Various: Kevin Nash to Undergo Neck Surgery, Tessa Blanchard on Return to Wrestling, Indies

May 16, 2023

Kevin Nash Announces He Will Be Undergoing Neck Surgery

A recent episode of the Kliq This podcast featured co-host Kevin Nash revealing that he will be undergoing neck surgery within the near future due to him currently dealing with neck-related issues that has been affecting his health.

“That’s my major concern. I had MRIs done. My orthopedic doctor, he called and we went over it. He just said my neck, it’s always been bad, but it’s just getting worse. It’s starting to, the curve’s the wrong way, and I’m starting to get some compression on some of my nerves, and I’ve got stenosis. I’ve got a lot of things going on. The last time that I went down to a bio-accelerator, it was night and day. I’m not kidding you, it was 12-to-18 hours after that injected my neck that I got relief. I got instant relief. So I’m hoping, like my neck’s been bothering me for the last year. I went down to Tijuana, and I just think… they went into the side of my neck, and bio-accelerated it. I just seem to have gotten better results neck-wise [when they] bio-accelerated it.
If this doesn’t work, if this isn’t at least a ground-rule double, if I’m not standing on second when this bitch is over, then my next move is, they’re gonna have to fuse my neck on several levels, and that’s something I’m not looking forward to. I’ve definitely paid the price, so now I’m just hoping.
There’s some of the procedure there, and that’s yours truly face-down, and they’re injecting stem cells into my neck. I’ll be doing follow-ups, and while I’m down there, I’ll have a film crew following me around.”

Transcript h/t: Fightful.com

Tessa Blanchard Comments on Having “Unfinished Business in Wrestling”

As noted before, Tessa Blanchard recently signed a per-date type contract with Xtreme Pro Wrestling for multiple shows. Besides her return to wrestling, Blanchard also had recently made amends with La Rosa Negra over her usage of racial slurs and bullying done to La Rosa Negra.

A recent episode of the McGuire on Wrestling podcast featured Blanchard as the guest. One of the topics discussed included Blanchard’s thoughts on the resumption of her wrestling career.

“First of all, I can’t even express how thankful I am. The fans have been so accepting. Even today, the fans are chanting ‘Tessa, Tessa.’ That always feels great, especially being away for so long. I always want a lot more. I feel I have unfinished business in wrestling. I’m 27 years old and I do feel confident that I’m one of the best there is and I can go with the best. I won’t stop pushing for that, but I have other things going on too. I think it’s important to have that balance of knowing who you are outside of the business because the business isn’t always going to be there for you and it’s very unforgiving. It will recycle people left and right. I know who Tessa is without wrestling, which makes me more dangerous when I go back to wrestling.”

Transcript h/t: Fightful.com

Indies & Misc. Wrestling

As noted before, VICE TV’s parent company VICE Media has been preparing to be file for bankruptcy due to serious financial-related issues but has also been in recent talks for a potential sale to businessman George Soros. CBS News reported that VICE Media officially filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Monday. It was reported that the company is currently expected to continue “operating normally” as it goes through their bankruptcy process. The Wrestling Observer’s Dave Meltzer reported that the airing status of the upcoming fourth season of Dark Side of the Ring on VICE TV is currently not expected to be directly impacted by VICE Media’s bankruptcy filing.

As noted before, Richard Holliday had been out of action from wrestling from June of 2022 to this past February due to Hodgkin’s lymphoma, which he had successful completed chemotherapy treatments for his cancer. Holliday announced on Twitter that he recently partnered with Pro Wrestling Tees for the release of a new shirt that will officially go on sale on May 31st. Holliday also announced that proceeds generated will go directly towards Circle of Care, which is a nonprofit charity that helps assist families affected by childhood cancer.

Mega Cat Studios recently announced that they have delayed the release of their upcoming wrestling-based RPG game WrestleQuest from its original scheduled May release to a new date of Summer of 2023. It was announced that the reason for the delay is due to them needing more time to finish up the game’s development.

Dragon Gate recently announced that they have indefinitely suspended Ultimo Dragon due to his continued refusals to work a singles match against Diamante after repeated requests by company General Manager Ryo Saito.

Rob Van Dam recently announced that he will be launching a new weekly podcast series called One of a Kind with RVD this Friday on the Premier Streaming Network and episodes to be released on other platforms starting next Monday.

DEFY Wrestling recently announced that they will be partnering with Game Changer Wrestling for two co-promoted events on November 17th and November 18th in Seattle, Washington.

This past Saturday’s Homecoming event for Create A Pro Wrestling in Melville, New York featured MJF making his return to the company. MJF defeated Leo Sparrow in an impromptu match on the show that was made following a promo by MJF. This was MJF’s first match in the indies since 2019.

The National Wrestling Alliance recently announced that Cut Above (Thom Latimer & Rhett Titus), Yabo the Clown & Ruffo the Clown, Psycho Boy Fodder & Flip Gordon, Kratos & Odinson, and T.N.T. (Terrell & Terrence Hughes) are the next set of official teams for this year’s Crocket Cup tournament, which takes place on June 3-4 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

PWInsider’s Mike Johnson reported that former WWE NXT talent Kona Reeves currently works at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Orlando, Florida as a stunt performer for the Indiana Jones Show amusement show at the park.

Impact Wrestling recently announced an updated match for the card of their Under Siege 2023 event on May 26th in London, Ontario, Canada: