Originally published at Chris Hero explains why the 'Original Shield' rumor annoys him
If any of the quotes from the following podcasts or video interviews are used, please credit those sources and provide an H/T and link back to POST Wrestling for the transcriptions.
** Inside The Ropes posted their interview with Chris Hero. Hero commented on the longstanding story about him being pitched to be a part of the original concept of The Shield alongside Dean Ambrose (Jon Moxley) and Seth Rollins. Hero first heard of the idea while listening to CM Punkās interview with Colt Cabana after Punk left WWE. He does find it somewhat annoying because of how the story has taken on a life of its own.
Okay so, the thing that ā a little thing that annoys me about this is people heard the podcast with Rollins, there was no Shield concept. It was just, āHey, letās pair these three guys with me.ā So, technically I was never supposed to be a member of The Shield because The Shield didnāt exist when this was pitched, so thatās a thing that I see on Twitter pretty much every other day. It gets a little annoying because itās deviated so far from the original source of it. I found out just when everybody else found out, by listening to CM Punk on the Art of Wrestling podcast. I never had a conversation with him about this and there are ā these things happen all the time where you pitch ideas or you talk about things but the last thing you wanna do is get someoneās hopes up by saying, āHey man, I pitched this,ā or whatever. āIām gonna do my best to get this to workā and then if it doesnāt work, itās just unnecessary bad feelings. Not bad, bad feelings but you understand my point. So, listening to that podcast was the first time I had heard that. I never had a conversation with Punk about this, still to this day I have not, because I donāt really know what the point of the conversation would be. People ask me if I think I could have been successful in The Shield and of course my answer is yes, of course I think I can take anything thatās given to me and make the most out of it. Unfortunately, people like to pit this as a me versus Roman Reigns thing which is very silly because heās an incredible performer, heās one of a kind, heās got his own thing figured out and thereās really no reason to compare the two of us, especially when I wasnāt pitched for a Shield because a Shield didnāt exist yet soā¦
Back in late November of 2020, Hero noted that he turned down several offers to compete since being released from WWE in April of 2020. Hero explained that the current circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic is not ideal for him to come back under and he further elaborated on his decision to hold off on his return:
Well everything is so uncertain, right? There are a couple companies that are running regularly and then a lot of the smaller companies just either are able to only run under certain restrictions or theyāre just not running at all, and I just sort of made a decision when I got let go that I was not going to just jump back into this crazy, uncertain world and cause more chaos to my life, to other peopleās lives. I just wanted to kind of sit back and watch things develop and be able to pick and choose where I go and thatās still where I am at this moment. I donāt love the idea of consistent traveling with the climate of things right now, working with people that I do not know very well or do not have a certain relationship with. I want to be very particular about what I do next and that is just hanging out and letting things hopefully improve. I mean weāve seen a bit of improvement but, itās still not to the standards that Iām hoping for. So I thought this podcast was a way to get my voice out there and to ā just try to, you know, obviously I donāt want people to forget about me, right? But I do think a lot of the thoughts that I have are very relevant toward the current wrestling scene right now and thatās something that I would like to put out there. Thereās a lot of tribalism in pro wrestling and pro wrestling fandom these days. It seems like you have to pick one side or the other and whatever side you pick, youāre stuck with for the rest of your life it seems.
** American Combat Wrestling owner Heath Schneider passed away. The likes of Parrow, referee Brandon Tolle and Bryan Idol commented on Schneiderās passing. POST Wrestling would like to send our condolences to the family, friends and loved ones of Heath Schneider.
** Braun Strowman took to his Instagram story and shared that he got sick over the weekend and was dealing with an infection that got into his blood. He was put on antibiotics. He added that he dropped 15 pounds in five days but he gained close to 50 pounds of water weight on his joints. Strowman said the antibiotics are working and heās feeling better.
** Drew McIntyre was a part of SeventySix Capitalās Leadership series. McIntyre discussed his relationship with Vince McMahon and how he has always wanted to make McMahon proud.
Itās been great. Vince Network before it happened, now weāre moving to Peacock, Drew McIntyreās gonna be a future world champion 10 years before it happens. He saw something in me and I wanted to show him, āHey, Iāve finally become that championā that you saw in me all those years ago and he supported me the whole way, he gives absolutely incredible advice and honestly without the journey that Iāve been on and the amount of ups and downs Iāve had to overcome, when I eventually became champion and we literally hit unknown times with the pandemic era with losing our audience, without that journey Iād been on hardening me up, allowing me to face every situation, it prepared me to be probably the only guy that could have led the company during those times because itās nothing Iāve been through that scares me anymore including being in the unique times weāre in right now.
