WWE 205 Live is moving to Tuesday nights. Starting this coming week, the show featuring WWE’s cruiserweight division will air at 7pm (Eastern) on the WWE Network. This creates a new 3-hour block of fresh Network programming each Wednesday night, at least for the next few months.
205 Live kicks off the new Wednesday night lineup. That show is followed by NXT and then the Mae Young Classic tournament series. 205 Live General Manager Drake Maverick officially announced the news on Saturday morning:
The move to Wednesday nights is WWE’s latest attempt to freshen up the brand. Earlier this year, it was widely reported that Triple H had taken over the creative direction of the show. The changes were immediately apparent. A lot of of the Vince McMahon Sports Entertainment aspects were toned down in favor of athleticism and a more sports-like presentation. Former Impact Wrestling star Rockstar Spud was brought in as the division’s new General Manager, Drake Maverick.
WWE pulled back on featuring cruiserweight matches on Raw in recent months. Most recently, we’ve seen cruiserweight talents like Lio Rush and even Drake Maverick appearing on Raw in managerial roles. Lio Rush is now aligned with Bobby Lashley and Maverick is the new handler of the Authors of Pain.
205 Live is currently filed each week after SmackDown Live. This has resulted in burned out crowds who often leave the arena before 205 Live begins. Maybe we will see WWE taping 205 Live at the monthly NXT TV tapings from Full Sail.
Recently on Monday Night Raw, Lio Rush was revealed as Bobby Lashley’s new manager. Rush will still be competing on 205 Live, however. In fact, Rush will take on Noam Dar next Tuesday night.
The Scottish Supernova has been having some fun with Rush on Twitter this week but Rush has recently responded in kind.
Dar had been posting some defamatory words in regards to his upcoming opponent. At first, it was just Dar posting comments about Rush but then he began re-Tweeting insults from fans as well.
Lio Rush makes people watch his matches at family events
Dar then re-tweeted a few of the better insults from his followers.
“Lio Rush wears a helmet when it rains,” said one Tweet. “Lio Rush always says ‘oh it must be free’ when an item doesn’t scan at the cash register,” read another.
Even Rush’s bowling ability was fair game. “Lio Rush bowls with the bumpers up,” another Tweet read.
Lio Rush Diss Track To Noam Dar
The outspoken Lio Rush responded with a diss-track directed to his upcoming opponent.
Rush was signed to WWE last year and began competing on the NXT house show circuit in September of 2017. Despite earning some criticism for an insensitive Tweet regarding Emma’s release, Rush has moved up through WWE’s developmental program in quick succession.
Natalya, Nia Jax, and Lana recently appeared on “Good Day New York” on Fox 5 to help promote Total Divas. During the interview, the topic of Natalya’s father Jim “the Anvil” Neidhart was discussed. Natalya mentioned that Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson reached out to her through Nia Jax (Rock’s cousin) and said some inspirational words to her following her father’s death.
“He reached out to me — he actually gave me powerful words of just not really having to say goodbye,” Natalya said. “He goes ‘you don’t have to say goodbye to your dad. You can have him with you forever.’”
Natalya Says Goodbye to the Anvil
Natalya also mentioned the family was not prepared for Jim’s untimely death.
“He was definitely going through some health issues but it wasn’t anything that was gonna take his life. For us, it was finding the right way to say goodbye.”
It was also revealed during their appearance on the show that Natalya’s father will appear in the upcoming season of Total Divas.
Shortly after Jim Neidhart’s death on August 13th, Natalya released a statement on what her father meant to her.
“There was no one like him! I’m just gonna miss him so much,” a segment of Natalya’s statement reads. “We are going to hold all of the moments we had with him close to our hearts forever and never let them go. I promise to keep your memory alive. We love you so much, Daddy!”
PWG’s (Pro Wrestling Guerrilla) Battle of Los Angeles, a 24-man tournament held over three nights, began on Friday night at the Globe Theatre in Los Angeles, California. Night two will feature more first round tournament matches on Saturday night from the same location.
Here are the results from PWG BOLA 2018 Night 1:
First Round Tournament Match
Rey Horus defeats Adam Brooks
First Round Tournament Match
Flamita defeats Puma King
First Round Tournament Match
CIMA defeats Jody Fleisch
First Round Tournament Match
Bandido defeats T-Hawk
First Round Tournament Match
Joey Janela defeats David Starr
First Round Tournament Match
Brody King defeats PCO
– In the tag team main event (not part of the tournament), Ringkampf (Timothy Thatcher & WALTER) defeated Ilja Dragunov & Shingo Takagi.
Check back later tonight for results from Night 2 of BOLA 2018.
Three weeks ago, it was reported that Neville was no longer under contract to WWE. Despite this, there are also reports Neville is turning down bookings saying he is not contractually free to work for other promotions. Neville’s contractual status with WWE was addressed in the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
“WWE has told us that he is free and clear to work anywhere he wants,” wrote Dave Meltzer. “When he has been contacted by promoters, he has said that he can’t accept dates yet but will be able to very soon.”
There was speculation that Neville may have been asked to participate in All In as well. It is not yet clear when Neville will begin to take non-WWE bookings.
Neville Contractual Status
It will be almost one year since Neville has wrestled a match. His last contest was a DQ victory over Cruiserweight Champion, Enzo Amore. The match took place on an October 1st, 2017 house show. Neville is then said to have walked out on the company. He is believed to have been unhappy with the company’s creative plans for him.
Tama Tonga of Bullet Club’s Firing Squad recently said he’s interested in bringing in the wrestler FKA Pac into his stable.
“I know Neville and I’ve followed his work,” Tonga said. “He’s a phenomenal worker and he’s been here in New Japan before, I watched him in the Super Juniors in 2012. I love his work.”
Rey Mysterio has addressed rumors about him being in talks with the WWE about a deal that would see him potentially making his return to the company. For months, the belief was that once he finishes up his other wrestling commitments then he could make his WWE return.
Those commitments were wrestling a match for New Japan Pro Wrestling at Budokan Hall on August 12th, the ‘All In’ event on September 1st and Chris Jericho’s upcoming Rock n Wrestling Rager At Sea. It’s now September and WWE has yet to announce that he has signed a deal.
The reason for that is due to talks still ongoing, according to Mysterio, who talked about it in an interview on the Apter Chat with Bill Apter. He brought up how fans should keep in that rumors will always be rumors. Mysterio stated, “There’s nothing locked in. There’s nothing secure that says that I am going back.”
He would continue by stating that he’s enjoying his independent wrestling life right now because he gets to choose and pick when he wrestles and where it’s at. He noted that if he wants to wrestle someone such as a Kenny Omega then he’ll make it happen. He stated that there’s no insurance or security right now that he’s going back to the WWE.
Mysterio made it clear that “If the time is right and there’s an agreement on both ends, WWE and myself, and there’s an offer on the table, I wouldn’t say no.” He ended by stating that he’s still enjoying his liberty out here in independent wrestling.
Mysterio has been announced as the pre-order bonus character for WWE 2K19. 2K Games also revealed that WWE Champion AJ Styles will be the cover star for the game that will be released on October 9, 2018 for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. You can see the full roster reveal for the game here.
Daniel Bryan recently praised the organizers of All In for selling out a 10,000 seat arena. Bryan made the comments recently while promoting the upcoming WWE 2K19 video game.
“They are like their own new 4 horsemen,” Bryan said “They are so different but they compliment each other and have this buzz about them. The idea that they are doing their own event outside of Ring of Honor, outside of New Japan. They are bringing in people from IMpact and doing all this kind of stuff.”
Unfortunately for fans who were hoping to see Bryan compete at All In 2, he is reported to have agreed to terms on a new deal with WWE recently.
Daniel Bryan On All In
“If you were to tell me 5 years ago that that would happen I’d say you’re crazy, you don’t know what you’re talking about,” Bryan said in reference to All In selling out the Sears Center Arena in Chicago. “But that’s a testament to these guys.”
Bryan would speak further on how Cody, the Bucks, and Omega have all created a buzz for themselves in different ways.
“I think it’s especially a credit to Cody, the Young Bucks, and Kenny Omega,” Bryan continued. “Because they’ve all created waves in different ways: Cody leaving WWE to say ‘you know what? I think I’m better than what they’re giving me, I’m going to go out and prove something.’ The Young Bucks doing this whole thing on their own being creative, they are starting this YouTube thing, doing this thing where they are like anti-authority anti-corporate people who are bucking the trends. And then Kenny Omega going out and having these matches some people look at them and say ‘these are the greatest pro-wrestling matches of all time.'”
“I think it’s so empowering and so cool,” Bryan continued.
Dean Ambrose went down with an injury to his right triceps in December. His injury cut the planned Shield reunion short and also caused the former WWE Champion to miss WrestleMania 34.
Ambrose’s return to the ring was then pushed back further due to a staph infection he developed after surgery to repair his tricep. According to an interview Ambrose recently gave, the staph infection was nearly fatal.
Dean Ambrose On His Injury And Recovery
“I ended up having two different surgeries,” Ambrose told the Monitor. “I had this MRSA, Staph infection, I nearly died.”
Ambrose continued to describe his stay in Hospital after the infection was discovered. “I was in the hospital for a week plugged up to this antibiotic drip thing, and I was on all these antibiotics for months that make you puke and crap your pants.”
Ambrose continued to say he’s not sure exactly when the infection began to develop.
“They said they found traces of an infection during the first surgery, but they cleaned it out,” he continued. Ambrose then said after about six weeks he felt his elbow wasn’t healing right and went back to his doctors. He eventually said he just picked up and moved to Birmingham to be closer to the doctors and rehab specialists.
“If I hadn’t gone in for that checkup,” Ambrose said. “I could’ve gotten seriously sick. It could’ve been even more dangerous. But it all worked out.”
There has been a significant update in the ongoing saga that is the Pentagon and Fenix to WWE speculation.
Both Lucha Brothers have once again started to accept indy bookings in 2019. The rumors of Pentagon and Fenix going to WWE were kickstarted by the pair trying to free their schedule for next year.
The status of the Lucha Brothers was discussed in the latest issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
“(Pentagon and Fenix) have started making commitments to promoters for next year,” Dave Meltzer wrote. “Which indicates they aren’t planning on doing anything (in WWE) anytime soon.”
Pentagon Jr. and Fenix Rumors
The report continues to speculate it might be the brothers’ Lucha Underground contracts which prevent them from signing with WWE. It had previously been reported the pair felt they had an opt-out clause following the completion of Season 4 airing. The El Rey Network has already committed to the 5th season of the show.
At a recent PCW event, Pentagon addressed the WWE rumors by saying he’s not going anywhere.
“Respect that I am the PCW Champion and no one is going to take that from me,” Pentagon said. “Thank you very much! And before I forget. I am not going anywhere. Penta will be in PCW for many, more years.”
Pentagon and Fenix teamed up last night on Impact Wrestling to defeat the Cult of Lee. The pair is also tag-team champions in MLW and will wrestle on the CMLL Anniversary show today.
Matt Riddle has started training at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, according to the Wrestling Observer. A few people in WWE were surprised did not publicize the news. (As noted earlier this week, The Rock’s daughter Simone has also been training at the facility.)
After months of speculation about Matt Riddle signing with WWE, he appeared ringside at NXT Takeover: Brooklyn. He has yet to appear on NXT television, but it’s expected that Matt Riddle will make his in-ring debut for NXT at the next set of television tapings.
NXT currently has television taped through September 19th and the next round of tapings will be held next week. (Spoilers)
There has been some buzz about who the King of Bros will feud with first. Velveteen Dream sent out a tweet using Riddle’s “BRO” catch phrase, but WWE reportedly has something else planned.
On this week’s edition of NXT TV, veteran journeyman Kassius Ohno had a backstage segment with General Manager William Regal. Ohno said something along the lines of, “I’ll take on whoever is the next new big thing….bro.” The Observer states that there is in fact talk of Matt Riddle facing Ohno at the next NXT Takeover event. NXT Takeover: Los Angeles will be held from the Staples Center during Survivor Series weekend in November.
We’ll have full NXT TV Spoilers next week, which will give us a better idea of where things are headed for Matt Riddle.
NXT’s roster is beyond stacked: which NXT talent do you want to see work with Matt Riddle in the months ahead?
Revolution Pro (Rev Pro) has announced the date for their 2018 iteration of the Global Wars event. The NJPW vs Rev Pro show has been a huge success over the past few years and the already announced matches are building to a stacked show. The Brixton Recreation Centre in London will host the event on October 14th.
The following bouts have already been announced for the show:
Tetsuya Naito vs Chris Brookes
British Heavyweight Championship Match – Minoru Suzuki vs Tomohiro Ishii
British Cruiserweight Championship Match – David Starr vs KUSHIDA
Hirooki Goto vs Zack Sabre Jr
EVIL & SANADA (Los Ingobernables de Japon) vs WALTER & Timothy Thatcher (Ringkampf)
It's going to be CHAOS VS SUZUKI-GUN when HIROOKI GOTO goes one on one with ZACK SABRE JR #GlobalWarsUK
DEFIANT Wrestling has released WALTER vs Will Ospreay for free on their YouTube channel. The bout took place at Stacked ’18 and has been generating a huge buzz with fans in the UK scene. As we reported earlier today WALTER is apparently in talks to sign with WWE.
If you’ve never heard of WALTER then he is certainly a performer that should be on your radar. The Austrian powerhouse is dominating the Tag and Heavyweight divisions in wXw, PROGRESS and PWG and he is now being slated as a future WWE/NXT signee. Considered the de-facto leader of the Ringkampf stable (alongside Timothy Thatcher and previously NXT roster member Axel Dieter Jr) WALTER has a ton of potential on the world stage and has already garnered critical praise from the likes of Dave Meltzer, who gave his PWG All-Star Weekend bout against Zack Sabre Jr from October 2017 a 5 star rating.
Will Ospreay almost needs no introduction. The youngest ever Best of the Super Juniors winner and the first ever British born IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion is setting the bar for independent wrestling in 2018.
Check out the full match below and let us know what you think in the comments. Do you want to see WALTER in WWE?
FULL MATCH: Walter vs Will Ospreay, First-Time Ever! (Internet Championship, Stacked '18): https://t.co/lWcV0hLumt via @YouTube
New Japan’s first official Destruction show takes place on September 15th. Emanating from Hiroshima Sun Plaza Hall the stellar card will feature two title bouts and a host of top NJPW stars.
The real headline grabber is the main event between Kenny Omega and Tomohiro Ishii. The two world class talents will be colliding for Omega’s IWGP Heavyweight Championship.
Omega and Ishii had one of the best bouts from this year’s G1 Climax tournament, the match saw Ishii defeat Omega to earn this bout and main event of the first Destruction show of the tour. Whilst Ishii can be considered one of the best in NJPW it’s clear that Omega is here to stay as IWGP Champion heading into January’s Wrestle Kingdom so it’s very unlikely that he drops the title.
Here’s the full card for the first Destruction event which will be available to view on NJPWWorld.com:
KUSHIDA, Tiger Mask IV & Jushin Thunder Liger vs Rocky Romero, SHO & YOH
Bad Luck Fale vs Toa Henare
Michael Elgin & Ayato Yoshida vs Davey Boy Smith Jr & Lance Archer
Will Ospreay, Beretta & Chuck Taylor vs Kota Ibushi, Yujiro Takahashi & Chase Owens
NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Team Championship Match – Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa, & Taiji Ishimori (c) vs Juice Robinson, David Finlay & Ryusuke Taguchi
New Japan Pro Wrestling’s September scheduling is usually dominated by the DESTRUCTION shows – and 2018 is no different. This year’s lineup of shows will of course feature to ‘Road To’ shows, some of which will be available on NJPWWorld.
