Various: Scott D’Amore on TNA Had Attempted to Sign CM Punk Before Punk’s WWE Return, Current Card for 5/23 ROH TV Show, Indies/Misc.

May 23, 2025

Scott D’Amore Comments on TNA Had Attempted to Sign CM Punk Before Punk’s WWE Return

In a recent article for Yahoo Sports’ Uncrowned, former TNA President and current Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling owner Scott D’Amore confirmed that TNA Wrestling had attempted to sign CM Punk to a contract prior to Punk making his official return to WWE in November of 2023.

“It wasn’t a well-kept secret that I tried to sign Phil to TNA after things with AEW fell apart. I knew it was a long shot, I knew I was asking him to work in smaller arenas than he had in a long time. He listened; he was interested. He never big-timed TNA once, and he conducted himself the way we’d all wish a professional would. Ultimately, he went back to WWE, which, of course, is where he belongs.”

Current Card for Friday’s ROH TV Show

Ring of Honor recently announced the current card for Friday’s ROH TV show on HonorClub and their official YouTube channel.

Current card for May 23rd ROH TV show:

Pure Rules match – Queen Aminata vs. Allysin Kay
Six-Man Tag Team match – Atlantis Jr., Neon, & Fuego vs. Volador Jr., Hechicero, & Barbaro Cavernario
Blake Christian vs. Gringo Loco

Misc. Wrestling News & Notes

QT Marshall’s 1FW (1 Fall Wrestling) recently announced that Tony Schiavone, Harley Cameron, and The Frat House (Griff Garrison, Cole Karter, Preston Vance, & Jacked Jameson) will be making an appearance for the company at their debut Summerstage event on July 25th in Atlanta, Georgia. It was announced that Schiavone, Cameron, and the Frat House will be appearing at a fan meet & greet prior to the start of the show.

The National Wrestling Alliance recently announced that they will be reviving the NWA Texas Championship at their NWA Texas: Paradox Presents Mutual Combat event on May 26th in San Antonio, Texas.

BET recently premiered an original movie titled Onyx on their BET+ streaming service. This film features Ariane Andrew, former Cameron in WWE, portraying the role of Shannon. The synopsis for this film is “Three friends try and escape the daily grind and support their friend recovering from a bad breakup by going on a rural Arizona adventure camp when they inadvertently get caught in an alien invasion.”

In a recent virtual fan signing event for Signed By Superstars, former AEW and ROH talent Maria Kanellis gave her thoughts about how Ring of Honor had wanted to bring in Mariah May to the company prior to AEW CEO Tony Khan purchasing the company. Kanellis stated “They’re both so incredibly talented (Kanellis said about Toni Storm & Mariah May). So talented… I tried to bring Mariah May in for Women’s Wrestling Army. It was just too hard. We tried to bring her in for Ring of Honor too but, at the time, she wasn’t full-time in the States so, you couldn’t bring anybody in. But, yeah, I think they’re both so talented. Some of the most talented people in the industry.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)

In a recent interview with the Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling podcast, WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley gave his thoughts about his critique of modern day era of wrestling. Foley stated “I had one with Bret Hart. It was unconventional. We worked backwards, if that makes any sense. We didn’t go from start to finish, we went from finish to start. It was unusual, and it was effective. I wish I had a copy of it, just so I could see why it worked, and so that other people might study it and realize there’s more than one way to have a great match. That’s my only pet peeve about today’s product: fans have come to believe there’s only one way to have a great match. I don’t believe that. It would take a handful of people to defy the prevailing winds and go in a different direction. So, I think there should be a reminder every once in a while that not every great match has to look the same.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)

In a recent interview with Sports Graphic Number, Marigold founder Rossy Ogawa gave his thoughts about how Giulia had wanted to return to Marigold for an appearance for Nane Takahashi’s retirement match on May 24th but her WWE commitments prevented it from being possible. Ogawa stated “She (Nanae Takahashi) had no choice but to play the last match she had left. Her legs are bad. The stairs must have been difficult. And yet, she did so much. Whether it was good or bad to go that far is hard to say, but it’s better to finish on a high note. Since it was her retirement match, she wanted a fairly large venue, and Ota Ward was too early, so she decided on Yoyogi. Yoyogi had been reserved even before the launch of the company. I think (Takahashi) had given it her all. At first, Giulia wanted to come, so we considered having her as her opponent, but it happened to coincide with a pay-per-view match over there (at WWE). The rest of the card was already decided, so it became (Miku) Aono. Aono has been consistent throughout the past year. The atmosphere is always the same. It never changes. She is popular too. She’s a wrestler who contributed greatly to Marigold.“

Major League Wrestling recently announced that they will be debuting a new match format called Lighting matches in the company. This match type was described to be “Known in Mexico’s CMLL as match relámpago, these singles bouts are a staple of the lucha scene—short, intense, and wildly popular … A Lightning Match is a one-fall singles fight with a strict 10-minute time limit. There’s no second chance, no room to coast. It’s a sprint—one that demands speed, technique, strategy, and a killer instinct to finish the fight before time runs out. Blink, and you might miss a breakout moment—or a crushing defeat.”

MLW also recently announced one new match for the card of their Summer of the Beasts 2025 event on June 26th in New York City, New York: