WWE

TMZ Sports talked to WWE Hall of Famer, Eric Bischoff, about the implications of the $5 billion Netflix/WWE deal ... and how it could change professional wrestling moving forward.

Bischoff, of course, was an executive at WCW, effectively taking on Vince McMahon in the 90s during the Monday Night Wars.

Bischoff ultimately joined WWE ... where he worked for decades in numerous positions.

WWE fans are going to get real familiar with Netflix and chill on Monday nights soon ... 'cause the wrestling org. just struck a massive deal with the streaming giant to bring "RAW" to the platform in 2025.

The two companies reached a 10-year, $5 BILLION agreement Tuesday to make it all happen ... and both sides said in statements they're thrilled.

"This deal is transformative," TKO President and COO Mark Shapiro said. "It marries the can’t-miss WWE product with Netflix’s extraordinary global reach and locks in significant and predictable economics for many years."

Added Netflix honcho Bela Bajaria, "By combining our reach, recommendations, and fandom with WWE, we’ll be able to deliver more joy and value for their audiences and our members."

"RAW" -- which currently airs on USA Network -- hasn't strayed from cable TV since its inception back in 1993 ... and, according to the WWE, it's been a massive success there, bringing in more than 17 million unique viewers throughout a given year.

But, clearly, both sides think the move to streaming will grow it even further ... with WWE president Nick Khan calling Netflix "the ideal long-term home for Raw’s live, loyal, and ever-growing fan base."

Definitivamente, podemos asegurar que La Roca estaba tramando algo, pues ahora está en la nueva junta de la WWE y tiene los derechos exclusivos de su nombre artístico.

Dwayne Johnson fue anunciado como el nuevo miembro de la junta directiva de TKO, que ahora posee la WWE y la UFC. Como uno de los directivos de la organización, no solo obtendrá algún poder ejecutivo en la toma de decisiones, sino otros beneficios también.

Para empezar, él está recibiendo algunas opciones sobre acciones, que están valoradas en $30 millones, y que se devengan con el tiempo. Y lo que es más importante, se le concederá la marca registrada "The Rock", que ha utilizado durante toda su carrera, desde que estaba en el ring.

Como parte de este nuevo movimiento, Dwayne podrá capitalizar su apodo, en concreto, en lo que respecta a merchandising y regalías de la WWE con el uso de 'The Rock'.

THR informa que parte del acuerdo entre Dwayne y TKO con respecto a los derechos de 'The Rock' implican que TKO obtendrá un acuerdo de licencia exclusiva durante 10 años para utilizar la marca para ciertos productos, y durante ese tiempo, Dwayne no puede licenciarlo a otras empresas que sean competencia de ellos. En otras palabras, recibe la marca, pero la WWE obtendrá una década para llevarse los beneficios.

En la noticia, La Roca dijo: "Mi abuelo, el Alto Jefe Peter Maivia, y mi padre, Rocky 'Soulman' Johnson, nunca habrían pensado que llegaría este día".

We can definitely smell what The Rock is cooking now -- dude's whipped up a mogul souffle ... 'cause he's now on the new WWE board, and he's got exclusive rights to his stage name.

Dwayne Johnson was announced as the newest board of directors member for TKO -- which now owns WWE and UFC as a new one-stop shop entity. As one of the shot-callers of the org, DJ will not only get some executive decision-making power ... but other perks too.

For starters, he's getting some stock options -- which are valued at $30 million, and which will vest over time. More importantly, he's being granted the full trademark to 'The Rock' ... which he has pretty much gone by his entire career, dating back to when he was in the ring.

As part of this new move, Dwayne will get to capitalize on his moniker -- specifically, as it pertains to merchandising/royalties the WWE might make by using 'The Rock' in business.

THR reports that part of the deal between DJ and TKO regarding 'The Rock' rights sees that TKO gets an exclusive licensing deal for 10 years to use the brand for certain products ... and during that time, Dwayne can't go and license it to other companies competitive with them. In other words, he receives the trademark ... but WWE gets a decade to milk it.

The Rock said of the news ... "My grandfather, High Chief Peter Maivia, and my dad, Rocky ‘Soulman’ Johnson, would’ve never thought this day would come."

WWE Superstar Big E says he still has no clue when he'll compete in the squared circle again ... telling TMZ Sports he's not going to rush into a comeback after suffering his scary neck injury nearly two years ago.

