THREE QUESTIONS: Batista - The Sydney Morning Herald - 26th May 2008
Who was your most fearsome opponent?
The Undertaker. He is a true legend and a future Hall of Famer. His size, strength and experience are unmatched. I'm unafraid of any of the other wrestlers.
What's your secret to an even tan?
Lots of beach time and constant turning. For me, living in Florida is a huge plus - you can't get much better.
What is your favourite chick flick?
Sleepless In Seattle. A good dose of romance and comedy mixed in with great performances from Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks.
Batista will appear in the World Wrestling Entertainment SmackDown/Extreme Championship Wrestling tour at Acer Arena on June 15.
Media Man Australia Profiles
WWE SmackDown/Extreme Championship Wrestling
WWE
ECW
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Wrestlers given chance at big time - The New Zealand Herald - 27th May 2008
New Zealand wrestlers will get a shot at the big time as World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is to host trials in Auckland.
The WWE is touring Down Under and before the Auckland show on June 11 Kiwi Pro Wrestling (KPW) chief executive Rip Morgan will pick around 12 locals to perform in front of the organisation's talent scouts.
KPW director Janine Carline said a lot of people had put their hands to take part in the audition and despite the massive jump in scale to the WWE - "they have 70,000 people in stadiums, they do Madison Square Garden and Wembley Stadium" - there were some who had a real shot at selection.
"It's our credibility at stake. We're not going to put people across that we don't feel have the potential to make it in the WWE. We're not time wasters here, we're serious."
She said KPW had several former pros tutoring the current crop and they knew what to expect on the international circuit .
Mr Morgan said two of the organisation's top wrestlers - current champion H-Flame ("The Man of the Hour, the Tower of Power, just too sweet to be sour!") and Max "The Axe" Damage (finishing move: Collateral Damage) - had recently returned from a stint performing in Australia.
It has been almost 20 years since New Zealand tag team The Bushwhackers carried the flag in America and with 2008 the first year trials have been held here, it was about time to put New Zealand pro-wrestling back on the map, Mr Morgan said.
Candidates will be judged on ring skills, charisma, drive and fortitude.
Anyone who makes the cut will travel to a training camp in Florida to be groomed for a spot in the WWE.
KPW will name those selected for the try-outs on its website on June 3.
- NZPA
Media Man Australia Profiles
World Wrestling Entertainment
New Zealand wrestlers will get a shot at the big time as World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is to host trials in Auckland.
The WWE is touring Down Under and before the Auckland show on June 11 Kiwi Pro Wrestling (KPW) chief executive Rip Morgan will pick around 12 locals to perform in front of the organisation's talent scouts.
KPW director Janine Carline said a lot of people had put their hands to take part in the audition and despite the massive jump in scale to the WWE - "they have 70,000 people in stadiums, they do Madison Square Garden and Wembley Stadium" - there were some who had a real shot at selection.
"It's our credibility at stake. We're not going to put people across that we don't feel have the potential to make it in the WWE. We're not time wasters here, we're serious."
She said KPW had several former pros tutoring the current crop and they knew what to expect on the international circuit .
Mr Morgan said two of the organisation's top wrestlers - current champion H-Flame ("The Man of the Hour, the Tower of Power, just too sweet to be sour!") and Max "The Axe" Damage (finishing move: Collateral Damage) - had recently returned from a stint performing in Australia.
It has been almost 20 years since New Zealand tag team The Bushwhackers carried the flag in America and with 2008 the first year trials have been held here, it was about time to put New Zealand pro-wrestling back on the map, Mr Morgan said.
Candidates will be judged on ring skills, charisma, drive and fortitude.
Anyone who makes the cut will travel to a training camp in Florida to be groomed for a spot in the WWE.
KPW will name those selected for the try-outs on its website on June 3.
- NZPA
Media Man Australia Profiles
World Wrestling Entertainment
On tour with Kelly Kelly, by Scott Casey - Brisbane Times - 17th May 2008
From high school cheerleader to aspiring journalist to saucy World Wrestling star, Kelly Kelly's career has followed a varied path - to say the least.
