All Elite Wrestling’s TNT Champion Cody Rhodes has responded to fan criticism regarding the promotion during a recent Q&A Session under the hashtag #AskCody.
When asked about AEW’s detractors and why they might find it so difficult to relax and enjoy wrestling without constantly comparing promotions and shows, Cody replied explained AEW’s show is still so new and unknown. He added how Dynamite is “aggressive in delivery and it’s marketing.”
He acknowledged how the Monday Night Wars that took place between WWE and WCW offers a template that people often revert to as a reference point. Cody added how “respectfully that ecosystem doesn’t fit ours. This is very new territory & it’s fan made.”
It’s new. It’s unknown. Its also very aggressive in delivery and it’s marketing.
I think the late 90s’ template for the current situation is the only reference people have sometimes, but respectfully that ecosystem doesn’t fit ours.
Cody On Providing An Alternative & Equal Entry Contracts
Cody Rhodes also responded to a fan who stressed how they wanted an alternative to WWE, not alternative WWE. The fan pointed at Marko Stunt as an example of how AEW’s product is embarrassing, to which Cody replied:
“Show is great man. It’s a 2hr gritty/atheltid/and often fun weekly presentation. Seems odd to form an opinion about the entire brand based on you disliking short people. Not the end of the world though man, you can’t please everybody and trying is the first step down.”
When challenged over the starting contract rates between male and female talents, Cody was quick to correct a fan who believed men were on a higher entry rate than the women. He explained how AEW’s “entry contracts are the same, regardless of gender. It’s 2020 man.” He added how AEW stressed the importance of this initiative at its first press conference, and how they’ve delivered on it ever since.
That’s already real bud. Entry contracts are the same, regardless of gender. It’s 2020 man. We told the world this at our first presser. Real now as it was then.
No. That’s a Nielsen statistic and a scapegoat one that post movers thrive on. It dismisses global penetration(major growth) and fiscal equity. We just signed an extension. Have more content coming to the network.
This is a wild ride and it’s not anything we’ve seen before.
All Elite Wrestling’s Chris Jericho has explained why he isn’t interested in returning to WWE. The former AEW Champion shared his reasoning during a recent live stream of Saturday Night Special.
Jericho proclaimed how a return to WWE simply isn’t going to happen. He explained how he’s really enjoying being in AEW before adding how he loved his WWE experience. Jericho also stressed how he loves Vince McMahon.
He noted how he learned a lot and had a lot of fun in WWE but, ultimately, felt how he couldn’t “stay in the same place forever.” If he did, he believes he would have eventually become stagnant—something he never wants to become.
“If you do and I think you need to push yourself to do something new and the fact that AEW was live without a net when I first showed up and all of us have done such a great job of promoting this brand and promoting this company.”
Chris Jericho then stressed how his current claims of being a “demogod” are real. He was quick to add, however, that it’s not just him contributing to AEW’s success “[…] even though I’ve never been beaten in the demo for my segment this week. The friggin Young Bucks did over a million viewers. And not only that, The Butcher and The Blade, how about that?”
Chris Jericho teamed with Jake Hager in a winning effort against Jurassic Express during last week’s episode of AEW Dynamite that saw the return of Inner Circle member Sammy Guevara.
WWE Hall of Famers Mark Henry and Bully Ray have shared their thoughts on the recent confrontation between Adam Cole and Pat McAfee. The two discussed the incident during a recent episode of Busted Open Radio.
While appearing on McAfee’s show, Cole took issue with McAfee’s suggestion that he had only become the longest-reigning NXT Champion because of the Undisputed Era. He then mocked Cole’s size, calling him “small.” At this point, Cole took offense and began to berate McAfee before storming off.
Henry stressed how the best stories have a semblance of reality to them. He shared how he doesn’t believe their interaction was work, adding how WWE should capitalize on this encounter, turning it into business.
“This is not a work, this is real sh*t that’s going to have to be turned into business because it’s too good not to,” Mark Henry explained. “Here we are with all the stuff that happened for a week in pro wrestling and we’re talking about a verbal disagreement on a show. It was real and that’s why we talking about it.”
Pushing Adam Cole’s Buttons
Mark Henry’s co-host Bully Ray explained how he believes McAfee’s words pushed Cole’s buttons on an off day. He then asked how Cole’s reaction can be justified or found “acceptable” by WWE.
Bully Ray also argued how people can also put the onus on McAfee. He suggested how WWE may reflect on its relationship with the host and the work they’ve done together:
“And then the WWE can turn around and go, ‘You know something Pat? We’ve been really good to you, we’ve allowed you to announce on our shows. […] Why did you even feel the need to throw any digs at Adam Cole?’ There’s a lot of different ways to look at this. You know Adam Cole is a big part of the NXT roster. You know that people bust his chops for his size. Why would you do that?”
Former WWE writer and wrestling personality Jim Cornette had some choice words for the recent WWE Extreme Rules PPV. The event was billed as ‘The Horror Show at Extreme Rules,’ and Cornette seemed to agree with the ‘Horror’ aspect in more ways than one.
“And that’s when I said I’m done” Jim Cornette began on this week’s Drive Thru podcast, talking about the Wyatt Swamp Fight match. Cornette was discussing the point where Braun Strowman was knocked out (by himself) and woke to be chained against a chair.
Jim Cornette on Wyatt Swamp Fight
“F*ck these guys, f*ck these alleged writers [and] f*ck this company” Cornette continued. “This would have made me ashamed to ever be a part of wrestling, but this isn’t wrestling. So I’m not ashamed to have ever been a part of wrestling. I would have been ashamed to ever be a part of whatever the f*ck these people just did.”
Cornette would elaborate further, saying “they should be ashamed to call themselves wrestlers; but it didn’t make me ashamed of wrestling, because there was no aspect of wrestling involved in this.”
The former manager of the Midnight Express tag team would finish by laying into Vince McMahon and Bruce Prichard. “If Vince likes it? He needs to take that cognitive test that old f*cking president pigsh*t has taken; where he can identify the elephant from the donkey. Or if Bruce was in favour of this? I think he’s been to rehab before, somebody needs to f*cking check and see if Bruce has fallen off the wagon.”
Do you agree with Jim Cornette’s assessment of the ‘match’? Let us know in the comments
Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson had a lot to say about their WWE departure. They did an interview with Ryan Satin on YouTube where they addressed a wide variety of topics.
One of the more interesting topics was about them being let go by the company due to budget cuts just months after they had signed new big-money deals with the promotion.
Gallows and Anderson joined AJ Styles in the belief that Paul Heyman was responsible for the tag team being let go as he put their name on a list of talent to be released.
They do acknowledge that Vince McMahon made the final call to fire them, but they were still upset that Heyman allegedly lied to them.
Dave Meltzer reported in the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that the backstage reaction to their comments was mostly about how naive they could be to think that it was Heyman, not McMahon, that made the call to fire them.
There are two stories that have gone around about the internal reactions. The first story is that while McMahon made the call, Heyman didn’t fight to keep them. The second story is how Gallows and Anderson were not on the list of wrestlers to be fired but once McMahon had a talk with Heyman about future storyline plans and they were planned to be used, McMahon added them to it.
It should be noted that all wrestlers who were released in April were under a 90-day non-compete. Thus, if McMahon wanted to bring them back, he had three months to make a decision and didn’t.
Chris Jericho hit a home run by getting into the sparkling wine business. He partnered with Stephen Amell, star of the CW superhero series Arrow.
He launched the brand, “A Little Bit of the Bubbly” last year. He took to his official Instagram account where he noted that sales of the sparkling wine are going well.
More than 40,000 bottles of A Little Bit of the Bubbly have been sold in 7 months. You can see his post here:
A Little Bit of the Bubbly is a sparkling Riesling produced exclusively by Nocking Point Wines.
Jericho made the “A Little Bit of the Bubbly” catchphrase extremely popular with fans that ended up going viral last Summer after he beat Adam Page at the All Out pay-per-view event. He said the catchphrase in his post-match celebration for winning the first AEW World Championship.
Pre-orders were made available late November 2019 with bottles of Jericho’s sparkling shipping in December.
Best Friends, Orange Cassidy, Luchasaurus, and Jungle Boy vs. Jericho, Jake Hager, Santana, Ortiz, and Sammy Guevara in a 5-on-5 match has already been confirmed for next week’s AEW Dynamite episode.
Major League Wrestling hasn’t produced an event since March. The company’s last show was in conjunction with AAA for a card in Tijuana on March 13th.
According to a report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the current plan is for MLW live events to return in December. These plans could change anytime between now and then, however.
“The current plan, and this can change in an instant, is to go back live in December, perhaps in Philadelphia,” wrote Dave Meltzer regarding MLW.
In storyline, Contra Unit took part in a hostile takeover of the company leading to it shutting down temporarily.
MLW’s Court Bauer has previously said the company won’t return to live events until it is safe to do so.
“I will wait until we are sure it’s safe to return. We’re doing that for our fans, our athletes, and our crew, and all of their families. We do not want to put anyone at harm. We’ll see what the NBA looks like once they go live with their season, and we’re seeing what is happening with WWE. This [battle with COVID] is far from the rearview mirror. Our decision to proceed will be dictated by science and experts in the medical world. Until we know it’s safe, we’re going to be as judicious as possible.”
Impact Wrestling refers to its women’s division and championship with the term “Knockouts.” Some fans have expressed the belief that this is an outdated term akin to how “Diva” was used in WWE. According to Gail Kim, however, conversations have taken place backstage about the term and the Impact roster is in favor of continuing to use it.
If people only knew that we have discussed this and the majority of us like it. Its not demeaning to us at all. It’s empowering and special ???? https://t.co/nrvHBGuD8M
“Knockouts is the perfect name for the women past and present of Impact(TNA) Strong, powerful, tough and kick ass. All different and beautiful in their own way. I will always be proud to be the Original knockout,” Tweeted Traci Brooks.
The conversation got started when Courtney Rush (aka Rosemary) responded to a fan on Twitter.
It’s not, actually. And the roster has said MANY times how “Knockouts” makes us feel like badasses. KOs come in all shapes in sizes & we are all badass and beautiful. It’s WHY I went to train!
So please stop telling us how we should be insulted when we already feel empowered ?? https://t.co/Rg7pbEFbyq
— Courtney Rush – W3 Legend (@Rushlemania) July 25, 2020
Chelsea Green, who performed under her Hot Mess character in Impact, agreed with Rosemary:
I always loved and still do love that it’s called KNOCKOUTS division.
Deonna Purrazzo is the current Knockouts Champion. She defeated Jordynne Grace for the title at Slammiversary. Purrazzo is the 24th wrestler to win the championship and begins the 55th reign in the title’s lineage. Gail Kim has won the title 7x and held it for a combined 711 days, the most in both categories.
Cody Rhodes says his character is neither a babyface nor a heel. There has been some debate about this as of late considering how many of his TNT title defenses have gone. There also may have been some hints dropped as of late that Cody’s character might be turning full heel somewhere down the road.
Cody responded to a recent comment by Disco Inferno on Twitter asking if he is a heel.
“Is Cody Rhodes a heel? This is like the old school angle where you have a list of worthy contenders and they are just a bunch of indy workers that don’t even work for the company,” Disco Tweeted.
