At Tuesday’s SmackDown tapings, it was announced that it will be Bray Wyatt and Braun Strowman of the Wyatt Family that will challenge The Undertaker and Kane this Sunday at Survivor Series.
Tyler Breeze vs. Dolph Ziggler has also been confirmed for the show.
As of this writing, there is only one traditional 5-on-5 team elimination match scheduled, with the participants to be announced in the coming days.
Join us here this Sunday for Live Results of WWE Survivor Series.
WWE taped the following matches on Tuesday night in Knoxville, Tennessee for this week’s WWE Survivor Series “go-home” edition of WWE SmackDown, which airs this Thursday night, November 19th on SyFy.
– The Miz kicks off this week’s SmackDown with Miz TV. Kevin Owens comes out and declares it The Kevin Owens Show. Next out was Alberto Del Rio and Zeb Colter. Del Rio and Owens had words and then stared each other down. Dean Ambrose came out next to a big reaction from the Knoxville crowd. Roman Reigns then came out. Then R-Truth came out but The Miz reminded him he’s not in the tournament. Truth said he was right, apologized and wished Reigns and Ambrose good luck. After The Miz throws a fit, Reigns distracted him so Ambrose could knock him out, which is exactly what he did. Del Rio, Colter and Owens scattered out of the ring, leaving Reigns and Ambrose standing tall to end the segment.
– Cesaro def. The Miz in the first match of the evening. When we come back, The Miz is complaining about being disrespected. He demands his match for tonight be canceled, but out came Cesaro, who beat him in about a minute with a float-over cross-face.
– The Dudley Boyz & Neville def. The Ascension & Stardust in six-man tag-team action.
– Tyler Breeze comes out to cut a promo with Summer Rae by his side. Breeze rips on Dolph Ziggler, who comes out to watch the next match.
– Tyler Breeze def. Zack Ryder in singles action with the Unprettier. After the match, Ziggler attacked Breeze and left him laying with a superkick.
– The Undertaker’s druids come out wearing sheep masks as The Wyatt Family makes their way to the ring. Bray Wyatt and Braun Strowman cut promos until they are interrupted by The Undertaker’s gong. The Undertaker appears on the big screen and cuts a promo, which ends with Kane appearing and burning a sheep mask and The Undertaker says “Rest In Peace” as the turnbuckles on the ring explode.
– Charlotte def. Brie Bella in a non-title match. The WWE Divas Champion picked up the win via submission with her Figure Eight hold.
– Renee Young interviews Paige backstage. It’s also announced that tonight’s main event will feature Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose in tag-team action against Alberto Del Rio and Kevin Owens.
– Big E. def. Kalisto in one-on-one action. He picked up the pin after hitting two big splashes thanks to a distraction from the other New Day members. After the match, The New Day attacked Kalisto and Sin Cara until Ryback came out and made the save.
– Backstage, Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose talk about how they’re going to be in the Survivor Series main event together and their tag-team match tonight, which is up next.
– Roman Reigns & Dean Ambrose def. Kevin Owens & Alberto Del Rio via Disqualification in the main event of this week’s show. The DQ came when Del Rio threw Reigns into the steel steps. A brawl breaks out between the four guys after the match. Reigns hit a spear and Ambrose hit a Dirty Deeds to stand tall as SmackDown goes off the air.
Because some people ask for a label: Yes, this is an editorial.
Last night’s show-closing segment on Monday Night Raw was not the first time WWE has, uncomfortably, worked someone’s real life death into an angle. That goes back a decade to Eddie Guerrero’s death, and you can go back further for them using it outside of the storyline context, like the Raw interview with Brian Pillman’s widow in 1997. It’s never a good thing and it’s always uncomfortable, but what they did last night was, in its own unique way, the worst of them all.
“You know what, Charlotte? You’re wrong sweetheart. ‘Cause your little baby brother? He didn’t have much fight in him, did he?” -Paige
It’s been over two and a half years since Reid Fliehr’s death at just 25 years of age from an overdose of heroin and prescription medication. Ashley/Charlotte considers her wrestling career, in large part, her way of fulfilling his dream and keeping his spirit alive, .as he had been working for independent promotions and All Japan Pro Wrestling. As you might think from the cause of death, he had been battling drug addiction for years. Which is the beginning of why last night’s scripting stands out as so objectionable.
The Eddie Guerrero exploitation was terrible and crass, but was never really about demeaning him in a direct way. The same goes for the Paul Bearer stuff, and that at least had th slight improvement of it being more clearly delineated that the Paul Bearer character was killed off because William Moody had actually died. How they died was off limits.
Last night? It wasn’t.
As bad as it is to invoke his death for some lame pro wrestling angle in the first place, here, the inference is, effectively, “Ha-ha, your junkie brother ODed!” It prostitutes his worth as a human being and the mental illness he struggled with from his teens (and yes, addiction is as much a mental illness as OCD, depression, or bipolar disorder are). And for what? Some doomed to fail skit put at the end of the show because the third hour is siphoning viewers anyway?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2WR40HgDbU
What gives this more wide-ranging, real world consequences that past WWE death exploitation angles is that mental illness is heavily stigmatized, especially in the United States. Die from cancer and the perception is that you lost your valiant battle. Die from a mental illness and the perception is that you’re weak. Unless, by some small chance this storyline ends with a passionate Charlotte promo about destigmatizing mental illness, then what exactly is the point?
No, most viewers don’t know how Reid Fliehr died. But plenty do: Charlotte talks about him all the time when she does media appearances and more fans than ever follow wrestling news online, anyway. Being cryptic helps WWE, because, like with Lana’s promo last year that viewers thought was about the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines Flight 17, you can always say that’s not what they meant.
@WWE @StephMcMahon @VinceMcMahon @TripleH WWEWriters really, that lazy! #CheapHeat #disgusting #disrespectful #cruel #sad ?#RawGreenville
— Elizabeth Fliehr (@EFliehr) November 17, 2015
As for Charlotte, it’s really quite simple: If it wasn’t her idea, it’s disgusting as her employer to script her to take part in last night’s angle. If by some chance it was her idea, and her mom’s tweets certainly suggest that it wasn’t, then she should have been vetoed anyway.
To think this company wonders why they have trouble getting advertising rates at the level of non-wrestling programming with the same viewership. They’re in the bubble. Nothing will ever change.
WWE taped the following matches on Tuesday night in Knoxville, Tennessee for this week’s edition of WWE Main Event.
– The Usos def. Adam Rose & Brad Maddox in tag-team action to kick off the show. Rose and Maddox, both of whom had blonde hair, cut a promo before the match. The finish in this one saw The Usos score the pin after a top-rope splash.
– JoJo interviews The Prime Time Players backstage. Titus O’Neil will be in action later against Heath Slater.
– Naomi def. Alicia Fox via submission in Divas action. Tamina Snuka and Sasha Banks were at ringside with Naomi, while Brie Bella was out with Fox.
– Titus O’Neil def. Heath Slater in the final match taped for this week’s show. The Prime Time Players member got the win with his finisher in the end, in a match that was said to be somewhat flat.
WWE.com announced on Tuesday that a traditional 5-on-5 elimination match will be taking at place at Sunday’s Survivor Series pay-per-view. However,
“The match participants are not yet known at this juncture.”
With that match set, here’s the updated card:
WWE World Heavyweight Title Tournament Semi-Finals
WWE World Heavyweight Title Tournament Finals
Divas Championship
25 Years Of The Undertaker
Traditional 5-on-5 Team Elimination Match
Join us here this Sunday for Live Results of WWE Survivor Series 2015.