** Stephanie McMahon gave several comments via email to Forbes about WWEās partnership with Victoria beer. The partnership was publicly displayed at the 2021 Royal Rumble pay-per-view where Rey Mysterio sported a Victoria beer-themed mask. Stephanie says there are endless opportunities for brands to collaborate with WWE talents.
We are always open for business and looking to work with brands whose values closely align with our superstars. With ongoing storylines and more than 250 compelling characters on WWEās talent roster, there are endless opportunities for brands to activate with our performers. For Victoria, working with Rey Mysterio was a no-brainer.
** GHC Heavyweight Champion Go Shiozaki was interviewed by Sports Illustrated. During the chat, Shiozaki heaped praise onto Daniel Bryan and stated that Bryan motivates him to this day.
When I wrestled Bryan, he was amazing. When I now see Bryan while I watch WWE, he is still amazing. When I see him doing so great, that motivates me.
Shiozaki is defending the GHC Heavyweight Title against Keiji Mutoh (The Great Muta) at NOAHās Budokan show on 2/12. Mutoh was also interviewed by the publication and he does not buy into the idea that wrestlers need to wrap their in-ring careers up at the age of 50 like Mananbu Nakanishi and Jushin Thunder Liger have.
Shiozaki is a great opponent. He has power, speed and stamina. I see Misawaās mind and Kobashiās style in Shiozaki, and he is a distinguished champion, but I have a lot to prove here. Wrestlers in my generation, such as Liger, made their retirement last year, so it looks like the mandatory retirement is around 50 years old. I say the hell with that. I hope to be the one to inspire and give energy to the world that is feeling down right now, and I will do my best and beat the champion.
** On the latest installment of Tama Tongaās āTamaās Islandā podcast, he dove into KENTAās arrival in AEW. Tama feels that although Jon Moxley and KENTA are both appearing on AEW and NJPW programming, he still doesnāt believe the āforbidden doorā is completely open and explained why:
This is why I didnāt say the doors are wide open. Iām just gonna add to that, so Jon Moxley, itās Jon Moxley and I feel like he can float. Heās the one guy that can float back and forth anywhere and can do business because I donāt feel like his contract is really just AEW. I think heās open to work, because a lot of guysā contracts are open to work with AEW and NJPW so if they have that in contract, the boss canāt really say you canāt do that, right? Because itās in their contract so I believe Moxleyās that guy who has his contract open to work with other promotions so thatās why this was able to happen. Now, with this happening, Tony Khan, I would think heās a smart dude. Yeah, let it happen on our show because that would boost ratings, that would kill ratings, and if you saw, it did. It did, it was huge. Thatās the smart booking. Now is the door open? No. I mean, it has to be another dude you know is only with AEW, that only Tony Khan can say ā thatās a big name that Tony Khan can say yes to, that doesnāt have an open contract that he can say yes, or one of our guys thatās only New Japan, thatās only contracted to New Japan that can be like ā it has to be one of those guys. It canāt be a free-floater guy. That to me, when that happens, youāll know the doors open. Thatās when I think that is.
Elsewhere during the conversation, Tama said he did not know KENTA would be appearing on Dynamite and was surprised by it like many were.
I was so surprised. I didnāt know nothing. I didnāt know anything. I just came in. I didnāt know KENTA was gonna fly all the way from Japan straight to Jacksonville and whip everybodyās ass over there. When I say āeverybodyā, Iām talking about Mox because heās the only one worth a damn over there, oh sh*t. Letās talk that sh*t right now. Iām about that smoke. Anybody wanna bring some, letās go. Letās go. But, to see that happen man, itās nice. Now, thatās a big deal man because everybody and their mother wants a piece of that action, especially on social media. We got The Good Brothers, not only from AEW, not only from IMPACT but The Good Brothers from WWE chiming in trying to get some of that pie. Oh boy, oh boy.
** Bianca Belair continued to make the media rounds and one of the podcasts she appeared on was ESPNās Cheap Heat. Belair said during her appearance that a hair versus hair match in WWE is inevitable for her.
People bring it up all the time and they ask do I ever think Iāll ever be a part of that. I think itās pretty much inevitable because I mean, so much of who I am is my braid. I mean, she even has a name. Her name is Destiny, and it makes sense, right? So, and I think that itās really fun to have feuds sometimes that arenāt always a part of the title picture and if I have a hair versus hair matchā¦ I aināt gonna say itās bigger than a title. A title is pretty big, you know? But, there will be a lot at stake and I think a lot of people could get very invested in it. I donāt wanna lose my braid, I donāt want to lose my hair. I think it would be great. Iād be down for it.
