NXT Star Pulls Double Duty at Axxess, Cena Talks Feud with Rock, More

- Other matches from Thursday’s WrestleMania Axxess event saw Adrian Neville defeat Curt Hawkins, Xavier Woods defeat Dante Dash, Mason Ryan defeat another NXT wrestler and tag team action with Yoshi Tatsu and Ezekiel Jackson defeating a returning Hunico and Camacho. Neville lost to Primo earlier in the day. It was said that the crowd didn’t know who Neville was but he won them over in the ring.

- John Cena spoke with USA Today about his WrestleMania 29 match against WWE Champion The Rock:

“I’m handling things a little bit differently this year and that’s going to make this year a little more special for me, win, lose or draw. I’m certainly as dedicated but I’ve proven myself. Last year I proved I could out-talk the Rock and out-perform the Rock, and he had a lucky string of circumstances. This year he won’t be so lucky.”

NXT Updates on Steamboat’s Departure, Flair’s Daughter, Generico, More

- As noted before, Ricky Steamboat is no longer a coach in WWE developmental but official company word is that he will be staying within the Talent Relations department. A lot of the guys in NXT are bummed about the news because of who Steamboat is. He was said to be a very good coach overall. There was talk that some of his ideas didn’t fit in with the current product but if anything negative was said about him it was very minor.

- Rami Sebei, the former El Generico, has been doing great on promos at practice in developmental. There was some question about how his promo work would be since his gimmick on the indies wasn’t talking.

- Two NXT wrestlers who have been praised that didn’t come from the independent scene are Mojo Rawley (Dean Muhtadi) and Jason Jordan (Nathan Everhart). Rawley is a former NFL player.

- Ric Flair’s daughter Ashley, known in NXT as Charlotte, is the most athletic woman in WWE developmental and probably the entire WWE roster. It’s said she has developed a passion for wrestling.

Stephanie McMahon Wants More Lead Creative Writers

- After firing Eric Pankowski a few weeks back, WWE currently does not have one single lead creative writer - they have approximately four, and Stephanie McMahon apparently wants more. 

As noted, the guy currently replacing Pankowski is a guy that was hired by him as a VP in creative a few months back. He's now been promoted to Senior VP. Another writer is David Kreizman, a daytime Emmy winner, who was hired a few months back. Then you have Ed Koskey, who is RAW's lead writer, Dave Kapoor, who is SmackDown's lead writer and Ryan Ward, who works with Dusty Rhodes on NXT. 

There's a running joke that many different people have different titles, the pay sucks for those positions and that within the past week, a few people asked for raises and were denied. "They have enough people to field a football team," it was noted by a source.

Paul Heyman's Status with CM Punk, WWE Payback PPV Poster Revealed, More on Eve at NXT

- Brock Lesnar is featured on the promotional poster for WWE's Payback pay-per-view so it looks like he will be working that event:

- Regarding Paul Heyman spending most of his time on RAW with Brock Lesnar, he has not been split from his association with CM Punk. The feeling is that Heyman isn't needed in the segments with Punk and The Undertaker. 

- We noted before that former WWE Diva Eve Torres met with some of the potential new Diva talents at NXT recently. Part of the reason Eve was there was so she could explain to the women what the WWE lifestyle on the road is like so they have an idea about what they're getting into. 

Jim Ross Blogs on Thursday's WWE NXT Tapings, Monday's RAW with Rock and Cena, More

WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross is back with a new blog on jrsbarbq.com. Here are some highlights: 

- We had one of our best nights of TV production ever at NXT on Thursday while taping five, one hour broadcasts of NXT. The marathon took less than four hours which is a credit to all involved on the production and organizational side notwithstanding the talents themselves. 

- @BigELangston had an impressive night and I look for 'E' to have a memorable 2013 in WWE. Hugely strong, highly intelligent, athletic with good feet, Big E simply needs experience to become what WWE needs from him and that is to be a break through star ala The Shield. 

- Good work at the announce desk by Tony Dawson, Tom Phillips, William Regal and Brad Maddox. Maddox could evolve to be very good in the color commentator role as he has a natural gift of gab, good timing and is a bright kid. I always said that he reminded me of the late, Eddie Gilbert while watching Maddox in the ring down in talent development. @MichaelCole and I enjoy working with the young broadcasters who are getting plenty of reps in NXT. 

- WWE has hired a new, strength and conditioning coach which is a brilliant move for the long term development of every talent in the system. 

- HUGE RAW Monday in Philly headlined by both @TheRock and @JohnCena in the house live. The redemption vs. legacy tag lines are all well and good and while being accurate never discount the fact that both men are hugely competitive and accustomed to being 'the man.' They are Alpha Males of which is always interesting to observe. I've often wondered how Rock and Cena would have co-existed during parts of the Attitude Era especially when one throws in an element like @steveaustinBSR. It would have made for an interesting locker room. These two men travel in different circles and have never been in the WWE grind long enough together to build the unique and often times unspoken bond that many performers have. Call me naive if you choose but I see two, strong willed men who will try to show up the other on April 7 when finesse inside the ring ropes won't be acceptable to them or the fans.

Batista Backstage at WWE NXT Tapings

- Batista was backstage for last night's WWE NXT tapings in Winter Park, Florida. He was there visiting and taping an interview for WWE's upcoming Triple H DVD. Here is a photo:

Several Wrestling Personalities Comment on Last Night's Loaded WWE NXT Tapings

- As noted in the spoilers earlier, WWE taped 5 episodes of NXT last night from Full Sail University. Last night's tapings were loaded with more stars than usual including The Bella Twins, The Shield, Big E Langston, Chris Jericho, Cameron, Naomi, Kaitlyn, AJ Lee, Wade Barrett and others. WWE Hall of Famer Harley Race was also there looking at the talents. 

Here are some comments from Twitter: 

Chris Jericho: "Had a great time at @WWENXT last night-what a facility! Killer fans too! Very good match w @WWEBrayWyatt…I predict he’ll be a champion soon" 

Michael Cole: "Historic night @WWENXT. The stars of tomorrow are truly here! There are guys ready for major stardom on main roster right now. The best part about @WWENXT is the arena @FullSail and the nxt fans! It's truly your show. Thanks for the support each month!" 

Jim Ross: "We taped five, one #NXT broadcasts tonight in just under four hours. Hard work, some outstanding matches, full house. Thanks to all. #WWE Really fun night at #NXT. Young talents stepping up. Post WM29 call ups intriguing." 

William Regal: "A night to remember(Shalamar!)at @WWENXT.Thanks to @IAmJericho @WadeBarrett @AntonioCesaro and all the NXT competitors,staff and announcers." 

Wade Barrett: "Thanks to the guys and girls @WWENXT. Overflowing with talent right now. Crowd @FullSail is one of the best I've ever known. Loud."

Spoilers: 5 More Weeks of WWE NXT Tapings

- WWE taped five new episodes of NXT last night at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida. Here are full spoilers: 

Airing April 4th: 

* Bo Dallas and Adrian Neville defeated Erick Rowan and Luke Harper 

* William Regal came out and attacked Kassius Ohno, who was on commentary. 

* Sasha Banks and Paige beat Audrey Marie and Summer Rae when Summer ran away from the match. 

* NXT Champion Big E Langston defeated Conor O'Brian with the title on the line 

Airing April 11th: 

* Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns beat Scott Dawson, Axl Keegan and Percy Watson. They hit the triple powerbomb on Dawson after the match. Ambrose said justice has been served for NXT. Rollins and Reigns also cut a promo. Corey Graves appeared on the big screen and said he doesn't believe in The Shield. Graves issues a challenge for next week. 

* The Bella Twins beat Cameron and Naomi 

* William Regal defeated Kassius Ohno in the match of the night 

Airing April 18th: 

* Tonight's show has a champions theme and will feature title matches. 

* WWE US Champion Antonio Cesaro defeated NXT Tag Team Champion Andrian Neville 

* WWE Divas Champion Kaitlyn beat AJ Lee 

* WWE NXT Champion Big E Langston beat Brad Maddox 

* WWE IC Champion Wade Barrett beat Bo Dallas 

Airing April 25th: 

* Emma defeated Bayley 

* Leo Kruger beat Justin Gabriel 

* Bray Wyatt beat Yoshi Tatsu. After the match, The Wyatt Family attacked Yoshi.

