WWE NXT on Tuesday nights will temporarily move to the SyFy Network due to the USA Network’s coverage of the Tokyo Olympics. Television listings for Tuesday, July 27th show Olympic coverage taking place during NXT’s normal time slot. According to a report from PW Insider, NXT that week will move to the SyFy channel.
NXT has been putting on big shows this month, perhaps in anticipation of having to move channels temporarily due to the Olympics. Great American Bash took place last week, Karrion Kross vs Johnny Gargano faced off for the NXT Championship this week and an NXT Women’s Championship match between Raquel Gonzalez and Xia Li has been scheduled for next week.
Additionally, NXT saw Mandy Rose return to the roster this week. She appeared on the entrance ramp during the Sarray and Gigi Dolin match. Rose would later appear in a backstage segment with Franky Monet and the Robert Stone Brand. Cameron Grimes and LA Knight are also currently in an angle where Grimes is Knight’s butler.
The only other match scheduled for next week’s show sees Bobby Fish team with KUSHIDA to take on the Diamond Mine. Fish was defeated by Tyler Rust this week but only after being distracted by Roderick Strong on the outside.
Recent pictures of Brock Lesnar sporting a ponytail and facial hair have caused quite a stir online. The photos were from Lesnar’s appearance on “The Bearded Butchers” YouTube channel. Lesnar’s full appearance has been posted online by the company.
“Wondering where did Brock Lesnar go? We found him! The Beast is a Bearded Butcher now! Hang out with us, Brock Lesnar and his new look as he makes his first appearance in over a year!” a description of the video reads.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCoROHOJLbw
“Avid Outdoorsmen and talented Butchers, Seth & Scott Perkins grew up hunting, harvesting, and butchering all types of wild game, as well as domestic livestock at the family butchering business, leading them on a quest to create a blend of salt & spices that are not only perfect for all types of meat, but just about anything you eat, and why we say ‘Use it on Everything!'” a description of Bearded Butchers reads on BeardedButchers.com.
There have been rumors the 44-year-old could be returning to WWE now that the company has gone back out on the road. Lesnar has not appeared in WWE since losing to Drew McIntyre at WrestleMania 36.
Paul Heyman recently commented on Lesnar’s potential WWE return during an interview with Metro.
“Brock Lesnar does what Brock Lesnar wants to do,” Heyman said during the interview. “If Brock Lesnar wants to return to WWE, he will. If Brock Lesnar wants to take the UFC Championship from Francis Ngannou, he will”
Mandy Rose appeared on NXT last night. She walked out onto the stage during the Sarray vs Gigi Dolin match leading the live fans to chant that she “don’t go there.” According to a report from PW Insider, however, Mandy Rose does, in fact, go there now.
Mandy Rose has been moved to the NXT roster full-time. Additionally, Rose is considered to no longer be a member of the RAW roster. She had been performing with Dana Brooke as a tag-team on the brand.
Rose would appear later in the night on NXT as well. In a backstage segment, she walked past the Robert Stone Brand and commented on it being “under new management.”
In a digital exclusive, Rose was asked about why she has appeared in NXT. Rose wouldn’t give too much away, however. Her response to the question was only “you’ll see.”
Rose’s move away from the main roster can be considered a little surprising considering high-profile angles with Otis and Sonya Deville she’s appeared in. She made her main roster debut on the November 20, 2017 episode of RAW. She debuted along with Sonya Deville and Paige as “Absolution.” Rose was signed by WWE following her performance on the 2015 edition of Tough Enough.
For WWE wrestler Kalisto can get back into the squared circle as of tomorrow. His 90-day release clause complete. While he has not given any indication as to where or when he will return, one thing is looking likely. He will be returning to his old ring name of Samuray del Sol.
He has been keeping himself in shape since he was let go if his recent social media posts are anything to go by.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CQRThRYj-D_/
Earlier this month, he applied for a trademark to use the Samuray del Sol name for merchandise including shirts, hoodies and caps.
Before signing with WWE in 2013, Kalisto wrestled in several promotions as his del Sol character, including CZW and Dragon Gate and Evolve. He never held any championships in these promotions, which is surely something he will be eager to set straight now.
Kalisto Honed His Skills in an Eight Year WWE Run
During his eight years with WWE, the man formerly known as Kalisto honed his skills inside and outside of the ring. He won two US championships, and the cruiserweight title and the NXT tag team titles. He was part of both the Lucha Dragons and the Lucha House Party. In 2016 he was even ranked as the 25th best wrestler in the PWI 500.
However, he was deemed surplus to requirements in WWE and was released in the now traditional post Wrestlemania cull. However, Kalisto is just 34 years old, and there are plenty of promotions who would benefit from adding him to their roster. As with most released talent, he has something to prove after becoming a marginalized figure at the end of his WWE run.
