Various: Natalya on Her Upcoming Appearance for NWA at Crockett Cup 2025, Alex Hammerstone Clarifies His Injuries Issues Situation in 2024 & Denies Being Injury Prone, Indies/Misc.

Natalya Comments on Her Upcoming Appearance for NWA at Crockett Cup 2025

As noted before, Natalya will be making her official debut appearance for the National Wrestling Alliance at their Crockett Cup 2025 event on May 17th in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

A recent episode of the Busted Open Radio podcast featured Natalya as the guest. One of the topics discussed included Natalya’s thoughts about the NWA and its owner Billy Corgan representing tradition in wrestling.

“Billy and NWA, they represent tradition, and it’s funny, I’d gone to one of Billy’s shows about a year ago, and I was backstage, and I was just so impressed because there’s a different vibe in their locker room, it’s very close-knit, and I think that Billy is all about tradition, he’s all about respect, and he’s all about the art. If Billy Corgan is about anything, it’s about the art, and that’s very much what I represent. That’s why I have my own ring and I love training there, I love training people there. I love doing what my grandfather did in the original Dungeon. I’m all about tradition, too, but I’m also about work ethic. I don’t believe in phoning it in, I don’t believe in coasting. NWA represents everything that I’m about, and it’s just gonna be such a special show for me to be a part of, especially since it’s for Billy because I think he’s amazing and I love what he’s doing for wrestling.”

In regards to Natalya’s booking with the NWA, Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that his sources stated that Natalya and Corgan are very close personal friends. Natalya reportedly had asked WWE officials if she could work NWA’s show due to other talent being allowed to work outside WWE events and WWE officials gave their approval.

Transcript h/t: Fightful.com

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Alex Hammerstone Clarifies His Injuries Issues Situation in 2024 & Denies Being Injury Prone

As noted before, Alex Hammerstone recently departed from TNA Wrestling following his contract expiring with the company.

Hammerstone recently issued a statement on Twitter clarifying the rumors and reports of his injuries issues in 2024. Hammerstone confirmed that he did undergo knee surgery this past December but any other injury that he was labeled with was not an actual injury.

“What are these injuries that you all know so much about? Because I don’t know what it was. Because I had knee surgery [on] December 23rd, and I was back wrestling at the very beginning of February.

What happened was, a local state commission at a show had a local doctor that listened to my heart and lungs and misdiagnosed [and] thought I had a heart condition. And I got sent home and then I had to go to an actual hospital to get checked. And guess, what? I had pneumonia. The only reason my heart and lungs sounded funny because I had pneumonia. But instead of that being enough to get cleared, I got sent on this wild goose chase where I had to go to doctor after doctor after doctor getting every stupid test done. And every step of the way, they’re like, ‘Oh yeah, you’re fine. But they probably want you to get an echocardiogram. And I got that done, and they were like, ‘Oh yeah, you’re fine but they probably want you to do a CT scan.’ And I got that done, they were like, ‘Oh, they probably want chest X-rays. They probably want bloodwork.’ So I got every single test in the world done, and guess what? I was fine. I just had pneumonia for like three days. But it just took forever to get cleared.”

Hammerstone also stated that he never stopped wrestling but the reason he was absent from television was due to him waiting to be medicially cleared. Hammerstone also denied the rumors of him being injury prone and stated that he had “spent $20,000 on doctors to get cleared cleared for something that was never an issue in the first place.”

PLEASE STOP TALKING ABOUT ALL MY “INJURIES” THAT NEVER HAPPENED.

Thank you.

Sincerely, perfectly healthy me. pic.twitter.com/oiJVbf5Lix

— Hammerstone (@alexhammerstone) March 7, 2025

Transcript h/t: 411Mania.com

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Misc. Wrestling News & Notes

Saturday’s New Japan Cup 2025 event for New Japan Pro Wrestling in Tokyo, Japan featured Yuya Uemura, EVIL, Ryohei Oiwa, and Gabe Kidd advancing to the next round of this year’s New Japan Cup tournament. Uemura defeated SANADA, EVIL defeated Yota Tsuji, Oiwa defeated Chase Owens, and Kidd defeated Ren Narita.

Friday’s Super Viernes event for CMLL at the Arena Mexico in Mexico City, Mexico featured Taya Valkyrie & Lady Frost defeating Kira & Skadi in the first Eliminators tournament to advance to the Finals of the Vacant CMLL Women’s World Championship tournament.

Friday’s CMLL Super Viernes event in Mexico City also featured India Sioux defeating Sanley to become the new CMLL National Women’s Champion.

Pro Wrestling EVE recently announced that they had pulled Sessions Moth Martina from their Women Behaving Badly event on Friday in London, England due to an illness issue.

Game Changer Wrestling recently announced that they will be holding an event called GCW at Coney Island at the Maimonides Park in Brookyln, New York.

TNA Wrestling referee Daniel Spencer announced on Twitter that he recently signed a new contract with the company. Spencer also announced that he will be taking on additional duties in the company as part of his new deal. Spencer stated “This week marks the 5th anniversary of my journey with @ThisIsTNA. It’s been an incredible experience, and I’ve been fortunate enough to work with some of the best individuals, both inside and outside the ring, over the past five years. About a year ago, when there were concerns about TNA’s future, I received a reassuring call from a close friend and colleague. He informed me that significant changes were about to occur, and that I was in a better position to contribute than I had been in the previous four years. I placed my trust in his judgment and eagerly anticipated the positive developments. As I approach my 6th year with TNA, I’m thrilled to announce that I’ve signed a new contract. In addition to my role as a Senior Official, I’ve taken on additional responsibilities and duties, fulfilling a goal that I’ve been diligently pursuing since March 2020. I couldn’t be more grateful to be a part of TNA and to all those who have supported me along the way in achieving and living my dream. God is good and he always blesses those who put forth the work. My advice to anyone who wants to achieve their dreams is to set clear goals and work tirelessly towards them. Once you reach your goals, don’t stop there. Set new goals and continue to push yourself to the limit. Repeat this process, and never give up on your aspirations.“

Sendai Girls Pro recently announced one new match for the card of their May 3rd event in Tokyo, Japan:

• Minoru Suzuki vs. Meiko Satomura

Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling recently announced – new matches for the card of their Mayhem Night 1 event on March 14th in Windsor, Ontario, Canada:

• MLP Canadian Women’s Championship Tournament Quarterfinal Round match – Zoe Sager vs. Kylie Rae
• MLP Canadian Women’s Championship Tournament Quarterfinal Round match – Taylor Rising vs. Beaa Moss

Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling also recently announced – new matches for the card of their Mayhem Night 2 event on March 15th in Windsor, Ontario, Canada:

• Street Fight match – PCO vs. Michael Allen Richard Clark.

DEFY Wrestling recently announced one new match for the card of their Aftermath event on March 15th in Seattle, Washington:

• Four-way match – Clark Connors vs. Marcus Mathers vs. Labron Kozone vs. Titus Alexander
• Undisputed Kingdom (Matt Taven & Mike Bennett) vs. Intergalactic Jet Setters (KUSHIDA & Kevin Knight)

Future Stars of Wrestling recently announced one new match for the card of their Mecca X: Chris Bey Beynefit event on March 23rd in Las Vegas, Nevada:

• Brian Cage vs. Rich Swann