Major League Wrestling returned to the Melrose Ballroom in Queens, NY on Thursday night for MLW: Fury Road. Matches on this show were taped for the weekly MLW Fusion show on beIN SPORTS. The first episode from this taping is expected to air next Friday night, with the replay being uploaded to MLW’s YouTube channel the following night.
MLW Fury Road Results
– Joey Ryan defeated Richard Holliday.
– There is an in-ring segment where Konnan walked out to cut a promo where he said that MLW Tag Team Champions Pentagon & Fenix wanted to be here, but someone made sure that didn’t happen. This led to Salina de la Renta walking out to take credit for sending them back to Mexico and that this is what happens when you let Konnan leech off of you. Konnan said that she was leeching off Ricky Martinez, which set up the next match.
– Puma King defeated Ricky Martinez.
– Simon Gotch defeated Fallah Bahh after issuing an open challenge.
– The Smash N’ Dash Connection (Shane Strickland & Barrington Hughes) defeated The Samoan Island Tribe (Lance Anoa’i & Samu).
– Myron Reed defeated Marko Stunt.
– MLW Middleweight Champion MJF defeated Jason Cade and Jimmy Yuta in a Triple Threat Match to retain.
– El Hijo de LA Park (w/Salina de la Renta) defeated Sammy Guevara.
– Brody King defeated Tommy Dreamer.
– Filthy Tom Lawlor defeated Shane Strickland.
– The Hart Foundation (Teddy Hart, Brian Pillman Jr & Davey Boy Smith Jr) defeated Rich Swann, Marko Stunt & ACH.
– Sami Callihan defeated Jimmy Havoc in a spin the wheel, make the deal match.
The Riott Squad debuted on Smackdown Live on November 21st, 2017. On the same night, The Squad assaulted the likes of Naomi, Becky Lynch, Natalya, and Charlotte Flair. The Riott Squad was apart of the Superstar Shakeup and moved to Monday Night Raw. On Raw, they feuded with the likes of Ember Moon, Sasha Banks, and Bayley.
The Riott Squad will face The Bellas and Ronda Rousey in six women tag action at the Super-Showdown PPV tomorrow. The card for the PPV goes as followed:
Final WWE Super Show-Down Card
Triple H (with Shawn Michaels in his corner) vs. The Undertaker (with Kane in his corner)
#1 Contender’s Match: Daniel Bryan vs. The Miz
WWE Champion AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe – No Count Outs, No Disqualifications, There Must Be a Winner
John Cena and Bobby Lashley vs. Elias and Kevin Owens
The Shield (Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins & Roman Reigns) vs. Braun Strowman, Dolph Ziggler & Drew McIntyre – Six-Man Tag Team Match
WWE SmackDown Champion Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair
Ronda Rousey & The Bella Twins vs. The Riott Squad – Six-Woman Tag Team Match
WWE Cruiserweight Champion Cedric Alexander vs. Buddy Murphy
Everybody’s favourite ex-Drifter, Elias has made no secret about wanting the opportunity to share the ring with The Great One, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.
In a recent interview, he reiterated this sentiment, once again slandering The Rock and The Brahma Bull’s musical abilities.
When asked if he derived any inspiration from The Rock, Elias responded, “No inspiration whatsoever. I’ve stated this before, The Rock he did do this – he would play guitar and things like that in a way. And he would do cover songs on Monday Night Raw, but guess what? I’m doing original music every single week, man. I’ve got an album out with all original songs – written, performed by me.”
He would go on to explain his evident frustrations, stating, “[…] people make comparisons, and maybe it’s because of how the crowd is, y’know? I’ve got my catchphrases with ‘Walk with Elias,’ things like that. The thing is, The Rock cannot do what I do. So when I hear these comparisons, I just get worked up about it, you know what I mean?”
Elias couldn’t help but admit that “[…] he’s doing great things. He’s out in Hollywood, he’s killing it out there and he obviously killed it when he was here, but times have changed.”
“It’s different now. Elias is the biggest and best thing going in WWE, and if The Rock – will we share a ring? He knows where to find me. I’ve told him. I’ve called him out a few times. Rock, you know exactly where to find me. On my show, Monday Night Raw. If you want to walk with Elias, come on out.”
@IAmEliasWWE says his character takes "no inspiration whatsoever" from @TheRock and says "The Rock cannot do what I do."
He also sent a message to the Great One: "Rock, you know where to find me, on my show, Monday Night #RAW; if you wanna walk with Elias, come on out." pic.twitter.com/7KKqLFexYo
The former GM of Raw and Smackdown is in pursuits of higher learning and will receive aid from WWE. The Widow of the late Eddie Guerrero, Vickie Guerrero, was one of three to receive the WWE Talent Scholarship recently.