We caught up with 1/3 of The New Day out in NYC this week ... and while the 37-year-old recently reunited with his tag team partners Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston after an extended time apart, it doesn't sound like he will be seeing action anytime soon.

"I don't have a timeline, unfortunately, but thank you for asking," Big E said this week.

As for whether he has any concerns about getting back into his wrestling career, the former champ gave a bit of insight into his mindset.

"I just want to make a smart decision," he added. "I didn't start wrestling to end up in a wheelchair, so I just want to make sure I'm just making the best decision for myself."

Of course, Big E hasn't competed since he broke his neck during a tag-team match on "Smackdown" in March 2022 ... after he was dropped on his head.

But the good news, Big E says his bones are connected again ... which is certainly a step in the right direction.

9:59 AM PT -- Hulk Hogan's wife, Sky Daily, just posted about the crash ... writing, "Last night, after we left dinner in Tampa, we saw a car flip in front of us! I truly admire my husband @hulkhogan and our good buddy @jakerask for springing into action, puncturing the girls airbag, and getting her quickly out of the car. By all appearances, she was unscathed, just really rattled, which is an absolute miracle!"

9:07 AM PT -- TMZ Sports has obtained new photos from the scene of the crash ... and in them, you can see Hulk and his friend playing real-life superheroes.

Take a look at these pics ... which show an up-close-and-personal view of the action. From the looks of it, the accident was as dramatic as you can imagine -- with the teen's car completely flipped upside down ... and her actually stepping out from the vehicle.

In fact, you can also see Hulk's buddy, Jake (the marine), running over to help. It's like something straight out of a movie -- and fortunately, nobody was seriously harmed.

7:17 AM PT -- More startling details about this accident -- TMZ Sports has learned that the driver was a minor ... a 17-year-old girl, who, we're told, was completely rattled by the whole thing.

Our sources also tell us that Hulk Hogan's buddy, Jake, who dove right in on this is actually a Marine!

Hulk Hogan sloughed off his WWE heel persona in real life this weekend -- jumping to the rescue of a woman who got into a horrific car accident ... and TMZ Sports has the pics.

Sources with direct knowledge tell us the legendary wrestler, his wife Sky Daily and a friend of theirs were cruising along a highway Sunday evening in Tampa, FL when they witnessed a bad wreck play out right in front of them.

We're told a car erratically swerved across the lanes to catch an exit it was about to miss -- and in the process ... clipped another car, which our sources say flipped over and tumbled.

Hulk and co., our sources explain, pulled over immediately -- with HH and his pal, Jake, rushing over to render aid to the driver ... a woman whom we're told was rattled. Since they were first on the scene, we're told Hulk and Jake actually helped get her out of the car.

Our sources say Jake popped the woman's airbag with some tools that Hulk had on hand -- and they both unbuckled her seatbelt and assisted her in safely leaving the vehicle. We're told paramedics eventually arrived on the scene, and Hulk and his crew looked on.

In the end, our sources say the woman appeared to be okay ... and HH was happy to help.

Pretty terrifying obviously -- and while, thankfully, everyone seemed alright in the end ... you gotta imagine the woman who was saved must've been surprised to see none other than Hulk himself being her personal hero. Again, he's often played the villain in the ring.

Turns out, he's the nicest guy and then some when called upon ... well done, brother!

Logan Paul dice que está comprometiendo más de 2.3 millones de dólares para corregir los errores de su fracasado CryptoZoo y también está presentando una demanda contra la gente que afirma que descarriló su juego.

Logan está cumpliendo su promesa de volver a comprar Base Egg y Base Animal tokens no fungibles de CryptoZoo, por su precio de compra original a través de un sitio web donde los inversores pueden presentar reclamaciones.

Recordemos que Logan anunció el juego CryptoZoo en 2021, facturando el proyecto animado NFT como "un juego muy divertido que hace dinero." Según se informa, el juego se inspiró en Pokémon y a las personas que pagaron $1.100 se les dijo que podían incubar, criar, coleccionar y comercializar híbridos de animales exóticos en la blockchain. La primera tanda de 11.000 NFT se agotó rápidamente, pero CryptoZoo nunca llegó a comercializarse.

