WWE will be presenting their NXT Takeover: Brooklyn event at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York tonight for the live special airing on the WWE Network. Below is the final lineup for tonight’s show.
NXT Championship [Ladder Match]
– Finn Balor (c) vs. Kevin Owens
NXT Tag-Team Championship
– Blake & Murphy (c) vs. The Vaudevillians
NXT Women’s Championship
– Sasha Banks (c) vs. Bayley
– Jushin “Thunder” Liger vs. Tyler Breeze
– Samoa Joe vs. Baron Corbin
– Apollo Crews vs. Tye Dillinger
Make sure to join us here at SEScoops.com later this evening for the best NXT Takeover: Brooklyn live results on the web!
TNA Impact Wrestling showed increases in viewership for both their first-run and replay shows this week. The Wednesday, August 19th edition of Impact Wrestling that aired at 9pm drew 323,000 viewers, while the midnight replay drew 73,000 viewers. The total of 396,000 viewers is the best number the show has done since July 29th.
The lone airing of Ring Of Honor television at 11pm drew 145,000 viewers, slightly down from last week’s show.
King Barrett hosted a Twitter Q&A on Friday to promote this Sunday’s WWE SummerSlam pay-per-view at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Below are some of the highlights.
WWE Hall of Famer Greg “The Hammer” Valentine recently appeared on Filsinger Games’ The View podcast and made some very controversial statement regarding women’s wrestling. Valentine cut right to the chase:
“As far as girl wrestling, I would send them all out to the strip bar and fire ’em.”
“I’d fire every girl wrestler I ever saw. They don’t draw any money, they have horrible matches. Uh … they’re terrible. That’s the way I feel.”
“They take away jobs from men that need to support their families. They should be home washing dishes and cooking and pregnant and barefoot.”
The male host responded, “Here we go..” and added that this was a perfect heel interview. Valentine continued:
“I love women … but they gotta realize their place. They’re not supposed to be wrestlers. They’re not supposed to be MMA fighters or boxers. It’s bullshit.”
You can listen to the full podcast here– Valentine’s rant begins around the 40-minute mark.
Jonathan Coachman recently spoke with Sports Illustrated’s Extra Mustard blog to promote ESPN’s coverage of WWE SummerSlam this Sunday night in Brooklyn, New York. Below are some of the highlights of the interview.
On how ESPN plans to cover this event: “We’re doing a lot of sit-downs on Saturday with guys who have cross-over appeal. We’re going to sit down and talk with different wrestlers that either played football in college, like Roman Reigns or John Cena, to the Miz, who was a reality star, so there are a lot of guys the casual sports fan would know. We’ll meet with them on Saturday, and those interviews will be on ESPN.com and our SportsCenter feed on Twitter, and then we’ll be doing live shots on Sunday morning from outside the arena to show people the atmosphere. Then we’ll interview a few people about what Sunday night means to their careers.”
On how he will approach covering the event: “We’re used to dealing with athletes and asking, ‘What does this game mean to you?’ Well, performing at SummerSlam is just like performing in the NFC Championship game. You’ve got to bring your top game so you can make it to the Super Bowl in WrestleMania. We want to introduce a lot of these guys to the part of the sports world who don’t watch Raw.”
On possibly working for WWE again and his plans at ESPN: “ESPN is not a place you come to take the next step, it’s a place you come to spend your career. I plan on retiring at ESPN, but I would love to be involved with ESPN and WWE. The biggest network in America for credibility in sports and entertainment is ESPN, so the best way to make your product credible is to be on ESPN. I’m proud of the fact that I am the liaison for the WWE. I appreciate the executives at ESPN opening their hearts and their minds, and I can’t think of anything cooler than what we’re doing this weekend at SummerSlam.”
Former WWE Diva AJ Lee is featured in the official promo trailer for the upcoming Madden NFL 16 video game. The former WWE Diva appears around the 4 minute mark
AJ plays the role of “Trish” and is kidnapped by the villains. This sets up a battle for Trish over a game of Madden.