“I am honored. I’ve always considered WWE my second family, and for them to recognize that I have this dream of graduating and continuing my education has motivated me, even more, to keep continuing what I’m doing.”
Vickie plans to pursue a bachelor’s in science and healthcare administration at Herzing University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She plans on graduating next summer.
“I’ve always loved the healthcare industry. During my schooling, I fell in love with the administration part of it. It’s a dream of mine to continue and one day, have the opportunity to run a hospital or medical facility. That would be a prayer answered for me.”
2018 WWE Talent Scholarship Recipients
The other two recipients of the scholarship were former WWE Performance Center recruits Theo Agbi and Josh Woods. Agbi is seeking a law degree from Vermont Law School, while Woods is seeking a degree in criminal justice from the University of Central Florida. Woods has been wrestling in Ring of Honor the last couple of years.
One previous recipient of this scholarship, Maria Kanellis, returned to WWE just a few short months after finishing her degree in 2017. She opted to get the highly relevant-to-her-field degree in Sports, Entertainment, and Event Management from Johnson & Wales University. She began her studies in 2013 and graduated shortly after her return to WWE in 2017.
Having been awarded two five star matches this year in bouts against Andrade “Cien” Almas and Tomasso Ciampa (at NXT TakeOver: Philadelphia and NXT TakeOver: New Orleans, respectively), Johnny Gargano provided a refreshing take on the star rating system when asked, “[…] how much does that really mean to you? Is that kind of a yardstick to you in any kind of way?”
Speaking with Alex McCarthy during a WWE media event, Gargano responded “I take great pride in my work. To me, if the fans enjoy it, if they’re having a good time, if they’re making noise, that’s all the really matters to me.”
“But trust me,” he continued, “I am still a wrestling fan, and I am a wrestling historian and a wrestling purist at heart. So, getting five stars and things like that, it is cool because people do care about that, and it’s cool to see, and it’s a notch in my belt, I guess.”
“But at the end of the day, I think wrestling is all subjective. What Dave Meltzer gives five stars, some people give two stars, some people give three stars, it’s all personal preference,” Gargano shared. “And I think that’s the beautiful thing about professional wrestling, is that is it all just an art form. It’s all just personal preference.”
Grounding his comparison, Johnny Wrestling would juxtapose the subjectivity of wrestling to other pop cultural touchstones, like Marvel movies.
“I love Marvel movies, some people hate Marvel movies. I love 2K19. Some people may not like it. […] Video games, movies, music, television shows, it’s all personal preference, and I think that’s like that with wrestling, too. I take pride in it but at the end of the day if people enjoy it, that’s what matters.”
I asked @JohnnyGargano what he thinks about @davemeltzerWON's star system after being rated five stars twice in 2018 against Ciampa and Almas. Do superstars care about Meltzer's stars?
With just 10 days to go until Bound For Glory, Impact Wrestling presented their third show from the Mexico City tapings held last month. Here are 10 key takeaways from the show.
Impact Wrestling 10/4
Bound For Glory Came Early In The Main Event
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjBi_RdB1ZI
We are now just 9 days away from Bound For Glory but we got Brian Cage and the Lucha Brothers vs Sami Callihan and OVE tonight. The difference this week is that it wasn’t under OVE rules as will be the case at Bound For Glory. As a result of the difference in rules this week, the match was declared a DQ after Callihan pushed the referee. Not a bad move to get intentionally disqualified when you are in the ring with Brian Cage.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01kI289R2ig
Dave Crist, who was kidnapped by the Lucha Brothers recently, has come under the belief that Pentagon and Fenix have magical powers. Sami Callihan does not agree but he’s really upset regardless.
Austin Aries Offer Johnny Impact A Spot In His Faction – Johnny Declined
Austin Aries promised he will go into Bound For Glory without the help of Moose and Killer Kross. Is he telling the truth? Or will he stoop to all levels to keep his belt on October 14th?
Johnny Impact knew Austin Aries was alone tonight in Mexico City. Eddie Edwards let him know Moose and Killer Kross were tied up with him. So Johnny called out Impact World Champion, Austin Aries.
Impact commended Aries on coming out by himself, even with his hand in a sling after Johnny’s attack last week. Aries promised he’d do the same at Bound For Glory because he’s the best wrestler in the world.
The Impact World Champion then offered Johnny a spot in his faction with Kross and Moose but obviously, Johnny declined. Aries then hit Johnny with the microphone and looked to soften up his upcoming challenger. Johnny got the better of the exchange, however, and ended the segment with Starship Pain.
