WWE Superstar Edge recently joined Busted Open Radioas a guest. During the interview, “The Rated R Superstar” opened up about how much creative freedom he has been afforded since returning to the squared circle.
Edge shared how he has been given “almost full carte blanche” creatively. He noted how there have been a few instances he tried to push back against, but realized that “the lines were drawn” on those creative choices. He noted that when it comes to his promos, he is in full control. “I’m writing them. The storyline arc, I put it together.”
Acknowledging his unfortunate triceps injury, Edge stated how you have to sometimes “make chicken salad” out of a bad situation. He stated how everything is a work in progress at this time, but stressed how his return has been “so much fun” because of the freedom he has been trusted with.
Edge suffered a triceps injury during the recording of “The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever.” The bout saw him go up against his rival Randy Orton. Though pre-recorded, the match would air during WWE’s Backlash event. Rumors began to circulate shortly before the airing that Edge had suffered the injury. WWE would later confirm the injury, revealing that Edge has already had surgery.
Orton would eventually come out the winner from their Backlash match. With Edge having previously won their Last Man Standing match at WrestleMania 36, both men have a win apiece.
All Elite Wrestling’s Executive Vice President and in-ring talent Cody Rhodes has commented on the recent Sammy Guevara controversy that came to light. Guevara has been suspended from AEW without pay and will undergo sensitivity training after he came under fire for comments he made about Sasha Banks on a podcast back in 2016.
Responding to a fan on Twitter, Cody Rhodes addressed the situation after being asked to reinstate Guevara. The AEW TNT Champion stated:
“Sammy will return. And he will be a better professional wrestler, and a better man when he does.”
Sammy Guevara Apologizes
Since the clip of Guevara’s comments surfaced, the Inner Circle member released an apology video addressing his statements. He acknowledged that he has grown as a person over the past four years and would be taking a break from social media:
“I just want to apologize to anybody I let down, to Sasha, to anybody I hurt with my words.”
Guevara continued, “It just sucks cause 2016 me is not me today. 2020 me would never say those kind of hurtful things that I did in 2016. I used to think it was funny to do some kind of shock humor to pop the room I’m in. I thought it would be funny to do that kind of humour, shock humour and it’s not.”
He stated how some people may be dubious over his statement. For them, four years may not be that much time for genuine change. He argued that so much has happened in his life as wrestling allowed him to travel the world and grow as a person. Guevara stressed he now understands the words he says can have an impact on people. He promised to never joke or take sexual assault lightly again.
Sasha Banks would speak with Sammy Guevara about his words. She explained how the two had an open discussion. Banks stressed how “the comments he made, jokingly or not, have absolutely no place in our society!”
WWE Hall of Famer, co-host of Grilling Jr and AEW Commentator Jim Ross recently discussed the signing of Brock Lesnar to WWE back in the year 2000.
This week’s episode of Grilling Jr centered on the King of The Ring 2000 PPV, with JR answering questions surrounding the then WWF at the time. One of WWE’s biggest ever acquisitions came that year, with NCAA Division 1 Heavyweight Wrestling Champion Brock Lesnar signing with the company and heading to WWE.
Jim Ross on Brock Lesnar
Conrad Thompson asked Jim Ross if there was a chance that Lesnar could’ve signed with New Japan Pro Wrestling or even WCW before joining the WWF. “Absolutely not, we had him” Ross confirmed. “And for that we could always thank J Robinson, the wrestling coach at Minnesota, for his support on that deal.”
Jim Ross elaborated further, saying “as I’ve told the story before, we could’ve signed Brock after his junior year.”
In previous podcasts JR has confirmed that Robinson wanted Lesnar to stay and finish out his senior year of college before signing with WWF. “With his [Robinson’s] old teammate Gerry Brisco and with my blessing? We made a deal that we would not sign him.”
Vince McMahon
JR then revealed a very interesting tidbit from the time. Jim Ross was the Head of Talent Relations in WWF/WWE, and he noted that he didn’t even tell Vince McMahon about why Brock wasn’t going to sign for the company until he finished his senior year of college. “I didn’t even tell Vince this story because he would’ve wanted me to go sign Brock right away.”
Jim Ross finished by mentioning how Brock Lesnar got the biggest rookie contract (at the time at least) in WWF/WWE history. “I remember he [Brock] got the biggest rookie contract, to that point. I can’t imagine anybody getting more than the 200-250k that we gave to Brock to start out with.”
Wrestling legend Bret “The Hitman” Hart has announced a new web series available for purchase. “Confessions of the Hitman” Season 1 has been released and can be purchased for a cost of $35.The first season of the show features 35 episodes in total and new episodes are uploaded weekly.