Cody responded with the following:
“I’m neither. I’m a competitor & a reigning champion. Tired old tropes are even more insulting to the viewer considering I’ve been on their TV since I was 20. It ain’t black and white, it hasn’t been in forever. Circumstances of the match dictate who we cheer for, beautiful thing.”
Is Cody Rhodes a heel? This is like the old school angle where you have a list of worthy contenders and they are just a bunch of indy workers that don't even work for the company. #warhorse
Cody has defended the title 6x since winning it at Double or Nothing in May. He’s defeated Jungle Boy, Marq Quen, Ricky Starks, Jake Hager, Sonny Kiss, and now Eddie Kingston. He is scheduled to face Warhorse next week.
Congratulations to WWE RAW Superstar Angel Garza on getting married to Zaide Lozano earlier this week.
Lozano revealed the wedding in two Instagram posts on Thursday. You can see those posts with photos below.
“Just Married ! JUST MARRIED! YES, yes for life! I love you,” she wrote in a translated post.
Lozano, who is a Mexican sports TV host, said yes when Garza proposed to her live on WWE NXT TV back in December. Garza popped the question in the middle of the ring following his NXT Cruiserweight Championship win over Lio Rush. It was believed that the wedding was being planned as Lozano posted about having her bachelorette party back in mid-March, which you can see below. Lozano then appeared on the April 13th RAW episode, posing as a ringside photographer during one of Garza’s entrance. While Lozano was not named on commentary, she received a rose and a kiss from Garza at ringside.
There’s no word yet on a honeymoon for The Garzas, or any time off for Garza. He and partner Andrade have been focused on the RAW Tag Team Championships as of late, and Monday’s RAW will feature a Triple Threat with the winners becoming the new #1 contenders to The Street Profits for a title match at SummerSlam. The match will see Garza and Andrade vs. The Viking Raiders vs. Cedric Alexander and Ricochet.
Below are a few photos of Garza and Lozano from their wedding, plus a few posts related to her WWE TV appearances:
During today’s NJPW Sengoku Lord 2020 in Nagoya event, New Japan Pro-wrestling announced during their intermission that they would be holding their first outdoor event in 21 years. The event, named Summer Struggle in Jingu will take place on August 29th, 2020 at Meiji Jingu Stadium, a baseball stadium in Tokyo Japan. This will also be the second outdoor event in NJPW’s 48 year history.
The stadium, which normally can hold well over 30,000 spectators, will likely be run at less than half capacity to comply with the Japanese government’s COVID-19 social distancing restrictions for events, as all recent NJPW events have. Ticket pricing and sales details have yet to be announced. NJPW has stated that the event will be postponed to August 30th if there is rain on the event’s planned date.
NJPW’s last, and first, outdoor event also took place at Meiji Jingu Stadium, and was called Jingu Climax: Last Battle of Summer. It was on August 28th, 1999. At that event, the featured matches were singles matches between Shinya Hashimoto and Masahiro Chono, as well as the main event, a “No Rope Explosive Barbed Wire Barricade Explosive Land Mine Double Hell Deathmatch” between The Great Muta and Atsushi Onita.
Start Times: 2AM Pacific, 5AM Eastern, 10AM UK, 6PM Japan, 7PM East Australia
An English commentary version will be uploaded later in the week. Note: This event was held with a reduced attendance capacity so that the crowd could maintain social distancing.
NJPW Sengoku Lord 2020 in Nagoya Results
Taiji Ishimori def. Yuya Uemura (8:02) It continues to be obvious that Yuya Uemura has a lot of potential. If I were in charge, I would have both him and Yota Tsuji skip excursion and simply turn up as non-Young Lions one day. After all, it’s not going to be practical or fruitful to send them overseas to wrestle any time soon. Uemura looked a bit awkward when he did a springboard crossbody, he lost his balanced on the top rope but was able to save it. Taiji Ishimori submitted Yuya Uemura with the Yes Lock after hitting the Cipher Uteki.
Togi Makabe, Satoshi Kojima & Ryusuke Taguchi def. Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano & Gabriel Kidd (10:25) Tomoaki Honma and Yota Tsuji were also supposed to be on oppiste teams in this match, but NJPW reported that they had recently been on a TV show, where they were in close proximity with a cast member who has since tested positive for COVID-19, so they were removed from the show out of an abundance of caution. This match was at its best towards the end when it involved young lion Gabriel Kidd against Togi Makabe. Makabe was using his power to run over Gabriel with lariats, but Kidd was able to get Makabe down for multiple near falls using clever pinning combinations. Togi Makabe pinned Gabriel Kidd with a bridging German suplex.
Los Ingobernables de Japon (BUSHI, Tetsuya Naito & SANADA) def.CHAOS (SHO, Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI) (10:31) The most interesting thing about this match is what’s going to happen with two sets of splintered tag team championships that have members present here. SHO has the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship, but YOH is likely going to be out for the rest of the year with the ACL tear he sustained. The NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championships, which are held by EVIL, SANADA, and BUSHI, are also in an obvious state of flux. EVIL said in an interview that he didn’t need the championship other than the fact that he was able to call himself a triple champion, so it will be interesting to see what happens. Notably, while SHO brought his championship, SANADA and BUSHI did not bring theirs, and EVIL likely will not bring his during his match tonight. SANADA submitted SHO with the Skull End. After the match, all of LIJ attacked the referee, which they used to do frequently, but haven’t done at all recently.
At this point, an intermission to disinfect the ring was held, but NJPW had a major announcement to make. They will be running their second outdoor event in history on August 29th to conclude the Summer Struggle Tour. It will take place at Meiji Jingu Stadium, a baseball stadium in Tokyo that can seat over 30,000 people. Read all about it.
For the first time in 21 years, open air action in the legendary Jingu Stadium!
Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kota Ibushi, Yuji Nagata, Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Master Wato def. Suzuki-gun (Taichi, Zack Sabre Jr., Minoru Suzuki, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & DOUKI) (12:55) It was notable that Tenzan entered to Master Wato’s music while all the other members of that team entered to Tanahashi’s. It’s really being presented that Tenzan and Wato are in something of a master-and-student relationship. Kota Ibushi pinned DOUKI after the Kamigoye. He and Tanahashi gestured at IWGP Tag Team Champions Taichiand Zack Sabre Jr. as if they wanted their championships back. The match in which Dangerous Tekkers won the championships involved heavily unfair two-on-one offence, so it might be the best course of action to give them a rematch.
Kazuchika Okada def. Yujiro Takahashi (13:43) Yujiro was hesitant to start this match from the beginning. In interviews leading up to this match, Yujiro had acknowledged that Okada was stronger than him, but said that he would try to brign Okada down to his own level. Okada got Yujiro in the cobra clutch, which he has been using to win matches lately, but Yujiro was able to get his foot on the bottom rope to braek the hold. Following that, Gedo came in and hit Okada with a spanner, but Okada still kicked out when Yujiro went to pin him. Finally, Okada knocked Gedo off the apron when he tried to interfere again, then hit Yujiro with a spinning tombstone piledriver and then submitted him with the Cobra Clutch.
NEVER Openweight Championship: Shingo Takagi (c) def. El Desperado (17:03) El Desperado entered wearing the NEVER Openweight Championship that he had stolen from Shingo Takagi at Dominion. Furious, Shingo Takagi entered quickly to start the match, and laid waste to Despy with his explosive power. However, El Desperado knew he wouldn’t be able to outmatch Shingo blow for blow, and instead relentlessly went after Shingo’s legs. Shingo was still capable of brief bursts of quickness, but his damaged leg stopped him from following up at speed. El Desperado lured Shingo out of the ring only to hit him with his own NEVER Openweight Championship. As Shingo barely made it back in before the count, Despy floored him with a spear and the Guitara de Angel for a two count. With a brief display of energy, Shingo was able to get Despy up for Made in Japan, but it only garnered a near fall. El Desperado tried to push Shingo into the referee and give him a low blow, but Shingo blocked it. With his last energy, he hit the Pumping Bomber and Last of the Dragon to put El Desperado away. He them limped back up the ramp, damaged but victorious.
IWGP Heavyweight & IWGP Intercontinental Championships: EVIL (c) def. Hiromu Takahashi (33:57) EVIL’s look has improved substantially from his victory several weeks ago, as he’s substituted the awkward skirt for some tights that are more appropriate for the rest of his look. Dick Togo entered with him, wearing an all white suit that made him look like a drug lord. Hiromu Takahashi blitzed him at the start of the match, incensed by the betrayal of his former stablemate and friend. He took advantage early, but well-timed and subtle interference from Dick Togo let EVIL firmly take control. The crowd was all for Hiromu here, wanting to see good conquer EVIL, so to speak. He tried to hit Hiromu with the Darkness Falls on the apron, but Hiromu stuffed it and made EVIL’s plan backfire with an apron death valley bomb, then a diving senton bomb from the top rope to the outside. EVIL was able to fire back with a superplex and he went for the EVIL, but Hiromu blocked it, only for EVIL to throw him with multiple high-angle German suplexes. He went for the EVIL again, but Hiromu just slapped him in the face, and followed up with a lariat for a 2.9 count. EVIL threw Hiromu into the referee and this gave Dick Togo the opportunity to interfere again. He and EVIL hit a Magic Killer on Hiromu, and Dick Togo went to the top turnbuckle, but Hiromu kicked EVIL into the ropes, causing Togo to fall. Hiromu capitalized by hitting EVIL with his own self-named finish, then a death valley bomb into an exposed turnbuckle. He then hit the Time Bomb, but it onlymanaged a two count! He then hit the Time Bomb II, and it looked like he would win, but Dick Togo pulled the referee out right before the three. Hiromu was about to take out Togo, but EVIL hit him with a low blow from behind to slow his roll. Togo was out, but EVIL hit the Darkness falls and the EVIL for the pinfall victory. He retains the IWGP Heavyweight and IWGP Intercontinental Championships.
Following the match, Taiji Ishimori attacked the fallen Hiromu, and tried to hit him with the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship, but Tetsuya Naito finally ran in to scare him off. Naito stared EVIL down and expressed his desire for revenge, before leaving with Hiromu slumped over his shoulder.
WWE SmackDown aired from the Performance Center in Orlando. Jeff Hardy battled Sheamus in the main event. In addition to the takeaways below, Kofi Kingston told Big E that he is going to be out for a bit and it was time for him to show what he can. do as a singles competitor.
Nikki Cross def. Alexa Bliss to earn a shot at the SD Women’s Title next week
Matt Riddle def. Tony Nese
Gran Metalik def. Lince Dorado, Shorty G, Drew Gulak to earn a shot at the IC Title next week
Jeff Hardy def. Sheamus in a Bar Fight
Here are 5 takeaways from this week’s show:
Bayley Will Defend Her SmackDown Women’s Championship Against Nikki Cross Next Week
Bayley and Sasha Banks kicked off the show and addressed the championship landscape. They claimed that they were the new definition of greatness and bragged about all the championships they have.
The crowd chanted “you suck!” and Bayley called them idiots. Banks claimed that the women’s evolution is over because it started with them and will end with them. Bayley said that they are bringing a new era, the era of Sasha and Bayley.
Nikki Cross and Alexa Bliss interrupted and came to the entrance ramp. Cross said that Sasha Banks stole her championship opportunity and that the era of Banks and Bayley is over. Nikki had her ribs taped up and Bliss told her that she should take it easy.