The star will join fellow wrestlers including Undertaker and Batista on a WWE tour across Australia in June.
Kelly found her way into wrestling via modelling while she in college studying to become a broadcast journalist, with hopes of becoming a TV anchor.
"I love [wrestling], I just love every day of it," she said.
"WWE contacted me through my modelling agency and they knew I had an athletic background so they sent me down to Atlanta, Georgia where they kicked my butt for a week straight and asked me if I wanted a job at the end of it."
At high school Kelly did gymnastics for 10 years until an injury forced her into cheerleading.
"I still get to use some of my moves so that's pretty good," she said.
Living the life of a professional wrestler working in one of the world's most high-profile pursuits is difficult, she said, with an almost constant training schedule and travel around the United States and overseas.
"Even on my off days now I'm still training, so I try to get into the ring and learn different stuff," she said.
"We consider ourselves a big family [inside wrestling], some people have their own little cliques and we try to get along a best we can."
When Kelly first began as a wrestler she was billed as a "self-proclaimed exhibitionist" and put on strip shows called "Kelly Kelly's Expose".
"My jealous boyfriend Mike Knox used to come out and try and wrap a towel around me but I would still do it and eventually we broke up and I formed Extreme Expose with Booke and Layla and we were a little group who danced every week," she said.
"That ended so now Layla and I are going at each other's throats every week.
"The first night I did it [expose] my nerves were through the roof and then every week after if kept getting easier, but I still get nervous out there now."
She might not dance much any more, but Kelly is looking forward to a long career in wrestling.
"I plan to be here as long as I can," she said.
The SmackDown/ECW hits Australian shores on June 13 and will be in Brisbane on June 17 at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre.
Media Man Australia Profiles
WWE Smackdown / ECW Live
World Wrestling Entertainment
From high school cheerleader to aspiring journalist to saucy World Wrestling star, Kelly Kelly's career has followed a varied path - to say the least.
The star will join fellow wrestlers including Undertaker and Batista on a WWE tour across Australia in June.
Kelly found her way into wrestling via modelling while she in college studying to become a broadcast journalist, with hopes of becoming a TV anchor.
"I love [wrestling], I just love every day of it," she said.
"WWE contacted me through my modelling agency and they knew I had an athletic background so they sent me down to Atlanta, Georgia where they kicked my butt for a week straight and asked me if I wanted a job at the end of it."
At high school Kelly did gymnastics for 10 years until an injury forced her into cheerleading.
"I still get to use some of my moves so that's pretty good," she said.
Living the life of a professional wrestler working in one of the world's most high-profile pursuits is difficult, she said, with an almost constant training schedule and travel around the United States and overseas.
"Even on my off days now I'm still training, so I try to get into the ring and learn different stuff," she said.
"We consider ourselves a big family [inside wrestling], some people have their own little cliques and we try to get along a best we can."
When Kelly first began as a wrestler she was billed as a "self-proclaimed exhibitionist" and put on strip shows called "Kelly Kelly's Expose".
"My jealous boyfriend Mike Knox used to come out and try and wrap a towel around me but I would still do it and eventually we broke up and I formed Extreme Expose with Booke and Layla and we were a little group who danced every week," she said.
"That ended so now Layla and I are going at each other's throats every week.
"The first night I did it [expose] my nerves were through the roof and then every week after if kept getting easier, but I still get nervous out there now."
She might not dance much any more, but Kelly is looking forward to a long career in wrestling.
"I plan to be here as long as I can," she said.
The SmackDown/ECW hits Australian shores on June 13 and will be in Brisbane on June 17 at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre.
Media Man Australia Profiles
WWE Smackdown / ECW Live
World Wrestling Entertainment
Batista's battles outside the ring, by Nui Te Koha - Herald Sun - 25th May 2008
"I never want to forget what I've been through and where I came from," Batista said in Sydney last week, where he was promoting the Wrestlemania 24 DVD, out June 7.
By any standard – even the wacky melodrama of World Wrestling Entertainment's storylines – Batista's journey is surreal.
Batista – born Dave Bautista – was raised by his mother, Donna, in poverty, and in a violent part of Washington D.C.
