The first episode of the second Mae Young Classic aired last night on the WWE Network. This year the tournament will be released every Wednesday night following NXT.
Mae Young Classic 9/5 Results
Tegan Nox defeated Zatara
Before the match, a video was shown of Nox talking about the heartbreak of missing last year’s tournament with an ACL injury. There were concerns a slight tear in her MCL could have prevented her from making the tournament again this year.
She started off this year’s tournament by pinning Zatara after a shining wizard. Unfortunately, Zatara targetted Nox’s surgically repaired knee for most of the match which could be a factor later in the tournament for Nox.
Rhea Ripley defeated MJ Jenkins
Before the match, a promo video featuring Rhea Ripley showcased how much stronger she has become in the last year. Ripley’s shoulders have filled out considerably. She’s still only 21 years old. The Australian referred to herself as a new and darker Rhea Ripley.
Ripley countered a head-kick into a pump-handle powerbomb for the win.
Lacey Lane defeated Vanessa Kraven
Lacey Lane just signed with WWE and is a hometown favorite hailing from Winter Park, Florida. Kraven is from Montreal and has competed for promotions such as Smash Wrestling in Toronto. She’s scheduled to face Tessa Blanchard on an upcoming episode of Smash Wrestling on the Fight Network and Global Wrestling Network.
Lane pulled off the David vs Goliath upset here when she pinned Kraven with a crucifix-bomb.
Meiko Satomura defeated Killer Kelly
Before the match, a video featuring Meiko Satomura performing on WCW Nitro was shown. She talked about how she was a rookie then and she always dreamed of returning as an accomplished top wrestler.
Satomura finished off Kelly with a Pele kick and a Death Valley Driver.
PROGRESS Wrestling’s ‘Hello Wembley’ takes place at the end of this month, September 30th in front of the largest audience PROGRESS have ever had.
Headlining the card in the main event will be the current PROGRESS Wrestling World Champion, WALTER, going up against number one contender and inaugural WWE UK Champion, Tyler Bate.
Speaking to DailyStar.co.uk, WALTER had some firm words for his opponent:
“Tyler is a phenomenal athlete and pro wrestler. He is only 21-years-old and we all can only imagine what the future will have in store for him,” he praised, before pressing on.
“I also respect his high ‘Pro Wrestling IQ.’ That being said, even though he is more mature than his age in the ring, I don’t think he is outside of it.”
The PROGRESS World Champion would continue, saying, “He [Bate] portrays himself in a way that I cannot respect because I think he does not take it seriously enough at times. His time will come, but it won’t be at Wembley.”
Tyler Bate was successful in the recent ‘3 And In’ series that PROGRESS organised since losing their Super Strong Style 16 winner Zack Sabre Jr. to contractual obligations to NJPW.
Hello Wembley
Tickets are still available to purchase via AXS. This will be the biggest English Independent show in years. The event is also the final indie appearance of former UFC fighter, Matt Riddle, before he heads to NXT.
Eddie Dennis vs Mark Andrews
Jimmy Havoc vs Paul Robinson
Thunderb*stard Tag Team Title Match
Ilja Dragunov vs Pete Dunne
PROGRESS Women’s Title Match – Jinny (c) vs Millie McKenzie
PROGRESS World Championship Match – WALTER (c) vs Tyler Bate
Wrestling Weekender
PROGRESS has also announced a ‘warm-up’ show on Saturday 29th featuring the following live shows:
NEVER MIND THE WRISTLOCKS
Doors 12.30pm; show 1-2.30pm
TUESDAY NIGHT JAW LIVE
Doors 3pm; show 3.30-5pm
JIM SMALLMAN – I’M SORRY, I LOVE YOU
Doors 5.30pm; show 6-7.30pm
Tickets are available now, and the event itself will take place out of The Phoenix, London.
Bray Wyatt does not appear to be happy with a recent article on WWE.com. The website posted a piece on the 10 Best Factions in WWE history. While it is not clear what criteria the ranking system was working with, Wyatt seems upset his Wyatt Family didn’t make the list.
WWE.com ranked the best factions in WWE history as:
10. Undisputed Era
9. Freebirds
8. Nexus
7. Hart Foundation
6. The New Day
5. Evolution
4. nWo
3. DX
2. Four Horsemen
1. Shield
What’s Next For Bray Wyatt?
Bray Wyatt’s next steps are somewhat in limbo at the moment. The former WWE Champion was part of a tag-team with Matt Hardy but with injuries to Hardy, Wyatt is in need of a new direction.
Two days ago Wyatt shared a similarly cryptic Tweet.
The Wyatt Family stable first debuted on WWE programming in Florida Championship Wrestling in 2012. They would continue the gimmick in NXT the following year. The other members of the stable have all been successful in 2018. Braun Strowman is the current Money in the Bank briefcase holder and has been in the main event picture on Raw all year.
Harper and Rowen have re-branded as the Bludgeon Brothers and held the Smackdown tag-team championships up until dropping the belts to the New Day recently.
On Monday’s RAW, WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels spoke candidly about the possibility of coming out of retirement. Michaels said every time he is in a WWE arena, the crowds chant for, “one more match.” He has resisted those calls out of respect to The Undertaker, but the Dead Man implied that if Michaels does wrestle again, it should be against him.
According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, there is more to this situation than meets the eye. Dave Meltzer writes, “The working idea internally right now is that Michaels is coming out of retirement. Right now it is not for a singles match, and it is targeted, if not scheduled, for Saudi Arabia on 11/2.”
HBK’s Retirement
Shawn Michaels has been retired from in-ring competition for the better part of eight years after losing to The Undertaker at Wrestlemania XXVI.
The added stipulation to their clash was that if Michaels were to lose to The Undertaker, he would have to retire from wrestling.
HBK accepted the challenge, stating with confidence that if he could not end the streak, there was no reason why his career should continue.
Undertaker’s Raw Return
Michaels has always been vocal about staying retired, but this past Monday night on Raw, he found himself standing opposite his old foe, The Undertaker.
There to give his support for his best friend Triple H, HBK warned ‘Taker that Triple H was still the “Cerebral Assassin,” and that this upcoming matchup at Super Showdown was a bad matchup for the Dead Man.
During this confrontation, The Undertaker had some critical words for HBK. “You chose Triple H because I took the one thing from you that was most important: your career.”
Michaels fired back, stating, “I have stayed away and stayed true to my retirement because I am a man of my word. Because I am a man of honour. A man of integrity. I have stayed away and stayed retired out of respect for the system, out of respect for them [the fans], and most importantly, I have stayed retired out of respect for you. Out of respect. Respect for The Undertaker.”
The Undertaker took this opportunity to get underneath Michaels’ skin by asking if it was fear that kept him away from the ring, before declaring that, if it came to it, he would put HBK down “all over again.”
The prospect of Michaels coming out of retirement is bound to leave fans with mixed feelings. His was an exit that appeared final, given the numerous opportunities HBK has had in the past to return that he declined. WWE Super Show-Down takes place in Melbourne Australia on October 6th 2018.
What do you think? Do you want to see HBK up against The Undertaker, one last time?
Taken from the September 10th edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, here are the financial numbers from All In, as per Dave Meltzer:
Live Gate: $458,525
Merchandise: Every item sold out, no finite numbers from this
FITE: Grossed more than $1 Million between Starrcast and ALL IN iPPV sales.
Starrcast sold 11,000 tickets
Pro Wrestling Tees did just under $500k of t-shirt sales (which SEScoops reported here)
Highspots had it’s biggest merchandise day ever at the convention
PPV Numbers: Not out yet and impossible to predict due to no prior reference point.
Google Trends showed that this didn’t have mainstream steam, but no wrestling show outside of WWE has shown that in recent memory.
WGN Zero Hour: 196k Viewers. In line with station’s top-rated prime-time shows, even on worst week of the night for TV and not in prime-time.
Overall financial verdict: Grand Slam home run
The total attendance number for the event, which went down September 1st in Chicago, was a phenomenal 11,263 – a figure that they have since commemorated with a t-shirt featuring the number emblazoned front and center.
With the wrestling world still awash in the afterglow of All In, and the numbers speaking for themselves, it’s unsurprising that Cody has been openly teasing the possibility of an All In II.
New Japan Pro Wrestling has posted a new video to their YouTube channel.
Documenting “The Wrestler” Katsuyori Shibata’s journey segueing into his new role as NJPW LA Dojo’s head coach, it is the first of a two part series and features English subtitles, running for just over 21 minutes.
NJPW visited the LA Dojo in July to cover the wrestling camps taking place during that time. They state that “the footage reveals the inner workings of their Dojo system.”
Sakura Genesis
Shibata has been away from in-ring action since his brutal match up against “The Rainmaker” Kazuchika Okada at Sakura Genesis 2017. The men would wrestle for an astounding 38 minutes before Okada finally defeated Shibata.
The aftermath of the match, however, left a lot of people concerned over Shibata’s well being. During the match itself, Shibata delivered a headbutt to Okada that split him open. Shibata subsequently collapsed backstage and was rushed to a hospital, where it was discovered that he had a subdural hematoma and required emergency surgery.
On April 13th, Dave Meltzer reported that Shibata would probably never be cleared to wrestle again.
Come August 13th, at the 2017 G1 Climax Finals, Shibata made a surprise appearance, simply expressing, “I am alive. That is all.”
NJPW note that the second part of this documentary will be aired soon, so be sure to catch up on Part 1 before it does!
“Stone Cold” Steve Austin took to his podcast recently to discuss his opinion on the rumoured Wrestlemania 35 match between Charlotte Flair and Ronda Rousey.
When contemplating Charlotte Flair’s character work as a compelling heel, Austin first juxtaposed her with her father, Ric:
“I loved [Ric] Flair as a heel. He’s the greatest [pro] wrestler of all time, but his heel work was outstanding. His baby work, eh, he’s still Ric Flair, but I like Ric Flair as a heel,” he observed.
“For me, Charlotte is a defined heel. We know she’s a heel. We’re pushing her as a heel. We’re booking her as a heel. Yeah, to me, she has a defined role. She’s totally confident in either one, but I think she’s more comfortable as a heel,” Austin said, before continuing, “And that’s not from me talking to her. That’s from me guessing that she’s more comfortable as a heel, but she’s going to do whatever they [the WWE] ask of her.”
With that in mind, Austin’s thoughts then turned to the rumoured match up that could take place next April.
“Boy, that has the potential to be a hell of a main event, but then you’ve got two babies. Would you go two babies or would you make sure Charlotte’s a heel because Ronda needs to be the baby?”
RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey (Photo: Scott Lesh)
Austin’s insight on this is timely, given the recent debate over the current Smackdown feud between Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch, who many have compared to “Stone Cold” in her recent antihero/heel turn.
Thanks to WrestlingInc.com for the transcription.
So, if the match were to go down at Mania, who would you prefer to go in as the face/heel of their showdown? Charlotte Flair or Ronda Rousey?
We noted before how it was rumored that Shawn Michaels would not only appear at the upcoming Super Showdown from Australia, but he will also play a role in the announced Triple H vs. Undertaker match at the show.
Now Wrestling Observer Live has confirmed these reports, and it reveals that Michaels is actually being advertised as the special guest referee for this bout locally.
It’s worth mentioning here that Shawn Michaels made his WWE return during the latest episode of Monday Night Raw where he was expected to hype up the upcoming bout between the two WWE legends.
However, Undertaker also showed up during the segment, and the Dead Man went on to talk about how he defeated Shawn and ended his career at WrestleMania 26.
After this segment, a lot of people have been wondering what it could mean, and some like Sean Waltman believe that the company was planting seeds for a future match between these two.
With The Heartbreak Kid expected to play a part in Taker’s upcoming match, the big question is if he can get involved in the bout in a way which sets him up for a future match with the Phenom.
Would you like to see Shawn Michaels coming out of retirement and facing Undertaker in a bout? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.
Cody Rhodes and the Young Bucks made history this past Saturday Night when they filled the 10,000 seat arena in Chicago and presented the All In event.
The whole show has generally been praised by the fans and now as the dust of the event is settling, the big question is if we’ll see more from the production of this trio.
Impact backstage interviewer Alicia Atout recently talked to Cody after the event and she asked the new NWA Worlds Champion how he is feeling about everything after the show.
Answering the question the former WWE Star claimed that the 10,000 plus people in the arena felt like 100,000 plus and said that while he doesn’t want to jump and say ‘I am ready to do it again’ there is definitely a thirst for what they are offering.
Continuing on the topic, Rhodes also talked about his Championship victory during the event and said that the NWA title he is holding really feels like it weighs 10 pounds.
This is not the only tease for a second All In event. As noted before, the trio talked about a possible All In II after their show in Chicago went off air and the latest episode of Being The Elite also teases the same.
The big question now is if all three of the show’s promoters are in favor of another such event and if they are then when can we expect to see it.
You can check out the interview of Cody Rhodes in the video below:
A lot of people would think that being the Rock’s cousin would have helped Nia Jax to get into WWE but if we believe the WWE Star then it wasn’t the case, and she had asked his brother not to disclose their relation to anyone in the company.
Nia recently had an interview with Yahoo where she talked about how sports has helped her in loving her body, living her dream in WWE and more.
While talking about her WWE tryouts, the former Raw Women’s Champion revealed that she had asked the Rock to make sure nobody knew they were related because she wanted to have a fair shot:
“I specifically asked him, ‘Please make sure that nobody knows we’re related.’ I wanted to go in and have a fair shot. [when she got there] Every girl had makeup, hair done. I was like, Oh my gosh, I’m not going to get signed. I thought for sure they’d laugh me out of the building.”
Continuing on the topic, Nia Jax also recalled how WWE coaches told her that she was their top priority after the tryouts, and how she was not able to believe it.
As noted before, there were a lot of rumors about Nia’s recent absence from WWE programming but a recent report revealed that she is dealing with a leg injury.
Shawn Michaels made his announced return to WWE Programming on this week’s episode of Monday Night Raw, and the Undertaker followed him not too long after.
What’s interesting is that Michaels’ retirement was brought up multiple times during this segment. It made a lot of people wonder if this is an indication of things to come and if the company has any plans for these two to compete against each other.
During the latest episode of his X-Pac 1,2,360 podcast, Sean Waltman talked about the whole angle and claimed that WWE is planting seeds for a match between these two.
Sean first discussed the return of both the legends and said that the mic work Taker showed during the episode was the best from the former Champion he has ever seen.
He then talked about the tension that was built between these legends during the angle and said that he is pretty sure that the company was planting seeds for some kind of match between these two.
Waltman also explained why a match against the Dead Man is better for Shawn as opposed to the much-talked bout against AJ Styles, because the expectations would be too high if he wrestles the WWE Champion.
According to Sean Waltman, the Heartbreak Kid doesn’t want that pressure, and he will be able to tell a better story while wrestling with the Phenom because of the history between them.
Do you think WWE is planting seeds for a Shawn Michaels vs. Undertaker match for somewhere down the line? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section.
Last week’s episode of Raw suffered a drop in the viewership, but it appears that the big returns and multiple Shield segments helped the viewership to stay steady this week.
The episode featuring Braun Strowman vs. Finn Balor and the locker room heels unleashing a beatdown on the Shield recorded 2.872 million viewers.
This is only a slight downgrade from last week. As noted before last week’s episode of the show featuring Roman Reigns and Braun Strowman vs. Drew McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler drew a total of 2.877 million viewers.
The interesting thing to note here is that the third hour of Raw which is usually the lowest watched hour of the show did better in comparison to previous weeks.
The first hour of this week’s episode of the show drew 2.945 million viewers and the second hour drew 2.933 million viewers. In comparison, last week’s episode had drawn 3.076 million and 2.927 million viewers respectively.
The third hour, however, saw a slight increase in the viewership compared to last week and it drew 2.740 million viewers which is up from last week’s 2.630 million viewers.
Though it’s worth mentioning here that next week’s episode of the show will have more competition than this week due to the beginning of pro football season so it’s possible that the overall numbers will see a more significant drop.
Yesterday (Tues. September 4, 2018) it was reported that James Ellsworth was backstage for SmackDown Live.
As we now know, he did not appear on the show in any capacity. So what was Ellsworth doing backstage? PWInsider is reporting that Ellsworth was backstage being interviewed for something pertaining to WWE female talent.
It’s unknown if it’s something for the upcoming Evolution pay-per-view (PPV) or a WWE Network special.
Ellsworth’s WWE Runs
Ellsworth last appeared on WWE TV back on July 24th. He was “fired” by SmackDown Live General Manager Paige. It’s believed Ellsworth was let go because he was done being used on WWE TV. He’s also not under full-time contract with the company as of this writing.
He returned to TV at the Money In The Bank (MITB) PPV, assisting Carmella in defeating Asuka. Ellsworth remained at Carmella’s side until being “fired” by Paige on the July 24th episode of SmackDown Live.
WWE Hall Of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin recently took to his podcast, The Steve Austin Show, to comment on several professional wrestling topics.
Austin commented on the current feud between Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch on SmackDown Live. Lynch turned heel at SummerSlam, attacking Flair after she defeated her for the SDL Women’s Title.
Despite the heel turn, WWE fans are still cheering Lynch and sometimes booing Flair. After seeing the fans’ reactions, WWE seems to be changing their course and not presenting Lynch as an all-out heel.
In Austin’s point of view, he thinks Lynch should be whatever the people want her to be:
“I loved [Ric] Flair as a heel. He’s the greatest [pro] wrestler of all time, but his heel work was outstanding. His baby work, eh, he’s still Ric Flair, but I like Ric Flair as a heel. Charlotte I like as a heel.
“Becky I like either way. But, man, when she knocked the hell out of Charlotte, that crowd came unglued when they turned her heel, but it was the biggest babyface reaction of the night. People came unglued, so where does she go?
“I just think let her be whatever the people want her to be. To me, for her, she doesn’t need to be a heel or a baby – she just needs to be Becky Lynch.
“And this is truly one of those cases where they say, Roman Reigns, no matter how the people want to take him, they can take him as a heel or baby, but he’s just going to be Roman.
“To me, I just think let’s take that out of the equation. Whatever they’re going to do with him, they’re going to do, with him beating Brock [Lesnar], but Becky ought to just be Becky because there’s money in Becky being Becky.
“Let the people decide. As long as she’s being true to herself, she’s going to fly as high and as far as they want her to.”
WWE Superstar Samoa Joe was recently a guest on Sam Robert’s Wrestling Podcast to talk about several professional wrestling topics.