Logan dice que tenía "las mejores intenciones" para CryptoZoo y "nunca ganó un solo centavo con el proyecto". Dice que gastó $400K desarrollando el juego y dice que se completó a principios de 2023, pero no fue lanzado debido a "obstáculos con la regulación que no comprendía realmente en un principio".

Logan añade: "Al igual que usted, yo estaba muy decepcionado porque el juego no fue entregado".

Logan dice que su programa de recompra de 2.3 millones de dólares "no está destinado a compensar a aquellos que apostaron en el mercado de criptomonedas y perdieron".

Además de la recompra de NFT, Logan también está tomando medidas legales, alegando en una nueva demanda que el desarrollador principal de CryptoZoo —Eduardo Ibáñez— y el "Crypto King" Jake Greenbaum son los culpables del fracaso del juego y no él.

En los documentos obtenidos por TMZ, una de las primeras banderas rojas en el proyecto ocurrió justo después del día de lanzamiento, con la actividad comercial sospechosa sucediendo, donde parecía docenas de personas ajenas al proyecto que de alguna manera obtuvieron información de la existencia del nuevo mercado de ZOO Tokens.

La demanda afirma que la actividad comercial poco clara hizo que la capitalización de mercado de ZOO Tokens cayera de unos 130 millones de dólares a 26 millones de dólares.

Logan Paul says he's committing more than $2.3 million to right the wrongs of his failed CryptoZoo ... and he's also filing a lawsuit against the folks he claims derailed his game.

Logan's delivering on his promise to buy back Base Egg and Base Animal non-fungible tokens from CryptoZoo for their original purchase price ... via a website where investors can submit claims.

Remember ... Logan announced the CryptoZoo game back in 2021, billing the animated NFT project as "a really fun game that makes you money." The game reportedly drew inspiration from Pokémon and folks who paid .1 Ethereum were told they could hatch, breed, collect and trade  exotic animal hybrids on the blockchain. The first wave of 11,000 NFTs quickly sold out but CryptoZoo was never released.

Logan says he had "only the best possible intentions" for CryptoZoo and "never made a single penny from the project." He says he spent $400K developing the game and says it was completed in early 2023 but wasn't released due to "regulatory hurdles that would need to be cleared that I did not originally understand."

LP adds ... "Like you, I was highly disappointed the game was not delivered."

Logan says his $2.3 million buyback program "is a way for me to make whole those who intended to play CryptoZoo. The buyback is not intended to compensate those who gambled on the crypto market and lost."

In addition to the NFT buyback, Logan is also taking legal action ... claiming in a new lawsuit that CryptoZoo lead developer Eduardo Ibanez and "Crypto King" Jake Greenbaum are to blame for the game's failure and not him.

In the docs -- obtained by TMZ -- one of the first red flags in the project happened just after launch day, with suspicious trading activity happening ... where it appeared dozens of project outsiders somehow got info of the existence of the new market for ZOO Tokens.

The lawsuit claims the sketchy trading activity caused the market capitalization of ZOO Tokens to drop from about $130 million to $26 million.

Dwayne Johnson returned to the WWE on Monday night, making a surprise appearance at RAW -- and it's safe to say following an electric few minutes on the mic and in the ring ... the crowd definitely smelled what he was cooking.

The 51-year-old -- who hasn't been seen in the WWE since September -- shocked fans at Pechanga Arena in San Diego when he interrupted Jinder Mahal's anti-American rant to open up a can of whoop ass.

The Rock slowly made his way to the ring after Mahal had bashed the U.S. in a minutes-long promo ... and when he eventually stood in front of the former WWE champ, Dwayne popped off insult after insult after insult.

In fact, at one point, Dwayne was able to get the crowd to call Mahal a "douche bag" over and over again in a unified chant.

Ultimately, a brawl between the guys broke out  -- but The Rock put an end to things quickly with a Spinebuster followed by his signature People's Elbow.

After Mahal ran away, The Rock electrified the crowd further ... calling out Roman Reigns.

Dwayne Johnson regresó a la WWE el lunes por la noche, haciendo una aparición sorpresa en RAW, y luego de escucharlo unos minutos en el micrófono y verlo en el ring, la multitud definitivamente captó lo que está planeando.