Moose Kidnapped Alisha Edwards, Eddie Edwards Came To The Rescue
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tn2QROyogrw
Moose kidnapped the wrong Bostonian woman this week. He opted to kidnap Alisha Edwards as if she was helpless or something. He did this to lure Edwards into a trap. Like most heels luring a babyface into a trap, Moose spent some time explaining to Edwards his motivation for turning on him. He talked again about how Aries was the only one to call him in the hospital after Slammiversary. Edwards explained he didn’t call Moose because he was just a few rooms down in the hospital as a result of what happened in his match with Tommy Dreamer.
Alisha attacked Moose and Eddie was able to get away from Killer Kross in the melee. This allowed both Eddie and Alisha to escape and Eddie to call Johnny and let him know Aries was by himself.
Su Yung Locked Kiera Hogan In A Coffin
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PguGITAm8sk
Su Yung defeated Kiera Hogan
Former Knockouts Champion Su Yung picked up a victory this week over up-and-coming Kiera Hogan. She then motioned for the undead bridesmaids to bring the coffin down to ringside. Allie attempted to break up the attack but was simply out-numbered. Cameras caught Allie in the back reacting to what happened.
Petey Williams Teaches Scarlett Bordeaux The Canadian Destroyer
Several wrestlers were attempting to impress Scarlett Bordeaux in the back. One of the wrestlers, Petey Williams, attempted to teach Scarlett the Canadian Destroyer piledriver, a move I have a feeling we might see her attempt in Impact at some point.
Trevor Lee took offense to Petey’s actions and Scarlett suggested the two should take it up in the ring.
Murder Clown Got Revenge For Katarina
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfYditQjyh8
Murder Clown defeated Joe Hendry
Joe Hendry may have dropped a new music video this week but Katarina was the last one laughing this week.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tqyfw6lCAcY
Katarina has enlisted the help of Murder Clown in her quest for revenge against Joe Hendry and Grado. So far, her plan is working to perfection. Not only did Murder Clown defeat Joe Hendry, but he also delivered a splash off the top and through a table to end the segment.
LA Parka Answered Eli Drake’s Challenge
LA Parka defeated Eli Drake via count-out
Scarlett Bordeaux joined Don Callis and Josh Mathews on commentary for this match. She’s holding her Global Talent Search to find the right wrestler to earn her services full-time.
Drake likely didn’t expect one of the most legendary and high-profile luchadors in Mexico to answer his call. As a result, Drake ended up abandoning the match and allowing La Parka to pick up the win via count-out. Bordeaux indicated she was shocked at what Eli Drake did and wouldn’t mind asking him in the back about what was going through his head.
Taya Valkyrie Promo On Tessa Blanchard
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxxGicQN7Qw
Arguably the biggest match to take place in the Knockouts Division in the new era of Impact Wrestling, Tessa Blanchard will defend her Knockouts Championship at Bound For Glory against Taya Valkyrie.
The returning Valkyrie cut a backstage promo this week.
Ethan Page Is Matt Sydal’s New Protege
Matt Sydal defeated Rich Swann
Matt Sydal and Rich Swann went one-on-one finally this week. Swann had been trying to get a single’s match with Sydal earlier but Sydal went to management and had them put together as a team first. When that didn’t work, the single’s match was finally scheduled for tonight.
Ethan Page wrestled a couple of matches for Impact last year under the name Chandler Park. He interfered tonight, allowing Sydal to pick up the win. Page would later announce he’s aligned with Sydal and is likely looking at things through his 3rd eye.
Page and Sydal will take on Rich Swann and a partner of his choosing at Bound For Glory.
The OGZ Tried To Bait Konnan And LAX
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmNZBn8gRxM
Last week, the OGZ burned Konnan’s mask but K-Dawg said this week he’s not taking the bait and not breaking the ceasefire. This week, King and the OGZ showed up again and tried to bait Konnan. They got in his face, grabbed the title belts, and tried to bait them into breaking the ceasefire. They did some shots and then left. Konnan seemed calm but the other members of LAX looked as though they wanted revenge.
Quick Results:
Matt Sydal defeated Rich Swann
Murder Clown defeated Joe Hendry
LA Parka defeated Eli Drake
Su Yung defeated Kiera Hogan
The Lucha Brothers and Brian Cage defeated Sami Callihan and OVE via DQ
Ticket packages and prices have been released for the upcoming NWO reunion show taking place at the end of the month. While the price of admission is not cheap, the level of access to the Superstars involved will be significant. Prices range from $200 to $1000 and include photo-ops, collectibles, and access to the Q&A session.
Ahead of the nWo reunion event later this month, Kevin Nash spoke to the Sporting News about his career, the state of the business today, and the future of wrestling.