During the show, Joe discussed signing with WWE and making his NXT debut. “The Destroyer” debuted in NXT in 2015, stopping Kevin Owens from attacking Sami Zayn at NXT TakeOver: Unstoppable.
It turns out, after making his NXT debut, Joe shot up to number two in merchandise sales in all of WWE:
“I think after the first week, [the] main roster was already happening,” Joe said. “When they got the merch and viewership numbers…
“I think the simplest way to describe it was that I had debuted with NXT and I had gone to the next city for tapings and Triple H had walked out of his bus and he came up and shook my hand and said to me, ‘congratulations,’ and I said, ‘for what?’
“He said that I was #2 in merchandise last night. I said, ‘oh, #2 in merch for NXT is pretty impressive’ and he said ‘no, for the entire company.’ I was like, ‘who was #1?’
“He said Kevin Owens, but that was because he had just debuted against John Cena and I said, ‘okay, fine I will take those numbers’.”
Former WWE star Sean “X-Pac” Waltman has released a new episode of his podcast, X-Pac 12360. During the show, Waltman talked about several professional wrestling topics such as All In and The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels’ RAW segment.
Undertaker & Shawn Michaels
This past Monday, Undertaker and Michaels came face-to-face on RAW. The pair bickered about “The Deadman’s” chances against Triple H at the WWE Super Show-Down. Some fans have speculated it could be teasing a rematch between the pair at some point.
Waltman offered his thoughts on if he believes Undertaker and Michaels will run it back again:
“It was a magical moment. (RAW, HBK & Undertaker Segment) First Shawn {Michaels} comes out, he can carry something on his own just fine, he kills it on the mic everytime…Then Taker {Undertaker} comes out and it was the best Taker mic work I’ve ever seen.
“It was tremendous, very compelling between those two. I loved it. I’m pretty sure, I may be be going out on a limb here but I’m pretty sure this is planting a seed for some kind of Undertaker vs. Shawn, whether it’s a singles or some kind of a tag or triple-threat or something, I see that…
“It’s the history those two have… he {Shawn Michaels} can still go out there and do a lot of stuff but he doesn’t want the pressure I think; from talking to him; it’s not gonna be Undertaker vs. Shawn at Wrestlemania, where they had one of the greatest matches ever.”
Match Of The Night From All In
“X-Pac” then shifted his focus to All In. As for what he thinks was the match of the night, Waltman named Kenny Omega vs. Pentagon Jr. as his favorite:
“For me that was by far the best match on the show, however they bogarted time and I am little bummed that the Golden Elite versus {Rey} Mysterio, Bandido, {Rey} Fenix didn’t get the time they deserved.
“It was their show and they got screwed on the time, we have to stick to our time it’s inexcusable that that happened to those guys. It does take some points away from the match for me knowing that, but it was amazing and Marty Scurll is one of my favorites.
“They have amazing chemistry, told the best story and took their time on things. To me that was the match of the night.”
WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross recently took to his podcast, The Ross Report, to talk about several professional wrestling topics.
During the show Ross told the story of Vince McMahon first meeting Brock Lesnar. The meeting apparently took place at the 1999 SummerSlam pay-per-view (PPV) in Minnesota. This was just a few miles away from Lesnar’s old college, The University Of Minnesota.
Here’s how Ross said “The Chairman Of The Board” reacted when he first laid eyes on “The Beast” Brock Lesnar:
“It was the first time Vince McMahon physically laid eyes on Brock Lesnar. You’re not going to hear that in a lot of places. Brock came to the event. We were recruiting him. Jerry Brisco was recruiting him heavily. He was on him.
“He was our number one target and we got him. We got our guy. And he came to the show because, Brock, I don’t think he had been to a pro wrestling event in his life. He was not a fan.
“It didn’t mean he hated it. He just was occupied with working on the farm, playing football, and wrestling at a high, high level. So I remember that.
“I remember Vince walking out of his office and down [the hall] and I said, ‘Brock Lesnar is here’ and I had to refresh his memory about who that was. No face, no name – Vince didn’t know.
“And so, I said, ‘he’s standing out here’ and when Vince walked by, he gave him a little wave. He saw, ‘wait a minute, is that what I think it is? Is that 6’3?, 280 [lbs.]? Is that blonde hair?
“Looks like an angry Viking or a heifer bull.’ So Vince made a little detour, shook Brock’s hand, the rest, as they say, is history.”
Believe it or not, Heath Slater has been with WWE for over 10 years.
Slater signed with WWE in 2006 and was sent to their developmental territory of Deep South Wrestling (DSW). In 2007 he debuted in Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) where he remained for three years.
Following his stint on NXT, Slater made his debut as a member of the Nexus on an episode of RAW in 2010. Since then, Slater has been involved with several tag teams. He was a member of Three Man Band (3MB) with Jinder Mahal and Drew McIntyre.
