Muhammad Hassan, real name Marc Copani, wrestled his first match in nearly 13 years last weekend against Papadon. I've spoken at length about my interviews with him, and I'll quickly admit that based on the conversations I've had with him, I was really surprised to see him return to the ring. He looked in great shape, especially for a 38-year old former pro wrestler-turned-educator. He hadn't competed in any matches since WWE "killed him off" back in 2005 during a program with The Undertaker.
I reached out to Copani after the match happened, and he told me he thought the match was a lot of fun, and that the two went nice and slow. He said that he thought he'd wake up more banged up than what he was, but ended up feeling great the next day. He's also considering taking the occasional match and wrestling date, but noted that he wasn't intending on going into full-on "weekend warrior" mode any time soon. Copani has said his recent appearance on the Why It Ended podcast contributed to his decision.
It's worth noting that WWE had abandoned the Muhammad Hassan trademark back in 2006, so it's free for Copani to use, which he has actually checked up on himself.
Having a podcast booth at All-In's Starrcast will cost between $499-599 depending on how far ahead you book it. All-In is making an effort to have their event be a weekend spectacular, and has brought on the likes of Dave Meltzer, Bruce Prichard, DDP, Eric Bischoff, Colt Cabana, Sean Waltman, JJ Dillon, and several others to bolster their live stage of podcasters. The "Podcast Row" package gives buyers at least one interview before the event, two during the event, and a spot in the media area covering the show. There are questions about ethics and paying that should probably be reserved to closer to showtime, but ultimately, this is where you can blur the lines between sports and entertainment coverage.
Thank you to our friends at Pro Wrestling Unlimited for passing along the info.
WWE Raw
Dean Malenko handled the duties for Bobby Roode vs. Elias, including the finish that saw Roode helped off. D-Von Dudley, who is often tasked with handling tag-team matches, was the producer for the Authors of Pain squash match. The outstanding Sasha Banks vs. Ruby Riott match was produced by former TNA star Sarita, also known by her real name, Sarah Stock. She also worked on Natalya vs. Mickie James, along with help from Tyson Kidd -- who was tasked with producing No Way Jose vs. Baron Corbin.
A man who knows a thing or two about being in a six-man tag situation -- "Mr. Doot Doot Doot" himself, Michael Hayes helped put together the Strowman, Reigns & Lashley against Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn& Jinder Mahal match.
Information on one of the promos was also discovered. Former J&J Security member helped out with Seth Rollins' in-ring promo that saw him attacked by Finn Balor. Nobles' responsibilities carried over to him also producing the Intercontinental Championship that served as the night's main event.
Omissions from the WWE Monday Night Raw script included the Samoa Joe clip that aired during Roman Reigns' interview, just before Jinder Mahal came to the ring.
Smackdown Live
As we revealed on the site this week, Daniel Bryan was originally planned for Smackdown and factored into the script before WWE's medical staff withheld him. He was set to interrupt the Big Cass and "Little Bryan" segment, but due to a fear of a chest infection, he was held off the show and his part of the promo was nixed. In reality, WWE just didn't like the way the bruises looked on TV.
Andrade 'Cien' Almas and Zelina's selfie promo, however, wasn't factored into the final script or rundown of the Smackdown show. Instead, it was just listed as a "selfie" promo with no name attached to it. A planned Sanity VTR was also not aired, even though it was scheduled to appear just before the interaction between The Bar and The New Day.
No producers for the matches were noted in any documents I saw this week.
During an exclusive interview with Fightful.com, UFC fighter Belal Muhammad revealed that former WWE Champion CM Punk has been in contact with Ronda Rousey since her pro wrestling debut. Muhammad went as far as to say that CM Punk even spoke to Rousey after she had her first match at WrestleMania 34. He also specified that pro wrestling isn't really something that Punk ever discusses in the gym at Roufusport.
UFC Crossover
Speaking of James Lynch and MMA/WWE crossover, he continues to do a great job of gauging interest in pro wrestlers among the UFC and Bellator fighters that he interviews for us. On occasion, it will land information like the aforementioned Rousey & Punk news.
Lynch was able to speak to UFC fighter Brian Kelleher, who said that he'd actually considered making a move after his UFC career is over. Andrea "AK" Lee, who is making her UFC debut soon said that she didn't really pay much attention to it until Ronda Rousey debuted, but is has kickstarted her interest in both watching it and potentially participating if she could nail down the acting side of things.
Those who Lynch talked to who said weren't interested at all were Belal Muhammad and Sijara Eubanks. The consensus among UFC fighters that fell out of love with pro wrestling seems to be the Attitude Era. You always hear them in these interviews discussing how much they adored Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock in particular, which isn't a surprised as they were marquee, transcendent stars to which have never been seen before or after.
You never know who you'll end up talking to in the MMA world who could make a successful transition. Four years ago I interviewed Matt Riddle ahead of his last MMA fight and just threw out the topic of pro wrestling as a way to extend the interview and gain another quote, and now he's one of the hottest commodities on the independent circuit.