Backstage Update On When Kurt Angle Signed His New Contract With TNA Wrestling - Details

Partial Source: Pwinsider

UPDATE: Earlier today, TNA announced that Kurt Angle had re-signed with the company (see below).

According to a source, Kurt Angle and TNA agreed to a new deal two weeks ago. It had been previously reported that Angle was remaining with the company, but there was no deal in place at that time as the two sides simply had a verbal agreement in place. During this time, Vince Russo stated on his podcast that Angle had signed a new deal with TNA, but at that point, negotiations had not been completed and the ink had not yet been put on paper.

ORIGINAL: TNA sent out the following today, announcing that Kurt Angle has official re-signed with the company…

Kurt Angle Re-signs With TNA Wrestling!

 NASHVILLE, Tenn. (December 30, 2014) – TNA today announced Olympic Gold Medalist and TNA Hall-of-Fame member Kurt Angle has signed a new contract to remain an active TNA roster member. Kurt can be seen on IMPACT WRESTLING’s new home, Destination America, during a special LIVE event from New York City on Wednesday January 7 at 9/8c.

“Kurt Angle’s arrival nearly a decade ago put TNA on the map. Now Kurt leads a fresh, young IMPACT WRESTLING locker room into a whole new era on Destination America,” said TNA President Dixie Carter. “Once Kurt steps inside those ropes there is no greater talent in professional wrestling.”

 “I’m extremely excited to remain with TNA Wrestling,” said Angle. “The driving force behind my signing is the honesty, great communication and positive changes being made by Dixie Carter and John Gaburick. Things are moving upward and forward at TNA, and 2015 will be a great one for all of us at IMPACT WRESTLING.”

For more information on Kurt Angle and other talent signings visit impactwrestling.com, and follow IMPACT WRESTLING on twitter @IMPACTWRESTLING and TNA President Dixie Carter @TNADixie.

 IMPACT WRESTLING premieres in its permanent time slot on Fridays from 9-11 PM ET beginning January 16 on Destination America. And, IMPACT WRESTLING: UNLOCKED with Mike Tenay premieres in its permanent time slot on Saturdays from 10 AM-Noon ET beginning January 17, immediately followed by TNA GREATEST MATCHES from Noon-1 PM ET.

Backstage Update - WWE Reportedly Offers Uhaa Nation A Contract - Details Inside Here

Source: The Wrestling Observer Newsletter

As noted several times in the past, there has been a lot of speculation regarding WWE signing top independent professional wrestler Uhaa Nation.

The latest word going around is that WWE offered Nation a developmental deal, however there is no word yet as to whether or not he has accepted the offer.

For what it's worth, there has been some talk going around on the independent wrestling scene about Nation no longer accepting independent bookings past a certain date.

Backstage Updates On A Major Power Struggle In WWE, News On Randy Orton's WWE Contract, More

Birthdate: 07/27/1969 (age 45) Height: 6'4" Weight: 255lb Hunter Hearst Helmsley is an American business ...

Source: The Wrestling Observer Newsletter

-- WWE has increased the amount of New World Order (nWo) merchandise that they are selling through WWEShop.com.

Also read: ?Backstage News On Ric Flair's WWE Return, WWE Increases The Amount Of Their nWo Merchandise

-- As previously reported, Triple H and Stephanie McMahon are reportedly in a “power struggle” with WWE CFO George Barrios and Chief Revenue & Marketing Officer Michelle Wilson. The topic is a hot one in terms of conversation backstage.

Barrios and Wilson were the two key executives in charge of the WWE Network launch and securing the company’s new television deal. As we know by now, neither of them were close to as successful as the company hoped for.

-- As noted earlier here on the website, Randy Orton’s deal is now such that he is not working full-time on the road. According to sources, Orton’s deal–which isn’t specified if it is an new deal or a restructuring of his current one–only calls for him to work limited weekend dates.

WWE Announces A Big 'Contract Signing' For Tonight's RAW Broadcast

WWE.com just posted the following:

Less than one week away from Survivor Series, Team Cena and Team Authority will have a contract signing for their anticipated Traditional Survivor Series Elimination Match. What else is in store? WWE.com gives some perspective on what’s sure to be an action-packed Raw.

Also read: ?The WWE Survivor Series Main Event Revealed - Details Inside Here

We’re just one week away from Survivor Series, and the anticipated Traditional Survivor Series Elimination Tag Team Match between Team Cena and Team Authority is finally taking shape. Who will be the final members of each squad? Moreover, after what transpired on Friday night between Ryback and The Authority, will The Big Guy finally align with John Cena?

Before Team Cena and Team Authority meet for what’s sure to be a tense contract signing, join WWE.com as we preview all of the top stories heading into this week’s Raw.

The "Grumpy Cat" will also appear on RAW tonight.

