**Benny Mouse takes the podium as a pool of reporters instantly begin questioning:
NBC Sports: Any comment about the rumors which seem to be leaking out of Mmouse Enterprises regarding their supposed attempts to negotiate an earlier launch date?
Benny Mouse: As of this evening, we are 131 days away from opening night, as Hell Hath No Fury is set to air live on PPV on Dec. 28th. Now, unlike Mickey, who gave a non-answer to a similar question, allow me to tell a quick story about how these rumors came to be.
Late last month, I took a trip to New York, where the current World of Wrestling Board of Directors have their offices. Now, I am, of course, a board member, but I was not there on board business. I was there for personal reasons. As I took my meeting with the board, I found Catherine Mouse, also a board member, in the lobby.
Yes, I was there to ask about an earlier start. No, I have not decided to open earlier. I know the wait is excruciating. The "news" I can offer, however, is that my niece turned out to be in New York that day for the very same reason. Now, I'm not sure where Catherine landed, but I can tell you that the board has prohibited an earlier start than Dec. 1st. Make of that what you will.
ESPN: Speaking of leaks, it was recently leaked out of your own company that EWA Creative is struggling to figure out how to crown your first world champion. Any truth to this?
Benny Mouse: Again, these leaks are essentially just half truths. I have spent the bulk of my time and resources gearing up for opening day, which as I may or may not have mentioned, happens to be a historic event in of itself. I've spent a great deal of time and money on the Knockouts Division, because not only is it a proven money maker, but because I truly believe that I've assembled a division to be envied. So, the rumor stems from the fact that that we've spent the last few months working to accomplish our goal of building the best division with the best storylines as possible. We want it to be a unique experience for our fans.
As such, it is true that creative did not begin working on our male stories until after we were happy with the direction and diversity of our Knockouts Division. But I've since hired Paul Heyman to help lead our creative team and with the assistance of Kevin Kelly, they've spent the past month and a half mapping things out and expanding on our roster, as you've seen from recent press briefings.
ABC: On the subject of the Knockouts Division, your brother claims that he and Catherine are building the greatest female roster ever assembled, and that they will meet their threshold of 40 active women wrestlers. What do you say of your own female roster, which has expanded since the draft?
Benny Mouse: Our women's roster is without a shadow of a doubt the most diverse, elite crew of talent ever assembled. Truth be told, the roster is stacked, featuring Miss Athena Star, "Rowdy" Ronda Rousey, Mickie James, Natalya Neidhart, Kelly Kelly, Torie Wilson, Brie Bella, Cameron, Maryse, Eva Marie, Tamina Snuka, Alicia Fox, Shayna Baszler, Ember Moon, Nia Jax, Nikki Cross, Beth Phoenix, Nikki Bella, Luna Vachon, Megan Mouse, Tori Waltman, AJ Lee, Becky Lynch, Charlotte Flair, Naomi, Bayley, Liv Morgan, Dana Brooke, Summer Rae, and Trish Stratus. In case you cannot count, that's 30 Knockouts, a number that's grown by double digits since the 2019 draft, as you've noted. That roster will continue to grow. That's also not counting Lana, who is currently a non wrestler and our new Director of Commentary and Communications, Renee Young. I am committed to letting these women speak for themselves come Hell Hath No Fury - the first all women's PPV in the history of the industry.
My brother claims to have pioneered women's wrestling, and while he always featured a few women's matches here and there, he also degraded them and relegated them to silly feuds and even forced them to participate in storylines involving nudity and gratuitous sexual exploitation. Fact of the matter is, two women are responsible for the women's revolution we're seeing in this era: Miss Athena Star and Amazon. Their feud in the EWA's early months were the highest rated segments in the business at the time, and their success main eventing weekly shows and on PPV made Mickey make the women's division a bigger marketing point in the UWA.
FOX News: So you're giving Mickey some credit, and by extent, Catherine for drafting Amazon.
Benny Mouse: It's no secret that there are some talented individuals among the PWI roster, Amazon included. She's an absolute legend in this industry, and while she never reached the popularity that Starr hit, she's proven to be a draw and a first round pick as a Hall of Famer. I didn't draft her because I unfortunately feel her prime has passed, but there's something to be said about the longevity of her career, so I wouldn't count her out.
FOX News: Well, to be fair, she did defeat Miss Athena Starr at From Dusk Til Dawn 3, did she not? And after the match, Athena's career seemed to be up in the air.
Benny Mouse: What is with you FOX reporters, you asked three questions last time, too! But I'll answer your question this way: Yes, Amazon beat Athena Star, but that's coming off a whole lot of ring rust and by my count the victory was her first of three matches. Everyone has a bad day, and that's what Athena Starr had at FDTD 3. I know that she's talked about taking some continued time off, but as of today she's still very much apart of our Knockouts roster.
HBO Sports: Given your recent stock purchases, how can the fans of professional wrestling trust that you truly do mean your niece well, considering your background, the Mouse Brothers tendency to lie, in addition to the fact that she will be directly competing against you this January? And what do you make of Mickey's offer?
Benny Mouse: First, I'll address my brother. I will not entertain his offer, as it was insincere, and an insult to the intelligence of every wrestling fan alive. I mean, he extends an "olive branch," if you can call it that, and then makes a demeaning and embarrassing offer. Even worse, the press in that room failed to mention that his offer was for significantly less than I paid, and would have made him the controlling shareholder of his company.
I do not trust Mickey, but I do trust and respect my niece. She is a competent leader, and I truly wish my brother could set his ego aside to let her run the company, as she will make for formidable competition. She is, however, hindered by the fact that the talented women's roster (that she built herself!) will be split among two "brands," a tired storyline we've seen time and time again.
Sure, the introduction of the women's tag titles will give her half and my brother's half "something to do," but in the EWA, we're not going to create an entire division under the mindset that "quantity equals quality." Our roster is big, yes, and the women will have plenty of time, but we're not going to add meaningless titles just to keep the roster busy.
As for Mickey's offer, now, I know stocks took yet another hit after he admitted HQ had some real problems that are hazardous to workers, but they didn't fall low enough for me to sell out my niece and to make Mickey the majority shareholder. I truly do wish Catherine the best of luck, and I can't offer her a bigger compliment than the one I offered, as I truly do wish it was just she and I, but my brother's ego won't allow him to step aside.
CBS Sports: What do you make of your brother's announcement about PWI's Saturday show, Ascendants?
Benny Mouse: Again, the mainstream press failed to push my brother on just where he got such an idea.
Wrestling dirt sheets have for months pushed the fact that the EWA is considering special web content, such as live arena matches - aka house shows. There's a lot of truth to that, though they don't have it entirely accurate, as they used this tidbit of insider info to imply that we were pushing for an earlier start date. Our web content will be designed to help elevate and introduce our array of new talent, and the first of such specials will be entirely committed to the Knockouts. That's all I can say for now.
Thank you for attending, and as always, stay tuned for further announcements!