Chris Benoit's Final Days: New Details Revealed

This week Chris Benoit and his family are featured on the cover of People Magazine. New details have been revealed regarding the troubled wrestler’s final days in the July 16th issue, now available at newsstands.

– Several wrestlers were interviewed in the featured article, including Brad Armstrong, Marc Mero, Rick Steiner, Dean Malenko and more.

– Up until his death, Chris Benoit would travel over 40 miles to visit Dr. Phil Astin, his personal physician. Astin has since been indicted by the federal government for prescribing excessive quantities of steroids and other drugs to multiple patients.

– When Chris Benoit took a 4 month vacation from WWE last year, it was to be with his wife Nancy while she recovered from surgery. The article said Nancy requested Chris take the time off.

– The Benoit family had “a big house, and an entire room was devoted to crafts and making things” .

– The death of his close friend Eddie Guererro affected Benoit deeply. He was described as being a “broken man” after we lost Eddie.

– Close friend and former wrestler Dean Malenko said what many others have following the tragedy – “He wasn’t a monster”.

PICTURE of Chris Benoit and Family on the FRONT COVER of the NEW “PEOPLE Magazine”

Brown in favour of calendar rotation for more ‘sustainable’ F1 races

McLaren boss Zak Brown believes a calendar rotation in F1 involving a quarter of the sport’s events would help some races become more sustainable in the future.

Formula 1 is set for a record-breaking 23-race schedule this season, at least if race promoters are spared any further disruption caused by the lingering COVID-19 pandemic.

Teams will kick off their campaign in Bahrain on March 28 and conclude the season in Abu Dhabi on December 5, a long stretch that will also include three triple-headers in the back half of the season.

Last year, new venues such as Portimão and Mugello successfully hosted their first ever Grand Prix while F1 returned to the Nurburgring and revisited Imola and Istanbul.

Among the new or revived venues, several have expressed their interest in being awarded a permanent slot on the sport’s calendar.

But despite this year’s packed schedule, F1 boss Stefano Domenicali recently alluded to a reduction of the number of races in the future and the possibility of rotating events moving forward.

©McLaren

Brown finds the prospect appealing as it would lighten the burden on team personnel but also introduce more variance into the calendar while allowing some events to become more cost-effective.

“I’d like to get to a place where we are rotating some races,” the McLaren Racing boss told Motorsport.com.

“I’m a big believer that if a good country wants a Grand Prix, that’s a great thing. I think the more countries we race in, the better.

“That being said, I think there’s two things to consider with the size of the schedule. There’s first and foremost is your people. It’s a brutal schedule.

“And then the other is the scarcity of the races. If you look at NFL, there are I think 16 regular season games, and three or four play-offs. The Olympics is massively popular, that’s every four years, as is the World Cup.

“We know some Grands Prix tail off over time, and so actually if you didn’t make it an annual thing, but every two years, would some of those grands prix be actually more sustainable because you don’t have the burn-out?”

    Read also: Domenicali aiming for fans in F1’s grandstands in 2021

Brown sees an F1 world championship built around 20 events as “ideal”, with a quarter of the races rotated each year.

“In our ideal world, you would do 20 grands prix per year,” he said.

“Maybe there are 25 markets, and maybe 15 of those are fixed events, because there is a commercial reality of this sport.

“You do have to balance all of the various interests, and we do need to get the sport to add up.

“I’d like to see there be a day where we’re in 25 markets, 15 core grands prix, and 10 other races – five of them are one year, and then five the next year.

“You might create more sustainable venues in some of those instances because people will go, ‘oh, it’s only around every two years, so I don’t want to miss it next year’.”

Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers

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Tommy Hilfiger announces key partnerships to drive minority representation

Tommy Hilfiger has announced key partnerships with its People’s Place Program to champion Black, Indigenous and people of colour (BIPOC) in fashion to advance underrepresented communities.

The American fashion brand, owned by PVH Corp., said the first of its partnerships will see it joining forces with Harlem’s Fashion Row and The Fashion and Race Database on several initiatives. Both organisations the company added were chosen to help it lead the way on engaging year-round with “recognised leaders who are known for championing inclusion and diversity”.

Tommy Hilfiger, principal designer at Tommy Hilfiger Global, said in a statement: “The People’s Place Program is a cornerstone in our efforts to open the door to everyone who has been left out by fashion. This welcoming spirit has always been at the heart of our brand, and we are here to do more and to do better.”

The People’s Place Program was launched in July 2020, drawing inspiration from Hilfiger’s very first store of the same name established in 1969 in his hometown of Elmira, NY. The initiative aims to amplify the company’s efforts and dedication of resources to increasing opportunities and visibility for underrepresented communities within the fashion and apparel industries around the world.

The platform acts through three pillars: Partnerships and Representation, Career Support and Industry Access, and Industry Leadership – to achieve meaningful, long-lasting change, explains the company.

Tommy Hilfiger joining forces with Harlem’s Fashion Row and The Fashion and Race Database

The Fashion and Race Database is an online platform created by Kim Jenkins, assistant professor of fashion studies at Ryerson University that expands the narrative of fashion history and challenges misrepresentation within the fashion system. The database is an educational resource that brings the focus back on people who previously had been hidden in the margins of fashion history.

The People’s Place Program will partner with the Fashion and Race Database to fund and support a new research study called ‘The Unsung History of American Sportswear’ to uncover overlooked influences from Black American culture on signature Tommy Hilfiger styles. Throughout 2021, the research will be developed into content series and educational resources that will be available internally, and to industry peers and consumers. The material will be designed to engage with audiences about the unrecognised areas of American style and to open a new dialogue on how marginalised history can come forward through purposeful collaborations in the industry.

“The Fashion and Race Database is thrilled to partner with an American company like Tommy Hilfiger and its namesake brand, a vibrant piece of fashion history,” said Jenkins. “As a professor and founder of the database, it has been my mission to urge brand owners to embrace what fashion education has to offer the industry. Tommy Hilfiger understands and respects the power of this learning, and is leading the charge, showing its peers what is possible in building a more intelligent and compassionate fashion system.”

The research will include a detailed examination of American sportswear through a study of denim, the cotton trade, origins of preppy style at Historically Black Colleges and Universities, the sartorial expression of social activist moments, streetwear culture, and additional categories that will come to life through the Fashion and Race Database’s research.

Randy Cousin, SVP, product concepts and People’s Place Program, added: “This critically timed relationship will support the Fashion and Race Database’s goal to centre and amplify radicalised fashion scholarship, illuminate under-examined histories and address representation throughout fashion.”

The second partnership will be with Harlem Fashion Row, a New York-based agency founded by Brandice Daniel in 2007 to champion the advancement of people of colour in the fashion industry.

Tommy Hilfiger will be a supporting sponsor for Harlem Fashion Row’s 3rd Annual Digital Fashion Summit, taking place on February 18, 2021. Hilfiger and Cousin will join Daniel to discuss how the company is working towards creating more access and opportunities for Black, Indigenous and people of colour in the fashion industry.

The American brand will also partner with Harlem Fashion Row to identify ways for emerging talent to receive mentorship and network with internal teams as well as industry insiders.

Commenting on the partnership, Daniel, founder and chief executive of Harlem Fashion Row, said: “We are delighted to partner with Tommy Hilfiger on the Annual Digital Fashion Summit to highlight solutions and practices for diversity and inclusion in the fashion industry.

“With our collaborative effort, we aim to address and implement change. Addressing the concerns takes a long-term commitment and we acknowledge the steps that Tommy Hilfiger is taking, and we are elated about their upcoming plans to provide opportunities for designers of colour.”

In addition, Tommy Hilfiger said that it would be using its global reach to bring communities together to drive positive change through its spring campaigns for both its mainline and Tommy Jeans. Each campaign will feature a diverse cast of social, cultural and creative influencers, including activists, musicians, poets, dancers, and filmmakers.

This month, Black talent, including musician and producer Saba, and the horse riding and mentorship collective Compton Cowboys, will take over the brand’s social media channels to highlight significant moments in Black American history and celebrate the people and culture that inspire them every day.

Over the summer, Hilfiger will launch collaborative capsule collections with actor, model and activist, Indya Moore, and fashion designer and longtime mentee of Hilfiger, Romeo Hunte.

Avery Baker, president and chief brand officer at Tommy Hilfiger Global, added: “We are determined to continue putting real action behind our words. Equity and inclusion cannot be achieved through short-term recognition; we have to bring them to the forefront every day.”

Images: courtesy of Tommy Hilfiger

Monday’s RAW Rating; More WWE Weekend Ratings

Source: PWInsider.com

Monday night’s edition of RAW did a 3.6 cable rating, with a share of 5.6. Hour one did a 3.5 while the second hour did a 3.7. This marks the third week in a row that WWE RAW has done a 3.6 cable rating, a number that those within WWE would certainly like to see higher.