Here’s the full results for the September 13th show in Osaka:
Yota Tsuji vs Yuya Uemura – This bout ended in a draw
Chase Owens & Yujiro Takahashi b. Ren Narita & Shota Umino – Takahashi took the win after hitting the Pimp Juice on Narita
Ayato Yoshida, David Finlay, Michael Elgin & Juice Robinson b. Taiji Ishimori, Tanga Loa, Tama Tonga & Bad Luck Fale – Finlay took the win over Tanga Loa with the Granby Roll
Gedo & Hirooki Goto b. TAKA Michinoku & Taichi – Goto took the pinfall win over TAKA following the GTR
BUSHI, SANADA, EVIL & Tetsuya Naito b. El Desperado, Yoshinobu Kanemura, Takashi Iizuka & Minoru Suzuki – EVIL took the pinfall win over Iizuka following a Magic Killer
Beretta, YOSHI-HASHI, Toru Yano & Kazuchika Okada b. Toa Henare, Tomoaki Honma, Togi Makabe & Hiroshi Tanahashi – Beretta hit the Dudebuster on Henare for the win
Kota Ibushi & Kenny Omega b. Will Ospreay & Tomohiro Ishii – Ibushi took the pinfall win over Ospreay following the Golden Trigger
The card for the Hell in a Cell pay-per-view event appears to be finalized as the WWE announced on Friday, September 14th which match will air on the pre-show.
That match will see The New Day defend the SmackDown Tag Team Titles against Rusev Day (Rusev & Aiden English). Thus, there will be eight total matches featured at this event with seven of those airing on the main card.
Rusev and Aiden English beat The Bar as part of the mini-tournament to determine the new #1 contenders for the SmackDown Tag Team Titles and earn this title match on this week’s episode of SmackDown Live in Lafayette, LA at the Cajundome on the USA Network.
The Hell in a Cell pay-per-view event takes place on Sunday, September 16, 2018 in San Antonio, Texas at the AT&T Center and will air on the WWE Network and some traditional pay-per-view outlets.
The Card
WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns vs. Braun Strowman – Hell In A Cell Match With Mick Foley As Special Guest Referee
WWE Champion AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe
WWE RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss
The Miz & Maryse vs. Daniel Bryan & Brie Bella – Mixed Tag Team Match
Jeff Hardy vs. Randy Orton – Hell In A Cell Match
WWE RAW Tag Team Champions Dolph Ziggler & Drew McIntyre vs. Seth Rollins & Dean Ambrose
WWE SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair vs. Becky Lynch
SmackDown Tag Team Champions The New Day vs. Rusev and Aiden English – Pre-Show
Our staff has released their predictions for this show, which you can see here.
WWE Hell In A Cell takes place this Sunday night from San Antonio, Texas at the AT&T Center. The card for the tenth event under the Hell In A Cell chronology is solid, with five title matches and two bouts to be contested inside WWE’s demonic structure.
The main event for Sunday’s PPV will see Roman Reigns and Braun Strowman battle in a Hell In A Cell match. The bout will see WWE Hall Of Famer Mick Foley serve as special guest referee, with the WWE Universal Championship on-the-line.
Additionally, Ronda Rousey will defend her RAW Women’s Championship against Alexa Bliss, A.J. Styles will face off against Samoa Joe in a rematch with the WWE Championship up for grabs and more.
SEScoops writers Brad Davis, Andrew Ravens, Jeff Moss and Ian Carey have prepared their predictions for each match scheduled for Sunday night’s big event. Without further adieu, here are our staff predictions for WWE Hell In A Cell.
SD! Tag-Team Champions The New Day vs. Rusev & Aiden English
Brad Davis: To be quite honest, I’m not really into this match. I will chalk it up to, New Day just got the belts and they’re not going to lose them just yet. New Day retains. (Prediction: The New Day)
Andrew Ravens: As much of fan favorites that Rusev and English are, I doubt that they win the titles here. New Day has been a consistent act for the WWE over the last few years, and typically, when they are champions, they hold the titles for an extended amount of time. Plus, they just won the titles a few weeks ago. Makes no sense for them to drop them here. New Day retains. (Prediction: The New Day)
Jeff Moss: Good lord this is a heart-stopper! Two of my favourite tag teams in WWE going head to head? Ic an’t see New Day losing those titles yet, so I’d look to them to retain, but man, I’ve been celebrating Rusev Day so long it’s almost become to commercialized and lost it’s true meaning! But I’m sure I can get it back. It’s sad, but with some many events (HIaC, Evolution, Supershowdown, Survivor Series) all back to back to back, it’s hard to see any big title changes happening at Hell in a Cell. (Prediction: The New Day)
Ian Carey: New Day will likely either win the Smackdown tag-team championships here or re-start their pending split and rivalry. Aiden English had been costing Rusev and Lana matches but has since gone on something of a hot streak. If his hot streak continues, expect Rusev Day to come out with the belts. I’m betting they lose, however, and Rusev once again grows frustrated with his ally. (Prediction: The New Day)
CONSENSUS: 4-0, The New Day
Randy Orton vs. Jeff Hardy (HIAC Match)
Brad: Jeff Hardy is finally getting the Hell In a Cell match he’s been talking about for the past few years. Randy Orton is a more-than-capable (but somewhat-vanilla) performer. I expect a passable match and at least one crazy bump from Brother Nero. (Prediction: Randy Orton)
Andrew: Hardy has been asking for this kind of match for years and his wish has been granted. This has been a top feud on the blue brand and WWE officials have really let Orton heel it up in a way that he hasn’t done in years, which always makes for entertaining TV. This will be the wildest HIAC match of the night due to Hardy having years of thinking about ways he can do crazy bumps. As a result, this will allow Orton to squeak out a win. (Prediction: Randy Orton)
Jeff: Oh, please don’t let this be the first line of Jeff Hardy’s Obituary. I could see him doing something really, really stupid here to cap off his career (or at least send him off TV for a while). It’s really strange in 2018 to be typing “Randy Orton vs Jeff Hardy in the cell worries me” but, dammit, it does. In terms of a winner, Hardy needs the redemption after months of sneak attacks and nut shots have left him lying. In terms of the match, I just hope no one dies. (Prediction: Jeff Hardy)