During his childhood, three murder victims were found in, or near Batista's front yard, in separate incidents – their home was near an alleyway notorious for violent crime.
"We saw some bad things," he said.
"We saw a couple of people die. There were fights all the time, stabbings were common.
"And I hate to say this, but I was numb to it. That's all I knew."
Batista said his mother, a lesbian, moved the family to San Francisco to escape the violence.
"I never had an issue with my mother's sexuality," he said.
"She loved us, she cared for us, and that's all that mattered."
Batista said her extended family disowned her for "being a Democrat".
Batista, 39, is a divorced father with two daughters. He also has two grandchildren.
He said family forced him to quit womanising.
"I didn't drink or do drugs. Women were my drug of choice," Batista said.
"I would have 10, 20, 30 girls throwing themselves at me. I wasn't equipped to handle it. So I took advantage. "
Batista and WWE stars including Edge, The Undertaker and Big Show will visit Rod Laver Arena on June 13.
Media Man Australia Profiles
World Wrestling Entertainment
"I never want to forget what I've been through and where I came from," Batista said in Sydney last week, where he was promoting the Wrestlemania 24 DVD, out June 7.
By any standard – even the wacky melodrama of World Wrestling Entertainment's storylines – Batista's journey is surreal.
Batista – born Dave Bautista – was raised by his mother, Donna, in poverty, and in a violent part of Washington D.C.
During his childhood, three murder victims were found in, or near Batista's front yard, in separate incidents – their home was near an alleyway notorious for violent crime.
"We saw some bad things," he said.
"We saw a couple of people die. There were fights all the time, stabbings were common.
"And I hate to say this, but I was numb to it. That's all I knew."
Batista said his mother, a lesbian, moved the family to San Francisco to escape the violence.
"I never had an issue with my mother's sexuality," he said.
"She loved us, she cared for us, and that's all that mattered."
Batista said her extended family disowned her for "being a Democrat".
Batista, 39, is a divorced father with two daughters. He also has two grandchildren.
He said family forced him to quit womanising.
"I didn't drink or do drugs. Women were my drug of choice," Batista said.
"I would have 10, 20, 30 girls throwing themselves at me. I wasn't equipped to handle it. So I took advantage. "
Batista and WWE stars including Edge, The Undertaker and Big Show will visit Rod Laver Arena on June 13.
Media Man Australia Profiles
World Wrestling Entertainment
Friday, May 09, 2008
WWE Legends of WrestleMania Announced - Pro wrestling spin-off to launch for PS3 and Xbox 360 next spring.
THQ and JAKKS Pacific confirmed this week that they are preparing WWE Legends of WrestleMania, a spin-off from the popular WWE SmackDown vs. Raw franchise, for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. Further details were not announced for the new game, but based on the title, WWE Legends of WrestleMania should find the middle ground between the SmackDown franchise and Acclaim's last-gen Legends of Wrestling games, which starred a cavalcade of retired pro wrestlers.
"The development capabilities afforded by next-generation hardware, combined with our established history and deep understanding of fighting videogames, allow us to leverage the strength of the WWE brand to further extend our leadership in the fighting videogame genre and bring this new property to market," said Peter Matiss, vice president of global brand management at THQ.
Media Man Australia Profiles
WWE
WrestleMania
THQ
WWE Video Games
Games
Gaming
THQ and JAKKS Pacific confirmed this week that they are preparing WWE Legends of WrestleMania, a spin-off from the popular WWE SmackDown vs. Raw franchise, for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. Further details were not announced for the new game, but based on the title, WWE Legends of WrestleMania should find the middle ground between the SmackDown franchise and Acclaim's last-gen Legends of Wrestling games, which starred a cavalcade of retired pro wrestlers.
"The development capabilities afforded by next-generation hardware, combined with our established history and deep understanding of fighting videogames, allow us to leverage the strength of the WWE brand to further extend our leadership in the fighting videogame genre and bring this new property to market," said Peter Matiss, vice president of global brand management at THQ.
Media Man Australia Profiles
WWE
WrestleMania
THQ
WWE Video Games
Games
Gaming
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