Kalisto is adept as both a singles and a tag-team competitor. He could make a splash in any roster and in any weight class. He has not announced any booking right now. However, a mysterious countdown clock on his website has just 21 hours to go, which indicates something big is coming.
Roman Reigns will face Edge for the Universal Championship this Sunday at Money in the Bank. According to WWE advertising in some markets, Reigns will successfully defend the title and then continue his rivalry with the Mysterios after.
WWE has a supershow coming up on Saturday July 24th, 2021 in Pittsburgh. Local advertising has Reigns defending the Universal title against both Dominik and Rey Mysterio in a handicap match for the show.
This booking was addressed recently in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter: “7/24 in Pittsburgh is listing Reigns vs. Rey & Dominik Mysterio in a handicap match with the title at stake which means Reigns has to win and putting the title up in a handicap match is stupid to begin with, as it just makes the babyfaces look like they are losers to start out with”
Reigns is then expected to move into a program with John Cena for SummerSlam.
Tickets to the show in Pittsburgh have not been selling well. It was reported in the Observer that just 5800 tickets have been sold for a venue that seats 14,000.
AEW is headed to Pittsburgh a few weeks later on August 11th and 13th. The shows will feature the debut episode of Rampage. Pittsburgh native Britt Baker will also make her return to “Britts-burgh” on the shows. Ticket sales to those shows were also addressed recently in the Observer.
“In Pittsburgh on 8/11 and 8/13 for AEW Dynamite and the first Rampage show at the Peterson Events Center, they are at 3,700 and 3,400 respectively. The arena for a pro wrestling taping could hold 8,700.”
If there was ever a man in wrestling who had an eye for talent, an ability to spot potential, then it is Jim Ross. He has been influential in the careers of so many stars over the years. In addition to his role as the voice of a generation. So, when he took time out on his podcast Grilling JR to talk the praises of Ethan Page, everybody listened.
“Darby is one of my favorites,” said Ross. “He’s one of my favorites to talk to. Darby is very creative. He comes up with a lot of his own material, shall we say. He’s one of our homegrown guys that we take pride in; he and Jungle Boy Jack Perry, for example. Nobody should sleep on Ethan Page. He’s going to be a big-time player. He’s doing really well.”
Ross says Page has the look, the attitude and the smarts to reach the upper echelon of AEW. As long as Page stays healthy, JR sees him contributing in a big way for many years to come.
— “All Ego” Ethan Page (@OfficialEGO) July 3, 2021
~
Jim Ross Has an Eye for Talent
Ethan Page joined the AEW roster after the Revolution PPV back in March. Since then he has gone on to team with Scorpio Sky, entering into a long-running and violent feud with Sting and Darby Allin. That rivalry looks to reach its culmination this week at Fyter Fest when the pair face off in a coffin match. Jim Ross will be there to call the shots and has spoken to both fighters in recent weeks about their feud.
Ethan Page is no rookie when it comes to professional wrestling. He had quite the reputation in IMPACT, forming a formidable tag-team with Josh Alexander. However, the AEW roster is stacked for to get special praise from Jim Ross speaks volumes.
While partnering with Scorpio Sky, both men have been actively pursuing singles competition. Once the feud with Darby is over, it will be interesting to see where they position themselves. They will inevitably be chase gold, but which belt remains to be seen. There is no real opening right now, as all of the current AEW champions are involved in long-running feuds. However, that doesn’t mean the men of the year won’t start building something.
Jim Ross has been around a long time and doesn’t give praise where it’s not due. Expect to see Ethan Page move from strength to strength within AEW.
Impact Wrestling executive Scott D’Amore appeared on Vickie Guerrero’s Excuse Me podcast yesterday. During the discussion, D’Amore mentioned that he was cornered by AEW Women’s World Champion Britt Baker for a match against Knockouts Champion Deonna Purrazzo.
“I got cornered by Britt Baker down in Jacksonville a few weeks ago and she’s like, ‘When do I get Deonna?’ I said, ‘Hey, Britt oh, come on. We’ve always said we have an open-door policy and we’re open to doing it,'” D’Amore said on the show.
“Sometimes there’s a lot of hurdles to jump through but I think the relationship with AEW has been fantastic,” he continued.
Baker has made no secret of the fact that she would like to face Purrazzo. She’s posted to social media about the potential match multiple times.
— Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. (@RealBrittBaker) June 3, 2021
Britt Baker Wants To Face Deonna Purrazzo
Baker also discussed possibly facing Purrazzo during an interview with TV Insider.
“Personally, I would love to see Deonna Purrazzo come through the forbidden door. She is one of my best friends and arguably one of the best technical wrestlers in the world. She is amazing.. When she was released from WWE, she was told in a roundabout way she wasn’t good enough. Now she is one of the faces in Impact Wrestling. I was similar in that I was told I wasn’t ready, and now I’m the face of All Elite Wrestling. Our paths are paralleling, so it would be amazing to be in the ring with her.”
D’Amore continued to talk about his relationship with AEW’s Tony Khan.
“We share our vision for a world like that and I love to see it because I mean whether it’s Nyla Rose or whether it’s some of the many other talents that you have there. Imagine if Nyla came in and hid the ring on Deonna and just laid her lying there and picked up the title, right?”
Purrazzo is scheduled to face a “Mystery Opponent” this Saturday at Slammiversary. Gail Kim revealed to the Knockouts Champ last week that her opponent will not be named ahead of time.
For four nights at the end of August, the National Wrestling Alliance will return to a historic pro-wrestling venue. NWA owner Billy Corgan, Empowerrr executive producer Mickie James, and NWA World Heavyweight Champion Nick Aldis appeared at the Chase Park Plaza Hotel in St. Louis yesterday to promote the shows.
“The NWA is living history and Wrestling the Chase is living history,” NWA Owner, President Billy Corgan said.
“So when you put those two things together, it’s like a brush fire. Particularly in this local community of St. Louis. It was like the response was overwhelming.”
On August 28th, the NWA will present the all-female PPV, Empowerrr, produced by Mickie James.
“It’s pretty amazing because we’re going to we’re going to kick it off and we’re going to set the bar and hopefully for the rest of the weekend,” NWA Empowerrr Executive Producer Mickie James said. It was also revealed during the press conference that an invitational tournament will take place at Empowerr. The winner will receive a shot at the NWA Women’s Championship the following night.
“There’s so much stuff, happening from Fan Fest, to the women’s show empowered, to NWA 73, and the two television tapings. It’s going to be an incredible four days.”
As announced today via press conference, Saint Louis' own @TheTootieLynn will be the first entrant in the #EMPOWERRR NWA Women's invitational!
On the 29th, the NWA will present the NWA 73rd Anniversary show. On August 30th and 31st, the promotion will be filming episodes of NWA Powerrr.
“There are people in this area who for them is such a huge part of their cultural fabric,” Nick Aldis said. “And they’re so excited that it’s back because they never thought they would see that Wrestling at the Chase back.”
Former WWE Superstar and NWA EMPOWERRR Producer Mickie James recently appeared on the The Wrestling Inc. Daily show. The former WWE Women’s Champion discussed a number of topics during the interview, including the WWE Evolution PPV event that she claims was ‘set up to fail.’
“I thought we had made such a monumental stride by announcing Evolution,” Mickie James would begin. “We all thought it was the start of something really, really cool.”
“It was only really promoted for a month. The matches weren’t even announced but a week or two before. There was zero promotion or marketing,” James continued, lamenting how WWE promoted the all-women’s PPV event.
Mickie James on WWE Evolution
“It was almost set up to fail,” Mickie James added. “If there was as much energy and focus put into it as perhaps some of the other events, and made and highlighted how monumental this actually is, perhaps that wouldn’t be true.”
Mickie James would also reveal that the upcoming NWA EMPOWERRR event will hopefully not be a one-off All-Women’s event for the National Wrestling Alliance.
“We hope it’s the first of many,” James says of EMPOWERRR, “I really want to make this something unique and special and a way to highlight the women in a different way you don’t necessarily see on modern television today. I think there’s a cool way to do that from a female perspective.”
WWE NXT Superstar Johnny Gargano challenged for the NXT Championship on this week’s episode of the show. Johnny Wrestling took on Karrion Kross with Samoa Joe in the role of special guest referee.
Gargano was unsuccessful in his attempt to regain the NXT Championship from Kross, following a great match that headlined the episode on USA Network. Kross and Samoa Joe went toe to toe multiple times in the match between Kross would choke Joe out after the match.
Johnny Gargano took a nasty bump into a table during the main event of the show, and Fightful Select have reported that despite this the leader of The Way is not suffering from any clear injuries.
It’s not clear what the future is for Johnny Gargano or The Way, with WWE looking at potentially moving more Superstars across the three main brands as fans begin to return to shows.
It’s very unlikely however that we will be seeing Gargano appear in the NXT title picture for quite some time, after Kross got a definitive win over the former EVOLVE star.
The upcoming Slammiversary match between Kenny Omega and Sami Callihan for the IMPACT World Championship has an interesting new stipulation. The challenge was laid down by Callihan last night and confirmed by IMPACT Wrestling this morning.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CRSdakMKpdz/
The championship match will now be a No-Disqualification match. Kenny Omega, the current holder of the IMPACT World Championship has not commented on this late-stage change, however, given his fondness for bending the rules, this could play into his hands.
Callihan is a brawler. You don’t get a nickname like Death Machine without knowing how to get physical. The ability to take the fight to a more hardcore level will certainly give him an extra level to fall back on. However, the same stipulation means the Elite could get involved at any moment. Should the Young Bucks show up at Slammiversary, there is every chance the fight for the IMPACT World Championship could become a 5 on 1 affair.
Will The IMPACT World Championship Finally Come Back Home?
Kenny Omega holds multiple belts across multiple organizations. That grip has to end at some point. Will his match at Slammiversary be the one to chip away at his pro-wrestling dominance? IMPACT fans will be hoping that Callihan has what it takes to wrestle the IMPACT World Championship from his grip.
Omega has held the belt since April. While this will only be his third defence, his reign has already made enough headlines to be memorable. While Sammi Callihan is a former IMPACT World Championship belt holder and is eager to reclaim the gold.
Slammiversary is just 3 days away and will be held in front of a limited capacity live audience. You can always watch it live on Fite TV.
It is worth noting that should Kenny Omega call on his Elite brethren to come to his aid, there is a very well known AEW name who has a history fighting alongside Callihan. Former AEW champion Jon Moxley has unfinished business with Kenny Omega. Wrestling fans will be hoping for a switchblade collective reunion. One thing is for sure, Mox would love to play a hand in helping strip Omega of his IMPACT World Championship.
Prior to his release in April, Bo Dallas had not been seen on WWE TV for over eighteen months. The former NXT champion had been riding a high wave after he and Curtis Axel formed the B-team. An unlikely fan favourite, the duo reached the top of the tag team ranks claiming the RAW tag team titles. Then, WWE released his partner, and he was removed from programming.
While many of the recent releases have come as a surprise to the WWE universe, the news of Bo Dallas being let go was greeted differently. Most people surprised to hear he was still employed, expecting his release to have simply gone unnoticed. Bo is a rather quiet person, rarely active on social media, so a quiet departure would not have been a surprise.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B92swE9hT-c/
Now, as he approaches the end of his mandatory no-compete period, details have emerged about the role Bo Dallas played backstage at WWE.
Fightful reported that he wasn’t used in the performance center, and he didn’t try his hand at being a producer or anything else directly linked to the business his family are embedded in. Bo had instead been used to help test camera setups, lighting rigs and live event configurations.
Wrestling is in Bo Dallas’s Blood
It is no secret that Bo Dallas comes from a rich wrestling heritage. His grandfather was Hall of Famer Blackjack Mulligan. His father the taxman himself, I.R.S., and his brother is WWE stalwart, Bray Wyatt. Bo Dallas is an accomplished wrestler. He was never really afforded a real chance in WWE. Yey, with so much wrestling history running through his veins, it’s unlikely that we have seen the last of him.
Bo Dallas will undoubtedly have a fair bit of ring rust to shake off. However, with his 90 days served as of tomorrow, it will surely only be a matter of time before we see him back between the ropes again. It was reported earlier this year that Dallas, along with Liv Morgan had set up a real estate business. This is in preparation for their post wrestling careers. At just 31, Dallas surely has something left to prove, and wouldn’t want the Running Bo-Dog to be his legacy.
WWE Hall of Famer Kurt Angle has taken to social media to become the latest celebrity to troll UFC star Connor McGregor. McGregor suffered a broken leg at the end of the first round of his trilogy fight with Dustin Poirier.
Kurt Angle has never been one to back away from reminding the world he won an Olympic gold medal with a broken neck. Breaking it out once more to laud over the Notorious One.
“So….@TheNotoriousMMA (Conor McGregor) broke his freakin’ ankle this past weekend. Big deal. I break my ankle all of the time. Broke my ankle this morning and I’m jumping around right now!! I even won a gold medal with a broken freakin’ neck too,” Kurt Angle said.
So…. @TheNotoriousMMA broke his freakin' ankle this past weekend. Big deal. I break my ankle all of the time. I broke my ankle this morning and I'm jumping around right now!! I even won a gold medal with a broken freakin neck too. ?
The comments from Kurt Angle are of course made in jest, aimed at a fighter who has built a career from his barbed comments and scalpel-sharp wit. Now, he finds himself on the other end of things, and people are wasting no time in taking advantage of the situation.
Kurt Angle Knows a Thing or Two About Injuries
All athletes suffer injuries. Some are luckier than others. Kurt Angle is one of those who understands full well the toll a serious injury can take a performer. Angle broke his neck four times during a career that included both amateur and professional wrestling glory.
While Kurt was quick to jump on the trolling bandwagon, he was no doubt pleased to hear that Connor’s surgery was successful. Regardless of persona, it’s never good when someone suffers such a possibly career-ending injury.
