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Renee Paquette: Big E Could Be WWE’s Franchise Player, But “You Kind Of Worry”

Michael Reichlin
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Renee Paquette appeared on Busted Open Radio on Friday morning. She spoke with Dave LaGreca and Bully Ray for her new segment, Keeping It Real With Renee.

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Paquette spoke in-depth about Big E becoming WWE Champion earlier this week. As somebody who has known Big E for many years, it makes her so happy for him to reach the top of the mountain in WWE.

“It just makes me so happy,” she began. “I tweeted out, it’s so cool to see this outpouring of love for someone like Big E. I’ve never heard anybody say a bad thing about the dude.”

Big E as WWE Champion

Paquette continued by talking about the grassroots-nature of Big E’s rise to the top. A situation like Big E’s rise only comes along every few years. WWE has lightning in a bottle with Big E and a chance to give fans exactly what they want.

“It’s been, I guess you could call it, a slow burn for Big E. You get that huge payoff, him cashing in that Money in the Bank contract, becoming WWE Champion. What I love about it is the organic way that Big’s career has kind of gone. When you get the fans behind you, now you know the company is behind him, it’s time just kind of ‘strap that rocket on to him and shoot him off.’ That trajectory is just going to keep going.”

“If we want to get into ratings and blah blah blah, I think Big E could be that guy to really help to push WWE Monday Night Raw, Friday Night SmackDown, wherever he decides he wants to show up. It’s that organic side of things that I think WWE fans have been craving and they want that payoff and they finally got it with Big E and I couldn’t be happier for that dude.”

“You Kind of Worry”

Bully Ray asked Paquette if she felt that Big E’s title win was a longterm plan that finally came together, or if it was a knee-jerk decision based on competition from Monday Night Football and AEW. Renee didn’t want to call it a knee-jerk reaction, but said there was definitely a ‘business side’ to that creative decision.

“As you see AEW nipping at the heels of WWE, they’ve got to start making some bigger moves and they’ve got to start making fans happy. So, you give them big E, that’s going to make people happy.”

– Renee Paquette

Dave LaGreca asked if Big E could be the new franchise player for WWE. Paquette said he could absolutely be the franchise player for WWE. He has the athletic ability and the charisma. However, there are pitfalls to be cautious about.

“If he is given the creative liberties that he deserves and that he needs to be able to continue being the Big E that everybody knows and loves, absolutely. I think he for sure could be that guy. But like anybody else, you kind of worry, ‘What is going to happen? Are they going to drop the ball on this? Where’s it gonna go?’

“I do think he has all the tools, if you look at him from an athletic standpoint or an entertainment standpoint, just him as a human being, the things that he stands for, the things that he talks about, I do think that he really could be that guy to put the company on the back of.”

Busted Open Radio airs weekday mornings on SiriusXM Fight Nation Channel 156.

Renee Paquette and Miesha Tate host Throwing Down with Renee and Miesha Monday afternoons at 2pm (Eastern) on SiriusXM Ch. 156.

Please credit SEScoops.com if using any quotes transcribed from this article.

How Tony Khan Kept Adam Cole And Daniel Bryan’s AEW Debut A Secret

Anutosh Bajpai
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Keeping anything secret in today’s digital world is almost impossible and that’s why AEW president Tony Khan had to take extreme measures to make sure Adam Cole and Daniel Bryan’s All Out debut didn’t get spoiled.

As the former NXT champion detailed during a recent interview with Sports Illustrated, he had to fly to a different city a day before the show to make sure no one spotted him at the airport. He then stayed at a different hotel than Bryan:

“I didn’t even fly into Chicago [the site of All Out], I flew into a different city the day before,” recalled Adam Cole, “I didn’t even stay in the same hotel as Bryan”

“The Most Secretive Debut”

The former WWE star then remembered how they both showed up at the Now Arena after the show had already begun and waited outside in the trailer until the time for their debut had come:

“We showed up to the building while the show was going on,” said Cole, “And we waited outside in a trailer.

The locker room didn’t even know until the absolute last moment. It was the most secretive debut I’ve ever been involved in, and Tony Khan took every measure to make this as big of a surprise as possible.”

Adam Cole and Daniel Bryan made their debut after the main event between AEW champion Kenny Omega and Christian at All Out. While Cole aligned himself with the Elite, Bryan chose to oppose them.

Adam Cole Comments On Reports WWE Wanted Him To Be A Manager

Update On Chavo Guerrero’s Status With AEW

Chris Stephens
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Andrade was not happy that Chavo Guerrero interfered in his match with Pac recently. The former La Sombra then attacked Guerrero and left him for Death Triangle. Guerrero being written off AEW programming was addressed recently in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

According to Dave Meltzer, Guerrero was always supposed to be written off television at this time. He works as the wrestling coordinator for NBC’s “Young Rock” and the filming of the show’s second season has begun. Guerrero has done similar work in the past for Netflix’s GLOW as well. He is expected back with AEW after the show wraps filming.

Guerrero spoke to Wrestling Inc earlier this year about how he got involved with Young Rock. He noted that he received a call from show producer and former WWE writer, Brian Gewirtz.

“I got a call from Brian and said, ‘Hey, we have this show called Young Rock. We can’t film. We’re ready to go. It’s all green lit, but we can’t film in Los Angeles because of everything going on. Everything’s shut down. So we’re going to Australia to film. Do you know any wrestling coordinators in that area?’ And I’m like, ‘First of all, a wrestling trainer and wrestling coordinator for TV are two completely separate things. That’s like apples and oranges. I know one person, me.’”

Impact Results (9/16): Victory Road Go-Home Show

Chris Stephens
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On Impact 9/16, the promotion continued to build to this Saturday’s Victory Road event. The main event featured a 10-man tag match between Christian Cage’s team and Ace Austin’s.

Impact 9/16 Quick Results:

  1. Fallah Bahh & No Way defeated Hernandez & Johnny Swinger (Before the Impact)
  2. Decay (Black Taurus & Crazzy Steve) defeated Rhino & Deaner (Violent By Design)
  3. Petey Williams defeated TJP
  4. John Skyler defeated Laredo Kid
  5. Trey Miguel defeated Drama King Matt
  6. Christian Cage, Josh Alexander, Chris Sabin, Eddie Edwards & Sami Callihan defeated Ace Austin, Madman Fulton, Brian Myers, Moose & W. Morrissey

Rhino Turns On Eric Young & Violent By Design

In recent weeks, we’ve seen videos of Eric Young saying he needs to cleanse the sickness out of Rhino. This week, Rhino finally had enough of Young and his cronies. Violent By Design lost another one this week when Deaner accidentally hit Rhino with the VBD flag and then took a second-rope DDT from Crazzy Steve for the pin. After the match, Young was berating Rhino but had enough and grabbed Young’s arm. Deaner then attacked Rhino and the segment ended with Young breaking the VBD flag over Rhino’s back.

Steve Maclin Takes Out Petey Williams and TJP

Petey Williams got some revenge on TJP this week after TJP cost him a match last week. This all stems from the illegal underground gambling operation that Johnny Swinger is running in the back and TJP betting against Williams last week.

Williams countered a cradle attempt into a pin for the win on TJP. After the match, however, both TJP and Williams were attacked by Steve Maclin.

Willie Mack Returns For Revenge Against The Good Brothers

After being injured at the hands of the Good Brothers a few weeks ago, Willie Mack returned this week and along with his partner Rich Swann attacked the Impact tag champs. Shortly after the melee, Scott D’Amore granted Swann and Mack a title shot against Anderson and Gallows this weekend at Victory Road.

John Skyler Picks Up Win Over Laredo Kid

John Skyler cut a promo this week on Laredo Kid who defeated him recently on an episode of Before the Impact. He said that tonight when they meet again, the luchador won’t be so lucky. Skyler pulled out all the stops in this match and the finish came after he twisted Laredo Kid’s mask, cradled him and pulled the tights to get the pin.

Taylor Wilde Pays The Influence A Visit

Taylor Wilde invaded the set of the Influence’s various talk shows this week. She didn’t come alone, however, but brought Jordynne Grace and Rachael Ellering as backup. Wilde then informed Tenille Dashwood that they have a match this weekend at Victory Road.

Matt Cardona and Rohit Raju Brawl in the Back

In a recent match, Rohit Raju hit Chelsea Green with a Tiger knee to the face. Cardona has taken exception to this and the two were brawling in the back this week. It was later announced that Cardona and Raju will face each other at Victory Road in a no DQ match on Saturday.

Mickie James Saves Trey Miguel From Deonna Purrazzo and Drama King Matt

Trey Miguel used his submission skills to pick up a win over Drama King Matt this week. After the match, however, Deonna Purrazzo attacked Trey from behind and began delivering the boots to him. This brought out Mickie James to make the save. James then dove onto both Purrazzo and Drama King Matt on the outside to end the segment.

Christian Cage’s Team Stands Tall Ahead of Victory Road

Several of Impact Wrestling’s top feuds played out in this match. Chris Sabin and Josh Alexander were on the same side in this match but will be on opposing sides at Victory Road. W. Morrissey and Moose will take on Sami Callihan & Eddie Edwards at Victory Road but also had a chance to face each other here. Finally, when the smoke cleared Christian hit Brian Myers with a spear and Josh Alexander gave him the C4 Spike to give the win to the babyfaces to close the show.

Victory Road Lineup

  1. Impact World Championship
    Christian Cage (c) vs Ace Austin
  2. Impact Tag Team Championships
    The Good Brothers (Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows) (c) vs. Rich Swann and Willie Mack
  3. X-Division Championship
    Josh Alexander (c) vs Chris Sabin
  4. Knockouts Tag Team Championships
    Decay (Rosemary & Havok) vs Tasha Steelz & Savannah Evans
  5. Chris Bey & Hikuleo vs FinJuice (David Finlay & Juice Robinson)
  6. Moose & W. Morrissey vs. Eddie Edwards & Sami Callihan
  7. Steve Maclin vs. Petey Williams vs TJP
  8. Taylor Wilde vs. Tenille Dashwood (with Kaleb with a K)
  9. Matt Cardona (with Chelsea Green) vs. Rohit Raju (with Shera)

Bron Breakker Expected To Get Big Push In Coming Weeks

Anutosh Bajpai
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Fans can expect newly debuted NXT star Bron Breakker to get ‘quite the push’ in the coming weeks according to a new report from PWInsider.

The son of WWF and WCW veteran Rick Steiner made his debut for the promotion on this week’s rebranded episode of NXT 2.0. He defeated LA Knight in the opening match of the night. Though this wasn’t the only segment he had during the show.

Breakker also had a confrontation with the new NXT champion Tommaso Ciampa at the end of the show. Their segment reminded many of the moment between John Cena and Undertaker from years ago.

As far as why WWE did not use the initially planned Rex Steiner name for the star, one source pointed out that the possible reason for the switch was their policy to trademark and own the ring names for all their talent.

Bron Breakker & NXT 2.0

WWE introduced the revamped version of NXT this week. The show saw the debut of a new stage and changes in overall presentation for the brand.

Apart from Bron Breakker, the first episode of this new era of NXT also saw the debut of a number of other stars. You can check out a list of the names that made their first appearance on the show here.

Who Was In Charge Of NXT 2.0 Revamp Episode? (Report)

Title Match Added To Extreme Rules, Updated Card

Anutosh Bajpai
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WWE has announced that The Usos will be defending their SmackDown tag team championships against Street Profits at the upcoming Extreme Rules PPV.

Last week’s Super SmackDown featured a tag team championship match between these two teams in the main event of the show. Roman Reigns and Paul Heyman came to the ringside mid-way through the match.

It looked like the Street Profits would win the match when the Tribal Chief rushed to the ring and attacked Montez Ford. He locked Ford into a Guillotine.

The disqualification caused by Reigns’ run-in resulted in The Street Profits being declared the winner. Though the Usos remained the tag team champions.

Updated Extreme Rules Match Card

Now WWE has announced that we will get a rematch between these two at the upcoming PPV. This is the fifth match that has been announced for the show. Below is the updated card for the event:

  • Universal Championship Match: “The Demon” Finn Balor vs. Roman Reigns
  • Raw Women’s Championship Match: Alexa Bliss vs. Charlotte Flair
  • SmackDown Women’s Championship Match: Bianca Belair vs. Becky Lynch
  • WWE United States Championship Match: Sheamus vs. Damian Priest
  • SmackDown Tag Team Championship Match: The Street Profits vs. The Usos

Extreme Rules this year will take place from the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio on Sunday, September 26.

John Cena On If He Will Ever Wrestle For Any Other Company

Renee Paquette On Why CM Punk Chose AEW Over WWE

Anutosh Bajpai
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After making his triumphant return to pro wrestling last month, CM Punk had ‘blamed’ Renee Paquette for paving the way for his comeback by convincing him to join WWE Backstage on FS1. The female star recently had an interview with WrestlingInc. Among other things, she also discussed the former WWE champion’s return to wrestling.

During the interview, Paquette explained why she thinks Punk chose AEW over WWE for his comeback, claiming that there was nothing fresh for him in WWE:

“I don’t think there was anything fresh and new in WWE that he really wanted to do. I don’t think there was anyone there that he wanted to work that he hasn’t already worked, storylines he’s not already been able to do.

Whether it was at AEW, or Ring of Honor or what have you, to now looking at things being busted wide open at AEW And having Adam Cole there now. You’ve got Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks, for him to be able to tag with Bryan Danielson, that was one thing that he mentioned to me on my podcast.”

Renee Paquette continued her explanation by mentioning how the straight edge star was driven more by the different avenues he can take rather than a truckload of cash:

“I think it’s just those other opportunities and different avenues that he can kind of take his career now. I think that’s what really spoke to him more so than somebody driving a truck of cash up to his house, which hopefully he got that too.”

Apart from this, Renee Paquette also discussed her new Serious XM Fight Nation show with Miesha Tate and explained how it came together.

Renee Paquette: Watching Jon Moxley In Deathmatches Isn’t Easy

AEW Morale Very High Heading Into Dynamite Grand Slam (Report)

Anutosh Bajpai
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Morale in the AEW locker room is very high heading into next week’s Dynamite: Grand Slam event from Queens, according to reports from PWInsider.

According to the site, the people in the company realize that’s their NYC debut is going to be a huge milestone for the promotion and everyone wants to appear on that show in some fashion.

This is going to be AEW’s biggest crowd till date and talent realize that the Grand Slam event will outdraw the live attendance figures for WWE’s return to Madison Square Garden at last Friday’s Super SmackDown event.

WWE announced an official attendance figure of 14,425 for the Super SmackDown special with advertised appearances such as Brock Lesnar and John Cena but the real attendance is believed to be close to 13,000.

The Arthur Ashe Stadium has a capacity of 23,771. The expected capacity for Dynamite is 18,692 and it was reported last week that the promotion had already sold more than 18,000 tickets for the Grand Slam special.

AEW has announced big matches such as the women’s title match between Britt Baker and Ruby Soho and a nontitle match between AEW champion Kenny Omega and Daniel Bryan for this show.

Updated Card For AEW Grand Slam: Omega vs. Danielson Confirmed

John Cena On If He Will Ever Wrestle For Any Other Company

Anutosh Bajpai
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We have seen a number of former WWE stars showing up at different companies in the past few months, though there is one star who is certain that he will never work for any other promotion – John Cena.

The cenation leader took part in a Q&A at the Florida Supercon over the weekend. Among other questions, the former champion was also asked if we would ever see him wrestling for another promotion.

Replying to it, Cena reiterated pro wrestling’s famous “never say never” philosophy. Though he later added that he is certain this won’t be the case:

“There’s a whole like ‘never say never’ philosophy and I’m also that way in life because you never know what life will bring you. But, I can with certainty say no,”

John Cena also talked about the ECW One Night Stand event in 2006 where he defended his WWE championship against RVD. He revealed that he found out that he was losing the WWE title to the Hall Of Famer four hours before the show.

The 16-time world champion made his most recent WWE return at Money In The Bank in July. He then faced Roman Reigns at SummerSlam. He completed this stint with his MSG appearance. There is no word on when we will see him in WWE again.

John Cena Reveals His Choice For Best Actor In WWE

Spoiler Regarding Future AEW Title Feud

Fernando Quiles Jr.
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We now know what feud is being built up for a title match in AEW down the road.

The Sept. 17 episode of Rampage was taped on Sept. 15 following Dynamite. The action was held inside the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. Fans got to witness a TNT Title match between Miro and Fuego Del Sol.

This spoiler may not come as a surprise but Miro did successfully retain his gold against Del Sol. After the match, Del Sol’s best friend, Sammy Guevara entered the ring and blasted Miro on the mic during his promo. He even held up the TNT Championship.

Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio reports that the plan is indeed to go with a future TNT Title match with Miro and Guevara. Meltzer took it a step further and said he feels Guevara should be the one to take the title from Miro. Bryan Alvarez was in agreement. Whether or not AEW feels the time for a title change is on the horizon remains to be seen.

As it stands now, Miro has held onto the TNT Championship for over 127 days. He captured the gold against Darby Allin on the May 12 edition of Dynamite. He is the second longest-reigning TNT Champion in the title’s young lineage.

Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar Set for Crown Jewel

Tyriece Simon
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WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns will face Brock Lesnar at Crown Jewel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on October 21st.

WWE made the match official today. The company also noted that the match, for now, isn’t for the Universal Championship. Reigns will defend the title against “The Demon” Finn Balor at Extreme Rules at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, on September 26th.

If Reigns defeats “The Demon,” he will defend the Universal Championship against Lesnar at Crown Jewel.

Brock Lesnar Return to WWE

Lesnar returned to WWE and confronted Reigns at Summerslam on August 22nd at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. He was inactive for over a year. On the September 10th episode of Friday Night Smackdown, he officially challenged Reigns to a match. Both have faced each other in the past. However, Reigns is currently a “Heel” and will have Paul Heyman as his manager. If Lesnar wins, he will become a four-time Universal Champion.

Roman Reigns vs “The Demon” Finn Balor

Reigns successfully defended his title against Balor on the September 3rd episode of Smackdown. Although he won, the WWE decided to have Reigns defend the championship against Balor again at Extreme Rules. However, Reigns was surprised he would be competing against Balor’s alter ego, “The Demon,” at the event.

Balor’s alter ego hasn’t competed in a match in over two years. It’s unclear why he is becoming “The Demon.” WWE also didn’t say if Reigns loses to “The Demon,” will he get an immediate rematch in the press release. The only guarantee is that Lesnar will face Reigns at Crown Jewel.

New Trademark Filed By WWE For Becky Lynch

Fernando Quiles Jr.
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WWE continues to file trademarks and this time there’s a new one for Becky Lynch.

Lynch is the reigning SmackDown Women’s Champion. She captured the gold in a surprise appearance at this year’s SummerSlam event. Becky nailed Bianca Belair with a cheap shot followed by a pump handle slam for the victory.

This marked the heel turn of Becky Lynch. She’ll be taking on Belair in a rematch at WWE Extreme Rules on Sept. 26.

With the heel turn comes a new trademark. Here’s a description of the United States Patent & Trademark Office filing.

“BIG TIME BECKS™ trademark registration is intended to cover the categories of entertainment services, namely, wrestling exhibitions and performances by a professional wrestler and entertainer rendered live and through broadcast media including television and radio, and via the internet or commercial online service; providing wrestling news and information via a global computer network; providing information in the fields of sports and entertainment via an online community portal; providing a website in the field of sports entertainment information; fan club services, namely, organizing sporting events in the field of wrestling for wrestling fan club members; organizing social entertainment events for entertainment purposes for wrestling fan club members; providing online newsletters in the fields of sports entertainment; online journals, namely blogs, in the field of sports entertainment.”

Back in August, WWE filed a trademark for “The Man,” another nickname of Lynch. Ric Flair had been at odds with the promotion over trying to secure the trademark but both parties were able to work something out.

Jim Ross Discusses “The Plane Ride From Hell”

Chris Stephens
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The 2nd half of Vice’s Dark Side of the Ring season 3 begins airing tonight. Tonight’s episode will be focused on the infamous “Plane Ride From Hell.” Jim Ross was interviewed for the show. He also spoke to Sports Illustrated recently about what went down on May 5th, 2002 as the WWE roster flew home from a European tour.

“There was just such a lack of respect on the flight,” said Ross, who at the time was WWE’s head of talent relations. “We made significant changes because of it. Guys lost their jobs and it hurt people’s reputations. They acted so wrong. We couldn’t do business with people like that, and we rebuilt our locker room after that.”

Ross continued to admit that the open bar provided for the wrestlers on the flight was probably a bad idea.

“The bottom line is I was very upset in how the talent conducted themselves,” Ross continued. “We made mistakes from a management standpoint. We had wanted to make the trip as comfortable as possible, so we chartered a sports plane with first-class seats and upgraded the food. But the open bar was obviously a mistake. It went off the rails, with a small group of guys that just went crazy. It is still a black eye to be affiliated with the Plane Ride from Hell.”

https://twitter.com/DarkSideOfRing/status/1438565058037039114

A flight attendant who sued WWE for alleged sexual harassment stemming from the flight will also be interviewed for the episode. Also interviewed were Terri Runnels, who was serenaded by Dustin Runnels over the PA system during the flight. Former WWE/ECW stars Rob Van Dam, Tommy Dreamer, and Justin Credible were also interviewed.

Next week’s episode will focus on the life and career of Chris Kanyon. Other episodes set to air cover Luna Vachon, FMW, XPW, and the Vince McMahon steroid trials.

Rhino Signs Contract Extension With Impact Wrestling (Report)

Fernando Quiles Jr.
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It looks like Rhino is staying in Impact Wrestling.

PWInsider is reporting that Rhino has re-signed with the promotion. The terms of the new deal have not been revealed. Rhino’s previous deal with Impact Wrestling began back in 2019 after he made the decision to leave WWE.

During an interview with Sporting News back in 2019, Rhino explained why he chose Impact as his landing spot.

“It’s a company on the right path for almost two years,” Rhino said when asked what signing with Impact meant to him. “They have been moving in a direction where wrestling fans want a company to go in terms of letting the talent be the talent, having bookers booking the matches on the card as opposed to writers.

“I think a lot of fans are drawn to a promotion like that. Not speaking against other promotions, but other promotions are doing it differently because they’re very successful. But I think there’s a niche where you have to let talent be talent and have enough talent where it’s not drowned out too much and where you don’t have enough TV time and run enough shows to use them. It’s up to the talent, whether to sink or swim. And Impact because guys have more control when their contracts are up.”

Rhino has had success with Impact. Back when the promotion was called TNA Wrestling, he captured the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. He also won tag team gold in the company alongside members of Violent By Design.

Bianca Belair Comments on Losing the SmackDown Women’s Title

Tyriece Simon
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WWE superstar Bianca Belair has shared her thoughts on losing the Smackdown Women’s Championship to Becky Lynch.

Belair spoke with Tennessee sports radio station WNML’s Vince Ferrara to promote Friday Night Smackdown in Knoxville, Tennessee. In the interview, Belair shared how she got into the WWE and her journey to becoming the Smackdown Women’s Champion.

Ferrara also asked Belair what WWE fans should expect when she faces Lynch at Extreme Rules on September 26th. She responded by saying that she still feels hurt losing the championship but is looking forward to the rematch.

” …I’m still very hurt by how I did lose the title at Summerslam. I was excited to get in the ring with Becky. I wasn’t expecting this title match, and it happened so quickly. So right now, I’m just trying to regain what I lost as quickly a possible,” said Belair.

Becky Lynch Controversial Win at Summerslam

Lynch defeated Belair for the Smackdown Women’s Championship at Summerslam on August 22nd at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. The title match received criticism from WWE fans and ex WWE superstars like Nikki Bella.

During a post-Summerslam event, Bella voiced her frustration on Bianca’s championship loss. “…You have someone like Bianca, who is such an incredible talent, and you can’t help but get frustrated when you see moments like that of like, a championship that meant so much and was lost within seconds,” said Bella.

Bianca Belair vs. Becky Lynch at Extreme Rules

Since the loss, Belair has been trying to get a rematch with Lynch. She had to win a fatal four-way elimination match on the August 27th episode of Smackdown to challenge Lynch at Extreme Rules.

In the interview with Ferrara, she shared that she expects a different result when they have their rematch. “…Becky, she’s been ducking and dodging me. I finally got her to sign the contract last week for my rematch so that we can finally go toe to toe. I know that if we really go toe to toe, in a long match, the outcome is going to be different,” said Belair. She will look to become the Smackdown Women’s Champion for a second time at Extreme Rules.

Who Was In Charge Of NXT 2.0 Revamp Episode? (Report)

Fernando Quiles Jr.
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0

The person tasked with running the debut episode of NXT 2.0 has reportedly been revealed.

NXT aired live on Sept. 14 and it was a special edition. This was the revamp episode that had been reported for weeks. It’s a new era of NXT that will focus on younger and bigger talent.

WWE showcased the exact type of talent that had been in reports by PW Insider and WOR but the result of the NXT Title match surprised many. Tommaso Ciampa ended up winning the gold in a fatal four-way match that saw Kyle O’Reilly removed in favor of the debuting Von Wagner.

We also saw the debut of Rick Steiner’s son, who is being called Bron Breakker. He had quite the debut, defeating LA Knight in the opening match and then ending the show by staring down Ciampa backstage.

Dave Meltzer has reported that Shawn Michaels was in charge of the NXT 2.0 debut show. He also said that Vince McMahon and Bruce Prichard weren’t present for the taping. Meltzer’s co-worker, Bryan Alvarez, was told that McMahon and Prichard would be producing NXT 2.0 but the Wrestling Observer Newsletter updated this saying that is actually not the case.

Meltzer notes that McMahon did look over the script for the show and had a hand in creative. With that said, his role doesn’t appear to be as prominent as once believed. It’s clear, however, that his vision for the NXT brand becoming a developmental hub again is in full effect.

Michaels’ role in leading the charge for NXT 2.0’s debut episode came to be after Triple H needed to take care of a cardiac event.

Ricky Starks: WWE Can Insult The Audience & Get Away With It

Fernando Quiles Jr.
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0

Ricky Starks believes WWE takes liberties with its fanbase.

There has been plenty of criticism hurled WWE’s way over the past few years. Many believe that the promotion insults the intelligence of the fans. Starks, who wrestles under the AEW banner, shares this belief.

Appearing as a guest on SiriusXM’s Throwing Down w/ Renee & Miesha, Starks said he feels the higher-ups at WWE know they can get away with insulting the fans.

“Everyone says AEW is the alternative. I really think it’s the first choice now. AEW is great in the fact that, I think WWE has such a fanbase that they can insult the audience and get away with it. If you watch a TV show, let’s say like Lost, I feel like Lost insulted my intelligence halfway through and I kind of fell out of love with it. AEW is the opposite of that. You stay attached and you’re rewarded for watching so long. Even for people who haven’t followed wrestling, there are people on the show that you can connect to because they are authentic personalities.

“Watching it, there is something for everybody. Having new viewers or someone who is getting back into wrestling, AEW provides that sweet spot where you can watch it, have fun, you won’t feel stupid for watching it, you’ll be rewarded. There are great moments that are organic that you can fall in love with. The wrestlers are badass. We have men and women who are badass wrestlers.”

Ricky Starks is currently involved in a feud with Brian Cage. Cage was a member of Team Taz before being betrayed by Powerhouse Hobbs. Many believe that once Starks wraps up his rivalry with Cage, he will move on to CM Punk.

Update On Botched Finish From WWE RAW

Chris Stephens
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The match featuring Nikki ASH vs Tamina Snuka on RAW this week ended on a strange note. Nikki hit Tamina with a tornado DDT and then went for the pin. Tamina appeared to get her shoulder up before the 3-count but the ref counted 3 regardless. Things then got even stranger as Tamina’s music played and the ring announcer declared her the winner. The referee, however, awarded the match to Nikki.

According to a report from Dave Melter on Wrestling Observer Radio, Tamina was supposed to win the match but the referee didn’t see her shoulder come up on the pin attempt. WWE referees are instructed to call things as if they are real, so they declared Nikki the winner.

“The Tamina match, Tamina was supposed to win that match,” Meltzer said.

“What happened was, the ref botched the call. Tamina kicked out, the ref did not see her kick out and called it as a shoot,” he continued.

Tamina’s music played as she was the expected winner. The ring announcer declared her the winner as that was the expected result.

“The ref backstage just said ‘I didn’t see it’, was apologetic and everything like that but it was the ref’s fault, he blew the call.”

It was also noted that all the performers involved began improvising after the bell. Nikki didn’t hesitate to celebrate the victory despite it not being the planned finish.

“There was nothing there as far as what was going on after the pin that was scripted, in that sense, they were all going with the flow. Everyone involved did a good job,” Meltzer continued.

Paul Heyman Thinks Brock Lesnar’s UFC Run Is Old News

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Paul Heyman doesn’t believe Brock Lesnar will ever make his way back inside the Octagon.

Lesnar is a former UFC Heavyweight Champion. He won the title in just his fourth pro MMA bout. Lesnar stepped away from MMA competition following a Dec. 2011 loss to Alistair Overeem. He made his comeback in July 2016, initially defeating Mark Hunt via unanimous decision. That result was changed to a No Contest after Lesnar tested positive for banned substances.

Since his first UFC run came to a close, Brock Lesnar has been enjoying great success in WWE. It’s a spot that he isn’t likely to give up anytime soon. In terms of potentially working out another deal with WWE that would allow him to compete in UFC, don’t hold your breath.

Speaking to Z100, Heyman expressed his belief that Lesnar’s days in the UFC are over.

“Been there, done that. If you were to tell me that Brock Lesnar would have a shoot-out in soccer with Messi, that I believe. But he has already done the MMA schtick.

“He knocked out Randy Couture, took a beating from Shane Carwin. He’s a conqueror. What more can he do in the UFC that he hasn’t done? When Brock Lesnar went out for the Minnesota Vikings in 2004, he was 295 pounds, just suffered a motorcycle accident, and he had a torn groin, broken pelvis, a wired-shut jaw, and he still ran his 100-yard dash in Olympic qualifying time.”

Lesnar is currently involved in a feud with Roman Reigns and Heyman plays a pivotal role in the storyline. For years, Heyman has served as Lesnar’s advocate. During “The Beast’s” time away from WWE, Heyman aligned himself with Reigns. This has left many to wonder if Heyman will turn on Reigns or Lesnar.

Update On Candice LeRae’s WWE Contract

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With recent reports stating that Johnny Gargano’s WWE contract expires on December 3rd, 2021, some fans have wondered what the contractual situation of Candice LeRae is. According to a report from Fightful, LeRae’s contract with WWE does not expire until “sometime in 2022.” The exact expiry date of her contract is not currently known, however.

LeRae announced her pregnancy this August. She is expected to stay on WWE programming as a character until it is no longer possible for her to do so, however. WWE is also not freezing her contract, as they have done previously for talent unable to perform for an extended period.

LeRae signed with WWE in 2017 and made her debut that year on the May 3rd edition of NXT. She’s a former 1x NXT Tag Team Champion along with Indi Hartwell.

Johnny Gargano and Adam Cole WWE Contract Expiry Dates

Gargano and WWE are said to have not yet entered into discussions on a renewal or new contract. Such discussions are expected to take place in the fall, however. It has also been noted that Gargano’s contract expires at the time when both WWE and Adam Cole were under the impression that his contract was up. Cole spoke about being surprised to learn that his contract was up about 6 months earlier than both he or WWE thought during the All Out post-event media scrum.

“I was under the impression that it was like six months later. So it was a surprise to me. It was a surprise to them,” Cole said. “It was public knowledge for a lot of people that I had signed a little extension, I was in the middle of a really serious angle with Kyle O’Reilly, which was very important to me. He’s one of my best friends in the entire world. Then after that is when stuff kind of opened up for me, but very surprising to me. It was just as surprising to me.”

Which WWE Hall Of Famer Does Kenny Omega Wish He Wrestled?

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Kenny Omega has had a slew of high-profile matches but there’s one showdown that he never got to have.

Omega is the reigning AEW World Champion. He captured the gold on the Dec. 2, 2020 edition of Dynamite. He defeated Jon Moxley for the gold thanks to a distraction from Don Callis. This solidified Omega’s heel turn.

During his reign, Omega has defeated the likes of Rey Fenix, PAC and Orange Cassidy in a three-way match, Jungle Boy, and Christian Cage. Of course, the “Best Bout Machine” also had classics in NJPW with the likes of Kazuchika Okada, Tetsuya Naito, Tomohiro Ishii, Kota Ibushi, and Hiroshi Tanahashi.

There’s one major name who Kenny Omega wishes he had faced, however. He revealed to Adam’s Apple that the wrestler he always wanted to go one-on-one with was WWE Hall of Famer Kurt Angle.

“I felt like I just missed out on maybe wrestling Kurt Angle, and that would have been a dream match for me. He’s a guy that I consider probably one of the best of all time. Especially for what I try to do in the ring and I try to bring in athletics and real sports. He was a jack of all trades and there won’t be anyone like him ever again, I don’t think.”

Angle was the first Olympic gold medalist signed to WWE. He quickly became an elite talent thanks to his in-ring work as well as his charisma. He was a unique performer and as Omega alluded to, there really isn’t anyone quite like him in the wrestling industry.

Angle has retired from the wrestling business. He has said that AEW contacted him several times but he says his body is just too broken down to make a commitment.

Andrew Yang Says He’s Spoken With the Department of Labor, Asks WWE Talent To Come Forward

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Politician Andrew Yang says he has spoken with the Department of Labor regarding WWE classifying talent as independent contractors. He is asking former and current WWE wrestlers to contact Union side labor attorney Lucas Middlebrook if they feel they have been or were misclassified while a member of the WWE roster.

“Had a call with the Department of Labor. If you are a current or former WWE performer who feels you were misclassified as an independent contractor contact @lkmiddleb and let’s get you what Vince owes you. Been a long time coming but this storyline is real.”

Yang made several statements in the fall that if Joe Biden won the Presidential election, he would be in a position to challenge WWE’s claim that their wrestlers are independent contractors. He spoke with Chris Van Vliet last September about the issue.

“You should know Chris, this is not like ‘I’m going to talk about this and forget about it’. This bothers me and I’m not going to rest until something changes,” Yang said about WWE’s independent contractor policy. 

“It infuriated me because I know that the WWE has been trying to play it both ways for years where they are saying on one hand you can’t do anything without our say so, we own you, but you are an independent contractor and we have nothing to do with your health, retirement, any of the benefits that you would get that would accrue to an employee.”

Adam Cole Comments On Reports WWE Wanted Him To Be A Manager

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Adam Cole made his in-ring debut for AEW last night on Dynamite. He defeated “The Elite Hunter” Frankie Kazarian in the night’s opening contest. Before the show, Cole spoke to TV Insider. During the discussion, Cole was asked about recent reports that WWE wanted to turn him into something of a manager and pair him with Keith Lee.

According to Cole, nobody from WWE pitched the manager idea to him directly.

“I personally have never heard anything regarding that,” Cole said when asked about WWE wanting to turn him into a manager. “I touched base a little bit on how my meeting with Vince McMahon went really well. We talked for about 30 minutes. He had a lot of complimentary things to say. As far as hearing that specific thing, that was not something I heard about. My four years with NXT was fantastic. My four years with WWE was awesome, but at the end of the day, I wanted to end up with AEW. Now that I’m here, I’m stoked.”

Adam Cole On His Time In NXT

Cole was also asked about the 4 years he spent in NXT from 2017 to 2021. During that time, he held the NXT Championship for a record 396 day reign. He was also the inaugural NXT North American Champion. His feud with Johnny Gargano in 2019 was voted the “Feud of the Year” by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter as well.

“I’ve been so open with how much of a relationship I formed with Shawn Michaels. He is an idol of mine. A guy I look at as the greatest professional wrestler of all-time. To have the chance to work under him was really cool. Triple H as well treated me with nothing but respect and is someone I learned so much from,” Cole continued.

Next week at Rampage Grand Slam, Adam Cole will team with the Young Bucks to take on Christian Cage, Jungle Boy, and Luchasaurus. Cole issued a challenge for the match following his victory over Kazarian on Dynamite this week.

Bray Wyatt: “I’ll See You All Very Soon”

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Former WWE and Universal Champion Bray Wyatt was released on July 31st, 2021. If he is under a 90-day no-compete clause he would be free to sign with another promotion at the end of October. There are some reports stating that Wyatt’s return to wrestling could come a little sooner than that, however.

Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter recently suggested that Wyatt could debut in AEW on the 9/29 show in Rochester, New York.

“If it is AEW, the talk is that it would be on the 9/29 Dynamite in Rochester, NY, which is Brodie Lee’s home city. If not there or soon after, it would likely be here,” wrote Dave Meltzer.

Wyatt recently returned to social media. He responded to a post from a follower and stated that he will “see you all very soon.”

“Everything will be clear. I’ll see you all very soon. Revenge is a confession of pain.”

Bray Wyatt Comments on Big E Winning The WWE Championship

Wyatt also took the time to comment on Big E winning the WWE Championship recently on RAW. Big E then responded to his comments.

“I am late on this, and I wasn’t there. But Big E is the type of dude that the boys line up to congratulate. It’s a real good look.”

PCO Responds To Reports Of Him Leaving ROH

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PCO has given his response to reports that he’s expected to leave ROH soon.

A report from Wrestling Observer Radio claimed that PCO’s contract with ROH is up at the end of November. The report also notes that the former ROH World Champion gave the company notice that he will not be signing a new deal.

During an appearance on Sean Waltman’s Pro Wrestling 4 Life podcast, PCO revealed whether or not he will become a free agent before 2021 comes to a close.

“On December 1st, that would be my third year with Ring of Honor. It will be 3 full years, and 3 great years. I have been treated really super good. They are great people over there, but coming December 1st, I will be a free agent. It will be interesting to see where everything is going, either with Ring of Honor or wherever.

The indies could be a great place to start things up. There’s not a day that I’m not getting hit by someone for shows, if not a couple of shows. I’m under an exclusive contract right now. I’m fully Ring of Honor. I couldn’t take any work for the last 3 years for any indie companies other than the ones that we were doing business with which were New Japan Pro Wrestling, or at that time it was CMLL, and that got broken, and the PWG, but I don’t know where we stand with them right now.”

PCO was seen in action in the Honor Rumble at the Death Before Dishonor PPV. That match ended up being won by Alex Zayne. PCO has been with ROH since 2018. He captured the world title back in Dec. 2019 and held onto the gold for 78 days.

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