Huge TNA-ECW News Recap Part 1 - Tons Of Backstage News!
NOTE: This is a recap of all the TNA-ECW-Hardcore Justice news that we have posted over the past week. This news is ALL re-posted for those who may have missed some of it:
– The idea to make the TNA Hard Justice PPV an "ECW" themed event happened at the Monday tapings. There was a planned direction for the ECW crew, but they along with Tommy Dreamer pitched a new direction which Dixie Carter approved. Carter also signed off on Dreamer running the show, which at this time is planned to be a "one off" ECW show. Many are impressed with how much trust Dreamer has been given by management.
– The August 8th PPV has been renamed "Hardcore Justice: One Last Stand," and a new commercial has been sent out to PPV providers. The commercial reportedly features an ECW chant, something the company will have to be very careful about using for legal reasons.
– As noted earlier, Tommy Dreamer has been contacting talent about doing the show, while TNA's Terry Taylor is handling the financial side of things.
– Talent expected to appear are Jerry Lynn, The Sandman, Sabu, Spike Dudley, The FBI, Axl Rotten, Balls Mahoney and Swinger. No contracts have been signed and many people booked have asked that their name be kept quiet.
– They plan is to headline the PPV with an RVD vs. Jerry Lynn match. The plan is to announce two or three matches ahead of time, and then fill the card out via surprise, like ECW used to most of the time.
– Johnny Swinger will be appearing at next month's Hard Justice pay-per-view. He is expected to reunite with former tag team partner Simon Diamond in a tag match. Pat 'Simon Diamond' Kenney is an agent in TNA. Diamond and Swinger were a most notably seen in ECW as well as TNA Wrestling. During their time in ECW, they were managed by Dawn Marie. The duo have won both the NWA World Tag Team Championship and the MPW Tag Team Championship. No word on whether Dawn Marie will appear at the PPV as of this writing. Stay tuned as we get more.
– TNA Wrestling officials have discussed using former ECW World Heavyweight Champion Justin Credible at next month's Hard Justice pay-per-view. However, it has not been confirmed that he will be working the show, or if he has even been contacted to appear. Credible briefly appeared with TNA in 2003, forming a stable with several other ECW alumni and reviving his feud with Jerry Lynn.