** NXT Champion Finn Balor chatted with the New York Post ahead of TakeOver: Vengeance Day. He dove into the ācontroversyā surrounding Bullet Club (separate article link) and feels that the group has the potential to unite the wrestling community.
I just feel like there has been a little animosity between some of the brothers recently and I was just trying to remind everyone that weāre all cut from the same cloth and weāre all kind of working towards the same thing. And just to remind them that we shouldnāt be divided. We should be united and that we work better as a team. I think that goes for not just Bullet Club. It goes for all of wrestling. If we can all work together toward the same goal, it would be a lot better than dividing our attentions and dividing our energies against each other. I think itās better to work together.
Whether it can get the backing of everybody is another thing. A huge problem in wrestling is the human ego and whether we can get over that remains to be seen. I think definitely Bullet Club has the potential to bring the entire wrestling community together ā not divide ā and I think thatās something we should be aiming for.
When asked about the idea of āThe Demonā character returning, Finn said that Karrion Kross could be the opponent to make that happen.
Definitely. Obviously, there are moments in time for everything. Right now it doesnāt feel like the time for The Demon, but Iām sure there will be a moment where I go, āOK now itās time to rock.ā You know, Karrion might be that time, but we will have to see how events kind of develop. But his character is definitely something that is very intriguing to the audience. Whether The Demon can add another element to that kind of situation when it arises will be interesting.
Balor had jaw surgery following his match with Kyle OāReilly at TakeOver 31. He previously stated that there is still numbness in his jaw and heās still getting over the reluctance to not get hit in that area.
Obviously you wrestle for 20 years and you are worrying about your own performance and what you want to do and now all of sudden youāre worried about, oh I need to protect this extra injury. Itās not necessarily an injury, itās more like a weakness. Itās not, oh he has a torn hamstring or something. You got plates in your jaw. You really donāt have any trust in how strong they are until they take an impact and then you go, hey, yeah thatās fine. So itās getting over that first impact thatās kind of the block in your brain. Slowly getting over that. Iām sure Iāll be 100 percent on Sunday because I have no doubt Peteās gonna hit me a couple times.
** Matt Cardona confirmed to Fightful that he agreed to be a part of the next IMPACT Wrestling TV tapings. The site reported that IMPACT planned to tape between February 9th and 11th.
** Jeff Cobb guest appeared on the RRBG Podcast ahead of his match against Chris Dickinson at Bloodsport on 2/13. As the conversation rolled on, Jeff talked about the idea of joining WWE and he is of the ānever say neverā mindset, but right now he likes where heās at professionally.
Iād be lying if I said it wasnāt and Iām able to do ā because Iām with New Japan Pro-Wrestling, Iām able to do Bloodsport and scheduling permitting of course, but until that time, me and New Japan and Bloodsport through and through.
Going back to the topic of Bloodsport, Cobb wanted to work the 2019 event during WrestleMania weekend but Ring of Honor didnāt want to risk Cobb getting hurt before G1 Supercard.
Iāve always wanted to do it. Schedules never lined up. Definitely, I was trying so hard. It was a last minute decision for the one in New York during WrestleMania weekend and like a day or two later and they were worried about if I got hurt there, then would I have been able to be at the Garden so, and I understood where they were coming from but I still came, I still went, I still supported. It was a great show top to bottom. I think the main event match was Minoru Suzuki and Josh Barnett and that one did not fail to deliver whatsoever and I was like, āDude, I wanted to āā I was up in the balcony watching and every match I was like, I was getting a ā like wincing. I was like, āOh man, that shouldāve been me, couldāve been meā but, I get it. But you know what? Good things come to those who wait and lo and behold Iām finally here.
** The KENTA and Kenny Omega vs. Jon Moxley and Lance Archer Falls Count Anywhere match that took place on the 2/10 AEW Dynamite will be uploaded to NJPW World on 2/12.
** To promote the forthcoming Bloodsport events on 2/13 and 2/20, Josh Barnett appeared on WrestleTalkās Wrestling Daily show. During the conversation, Barnett spoke highly of Bobby Lashley and stated that even with Lashleyās current success in WWE, he still feels the United States Champion is criminally underrated.
No sh*t , heās got a win over me in IMPACT. Yeah, wouldnāt mind having āole Bobby back in the ring so I can take him down, put him on his back. Donāt let him lie to you. Donāt let him try to say that Iāve never taken him down.