He also teamed with Titus O’Neil to form “Slater And The Gator.” Today, Slater is partnered up with Rhyno on Monday Night RAW. In his time with WWE Slater has never won a singles title. He has, however, captured several Tag Team Championships in his day.
At this point in his career, Slater may be looking to change that. He wrote a lengthy post on Instagram about his current WWE position:
“I got signed with @wwewhen I was 22 years old. I’ve been through Deep South, Florida Championship Wrestling and The Foundation of @wwenxt Ive been in faction after faction and tag team after tag team none of them actually went the way I hoped.
“I just hope that one day before this is all over that I can do things my way. And as a grizzled young vet in the business I hope that time comes sooner than later.”
Kassius Ohno faced Kona Reeves to start off this week’s episode of NXT. The two Superstars locked up to start off the match. Reeves back Ohno to the corner and then retreated as Kassius marched towards him. Reeves then taunted Ohno and Kassius responded with a massive right hand to the face.
Ohno then shoved Reeves to the canvas and dropped a knee across his face. Reeves battled back with a Clothesline off the top turnbuckle for a near fall. Kona went for the Hawaiian Drop but Ohno escaped with a massive elbow to the face for the quick pinfall victory.
After the match, Ohno grabbed a microphone and said there was so much buzz when he came back to NXT but that is all gone now. He added that he has become an afterthought and it used to drive him crazy trying to figure it out. Kassius stated that there is always going to be someone new and fresh to take the buzz. Ohno stated that the next guy who arrives at NXT with buzz, he will be the first to greet him and knock him to the back of the line.
The Forgotten Sons Picked Up A Win Thanks To The Mighty
The Forgotten Sons (Steve Cutler & Wesley Blake) battled Street Profits (Montez Ford & Angelo Dawkins) on this week’s episode of NXT. Jaxson Ryker accompanied the Forgotten Sons to the ring for the match.
Blake took Ford to the canvas and locked in an Arm Bar to start off the match. Ford escaped and quickly tagged Dawkins into the match. Cutler tagged in as the Street Profits Dropkicked both the Forgotten Sons out of the ring. Ford sprinted across the ring and flipped onto both of them before rolling Cutler back into the ring.
Ford tagged back in and beatdown Cutler in the center of the ring. Cutler connected with a series of chops and then tagged in Blake. Wesley connected with an insane Clothesline that almost took Ford’s head off. Blake followed it up with a springboard Knee Drop for a near fall.
Cutler tagged in and planted Ford with a Neckbreaker for another two count. Cutler hit a second Neckbreaker and went for the cover but Ford kicked out at two. Blake tagged in and hit a Leg Drop for a near fall. Cutler got back into the action and blasted Ford in the midsection.
Cutler applied a Crossface in the middle of the ring as Ryker looked on from the outside. Ford battled to his feet and countered into a backslide pin for a two count. Blake tagged in and went for an Elbow Drop but Ford got out of the way and tagged in Dawkins.
Angelo came into the ring with a ton of momentum and planted Blake with a Bulldog that sent Wesley tumbling to the corner of the ring. Dawkins connected with a Splash and then tagged in Ford. Cutler grabbed Dawkins off the apron and launched him into the steel steps.
The Mighty came down to the ring with ski masks on and distracted Ford. Ryker leveled Montez with a Clothesline and then rolled Ford into the ring. Cutler and Blake then hit Ford with a Knee Drop/DDT for the pinfall victory.
Coffee Doesn’t Agree With Otis Dozovic
NXT GM William Regal continued his investigation to figure out who attacked Aleister Black tonight on NXT. Regal interviewed Heavy Machinery and Otis admitted that he accidentally broke a toilet because coffee does a number on his digestive system. Tucker Knight told Otis to stop talking and Regal asked if there was anything Heavy Machinery saw that night. Tucker told Regal that they saw Tommaso Ciampa around the bushes after Aleister Black was attacked.
Sane applied a Waist Lock to start off the match. Adora broke the hold but Kairi tripped her up and planted her with a couple of Neckbreakers for a near fall. Sane went for the Stretch Muffler submission but Adora was able to reach the bottom rope to break the hold. Sane immediately hit a Double Stomp for a two count.
Sane riled up the crowd but turned around into a forearm to the face from Adora. Sane battled back with a spinning back fist and then marched across the ring as the crowd chanted along. Kairi hit a sliding forearm and then made her way to the top rope. Kairi connected with the Insane Elbow for the quick pinfall victory.
After the match, Shayna Baszler came down to the entrance ramp and shoved over Kairi’s treasure chest. Shayna told Kairi to enjoy her fantasy while she can because reality is going to hit that ship like a cannonball when she gets her rematch. Shayna got into the ring and charged after Kairi. Baszler connected with a Clothesline but Sane battled back with a series of strikes. Kairi then hit the Interceptor Spear and knocked Baszler out of the ring.