WWE Hall Of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin recently spoke with IGN to promote WWE 2K16, as well as this Sunday’s WWE SummerSlam pay-per-view. Below are some of the highlights from the interview.
On who will win the Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker match: “I think it’s [Brock Lesnar’s] turn. And if you go that way then you can take the rubber match to WrestleMania and then Brock goes over and Taker rides off into the sunset. That’d be my prediction.”
On John Cena and the internet wrestling community giving him a hard time: “But everybody also knows that I’m a huge John Cena fan for his contributions for what he’s done for the business. He’s been the top guy for the last ten years. I’ve been there and I did it, so the run that he’s had is amazing. When you get the IWC involved, a lot of people have had a gut-full of him. But when a guy like me from outside, who was inside in the business at the highest level, looks at what he’s done, it’s phenomenal. So you could flip a coin on this one. You’d really have to get inside Vince McMahon’s head and see the chess game that’s going on. Get his mindset to see what he wants to do with the pieces on the table. That’s a hard one for me to pick. I’ll go Taker on Taker/Lesnar, but it’s really hard to call Cena/Rollins.”
Although he was in Brooklyn, New York for some WWE 2K16 obligations, as well as some other work, WWE Hall Of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin will not be sticking around for Saturday’s NXT Takeover: Brooklyn or Sunday’s WWE SummerSlam events. There were those who were hoping that Austin would make an appearance because of how WWE is promoting this year’s SummerSlam to be a WrestleMania-sized event, however that will not be happening.
It is worth pointing out, however, that Ric Flair will be in town for Saturday and Sunday’s shows. There is no word as to whether or not Flair will actually appear on camera in some form or fashion, however it’s definitely a possibility.
According to F4WOnline.com, “something huge” is planned for Monday’s post-SummerSlam edition of WWE RAW. What exactly that is isn’t clear at the moment, and things could always change before Monday night, however as of right now, something big is planned for the show.
NXT contracted performers have not been given bonuses based on working events with bigger gates outside of their usual shows at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida. This includes those who worked the NXT event in San Jose, California during WrestleMania weekend, a show that drew over 5,000 paid.
The main reason WWE does not offer bonuses for these shows is because NXT live events and developmental in general are currently money losing businesses. Developmental loses money largely due to the fact that so many talents are under guaranteed contracts. Also, as a promotion, NXT only runs three live events locally in Florida, at the most, drawing 200-300 fans. They run the shows to give talent experience in front of a live crowd, and because there are no travel expenses for NXT talent working in Florida, the feeling is that they are being paid to learn.
It’s worth noting that when NXT talent are brought to WWE live events, they are paid for those shows and have their road expenses covered as well.
This Saturday’s NXT Takeover: Brooklyn event will have a live gate of around $700,000, which is an incredible accomplishment for the brand. The Finn Balor vs. Kevin Owens and Sasha Banks vs. Bayley title matches are the headlining attractions, and traditionally those involved would receive a bonus based on the gate, however that may not be the case with NXT Takeover: Brooklyn.
Owens is now on a main roster deal, and Balor’s deal is said to be different than the traditional developmental deals because he was already an established star in a major league promotion, so they will both likely receive bonuses of some kind for Saturday’s live special.
The real question is whether or not Banks and Bayley will receive bonuses. Banks may also be on a main roster deal now, and if that is the case, she would get a bonus as well. What this could mean is that Bayley could be the lone performer among the four in headlining spots that will not receive a bonus due to the fact that she is under a regular developmental deal.
– Following the “ring rat” controversy between Amanda and Sara Lee on this week’s edition of the WWE Tough Enough post-show, “Tough Talk,” WWE has banned another term. After the show, where Amanda accused Sara Lee of being a “ring rat,” WWE sent word that the term “ring rat” is banned from any stories on their website.