The May 12th edition of AM RAW did a 0.9 cable rating, with a 3.9 share.

Hot Photos Of Lilian Garcia In Her Underwear! View Now >>

Tammy Sytch Interview: Talks About WWF, WCW, Chris Candido, More

ProWrestlingPress.com LIVE Radio proudly welcomed the “first DIVA” of professional wrestling, “Sunny” Tammy Sytch.

Sunny/Tammy Sytch: A diva, back in college, would go back to WWE, & will be live & In person on Saturday, June 16 for PWU.
– Says she’s not the first lady of wrestling, that will always be Elizabeth. Considers herself the first diva.
– Feels good about so many following her footsteps. “If there are 46 women in the WWE today, 41 wouldn’t have a job” if not for her. Said more than half don’t belong and need to know more about the history of wrestling, even from the last 10 years.
– Had no intentions of being in wrestling. Met Jim Cornette while in college and he convinced her.
– Talked about being more popular than male stars and how Chris Candito was never jealous or spiteful of her success.
– Said Candito hated working for the WWE, which is why he quit.
– Was not fired from WWE, she quit on an ECW pay-per-view and was faxed her release the next day. Was promised more money by Heyman to be at ECW than Vince paid, but the money never came through.
– Hated WCW “because it was ridiculous”.
– Burnt out by WWE at the end. Was not only on the road, but did a lot of appearances, so didn’t get time off. Felt she left wrong from WWF. Says Heyman screwed her & Chris out of a lot of money.
– “You grow to hate the business, you step away for a while, then you crave it.” She would go back to mainstream TV (WWE, TNA) if the opportunity arose.
– Gets WWE 24/7 On-Demand and was told by WWE she would be receiving more royalties soon.
– Won’t get drunk with fans, but will be at the Crazy Tailg8 Meet & Greet on Saturday, June 16 at 4:30 pm. She’ll be there to have a good time & enjoy being with fans.
– Is back at college, graduating in September, working towards being a Physician’s Assistant.

Next Thursday at 10 pm, ProWrestlingPress.com LIVE Radio welcomes PWU Women’s champion Amy Lee and Dan “The Phan” Cowhey. But join the action at 9 pm in the LIVE chat room.

Check out NEW pics of Tammy Sytch! (>>)

More Details On The Killings/Cena Confrontation At Airport

source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

As reported earlier, John Cena was involved in an incident on Memorial Day morning with TNA star and former WWE star Ron “K-Kwik” Killings. The confrontation took place at around 7:15 a.m. ET at the Charlotte Douglas International Airport. Cena was at the airport because he did promotional work at an autorace in the area the previous day, which forced him to miss that weekend’s Raw brand house shows. Cena was heading to Toronto for the RAW taping and Killings was heading to Orlando for the Impact taping.

WWE’s version of the story is that Cena had heard about Killings ripping his character in interviews, saying that it had no street-cred. Cena was the one who came up to him. Some words were exchanged and things got tense, but no fight broke out. Getting into a fight at an airport is a really bad thing obviously, and considering that their jobs require them to often get on airplanes, it’s a good thing that they didn’t get into a fight because it is likely that they would have been banned from flying for several months. Furthermore, it would have been a P.R. nightmare if the WWE champion lost to a TNA mid-carder in the fight. Even people within WWE would favor Killings in a fight with Cena. Even if it didn’t go that way, anything involving Cena could have wound up with major legal charges, which is the last thing you want out of a franchise player. The feeling is also that had Killings won the fight, Vince would have been furious that a TNA mid-carder beat his champion. People internally say Vince has never looked at Batista quite the same after he lost a fight to Booker T last year. It took a major convincing by Dusty Rhodes to get the belt back on Batista.

The version Killings told TNA is that he was mad at Cena because he was an authentic rapper who used to dance and rap for major acts. However, when he brought the rap gimmick to WWE, it went nowhere and he was eventually released in the summer of 2001. Then Cena essentially got his gimmick a little over year later, and you know the rest.

Also, Killings said that a year ago, he saw Cena at an airport. He went to Cena this time around to try and talk to him. However, Cena acted like he didn’t know him. Then he saw him again a few months later and said that he didn’t say anything to him again, so Killings literally bumped into him, acting like it was accidental but it was actually on purpose. Cena fell down, got back up and didn’t do anything, so nothing happened there.

