Hailey's Newsies - Issue 74 - March 5th 2010; Three Releases + New Merchandise

Youtube's Favorite FCW Diva - Winner and Runner-Ups Revealed

The winner and the two runner-ups are revealed!
Preview for the next contest, which starts next Friday!

9 - Liviana
8 - Askana
7 - Serena Mancini
6 - Penny Cash
5 - AJ Lee
4 - Savannah
3 - ???
2 - ???
1 - ???

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7THfG6AkZSU

Royal Rumble DVD
The Royal Rumble DVD comes out in a few days, and it's already 37% off the price.

http://www.wweshop.com/item/royal-rumble-2010-dvd/TopSellers/35-00693

Hurricane Helms Released
In a move that was expected, Hurricane Helms was released by WWE.

Hurricane Helms Released
With ECW folding and several developmental wrestlers being brought up for the brand new NXT project, it was quite obvious that there were going to be some releases made soon.

Well, the first wave of releases have happened.

Maria, Paul Burchill, and Hurricane Helms are the unlucky ones today. WWE has deemed them to be expendable. Now, they're on the way to the unemployment line (well, not literally).

For Hurricane Helms, the writing has been on the wall for about a month now.

At the end of January, the 18 year veteran was arrested after an incident involving Chris Jericho and Matt Hardy. Being a main event wrestler, Chris Jericho obviously wasn't going to be punished. That meant that Hurricane Helms was going to be the one to take the brunt of management's angst.

The punishment ended up being a release.

Replacing the Hurricane
Hurricane Helms' biggest asset to WWE was his character. The superhero gimmick has been around for quite some time now, and it remains fairly popular with a percentage of the audience.

It's no secret that the young kids are the main demographic group that WWE targets when it comes to keeping Hurricane Helms around. He's no Rey Mysterio, but he does pretty well with moving merchandise.

WWE will more than likely look for someone to replace Hurricane Helms' spot on the roster. It might be someone already on the roster, or it might be a developmental wrestler brought up with a brand new gimmick.

Wrestling fans have been anxiously awaiting the promotion of Kaval (formerly known as Low Ki in TNA) from the developmental territory. Some are going to suggest him for the spot, but he doesn't seem the type to do a comedic role.

Storm Hitting TNA
All eyes are now on Hurricane Helms to see if he's going to make his TNA debut in the next few weeks. While there are always rumors about every released WWE star going to TNA, this one actually has some merit behind it.

Hurricane Helms' close friend, Shannon Moore, recently signed a deal with TNA and is expected to make his debut soon. Another childhood friend, Jeff Hardy, is expected to start working for TNA again once his legal issues become more clear.

Since they're the #2 wrestling promotion in the US, TNA is constantly looking for ways to create a buzz within the industry in hopes of gaining new fans.

There's not a sane wrestling fan in this world that would deny that a huge buzz would be created if Hurricane Helms, Jeff Hardy, and Shannon Moore all appeared on the stage together. That's something that would get fans to flip channels when iMPACT! goes to Monday nights.

The other famous member of Team OMEGA isn't very likely to join these guys, though. It would create hysteria if Matt Hardy were to reunite with these guys in TNA, but WWE will more than likely keep him under contract to prevent that from happening.

Charlie Haas Released
Longtime WWE star Charlie Haas has been released from his contract and is free to sign with any other wrestling company of his choice.

Charlie Haas Released
Every year, WWE goes through a period of time where they start cleaning house by releasing several of the wrestlers from their contracts. It's their way of cutting the fat.

During this period of time time, things are a bit shaky at the Haas household. Charlie Haas is generally on the lower end of the card, which means that he's constantly a candidate to get released.

The trigger has finally been pulled this year. WWE has released Charlie Haas.

Underutilized
The release of Charlie Haas comes as a disappointment because it was a move that simply didn't need to happen. Had he been used properly, he would not have constantly been at risk of being released.