NXT GM William Regal interviewed Lars Sullivan tonight as well. Regal noted that Lars was close to the attack and asked why he was there that night. Sullivan stated that his purpose for being there that night was to locate Aleister Black. However, he heard him scream out loud in the distance and he was already laid out. Sullivan said that he saw Undisputed Era driving away as he walked towards Black.
Lars added that if he had done the attack he would still be standing over Aleister. Regal told Sullivan that he will face Raul Mendoza next week and said that he hopes Lars’ path of destruction stays in the ring. Lars simply responded “absolutely” and then left Regal’s office.
Velveteen Dream Outsmarted Johnny Gargano
Velveteen Dream battled Johnny Gargano in the main event of this week’s NXT. Dream came down to the ring with a “Johnny Failure” shirt on. Dream threw the shirt at Johnny before the match started as Johnny started trash talking him. The two Superstars then locked up to start off the match. Dream knocked Gargano to the canvas and then posed in the ring. Johnny got up and leveled Dream with a forearm to the face and then applied a Facelock.
Dream escaped but Gargano quickly clocked him with another forearm to the face. Johnny shoved Dream to the corner and stomped him into the canvas. Gargano booted Dream out of the ring and then kicked him in the face when he tried to get up on the ring apron.
Gargano followed Velveteen Dream out of the ring and hit him with a chop to the chest. Gargano continued to trash talk Dream before connecting with another chop to the chest. Back in the ring, Dream slammed Gargano throat-first into the top rope and then booted him in the ribs.
Velveteen returned the favor and stomped on Johnny in the corner of the ring. Dream bounced Gargano’s face off the top turnbuckle but Johnny battled back with a few chops. Dream launched Gargano into the turnbuckle and followed it up with a Neckbreaker for a two count.
Dream booted Dream in the face and went for a Crossface but Johnny blocked it. Dream then applied a Sleeper Hold in the center of the ring and brought Gargano to the mat. Gargano escaped and slammed Dream to the canvas as the crowd chanted “Johnny!”.
Gargano followed it up with a Hurricanrana off the second rope and then an Enziguri that sent Dream out of the ring. Gargano greeted Dream with a Slingshot Spear as he got back inside the ring for a near fall.
Johnny connected with a Superkick on the apron that sent Dream out of the ring. Gargano followed it up with a Cannonball of the ring apron and then the action returned to the ring. Dueling “Johnny Wrestling!” and “Velveteen!” chants broke out as Dream planted Gargano with a Fameasser for a two count.
Gargano elbowed Dream in the face and leaped at him but Dream caught him. Dream set up for a Death Valley Driver but Gargano countered into a roll-up for a two count. Gargano hit Dream with a Clothesline for another near fall as the crowd chanted “this is awesome!”.
Johnny tried to climb up the turnbuckle but Dream caught him on the ring apron. The two Superstars started trading shots on the apron but Dream got the better of the exchange. Dream lifted Gargano up in a Fireman’s Carry but Gargano escaped to the floor outside the ring.
Dream followed him and shoved Gargano from behind and Johnny slammed his knee into the steel steps. Velveteen brought Gargano back inside the ring and planted him with an awesome DDT for a near fall as the crowd chanted “NXT!”.
Dream went after Gargano’s knee and started stomping on it. Johnny rolled to the ropes to try to regroup but Dream followed him. Gargano hit an Enziguri and went for the Slingshot Spear but Dream countered with a Superkick.
Velveteen Dream went for an Elbow Drop on the apron but Gargano rolled out of the way. Dream slammed his elbow into the apron and then Johnny locked in the Gargano Escape on the entrance ramp. Gargano realized that the referee was about to count them out and made his way into the ring at the last second.
Dream then barely beat the count and Gargano set him up in the ropes. Johnny hit him with a Superkick to the face and then set up for a DDT off the apron and to the floor. The referee pleaded with Johnny to stop and Gargano obliged and exchanged words with a young Gargano fan at ringside.
Back in the ring, Dream started shouting at Gargano that he was a failure. Johnny got pissed off and charged at him but Dream was ready and hit him with the Dream Valley Driver for the pinfall victory. NXT went off the air with half the crowd chanting “Johnny Failure!” and the other half chanting “Johnny Wrestling!” as Gargano walked backstage.
Cody Rhodes and The Young Bucks self-funded a professional wrestling event that sold out over 10,000 seats in just a few minutes. Some of the biggest names in the industry were on the card; such as Kenny Omega, Okada, Rey Mysterio, Nick Aldis and more.