Among the interview’s highlights were Nash’s comments on the upcoming Triple H vs. Undertaker match at WWE Super Show-Down.
When pressed about why a younger wrestler might not be getting the shot to work with The Undertaker, Nash made some rather pointed comments about the stars of today.
“No one cares about the young guys,” said Nash. “You going to put Finn [Balor] in there versus The Undertaker? [Seth] Rollins? Who are you going to put?”
Nash went on to offer his critique of today’s in-ring style, intimating that it will prevent longevity.
“Those guys aren’t going to have 30 years in the business. This style won’t allow these guys to last 30 years. Rollins already had a couple knee operations, but he’s a great worker. I just don’t see these guys even lasting 20 years because of their bodies and the concussion syndrome,” Nash said.
Nash also discussed what made the nWo cool, and how it had almost nothing to do with wrestling.
“Wrestling was dead. What was over at that point basically was West Coast Rap,” Nash said.
You can find more information on the upcoming nWo reunion here.
The card for Saturday’s (October 6, 2018) WWE Super Show-Down event has been finalized. The company has yet to officially announce the main event of this event that takes place from the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) in Melbourne, Australia and will air on the WWE Network but it will most likely be Triple H vs. The Undertaker.
Other featured matches are AJ Styles defending the WWE Title against Samoa Joe, Daniel Bryan vs. The Miz, John Cena and Bobby Lashley vs. Elias and Kevin Owens, and The Shield (Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins & Roman Reigns) vs. Braun Strowman, Dolph Ziggler & Drew McIntyre.
As a reminder, we will be providing live play-by-play coverage of this special on Saturday morning starting at 5 AM EST. Our staff predictions will be released on Friday.
A new match has been announced for the Bound for Glory PPV. Matt Sydal and Ethan Page will take on Rich Swann and a partner of his choosing will go down at this show.
Austin Aries defending the Impact Wrestling World Heavyweight Title against Johnny Impact is expected to serve as the main event. The other title being on the line at this show will see Impact Knockouts Champion Tessa Blanchard defend her title against Taya Valkyrie.
Impact Wrestling will hold their Bound for Glory pay-per-view event on Sunday, October 14, 2018, at the Melrose Ballroom in New York City, New York. This is considered the biggest event of the year for the promotion. The event will air on traditional PPV outlets and the FITE TV app. The company is expected to add a few more matches to finalize this card before the event takes place.
The Card
Impact World Champion Austin Aries vs. Johnny Impact
Impact Knockouts Champion Tessa Blanchard vs. Taya Valkyrie
Six-Man Tag Team Warfare Match: LAX & Konnan vs. The OGz & Eddie Kingston
Moose vs. Eddie Edwards
Dave Crist, Jake Crist, & Sami Callihan vs. Pentagon Jr., Fenix, & Brian Cage – OVE Rules Match
It turns out that Shinsuke Nakamura may not be completely satisfied with his recent feud with current WWE Champion, AJ Styles.
Speaking to Bully Ray for ‘Busted Open Radio,’ Nakamura admitted to wanting to wrestle AJ once more, stating that “I want to wrestle him again. I think I can do more great matches.”
His focus then turned towards what he perceives to have been an issue when crafting his matches with Styles, “Wrestling on pay-per-view, wrestling on TV show, time is very strict,” he explained, before saying, “[…] finally I feel like I got used to the WWE style. So, maybe next time, if I wrestle AJ, I can create more than before.”
This isn’t the first time that Nakamura has suggested his displeasure with how that feud turned out, previously saying that he “didn’t show everything [as a heel]. Just a little bit.”
Delving deeper into the idea of the ‘WWE style’ and what that means, especially for wrestlers who have to heavily adjust, Shinsuke provided a frank opinion:
“WWE style is a much different platform than other wrestling companies, I think. Each wrestler wrestles under strict rules that fans never know,” he revealed. “Time-wise, they’re really strict, so you have to choose what is the most important thing to show in five minutes, two minutes, one minute. It’s completely different with other wrestling, I think.”
What did you think of the Nakamura/Styles feud? Did it live up to what you hoped it would be or do you agree with Nakamura’s thoughts?
Following a week full of rumors and speculations, Riott Squad member Liv Morgan finally got cleared to compete at the upcoming Super Show Down event yesterday.
After the news broke out, The Mirror spoke with the trio, and during the interview, they talked about their upcoming bout against the Bella Twins and Ronda Rousey and more.
Talking about her injury, Morgan said that she is 100% cleared by the WWE doctors and she went on to praise the medical staff, saying that they took great care of her:
“I’m 100% cleared by the WWE doctors; they took great care of me. They have a very extensive concussion protocol, which we followed 100% and luckily I am feeling fantastic and we are ready to win.”
