NEWS ITEMS: Enzo pulled from Mixed Match Challenge, first team named for MMC, Snow talks about biggest problem in industry today, Shinsuke’s theme

-In a puzzling decision, Kurt Angle has pulled Enzo Amore from the “Mixed Match Challenge” series because he has the flu. Mixed Match Challenge debuts in two weeks, so either Enzo has been diagnosed with the rare 60 day flu or there is prep work that is being recorded now or something else is going on.

@real1 has the flu and thus I must replace him in the Mixed Match Challenge. #WWEMMC

— Kurt Angle (@RealKurtAngle) January 3, 2018

-Meanwhile, WWE has announced the first team in Mixed Match Challenge – Braun Strowman & Alexa Bliss. Angle referred to them as “The Giant & The Mouse” on his Instagram account.

-The Minnesota Wild NHL team has added Shinzuke Nakamura’s entrance theme to the mix of music they play before face-offs during their home games. Tell us about WWE theme songs you hear at your local sporting events. pwtorch@pwtorch.com

-On the latest Steve Austin Show on Podcast One, Al Snow talked with Steve about “getting over” in WWE and what he thinks is a big problem in the industry today. Snow said he thinks one of the downfalls of wrestling is the downside guaranteed contract, which is something the wrestlers are afraid to lose. He believes today’s wrestlers don’t perform to make themselves attractions or to get themselves over, rather, they play it safe because they don’t want to upset anyone or get heat and get fired. Snow said that if they use that WWE platform to get over, even if they get fired from the WWE, they can still go out and make money elsewhere and utilize that to get over and reinvent themselves for Vince McMahon to bring back again. He brought up Matt Hardy again as an example. Check out the full detailed summary of the Al Snow interview at our sister site, www.PWPodcasts.com, HERE.

-In 2018, we are looking for a few volunteers to help us track newsworthy and noteworthy social media activity among pro wrestlers on various platforms. If you are tracking wrestlers on social media regularly and are willing to help us make timely posts alerting others to interesting posts, let me know at kellerwade@pwtorch.com.

NOW CHECK OUT THIS RECENT REPORT: 1/1 WWE Raw HOLT Report: Crowd reaction for Reigns, match results that didn’t air last night, Strowman, Tozawa, more

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