Cross demanded a shot at the SmackDown Women’s Championship right now. Bayley told Nikki that she can have her title shot if she defeats Alexa Bliss. The winner of the match can face her for the SmackDown Women’s Championship next week. Nikki told Alexa that they have to do this as SmackDown went to a commercial break. Bliss and Cross battled when SmackDown returned as Bayley and Banks joined commentary.
Match Recap: Cross drove Bliss to the corner until the referee broke it up. Cross took control and hit Alexa with a Running Bulldog for a two count. Nikki trapped Bliss in the ring skirt but Alexa broke free with a couple of kicks. Cross and Bliss then leveled Bayley and Banks as SmackDown went to a break.
When SmackDown returned, Bliss connected with a Dropkick that knocked Nikki to the announce table. Cross returned to the ring and Alexa focused her attack on Nikki’s injured ribs. Cross connected with a Jawbreaker and then beat Bliss down in the corner of the ring.
Nikki followed it up with a Neckbreaker and went for the cover but Bliss kicked out at the last moment. Cross climbed to the top rope and went for a Crossbody but Bliss got out of the way and Nikki crashed to the canvas. Cross grabbed her ribs in pain and the referee checked on her. Nikki then rolled up Bliss for the victory. Bayley will defend her SmackDown Women’s Championship against Nikki Cross next week.
After the match, Alexa Bliss told Nikki Cross that she was very happy for and congratulated her. Bliss told Nikki that he was time to focus and beat Bayley to become the next SmackDown Women’s Champion.
Match Recap: Matt Riddle dominated early and hit Nese with a Gutwrench Suplex for a two count. Riddle followed it up with a Broton for another two count. Nese battled back and hit a Moonsault and went for the cover but Riddle kicked out at two. Riddle hit an Exploder Suplex and followed it up with a Penalty Kick. Matt then hit the Bro Derek for the pinfall victory.
After the match, Riddle grabbed a microphone and called out King Corbin. King Corbin was greeted with a chorus of boos from the crowd as he made his way to the entrance ramp. Corbin told Riddle that he doesn’t get to call out the King without putting in a formal request.
Corbin told Riddle that he doesn’t belong here and has that new car smell. Eventually that new car smell fades and that he needs to go back to NXT for a little more seasoning. Corbin told Riddle that maybe he should go to 205 Live because he could be a top guy there. King Corbin stated that he is putting a King’s Ransom because Riddle doesn’t belong in his kingdom. Riddle told Corbin that he is the next guess on the Bro Show before booting Tony Nese in the face.
Opinion: I thought it was odd that Corbin dissed two WWE products (NXT and 205 Live) in his promo. There remains zero interest in this feud for me and I don’t think it is going help Matt Riddle all that much.
Naomi joined Miz and Morrison for an episode of Miz TV tonight on SmackDown. The Miz and Morrison danced around the ring to Naomi’s theme as she made her way to the ring. Naomi complimented them on there dance moves before Miz said that Naomi trended worldwide after her loss to Lacey Evans last week.
Naomi thanked the fans for their support and that they are her motivation. The Miz said it makes sense for them to go viral for their hit music videos and made fun of Naomi for losing all the time. Naomi wondered why The Miz thinks he can pass judgement on her and that the fans have her back because she gives it her all every time.
John Morrison apologized because things were about to get worse and welcomed Lacey Evans to the show. Lacey joked that Naomi got her ass kicked so bad that it created a pity hashtag. Evans added that Naomi has been here for a decade and that has hardly anything to show for it. Naomi and Lacey then traded punches and Evans retreated out of the ring.
Gran Metalik Earned A Shot At The IC Title Next Week
Lince Dorado, Drew Gulak, Gran Metalik, and Shorty G battled in a Fatal 4-Way to determine the #1 contender for the Intercontinental Championship. The winner will face AJ Styles next week. Intercontinental Champion AJ Styles joined commentary for the match.
Match Recap: Gulak slammed Dorado to the floor outside the ring but turned around into a Suicide Dive from Matalik. Shorty G hit Metalik with an Arm Drag but Metalik battled back with a Dropkick. Shorty G connected with a Moonsault onto everyone as SmackDown went to a break.
Shorty G hit Gulak with a Suplex and went for the cover but Drew kicked out at two. Gran Metalik knocked Gulak and Shorty G to the canvas with elbows to the face. Lince Dorado hit Gulak with a Crossbody for a near fall. Lince followed it up with a Stunner but Gran Metalik broke up the cover.
Shorty G planted Metalik with a Suplex and then launched Dorado across the ring. Shorty G hit Gulak with an Exploder Suplex and then delivered one to Metalik for a near fall. Gulak applied a Dragon Sleeper but Shorty G broke free. Shorty G then applied an Ankle Lock on Gulak in the middle of the ring but Dorado broke it up with a Splash off the top rope.
Dorado hit Shorty G with a Moonsault from the first and then second turnbuckle. Lince made his way to the top rope but Gulak broke it up. Shorty G shoved Gulak to the floor and planted Dorado with an Exploder Suplex off the top rope. Gran Metalik then came out of nowhere with an Elbow Drop off the top rope for the pinfall victory. Metalik will face AJ Styles for the Intercontinental Championship next week.
After the match, AJ Styles offered a handshake but Metalik refused. AJ slapped Metalik in the face and Metalik responded with a Tornado DDT. Metalik posed with the title before throwing it back to Styles to end the segment.
Hardy and Sheamus battled at Irish Shannon’s in Orlando. Sheamus arrived at the bar first and was about to have a shot of whiskey before Jeff showed up. Hardy took a seat next to Sheamus at the bar.
Sheamus offered Jeff a shot but Hardy declined. Jeff asked for a cup and poured himself some water. Jeff told Sheamus that his brother had to delete his WWE career and tonight he is going to recover his. Hardy added that sobriety has changed his life and warned Sheamus to be ready for anything.