As noted, Kevin Owens blocked Melissa Joan Hart on Twitter on Monday after the actress called Owens a “lazy wrestler” in a tweet that ended up getting addressed on the air during RAW on Monday. Since the story made the rounds on the internet, Melissa Joan Hart has apparently been receiving a lot of backlash from wrestling fans on social media, as she posted this update on Tuesday:
I feel like I keep repeating myself: pic.twitter.com/inOndGqcvu
— Melissa Joan Hart (@MelissaJoanHart) November 17, 2015
Speaking of Melissa Joan Hart, Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods of The New Day made a point to show fans that they blocked the actress on Twitter as well. You can check out the tweets from Kingston and Woods below.
#IStandWithOwens pic.twitter.com/48eVGsmIMb
— Kofi Kingston (@TrueKofi) November 17, 2015
#IStandWithOwens pic.twitter.com/B1dQ7NX7aU
— Austin Creed (@AustinCreedWins) November 17, 2015
Monday’s 11/16 edition of WWE RAW featuring the quarterfinals of the WWE Championship Tournament averaged 3,293,000 viewers, up from last week’s 3,173,000.
Here’s the hourly breakdown:
We’ll post the final rating here when it’s available.
Bill Goldberg says he was recently contacted by TNA to return to the ring. During an interview with Scott Fishman for Channel Guide Magazine to promote his new movie Checkpoint, Goldberg said:
“I just got contacted by TNA a couple of days ago. I don’t know. They want to promote the movie since one of my adversaries in the film is Bram, who works for them.
I’m greatly appreciative they want to help the movie out. Now at the end of day promoting the movie is one thing, but getting a guy like Goldberg in your wrestling organization is a completely different story. We’ll see.”
Despite his public comments that he’d like to get back in the ring so his son can see him wrestle, Goldberg says WWE has not shown any interest in working with him again.
“When something supersedes your business sense, it has to be ego or something ridiculous. I surely am not going to miss a bit of sleep if I don’t get a phone call from them,” Goldberg said.
For more on Goldberg’s new movie, visit Checkpointthemovie.com.
A Tampa police investigation is accusing Matt Loyd of being the culprit who stole the Hulk Hogan sex tape and extorted the pro wrestling legend.
Loyd, better known to fans of the Bubba The Love Sponge Show as on-air personality “Spice Boy,” has been accused of stealing multiple sex DVDs from Bubba’s office and selling them off to celebrity-gossip website TMZ. The police report also alleges that Loyd contacted sex tape broker Keith Davidson to “engage in the extortion” of Hogan.
According to a new FOX 13 News report, Loyd hired his wife’s best friend from high school to serve as the middleman for the operation, so that his name wouldn’t be attached to anything. He was reportedly paid $8,500 by TMZ for the content he gave them from the Hogan sex tape.
The Bella Twins recently spoke with the UK’s Reveal Magazine to promote last week’s European tour. Here are some highlights..
How Nikki felt when Dolph Ziggler told her he still had feelings for her and how John Cena reacted:
“It wasn’t that I was tempted by Nick [Dolph]. It was the thought that there are others out there that want to give you marriage and kids. With Nick it’s hard to go back once you’re over it, but it did cross my mind that someone does want to make me a wife and someone does want to make me a mother.
“Poor John was like, ‘Is there anything I should be worried about?’, I was like ‘Umm I don’t think so…’ But no, I adore John and I couldn’t imagine my life without him.”
Brie says she and Daniel Bryan are ready to start having children:
“I am so ready for motherhood. The hardest thing in our business is that, unfortunately, you can’t wrestle and be pregnant,” she said. “It’s this ongoing tug of war inside if I’m ready to hang up my boots and start trying.
“Bryan and I have this crazy baby fever. We are so ready for it in our lives – especially considering how we are with our dog Josie – we’re so ready for a kid. You’re going to see me battle with it next series… It’s definitely around the corner, though!”
Head on over to Reveal.co.uk to check out both interviews.
Following Monday’s RAW, the semifinals of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship finals are set. At Survivor Series, Dean Ambrose will square off against Kevin Owens while Alberto Del Rio will face Roman Reigns to determine who advances to the finals.
The big question to most fans heading into Survivor Series hasn’t been, “Who will win?” but, “Will Roman Reigns turn heel before he wins?” The tournament has lacked the intrigue and excitement you would expect from a guaranteed new champion due to the feeling of inevitability that Reigns will be winning.
Over the past week, there has been a major push amongst WWE decision makers for Dean Ambrose to walk out of Survivor Series as champion. The news was first reported by PWInsider and SEScoops has since confirmed this independently. A source with ties to the situation placed the odds at “70/30” in favor of Ambrose walking out as champion.
Whether or not WWE follows through on this and puts the belt on Ambrose, our sources say there’s no chance that Roman Reigns turns heel and Vince McMahon is still dead set on building him as the company’s top babyface.
It will be interesting to see the final betting odds for Survivor Series this weekend once the ‘smart money’ bets are placed.
Paige and Lana have been going at it on Twitter this morning, with Lana accusing Paige of bullying her while the two of them were training at NXT. Paige called out Lana for being a liar. Here’s the full exchange:
https://twitter.com/LanaWWE/status/666596277686243328
https://twitter.com/RealPaigeWWE/status/666606987401109504
https://twitter.com/RealPaigeWWE/status/666608461543788548
https://twitter.com/LanaWWE/status/666609550498230273
https://twitter.com/RealPaigeWWE/status/666609880065773568
I actually am a open book of honesty, I apologize when I'm wrong & take responsibility for my actions. Nice try https://t.co/xZ8KAXInmH
— CJ Perry (@TheCJPerry) November 17, 2015
Paige tweeted, “Stop trying to get a storyline” but deleted that.
You are a great wrestler @RealPaigeWWE & I hope @MsCharlotteWWE crushes you at #SurvivorSeries because you are mean & disrespectful. Bye ?
— CJ Perry (@TheCJPerry) November 17, 2015
https://twitter.com/RealPaigeWWE/status/666613691094327296
Former NXT creative assistant Rob Naylor chimed in:
@RealPaigeWWE Lol @ you "bullying" people. Few if any were given a harder time at developmental than you were.
— Rob Naylor (@NINaylor) November 17, 2015
https://twitter.com/RealPaigeWWE/status/666614323595354112
Meanwhile, Summer Rae is siding with Paige:
falsely accused. @RealPaigeWWE is no bully in or out of the locker room.
— Summer Rae (@DanielleMoinet) November 17, 2015
The hot topic of conversation coming out of Monday’s RAW wasn’t the Final 4 of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship Tournament – it was Paige’s comments to Charlotte about her deceased brother Reid.
Charlotte invoked Reid during the Divas Championship contract signing and said that her entire career is a tribute to Reid in an effort to fulfill the dream he is unable to since his passing. As Charlotte was talking about her entire family being fighters, Paige made it intensely personal by correcting Charlotte and saying Reid “didn’t have much fight in him” prior to his untimely death back in 2013 (accidental overdose). The ladies brawled and WWE fans’ jaws dropped in reaction to Paige’s shocking remark.
Naturally Paige was bombarded on social media with fans who couldn’t believe what she said. Playing up her heel role and relishing in the heat she generated, Paige responded:
https://twitter.com/RealPaigeWWE/status/666479673761783808
During a heated Divas Championship Contract Signing on Raw, Paige made a controversial comment about Charlotte’s family that sparked a wild brawl between the one-time allies.
Charlotte got emotional referencing her late brother (Reid Flair, who died on on March 29, 2013 from an accidental overdose of heroin and prescription drugs), saying Paige was there for her when he died. The Divas Champion said she is here today because of him — to fulfill his dream. Later in the segment, Paige decided to insult his memory in an attempt to rile her foe into a brawl by saying he didn’t have “much fight in him.” Charlotte then lunged across the table at her Paige, instigating a giant brawl that was eventually stopped by a group of referees.
Reid and Charlotte’s mother, Elizabeth Fleihr, who is also an ex-wife of Ric Flair, was not happy with the angle.
She wrote on twitter, “@WWE @StephMcMahon @VinceMcMahon @TripleH WWEWriters really, that lazy! #CheapHeat #disgusting #disrespectful #cruel #sad #RawGreenville.”
