Dirt Sheet History: February 2010

Take a trip back to a memorable timeline in sports entertainment with the most important stories reported as fact in the journalistic world of pro wrestling dirt sheets.

Following the timeline of the last Dirt Sheet History looking back at January 2010, we get a glimpse into the top scoops from February of 2010 as we read Dirt Sheet History.

Reminder that you can find all past editions of Dirt Sheet History looking at 2004 through 2009 right here. Now enjoy February 2010!

2/1/2010

TNA President Dixie Carter explained that TNA Wrestling is going up against a corporate juggernaut that will stop at nothing to put them out of business.

“Our competition may not have the same opinion that competition is good for an industry and take every opportunity to try to shut us down,” she said. “I mean, it is the truest of David-and-Goliath situations, but we are scrappy. We will not take no for an answer, and we are going to have great success.”

With everything that WWE has going for them, Carter believes her company has a better in ring product and knows what the fans want.

2/2/2010

Rob Van Dam will be starring in the upcoming straight-to-DVD action movie “Wrong Side of Town” – or so he thought.

During an interview on the “Between the Ropes” radio show, Van Dam accused the studio Lionsgate of taking him off top billing in favor of his co-star, WWE superstar Batista. Van Dam was under the impression that it was his movie, he’d be the star and Batista was a supporting character. He couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw that Batista was featured front and center on the DVD box.

“I thought it was my movie. The movie was written for me, I was there for three weeks, filmed every day except for one day, they came out with the DVD box cover and, oh my God, I didn’t realize Batista is the star of it!,” RVD said sarcastically.

2/3/2010

While watching Raw last week, Joey Styles took aim at D-Generation X on his Twitter, writing: “Is anybody else besides me sick of DX?”

He posted several other tweets commenting on the show, but they have all since been deleted.

2/5/2010

On his Facebook account, Bret Hart made some interesting comments regarding TNA. He wrote the following:

“It was nice seeing Jeremy Borash, a longtime friend of mine, from TNA while I was in Nashville. He hung out with me and we never once talked wrestling. Some feeble minded idiot who saw us in plain view tried to start the rumour that I might be heading to TNA next; although why anyone would ever think I’d let Hogan and Bischoff anywhere near my Hitman persona again is truly beyond me.”

Bischoff referred to Borash as a “mark” last week on his Twitter account for posting a photo of himself and Hart after their dinner, which also included several other TNA staffers.

2/6/2010

Former WWE performer Armando Estrada‘s Baby’s Steak and Lemonade restaurant based in Glendale, Arizona has a sandwich called the CM Punk. Its description reads: “The Straight Edge Sandwich Wrestles Grilled Chicken Breast, Marinara Sauce, Provolone Served On Fresh Baked Bread.”

2/8/2010

Bubba the Love Sponge is said to be the least popular person in the TNA locker room. Those who look past his shock jock personality say he gives off a vibe that he’s above everyone else due to his friendship with Hulk Hogan.

2/9/2010

There was some eye rolling in the TNA locker room when Hulk Hogan and The Nasty Boys had a laugh at the expense of X Division star Jay Lethal.

Jerry Sags openly questioned how long TNA will keep him employed and laughed at the audacity of his “Black Machismo” character.

2/11/2010

Chris Jericho’s Fozzy album, Chasing the Grail, failed to crack Billboard’s Top 200 chart in its first week of release.

Despite a heavy promotional push which included Martyr No More being used as one of the official theme songs for this year’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view, the album sold a mere 2,200 copies in the United States in its first week out.

2/12/2010

Though they may be big stars on television and draw relatively high ratings, that doesn’t necessarily translate into big checks for the stars of TNA’s Knockouts division.

In light of Awesome Kong‘s contractual dispute with TNA Wrestling, multiple sources have noted that the average pay for a female performer in the organization is between $200 to $400 per appearance. However, it’s widely assumed that Christy Hemme and Lisa Marie Varon (a/k/a Tara) make more money due to their past ties with World Wrestling Entertainment with sources believing that Kong makes slightly more than $400 per shot, which is considered a “high end salary” in the No. 2 wrestling organization in the world.

It’s interesting to note that a female performer who made the “high end salary” of $400, exclusively appeared on television, and appeared on every single television event held over the course of a calender year would only garner $26,000 at most. Although, that number comes in before one figures in road expenses, wardrobe expenses and taxes. Regarding travel, TNA solely covers airfare, leaving talent to cover the rest including lodging. Also note, there is no downside guarantee, thus meaning talent only get paid when they are used.

2/14/2010

Eric Bischoff is said to be very high on TNA newcomer Orlando Jordan. Jordan, who is openly bisexual, is having his character based around his bisexuality.

2/16/2010

No pairing of WWE NXT Pros and Rookies has garnered more scrutiny than Daniel Bryan and his allocated mentor, The Miz. In a blog post on the WWE Universe website, the United States Champion responds to those online saying he’s not fit to teach a wrestler of Bryan’s caliber.

In its entirety, here is what The Miz wrote:

Mentoring Daniel Bryan on WWE NXT

There has been a lot of controversy this week about me mentoring Daniel Bryan on WWE’s new show, WWE NXT.

