Story on Knoxville Impact Wrestling taping, ESPN off-shoot looks at WWE conspiracies, Flair to undego surgery, more Jackman press, Questions on Jericho returning, Cole, Dixie changing TNA, women in the Hall of Fame, and boxing stars in wrestling, Hardy's girlfriend interviewed, more on Jackman punch, Kim update, Punk talks MMA, Foley speech, Nash update, WWE stock drops, Punk on ice cream bars, WWE Network survey, Z! TLIS #32, Miz sells firing, and a note on Superstars coverage

The local NBC affiliate in Knoxville, TN ran a story on the Impact Wrestling tapings. They claim it sold out th e 5,000-capacity coliseum, but some of those tickets were given away for free. Either way, that's an impressive crowd and they have a big opportunity with it. Note that the video includes spoiler footage.

Grantland.com has an article looking at the "conspiracy" talk in WWE. As for the race comments, I haven't seen anything that really substantiated the claims of R-Truth being rehired to push black wrestlers. There are plenty of B.S. Internet rumors, but that's the first time I've heard that particular one. In other words, I don't buy it. The R-Truth gimmick could very well have been Killings' idea since he legitimately rapped before his return.

Ric Flair will undergo surgery for what is now known to be a torn triceps muscle. He still insists that it's not a case of him being too old and broken down to actively compete. He'll miss 4-6 months of ring time, which is probably for the best at this point.

Zap2it.com and Bigpondnews.com covered Hugh Jackman being on Raw. Ziggler deserves credit for playing this up online.

WWE.com talked to Jackman as well. Good stuff.

After the break, I go into a look at PWInsider.com's questions, and the rest of the day's news. Firstly, an update on Chris Jericho.
1. Neither. I believe he's got Fozzy dates through the beginning of next year, and he won't return until those are through. I think we'll end up seeing him again down the line, though.

2. Certainly. Maybe not on Raw, but I know it's happened. If you count NXT Season 3 as on air, Josh Mathews told him to there.

3. I assume that was in "if" question. She absolutely could. She's the President of the company. Se can do just about anything she wants!

4. As he alluded to, it's not necessarily who deserves it most who gets in. WWE will almost certainly look at Trish Stratus and Miss Elizabeth before her. They're much more relevant in 2011 from WWE's promotion of them.

5. Whoa, let's take this one step at a time. Barrett hasn't even started training yet! I haven't heard anything about Tua possibly signing at all, so this one's a long way off even if it's theoretically possible. Let's stick with "will Barrett make it to the main roster" for now.

Matt Hardy's girlfriend talked about various issues surrounding him and his brother. The less I have to reprt on crazy videos and tweets, the better.

TMZ.com, bastions of journalism, got to the bottom of Dolph Ziggler tweeting that he had an injury. Those Tweets meant more attention to the angle, so WWE should be glad that he made them! I hope they do have him wear a mouth guard or something as a result of it.

Gail Kim's contract is set to expire in less than a month, as she's scheduled for a big shhot interview on 10/18. I'll be sure to cover it.

C.M. Punk discussed MMA and more. I get his argument now. In that matter, UFC is evolving and WWE needs to evolve as well. That doesn't seem to be what Triple H was going after, though.

Here are some details from a speech Mick Foley gave at a college. He'd be a good fit for B A Star.

Kevin Nash was cast for a movie, which is part of the reason his storyline in WWE is so tumultuous at present. I think I should wait until the story's complete to see whether this direction was a total bust.

WWE's stock hit a 52-week low on 9/22, dropping to $8.67 before closing at $8.93 a share. I think the market in general's not doing so well, so this is probably just related to that.

C.M. Punk talked with WWE.com about continuing to want the return of ice cream bars, hence his new shirt. If people want them and Good Humor won't make them, someone else should jump on that one.

WWE had a survey about what people want on their upcoming network. Here's a recap. WWE stars hosting their favorite movies could be cool. AJ talking about X-Men? I'd be down. I wonder if those in-ring shows would replace NXT and Superstars? Their future remains something to follow.

Update: here's a little more. I don't even think ridiculous qualifies for some of these things anymore.

Zack Ryder released episode #32 of his YouTube show. A++ for Jackman going above and beyond as guest host. Very, very awesome episode. He's clearly passionate and dedicated, so I hope he goes far.

The Miz sold his firing in an appearance Wednesday. Totally awesome stuff. I'd like to see more like this from talents.

Finally, WWE had not posted the latest episode of WWE Superstars as of midnight, so I was unable to cover it. It will be covered when it's uploaded, and possibly coupled with Smackdown if it's up on 9/23.

That's all for Thursday's news. More to come tomorrow. Thanks for reading!