@WWE @StephMcMahon @VinceMcMahon @TripleH WWEWriters really, that lazy! #CheapHeat #disgusting
#disrespectful #cruel #sad #RawGreenville
— Elizabeth Fliehr (@EFliehr) November 17, 2015
As noted by Michael Cole on commentary during Monday’s RAW, WWE Intercontinental Champion Kevin Owens blocked actress and noted WWE fan Melissa Joan Hart on Twitter this week.
Melissa Joan Hart often tweets during RAW and this week, she took a shot at Owens for being a “lazy wrestler.”
Below are some of the tweets from Melissa Joan Hart and Kevin Owens from Monday night.
Kevin Owens is a lazy wrestler. Yeah, I said it. #WWETitle #MelissaExplainsRAW @WWE #RAW
— Melissa Joan Hart (@MelissaJoanHart) November 17, 2015
https://twitter.com/FightOwensFight/status/666437965019783168
I made one comment, hoping he would start showing more… & he got butt-hurt. Didn't know I was so threatening #RAW pic.twitter.com/0ABjfXw08t
— Melissa Joan Hart (@MelissaJoanHart) November 17, 2015
I understand. I'm sure he's a very nice guy. He's a talented wrestler, but his character needs some ring & mic boost https://t.co/P4P70T5W1w
— Melissa Joan Hart (@MelissaJoanHart) November 17, 2015
OMG OMG OMG! Announcers just mentioned my tweet about KO, and subsequent block! LOL I feel special #MelissaExplainsRAW #RAW
— Melissa Joan Hart (@MelissaJoanHart) November 17, 2015
https://twitter.com/FightOwensFight/status/666439830264508416
After Monday night’s WWE Survivor Series “go-home” edition of RAW went off the air, Bray Wyatt came back out. Wyatt spoke about Survivor Series briefly before calling out Roman Reigns.
This led to an eight-man post-show dark match for the live crowd at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina. The match ended up mostly consisting of guys doing their finishers and other big spots.
The match featured Bray Wyatt, Luke Harper, Erick Rowan and Braun Strowman taking on Reigns, Cesaro, Dolph Ziggler and Dean Ambrose. Ultimately, everyone fought to the back and in the end, Reigns and Ambrose were left alone in the ring.
Ambrose took the mic and said the two would win their matches and meet in the finals to determine the next WWE World Heavyweight Champion. Reigns agreed and said they’d always be brothers.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzLFT1jTAII
It’s official: NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 10 at the Tokyo Dome on January 4th will be available in English, but they’re making a different play from what they did for this year’s show. Kevin Kelly announced on his latest podcast that he and Matt Striker, the voices of ROH and Lucha Underground, respectively, will return as NJPW’s English announcing team. They debuted last month at the King of Pro Wrestling event. The show will air live on NJPW World in both languages, unlike this year’s event, which aired in Japanese on that service and in English on traditional pay-per-view via a deal with GFW. It remains to be seen if NJPW will ad a proper English version of the website, as right now it’s still in Japanese with an English Google Translate button.
Kelly made the announcement at the 1:39:39 mark of the podcast, saying that “On January 4th, I, once again, am going back to New Japan Pro Wrestling…I’m going to be part of the broadcast team for Wrestle Kingdom 10 (NJPWorld broadcast). I’m very excited…” Acknowledging the criticism that he sounded too new to the NJPW product last time, he added that “I’ll be more comfortable next time, and I think it will be much improved.”
Last year’s GFW production, with Jeff Jarrett producing, was called by Jim Ross and Striker to rave reviews. For King of Pro Wrestling, NJPW made the hiring on their own. Mauro Ranallo and Josh Barnett, who call NJPW’s American TV show on AXS TV, were not contacted. The AXS deal is with TV Asahi, NJPW’s broadcast partner in Japan, and not the promotion itself. ROH, on the other hand, which Kelly works for, is effectively NJPW’s American affiliate promotion.