The show will feature Bret telling classic stories, revealing his favourite moments in wrestling and more. It is available for purchase at BretHart.com.
“Hey everyone my new web series Confessions Of The Hitman season 1 is now available at BretHart.com $35 Canadian for 35 episodes total with new episodes uploaded weekly. I talk about aspects of my childhood, career, life after wrestling, and current events,” Bret Tweeted.
Hey everyone my new web series Confessions Of The Hitman season 1 is now available at https://t.co/qQz28fQOH4 $35 Canadian for 35 episodes total with new episodes uploaded weekly. I talk about aspects of my childhood, career, life after wrestling, and current events pic.twitter.com/W5jaEHUYAG
WWE has a busy week of taping upcoming. The company was scheduled to tape two nights of Smackdown on Friday but only ended up taping the one which aired that night. The episode also featured a re-airing of the Boneyard Match at WrestleMania between AJ Styles and the Undertaker. The company is also believed to have taped this coming Monday’s RAW from the Performance Center yesterday.
John Pollock of Post Wrestling was the first to report WWE’s taping schedule this week.
Here is the company’s upcoming taping schedule for this week:
Wednesday, July 1st, 2020: WWE will tape two episodes of NXT from Full Sail University this Wednesday. One will air that night and the other will air the following week. Both episodes are being branded as “The Great American Bash.” An NXT Championship match between Adam Cole and Keith Lee is scheduled for the July 8th episode.
Thursday, July 2nd, 2020: Two episodes of Smackdown will be taped. One will air the following evening and the other the week after.
Friday, July 3rd, 2020: Two episodes of RAW and Main Event will be taped.
WWE is not taping Sunday through Tuesday this week.
It is not clear at the moment how much of WWE’s roster will miss some of these shows. Several absences were noted on Friday’s episode of Smackdown. These included AJ Styles, who had been scheduled for a match with Drew Gulak. A segment involving Sheamus and Jeff Hardy was also postponed until next week.
Impact Wrestling has built up their PPV on July 18th as the start of a new era for the promotion. Their weekly television show is filled with hints that multiple names recently released from WWE in April could be on their way to the promotion. Two of the names the company has teased are Karl Anderson & Luke “Doc” Gallows.
According to a report from Pro Wrestling Sheet, Impact has tabled a strong offer to the tag-team, one that would also allow them to work for New Japan Pro Wrestling as well once that is possible. The hope is that Anderson and Gallows will be at the Slammiversary PPV on July 18th.
Gallows previously performed in Impact Wrestling from 2011 to 2013. After leaving the promotion, he joined Bullet Club in NJPW. While apart of the Impact roster, Gallows was a member of the Aces and Eights faction. Impact has recently been teasing a return of the group. Former member, D’Lo Brown, ominously broke out his old Aces and Eights vest at the end of last week’s episode.
Anderson & Gallows are 2x RAW tag-team champion in WWE. They also won the Tag Team World Cup in Saudi Arabia while in the promotion in 2019. They are 3x IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Champions in NJPW. Anderson and Gallows also won the World Tag League tournament in 2013 shortly after Gallows debuted.
Tessa Blanchard was released from her contract with Impact Wrestling earlier this week. The 24-year-old has spent the last two years with the promotion. Things between the two sides took a turn after the onset of the pandemic as Blanchard was unwilling to leave Mexico for TV tapings. There was concern that if she left Mexico, she might not be able to return. She has been staying in the country with her fiance, Daga.
There are also reports that Blanchard failed to turn in taped promos for an episode of the show. Her contract with Impact was said to expire before Slammiversary and the two sides were unable to come to terms on her performing on the PPV.
According to a report from Wrestling Observer Radio, WWE has sent feelers out to Blanchard now that she is a free agent.
“I know she’s gotten feelers out from WWE, I don’t know AEW,” said Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio. “It’s funny, if WWE signs her, I don’t think anyone says anything. If AEW signs her, I think that people will just go berserk on AEW signing her.”
Blanchard had been scheduled to take part in a 5-way world title match at Slammiversary. Both she and Michael Elgin have now been removed from that match, however.
Matt Riddle has reflected on his first meeting with his new boss.
The newest addition to the SmackDown roster did so when he was a guest on the Ariel Helwani MMA Show recently. During the chat, he discussed his position on not wearing boots or anything for that matter while wrestling inside of the squared circle.
Riddle told a story about wearing a full suit and flip flops for a meeting with WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon at WWE headquarters in Stamford, CT months before WrestleMania 36 in April.
“Still wrestling barefoot,” Riddle said. “Before all of this I had a meeting with Vince months ago before Mania, and I went to his headquarters with a full suit and flip flops and he saw that and he saw that that’s my thing. I haven’t worn shoes in years. “I don’t think anybody wants to change me. I think they know what they’ve got and I bring something unique and original.”
The interview was done before allegations surfaced against Riddle. A woman accused Riddle of sexual assault, a charge which WWE says they are investigating. However, Riddle has stated that he’s not guilty of this accusation.
The former NXT star made his SmackDown debut on the June 19th episode of the show when he interrupted AJ Styles’ Intercontinental Title celebration in the opening segment.
This led to Riddle beating Styles in a non-title match.
On Saturday, WWE confirmed a new match for the first week of WWE NXT Great American Bash.
WWE had NXT General Manager William Regal confirm on Twitter that WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Sasha Banks will battle NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai in a non-title match on this special episode of the weekly NXT show. The match will take place this coming Wednesday night.
Regal tweeted, “It seems the past and the present are in conflict once again and the #WWENXT Universe will have the pleasure of seeing it happen. It is OFFICIAL. This Wednesday, on night 1 of #NXTGAB, it’ll be #NXTWomensChampion @shirai_io vs. @SashaBanksWWE in a non-title match! #WeAreNXT.”
This bout booking comes after Bayley and Banks were attacked by Io Shirai two weeks ago on NXT following their successful defense of the WWE Women’s Tag Team Titles.
The following matches have been confirmed for week 1, which is this coming Wednesday’s show on the USA Network.
Roderick Strong vs. Dexter Lumis – Strap Match
Aliyah and Robert Stone vs. Rhea Ripley – Ripley must join The Robert Stone Brand, if she loses
Tegan Nox vs. Dakota Kai vs. Candice LeRae vs. Mia Yim – Fatal 4-Way to crown a new #1 contender for the NXT Women’s Championship
WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Sasha Banks vs. NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai – Non-Title Match
Earlier this week, Renee Young announced that she had tested positive for the coronavirus. It turns out that some top WWE officials have yet to reach out to her to see about her status.
The WWE personality was tested at home when she started to not feel well. Although she tested positive for the virus, her husband, AEW World Heavyweight Champion, Jon Moxley was tested and his results came back negative.
Dave Meltzer reported in the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Young didn’t receive any contact from Vince McMahon, Kevin Dunn, Paul Levesque or Mark Carrano to see how she was doing as of June 25th. However, a lot of wrestlers did contact her.
The latest on Young’s condition is that she was tired and her chest felt heavy, but she has improved.
It’s been reported that WWE officials are keeping talent and employees in the dark regarding the names that have positive test results and how many positive cases of COVID-19 there are.
As of this writing, Moxley is still in the clear and still scheduled to defend the AEW World Championship against Brian Cage on July 8th, which will be night 2 of Fyter Fest.
Former WWE Superstar and NWA Commentator Stu Bennett recently appeared on Ryback’s Conversation With The Big Guy podcast. The former Bad News Barrett discussed a number of topics during the interview, including his recent discussions with WWE and when he plans on getting back into the ring to wrestle.
“I will make this clear right now as I don’t want to be misinterpreted. I’m not looking to get back in the ring anytime soon” Stu Bennett began on the podcast.
Stu Bennett on Returning To The Ring
“At some point in the future? I know 100% that I need to go back and rewrite the ending at least” Bennett continued. “I can’t leave it forever on how things ended with me because it was a very, very bad time. [with] a lot of disappointment of course. But I don’t want to people to think out there ‘yeah give me a call I’m gonna get back in the ring tomorrow.’ That’s not where I am at all.”
Stu Bennett would elaborate further, saying how happy he is with his current commitments outside of a wrestling ring. “I’m quite happy with the lifestyle I have right now. Of course with the virus and a lot of stuff going around it’s another reason I don’t want to be travelling at the moment. And, I love working with NWA and that’s something that whatever else I do outside of that? I hope to continue working with NWA and doing commentary with them. I love doing that, they have a great schedule and they have a great product that I enjoy.”
NJPW or ROH?
Bennett would finish by discussing which promotions he would consider speaking with to wrestle again. “I’d of course be open to something with Ring of Honor or New Japan. But, I can’t see anything for the rest of this year in 2020. I will be very surprised if I was in a wrestling ring this year.”
Where would you like to see Stu Bennett/Wade Barrett end up? Let us know in the comments
It’s been an eventful week for Impact Wrestling. The promotion terminated the contract of their world champion Tessa Blanchard. Dave Crist and Joey Ryan were both fired and Michael Elgin has been taken off all future shows. It is also now being reported that a backstage fight occurred at the most recent set of tapings.
The fight is believed to have been between Michael Elgin and Sami Callihan. It is being reported that the fight didn’t come to blows but there was some shoving and it had to be broken up by Scott D’Amore.
“(Michael Elgin) also got into a backstage fight with Sami Callihan arguing about how a three-way match with the two of them and Ken Shamrock would be laid out,” wrote Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Impact recently announced that Elgin will no longer be appearing on any Impact shows. This decision was reportedly made due to the recent allegations against him as part of the #SpeakingOut movement, however, and not due to the backstage incident with Callihan.
Elgin was to be in the 5-way world title match at Slammiversary. The match was to pit Tessa Blanchard vs Ace Austin vs Trey Miguel vs Eddie Edwards vs Michael Elgin. 2 of the 5 competitors in the match are now gone from the company, however.
WWE is reportedly looking at bringing back fans to events as early as next month. According to a report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Vince McMahon is determined to be the first promoter to run a live event indoors with fans again.
“WWE had planned to start taping with crowds in Florida. They have contacted a company for local people for a Friday and a Monday in late July,” wrote Dave Meltzer. The report continues to say this has likely been pushed back to August.
The plan would be to run the events from the RP Funding Center in Lakeland, FL. The venue holds about 8,000 people but the events would not run with capacity attendance. Instead, fans would be socially distanced and the venue would be at limited capacity. This is similar to NJPW’s plan for next month’s Dominion event from Osaka Jo-Hall, although the outbreak of the coronavirus in the two locations is at significantly different stages.
As of this writing, WWE appears to be dealing with an outbreak of COVID-19 from the Performance Center in Orlando. Multiple WWE employees have announced publicly that they have tested positive for the virus. Additionally, several advertised segments for last night’s Smackdown did not occur. AJ Styles vs Drew Gulak was advertised but did not happen. Gulak did commentary for 205 Live but Styles was not on the show, other than the airing of his Boneyard Match with the Undertaker from WrestleMania.
There are multiple news items concerning NXT’s Velveteen Dream at the moment. Dream’s last official match in WWE came at the NXT: In Your House show where he lost a title match to Adam Cole. According to various reports, it may turn out to have been Dream’s last match in the company.
Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful and the Mat Men Pro Wrestling Podcast both stated on Twitter that they have heard from sources that Dream’s days in WWE could be numbered.
I've been hearing this, as well as some not so wonderful news about him that doesn't have to do with any of the allegations. https://t.co/34168lwI5l
— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) June 26, 2020
He was also reportedly recently involved in a car accident.
WWE has confirmed to me that Velveteen Dream was in a car accident today, and has been released from the hospital.
— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) June 27, 2020
I’ve been debating releasing this information for months now, but with everyone #SpeakingOut, I finally feel comfortable in doing it. Part of me is still terrified for disclosing this.
Patrick Clark is a groomer and a child predator. I’ll post more proof below this tweet. pic.twitter.com/yhJKufwVpz
Patrick “Velveteen Dream” Clark signed a developmental deal with WWE in 2015. He had previously competed on the 6th season of the Tough Enough reality show competition. Clark debuted the Velveteen Dream persona in NXT in May of 2017.
In 2018, his Prince-inspired persona was voted “Best Gimmick” by the readers of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. He is a former NXT North American Champion, having held the title from January 2019 to September 2019. After losing to Cole at IYH, Dream can no longer challenge for the title while he is champion.
As a result of several people within WWE testing positive for COVID-19, the first half of this week’s episode of SmackDown was a tribute to The Undertaker and featured the cable debut of the Boneyard Match against AJ Styles from WrestleMania 36. The show opened up with several SmackDown superstars standing on the entrance ramp and chanting “thank you Taker!” before the Boneyard Match aired.
Nikki Cross def. Alexa Bliss, Dana Brooke, Lacey Evans to earn a shot at the SmackDown Women’s Championship at Extreme Rules
New Day & Lucha House Party def. Miz & Morrison, Cesaro & Shinsuke Nakamura
Jeff Hardy def. King Corbin
Here are 4 takeaways from this week’s show:
King Corbin Got Taught A Lesson In Respect
King Corbin cut a promo after the Boneyard Match aired and claimed that The Undertaker is just a bag of bones at this point. Corbin claimed that Taker spent several years of his career kissing McMahon’s ass. Corbin added that Undertaker has been stealing money from WWE for years and is a selfish son of a bitch because he has been holding superior athletes, like himself, down. Corbin looked directly into the camera and said The Undertaker sucks. Jeff Hardy attacked Corbin from behind as SmackDown went to a break.
Jeff Hardy was then interviewed backstage. Jeff said Undertaker has been a mentor to him and the Mount Rushmore of WWE should be Taker’s face four times. Hardy vowed to teach Corbin a lesson of respect later tonight. Corbin was later interviewed and said he was going to teach Jeff a lesson in reality and that Hardy will finally rest in peace after tonight. Jeff Hardy and King Corbin battled in the main event of this week’s show.
Match Recap: Corbin dominated early and sent Hardy out of the ring. Jeff battled back and threw Corbin over the announce table. Back in the ring, Jeff beat Corbin down in the corner. Corbin battled back and sent Hardy out of the ring once again. Corbin then mocked The Undertaker by posing in the ring as SmackDown went a break.
When SmackDown returned, Corbin was still in control as members of the SmackDown locker room surrounded the ring to support Jeff Hardy’s efforts to honor Undertaker in the match. Dana Brooke started up a “Corbin sucks!” chant as Hardy was leveled with a Clothesline by King Corbin. Corbin brought Hardy back to the outside and shoved his face against the plexiglass.
The action returned to the ring and Corbin went for the cover but Jeff kicked out at two. Jeff finally battled back and hit two Jawbreakers before unloading several right hands to Corbin’s face. Hardy hit an inverted Atomic Drop and then a Dropkick for a near fall. Corbin connected with Deep Six and went for the cover but Hardy kicked out at the last moment. Corbin charged at Jeff but he got out of the way and Corbin smashed into the steel steps. Back in the ring, Hardy hit the Swanton Bomb for the pinfall victory.
After the match, King Corbin attacked Jeff but turned around into a Big Ending from Big E. Jeff asked Strowman to get into the ring and the Universal Champion obliged. Strowman planted Corbin with a Powerslam before Matt Riddle hopped in the ring. Riddle climbed to the top rope and connected with the Floating Bro as an image of The Undertaker appeared on the jumbotron to close the show.
Nikki Cross Earned A Shot At The SmackDown Women’s Championship At Extreme Rules
Women’s Tag Team Champions Bayley and Sasha Banks joined commentary for Fatal 4-Way match between Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, Dana Brooke, and Lacey Evans. The winner of the match will face Bayley for the SmackDown Women’s Championship at Extreme Rules: The Horror Show in three weeks.
Match Recap: Dana Brooke and Lacey Evans beat Bliss and Cross down to start the match off. Bliss and Cross battled back and hit a couple Splashes in the corners of the ring. They then shared a hug and Nikki tried to roll Alexa up. Bliss kicked out and Nikki told her that she still loved her but this is about the SmackDown Women’s Championship.
Cross and Bliss locked up and Alexa rolled up Nikki for a near fall. Bliss applied a Headlock but Nikki broke free and Lacey dragged Alexa out of the ring. Evans launched Bliss into the barricade as Brooke hit a Splash on Nikki in the ring. Lacey broke up the cover and started arguing with Dana. They then teamed up and launched Cross into the turnbuckle.
Lacey leveled Dana with a Clothesline and then delivered a Bronco Buster to Nikki. Dana hit Lacey with an elbow to the face and followed it up with a Body Slam. Brooke climbed to the top rope and connected with a Senton. Nikki broke up the pinfall attempt and got fired up in the ring. Alexa crawled back into the ring as Brooke planted Nikki with a Body Slam.
Alexa shoved Dana to the canvas and made her way to the top rope. Bliss went for Twisted Bliss but Brooke got her knees up. Nikki leveled Dana with a Dropkick that sent her tumbling out of the ring. Evans hit Cross with an Elbow Drop and then the Woman’s Right to Dana Brooke. Nikki Cross then rolled up Lacey Evans for the pinfall victory. Nikki Cross will face Bayley for the SmackDown Women’s Championship at Extreme Rules.
SmackDown Tag Team Champions New Day teamed up with Lucha House Party to face Miz & Morrison and Shinsuke Nakamura & Cesaro in an 8-man tag team match.
Match Recap: Big E and Miz started the action off. Big E connected with an elbow to the face and then brought Miz to the apron. Big E hit a massive Splash on the apron and the action returned to the ring. Lince Dorado tagged in and hit Miz with another Splash for a two count. Cesaro tagged in and walked into a couple chops from Dorado. Lince rolled up Cesaro for a two count and followed it up with another chop.
Gran Metalik tagged in and hit a Splash off of Dorado’s shoulders for a two count. Kofi and Morrison tagged in and Kingston hit a Dropkick for a one count. Morrison perched Kofi up on the top turnbuckle and kicked him in the face. Nakamura launched Kofi into the plexiglass as the referee was distracted.
Back in the ring, a brawl broke out as SmackDown went to a commercial break. When SmackDown returned, Kofi was isolated in the corner and Miz had him in a Headlock. Kingston battled back with a Tornado DDT and went for a tag but Nakamura prevented it. Cesaro and Shinsuke took Big E out ringside before Nakamura got back into the ring. Kingston hit Shinsuke with a Double Stomp before Morrison and Metalik tagged in.
Metalik hit Morrison with a Crossbody and followed it up with a springboard Hurricanrana. Metalik hit Miz and Cesaro with a couple of Dropkicks and then a Sunset Flip Powerbomb to Morrison for a near fall. Lince tagged in and hit Morrison with a Shooting Star Press off the top rope but Cesaro broke up the cover. Chaos broke out as Kofi, Shinsuke, Big E, and Cesaro battled up the entrance ramp.
The Miz tagged in and attacked Dorado but Metalik had tagged in. Lince hit Miz with a Stunner and then hit Morrison with a Hurricanrana off the apron. Gran Metalik hit Miz with an Elbow Drop off the top rope for the pinfall victory.
This 8-Man Tag Team Match is not just about scoring a win… these teams want to establish tag team ?????????! #SmackDownpic.twitter.com/HImw7yeoKP
Strowman Challenged Bray To A Match At The Wyatt Family Compound
Universal Champion Braun Strowman marched down to the ring to address Bray Wyatt. Strowman had a smile on his face as he got into the ring. Strowman stated that when he first met Bray Wyatt he felt the type of fear that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up. Braun said that they sitting at the edge of the disgusting swamp one night when a water moccasin slithered out of the swamp to Bray’s lantern.
Strowman was going to stomp it but Bray said it was his friend. The snake bit Bray in the face and all Wyatt did was laugh. Strowman added that Wyatt continued to laugh as the snake bit him over and over, and that is when he knew he was in the presence of evil. Braun claimed that Wyatt was the devil himself and he was enamored at this feat he just witnessed. Strowman said that he started doing the devil’s work and loved every second of it.
Braun said that he has done everything in his power to leave that part of his life behind but it still calls for him. He then suggested that they go back to the swamp and he is either going to come out of this as the most evil son of bitch that this earth has ever seen, or the satisfaction of throwing Wyatt in the swamp so the alligators finish him. Strowman added “one more time Bray, lets go home”. Wyatt’s laughter then echoed throughout the Performance Center as Braun cackled into the microphone to end the promo.
A new match has been announced for the upcoming WWE Extreme Rules PPV.
During Friday’s episode of SmackDown on FOX, WWE held a match that would determine who is next in line for a title shot at the SmackDown Women’s Championship.
A Fatal 4-Way Match that saw Alexa Bliss vs. Nikki Cross vs. Lacey Evans vs. Dana Brooke took place with the winner becoming the next challenger to the title.
It was a decent match that saw Cross be victorious, earning the right to challenge Bayley for the SmackDown Women’s Title.
WWE presents the Extreme Rules pay-per-view event on Sunday, July 19, 2020 in Orlando, Florida at the WWE Performance Center that will air on the WWE Network. WWE will be announcing more matches for this show in the coming weeks. Here is the updated card:
Updated WWE Extreme Rules Card
WWE Champion Drew McIntyre vs. Dolph Ziggler
WWE RAW Women’s Champion Asuka vs. WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Sasha Banks
WWE SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley vs. Nikki Cross
What are your thoughts on this match being added to the card? Sound off in the comment section.
Although only a few people in WWE have publicly announced that they have tested positive for COVID-19, the belief is there are more cases to be revealed.
So far, Renee Young, Adam Pearce, Jamie Noble and Kayla Braxton are among the names to announce the news.
However, it’s been reported that there are more than 2 dozen across the board in WWE who have already tested positive for the virus with more cases to come. Many are staying quiet regarding whether they have tested positive and that’s by design.
Bryan Alvarez reported on Wrestling Observer Live that WWE doesn’t want anyone to go public about their positive test. He stated that he has heard other names that have tested positive that have not tweeted about it.
Alvarez added that in-ring talent and staff are not the only people who have tested positive but also some friends and family.
The expectation is that more news will likely get out in the next couple of days. That belief was only backed up further when WWE postponed Friday’s Raw TV taping until Saturday.
The reason for that was due some COVID-19 tests coming back and WWE officials not being happy with the results.
It’s been well documented that Randy Orton had a social media exchange with Tommaso Ciampa, but the possibility of that match happening could come true.
WrestleTalk reports that the former WWE Champion wants a run with some of the WWE NXT Superstars. Per the report, Orton is said to be hoping to work with some of the NXT roster in the coming months.
Orton has pitched the idea of working with some of the NXT Superstars including Ciampa and current NXT Champion Adam Cole. While Cole is on the list, Ciampa is one of the people he would be keen on working with.
The feud would not necessarily take place on RAW as WWE Chairman Vince McMahon has reportedly been unhappy with NXT ratings. As seen in the past with other stars, it’s possible that WWE sends Orton down to NXT to help boost ratings.
At the time of Orton and Ciampa going back and forth on social media, it was reported that WWE had no plans to do Orton vs. Ciampa. That could change.
This would also fall in line with Ciampa being against moving to the main roster full-time due to its brutal travel schedule. Per the report, Ciampa is now more open to doing a one-off program with Orton on RAW because shows are being taped at one location – WWE Performance Center in Orlando – due to the coronavirus pandemic.
WWE is planning to do another cinematic match at its next pay-per-view event, Extreme Rules.
Braun Strowman will defend the Universal Championship against Bray Wyatt at this show. This is a rematch from the Money in the Bank pay-per-view event, which saw Strowman successfully retain the title over Wyatt.
Wrestling Inc. reports the plan is to have various spots and storytelling of their past to the present. Per the report, Wyatt is said to be heavily involved in creating this match.
Jeremy Borash and Triple H in addition to a few others will also be involved in putting the match together although the ideas for it are remaining close to the vest. Michael P.S. Hayes, who has worked on past matches like this, won’t be involved as he is having hip surgery.
Locations are being scouted for filming as this will be another overnight shoot. The article mentioned how the contest was described as a cross between a Terminator and a horror movie.
The idea is for the match to be more action-packed than Wyatt’s Firefly Funhouse match against John Cena at WrestleMania 36, which was essentially a bunch of segments thrown together with little wrestling.
WWE presents the Extreme Rules pay-per-view event on Sunday, July 19, 2020 in Orlando, Florida at the WWE Performance Center that will air on the WWE Network.
It is being reported that Travis Banks and Ligero are gone from WWE. Both NXT UK wrestlers are alleged to have committed offenses as part of the #SpeakingOut movement. WWE has not commented publicly on the matter. News of Ligero’s release was first reported by PW Insider.
Can confirm through sources that both Ligero (Simon Musk) and Travis Banks have been released by WWE.
Travis Banks’ case as part of the #SpeakingOut movement received much attention. He is alleged to have been involved in a relationship with Millie McKenzie when she was only 17 years old and he was her trainer. Banks is 13 years older than McKenzie is. She would turn down a contract offer to be apart of the NXT UK brand in 2019.
Finding a hotel I’m staying in, finding my room number and knocking on my door for hours, continuously messing me when I ask you to leave is NOT OKAY. pic.twitter.com/SKGnQjFhYj
Banks released the following statement in the wake of the allegations:
“Millie was a trainee of mine at Fight Club: Pro. She was also a close personal friend. We would be at shows together, attend the same social events, travel together and hang out at the wrestlers house where I was living.”
The relationship broke down between both parties and it ended. After it ended we agreed to talk it out. We apologized to each other for any individual actions behind the relationship breakdown. After seeing these comments, I can only repeat my apology.”
As per recent communication from Trent Seven's legal representation, I have deleted my tweets from June 24th and 25th. I'm sorry they have apparently caused him serious professional harm and emotional distress. Please direct any questions to Nath Solicitors +44 0203 670 5540
Impact Wrestling made an announcement today regarding the future of Michael Elgin. The company announced Elgin was being suspended earlier this week in the wake of allegations made against him as part of the #SpeakingOut movement.
Impact stated they were suspending Elgin as they sought to investigate the claims against him further. The promotion has now announced that he will not be appearing on any future Impact shows. A statement at the company website reads:
“IMPACT Wrestling has announced that Michael Elgin will not be appearing in any further IMPACT Wrestling programming.”
It is notable that Impact has not announced Elgin has been released. The company has simply stated he will not be appearing on any further programming. He was not featured in any meaningful way on Tuesday’s show beyond possibly having been in some highlight packages.
Elgin had been scheduled to participate in the 5-way match at Slammiversary for the Impact World Championship. That match has now had two participants removed as the company announced Tessa Blanchard’s contract had been terminated yesterday. Impact has also terminated the contracts of Dave Crist and Joey Ryan recently in the wake of allegations against both.
Elgin debuted for Impact at the Rebellion PPV from Toronto on April 28th, 2019. He also performs with Pro Wrestling NOAH in Japan. His last match for the promotion was their January 5th, 2020 show from Korakuen Hall.
WWE producer and former wrestler, Jamie Noble, announced on his social media that he has tested positive for COVID-19. He joins Kayla Braxton, Renee Young, and Adam Pearce as WWE employees who have publicly announced having contracted the virus.
“Not how we expect this month to go! Covid-19 has hit home. Prayers for me and my family will be greatly appreciated!” Noble wrote on Instagram.
Noble’s Instagram page has since gone private. Kayla Braxton also took her social media offline shortly after she announced she had contracted the virus a second time. Young and Pearce’s social media posts about testing positive are still public, however.
WWE has since announced they plan to test everyone for COVID-19 before filming shows for the foreseeable future. They also reportedly said friends and family will not be permitted into the Performance Center for upcoming tapings as they had been in recent weeks.
WWE is back taping inside the Performance Center today and tomorrow. In spite of the positive coronavirus tests, WWE will be taping Smackdown and RAW beginning at 12 PM est. today. The company will also be back in the Performance Center tomorrow for more tapings.
WWE employees continue to come out publicly and announce they have tested positive for COVID-19. Despite this, the company still plans on pushing forward with tapings scheduled for today and tomorrow.
According to a report from PW Insider, WWE plans to tape tonight’s episode of Smackdown this afternoon. WWE will also tape Monday’s edition of RAW today. The company also plans to continue taping episodes tomorrow from the WWE Performance Center. The report continues to say that there are people at all levels of WWE concerned about the recent positive tests. Some employees are said to be in disbelief at others who are attending bars and social gatherings in the area despite the positive tests within the company.
Tonight’s episode of Smackdown may have been changed. Drew Gulak was at one point scheduled to challenge AJ Styles for the Intercontinental Championship on the show. That match is no longer being advertised on WWE.com, however. Additionally, WWE has announced that part of tonight’s Smackdown will air the Boneyard match from WrestleMania between AJ Styles and the Undertaker.
Sheamus and Jeff Hardy were also scheduled for a segment on tonight’s Smackdown. It is not clear if that segment is still happening tonight, however.
“WWE will continue COVID-19 testing of its talent, production crew and employees in advance of TV productions for the foreseeable future,” reads a WWE statement sent to media on the matter.
All Elite Wrestling President Tony Khan was the latest guest on a special edition of the AEW Unrestricted podcast. Khan opened up about the promotion working with a limited roster thanks to COVID-19. He also reflected on the coronavirus pandemic and the creative decisions AEW had to employ.
Khan explained how several of their female talents live outside of the United States. With travel bans and limitations in place, it meant losing some talent they may have had plans for. However, Tony Khan admitted AEW was “fortunate that a lot of the top women ranked in the division at the time were here.”
Tony Khan added how they had 20 percent of the AEW roster available to them in Atlanta, Georgia as the coronavirus pandemic restricted movement and travel. Although this would have forced changes to planned storylines, Khan is happy with how AEW was able to pivot and change accordingly. This number also meant they had enough wrestlers available to put on the TNT Championship tournament:
“We were able to do this great tournament and tell some great stories,” said Tony Khan. “We were able to do some really good shows and I was proud of some numbers we did on the back end of those shows, especially as we went later in the month on the taped shows. The numbers were going up which proved the stories were compelling.”
This Friday night’s episode of SmackDown Live will now be a special Tribute to The Undertaker episode. This news comes in the wake of multiple confirmed COVID-19 cases within the WWE Performance Center. These cases prompted WWE to re-write this week’s SmackDown, turning it into an impromptu tribute show.
The decision to dedicate the show to The Undertaker follows the success of the WWE Network documentary series, Undertaker: The Last Ride.
This tribute show was not the original plan for this week’s episode of WWE’s blue brand. Instead, it was a late decision based on the positive tests impacting on Superstar availability. The tribute show will see WWE air the popular Boneyard Match from this year’s WrestleMania 36 event.
The pre-recorded match saw The Undertaker take on “The Phenomenal One” AJ Styles. It is the first time the match will be aired on regular television.
WWE’s initial plans were to tape tonight’s show last week. However, its COVID-19 tests reportedly arrived late, and so the company was forced to change its plans. An unnamed NXT developmental talent also tested positive for COVID-19 last week prior to the new confirmed cases.
Undertaker: The Last Ride is currently available to stream in its entirety on the WWE Network.
