Here is your fight size update for Monday, October 4, 2021.
- Rhea Ripley spoke to Sports Illustrated recently and opened up about being herself in professional wrestling and her tag team with Nikki ASH
“Nikki is such a special person,” Ripley says. “What you see on TV is what you get in person, and I love being around her. She’s so positive and lights up a dull room, and she’s always looking to help people. That’s why the superhero character works so well for her. And we’re excited to be on Raw. The great part about being tag team champions is that we can go wherever we want, and I’m so excited to team with Nikki and make some lasting moments together as champions.”
“It’s O.K. to be yourself,” Ripley says. “That’s harder to do than say, but once you do, life gets so much better. Don’t let the hate get to you, and live life the way you want. That’s what I plan on doing in WWE.”
- Speaking to Shakiel Mahjouri for ET Canada, CM Punk commented on working with Stephen Amell.
I can't say enough good things about Stephen. I think Stephen is not only an accomplished actor. This is a guy that has gotten into the ring on a number of occasions for a number of different companies. It wasn't just about., 'Oh I need to wrestle in the WWE' for Stephen. It was just, 'Oh, I need to wrestle.' He's wrestled for WWE, he wrestled for Ring of Honor. Before AEW was a thing, he did their one-off show in Chicago. So just a guy who follows his dreams, does what he wants. He's just such a great dude and I think that lends credibility to both sides of things. It helps 'Heels' out tremendously but it also helps out the wrestling side of things. It makes 'Heels' feel like more of an authentic show when you have someone attached to it who loves the source material so much.
- Speaking on a recent episode of the Battleground podcast, Maria Kanellis spoke about the punk-rock / DIY phase wrestling is in.
"We are in a punk rock phase. People have been held up in their houses, they have been told that they can't do what they want to do. They've been told this is the kind of wrestling you should like for many, many years, and everyone kind of threw up their middle fingers and said, 'No, I'm going to like the wrestling I want to like,' and I think you see it as a society outside of wrestling. But I think right now, because wrestling is a representation of society, that you're seeing a lot here. Yeah, there have been talents that has been cultivated over many, many years now. A lot of them have basically had their wings clipped.
"Now they're free to go back out there and show everybody why they're so popular. On top of that everybody is working out differently. So before it was, 'I'm gonna pump heavy weights,' and all this stuff. Everybody functional trains now. So that wrestling window of maybe5-10 years of being at your best is now 15-20 years, you see [Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian] out there killing it better than everyone else. It's like, how long is the window of having your very best years on wrestling? Yeah, so now, all of those people for the last 20 years in wrestling are all at the top of their game. Yeah, so and they all have ideas about this industry. Plus, you add social media on top of that."
If you use any of the quotes above, please credit Fightful for the transcription by linking back to this article.
- In a health update for Brian Knobbs, the former WWE Tag Team Champion suffered a fall while rehabilitating and broke his clavicle.
Hello everyone, Brian has given me access to his account because he is unable to post due to his condition. Brian was moved into a physical rehab facility and was progressing well until an unfortunate accident happen where he fell breaking his clavicle and cracking his head which required over 9 stitches. This has slowed down his progress alot as he now has to recover from his latest injuries. His spirits are still high however his personal and medical bills are mounting. We are now looking to get him into a more adequate rehab Center as this one is based in a seniors facility and cannot properly facilitate Brian's needs. Brian would like to personally thank everyone for all the love and continued support. Let's help our nasty friend on his journey to a full recovery.
- Superstar Billy Graham has also provided an update on his health on his personal Facebook page.
Hello fans, I have a ton of tests this coming week starting tomorrow at the Mayo Clinic. So until these issues have been resolved I won't be putting up any wrestling-themed posts. When I get some answers, I will give you good folks a full rundown on what is going on with my health; which has gotten very complicated. Peace to one and all… Superstar Billy Graham
- PWInsider.com has reported that NBC's Young Rock, which will begin to film later this year in Australia, is casting "High Chief" Peter Maivia.
- Appearing on Sportskeeda Wrestling's Smack Talk, Dutch Mantell, former booker in multiple promotions, says he'd pick Rhea Ripley to win the Queen's Crown Tournament.
"What about that girl? Who's Nikki A.S.H.'s partner? Rhea Ripley. I would just go with her," Mantell said.
- After taking a break last year due to COVID-19, Milwaukee's Crusherfest, celebrating the AWA legend The Crusher returns and this year, Crusher will be inducted into the Milwaukee Wrestling Hall of Fame.