One of the premiere matches on the card was Cody and Nick Aldis’ match for the NWA World Heavyweight Title. The entrances to the match were very MMA/boxing like. Both Cody and Aldis were followed by camera from the back, walking to the ring.
Cody was accompanied to the ring by Diamond Dallas Page and Tommy Dreamer. Aldis had WWE Hall Of Famer Jeff Jarrett at his side. The pair put on an emotional match, which ended with Cody winning the World Title his father once held high.
On a recent edition of Busted Open Radio, WWE Hall Of Famer Mark Henry offered his thoughts on the match. Henry revealed he actually teared up during the bout:
“When @CodyRhodes won I started to well up because I started to think about what Dusty did for that title, and then I started to think about what Cody sacrificed to make that PPV happen. I have so much respect for him.”
On Monday’s RAW, tensions between The Shield and Braun Strowman’s new faction continued to grow. Strowman has now aligned himself with RAW Tag Team Champions Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre. He has now evened the odds against Roman Reigns and The Shield. Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose came to Reigns’ aid when Strowman attempted to cash-in his Money In The Bank (MITB) briefcase.
Now, Strowman will get his one-on-one shot at Reigns’ Universal Title inside Hell In A Cell. As we build to that, however, The Shield continue to feud with Strowman, Ziggler and McIntyre. This week the two factions collided to open up RAW.
Acting General Manager Baron Corbin ushered out the entire locker room to separate the six men. They continued to fight into the backstage area, but eventually The Shield were arrested and taken away for most of the show.
Towards the end of the night, Michael Cole announced that The Shield had been released from jail. They returned in a cop car and made their way to the ring to meet Strowman, McIntyre and Ziggler.
Before that could happen, however, all the heels in the locker room came out to ambush The Shield. The show went off-air as Rollins, Reigns and Ambrose laid lifeless on the floor.
The Explanation
Several days removed from RAW, we finally have an explanation as to how The Shield got out of jail. Corey Graves took to Twitter and suggested that WWE’s David Otunga phoned in a friend in the legal community to get The Shield released.
Here’s Graves’ Tweet:
Made a few calls this morning. Turns out @DavidOtunga has a judge friend in Columbus and called in a late night Labor Day favor for The Shield.
Photographer Bruno Silveira was ringside at the event taking exclusive photos for Paul Heyman’s Heyman Hustle website – and they’re incredible. The Hustle site has dozens of photos from the top matches at ALL IN.
Click on the photos below to see more from each match.
Cody vs. Nick Aldis (NWA World Heavyweight Championship)
Young Bucks & Kota Ibushi vs. Rey Mysterio, Bandito & Rey Fenix
Kenny Omega vs. Pentagon Jr. (with surprise attack by Chris Jericho)
Jay Lethal vs. Flip Gordon (ROH World Championship)
There has been some speculation from fans as to why Nia Jax hasn’t been on WWE television as of late. The reason for her absence is due to her being out of action with a leg injury.
Since suffering the injury, she had been doing physical therapy on her leg. The latest news on Jax is from Pwinsider.com, which is reporting that she s now training at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando this week. As of this writing, there’s no word yet on when she’ll be back on the flagship show of the WWE, Monday Night RAW.
Her last match came against Alexa Bliss for the RAW Women’s Title at the Extreme Rules pay-per-view event on the WWE Network.
If you recall, Jax started a feud with Ronda Rousey where they would later have a title match at the Money in the Bank pay-per-view event that would see Jax lose the title once Bliss interfered and cashed in her Money in the Bank contract that she had won earlier that night. This led to Bliss pinning Jax to win the title.
At Extreme Rules, she was unsuccessful in regaining the title in an extreme rules match and has not been seen on WWE television since.
Charlotte Flair will defend the WWE SmackDown Women’s Title against Becky Lynch at the upcoming Super Show-Down event. The company made the news official on Wednesday, September 5.
This could be a rematch from the Hell in a Cell pay-per-view event takes place on Sunday, September 16, 2018 in San Antonio, Texas at the AT&T Center as WWE just confirmed that Flair vs. Lynch will go down at this show with the gold on the line.
The WWE Super Show-Down pay-per-view event takes place on Saturday, October 6, 2018 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) in Melbourne, Australia. Here is the card:
Updated WWE Super Show-Down Match Card
Triple H vs. The Undertaker #1 Contender’s Match: Daniel Bryan vs. The Miz WWE Champion AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe 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 Ronda Rousey & The Bella Twins vs. The Riott Squad – Six-Woman Tag Team Match WWE Cruiserweight Champion Cedric Alexander vs. Buddy Murphy
The Bella Twins and RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey vs. The Riott Squad Asuka and Naomi vs. Billie Kay and Peyton Royce
What are your thoughts on the matches thus far announced by the WWE? Sound off in the comment section.