Continuing on the topic, Liv also commented on their upcoming match claiming that they’d teach their opponents a lesson and teach them whose locker room this is.
Liv Morgan suffered a concussion after she received some botched Yes kicks from Brie Bella during the September 24th episode of Raw.
Brie received a lot of criticism after the incident online, but stars like Daniel Bryan, Corey Graves, and Tommy Dreamer have since defended the former Champion.
Liv Morgan, along with Ruby Riott and Sarah Logan is now scheduled to face The Bella Twins and Raw Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey at the upcoming Super Show Down event this Saturday.
We noted before how it was revealed that WWE would be taping New Year’s edition of Raw this year on December 28th, opposed to last year’s show which aired Live.
Now Pwinsider has revealed that the same will be the case for the SmackDown episode the next day as well and it will be taped on December 29th.
Not only that but the PPG Paints Arena, where the event will take place, is advertising two big matches for the special New Year’s edition of the Blue Branded Show as well.
The first match which is being advertised will see the current SmackDown Women’s Champion Becky Lynch facing Charlotte Flair in what appears to be a nontitle match.
The WWE Champion AJ Styles is also being advertised to defend his Championship in a Fatal Four Way match against The Miz, Daniel Bryan and Samoa Joe for the show.
This card is obviously subject to change, and it’s very much possible that any of these championships end up changing hands before the New Year’s episode 3 months from now.
However, considering the recent low ratings, it’s also possible that the company will actually go on and broadcast these matches on SmackDown to try and produce good TV ratings.
We noted before how UK Champion Pete Dunn made history when he recently completed 500 days with the title, but it appears that he is now dealing with a setback.
Dunn was supposed to compete at Destiny Wrestling’s Raising Hell Tour this weekend but the UK Champion has been pulled from the event due to an undisclosed injury.
Pete who is also the Destiny Wrestling Champion was expected to defend his title against Josh Alexander during a show scheduled for October 7th.
Though after he was removed, the indie promotion has announced that former NXT Star Low Ki will replace Pete Dunn and face Josh at the Raising Hell card on October 7th in Mississauga, Ontario:
NEWS Due to circumstances beyond our control Pete Dunne will not be able to make it to Canada this weekend. We apologize to everyone for any inconvenience but the show must go on and we are happy to announce that Tyler Bate & Trent Seven will still be coming to represent BSS ? pic.twitter.com/62jdcJOgA4
The promotion has also revealed that Tyler Bate and Trent Seven will be fulfilling for Dunn and they will represent British Strong Style on the weekend’s shows.
The UK Champion last wrestled during a recent Progress Wrestling event from Wembley Stadium and showed no sign of injury while coming out of his bout there.
Not many details are available about Pete Dunn’s status at the point and Destiny Wrestling has stated that they cannot comment on it further.
They also said that WWE will release a statement on his injury in the coming days and we’ll keep you posted about it.
Amidst the rumors of Shawn Michaels possibly facing the Undertaker at the upcoming Survivor Series PPV, a new interview has revealed an interesting offer Michaels was presented with about 4 years ago.
Inside The Ropes recently posted a Shawn Michaels interview from their YouTube Channel and in the video, Shawn revealed that he was offered another match with Taker after hanging his boots.
The former World Champion said that he was offered a match against the Undertaker ‘about four years’ after he had retired from in-ring competition.
And according to the Heartbreak Kid, it was easily the most intriguing ideas he has ever been presented with and even his wife had gotten excited for it, saying that it’s pretty cool.
What’s interesting to note here is that Shawn retired after he put his career on the line in a match and lost against the Undertaker at WrestleMania 26, in 2010.
4 years after his retirement would mean he was offered the bout at the time around WrestleMania 30, where Undertaker faced Brock Lesnar and his famous winning streak came to an end.
Now the big question here is if Shawn Michaels was WWE’s first choice for breaking Taker’s streak, and what would the current scenario be like if he had ended up defeating The Dead Man at Mania instead?
You can check out Shawn Michaels’ interview in the video below:
After going through a number of name changes and settling in for Big C as his new ring name for the independent circuit, the former Big Cass from WWE has cut his first promo, and he is already talking about getting back into the company.
Cass recently made an appearance for local Michigan indie Championship Wrestling League, and during the appearance, he cut his first promo since his release from WWE.
In the promo, Cass first thanked the fans that were in the attendance and then instantly started talking about his release and the stories surrounding it.
The former NXT Star said that he has been reading stories about his departure and while some of them are true, most of the dirt sheet reports are false.