Ian: Two things could happen here: 1) Jeff Hardy wins after doing something amazing involving the cell – possibly a dive off the roof. Or 2) Orton wins after throwing Hardy off the cell or something similar. One way or the other, Hardy is going to do something Sunday that a 40-year-old beaten-up body should probably not go through. I’m putting my money on Hardy to win though. (Prediction: Jeff Hardy)
CONSENSUS: 2-2, TIE
SD! Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair vs. Becky Lynch
Brad: Becky Lynch’s character has finally gotten some attention over the past few weeks. It’s refreshing, but also somewhat depressing when you think about how badly Becky has been booked since becoming the first woman to hold the SmackDown Women’s Championship (remember that)? (Prediction: Charlotte Flair)
Andrew: You could make the argument that if WWE didn’t announce that they would be wrestling each other again at Super Show-Down then Lynch could be favored to win it here. However, they already made that match official. I see Flair snapping in this match and allowing Lynch to get into her head. Thus, Flair loses by DQ but retains her title at HIAC. Lynch wins the match and most likely gets the title next month at Super Show-Down. (Prediction: Becky Lynch)
Jeff: Why isn’t this match in a cell? Sasha Banks and Charlotte had a great match in there and Becky could deliver one that’s a step up. I’m all in on Evil Spurned Becky Lynch and while I’d like to see her get whats due her here, I can’t help but think that’s more of an Evolution event. Also, at heart, Becky is a good person, so will she have the guts to go full Ciampa on her friend? I don’t think so. Yet. (Prediction: Charlotte)
Ian: I’m not saying this is what they are doing but if you wanted to turn Becky Lynch into the next Daniel Bryan, you might decide to do exactly what WWE has done with her. Here me out on this one. Fans got behind Daniel Bryan because they respected him, wanted him to be champ, and WWE was pushing somebody else (Roman Reigns) down their throat. Similarly, fans respect Becky and want her to win the title but WWE is pushing Charlotte Flair down fans’ throats. One idea is that this would be harmful to Charlotte Flair’s babyface status but unlike with Roman Reigns, they will turn Charlotte Flair heel. In fact, she’ll go heel before WrestleMania next year when she possibly faces Ronda Rousey in the main event. I’m not saying they are doing this on purpose but a conspiracy theorist could claim they are pulling a worked-shoot booking angle here. I’m not saying they are doing it, I’m just saying it’s a possibility. Few can argue that how this has played out has done amazing things for Lynch’s popularity and relevance. Flair keeps the title Sunday, however, just like she will do all the way to WrestleMania. (Prediction: Charlotte Flair)
CONSENSUS: 3-1, Charlotte Flair
Daniel Bryan & Brie Bella vs. The Miz & Maryse
Brad: It’s pretty amazing how much mileage they can get out of this Bryan vs. Miz feud. The Miz got a cheap win over Bryan at SummerSlam. We know how WWE likes to book Bryan. I think he will win the feud, but they’re not done messing with him and putting heat on Miz (and Maryse). I predict Miz and Maryse wins after more underhanded tactics from the Hollywood couple. Something along the line of, Maryse pretends she’s hurt, Bryan tends to her, Miz capitalizes and the heels laugh at Bryan for being a good guy and letting his guard down. (Prediction: The Miz & Maryse)
Andrew: The energy from the crowd for this match will be off the charts. Based on the go-home edition for HIAC on SmackDown Live, it appears that The Miz and Maryse are going over as booking 101 says that whoever gets the upper hand on the last show before a PPV, typically loses. I have Miz and Maryse winning here with Bryan getting his hand raised next month at Super Show-Down. (Prediction: The Miz & Maryse)
Jeff: Daniel Bryan has re-signed with the WWE and while we are all relieved that Bryan is going to be safely housed in a WWE ring for the next little while instead of killing himself on the Indies, this mixed tag is better suited for the Mixed Match Challenge instead of a PPV event. Hopefully Miz and Bryan do most of the heavy lifting. While I’d rather see the Danielsons win so that Bryan can move into a title program, I’d say we’re in this feud until at least Survivor Series, so Miz & Mrs take this one, probably via the awesome shenanigans they are known for. (Prediction: The Miz & Maryse)
Ian: I’m predicting Daniel Bryan and Brie take this one. With the loss Bryan suffered at the hands of Miz at Summerslam, this feud could use a “feel good ending.” This is not a rivalry where the heels are going to come out victorious so expect Bryan and Brie to come out the winners even though the rivalry will likely continue into October. (Prediction: Daniel Bryan & Brie Bella)
CONSENSUS: 3-1, The Miz & Maryse
RAW Tag-Team Champions Dolph Ziggler & Drew McIntyre vs. Seth Rollins & Dean Ambrose
Brad: Ziggler and McIntyre have been on to something lately. Ziggler has been spinning his wheels for years, but something about the alliance with big Drew is clicking. All four men can go and I think this match has the potential to be one of the better parts of the show. (Prediction: Dolph Ziggler & Drew McIntyre)
Andrew: The winner of this match really doesn’t matter. They will have another match at Super Show-Down next month. I have Ziggler and McIntyre winning here by dirty heel tactics as WWE needs a balance in this feud if Reigns goes over Strowman later in the night. (Prediction: Dolph Ziggler & Drew McIntyre)
