WWF star passes, gauntlet match on SDL, ROH name misses weekend shows, NWA title match official, new WWE trademark, Foley works with NBA mascot, Snoop screens Paige movie, Lawler podcast notes, Cody surgery, and Questions on AEW's chances, DIY post-NXT, NJPW's U.S. tour underwhelming, putting Charlotte in Ronda vs. Becky, and praising the Usos

Former WWF star Salvatore Bellomo passed away at 67 after a battle from cancer. PWInsider.com ran down his career.

- WWE.com acknowledged his passing.

Smackdown Live will feature a gauntlet match among the six competitors in the WWE Championship Elimination Chamber match, with the winner of that match being the sixth man to enter the Chamber Sunday night. It's good to have matches with tangible stakes like that. So many TV matches just fill time. Of course, there's a LOT of space to fill on Raw and Smackdown Live.

Brody King missed ROH's shows this weekend due to the birth of his son. Hopefully we see him back in action soon.

- King and Kelly Klein have new ROH shirts. I'm still surprised Klein lost the WOH Title so soon, but I can't say I'm upset we're going to see more Mayu.

Nick Aldis vs. Marty Scurll for the NWA World Championship is official for Crockett Cup on April 27. I hope ROH protects Scurll there; he's someone they can really get behind.

WWE has trademarked the phrase "Then Now Forever" after CBS used it for the Super Bowl. WWE, of course, has used the phrase on its own programming.

Mick Foley worked with the Memphis Grizzlies mascot. I love it.

Snoop Dogg did a "Fighting With My Family" screening. That's pretty cool.

Jerry Lawler's latest podcast discussed The Undertaker's appearance fee and women headlining WrestleMania. Hey if someone's willing to pay that much to use Undertaker, I don't blame him for taking that fee!

Cody has undergone knee surgery, acknowledging his WrestleKingdom 13 match was underwhelming. For reference, Dave Meltzer rated it lower than matches on Raw and Smackdown Live that week.

For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I'm under the impression they've made good progress toward a really good TV deal. I can't say I blame them for holding off on doing episode tapings until they've got a full roster and air dates. As for wrestlers running the promotion, these names have really shown they have business savvy and know how to draw an audience. Without Cody and the Bucks, there would be no AEW. So, yes, I'm worried it will turn into "The Elite and Friends Show" but they're undisputedly over and they're the ones putting the venture together. This isn't a case of talents pushing 40 deciding they're going to keep themselves in the spotlight while business declines, as we saw in WCW. All that said, we are still really early in AEW's history. We'll see how much people love Cody, the Bucks, and Omega in top corporate roles in 2021.

2. See, I continue to think the point of NXT hiring wrestlers is for them to eventually be on Raw or Smackdown Live. I say that as someone who loves NXT. I think one should be on each major brand, so when they finally interact again, it's that much bigger. I also think it would be beneficial for them to show what they can do independent of each other so they don't fall into the Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens problem.

3. The U.S. tour was always designed to feature U.S.-based talents and a few Japanese names while the "main" tour was in Japan. I compare it to NXT's Florida shows (the U.S. tour) and NXT's "road trip" shows (the Japanese tour). Sure there are a couple of "stars" working Florida, but it's mostly about getting exposure and experience for the workers who will one day be on the more prominent shows.

4. The current plan is Ronda vs. Becky vs. Charlotte, so Charlotte can also get the rub of being in that position and so WWE is more confident the match will be main event worthy. Of course, Charlotte has done a lot of work with both women lately, so it makes sense from a story standpoint, too. I have no complaints about Charlotte being there. And I would be REALLY surprised to see Marina and Jessamyn at that level this early. There's a reason they're still cutting their teeth in NXT. I'm hoping for Asuka vs. Naomi, personally.

5. They're definitely great. I expect they're going to be remembered as one of the top teams of this generation.

More wrestling tomorrow.