– On Monday’s edition of WWE RAW, it was announced that the four semi-finalists in the ongoing WWE World Heavyweight Title Tournament will be guests on a special edition of Miz TV on this week’s edition of SmackDown. The four semi-finalists, as seen on RAW, are Roman Reigns and Alberto Del Rio on one side of the bracket, and Dean Ambrose and Kevin Owens on the other side. This week’s SmackDown will be taped on Tuesday night at the Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tennessee.
The #WWETitle final four will be guests w/ @MikeTheMiz on #MizTV THIS THURSDAY on @WWE #SmackDown on @Syfy! pic.twitter.com/3Ubo0zXhUx
— WWE (@WWE) November 17, 2015
– Also on Monday’s RAW, it was announced that WWE Divas Champion Charlotte will be appearing on ESPN SportsCenter on Tuesday to promote her title defense against Paige at this Sunday’s WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view.
Don't miss @WWEDivas Champ @MsCharlotteWWE on @ESPN @SportsCenter w/ @TheCoachESPN TOMORROW at 9:30 PM ET! #RAW pic.twitter.com/A9zwi9sHOm
— WWE (@WWE) November 17, 2015
WWE confirmed on Monday’s Survivor Series “go-home” edition of RAW that at this Sunday’s pay-per-view in Atlanta, Georgia, both the semi-finals and the finals of the WWE World Heavyweight Title Tournament will take place.
On Monday’s RAW, the quarterfinals of the tournament took place with four men advancing to the semi-finals of the tournament, leaving the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion to be determined among the four at this Sunday’s Survivor Series pay-per-view.
With those tournament matches now in the books, below is an updated look at the WWE World Heavyweight Title Tournament brackets, as well as the regular lineup heading into Sunday’s show.
WWE World Heavyweight Title Tournament Semi-Finals
– Kevin Owens vs. Dean Ambrose
– Roman Reigns vs. Alberto Del Rio
WWE World Heavyweight Title Tournament Finals
– Owens/Ambrose winner vs. Reigns/Del Rio winner
WWE Divas Championship
– Charlotte (c) vs. Paige
– The Undertaker & Kane vs. Two members of The Wyatt Family
Make sure to join us here at SEScoops.com this Sunday evening for the absolute best WWE Survivor Series live results coverage on the web!
– Veteran wrestling journalist Bill Apter released the above video on Sunday to share his thoughts on the passing of wrestling legend Nick Bockwinkel, who passed away this past weekend at age 80.
– The new WWE Studios film, “Santa’s Little Helper” starring The Miz and Paige will be released in stores and on-demand on Tuesday.
– WWE taped the following two matches on Monday night in Greenville, South Carolina prior to RAW for this week’s edition of WWE Superstars.
* Brie Bella def. Naomi in Divas action to kick off the evening at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena. This was said to be a pretty basic Divas match, which Brie won via pinfall.
* Titus O’Neil def. Bo Dallas in the second of two matches taped for this week’s WWE Superstars. The crowd was actually pretty into this match live in the arena.
– WWE posted the above video on their official YouTube channel on Monday evening, honoring the life and career of the late WWE Hall Of Famer and former AWA Champion Nick Bockwinkel.
– ECW Original Axl Rotten noted on his official Twitter account that fellow ECW Original Hack Meyers is at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland to undergo brain surgery. Rotten posted the following:
Please pray for my close friend & brother #ECW ORIGINAL #HackMeyers He is in #JohnsHopkins Awaiting Brain Surgery. pic.twitter.com/YWlhUC0eXW
— AXL ROTTEN (@AxlRottenECW) November 16, 2015
– WWE posted the above preview for the new two-part edition of “Legends With JBL,” which as part of the special Undertaker Week on the WWE Network, features “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, Triple H and Shawn Michaels talking about “The Dead Man’s” legendary career. Both parts are available on the WWE Network now.
