Former WWE Superstar Giant Silva (formerly of the Oddities) defeated Akebono by submission in a quick fight at K-1s Kyosera Dome New Years Eve show from Osaka, Japan. Akebono, who faced The Big Show a few years back at Wrestlemania, announced his retirement following the match.
Talent head John Lauraintis received heat for the way the Amy Zidian situation played out. He went to bat for her with creative, and ultimately she was fired for roughing feathers with the divas (including Layla, Kristal and Vickie Guerrero), and apparently didn't even recognize Stephanie McMahon.
Speaking of Lauraintis, he sold 1,900 shares of WWE on 12/12 for about $32,400. He still has 42,472 shares worth more than $713,000.
Mark Henry is said to be ahead of his rehab schedule and hopes to return sooner than expected from his torn patella tendon injury.
Get an email update when major stories break! Our email updates are sent out only when a major story (that would appear in the Top Stories section of the site) breaks or after a PPV. Your email is kept confidential and is never given out to anyone. To sign up for our email updates, click here.