Tonight's Confirmed WWE NXT Matches + More On Rey Mysterio's WWE Contract Issues & Future

Partial Source: The Wrestling Observer Newsletter

-- Here are tonight's confirmed WWE NXT matches:

Also read: Rey Mysterio To Sign A New WWE Deal?, Details

* Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch vs. Bayley and Charlotte
* Tyson Kidd vs. Dash WIlder
* #1 Contender’s Match: Tyler Breeze vs. Sami Zayn

-- As noted earlier here on the website, some new details on Rey Mysterio’s current relationship with WWE have been released. As we posted on Monday, Mysterio was brought to Buffalo, New York for Monday’s episode of RAW. This is after the company contacted him just before the Mexican tour, asking him to come back for it as advance ticket sales were initially low. Mysterio made it clear at that time that he did not want to come back.

According to sources, Mysterio still does not want to come back but the creative team is still trying to come up with ideas for him. Part of why Mysterio wants to work outside of the company is due to the fact that he saw the former Sin Cara able to call his own shots and command a high price ($5,000 per match) for working in Mexico. Mysterio is also confident that he could make very good money as one of Lucha Underground’s flagship stars.

Back when Mysterio’s deal expired about six months ago, he actually shook hands with Triple H and the two thanked each other for their time together like it was over. However, Vince McMahon made the call to have Mysterio’s contract extended for another year due to the time he didn’t work due to his injuries. It's basically a case of WWE is going to use him while they have him under contract despite the fact that he doesn't want to be there. He has no plans to re-up with WWE when his current con tract expires. It'll be interesting to see how they use him and whether they "job" him out and have him "put over" younger talents.

Backstage News On Devon's TNA Contract & When It Expires, British Boot Camp II, Knockouts

-- TNA British Boot Camp II debuts October 19th on Challenge TV in the UK.

-- Devon’s last contracted date for TNA is the October 12th Bound for Glory pay-per-view.

Also read: ?The Debut Date For TNA's British Boot Camp II Debut Revealed, OMEGA Returns This Weekend

-- The TNA One Night Only: Knockouts Knockdown II PPV will debut November 7th. Here is the card for that show…

* Gail Kim vs. Veda Scott
* Angelina Love vs. Scarlett Bordeaux
* Madison Rayne vs. Havok
* Velvet Sky vs. Reby Sky
* Karlee Perez vs. Taryn Terrell
* Brittany vs. Mia Yim
* Brooke Tessmacher vs. Deonna
* Marti Belle vs. ODB
* Winner Face in Queen of the Knockouts Gauntlet Match

Roderick Strong Speak Out - ROH PPV Plans, No Contract, More

Roderick Strong recently spoke with Between the Ropes, here are the highlights…

On whether or not now is a good time for Ring of Honor to be on pay-per-view: "I think it's a great time. I've been telling everybody since I found out about it. And this year has been unbelievable in the sense of momentum, TV-wise, live event-wise, match quality-wise. Like the transition of being on TV ... it was a bumpy one for Ring of Honor honestly and for the guys. I still think in-ring product of what we bring to TV is still work in progress because working for TV is a lot different than a live event. But I think everyone has grown leaps and bounds in that sense and we're showing and translating to the people that have never seen Ring of Honor I think a little bit better about what we are."

Also read: Seth Rollins On Undertaker's Streak, Warrior's Death, WWE PG, And More

On the sense that Ring of Honor is getting the "cool factor" back: I do. And it sucks that we kind of lost our edge a little bit. We were going through a transitional period of everyone trying to find themselves with this new system and people's expectations for what was going to happen when Sinclair bought the company. Everyone was like "oh no, you're taking away Ring of Honor" but in reality, they were just learning how to handle such a machine in the sense of people are so passionate about it and want it to be successful from the wrestlers to the fans. I think during that because, in their brain, we were going mainstream, it wasn't cool and I think over time people realized hey, we're just trying to figure this out and we're trying to bring you the Ring of Honor you love but just on a bigger stage. And it's a really good feeling and I think that's why timing-wise with the pay-per-view it's prefect because the guys are full speed ahead, the company is full speed ahead and it's just awesome.

On not currently having a contract: I was basically under contract from 2005 to when my contract had ran up and it was just something where I want to take a little break from that obligation. Not that anyone was necessarily restricting me but I wanted to be in a position where is somebody called and there was an opportunity I could jump on it if it was the right one for me. They've been very understanding about it at Ring of Honor and they understand how much I respect and love the company and I would never do anything to disrespect them in any way, shape or form. It's been awesome that they've been willing to work with me and give me that opportunity for a little bit.

How Many Talents Are Currently Under Contract With TNA?

Source: The Wrestling Observer Newsletter

In the last few weeks, Christopher Daniels, Frankie Kazarian, Chris Sabin and Shawn Hernandez have all left TNA.

Also read: ?Report: WWE Contacts Chris Jericho To Return

The TNA roster is shrinking, as two years ago they had over 60 performers under contract. Right now, the company has 33 talents under contract.

Daniels/Kazarian TNA Contract Updates, Aries At...

Partial Source: The Wrestling Observer-- According to sources, Christopher Daniels' TNA contract expires in April while Frankie Kazarian's contract expires some time after that. We don't believe it's in April though. It should be noted that both TNA talents are booked for several WrestleMania 30 week indy events and not TNA's live events in Georgia. The two were also not booked for this week's iMPACT! TV tapings. We hope to have more on this shortly.-- Austin Aries was a guest at the Phi...