– WrestlingDVDNetwork.com is reporting that WWE’s new “Owen Hart: Hart Of Gold” DVD and Blu-ray set will feature new and archived interview footage from Vince McMahon, Tyson Kidd, Natalya, Jim Neidhart, Davey Boy Smith, Triple H, Mick Foley, Edge, Scott Hall, Chris Jericho, Lex Luger and referee Mike Chioda. WWE also shot new interviews with Owen Hart’s family members, including Bret Hart, Keith, Ross, Bruce, Alison, Diana, Ellie and Georgia. The set will not, however, feature any content from Hart’s immediate family, such as his widow Martha or his children, Oje and Athena, as Martha is not supporting the project.
– WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross’ weekly “Ross Report” podcast returns on Tuesday night at 9 p.m. EST. / 6 p.m. PST. at PodcastOne.com. JR will be joined this week by two wrestling legends, as Jim Cornette and Terry “Magnum T.A.” Allen are both scheduled for the show. The official description for the episode reads as follows:
“Join JR as he welcomes TWO guests in rapid fire conversation….the incomparable Jim Cornette talks with JR about a variety of topics and the Mid Atlantic Memories film and pulls no punches on any topic. Also joining JR will be Terry Allen better known as Magnum TA who chats about a myriad of topics concerning today’s product. So one one podcast you get Jim Cornette, Magnum TA along with JR with entertaining and informative talk.”
WWE RAW Results (November 16 2015)
From Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina
Partial credit for RAW report: Jason Powell and ProWrestling.net
WWE RAW Kicks Off With Moment Of Silence For Paris Tragedies
[Q1] The WWE Survivor Series “go-home” edition of WWE RAW kicks off with the entire roster standing quietly on the stage while Lilian Garcia introduces a moment of silence for those who were affected by the terrorist tragedies in Paris this past weekend.
WWE Title Tournament Discussion
From there, we shoot live inside the area where we go to the announce team and the usual RAW energy. Michael Cole, JBL and Byron Saxton introduce a look at the updated brackets for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship tournament. We get a quick look at the quarterfinal matches in the tournament that are set for tonight’s show.
The Brothers Of Destruction & The Wyatt Family Segment
Finally, we head to our actual opening segment for the Survivor Series “go-home” edition of RAW, as the lights go dim, the druids start up and smoke pours throughout the arena. Finally, the gong hits and the fans go ballistic. The Undertaker and Kane finally make their way out and the fans give “The Brothers of Destruction” a warm welcome.
Footage aired of Taker and Kane destroying the entire Wyatt Family last week. Cole hyped Kane and Taker vs. two members of The Wyatt Family of Wyatt’s choosing for Survivor Series.
The fans chanted Taker’s name after his music stopped playing. Taker said that he and Kane are a true army of darkness. He said vengeance awaits the Wyatt Family. He said the Wyatts took their bodies and tried to claim their souls, but there is no man living or dead who contains the power of the dark side. Kane spoke briefly, then Taker told Wyatt to choose which members of his family to sacrifice. He said the Brothers of Destruction have already decided their destiny, and they will never rest in peace.
The Wyatt Family made their entrance. Bray Wyatt sat in his rocking chair on the stage while Luke Harper, Erick Rowan, and Braun Strowman stood behind him. Wyatt said 25 years is long enough and it’s time for a new army of darkness to emerge. Wyatt referred to himself as the face of fear and its master and decider.
[Q2] Wyatt dubbed himself the one. Wyatt stood up and raised his hand, then we got a brief light and thunder show. He said that as for Taker’s creatures of the night, they are his. Wyatt laughed as the druids turned toward the ring wearing white sheep mask. “Run,” Wyatt said.
The Druids hit the ring and were destroyed by Taker and Kane. The last two standing took chokeslams. Taker motioned for the family to come to the ring. They obliged, but Wyatt stopped them and said their date with destiny is on Sunday… A graphic hyped Kevin Owens vs. Neville in a tournament match… [C]
WWE Title Tournament Quarterfinals
– Kevin Owens vs. Neville
When we return from the break, it’s time for our first WWE World Heavyweight Championship tournament quarterfinal bouts tonight on RAW. WWE Intercontinental Champion Kevin Owens makes his way to the ring. He will go one-on-one with Neville in the first quarterfinal of the evening.