Jeff stated that he is connected to everything now and is the TV, the window, and the bar. Sheamus said that he is The Bar before Jeff threw the glass of water in Sheamus’ face. Hardy bounced Sheamus’s head off the bar a couple of times before Sheamus battled back.
Sheamus slid Jeff across the bar and hit him with several clubs to the chest. Jeff sent Sheamus into the whiskey barrels and started throwing basketballs at him. Sheamus slammed a door on Jeff a few times before bouncing his head off a sink in the men’s bathroom.
Sheamus shoved Jeff’s head in a urinal and flushed it while shouting that he will cleanse Hardy’s demons. Hardy went for a Crossbody but Sheamus caught him and slammed him into the wall a couple times. Sheamus grabbed a guitar and tried to hit Jeff but he got out of the way. Sheamus launched Hardy into a drum kit as SmackDown went to a break.
When SmackDown returned, Sheamus went for the Brogue Kick but Jeff avoided it and knocked him to the floor. Jeff connected with Twist of Fate and set up a barrel by the whiskey barrels. Jeff climbed up the ladder before the bartender attacked him. Hardy Powerbombed him through a table but Sheamus struck him with a barstool from behind.
Sheamus put a hat over Jeff’s face before pouring himself a beer. Sheamus took a sip and then downed the entire beer. He limped towards Jeff and told the referee to get ready. When Sheamus took off the hat, Jeff had face paint on and jumped to his feet. Hardy beat Sheamus down and hit the Swanton Bomb off the ladder for the pinfall victory.
Opinion: I thought that the Bar Fight was filmed very well and actually enjoyed. The ending was well done, we will see if Hardy is portraying Willow or another version of his character in the weeks to come. Having said that, this storyline was awful and this absolutely needs to be the end of it. Overall, this week’s episode of SmackDown was a good show and next week’s episode is set up well with two title matches.
Randy Orton didn’t let up on AJ Styles as he poked fun at the WWE Intercontinental Champion for his interesting belief.
For a few years, there has been an ongoing joke about Styles believing that the earth is flat. Earlier this week, Orton made fun of Styles for the belief by writing the following in a response to RJ City:
“They council me, they understand Multiple musical notes F**k you for doing this to me bro. As @AJStylesOrg would say, ‘frick’…. also he’s a flat earther. Lets talk about THAT.”
Styles recently talked about this topic on his official Twitch channel.
“For instance, the whole flat Earth thing. I’m with you guys. Randy Orton likes to be a turd…I’m like, come on! There are some interesting things that come up, and I was like, wow, that’s interesting. You know? But it was never, ‘It’s flat! It’s flat! You’re gonna fall!’ It’s never been like that. Just because I said that was interesting I’m now a flat Earther? I’m like, alright then.”
Orton saw the latest comments made by Styles and trolled him yet again, as seen below:
This past Wednesday’s episode of AEW Dynamite was a big show in terms of match quality and viewership.
AEW President Tony Khan mentioned in a response to Dave Meltzer on Twitter that the last 5 minutes of the Falls Count Anywhere Match did over a million viewers.
The Young Bucks went over The Butcher and Blade on this episode from Jacksonville, Florida at Daily’s Place on TNT. It also did over 500,000 viewers in the all-important 18-49 demographic. Khan wrote the following to tout the impressive numbers:
“Yes, #AEWDynamite was over a million total viewers for the final 5 minutes of the @youngbucks v. Butcher & Blade Falls Count Anywhere match, from 8:55pm ET to 9pm ET with 1,018,000 viewers total and 502,000 in the key 18-49 year old demographic! Thank you to everyone who watched!”
Dynamite drew 845,000 total overnight viewers while also doing a 0.32 rating in the 18-49 demos. They also finished in the top 5 for the top 150 shows on cable for the night.
Next Week’s AEW Dynamite Card
AEW World Tag Team Champions Hangman Page and Kenny Omega vs. Evil Uno and Grayson
AEW Women’s Champion Hikaru Shida vs. Diamante Non-Title Match
Darby Allin and Jon Moxley vs. Brian Cage and Ricky Starks with Taz – Tornado Tag Match
Cody to defend AEW TNT Championship against War Horse
Best Friends, Orange Cassidy, Luchasaurus, and Jungle Boy vs. Chris Jericho, Jake Hager, Santana, Ortiz, and Sammy Guevara
A tournament for the WWE NXT UK brand could be announced soon.
WWE filed to trademark “Heritage Cup” and “NXT UK Heritage Cup” on July 20th. This appears to be the name of a planned tournament for the brand.
The following trademark use description was filed for each name with the USPTO (United States Patent & Trademark Office):
“IC 041. US 100 101 107. G & S: Entertainment services, namely, a show about professional wrestling; entertainment services, namely, the production and exhibition of professional wrestling events rendered live and through broadcast media including television and distributed via various platforms across multiple forms of transmission media; providing wrestling news and information through broadcast media including television and distributed via various platforms across multiple forms of transmission media; providing information in the fields of sports and entertainment through broadcast media including television and distributed via various platforms across multiple forms of transmission media; providing a website in the field of sports entertainment information; organizing social entertainment events for entertainment purposes for wrestling fans; providing online newsletters in the fields of sports entertainment; online journals, namely blogs, in the field of sports entertainment”
The status of the NXT UK brand has been up in the air as of late due to the coronavirus pandemic. There is no word yet on when they will be able to start taping new content, but now it looks like they could return in a big way with a tournament.
Despite the hiatus for the brand, the weekly NXT UK show on the WWE Network has continued to air during the pandemic. There has been no new content for several months now, but they are airing “Best Of” or compilation shows each Thursday.