** Towards the conclusion of the latest Grilling JR podcast, Jim Ross shared his thoughts on the passing of Butch Reed. Ross recalled several stories about Reed, one having to do with Butchās toughness that was on display when he legitimately fought John Nord, who is also known as The Bezerker and The Barbarian.
John Nord, Nord The Barbarian and other names but John Nord, big rugged guy, looked good. He and Butch how big he was. He was 300 pounds, 6ā5 or so. Heās a big monster, so they were beating the hell out of ā they were hammering each other. Flesh on flesh and the flesh donāt win on this one.
The topic of the podcast was WWEās No Way 2006 event. It was on that show that Randy Orton took on Rey Mysterio, but on the lead up to the match, Orton stated that Eddie Guerrero was āin hellā. This took place several months after Eddieās passing. Jim Ross gave his thoughts about why Vickie Guerrero cleared WWE to say that about Eddie for a feud:
Well it was Vince or somebody else with him, which is not unusual, and nothing wrong with that but I think that Vickie was just very leery to disagree with a major creative element of this pay-per-view and didnāt wanna cause any ruckus and she was working there, or she wanted to work there. I donāt know where she was at that exact time but she was looking at work and she was looking to be able to feed her girls and her, take care of their overhead and all those things. So I think probably the deal there was Iām not so sure Vickie just embraced it. I donāt know that she didnāt or did. I wasnāt in the loop on that deal. But the issue there is that maybe she was trying to protect her own potential job offerings by not creating any waves. That would be my take on it. Vickieās just a wonderful person, still is to this very day. We love her when we see her at AEW events and our Wednesday night shows on TNT. Sheās a sweetheart to be around and all the other women that work there love her. Sheās a great sounding board for them. Sheās mature, sheās seasoned, she has a great resume and track record so she helps us in AEW a lot in that regard. But I just think that probably she was just a little bit leery of rocking the boat and didnāt wanna piss off the old man.
** Kip Sabian and Penelope Ford had their wedding ceremony at AEWās Beach Break event. Kip and Penelope did an interview with Digital Spy and Kip shared that he wasnāt aware Father James Mitchell was going to be involved in the wedding/segment until the day of.
I found out on the day . I saw James Mitchell there and I was like, āWait, what are you doing here? Ohā¦ wait a second, this now all falls into place.ā Other people knew before me, but it just somehow had gone under the radar. They thought I knew but I didnāt know. It was a nice little surprise on the day.
** During his appearance on the Not About Wrestling show, Rey Mysterio recounted The Big Show putting him on a stretcher and swinging him across the ring post. Mysterio shared that he had to go the hospital after and added that Big Show seemingly did not feel bad about it.
So I had this match against The Big Show and for some reason he thought it was a good idea to put me and strap me onto a stretcher and he picked that sucker up from the ground, I was strapped up to the board and he swung it like a baseball bat across the pole on the outside. When it hit, obviously he let it go. I was strapped and my head just went boom and it hit on the ground. I had to go to the hospital that day but that was probably one of the worst times.
Not really . But you know what? Thatās how I was raised. I was raised tough and I was the only kid in the wrestling class that was eight-years old. I was training with 16, 18, obviously 20-year olds, and I was the only kid in there and I was raised that way. I was always the smallest in training and still to this day in the ring when I wrestle.
** IMPACT Knockouts Tag Team Champions Kiera Hogan and Tasha Steelz spoke with Scott Fishman of TV Insider. Steelz was asked about the creative freedom she and Kiera have in IMPACT Wrestling and Tasha said they have 100 percent freedom to be their authentic selves on TV.
Iād say we bring the most entertainment on Impact every week. It all started sees weāre entertaining backstage ā why not put that on TV? We just act our natural selves. They give us creative freedom because they know we are going to 100 percent deliver.
** 2021 womenās Royal Rumble winner Bianca Belair appeared on the Rasslinā with Brandon F. Walker podcast and she said that as of now, her two favorite wrestlers to share the ring with are Bayley and Rhea Ripley.
I would definitely have to say Bayley has been amazing. I couldnāt ask for a better person, especially having my first feud with on SmackDown. Sheās so easy to feed off of, sheās so creative. She always elevates anyone she comes in contact with and I would have to say, I love working ā and I love working with Rhea . Rhea is someone who you know when you step in the ring with her, you have to bring 110 percent because sheās gonna bring over 100 percent and youāre gonna wanna top that, you gotta bring 110 percent. She always brings the best out of you so, I would say those two. Those two are probably my favorite as of right now but I feel bad just picking those two out becauseā¦ itās so many I could name.