* Seth Rollins beat Corey Graves in a Lumberjack Match. The Lumberjacks were a bunch of NXT stars. After the match, Reigns and Ambrose came down and attacked the Lumberjacks, getting the upperhand. 

Airing May 2nd: 

* The Wyatt Family defeated Primo & Epico and Adrien Neville & Bo Dallas in a tag team elimination match. 

* Paige beat Summer Rae 

* Chris Jericho defeated Bray Wyatt

Another NXT Event Change, SummerSlam Pre-Sale, Raw Backstage Fallout

- Embedded in the video below is the latest Raw Backstage Fallout episode. This week features featuring AJ Lee, Natalya, The Great Khali and The Prime Time Players.
- Tickets for SummerSlam from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA on August 18th, go on sale to the general public this Saturday, March 23rd at 10am PT. The pre-sale code is SLAM.
- John Cena will appear at the NXT TV taping on May 2nd, 2013 & Ryback will be at the NXT taping on May 23rd, 2013.
No one from WWE’s main roster is advertised for the NXT taping on April 11th, 2013. As noted earlier, the original advertisement for the April 11th event listed Ryback, then it was changed to Cena. Both men have now been shifted to the tapings in May.

Rollins Comments on WM Debut, Cena & Sheamus Note

- Today would have been the 38th birthday of former WWE star Andrew "Test" Martin. 

- John Cena will be appearing at the May 2nd WWE NXT TV tapings from Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida. Sheamus will be appearing at the May 23rd tapings. 

- Seth Rollins tweeted the following about The Shield making their WrestleMania debut this year: 

"The hounds of justice are #Wrestlemania bound. There's not a day gone by in the last 10 years I haven't dreamt of this. #BelieveInTheShield"

Recent WWE Attendance, Business Notes, More

- Average WWE live event attendance for January 2013 in North America was up 1.9% from 5,307 to 5,409. RAW's average rating for the month went from a 3.15 with 4.51 million viewers in 2012 to a 3.26 rating with 4.58 million viewers in 2013. SmackDown's average rating went from a 2.09 with 3.05 million viewers in 2012 down to a 2.02 rating 2.94 million viewers in 2013. 

WWE shipped 246,000 DVD units in January 2013, up 55.7% from January 2012. Over the last year, the most shipped DVD's have been WrestleMania 28 with 237,000 units shipped, CM Punk with 124,000 units, Attitude Era with 117,000 shipped, nWo with 114,000 shipped and The Undertaker's DVD with 105,000. 

WWE's website had 14.6 million unique viewers in January 2013, up 21.7% from January 2012. They averaged 677 shop orders per day, up 23.5% from the previous year. 

- Here are recent WWE attendance figures: 

* RAW on 3/8 in Colorado Springs drew 5,500 for $200,000 
* RAW on 3/9 in Broomfield, Colorado drew 5,000 fans for $185,000 
* SmackDown on 3/9 in Lacrosse, Wisconsin drew 4,500 fans for $120,000 
* RAW on 3/10 in Loveland, Colorado drew 4,000 fans for $140,000 
* SmackDown on 3/10 in Milwaukee drew 9,000 for $280,000 

- WWE NXT stars will be wrestling at this year's WrestleMania Axxess events. 

- Gerald Brisco was scouting for WWE at the NCAA Division II national wrestling tournament this past week and will be headed to the finals later this month. Brisco is high on a few college juniors as pro wrestling prospects. WWE is trying to not get a bad reputation with college wrestling coaches so they won't heavily recruit talents until their eligibility is complete.

Backstage News on WWE Negotiating with Former Divas

The Bella Twins returning to WWE goes back 6 or 7 weeks when officials decided they wanted more women on TV and wanted to beef the Divas division up. At first, the plan was to call up some of the Divas from NXT but that idea was nixed. Then officials decided they wanted to bring back some of the WWE Divas who had left the company recently.

It's said that some of the Divas who recently left the company were offered more money than they were making before. Apparently some of the other Divas haven't accepted offers yet but are in talks and may be waiting on better offers. The Bella Twins reportedly accepted WWE's first offer. No word yet on which former Divas are in talks to return.