This week’s NXT UK show was another “Best Of” show but they did air a vignette for Saxon Huxley. NXT UK’s “Best Of” shows usually feature older matches, but recently they started airing talent vignettes to build Superstars up for when the brand returns to normal operations. Huxley’s new vignette featured a promo on how he’s been in solitude for too long, watching everything get torn down to ruins. Huxley said he’s coming for everyone after being locked away for too long, and he has a plan to wash the world away. He went on to declare that this is his birth, and the end of everyone else.
Huxley tweeted a screenshot from the vignette, seen below. He wrote, “ISOLATION. THE BIRTH OF ME. THE END OF YOU. THERE HE GOES. #NXTUK [chains emoji]”
It’s worth noting that the NXT UK TakeOver: Dublin event is still on the schedule for Sunday, October 25th at the 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland. That event was originally scheduled for April 26th, and was pushed back due to COVID-19.
AEW has announced Warhorse has answered Cody’s Open Challenge and will face him for the TNT Championship next week.
Cody’s coach Arn Anderson has been teasing Warhorse as an opponent for Cody over the past few weeks. The champ has already defended the TNT title 6 times since winning it at Double or Nothing. He’s defeated Jungle Boy, Marq Quen, Ricky Starks, Jake Hager, Sonny Kiss, and Eddie Kingston thus far.
You asked for it, AEW is giving it to you??
(but I predict this won’t be long, he doesn’t get outside of 5 minutes with me)
Earlier this year, Kenny Johnson produced the following short documentary on Warhorse:
In the documentary, Warhorse describes the creation of his character:
“I was reading this book by KISS and essentially, they talked about how they did everything different. They wanted to be the band they never got to see, and they love comic books and horror movies and all these things, so I thought ‘Okay, I love heavy metal. I love 80’s style wrestling, I love the big over-the-top personalities.’ And if you listen to most of the old-school vets, they’ll tell you that a character will get you farther than anything else.”
Cody vs. Warhorse rounds out a stacked lineup for next week’s AEW Dynamite:
#AEWDynamite live next week with a huge card! -Tornado Tag@JonMoxley/@DarbyAllin v Brian Cage/Ricky Starks -World Tag Title Hangman/Kenny v Dark Order -Inner Circle v Best Friends/Jurassic Express/@orangecassidy -Cody TNT Title Challenge v. A Top Indie Wrestler -Shida v Diamante pic.twitter.com/Bwo2XmtpCx
AEW broadcaster and WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross recently appeared on the Busted Open Radio show on Sirius XM. JR discussed a number of topics on the show, including his impressions of the young talent in AEW and how they have adapted to performing on national television.
“A lot of them come to me to ask questions,” said JR. “You gotta get beyond the fact that, ‘man, I’ve dreamed all my life that you were gonna call one of my matches.’ Okay, cool. Thank you, I’ll do my best.”
Jim Ross on Rule Changes
Ross also discussed some rules changes that have been implemented into AEW programming, some of which he is not a big fan of.
“The issue is, not everybody listens. They think that somethings [in the industry] ‘suck’. We don’t have tag ropes anymore because some of our crew think it’s lame. I think it’s bullsh*t. Heels need rules to break.”
JR would elaborate further, saying “you need shortcuts to gain an unfair advantage. It’s just common sense, it is basic human instincts. The heels when they get out and wrestle? They cheat. It’s never changed, it’s not going to change.”
“Most of them listen in and are appreciative” Jim Ross would continue. “I can tell when their eyes go off the topic. If I’m talking to you and you ain’t looking at me in the eye? You ain’t listening. So why should I waste my breath?”
Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson gave some people the thrill of a lifetime recently during a taste-testing of his Teremana brand tequila.
The Rock hid backstage as a focus group tasted his tequila and then surprised the group after they had offered their positive reviews of his product. The event was produced by PEOPLETV and filmed before the start of the pandemic.
“There is a focus group here and they are taste testing my new tequila,” Rock says in the video. “This is the very first time that I’ve participated in any kind of taste-testing, certainly surprising people, so this is going to be a lot of fun. I hope they like it.”
The focus group responded positively to the Rock’s tequila brand. Some members of the group even felt the tequila was “a little dangerous” due to how smooth it tastes.
Footage of The Rock surprising the focus group participants can be viewed below:
Rock described his Teremana tequila brand in an Instagram post from October:
“TERA is meant to represent “Terre” which means of the earth and MANA is our powerful Polynesian spirit that guides us. Spirit of the earth. Our goal is to create a tequila that is the best of quality and taste, but done the right way – by hand. “
Edge tore his triceps during the filming of the Greatest Wrestling Match Ever at Backlash. The injury will keep him out of action for some time but according to a report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, plans are already in place for his match at next year’s WrestleMania.
The report states that while things could change, the current plan is for Edge and Randy Orton to meet in an “I Quit” match at WrestleMania 37. WWE originally wanted to do this match at SummerSlam. Edge’s injury caused a change in plans, however.
“The plan is for Edge vs. Orton in an I Quit match as one of the key matches for next WrestleMania,” wrote Dave Meltzer. “It was already scheduled for SummerSlam before the Backlash “Best in the World” match took place, but Edge’s injury made that impossible.”
As always, these plans could change in the time between now and next year’s WrestleMania.
Edge is also said to have taken on a creative role backstage in WWE as of late. It was reported on the Wrestling Observer, that he and Daniel Bryan are on the writing teams of their respective shows.
“Edge on Raw and Daniel Bryan on Smackdown both have significant creative influence,” wrote Dave Meltzer. “The term I was given is they were part of the writing teams of the respective shows right now.”
Daniel Bryan hasn’t wrestled in WWE since late May. He dropped the finals of the Intercontinental title tournament to AJ Styles on Smackdown.