The 37 year old Texas native is an underrated performer, both on the mic and in the ring. He's not going to be a main event wrestler, but you still need good workers at all levels.

The company could have had tremendous depth in the tag team division had they decided to pair Charlie Haas back up with Shelton Benjamin, who hasn't accomplished much as a singles wrestler as of late.

If not with Shelton Benjamin, then Charlie Haas could have been paired up with either Chris Masters or Mike Knox, two other guys who are on the verge of being released because management simply cannot find anything for them.

Wrestling fans all complain about how pathetic the WWE tag team division is, but the simple solutions have been right under their noses for quite some time now.

A Different Angle
One of the things that made it easier for Charlie Haas and his wife, former WWE star Jackie Gayda, to handle this year's release period is the fact that there are other options available.

A few months ago, Charlie Haas had actually requested a release from WWE. At the time, Kurt Angle had came up with a storyline for him in TNA and management was warm to the idea.

WWE got word of this, so they decided to prevent their competition from gaining any ground by denying Charlie Haas his release. In order to keep him somewhat happy, the company also gave him a slight raise to stick around.

Now that the release has officially taken place, you can bet that the negotiations between Charlie Haas and TNA will take place soon.

Well Prepared
Another reason why Charlie Haas has been able to handle this time period well is because he's prepared himself for life after wrestling.

Charlie Haas, a former stockbroker, has set up a nutritional shop in Frisco, Texas (north of Dallas). He had a business relationship with the late Umaga, but it is now believed that Charlie Haas owns the entire business himself.

While it's not going to make him rich, it does provide him with a means in which he can take care of his family without having to rely on professional wrestling.

Rated R Superstar Belt
WWE has introduced a brand new leather belt featuring the Rated R Superstar logo.

http://www.wweshop.com/item/edge-leather-belt/NewReleases/06-01240

Awesome Kong Released
After refusing to change her mind, Awesome Kong has finally been able to convince TNA to give her a release from her contract.

Awesome Kong Released
It's no secret that TNA president Dixie Carter was ecstatic to bring in a big name player like Hulk Hogan into her company. However, she had absolutely no idea that she would inadvertently end up losing one of her favorite wrestlers because of it.

As expected, the arrival of Hulk Hogan also meant that we would see the arrival of his close friends. Already, we've seen the aging Scott Hall, Brian Knobbs, and Jerry Sags make appearances. The Hulkster also brought along controversial radio personality Bubba the Love Sponge.

It was the latter arrival that would end up costing TNA one of their key players.

Never been one to back down from controversy, Bubba the Love Sponge made some disparaging remarks about the relief efforts to help those that were devastated by the earthquake in Haiti.

That stance did not sit too well with Awesome Kong, who took it upon herself to help generate some donation money to be sent to assists the millions of people that were struggling in Haiti.

A physical backstage confrontation ensued between the two during one of the TNA iMPACT! tapings. Shortly afterwards, Awesome Kong requested her release from TNA, which was immediately denied.

The former TNA Knockouts Champion took a stance by refusing to go on an overseas tour, which forced management to suspend her.

After realizing that she would not change her mind about the situation, TNA had no choice but to grant Awesome Kong her release.

Gigantic Loss
Make no doubt about it. This is a gigantic loss for TNA.

Awesome Kong was one of the centerpieces of the Knockouts division. She was the dominant heel champion that the company built the division around. It was a formula that worked rather well in the ratings.

Without Awesome Kong, TNA is not going to have that reliable female wrestler that they could turn to in order to get others over with the audience.

Show Must Go On
While it is a huge loss for TNA, the Knockouts division will go on. The company has already proven that they can sustain a loss.

Things weren't looking all that well when the other centerpiece of the Knockouts division (Gail Kim) left for bigger paychecks in WWE.

However, the show must go on. TNA will follow the same route that they took to compensate for the loss of Gail Kim by focusing on building up the other women in the company.

It's not going to be an easy task, but it can be done.

Source: WrestlingRevealed