Partial Source: The Wrestling Observer Newsletter
Mick Foley’s Hardcore Diaries, which opened at #7 on the New York Times bestseller list, is the most successful WWE book since the Ric Flair autobiography in 2004 – and the credit goes to Eric Bischoff. WWE’s books in recent years had not done all that well and fallen off the radar of most booksellers, yet they did such a good job of promoting Bischoff’s book Controversy Creates Cash that it cracked the top 25 in its first week and caught most sellers out. Not wanting to underestimate demand again, coupled with Foley’s previous successes, meant that interest in the book skyrocketed compared to recent WWE efforts. With Foley’s book doing so well, the real beneficiary is Batista, whose autobiography comes out soon and will be coming off the heels of Foley’s book success so it’ll be stocked everywhere.
Edge’s actual injury was a fractured jaw in a tag team title match at the 2/26 Raw in Fresno. He was also knocked out at one point during the match. WWE expects that he’ll be fine at WrestleMania, but the current plan is for him not to work the show. Reports that he’s taking several months off this summer appear to be incorrect as he’s figured into major storylines through the summer.
Vladimir Kozlov is appearing on house shows again after his main event push was recently nixed. They have switched Kozlov from trying to work like an MMA fighter to trying to work like an 80’s Russian heel.