Edge’s most recent for the company was labeled ‘The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever’ and took place at Backlash. He is currently out of action recovering from a tricep tear.
According to a report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, both wrestlers currently have significant creative influence backstage in the company. They are both said to be part of the writing teams for their respective shows.
“Edge on Raw and Daniel Bryan on Smackdown both have significant creative influence,” wrote Dave Meltzer. “The term I was given is they were part of the writing teams of the respective shows right now.”
WWE has undergone several changes to its creative team recently. The company announced after Paul Heyman’s departure from the creative team that they were consolidating its writing teams. Bruce Prichard serves as head of creative both WWE’s main roster shows.
WWE’s official statement on the matter read, “In an effort to streamline our creative writing process for television, we have consolidated both teams from Raw and SmackDown into one group, led by Bruce Prichard. Paul Heyman will concentrate on his role as an in-ring performer.”
It was recently reported that WWE had plans for a new Nation of Domination stable. This is said to have been the reason why Ron Simmons (aka Faarooq) was on RAW this week. In an update to this story, The Wrestling Observer is reporting that there are people in WWE against the idea.
“We don’t know if they are going to do that or if it was dropped,” wrote Dave Meltzer about the angle. “We do know people who thought from a real life timing situation that redoing the Nation right now would be incredibly tone deaf, so a lot did want it nixed.”
Plans for the angle were to include both Ron Simmons and Mark Henry. Both former Nation members were to be on RAW this week to help kick-start the angle.
Simmons appeared backstage on RAW and spoke with MVP’s stable, the Hurt Business. The faction added Shelton Benjamin to its ranks on the show. Henry did not appear on the show. Benjamin also won the 24/7 title from R-Truth on RAW.
“There was an idea, I don’t know if it was dropped,” said Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer radio earlier this week. “Originally it was going to be on the show for a revamping of the Nation of Domination and Ron Simmons was going to be apart of that angle But they dropped that angle for this show.”
WWE has confirmed that next month’s SummerSlam pay-per-view will not take place from Boston, MA at the TD Garden arena as scheduled.
In a press release sent in to SEScoops.com, WWE announced that the change was made due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The company thanked the city of Boston for working with them on the ill-fated event:
“We are grateful to the city of Boston for their longstanding partnership and look forward to holding WWE events at TD Garden in the future.”
Fans who purchased tickets for the original SummerSlam Week events can receive refunds via the original point of purchase.
The ‘biggest event of the summer’ takes place Sunday, August 23rd and will air live on the WWE Network. WWE will announce a new venue for SummerSlam in the coming weeks. It will likely take place from the Performance Center in Orlando.
It was announced this week’s episode of NXT TV that TakeOver: XXX is taking place during SummerSlam weekend on Saturday, August 22nd.
Stay tuned for more details on SummerSlam as they become available.
AEW Dynamite scored a big win over WWE NXT this week in total viewers and the key Adults 18-49 demographic. Courtesy of ShowbuzzDaily:
AEW: 845,000 viewers, 0.32 rating (5th on cable for the night)
NXT: 615,000 viewers, 0.17 rating (35th on cable for the night)
This marks 3 consecutive weeks that AEW viewership increased and NXT decreased. It was the biggest margin for AEW in quite some time.
Aside from the Adults 50+ demographic (which NXT won this week and typically does), AEW not only won every demo but nearly doubled NXT across the board.
NXT dropped 2.5% from last week’s 631,000. Top matches included Karrion Kross vs. Dominik Dijakovic, Dexter Lumis vs. Killian Dain, Shotzi Blackheart vs. Aliyah and Timothy Thatcher vs. Oney Lorcan. (Results & Takeaways)
Meanwhile, AEW viewership was up 7.2% from last week’s 788,000. Dynamite saw Cody defending the TNT Championship against veteran Eddie Kingston, the Young Bucks defeating the Butcher & Blade in a wild Falls Count Anywhere match, Hangman Page turning down an offer to join the Dark Order and the surprise return of Sammy Guevara. (Results & Takeaways)
AEW and NXT combined drew more viewers in some demographics than Raw did this week.
AEW President Tony Khan thanked fans for their continued support:
Thank you everyone who watched #AEWDynamite last night! It was a great show & I’m thankful for our great audience too! It was our 4th straight week in the top 7 cable shows 18-49, + back-to-back weeks in the top 5, meaning my parents are drinkin’ A Lil’ Bit of The Bubbly tonight!
There were several potential injuries coming out of Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite episode.
Darby Allin reportedly suffered a concussion during his segment with Brian Cage and Ricky Starks, according to Bryan Alvarez on Wrestling Observer Radio.
The injury reportedly occurred after Starks attacked Allin from behind to begin the double team attack. Allin had come to the ring to confront Cage. Starks and Cage were preparing to use Allin’s skateboard on him when Jon Moxley made the save with a barbed wire baseball bat, clearing the ring.
AEW later announced Allin and Moxley vs. Starks and Cage in a Texas Tornado match for next week’s Dynamite episode. However, that match may be nixed due to the concussion to Allin.
In other injury news from Dynamite, it was noted on Wrestling Observer Radio that The Young Bucks, The Butcher and The Blade were shaken & banged up coming out of their Falls Count Anywhere match.
The finish to the match saw The Young Bucks place The Butcher and The Blade onto tables on the stage. The Bucks then climbed to the top of the tunnels to finish their opponents off. Matt Jackson was described as “pretty messed up” after putting The Butcher through a table because the table leg jammed his knee. Nick Jackson was said to be “pretty shaken up” after putting The Blade through a table.
It remains to be seen if the two tag teams will miss any ring time, and there’s no word yet on the severity of their injuries. It was said that The Blade, Matt and Nick were “pretty messed up” after the match ended.