He then went on to claim that only three people know the reason behind his release. While he teased revealing the reason, Cass ultimately turned heel during the promo saying that the people in attendance don’t deserve to know it.
Big C then said that he will tell the story of his release on a Network special when he gets back to the ‘Big Leagues,’ and then he trash talked the indie promotion some more.
You can check out Big Cass’ first promo since WWE release in the video below:
Major League Wrestling (MLW) picked up a hot prospect tonight (Thurs. October 4, 2018). Longtime Mexican professional wrestling star Rush was announced to make his debut for the promotion during “MLW: Fury Road.” The event took place from the Melrose Ballroom in Queens, New York. Mid-way through the show, MLW played a video package hyping Rush’s debut. A date or location was not given. We’re told that Rush is coming into MLW strong and will be in the mix for the next few months.
Rush has been in the professional wrestling business since 2008 when he debuted for International Wrestling Revolution Group (IWRG) in October. He performed under the name “Latino” for several months, sticking around the mid-card before leaving in June of 2009. Rush then signed with top Mexican professional wrestling promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) in the summer of 2009.
He has remained there for the past nine years and is a member of the famed Los Ingobernables faction. During his time in CMLL, Rush has been extremely successful. He is a former CMLL World Light Heavyweight Champion, a two-time and current World Tag Team Champion, and former Mexican National Trios Champion.
Rush was named the number 131 best (out of 500) wrestler in the PWI 500 list back in 2013. Most recently, he was awarded “Best Gimmick” by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter in 2017 as a member of Los Ingobernables.
Trish Stratus vs. Sasha Banks. It’s a match that many fans have been clamoring for since it was first teased in the first ever Women’s Royal Rumble match in January.
I spoke with both Banks and Stratus at personal appearances in August, and both seemed eager to face each other.
Although Stratus is booked for the upcoming WWE Evolution show, the company had a different creative vision, and announced Alexa Bliss as her opponent. Does this mean that Stratus vs. Banks will never happen? Not necessarily.
Both Banks and Stratus are appearing at New York Comic Con on Thursday, and if their social media chatter is any indication, it seems as though there may be a verbal confrontation of some sort between the two.
Stratus is semi-retired, and Banks has not been pushed as a focal point of the women’s division in nearly a year.
Does WWE see Banks as a star at the level of working with a Hall of Famer like Stratus? Where would the match take place? Would the company deem it worthy of the television time needed to build the feud during a WrestleMania season?
We are down to the final two episodes of Impact Wrestling before Bound For Glory. The two episodes left will both be from the 2nd night of tapings from Mexico City last month.
Impact Wrestling 10/4
Rich Swann vs Matt Sydal
Two of the most innovative wrestlers there are will clash tonight. Sydal and Swann are two big reasons fans have to be excited about the future of the X-Division. Swann has rebuffed Sydal’s offer at being his mentor so Swann will want to prove he doesn’t need one tonight. I would have to imagine that whoever comes out of this program the winner would be the next in line for a shot at Brian Cage’s X-Division title. That will have to wait until after Bound For Glory, however.
Joe Hendry vs Murder Clown
Possibly the best-named wrestler ever, Murder Clown, has been enlisted by Katarina to help get revenge on Joe Hendry and Grado. Murder Clown is part of the clown faction in AAA, with Psycho Clown perhaps being the best known of the bunch.
Katarina is a woman-scorn and she wants revenge on Hendry and Grado. Murder Clown seems like a good wrestler to turn to with help on this.
Eli Drake Open Challenge
Eli Drake will issue another open challenge tonight. Anyone from the Impact roster or any luchador near Mexico City could answer the call.
Su Yung vs Kiera Hogan
Kiera Hogan picked up arguably one of the most important victories in her young Impact career last week. Hogan pinned former Knockouts Champion, Su Yung, in a tag match. Hogan and Allie defeated Yung and one of her undead bridesmaids. A win in a single’s match for Hogan could push her high up in the Knockouts rankings. Yung, on the other hand, could be out for revenge.
Scarlett Bordeaux Smoke Show
Last week, Scarlett Bordeaux announced she was holding a global talent search. The lucky winner will have Bordeaux’s mentoring services all to themselves. Perhaps we will find out more about her plans tonight.
On a side note, Scarlett Bordeaux’s AAA debut is one of the most watched things on YouTube for the promotion ever. She has certainly been winning over new fans as of late.
What Is Next For LAX?
Last week, King burned Konnan’s mask in an act of disrespect. King called Konnan one of the biggest myths in all of Mexican wrestling. Tonight, Konnan and LAX will have to adhere to the ceasefire but they might just have something to say with only 10 days left until Bound For Glory (wow, just realized that).