I’ve read a lot of interviews, blogs, ect. about the matter and they all seem to be asking the same thing. “Why is The Miz mentoring Daniel Bryan when Daniel Bryan has wrestled all over the world for 10 years plus?”

It’s come to my knowledge that some members of the WWE Universe think they know everything about WWE and what it takes to be a WWE Superstar. They think that if a guy does well in the independent minor leagues, then all of a sudden he should be in the WWE.

They think that if a guy can main event in front of a hundred people at a bingo hall, then he’s ready to main event at WrestleMania. Just because fans on the Internet say you’re ready doesn’t mean you really are.

Just because a fat guy with no teeth who sits in the front row, buys your T-shirt and says you’re the king of wrestling, doesn’t mean you really are.

What the WWE Universe doesn’t understand is there is so much more then I can describe in a single blog involved in being successful in the WWE.

My job is to make Daniel Bryan a star in the WWE, because let’s face it, if you look at a picture of him right now, do you think STAR?

No, Daniel Bryan looks like my accountant … ordinary and bland.

Maybe if he had The Miz’s charisma and look, he would have been in the WWE by now. Don’t hate on me because it didn’t take me a decade to get a WWE contract and go down in WWE history to be the first Superstar to win the United States Title and Unified Tag Team Titles.

Don’t get me wrong, Daniel Bryan has all the talent in the world, but every wrestler has weaknesses. And that’s what my job is, to find his weakness and make him the biggest star possible.

I just hope Daniel Bryan doesn’t believe himself what these ignorant members of the WWE Universe believe about him, or WWE NXT is going to be a nightmare for him.

2/19/2010

John Morrison comments on The Miz mentoring Daniel Bryan on NXT: “Yeah, when I saw that, I was at the ECW taping, and I actually saw Miz. He didn’t know either until he saw the graphic on the screen. That he was the “Pro” and Bryan Danielson was the student. I walked by and said, “Pssh, he knows more than you do.” And that’s pretty much what everyone thinks. It’s gonna be interesting and I think that’s the point of it.”

2/20/2010

Chris Jericho commented on his sixth World title win at last night’s Elimination Chamber pay-per-view, remarking, “Wow, World Champion for the sixth time. This could never happen in TNA!”

Jericho is apparently referring to Eric Bischoff‘s recent comments noting him as a great talent, but not someone who should be main eventing.

2/22/2010

Eric Bischoff commented on the chances of certain former WCW talent joining TNA Wrestling.

When asked if TNA could hire Vampiro, Bischoff wrote, “No talent gimmick come lately.”

Another reader noted that Bischoff previously said there was no chance of Diamond Dallas Page showing up in TNA. However, the reader wanted to know whether there was a possibility of Kimberly Page surfacing in Orlando.

“Double no,” Bischoff wrote.

When asked about former WCW Cruiserweight Champion Juventud Guerrera, Bischoff called him “a world class screw up.” A reader then said that the same could be said about Scott Hall. Bischoff responded, “Good point, but Scott Hall has the potential to be one of the greatest minds in the business and still has a gift in the ring. Juventud….I’d rather take an ice pick to my thigh.”

Responding to a query of Goldberg joining TNA, Bischoff said, “I spoke briefly to Bill a week ago, and while the subject of TNA did not come up, I sincerely doubt that Bill has any interest in getting back into the wrestling business.”

2/23/2010

During the main event of WWE NXT last night, announcer Michael Cole went off on a rant against Internet fans and the independent wrestling “universe.”

The main event featured NXT rookie Daniel Bryan against World Heavyweight champion Chris Jericho. Announcer Josh Matthews played up Bryan’s wrestling credentials, putting over the fact that he’s been wrestling on the independent scene for nearly a decade and has established his name across the world. Michael Cole seemed to get pissed off over Matthews comments, repeatedly dismissing Bryan’s accomplishments, saying performing at “high schools” does not impress him in the least.

Cole sided with The Miz‘s character, downplaying Bryan’s accomplishments and insisting he show more respect for the WWE Pros. Cole added that he had never really heard anything about Daniel Bryan prior to the debut of NXT and put down smart fans who read the “dirt sheets.”

2/25/2010

Hulk Hogan Takes a Shot at The Rock: “I thought about moving out to L.A. and doing the movie thing cause I have seventeen movies under my belt — mostly low-budget kid movies, kind of like what The Rock is doing now. My agent said they could put me in supporting roles. I’d never be a Gene Hackman or anything, but there is work for me. But I just wasn’t into it. I needed to to work and thought why not get back to what I love, wrestling?”

2/26/2010

As reported yesterday, Drew McIntyre‘s backstage nickname is Avatar, apparently because of the joke that his fiancé (former ECW General Manager Tiffany) controls him. This tidbit was brought to Chris Jericho‘s attention with the WWE World Heavyweight Champion saying on Twitter “Tru Dat. Looks just like a NaVi.”

2/28/2010

Vince McMahon was reportedly pleased with Daniel Bryan‘s performance on last night’s premiere episode of WWE NXT as he felt they made him “a star” in one night as a result of his interaction with The Miz and match with Chris Jericho.

– Tune back in next month for more Dirt Sheet History as we continue 2010.

Stories are credited from Rajah, PWTorch, PWInsider and The Wrestling Observer. Month name photo art is by Phillip Martin.

All past editions of Dirt Sheet History are found here.