News and Notes

courtesy Wrestling-Online Network and Newsletter

> RAW GETS BEST RATING SINCE JULY 2012
- With the streak over and a new WWE champion crowned, millions of WWE
fans - and some other casual fans - tuned in to RAW for the aftermath. The
post-WrestleMania RAW drew a total of 5,146,000 viewers, up three quarters
of a million from last week’s number. Hour one did 5,313,000 viewers,
followed by 5,094,000 in the second and then 5,032,000 in the third and
final hour. This has been the highest rated RAW since the first three hour
show aired on July 23, 2012. (Ratings credit: PWInsider.com)

> PAIGE BECOMES NEW DIVAS CHAMPION ON RAW
- WWE Divas champion AJ Lee was finally dethroned after 295 days by NXT
newcomer Paige last night on Monday Night RAW. AJ told the fans inside the
arena that she was the “best Diva in the world,” resulting in a big pop
and chant for her boyfriend CM Punk. The celebration was quickly cut off
though as NXT Women’s champion Paige made her WWE TV debut to a thunderous
pop from the New Orleans crowd. AJ challenged Paige in a match however
Paige said she wasn’t ready, and was slapped in the face for her answer.
Eventually the match kicked off and Paige pulled the upset, pinning AJ
with her Paige Turner finishing move.The 21 year old British wrestler
became the youngest ever to hold the Divas title and also the first one to
hold both the NXT Women’s and WWE Divas title simultaneously. After the
match, Paige was greeted backstage by WWE Divas who congratulated her on
her win. An emotional Paige then cried her way through an interview for
WWE.COM which you can see at http://w-o.it/1mWfMce

> MR. T DISAPPOINTED HALL OF FAME SPEECH WAS CUT
- Mr. T used Twitter to air his thanks and frustration regarding his Hall
of Fame speech getting cut before he was finished. “Thank you very much
for all your support! I am very disappointed and saddened that you
couldn’t hear the rest of my speech. I was told my speech went too long?
Really? Seriously?” Mr. T wrote. He said that all the inductees were told
that the fans would want to hear their stories and were instructed to
“take our time and enjoy the moment.” Mr. T added that he was moved by the
support fans showed to him after his speech was cut short and he will post
the remainder of the speech for everyone to read it. “My mother taught me
to stand up for what I believed in. I put a lot of care and love into my
speech. I wanted it to inspire and motivate people when they are hurting.
Since my mother taught me to always try and take the high road, I will. If
my speech helped just 1 mother & 1 son out there, thank you GOD,” he
wrote. Mr. T also thanked Rowdy Roddy Piper for his words after his
speech, saying they meant a lot to him. The two were not very friendly due
to the heat they had at the time of WrestleMania I and II.

> FANDANGO DUMPS SUMMER RAE…ON TWITTER!
- Fandango today posted a tweet dumping Summer Rae as his dance partner in
an angle that will probably end up playing on television. “Hey,
@RealSummerWWE. Did you get my text? Like I said, it's really not me, it's
you. It's over…” he wrote. The 30 year old blond bombshell made her debut
with Fandango in April 2013 during RAW, replacing the previous dancer. She
had been under a developmental contract with the WWE since 2011. Rae is
not leaving the company by any means and will move on as a singles
wrestler in the Divas division.

> CHRISTY HEMME JOINS TNA CREATIVE TEAM
- TNA has gotten themselves a new member on its creative team in the form
of former Knockout Christy Hemme. Hemme has been working for TNA Wrestling
since 2006 but wrestled her last match in 2008 before moving on as a
backstage interviewer and ring announcer. She joins John Gaburick, Dave
Lagana, and Matt Conway on the creative team. Hemme started her
professional wrestling career in the WWE, winning the Diva Search contest
in 2004.