Knockouts Championship Tessa Blanchard (c) vs Taya Valkyrie
There doesn’t appear to be anything specific dedicated to this pending matchup on tonight’s show but that doesn’t mean there won’t be anything. Likely we’ll get backstage promos from both or a video package.
Sami Callihan and OVE Issue A Challenge To Brian Cage and the Lucha Brothers
As I was writing this, Impact posted the following video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01kI289R2ig
Bound For Glory Lineup
Just for reference:
Bound for Glory LIneup October 14th
Melrose Ballroom, NYC
Impact World Championship
Austin Aries (c) vs Johnny Impact
Knockouts Championship
Tessa Blanchard (c) vs Taya Valkyrie
Eddie Edwards vs Moose
Sami Callihan & oVe vs Brian Cage & the Lucha Brothers
Concrete Jungle Deathmatch
LAX & Konnan vs OGZ & King
Not content with crafting one of the best stories to ever unfold in a WWE ring with his recent NXT feud with Tomasso Ciampa, Johnny Gargano is set to get fans eagerly awaiting his main roster call-up as he discussed his top three main roster dream match opponents in a recent interview.
Speaking with Alex McCarthy during a media event, Gargano would take a moment to ponder the question, before diving straight into his first answer.
“[…] so I’m going up to the main roster…after I win the NXT title and everything’s done…” he added with a laugh. “After that…man, I’m gonna say, obviously Daniel Bryan. That’s a dream match that a lot of people would love to see now.”
“I think I just posted a Tweet recently that the internet went nuts for, and that’s me and Seth Rollins,” Gargano said. “Because, of course, I wore my Captain America Infinity War gear and he just wore the Thanos gear, so you never know what can happen there.”
“One more’s tough…so Daniel Bryan, Seth Rollins…and, of course, I would be remiss not to say AJ Styles. I’m going strictly on wrestling dream matches, I guess for certain people. Seth Rollins, Daniel Bryan, AJ Styles.
“Those are my three picks, I think right now,” he stated, before adding, “If we’re going ‘story,’ maybe [it would be] a different answer, but if I’m going strictly wrestling dream matches those are my three.”
I asked @JohnnyGargano what three superstars he would like to face in a long programme – a la Gargano/Ciampa – on the main roster one day.
Despite being knocked unconscious and suffering a subsequent concussion due to Brie Bella’s errant ‘Yes Kicks’ during the September 24th episode of Monday Night Raw, it’s been revealed that Liv Morgan has now been cleared to compete.
According to the Wrestling Observer, Morgan underwent testing backstage this past Monday and has been officially cleared for this Saturday’s Super Show-Down event in Melbourne, Australia.
Liv Morgan was present this past weekend at the WWE Live Events, though she did not take any bumps as she was only permitted limited contact.
A lot has been made over the ‘Yes Kicks’ that led the Riott Squad member to suffer a concussion, with Brie Bella candidly pushing back at the negative comments she found herself confronted with.
Her husband, Daniel Bryan, would also speak up, defending Brie against the wave of ‘cyber bullies’ that she had encountered since the event.
Liv Morgan is now set to compete this Saturday with her fellow Riot Squad members, Ruby Riott and Sarah Logan, against the team of “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey and The Bella Twins, Nikki and Brie.
WWE Super Show-Down
WWE Championship Match: AJ Styles (c) vs. Samoa Joe
#1 Contenders Match: The Miz vs. Daniel Bryan
WWE Cruiserweight Championship Match: Cedric Alexander (c) vs. Buddy Murphy
WWE SmackDown Women’s Championship Match: Becky Lynch (c) vs. Charlotte Flair
SmackDown Tag Team Championship Match: The New Day (c) vs. The Bar
Triple H (w/Shawn Michaels) vs. The Undertaker (w/Kane)
John Cena and Bobby Lashley vs. Elias and Kevin Owens
The Shield vs. Braun Strowman, Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre
The Bella Twins and RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey vs. The Riott Squad
Major League Wrestling announced on Thursday that Shane Strickland has optioned his rematch clause against MLW World Heavyweight Champion Low Ki. Four months after Low Ki throned the champ, “Swerve” will get a shot at redemption at MLW Fightland on Thursday, November 8th from Chicago, IL.
It’s expected that Strickland will be facing Low Ki at Fightland, but Low Ki first has to get through his title defense against Daga tonight in New York City at MLW: Fury Road.
Both Fury Road and Fightland will be TV tapings for MLW Fusion, which airs every Friday night on beIN SPORTS.
Strickland’s MLW World Championship rematch is the second title match announced for Fightland. Earlier this week, the company announced the main event will see Pentagon Jr. & Rey Fenix (cornered by Konnan) defend the MLW World Tag Team Championships against LA Park & Hijo de LA Park (presented by Salina de la Renta).
