steve Austin Reveals Real-Life Vince McMahon Confrontation In recent years, he has been a key member of the Mogul Embassy faction alongside Swerve Strickland and Prince Nana, primarily competing in AEW and its sister promotion, ROH. He is a former two-time ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Champion. The string of injuries began with a quad tear that forced him and his tag team partner, Lance Archer, to be pulled from a scheduled AEW World Tag Team Championship match at the Dynasty pay-per-view in April. Cage explained on social media that he decided to address a long-standing knee issue while he was already sidelined. BOGOTA, COLOMBIA - NOVEMBER 16: A general view of the AAA Mexican Lucha Libre friday night show at the Movistar Arena during an AAA World Wide Wrestling match on November 16, 2018 in Bogota, Colombia. BOGOTA, COLOMBIA - NOVEMBER 16: A general view of the AAA Mexican Lucha Libre friday night show at the Movistar Arena during an AAA World Wide Wrestling match on November 16, 2018 in Bogota, Colombia."I've been dealing with excessive knee pain for years and have been working through it with the intention of going under the knife after All In," Cage wrote on Instagram. "With the unfortunate setback of tearing my quad, I figured F it, let's just get 'em both done." He remains defiant and focused on his eventual return to the ring. "Love me, hate me, or somewhere in-between, you can't deny I'm a f***** machine! Not an easy or fun choice, but I'm gonna come back ripping heads off. Especially if this is me right now after surgery." Cage is a good in-ring worker and was getting a notable push by AEW CEO Tony Khan before he was sidelined with this injury. Perhaps, when Cage returns to television, AEW will give him a renewed push that can set him up for a bigger run with the promotion. More WWE News: For more on WWE, head to Newsweek Sports.
