It’s been nearly a year since Braun Strowman said goodbye to WWE for a second time after the promotion released him, and the former WWE Universal Champion is all but retired, having not wrestled a match since he was let go. But Strowman hasn’t missed a beat despite being out of the wrestling business, having found success with his reality show “Everything on the Menu with Braun Strowman,” while also pursuing other entertainment projects. 

And at least for the moment, it appears Strowman’s having a much better time pursuing these interests than he did while working in wrestling. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter over the launch of his new production company Meat Castle Media, Strowman described the differences between his new life in TV/film production and his old one wrestling for WWE. And though he tried to be nice about his WWE tenure, Strowman couldn’t help but take one specific shot at his former employer.

“For me, the big eye-opening thing was not having my hands tied,” Strowman said. “They’ve allowed me to be me, whereas I’ve had my hands tied creatively for the last 12 years [in WWE]. And while that’s not a bad thing…I was very blessed with what I got to do, but at the end of the day, I was playing a character on a show, and sometimes the script sucked. I mean, no offense, I hated it, but I had to go in there and make the best of it because that was my job. Well, now with this opportunity… my creative input is welcomed, it’s not dismissed.”

Fans are awaiting word as to whether or not WWE’s Night of Champions premium live event will take place in Saudi Arabia this summer in the midst of the United States’ ongoing war with Iran. Recent reports say the event in the kingdom is in jeopardy due to ongoing conflict, though WWE had not yet officially announced the location for the June event. Former WCW executive Eric Bischoff said on an episode of his “83 Weeks” podcast that he highly doubts WWE will go forward with hosting the event in Saudi, and he also ran into an issue with his Real American Freestyle promotion in the Middle East.

“No. I don’t see it happening,” Bischoff said bluntly. “But, hopefully, the situation in Iran cools down and things get a little more back to normal long before June. As a matter of fact, talking about Real American Freestyle, we were supposed to be in Bahrain. We were going to [present] a Real American Freestyle from Bahrain in May… We had just begun negotiating details, but clearly, we’ve had to postpone that trip… I think travel in general, even if you could find people willing to go over there and do this right now, is pretty difficult. So, I don’t see it happening in June. I really don’t.”

F1 has canceled two of its events, the Grands Prix in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia amidst the war. Reports are already beginning to emerge regarding the status of WrestleMania 43, set for April 2027 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and WWE reportedly has contingency plans in place for the big event next year.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit “83 Weeks” and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

Jon Jones has signed with IBA Bare Knuckle Boxing as an ambassador for the Russian promotion, coming in the wake of a public falling out with UFC. 

Jones announced in a video circulated on social media that he had signed with IBA as an ambassador and would be hosting his first event on March 28 headlined by Yoel Romero and Vagab Vagabov in St. Petersburg, Russia. 

“Mother Russia has adopted a new son!!” Jones wrote on Instagram. “I’m proud to announce I’m now the ambassador for IBA Bare Knuckle. I’ll be hosting my first event with my good friend Alfredo Auditore March 28th in St. Petersburg. Let’s go! Let’s create wonderful memories [Translated from Russian with Google]. Thanks to IBA President Umar Kremlev. I’m happy to become a member of the global boxing family.”

Jones has been in Russia filming the ALF MMA reality TV series alongside Daniel Cormier too. His current dispute with UFC stems from statements he had made in the lead-up to the UFC Freedom 250 card at he White House being announced, claiming he was in negotiations to return from his 2025 retirement to fight on the card – many presuming that would come against Alex Pereira. 

Pereira was announced for the card while Jones was not, and Dana White said that Jones was never in consideration at all, thus prompting Jones to reiterate that he was in negotiations, that he was lowballed, and if he was considered to be done with the promotion then he would like his release. 

The latest back-and-forth saw Jones claim that in negotiations he was offered $15 million, but felt the fight was worth more. White responded to that claim and said that he was never under consideration for the card, no matter what price tag had been put on it. 

It’s a big night for Swerve Strickland this week on “AEW Dynamite,” as he’ll go one on one with Kenny Omega in a rematch from an instant classic the two had back in February. But this will be no ordinary rematch, as the winner will become the defacto #1 contender for MJF and his AEW Men’s World Championship, and walk away with Omega’s AEW Executive Vice Presidential power. The latter was a stipulation Strickland insisted on one week ago, as he looks to deprive Omega of EVP status the same way he did the Young Bucks last year at All In.

In an interview with “WhatCulture Wrestling,” Strickland was asked why he wanted Omega’s EVP powers so badly. While the power aspect doesn’t seem so bad for Strickland, his main motivation is to stack the odds in his favor when it comes to AEW Men’s World Championship matches and prevent any outside forces from getting involved. Strickland feels both factors deprived of winning the title last year at Dynasty and Worlds End, where interference from the Young Bucks led directly to his defeat at the former, while the insertion of MJF into the Worlds End main event contributed to the latter.

“The EVP power is to control outside interferences, making sure nobody else can get into the way of my opportunities,” Stirkcland said. “Like I said in the promo this past week, a #1 contendership means nothing without having power and control that comes with it. So having the #1 contendership, people can still get in the way of those things. 

“So the EVP power is just to like give me the best advantage to block anything out, block anybody else from, like, not necessarily getting in my matches, but also blocking other EVPs from mixing up control and trying to sway things into their direction and their advantages. It’s about control, that’s what Swerve in 2026 is about.”

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “WhatCulture Wrestling” and provide an h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription