AEW: More on Hangman Page’s “Blood Drinking” Spot at Full Gear 2023, Ronda Rousey AEW & ROH Update, More News

Backstage Update on Hangman Adam Page’s “Blood Drinking” Spot During Texas Death Match at Full Gear 2023

This past Saturday’s AEW Full Gear 2023 event featured a very physical abd bloody Texas Death Match between Hangman Adam Page and Swerve Strickland, which was won by Strickland. This match was notable for featuring a controversial spot involving Page pouring blood dripping from Strickland’s head onto his own head and mouth.

Fightful Select reported that their sources stated that the controversial blood drinking spot was something that was pitched as an idea by Strickland and Page for their match and was approved by the match producer. Page’s blood mist spray into the air following the spot was also something that had been given prior approval by the match’s producer.

In regards to the backstage reaction to the spot and match itself, it was reported that the general reaction was one of being overwhelmingly positive. Those backstage reportedly were thrilled over how well the match was received and executed.

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Ronda Rousey AEW & ROH Status Update

As noted before, former WWE talent Ronda Rousey made her surprise debut for Ring of Honor at this past Friday’s ROH TV tapings in Los Angeles, California. Rousey’s appearance was a one-night type deal and something she wanted to do for her real life friend Marina Shafir for the tapings.

PWInsider’s Mike Johnson reported that his sources stated that Rousey is still not signed to a contract with the company nor is she currently expected to do so any time soon. AEW and ROH officials reportedly have left the door open for her to come back and make another potential appearance in the future should the situation be right for her.

Johnson reported that those spoken to stated that Rousey continuing her wrestling career is not the top of her priority list at least in regards to the near future.

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AEW News & Notes

This past Saturday’s AEW Full Gear 2023 event in Los Angeles, California featured Kris Statlander wearing gear inspired by the White Goodman character from the 2004 comedy film Dodgeball. Actor Ben Stiller recently responded on Twitter giving his love of Statlander’s tribute to his character.

This past Saturday’s AEW Full Gear 2023 event in Los Angeles also featured Adam Copeland, Sting, & Darby Allin defeating Christian Cage, Luchasaurus, & Nick Wayne in a Trios match. Sting recently reflected on Twitter about his final match in Los Angeles and getting to share a moment with his son Steven Borden at ringside after the match. Sting stated “Thank you again, LA, for all of the memories over all of the years! I’m going to miss you all. 👊🏼🦂 How great it was to have @StevenBorden85 with me at #AEWFullGear! The cherry on top.“

In a recent episode of the Grilling JR podcast, co-host Jim Ross gave his thoughts about Swerve Strickland and Hangman Adam Page’s Texas Death Match at this past Saturday’s AEW Full Gear 2023 event. Ross stated “It was a lot of drama. A lot of physically. They raised the bar, as I tweeted out as the match was going on. Those hardcore-type matches, it reminded me a lot of an old ECW. The matches and the move set and the violence, I guess. It was a hell of a performance by those guys. I’m proud of both their efforts. Whether you like the hardcore style or you don’t like the hardcore style, the one thing you cannot do is to criticize the efforts and the work rate of the talents. That was covered. There were a lot of really good matches on that pay-per-view. I thought it was just a smashing hit, what I saw. I knew what it was gonna be like, and it was exactly like I thought it was going to be. I don’t want to sound like, ‘Oh, I know everything.’ I just thought that the whole crew delivered. It was hard because the management of the blood, unique. It was a challenge for the talents to follow what they’re following. Nonetheless, I thought they pulled it off very well. They should be proud of their efforts. It was a fun show to watch. AEW always seems to deliver in crunch time with these pay-per-views. It’s uncanny how the guys rise to the occasion and they pull this thing off, and they certainly pulled it off in California.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)

In a recent interview with Dr Beau Hightower, MJF gave his thoughts about the public perception of wrestlers going into Hollywood acting careers. MJF stated “I think a lot of the time, when people look at wrestlers going into acting, because Hulk Hogan did such a shit job. He did, let’s be honest, probably one of the worst actors of all time. People were so hesitant of letting pro wrestlers into acting. Thanks to trailblazers like Cena, Rock, and Batista, absolutely massacring it every single time they are on screen, and killing it. It’s pretty cool and unique now because when they look at wrestlers, they understand now that what we do is really difficult and it takes a lot of charisma, charm, and athleticism. So does being the top draw in Hollywood. I think it’s a pretty easy transition, I shouldn’t say that. It’s an easy transition if you’re capable of being a top guy in my sport. It’s easier. If you’re somebody that struggles in front of the red light and you’re just a really good grappler (it’s harder).” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)

In a recent interview with the Club Shay Shay podcast, Ric Flair gave his thoughts about his belief that some people within WWE are upset at him over him recently joining AEW. Flair stated “I think some people are upset with me now that I went to work at AEW. I don’t know why. If you’re acknowledging, and you think I’ve contributed to the business, and I know I have because I hear it every day, you would think they would let me do whatever I want to do. As long as it doesn’t affect them. I’m not going to get on TV and say ‘AEW is better,’ I’m not doing something stupid. I’m just working. That’s all I know how to do. They’re mad. Not mad, but they did something…I’ll tell you off camera … You know the old saying, ‘you want to hear someone is doing good, but not too good.’? That make sense?” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)