– Among the pro wrestlers who attended the invitation-only funeral for the late WWE Hall Of Famer “Rowdy” Roddy Piper at The Comedy Store in Hollywood, California on August 17th were Austin Aries, Diamond Dallas Page, Chavo Guerrero Jr., Chavo Guerrero Sr., Mando Guerrero, Lisa Marie Varon, Gene LeBell, Rock Riddle, Bas Rutten, Josh Barnett, Dave Marquez, Will Sasso, John Morrison and Rick Bassman.
– The following are some recent WWE attendance figures:
* August 15th in Citrus Springs, FL for NXT drew 300 fans
* August 15th in Detroit drew 5,500 fans (Seth Rollins tour, John Cena pulled)
* August 15th in Sioux Falls, SD drew 3,500 fans (Roman Reigns tour)
* August 16th in Bemidji, MN drew 2,500 fans (Rollins tour)
* August 16th in Fargo, ND drew 5,500 fans (Reigns tour)
* August 17th in Minneapolis for RAW drew 10,000 fans
Matt Hardy recently took part in a A.M.A. session with the r/SquaredCircle community on Reddit to promote his new shoot interview, available at TheWrestlingBundle.com. Below are some of the highlights.
On the most painful spot he’s ever been involved in: “Probably when my abdomen ripped in half, allowing my intestines to thrust outside of it. Indescribable pain. There’s been too many painful moments throughout my career to truly rank them though.”
On the best thing about no longer working for WWE: “The absolute freedom that it allows me. I make my own schedule. I work when I want to, I take off when I want to. The WWE is the best-an incredible company-but if you’re there full-time, it really consumes your life.”
On if he prefers being in the same company as Jeff, or if he enjoys when he’s allowed to do your his thing: “I love working at the same place as my brother, it’s an added bonus. But yes, sometimes it’s nice to have separation between our wrestling characters, as it’s hard for Matt & Jeff Hardy to be in the same promotion & NOT team as the Hardy Boyz. I love performing as a singles and it helps me highlight what I feel like are strengths of mine that aren’t always on exhibit when Jeff & I team.”
On the most grueling ladder match he has ever been in: “My toughest Ladder Match was the one vs E & C that happened the first night WWE was on TNN. All 4 of us (Me, Jeff, Adam & Jay) were all terribly hurting & physically spent from the Cage Match the night before at Unforgiven. We weren’t supposed to wrestle AT ALL that night, yet ended up in a brutal, long Ladder Match that day. I remember none of us were overly happy with our performance that night–we just weren’t physically able to produce the kind of performance that we wanted to that evening.”
On the current status of TNA: “First off, I love working at TNA right now. The locker room & working environment is great & the freedom that TNA allows it’s wrestlers is unparalleled. What happens with TNA & Dest America in the future? I’m honestly not sure. I hope they continue to work together. If not, they’ll look elsewhere for domestic distribution. Internationally, TNA is doing phenomenal business. I’ll openly admit that TNA is in a rebuilding phase after the Hogan-Bischoff era. There may be bumps in the road, but TNA is not going out of business & will soon be starting another period of growth.”
On if he has ever accidentally wrestled with stuff in the pockets of his cargo wrestling pants: “HA! You are absolutely right, they are handy to wear backstage. Great observation! I always put my hair-tie in my right pocket of my pants before wrestling–that’s a strict ritual of mine. I was one time about to make a coffee & had my match bumped up to be earlier. After taking a superplex, there was packets of Sweet N Low in the ring that I’d never taken out to put in my coffee.”
While in New York City for SummerSlam weekend, TMZ.com cameras caught up with WWE Diva and Total Divas castmember Natalya.
When asked which celebrity she’d like to wrestle, Natalya named Kim Kardashian. She later added that she’d like to also step in the ring with Kim’s sister Khloe and added that she’s a big fan of both of them.
WWE performer Paul Heyman released a new “Heyman Hustle” video on Thursday to make an announcement regarding SummerSlam headliner Brock Lesnar.
In the video, which you can view above, Heyman takes to the streets of New York City, where he mingles with the people and even takes a street chess player to “Checkmate City, Bitch!”