El luchador de 51 años, que no ha sido visto en la WWE desde septiembre, sorprendió a los fans en el Pechanga Arena de San Diego cuando interrumpió el discurso anti-estadounidense de Jinder Mahal para acabarlo.

La Roca lentamente se dirigió al ring después de que Mahal había estado criticando a los Estados Unidos por varios minutos, y cuando finalmente se puso delante del excampeón de la WWE, Dwayne estalló en insulto tras insulto.

De hecho, en un momento dado, Dwayne fue capaz de conseguir que el público llamara a Mahal un "idiota" una y otra vez en un canto.

En última instancia, estalló una pelea entre ambos, pero La Roca puso fin a las cosas rápidamente con un Spinebuster seguido de su firma codazo de pueblo (People's Elbow).

Después de que Mahal huyera, La Roca encendió a la multitud aún más, llamando a Roman Reigns.

Travis Kelce would be awwwweeeeesoooome in the squared-circle ... so says WWE Superstar The Miz, who tells TMZ Sports he'd love to see the Kansas City Chiefs superstar -- AND his brother, Jason -- take their talents to wrestling!!

Remember, we spoke with Travis back in April about possibly seeing him follow fellow tight end greats like Rob Gronkowski and George Kittle by getting into wrasslin' ... and he said he's already talked to Miz about making it happen.

Naturally, we had to ask Mike all about it when we caught up with him at LAX this week ... and while it doesn't sound like anything concrete just yet, it's clear he's put a lot of thought into it.

Miz -- who admitted he's blown up Travis' DMs over the subject -- said it would be perfect to see the Kelce bros team up for a special appearance at WrestleMania ... especially considering it'll be in Philadelphia, a city Jason is VERY familiar with.

Of course, Miz knows firsthand what it's like to go up against NFL stars -- he took on both Kittle and Pat McAfee at the same time at SoFi Stadium earlier this year.

Miz also feels like WWE could see a similar boost as Roger Goodell's org. if it happens ... thanks to the Taylor Swift effect.

Calvin Johnson says it's no surprise to him that Roman Reigns has become one of the most legendary WWE Superstars of all time ... telling TMZ Sports the dude was a total "badass" at Georgia Tech.

Believe it or not, the guys were actually teammates for the Yellow Jackets' football team in the mid-2000s ... and Johnson says he knew right away that Reigns had mega-star potential.

"He was just always like a badass," the Hall of Fame wide receiver explained. "He didn't say much, but when he did say something, you listened."

Reigns went by his real name, Joe Anoa'i, when he was playing defensive line at the time ... and he performed so well alongside Johnson, many believed he had a bright future in the NFL.

His battle with cancer derailed those aspirations, however -- but Johnson said that all clearly ended up being "a blessing in disguise" for him ... as he's now poised to break numerous records in the squared circle.

"My man is killing it out here," Johnson said.

Calvin Johnson dice que no es ninguna sorpresa para él que Roman Reigns se haya convertido en una de las más legendarias superestrellas de la WWE de todos los tiempos y le mencionó a TMZ Sports el tipo era un total "badass" en Georgia Tech.

Lo creas o no, los chicos eran en compañeros de equipo en el equipo de fútbol de los Yellow Jackets a mediados de la década del 2000 y Johnson dice que supo de inmediato que Reigns tenía potencial de mega-estrella.

"Siempre fue un tipo duro", explica el receptor del Salón de la Fama. "No decía mucho, pero cuando decía algo, lo escuchabas".

Reigns iba con su verdadero nombre, Joe Anoa'i, cuando jugó en la línea defensiva y se desempeñó tan bien junto a Johnson que muchos creían que tenía un futuro brillante en la NFL.

Sin embargo, su batalla contra el cáncer desbarató esas aspiraciones, pero Johnson dijo que todo eso terminó siendo claramente "una bendición disfrazada" para él, ya que ahora está a punto de batir numerosos récords en el círculo cuadrado.

"Mi hombre está arrasando", afirmó Johnson.

Big moment for Hulk Hogan ... he just announced he's been baptized!!

The Hulkster had the special ceremony at the Indian Rocks Baptist Church in Florida recently ... getting in a large body of water and fully submerging himself as part of the christening process.

70-year-old Hogan spoke about the significance of the baptism ... saying, "Total surrender and dedication to Jesus is the greatest day of my life."