The brackets were shown and the winner of this match will face the winner of tonight’s Dean Ambrose vs. Dolph Ziggler at Survivor Series. Neville had Owens down and wanted to go for his finisher at 1:30, but Owens rolled to ringside. Neville performed a moonsault onto Owens on the floor instead. [C]
[Q3] Owens took control coming out of the break. Neville was nearly counted out and beat the count at the last possible moment for some better drama than usual in a potential count-out scenario. Neville dodged a charging Owens in the corner and then performed a nice German Suplex. Neville performed a corkscrew moonsault off the second rope for a nice near fall.
Neville went up top for his finisher, but Owens got up. Neville caught him with a kick, then went back up top. Owens backed into the ropes and knocked Neville down. Owens went for his finisher, but Neville avoided it and caught him with a reverse huracanrana for another good near fall. Neville went for the Red Arrow. Owens avoided it. Neville landed on his feet, but Owens put him away with a Pop Up Powerbomb.
Winner and advancing to the semifinals of the WWE Title Tournament: Kevin Owens
RAW Announcers Hype Charlotte vs. Paige
The broadcast team hyped Survivor Series and the Divas Championship match. Cole said they would be showing clips throughout the night of how they arrived at Charlotte vs. Paige. Footage aired of Paige’s debut match and her win over A.J. Lee to win the title. The broadcast team hyped a contract signing between Charlotte and Paige for later in the show.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PS-lmNw0Yk
Former, WWE, ECW and TNA star Taz said on his radio show that the fight between Ronda Rousey and Holly Holm at UFC 193 was fixed. He went into detail on his theory, saying UFC president Dana White used an age-old wrestling business strategy.
“Why are some people not seeing this? This has been done in the wrestling industry for years,” said Taz. “A guy or girl is going to take a break or go away, or has an injury that they have to tend to, whatever the reasons are, and they’re a champion – you take the championship off of them. You do not want your champion sitting home or making a movie, ‘Roadhouse 2′?, or whatever Rousey’s going to do, or just needs a personal break, which she’s earned. This girl’s earned it. But you don’t want that person sitting home for five, six, seven months with that championship. It’s bad for business! Take the belt off her!”
“If you look at the actual K.O. – now, she did get nailed, Rousey, with several shots before the finish of the fight. Nothing that was like ‘oh my god,’ but she got popped a few times. But if you look at the actual knockout, as Rousey, she went for kind of a lazy punch or something – not lazy but she kind of missed – and as she spun to turn around her back was kind of turned to Holm. And as she slowly turned, a high round kick, I believe it was the left foot, or left leg of Holm, catches Rousey, drops Rousey, and then Holm grounds and pounds for three shots – boom, boom, boom. Ref gets in the middle, fight’s over, new champion Holly Holm.”
“I’m telling you right now, that whole series, was the work. And I’m not sure who was in on it and who wasn’t but I know this much: the ref probably wasn’t in on it. Maybe he was I don’t know. Rousey was in on it – and again, this is all my opinion. Holm might not have been in on it.”
The Taz Show airs weekdays from 7 AM to 9 AM Eastern at play.it/the-taz-show/.
Related: Athletes & Celebrities React To UFC 193: “That’s What Ronda Gets For Not Touching Gloves!”
Nikki Bella is dealing with a career-threatening neck injury and doing whatever it takes to avoid surgery, according to an exclusive report at Pro Wrestling Sheet.
WWE’s longest reigning Divas champion has bulging discs in her neck that are pushing on on her spinal cord. The bulging discs have produced excess fluid in her central nervous system. Had she continued wrestling with the injury, a bad bump could have left her paralyzed.
Nikki is undergoing vigorous physical rehabilitation up to 8 time a day to alleviate the bulging discs.
We wish her a speedy recovery.