The MLW World title shot at Fightland is being seen by many as Strickland’s best chance to climb back to the top of the mountain in MLW. Tonight at Fury Road, he’ll face “Filthy” Tom Lawlor, who has his own championship opportunity waiting for him as the winner of MLW Battle Riot.
If you’re in the Chicago area, check out MLWTickets.com for details on how you can attend MLW Fightland!
Former four-time WWE Women’s champion, Lita, commented recently about the possibility of wrestling in the WWE past her one-on-one encounter with Mickie James at WWE Evolution, stating that “you never know.”
If it were to pan out that Lita wanted to continue wrestling, it would be interesting to see where that trajectory takes her. The WWE Hall Of Famer has evidently been keeping up to date with the current product as she has an unabahsed admiration for one NXT superstar in particular.
Speaking with The Sun, Lita was effusive with her praise for Bianca Belair.
“Down at the performance center, all the guys at NXT are in the ring every day and in class,” Lita said. “They have everything they need to learn and there is so much talent in regards to physical ability and thinking about their character. But for someone to have that intangible star factor… Bianca Belair, along with some other the others there, is very talented.”
Lita would highlight Bianca Belair’s “great attitude,” and note how “physically gifted” she is before confessing “[…] when I very first saw her she [Belair] had that intangible star quality that I just want to see more.”
Commenting on Belair’s unique offense, where she utilizes her hair as a weapon, Lita observed, “It’s crazy, no-one has ever used their hair as a weapon. It’s so cool how she thought of that and how it works. She sure has that star quality and uniqueness.”
You can now catch Charly Caruso on ESPN. The 31-year-old announcing veteran revealed Thursday via Instagram that she is now officially an employee of ESPN. Under her real name, Charly Arnolt, she will be handling SportsCenter Updates on ESPN and hosting the SportsCenter show on Snapchat. Caruso starts today as she is handling SportsCenter Updates today and tomorrow.
Caruso issued a statement on Instagram saying that she’s waited her entire life to say she is officially an employee at ESPN. She confirmed that she’ll remain part of the WWE family, calling WWE her home. “WWE + ESPN = KILLER COMBO!”
Prior to joining WWE in 2016, Caruso worked as a television reporter under her real name. She studied broadcast journalism at American University in Washington, D.C and worked as a sports news reporter in various markets across the Untied States.
Charlotte Flair recently did an exclusive interview with Mirror where she talked about the increase of new group of talent in the WWE.
This is for good reason as the company is putting more of a focus on women’s wrestling with the revolution going on right now to the point that they are presenting an all-women’s pay-per-view event, Evolution, that goes down later this month in Long Island, New York at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
With WWE going in this direction and signing more female talent, Flair feels that it has motivated her to raise her own game. She talked about it in this interview.
“What I love about the new crop of women is that I look at them and I go ‘wow, I need to up my game’. We continue to hire women who seem to already be polished and who have already made it outside of WWE, and whose whole goal was to get to WWE.”
Flair continued by stating that it makes her think that she needs to work that much harder because this crop of girls can take her spot and is more excited to see what they have built now and the women who are coming up now build in the future as she doesn’t think it is going to stop at Evolution.
Flair’s next big match is a few days away as she’s slated to challenge SmackDown Women’s Champion Becky Lynch with the title being on the line at the WWE Super Show-Down.
Former WWE Superstar Melina continues to speak about wanting to wrestle at WWE’s upcoming all-women’s pay-per-view event, Evolution. Recently, Melina was actually called out by current WWE Superstar Naomi for a match at Evolution when Cathy Kelly interviewed her at the 2018 Kids’ Choice Awards.
Melina briefly responded to her on Twitter but gave a more extensive reaction when she was recently interviewed by “Ring The Belle” where she talked about a wide range of topics. “I wanted to hug her face off. I would love to have a match with her. I would love it.” The former WWE star continued by stating that Naomi is a good person and that they could make magic together in a match. She brought up how WWE Hall of Famer Lita has stated in the past that Melina and Mickie James had the most amazing matches. She credits it due to them having great chemistry and that’s because they’re friends and love each other. She added that the creativity between the both of them was just so amazing. “So, I feel like it’s gonna be the same way with Trinity.” Melina stated that Naomi’s eagerness, wanting to work and being a great person, as well as so creative, would be a beautiful thing if they ever had a match.
The Evolution pay-per-view event takes place on Sunday, October 28, 2018 in Long Island, New York at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum and will air on the WWE Network. WWE will be announcing more matches for this show in the coming weeks.