** Joey G of Wrestling Headlines interviewed LSG.
** ABC affiliate KVUE caught up with Mark Henry for an interview. Henry shared his thoughts about several marquee moments for Black wrestlers including Ron Simmons capturing the WCW World Heavyweight Championship in 1992.
I remember when that happened, I didnāt even know it was possible. I didnāt even know you could do that. Ron made the impossible possible. I just look at it as being a complete blessing to be mentored by the first champion.
** The Overnight Crowd welcomed Indi Hartwell onto the show.
** Scheduled for the Filthy Island episode of MLW FUSION on 2/17 is a Azteca Street Fight between Mil Muertes and Savio Vega along with King Mo versus Low Ki.
** The Miz spoke to TMZ about his on-screen back and forth with Bad Bunny.
** In the newest installment of the Aceās HIGH series on NJPW1972.com, Hiroshi Tanahashi spoke about his interactions with Yoshitatsu. He stated that Yoshitatsu is greatly confident in himself and also has a habit of not being able to read a room.
Yoshitatsuā¦ in the best possible way, he was the same guy then as he is now. He just had so much confidence in himself, whether that was warranted or not (laughs). Just no insecurities whatsoever. He could be in a locker room with guys that were bigger than him, or better than him, but he wouldnāt feel a shred of jealousy; heād walk around like a big shot whatever room he was in (laughs).
Haha! With us wrestlers, if you find yourself doing the same move as another guy in the promotion, and they do it better than you, you stop using that move. Itās an unspoken rule, itās just natural. Thereās no point in you doing the same thing somebody else does way better, right? Yoshitatsu didnāt have that kind of sense, he couldnāt read the room at all. Whether or not there were guys who were way better at kicks than he was, heād keep using them. People would try and give him advice, and it was in one ear and out the other. Heās another Gifu boy, so we got along well privately, if not professionally (laughs).
** Kentucky-based sports editor Dean Manning won a first place award in the Kentucky Newspaper Awards for his story about Corbin, Kentucky being renamed āKing Corbinā in honor of WWE talent King Corbin.
** Xavier Woods and Tyler Breezeās latest Battle of the Brands episode:
** Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling āPositive Chainā Results (2/11/21) Korakuen Hall
ā Haruna Neko & Pom Harajuku def. Marika Kobashi & Moka Miyamoto
ā Nao Kakuta, Raku & Yuna Manase def. Hikari Noa, Mahiro Kiryu & Sena Shiori
ā Mizuki & Yuka Sakazaki def. Arisu Endo & Suzume
ā Maki Ito & Miyu Yamashita def. Mei Saint-Michel & Sakisama
ā International Princess Championship: Yuki Kamifuku (c) def. Mirai Maiumi
ā Princess Tag Team Championship: Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino (c) def. Hyper Misao & Shin Ultra Shoko
ā Princess Of Princess Championship: Rika Tatsumi (c) def. Miu Watanabe
** Stephanie McMahon gave a comment to TribLIVE about the Connorās Cure Foundation.
** In the main event of the 2/11 episode of NXT UK, Mark Andrews and Flash Morgan Webster earned a shot at the NXT UK Tag Team Titles. Isla Dawn proposed a stipulation for her match with Xia Brookside in two weeks and it is for the loser to become the winnerās assistant.
** The latest New Day: Feel The Power podcast.
** Former NFL Quarterback and WWE 24/7 Champion Doug Flutie appeared on Busted Open Radio.
** Alabama.com has an in-depth interview with Conrad Thompson about his podcast with Kurt Angle.
** NXT UK Tag Team Pretty Deadly (Lewis Howley & Sam Stoker) spoke with āMetroā.
** Episode 300 of Reality Of Wrestling TV is up on the promotionās YouTube page.
** Bianca Belair joined the Baltimore Positive show.
** USA Footballās 4th & Forever blog caught up with Lance Archer.
** A feature story about 18-year old wrestler in training Desiree Riggs.
** Ric Flairās in-ring promo from a Maryland Championship Wrestling show in 2015. He was joined in the ring by Mandy Leon and Renee Michelle.
** Matt Sydal appeared on the AEW Unrestricted podcast.
** The Scruffy Stuff podcast welcomed Bianca Belair onto the show.
** Lisa Marie Varonās 50th birthday was celebrated on GAW TV.
** Part two of Jon Moxleyās interview with New Japan Pro-Wrestling is up on their English YouTube channel.
If any of the quotes from the following podcasts or video interviews are used, please credit those sources and provide an H/T and link back to POST Wrestling for the transcriptions.