"No worries, no hate, no judgment ... only love!"

Hogan was accompanied by his wife, Sky Daily Hogan ... who also took part in the baptism.

Hulk has previously opened up on his faith ... saying he knew at a young age Jesus Christ was his savior who helped him take the correct path to success.

"I accepted Christ as my savior at 14yrs old," he said back in April, "and the training, prayers and vitamins kept me in the game but now that I am one with God, the main event theme of surrender, service and love makes me the Real Main Event that can slam any giant of any size through the power of my Lord and Savior and so it is, even now brother, AMEN!"

Hulk Hogan acaba de anunciar que ha sido bautizado.

Hulkster tuvo la ceremonia especial en la Iglesia Bautista de Indian Rocks en Florida recientemente, donde se sumergió completamente como parte del proceso de bautismo.

Hogan, de 70 años de edad, habló sobre el significado del bautismo, diciendo: "La entrega total y la dedicación a Jesús es el día más grande de mi vida".

"Sin preocupaciones, sin odio, sin juicios, ¡solo amor!".

Hogan estuvo acompañado por su esposa, Sky Daily Hogan, que también participó en el bautismo.

Hulk se ha abierto previamente sobre su fe, diciendo que a temprana edad sabía que Jesucristo era su salvador y quien le ayudó a tomar el camino correcto para el éxito.

"Acepté a Cristo como mi salvador a los 14 años", dijo en abril, "y el entrenamiento, las oraciones y las vitaminas me mantuvieron en el juego, pero ahora que soy uno con Dios, el tema del evento principal de la entrega, el servicio y el amor me hace el Evento Principal Real que puede golpear a cualquier gigante de cualquier tamaño a través del poder de mi Señor y Salvador y así es, incluso ahora hermano, ¡AMEN!"

Bray Wyatt's dad, Mike Rotunda, is opening up on his constant grief following the late WWE Superstar's tragic death ... saying life without his son has been nothing short of a "nightmare."

Rotunda -- who was famous in his own right as a wrestler for decades, most notably as Irwin R. Schuster -- joined the "Wrasslin Talk with Mayor McCall" podcast to discuss Wyatt (real name Windham Rotunda) ... and, understandably, he's still struggling to come to terms with the loss.

"It's been really hard," Rotunda said. "We miss him every day."

"[My kids] would come with me and stay on the road, wherever I was wrestling ... and it's so hard to wake up out of this nightmare and he's still not there."

Rotunda explained Windham was supposed to get married to his partner, Jojo, recently ... making it an especially challenging time for his family.

Rotunda praised WWE for helping his family by giving Windham a Legends contract among other gestures ... which will allow his four children to receive financial help from merchandise sales.

"He was a jolly fellow," Rotunda continued. "He loved to laugh, he was loud, always laughing and he lit up a room. He lit up the wrestling business. People come up to me and have a story with Windham and say, 'He took the time to sit there and bulls*** with me for 10 or 15 minutes when he's supposed to be signing autographs.' So many people come up and support him by wearing Windham's stuff, and they have a story about him. He was that kind of person."

As we previously reported, Windham -- who experienced heart complications leading up to his death -- passed away while taking a nap at his home in August.

AEW star CJ Perry has been hospitalized for several days with a gruesome infection in her finger that has since spread up her arm ... a complication that has required surgery.

The 38-year-old shared photos with her millions of social media followers this week ... initially saying on Saturday she went to the ER after realizing a problem with her middle finger and arm.

"Please keep me in your prayers I’m at the ER @vphcares," Perry said on X ... explaining the medical emergency is the reason why she has not been competing recently.

"The infection from my small finger has gone up my arm. I am so sorry I had to miss last night and @AEW tonight. I look forward to debuting in Mexico with @AndradeElIdolo. Good luck @ToBeMiro and my client."

Perry -- who went by the ring name Lana during her WWE tenure -- provided an update on Monday ... revealing she had to undergo a procedure to address the ailment.

"The infection has gotten worse and I'm going into surgery tonight," Perry said. "Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers. I love you all."

Perry joined AEW this year ... making her debut with her husband and fellow wrestler Miro, on September 3 at the All Out PPV event. She's also an AEW manager and signed El Idolo as her first client.

Before All Elite, Perry was a WWE Superstar who also managed other wrestlers like Rusev.