Jeff: Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose winning here would mean the Shield has ALL the titles on RAW (except the Women’s Championship). Something I don’t remember happening since the days of HHH/Flair/Orton & Batista in Evolution (I might be wrong about that though). So, if they are planning a hard Shield run heading in to the Fall, that would be a cool way to do it. If they want to build up the, um, “Not-Shield” (is that what we’re calling Strowman, McIntyre and Ziggs?) then they should lose to the Damn Numbers Game, I’m thinking. What will happen? Probably the latter. By the way, how is this team not called Double D’s? (Prediction: Dolph Ziggler & Drew McIntyre)
Ian: I see Rollins and Ambrose winning the titles here and the Shield briefly holding the Universal and tag titles on Raw. I then expect Ziggler and McIntyre to play a role in costing Roman the Universal title, however. (Prediction: Dolph Ziggler & Drew McIntyre)
CONSENSUS: 4-0, Dolph Ziggler & Drew McIntyre
WWE Champion A.J. Styles vs. Samoa Joe
Brad: Wennndyyy! Samoa Joe has been incredible over the past few months. He’s gotten deeply personal with Styles by getting his family involved. I don’t think Joe’s done tormenting Styles. Joe will take Styles’ title, forcing AJ to regroup and figure out how to conquer this bully once and for all. Samoa Joe wins the WWE Championship. (Prediction: Samoa Joe)
Andrew: Styles has had a great run as WWE Champion but it’s time for a change, and it happens here. Joe has been a good heel and counterpart for the babyface in Styles. He has gotten into the head of the champ, and with that, he wins his first WWE Title here. WWE is already promoting a rematch between these two stars for Super Show-Down, and that’s where Styles gets his rematch. (Prediction: Samoa Joe)
Jeff: I have been begging the universe (WWE & Cosmic) to let Joe take that strap off of AJ all summer. However, after seeing the AMAZING StoryTime With Joe promo on SD Live, I’m totally ok if this continues a little longer. I couldn’t love psychopathic Joe more, so I’m hoping this is his moment to stand tall and really give AJ something to fight for. (Prediction: Samoa Joe)
Ian: I don’t believe AJ Styles is going to lose the WWE Championship until sometime in 2019. Likely when he passes CM Punk’s modern day record of 434 days with the belt. To do that he will have to retain the title until just before Royal Rumble 2019. How this title reign impacts Wendy “Styles” and their children is unclear. It won’t be “Night night AJ” on Sunday, however. (Prediction: A.J. Styles)
CONSENSUS: 3-1, Samoa Joe
RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss
Brad: Champions are entitled to rematches. It’s probably not easy getting knocked off your high horse and having your championship title taken from you. But Alexa should have just let this one go. Ronda Rousey is the most dangerous woman in WWE and there is really no way around that. WWE is going all in on Rousey – she will headline WWE Evolution and they will want to keep her strong for that. (Prediction: Ronda Rousey)
Andrew: The loom of SummerSlam is clearer than ever in this match as Rousey just won the title and why would you put the title back on Bliss so quickly? Plus, Rousey is the biggest female star on the roster that WWE has right now. Thus, she should be the champion, and when she does lose the title, it should be to another big star such as Charlotte Flair, which is just a matter of time from happening. Rousey retains with ease. (Prediction: Ronda Rousey)
Jeff: Alexa Bliss is still a magical, perfect creature that deserves to be protected at all costs. That said, if you’re making money off the women’s division, Rousey is it. She just needs a believable opponent. I’d say this will be a squash match, with maybe Mickie James/Alicia Foxy interference. The only hope is that Ronda brings some backup as well … (Prediction: Ronda Rousey)
Ian: Remember when Ronda Rousey destroyed Alexa Bliss in under 5 minutes at Summerslam? Expect this match to go twice as long but feature the same result. Bliss will come in with a plan but ultimately still fall to the champ. (Prediction: Ronda Rousey)
CONSENSUS: 4-0, Ronda Rousey
WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns vs. Braun Strowman (HIAC Match)
Brad: Roman Reigns slayed Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam. He’s now “THE” guy. Congrats! In addition to that Universal Championship, what else does our big winner get? He gets locked inside a cage with perhaps the most dangerous giant in WWE history. Jokes aside, these guys work well together. For the hate that Roman gets from a portion of the audience, he delivers more than not when it comes to big matches. I expect a very physical match, possibly with some interference from Ziggler, McIntyre and The Shield. In the end, our golden boy will stand victorious as WWE continues to solidify him as the top star on Raw. (Prediction: Roman Reigns)
Andrew: The era of Reigns as Universal Champion has just started and makes no sense for him to drop it to Strowman. This is a feud that will last for a few months, but in the end, Reigns will and always be the guy that Vince McMahon wants as the top guy despite what the fans think. Reigns escapes somehow in order to retain his title. (Prediction: Roman Reigns)
Jeff: Well, the addition of Mick Foley as the guest referee certainly… changes? This match? Maybe? Aside from getting the Money In The Bank briefcase off of Strowman, there’s really not much point to this match and all I can really hope for is that these two big dudes manage to wreck the Hell in a Cell cage. Look for someone to get tossed through it that hopefully isn’t over the age of 40. (Prediction: Roman Reigns)
Ian: One theory is that WWE enjoys having Roman chase the belt rather than retain it. This theory would hold that Braun Strowman will walk away from Hell in a Cell the Universal Champion. I agree with this theory and think Strowman wins the belt on Sunday. Perhaps Strowman attempts to hurt Mick Foley and Roman makes the save, creating an opportunity for Strowman to pin the champ. WWE then continues to have Roman chase the title with Strowman in Brock Lesnar’s previous role. (Prediction: Braun Strowman)
CONSENSUS: 3-1, Roman Reigns
What do the experts think is going to happen on Sunday? Check out the official WWE Hell In A Cell Betting Odds. What do you think of the above WWE Hell In A Cell predictions? Let us know by sounding off in the Comments section.