- WWE Celebrity Hall of Famer William Shatner, at age 90, will make history this time as the oldest person to ever go into outer space.
William Shatner and Blue Origin’s Audrey Powers to fly on New Shepard’s 18th mission
Today, Blue Origin announced actor William Shatner and Audrey Powers, Blue Origin’s Vice President of Mission & Flight Operations, will fly on board New Shepard NS-18. They will join crewmates Chris Boshuizen and Glen de Vries for the flight which lifts off from Launch Site One on October 12.
William Shatner
William Shatner’s career as an actor, director, producer, writer, recording artist, and horseman has spanned 60 years. He originated the role of “Captain James T. Kirk” in 1966 for the television series Star Trek. The series spawned a feature film franchise where Shatner returned as Captain Kirk in seven of the Star Trek movies, one of which he directed. He has long wanted to travel to space and will become the oldest person to have flown to space.
Shatner is currently the host and executive producer of The UnXplained on The History Channel. From the producers of Ancient Aliens and The Curse of Oak Island, the one-hour, non-fiction series explores the world’s most fascinating, strange and inexplicable mysteries.
“I’ve heard about space for a long time now. I’m taking the opportunity to see it for myself. What a miracle,” said William Shatner.
Audrey Powers
Audrey joined Blue Origin in 2013 and oversees all New Shepard flight operations, vehicle maintenance, and launch, landing, and ground support infrastructure. In collaboration with New Shepard’s Safety & Mission Assurance team, Test & Flight Operations, Chief Engineers, and external partners, Audrey played a lead role in the multi-year process to certify New Shepard for human flight. Prior to leading New Shepard’s Mission and Flight Operations team, she served as Deputy General Counsel and Vice President of Legal & Compliance for Blue Origin, overseeing a wide variety of legal, regulatory and policy matters.
Audrey worked as an engineer for almost a decade before becoming a lawyer. As a guidance and controls engineer, she was a flight controller for NASA with 2,000 hours of console time in Mission Control for the International Space Station Program. In addition to serving as executive sponsor of Blue Origin’s New Mercury gender diversity business resource group, she is a pilot and serves as the Chair of the Board of Directors of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation.
“I’m so proud and humbled to fly on behalf of Team Blue, and I’m excited to continue writing Blue’s human spaceflight history,” said Audrey Powers. “I was part of the amazing effort we assembled for New Shepard’s Human Flight Certification Review, a years-long initiative completed in July 2021. As an engineer and lawyer with more than two decades of experience in the aerospace industry, I have great confidence in our New Shepard team and the vehicle we’ve developed.”
Live launch coverage begins on BlueOrigin.com at T-90 minutes. Liftoff is currently targeted for 8:30 am CDT / 13:30 UTC from Launch Site One in West Texas.
This flight follows Blue Origin’s successful first human flight on July 20 which included Jeff Bezos, Mark Bezos, aviation pioneer Wally Funk, and Blue Origin’s first customer, Oliver Daemen. Here is a recap of their historic mission to space.
Also on board NS-18 will be thousands of postcards from Blue Origin’s foundation, Club for the Future.
Follow @BlueOrigin on Twitter and sign up on BlueOrigin.com to stay up to date on all mission details.
- Here is this week’s WWE Network release schedule:
Monday, October 4
Raw Talk** – 11:05 p.m. ETWednesday, October 6
Monday Night Raw (9/6/21)**
WWE’s The Bump** – 10 a.m. ET
WWE NXT (10/5/21)Thursday, October 7
NXT UK
This Week in WWEFriday, October 8
205 Live – 10 p.m. ETSaturday, October 9
WWE Main Event (9/16/21)
Talking Smack**
ICW Fight Club 192
wXw We Love Wrestling 15Sunday, October 10
Friday Night SmackDown (9/10/21)**
- Stunning WWE Superstars’ 8K entrances: WWE Playlist
- Here's the latest Green With Envy podcast from Chelsea Green.
- The Garganos talk about calling Mr. McMahon & more: WWE What the Hell’s on Your Cell?
- Here is everything you need to know before Monday Night Raw.
- When the market closed today, WWE stock was trading at $57.78 per share.
- Make sure you are subscribed to Fightful Select. A subscription grants you early access to interviews, Q&A opportunities, early looks at breaking news, and more. Also, make sure to check us out on YouTube and Twitch.
- Big E wants to keep Brodie Lee’s memory alive: Oral Sessions with Renee Paquette