Now retired, Angle is still very much active in the wrestling world thanks in part to this podcast The Kurt Angle Show. Kurt Angle has spoken recently about how he lives in constant pain as a result of his wrestling career. Pain management is a part of his life. It is the price that is paid for a career inside both the squared circle and the octagon.
Alexa Bliss took to social media yesterday to voice her eternal support to recently released WWE wrestler, Buddy Murphy.
Murphy was released on June 2nd after his career within WWE had stagnated. Talking during a recent interview with Chris van Vliet, he was full of praise for Alexa Bliss thanking her for helping him adjust after moving to the US from Australia. Bliss was instrumental in his formative period in WWE.
There was no secret made that Alexa Bliss and Buddy Murphy were a couple for several years and have remained incredibly close even after their break-up. As evidenced by their near-constant exchange of kind words and well wishes.
In response to Murphy’s words of praise Alexa Bliss said she was excited to see what he does next and that she would always be there for him.
Thanks for the kind words Matt ?Always been there & I always will be there for you?? can’t wait to see what you do next @WWE_Murphy https://t.co/jjCWhM1DI4
— Lexi (Kaufman) Cabrera (@AlexaBliss_WWE) July 14, 2021
Alexa Bliss and Buddy Murphy Have a Deep Connection
There is something about the connection between Alexa Bliss and Buddy Murphy that runs deeper than anything else. They are close friends and echo the same sentiments as recently shared by Killian Dain. Regardless of promotion, regardless of factions, faces or heels, friendships in wrestling are few but genuine.
When Alexa Bliss first started in NXT, she was paired with the tag team of Blake and Murphy, turning heel for the first time with them. Since those days, Alexa Bliss has moved through several different characters, earning multiple championships along the way.
A main event star, Bliss has garnered plenty of attention creating headlines that have dominated wrestling news around the world.
The pair have followed very different career paths since their early days. However, there is no denying both are extremely talented performers. The future is looking very bright for both of them.
Buddy Murphy will return to action on September 18th taking on AEW star Brian Cage for Battleground Championship Wrestling. While Alex Bliss is set to compete in another Money in the Bank ladder match as she continues her quest to reclaim WWE gold.
The July 13, 2021 episode of WWE NXT aired live on the USA Network from Orlando, Florida at the Capitol Wrestling Center.
WWE NXT Results
Dakota Kai def. Ember Moon.
Tyler Rust def. Bobby Fish.
Sarray def. Gigi Dolin.
Santos Escobar def. Dexter Lumis.
Duke Hudson def. Ikemen Jiro
Kayden Carter & Kacy Catanzaro def. Jessi Kamea & Aliyah.
Karrion Kross def. Samoa Joe to retain NXT Title
Here are the takeaways from this week’s show:
Dexter Lumis vs. Santos Escobar
WWE booked Dexter Lumis vs. Santos Escobar. The match ended with Escobar hitting his finisher to Lumis.
This marked Escobar’s first match since Legado del Fantasma lost to NXT Tag Team Champions MSK and former NXT North American Champion Bronson Reed in a “Winners Take All” match at “Takeover: In Your House” on June 13th. Regarding his last singles match, it was the 2 of 3 Falls match on May 11th where he dropped the NXT Cruiserweight Title to Kushida.
After the match, Hit Row came out to address Escobar’s previous promo about them. They talked some trash. However, there was no physical interaction.
Cameron Grimes’ butler duties for Million Dollar Champion LA Knight began on this show.
Just last week at the Great American Bash special, Knight defended the title against Grimes. As a result of the loss, the stipulation called for Grimes to become butler.
So what happened on this show? Grimes showed up to Knight’s mansion late. Knight demanded that Grimes get a makeover. They trimmed his beard and hair before putting him in a tux and gloves. Knight also had Grimes mow his lawn with a pusher mower. The segments ended with Grimes delegating his duties and ended up by the pool.
Ember Moon vs. Dakota Kai in a singles bout was booked.
Moon defeated Kai by disqualification on NXT’s go-home show for TakeOver: In Your House last month when NXT Women’s Champion Raquel Gonzalez interfered.
Gonzalez retained her NXT Women’s Championship by defeating Moon at TakeOver: In Your House. Two weeks ago, Io Shirai & Zoey Stark defeated Gonzalez & Kai and Shotzi Blackheart & Moon in a triple threat tag team number one contender’s match.
The match ended with Kai going over. Post-match, Xia Li came out and challenged Gonzalez for the title. A date wasn’t given for the bout.
Ikemen Jiro vs. Duke Hudson in an NXT Breakout Tournament Match took place. For those who may not know, Hudson is Brendan Vink’s new WWE in-ring name.
The match saw both stars work hard. Hudson had a strong style to him and dominated the majority of the match as he didn’t let Jiro out of his jacket. Hudson went over to advance to the second round.
Sarray vs. Gigi Dolin (Priscilla Kelly) in a singles match took place.
On Monday, WWE released a video where Sarray accepted a challenge from Dolin for a match on the show after it was left unknown who Sarray would be facing.
Just two weeks ago, there was a backstage segment where Sarray asked NXT general manager William Regal for a match against Toni Storm and he said he would take it under consideration, but Storm cut a promo stating that Sarray isn’t on her level.
The reason for that match not happening is due to Storm being called up to the main roster and placed on SmackDown.
Sarray and Dolin both made their NXT debuts earlier this year. The match saw Mandy Rose walk out and appear on the stage to watch the action. Sarray went over. Rose never got involved, but intriguing.
NXT Champion Karrion Kross vs. Johnny Gargano headlined the episode. Samoa Joe was the special guest referee for the bout.
The match saw Kross dominate most of it. Kross was going to use the steel steps, but Joe stopped him. Kross won with his running forearm shot. Joe and Kross had a staredown before Kross choked out Joe.
WWE set up this bout last week during a face-to-face segment after Kross and Gargano brawled throughout the show that took place two weeks ago including an angle where Kross tried to run Gargano over with his car as they fought in the parking lot.
Joe ended up making the save for Gargano as he pulled him aside to avoid being hit.
Kross has been NXT Champion since defeating Finn Balor for the title at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver this April. Since that time, he’s made various title defenses.
He’s also wrestled in dark matches at WWE main roster shows in recent weeks and appeared on Main Event three weeks ago where he beat Shelton Benjamin.
Gargano previously held the title from April 2019 to June 2019.
Karrion Kross was successful in his latest title defense as the NXT Champion when he put the title on the line in a match on Tuesday’s episode of NXT against Johnny Gargano.
This served as the main event of the show from Orlando, Florida at the Capitol Wrestling Center on the USA Network. Samoa Joe was the special guest referee.
The match saw both stars work hard with Kross being booked as the monster. Near the end, Kross was going to use the steel steps, but Joe stopped him. Kross won with his running forearm strike. After the match, Kross choked out Joe to end the show.
The title match was announced during a face-to-face segment with Kross and Gargano last week after the two stars had been brawling over the past few weeks.
Kross’ previous title defense came in a fatal 5-way match against Gargano, Pete Dunne, Kyle O’Reilly, and Adam Cole in the main event of WWE NXT TakeOver: In Your House event.
Kross won the NXT Championship from Finn Balor at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver. Since that time, he’s made one title defense and that also came against Balor.
AEW will hold a Dynamite episode on Wednesday, September 22nd at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Flushing, Queens, NYC, which is titled Dynamite: Grand Slam.
The pre-sale for tickets will be this Wednesday. Pwinsider.com reports it will be just for 24 hours on Ticketmaster.com in advance of this Friday’s official on sale date.
The pre-sale will last from 10 AM – 10 PM EST. The reason for that is due to tickets going on sale for the US Open Tennis at the same stadium on Thursday.
This will not only be AEW’s first-ever stadium show, but also the first-ever professional wrestling event at the stadium. Weather conditions won’t be an issue as the stadium has a retractable roof. AEW will air a live Dynamite episode in addition to taping matches for Dark Elevation and Dark before Dynamite then the Rampage episode after.
The likes of Eddie Kingston, MJF, Santana, Ortiz, Alex Reynolds, John Silver, Max Caster, Kris Statlander, Trent Beretta, and more are from the area.
This venue is the largest tennis stadium in the world as it sits 23,000 for tennis. As the event gets closer, All Elite Wrestling will be announcing matches for the show, which is likely to be loaded.
It’s been known via various reports that John Cena is headed back to WWE, but exactly when he would make his return has been unknown.
That has changed as Fightful Select reported today that Cena is scheduled to appear on WWE programming over the next two weeks. The working plan for Cena is for him to appear on the July 23 episode of WWE SmackDown, if not sooner than that.
The July 23rd edition of Friday Night SmackDown takes place from Cleveland, Ohio at the Rocket Mortgage Field House. (Tickets)
Of course, plans change, pal, but that’s the working plan as of this writing.
John Cena’s WWE Return
Cena will be part of the cast of the new “Argylle” movie. The project will start filming in Europe this August and released next year.
Dave Meltzer reported on Tuesday’s Wrestling Observer Radio that Cena’s movie commitments are “not a hurdle” for him to appear at SummerSlam. Cena is expected to clash with Universal Champion Roman Reigns at summer spectacular on Saturday, August 21st.
John Cena’s last WWE television appearance took place at WrestleMania 36, when he battled Bray Wyatt in the Firefly Fun House match.
Samantha Tavel, better known as Candy Cartwright, has decided to drop her sexual assault lawsuit against Matt Riddle.
TMZ reported today that they’ve obtained court documents that show Tavel filed for a dismissal on Monday, but it’s unclear if the two sides reached a monetary settlement.
Tavel’s attorney, John Chwarzynski, did issue a statement to TMZ by stating, “The parties have put this in their past and are focused on the future.” As of this writing, Riddle’s attorney has not issued a comment.
Tavel first filed the lawsuit last October against Riddle, WWE, EVOLVE Wrestling, and Gabe Sapolsky where she was looking to get 10 million dollars from each defendant.
This past March, WWE, and Sapolsky were dismissed from the lawsuit while Riddle’s attempt to dismiss was denied. Tavel alleged that Riddle began sexually assaulting her in April 2017 while they were in the parking lot after an EVOLVE event. She also alleged Riddle bragged about this to former EVOLVE owner Gabe Sapolsky.
Although Riddle denied the allegations, he did confirm an affair with Cartwright. Throughout the legal process, WWE never took Riddle off TV. He will take part in the men’s Money in the Bank ladder match on Sunday at WWE Money in the Bank.
Monday’s edition of WWE Raw averaged 1.609 million viewers with a 0.43 rating in the Adults 18-49 demographic. This is up from last week’s 1.472 million viewers and the 0.41 rating.
Last Monday’s Raw set a new all-time low for viewership since the show premiered in 1993.
This week’s show was the go-home edition of Raw for Sunday’s Money in the Bank pay-per-view event. The show did have to go up against the MLB home run derby on ESPN.
Here’s the rest of the viewership breakdown for Monday Night Raw, courtesy of Brandon Thurston of Wrestlenomics:
P18-49: 560,000 (-4%)
M18-49: 331,000 (-12%)
F18-49: 229,000 (+11%)
P18-34: 197,000 (-2%)
M18-34: 98,000 (-19%)
F18-34: 99,000 (+23%)
P35-49: 363,000 (-5%)
M35-49: 233,000 (-7%)
F35-49: 130,000 (-2%)
non-P18-49: 1,049,000 (-1%)
This episode featured Asuka vs. Naomi vs. Alexa Bliss vs. Nikki Cross, Ricochet vs. John Morrison in a falls count anywhere match, WWE Champion Bobby Lashley vs. Xavier Woods in a non-title match, AJ Styles vs. Ivar, United States Champion Sheamus vs.Humberto Carrillo, and Omos vs. Erik.
SmackDown Viewership
The episode drew an average of 1.881 million viewers in the overnight ratings, up from the previous week that did 1.741 million viewers. In the 18-49 demographic, it did a 0.48 rating, which was up from the 0.46 rating the week before. The final ratings were 1.986 million viewers, up from last week’s 1.861 million viewers.
In a recent article, we detailed how poor WWE ratings led to the removal of highlight shows from Channel 5 programming. Channel 5 is a free to air channel in the UK. Since that article was published, more details have come to light regarding the changes.
The WWE highlight shows for RAW and Smackdown are no longer part of scheduled Channel 5 programming. However, they are available as part of the My5 on-demand service. We also mentioned that the deal with Channel had been lost. It has since been confirmed that the deal was not exclusively with Channel 5, but rather with ViacomCBS. Channel 5 comes under the ViacomCBS banner, and that deal is very much still in place.
We also incorrectly stated that the only places to watch WWE in the UK were via subscription channels such as BT Sport. While BT Sport is the primary channel, the highlight shows for all three brands are available on Paramount TV. This is a free to air channel available on the UK’s Freeview service. Channel 5 is a terrestrial channel, available with or without a digital connection. Freeview is a free to use digital TV service.
WWE Ratings Not Behind Programming Change
We originally reported that the reason for Raw and Smackdown highlights being removed from Channel 5 programming was due to poor WWE ratings. However, according to WWE sources, this was not the case.
Currently, in the UK, WWE shows can be watched on the following channels and via their associated on-demand services.
Paramount Network (My5 on-demand)
BT Sport
BT Sport is part of a subscription package costing a minimum of £15 a month, while Paramount is a free to watch channel. Both Raw and Smackdown are broadcast live as part of their subscription package. BT Sport also offers access to all WWE PPV events.
Sescoops apologizes for the inaccuracies in our previous report on WWE ratings in the UK.
Paul Heyman recently took part in an interview with Metro and commented on Brock Lesnar’s possible return to WWE. According to Heyman, he will “burn that bridge when he has to cross it.”
“Brock Lesnar does what Brock Lesnar wants to do,” Heyman said during the interview. “If Brock Lesnar wants to return to WWE, he will. If Brock Lesnar wants to take the UFC Championship from Francis Ngannou, he will”
Heyman continued to list things Lesnar could possibly choose to accomplish.
“If Brock Lesnar wants to join football and run circles around Neymar and Ronaldo and [David] Beckham, he will. If Brock Lesnar to get involved with rugby, he’ll smash every record of any rugby player in the history of the game – and he will.”
“Brock Lesnar does what Brock Lesnar wants to do,” Heyman shrugged. “So I’ll burn that bridge when I have to cross it.”
Should Lesnar return to the company, it’s not clear how Heyman’s on-screen role would adjust considering he now advocates for Roman Reigns on Smackdown. Heyman will be in Reigns’ corner this weekend when the Universal Champion faces Edge at Money in the Bank.
Lesnar was spotted recently sporting a new ponytail and cutting up meat with The Bearded Butchers.
Matt & Reby Hardy’s family grew by another member this weekend. The couple welcomed their 4th child together. Ever “Eevee” Moore Hardy was born on July 11th in an outdoor home birth. The couple’s new daughter joins Maxel, 6, Wolfgang, 4, and Bartholomew, 19 months.
The Hardys spoke with US Weekly about the addition to their family.
“Eevee was born at home at 5:18 p.m., weighing 6lbs, 8oz,” the pair told Us on Tuesday, July 13, noting that their daughter was 20 inches long. “[She was] lovingly welcomed by Mom and Dad and surrounded by a team of professional midwives and doulas … outdoors, during a rainstorm.”
Ever “Eevee” Moore Hardy was born outside during a rain storm. Photos can be viewed here.
Matt Hardy On Fatherhood
Matt Hardy became a father for the first time 6 years ago when King Maxel was born. Him and Reby have now had 4 kids together.
“Happy Father’s Day to all the badass Dads out there that are doing it right. It’s an exhausting, challenging role, but the most rewarding role in the world. I love my three little men, Maxel, Wolfie and Bartie, that allowed me to become a father,” Matt wrote on Instagram on Father’s Day last month.
WWE RAW Superstar Xavier Woods has taken to social media to say that he wants to ‘trade in’ his WWE Championship match for a chance to enter the King of The Ring tournament.
Xavier Woods defeated WWE Champion Bobby Lashley on this week’s episode of Monday Night RAW, ahead of his New Day tag team partner Kofi Kingston getting a shot at the ‘All-Mighty’ this Sunday at the WWE Money In The Bank PPV event.
“Last night I beat the WWE champion” Woods tweeted today. “Normally that means I’m owed a championship match. I’d like to exchange that for a one night King of The Ring tournament at the company’s earliest convenience” the 11 time WWE Tag Team Champion added.
Xavier Woods Wants Tournament
“And I’d like Riddle on the opposite end of the bracket. I owe him one…” Woods concluded, hinting at a showdown with the Original Bro at some point in the near future.
It was recently rumored that WWE were looking at bringing back the King of The Ring tournament as a gimmick for upcoming shows of RAW and SmackDown. AEW have had a lot of success with their special themed episodes of Dynamite, so WWE could also capitalize on the rich history of concepts/ideas that they have at their disposal.
Last night I beat the @wwe champion. Normally normally that means I’m owed a championship match. I’d like to exchange that for a one night King of The Ring tournament at the companies earliest convince. And I’d like Riddle on the opposite end of the bracket. I owe him one… pic.twitter.com/2Y7S4VxQa4
Deathmatch legend and leader of 44.OH Rickey Shane Page has been announced for this week’s episode of AEW Dark. The tenured GCW star has been with Game Changer Wrestling since 2018, and Page has worked with AEW star Joey Janela in the past.
RSP will be facing Dark standout Dante Martin on this week’s episode of the show, following his recent Dynamite match against Matt Sydal.
Rickey Shane Page held the Game Changer Wrestling title for 488 days until he was defeated by the Deathmatch King Nick Gage at GCW rSpring Break on April 9 of this year.
Rickey Shane Page in AEW
RSP has also held several titles from the independent scene, racking up an impressive resume that includes the likes of the AAW Heritage, IWA King of The Deathmatch and the CZW World Heavyweight Championship. Page also won the fabled CZW Tournament of Death in 2016.
Here’s the full confirmed lineup for this week’s episode of AEW Dark:
Dark Order (Evil Uno & Stu Grayson) vs. Papadon & Sean Maluta
Brian Cage vs. Foxx Vinyer
Matt Hardy vs. Jah-C
Lee Johnson & Brock Anderson vs. Mark Davidson & Aaron Frye
Penelope Ford vs. Robyn Renegade
The Acclaimed (Anthony Bowens & Max Caster) vs. Derek Pisaturo & Roman Rozell
Dante Martin vs. Rickey Shane Page
Gunn Club (Billy & Colten Gunn) vs. The Wingmen (Cezar Bononi & JD Drake)