Also during the video, Heyman delivered the “mega-announcement” that his client, “The Beast Incarnate” Brock Lesnar, will indeed be part of the new WWE 2K16 video game.
Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker headlines this Sunday’s WWE SummerSlam pay-per-view at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Make sure to visit SEScoops.com on Sunday evening for live WWE SummerSlam results coverage.
Ring Of Honor issued a press release this week regarding an upcoming announcement to be made about the working relationship between ROH and New Japan Pro Wrestling.
ROH sent out the following press release on Friday:
At the Ring of Honor television taping in Philadelphia on Friday, September 21st , Ring of Honor and New Japan Pro Wrestling management will be making a special announcement impacting their working relationship at 7:10 p.m. ET on ROHWrestling.com/ROHUSTREAM.
Ring of Honor is hosting New Japan wrestlers at two monumental events this weekend, beginning on August 21st in Philadelphia’s famed 2300 Arena for a spectacular television taping. One night later on August 22nd, ROH and NJPW will compete at Brooklyn’s own MCU Park, which will be available as a DVD and on VOD. Ring of Honor is incredibly honored to continue to host such fantastic matches with the stars of New Japan Pro Wrestling.
Additional information about this announcement will be made available on ROHWrestling.com shortly after the live press conference.
“Lester meant to say we are hopeful the new stadium will host a future College Football Playoff Championship and WrestleMania,” reads the statement.
“Unfortunately the mistake was not caught during the editing process. To be clear, Minnesota has not been awarded a future WrestleMania. Minneapolis has submitted a bid and hopes to hear something from WWE by the end of the year. Obviously all U.S. Bank Stadium partners would love to bring the excitement and economic impact of WrestleMania to this market.”
– WWE Hall Of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin gave a speech at the WWE 2K16 media event in New York City on Thursday night about Vince McMahon calling him about being the WWE 2K16 cover star. Austin noted that he was surprised, but didn’t want to talk himself out of the opportunity, as he admitted he has made a lot of bad career decisions in the past and he didn’t want this to be another one of them.
– King Barrett will be holding a Twitter Q&A today at 5pm EST. to promote this Sunday’s WWE SummerSlam pay-per-view, where he will team up with Stardust to take on Neville and “Arrow” actor Stephen Amell. Fans can submit questions to Barrett using the hashtag #SummerSlam.
– Below are the “Top 10 WWE SmackDown Moments” for this week’s show, which was the SummerSlam “go-home” edition of the program.
Daniel Bryan took part in a Q&A session at Wizard World in Chicago on Thursday and was asked about his medical status. Bryan said he’s been cleared by a “respectable doctor” to wrestle, but WWE won’t clear him because they are worried about his history with concussions.
Bryan said that officials with WWE have not given any indication on when or if they will clear him to return to action.
He also mentioned that he has talked about working with NXT talents, however he didn’t want to elaborate in detail because he still plans to return to the ring.
When if he could pick one final opponent to wrestle in WWE, Bryan named Brock Lesnar.
– WWE Network officials have been aware of some buffering issues with their streaming service after complaints by fans in recent weeks. The crew is reportedly working to make sure there will be no issues this weekend, as WWE has two big live events with NXT Takeover: Brooklyn and SummerSlam, back-to-back.
– New footage of Eric Bischoff will be featured on the new WWE DVD and Blu-ray, “The Monday Night War Vol. 2: Know Your Role,” which is scheduled to be released on September 8th. The following is the official synopsis for the new project, where WWE is promoting the fact that Bischoff is involved:
“For the first time in eight years, ERIC BISCHOFF returns to WWE home video and gives his candid and unscripted commentary on the final ten episodes of The Monday Night War in a post-episode analysis.”
– Stephanie McMahon, Renee Young, Eva Marie, Sheamus and Kofi Kingston held an anti-bullying rally at the Boys & Girls Club of New York City on Thursday. Below is a photo of the group at the event:
– The WWE Tough Enough “Final Four,” Sara Lee, Amanda, Josh and ZZ are all guests on the latest edition of Chris Jericho’s “Talk Is Jericho” podcast, which is now available. The official description for the show reads as follows:
Tough Enough is down to the Final Four – Sara Lee, Amanda, Josh & ZZ… and all four are on TIJ! First up, the Diva hopefuls! Hear what Sara Lee thinks of The Miz saving her, and both women’s journeys to Tough Enough. And if you need a little help deciding who to vote for, both ladies cut one last promo to persuade you! And then – Josh & ZZ join Y2J. You’ll hear about wrestling alligators, the curse of the Nightmare Zone, and their final promos to win your vote! You’ll also get lessons in Yeti and alligator calling!
You can listen to the latest edition of “Talk Is Jericho” at PodcastOne.com.
– Hip-hop star Fabolous is among the celebrities who was in attendance at the WWE 2K16 media event in New York City on Thursday evening. Below is a video of the rapper on the red carpet with the WWE Tag-Team Champions, The Prime Time Players.
Actor and SummerSlam performer Stephen Amell is preparing to head to New York for his big tag-team match with Neville against Stardust and King Barrett at this Sunday’s pay-per-view.
Amell posted a new video on his official Facebook page where he reveals that he will be wearing some special “Arrow” gear to the ring on Sunday.
Amell also noted via Twitter that the t-shirt he and WWE collaborated on has already raised $80,000 for the Emily’s House charity.
John Cena appeared on NBC’s “Late Night with Seth Meyers” on Thursday to hype WWE SummerSlam and talk about granting his 500th wish for the Make-A-Wish foundation. In the video above, Cena talked about granting his 500th wish and his role in the recent Amy Schumer comedy Trainwreck.
Cena also followed in the footsteps of The Rock and Hulk Hogan to become the latest Superstar wrestler to sport a tutu. There was a skit after Cena’s interview where Meyers went to find Cena, who had left behind his wallet. Meyers walked in on Cena wearing the tutu and having a tea party with stuffed animals.
Daniel Bryan took part in a Q&A at the Chicago Wizard World Comic-Con yesterday. During the session, Bryan talked about fans making their own shirts if they can’t afford to buy WWE merchandise, noting that he’s been poor and knows how hard it can be to buy them. Bryan encourages fans to make their own wrestling shirts if they can’t afford WWE’s – “I’d love that.”
His comment was tweeted by the official Wizard World Twitter account, which he retweeted, adding that he would like for it to become the new trend:
After dropping hints earlier this week, Booker T finally revealed the “huge announcement” related to his Reality Of Wrestling independent promotion in Texas.
Booker T announced on social media that his R.O.W. promotion out of Houston, Texas has landed a television deal with CW channel 39 in Houston. Their show will begin airing on Sunday, September 20th at 11am.
Booker and Bruce Prichard posted the following on Twitter to announce the news.
WWE Diva and Total Divas star Natalya recently spoke with Newsday about a number of current topics. Below are some of the highlights from the interview.
On WWE Divas getting more exposure these days: “It’s very very cool to see the girls get some serious recognition. Because for most of my WWE career I think when people think of Nattie, they think Nattie kind of embodies women’s wrestling. For me, I was never a model. I was a wrestler. I wrestled in Japan, I wrestled for my family, I’ve done jiujitsu and martial arts — I wouldn’t say I was ever involved in MMA, but I did train in Brazilian jiujitsu and just tried to make myself as well-rounded as possible so I could be as best as I could be in the ring. So to see the Divas actually getting a chance, it’s great.”
On watching the current Divas Revolution storyline from backstage: “Watching the girls, in some ways it’s a little bittersweet because I watch them and I’m so proud of them and so excited for them and I would love to get back in the ring with the Bellas and get in there with Charlotte and Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch and some of the new blood. But with WWE, you have to just let the world unfold and everything happens for a reason and we tell stories. So maybe they’re saving the best for last.”