Click here for PUDDING MATCH pics from One Night Stand (>>)

WWE Fed Up With MTV “Jackass”, Jericho Update, RVD, WWE Alumni

Source: PWInsider.com

– MTV “Jackass” Steve-O is not making any friends within World Wrestling Entertainment. The company has came very close to pulling his scheduled match at the upcoming SummerSlam PPV because they feel that Steve-O has been acting very disrespectful to the company with extremely bad backstage behavior. In his latest MySpace blog, the “Jackass” doesn’t seem to feel any remorse for any of his actions; however, all indications at this point are that WWE plans to go through with the match at SummerSlam.

– WWE has added a profile for the late Yokozuna on their Alumni website.

– Former WWE superstar Chris Jericho will make an appearance on the weekend of August 24th at the Monster Mania convention in Cherry Hill, New Jersey.

– ToysRUs.com will be releasing a new Rob Van Dam action figure with him wearing an ECW t-shirt and holding both the ECW and WWE Heavyweight Champions title belts. The figure will be exclusive to the Toys R Us web site.

***AMAZING ANGLE LEAKED*** nWo vs. Degeneration X @ Survivor Series!

More WWE Firings Coming, OVW Wrestler Getting Called Up, Man Encounters Khali

source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

— WWE has released a handful of wrestlers over the past few weeks. Expect some more talent to be released. However, the cuts will likely take place in WWE’s developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling. One person rumored to be on the chopping block is Krissy Vaine, who has been under developmental contract since January 2006.

— OVW wrestler Chet The Jett was told by Johnny Ace that he was going to be given a Polish gimmick and would get brought up to the main WWE roster soon.

— WLTX, the CBS television affiliate based in Columbia, South Carolina, has an article on a man’s encounter with The Great Khali at a convenience store/gas station. The article notes that he came in to the store to buy a few things. You can read the article — which has pictures — at this link. Tonight’s SmackDown/ECW taping takes place at the Colonial Center in Columbia, SC.

— See pics of Amy Zidian’s weight gain after being fired from WWE (>>)

Vans and Opening Ceremony launch first global collection

Vans and Opening Ceremony have linked for the debut of a global collection of footwear, apparel, and accessories.

Using Vans’ original deck shoe, the Authentic, as their canvas, and inspired by the classic checkerboard print, Opening Ceremony reinvented the pattern by adding two abstract snake and leopard designs to the footwear and apparel.

The leopard pattern is featured on an assortment of apparel, including a track suit-inspired jacket and pants and a leopard-printed tote emblazoned with a novelty rubber Vans x OC patch.

“Vans has been a long-time creative partner of ours, and we’re so excited to collaborate on their iconic print this season,” said Opening Ceremony creative director Humberto Leon in a press release. “For this new capsule collection, Carol and I are inspired to reinvent the checkerboard, taking a new graphic approach to Vans’ classic pattern.”

Two new colorways have been released for the iconic California skate sneaker, including monochromatic orchid and baja blue. Each shoe is decorated with an Opening Ceremony woven patch on the heel.

The Vans x Opening Ceremony collection will be available worldwide online, at Vans retail locations, and at select wholesale partners on February 19.

Photo credit: Vans

Raw Going Three Hours?, Update On 'Jackass' SummerSlam Plans

source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

USA Network has talked of wanting Raw to increase to three hours in the fall. The belief is that is guarantees the network one extra hour of very high ratings every week, thus enabling them to maintain their status of being the most watched network on cable television. The thought process being the move is that if Raw starts at 8 p.m. more often, people will get used to tuning into Raw at that time, and it will lead to higher ratings in the second hour in particular. They also made the suggestion of Steve Austin and Undertaker being regulars on the show, even if they can’t wrestle. On the WWE front, they aren’t too keen on making Raw a three hour show, every single week. They think this is the last thing they need. Although, if they go through with the move, they’ll likely get a rate increase from USA.

Regarding SummerSlam, the only thing for certain on the card at this time is a multiple-person match with Umaga leading some heels against the ‘Jackass’ crew. One person who will probably miss the match is Bam Margera. While skateboarding in Louisville, Margera sustained a torn liver and concussion. He also spent three days in the hospital.

One of the reasons the ‘Jackass’ angle is taking place is because USA is doing a show called Dr. Steve-O, starring Steve-O from Jackass of course. The show airs directly after Raw in an attempt to keep the Raw audience from switching stations as soon as the show goes off the air. The idea of the show is a reverse Queer Guy where Steve-O takes timid men and gives them a makeover to become macho men.

See the REAL SummerSlam poster featuring Umaga & ‘Jackass’ (>>)