Alexa Bliss expressed her happiness with the WWE booking her in a match that she has dreamed about for years.
The former WWE RAW Women’s Champion did an interview with Sky Sports where she talked about her match with WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus at the upcoming Evolution pay-per-view event. “I’ve been very fortunate with WWE because they’ve given me many opportunities,” said Bliss. “I’ve been fortunate with them all but I am very, very excited for this match.”
She would continue by stating that it’s definitely a dream match for her and that she knows that people wanted this match. Bliss added that WWE trusted her to have this match and is honored by it as she thinks it will be great and is a personal accomplishment for her.
WWE Evolution takes place on Sunday, October 28th from Long Island, New York at the Nassau Coliseum. The show will stream live on the WWE Network. Also announced for this show is Lita vs. Mickie James in a singles match.
Bliss is slated to challenge Ronda Rousey for the RAW Women’s Title at this Sunday’s Hell in a Cell pay-per-view. Our staff has released their predictions for this show, which you can see here.
WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley is making the media rounds to promote the Hell in a Cell pay-per-view event as well as “20 Years of Hell” show that will air on WWE’s streaming service, WWE Network, right after this PPV event.
The WWE Network program will be one of Foley’s touring shows where he talks about the match and 20th anniversary of his Hell in a Cell match against The Undertaker at King of the Ring 1998.
The former WWE Champion spoke with Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated where he discussed his one-man show on tour where he noted that he attempts to make the infamous 1998 cell match come alive on stage through stories and emotions and take people on the same type of emotional rollercoaster that he would go on coming into the match. He stated that most people realize in the first five minutes that it’s a much better show than they’re counting on.
“The show took place twenty years to the day, and the atmosphere was phenomenal,” said Foley. “I couldn’t be happier with the way it turned out, and it’s worth checking out.“It’s a lot of hard work that you’ll see unveiled in the course of that hour. If people tune into the WWE Network after Hell in a Cell, I think they’ll get their money’s worth.”
Braun Strowman vs. Roman Reigns
It’s already been announced that he would be the special guest referee for the Hell in a Cell Match between Roman Reigns and Braun Strowman at the HIAC PPV. When asked about it, he noted that they are going to have a great match with or without him but did note that one he has talked about on his shows is the element of magic that is either there or it’s a match.
“You can’t predict it, you can’t produce it, but maybe having me in that environment will help create that element of magic to help take the great match they’re almost certain to have and give it just that little something tiny extra to help cement it in the minds of the people who see it.”
CMLL will hold their 85th Anniversary show today. The event will air live and for free to Honor Club subscribers.
Of note for this show is that Pentagon and Fenix are actually double-booked for events today. They will have to quickly make it to this show from the Impact tapings also happening today. Both events are taking place in Mexico City, however.
Tonight’s Anniversary show kicks off on Honor Club at 930 PM from Arena Mexico.
La Jarochita, Marcela, and Princess Sujey vs Dalys la Caribena, La Maligna, and Reyna Isis
Angel de Oro, Audaz, and Niebla Roja vs La Peste Negra (El Felino and Negro Cass) and Mephisto
Atlantis, Mistico, and El Soberano vs El Cuatero, Forastero, and Sanson
Gran Guerrero, Euforia, and Ultimo Guerrero vs Ciber the Main Man, The Chris, and Sharlie Rockstar
Caristico, El Hijo de L.A Park and L.A Park vs Diamente Azul, King Phoenix (Fenix), and Penta el 0M (Pentagon Jr.)
Hair vs Hair Match
Matt Taven & Volador Jr. vs Rush and Barbaro Cavernario
The first ever Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre show took place on September 21st, 1933. At 85 years old, many believe the promotion to be the oldest of its kind. Another promotion which is hitting its senior years, the NWA, will hold their 70th Anniversary show later next month.
Last night, Impact Wrestling aired their final show from the Toronto tapings. Also last night, the company traveled to Mexico City for the first of two nights of television tapings.
With last night’s show in the books, we are just 4 episodes away from Bound for Glory in New York City. 3 matches are now confirmed for Impact’s next pay-per-view.
Impact Wrestling 9/13
Austin Aries, Killer Kross, and Moose Claim Another Victim
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9uTOneheBc
Impact World Championship Austin Aries (c) defeated Fallah Bah
Austin Aries challenged Fallah Bah to a World Championship match this week. Not only would he later defeat Bah, he would put his tag-team partner out of action.
Following the match, Aries, Kross and, Moose wrapped KM’s head around a chair and hammered him into the post with another chair. It’s the same move the group has used to take out Eddie Edwards and Johnny Impact.
It was revealed last night that there will be an Impact Wrestling Hall of Fame induction at Bound for Glory. Impact announced the inductee will be revealed next week.
Johnny Impact Will Be Back At Bound For Glory
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ejUTVFszzs
Much like Fallah Bah this week, Johnny Impact was the victim of an assault by Aries’ crew last week.
Josh Mathews conducted an interview with Johnny. The future Survivor contestant stated he will be back for Bound for Glory on October 14th.
The Machine Took Down The Monster
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3RT3-kfOcg
Brian Cage defeated Kongo Kong
It was a change of pace for Brian Cage this week. Recently in Impact, Cage has been facing X-Division stars like Matt Sydal and Fenix. Tonight, he had an entirely different type of match with a much larger opponent.
Cage picked up the win just the same, however, finishing off Kong with a discus clothesline followed by an F-5.
Brian Cage & The Lucha Brothers Will Face oVe At Bound For Glory
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReWj3TN-ZXA
After he defeated Kongo Kong, Cage accepted the Lucha Brothers’ offer and will join their team against oVe.
A trios match featuring the Lucha Brothers and Cage against Sami Callihan and oVe was then made official for Bound for Glory.
Matt Sydal Will Face Rich Swann In Mexico City
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7m57goor_fg
Sydal confronted Swann in the back last night. Swann was offering words of encouragement to Fallah Bah when Sydal said he was in no position to be giving anyone advice.
Swann then challenged Sydal to a match in Mexico City.
Allie’s Not Done With Su Yung, Tessa Blanchard Not Done With Allie
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8XVM461zEU
Allie cut a promo in the back saying she doesn’t like Tessa Blanchard but rescued her last week because she promised she wouldn’t allow Su Yung to lock anyone else in a coffin.
Blanchard also cut a promo in the back saying she sees right through Allie and that Allie is just coming for her title.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JyiUyHyIdZQ
On another note, Allie’s Demon friend Rosemary has been insinuating she could be back sooner rather than later.
Keep her reeling, Bunny.. we’ll test that Reign of Terror against a brand new battle meatsuit at full strength soon enough..
The Shadow will not see Ündeath run unchecked any longer..
Katarina was in single’s action tonight. Joe Hendry and Grado opted to interrupt the match, however and played a special video to Katarina on the big screen.
Hendry has mentioned that Impact Wrestling gives him a lot of creative freedom with his videos. With that in mind, it’s likely Hendry himself came up with the idea to poke fun at an old WWE angle Katarina was involved in.
This resulted in Alisha Edwards rolling up Katarina for a quick 3-count. Katarina might be a little upset with Scarlett Bordeaux for what the Smoke Show said to her men.
King Is Trying To Provoke LAX
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mW51wBOY3Xk
LAX defeated the Frat
LAX defeated local wrestlers the Frat. After the match, however, King and the OGZ attempted to provoke Konnan and LAX.
Last week a ceasefire was ordered by a crime family boss. The ceasefire ends at Bound for Glory.
WWE is reportedly negotiating once again with powerful Austrian heavyweight wrestler WALTER. According to the Wrestling Observer, the two sides are close to striking a deal and the talks have gotten serious.
“The situation with Walter is back alive,” Dave Meltzer wrote. “His name came up several times this past week and the belief was that talks had gotten serious between the sides.”
The report continued to say WWE was interested in bringing WALTER in at the same time as Keith Lee this year but his WXW contract in Germany prevented this from happening.
WALTER To WWE?
It should be noted, however, that the last time there were rumors of WALTER going to WWE, the wrestler himself denied them.
WWE often makes an attempt to keep the rumors under wraps until the wrestler is ringside at Takeover.
WALTER is the current Defiant Internet Champion, OTT Champion, PWG Champion, and Progress World Champion. Last year, his match with Zack Sabre Jr from October 21st was awarded a 5-star rating by Meltzer. The PWI ranked WALTER as the 77th top male single’s wrestler of 2018.
Do you want to see WALTER in WWE? Or should he stay where he is?
The early betting odds for the WWE Hell In A Cell PPV have been released.
Some of the more notable odds include AJ Styles favored to retain his WWE Title at -165 over Samoa Joe, who is +125, Daniel Bryan & Brie Bella at -425 favored to beat The Miz & Maryse at +305 in a mixed tag team match, and WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns favored to retain his title Braun Strowman in a Hell in a Cell match.
The Hell in a Cell pay-per-view event takes place on Sunday, September 16, 2018 in San Antonio, Texas at the AT&T Center and will air on the WWE Network and some traditional pay-per-view outlets. As a reminder – indicates the favorites while + means the underdog.
Hell in a Cell Betting Odds
Daniel Bryan & Brie Bella -425 (favorite) vs. The Miz & Maryse +305 – Mixed Tag Team Match
WWE Champion AJ Styles -165 (favorite) vs. Samoa Joe +125 WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns -365 (favorite) vs. Braun Strowman +255 – Hell In A Cell Match
WWE RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey -900 (favorite) vs. Alexa Bliss +500 Jeff Hardy +260 vs. Randy Orton -380 (favorite) – Hell In A Cell Match
WWE SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair 4/7 (favorite) vs. Becky Lynch 5/4
What are your thoughts on these early betting odds for the show?
Impact Wrestling is holding their next round of television tapings this week from Mexico City from the Fronton Mexico entertainment center. The first round of tapings were held on Thursday night. Complete results from that show are below, courtesy of TNAmarkFromIndia.
Another set of tapings are being held tonight (Friday). After the second round of tapings, Impact will have television episodes filmed through Bound For Glory.
– Petey Williams def. Jack Evans, Trevor Lee, & Puma King
– King & The OGz beat up a local wrestler. They call out LAX but they don’t show.
– Faby Apache def. Alisha Edwards. After the match, Josh Mathews interviews Faby, who challenges Tessa Blanchard.
– oVe (Sami Callihan, Dave Crist, & Jake Crist) vs. Brian Cage, Fenix, & Pentagon Jr. went to a no contest when Callihan shoved the referee and the two teams continued brawling after.
– Austin Aries(c) (w/ Killer Kross & Moose) def. Texano to retain the Impact Worlds Championship. After the match, Johnny Impact and Eddie Edwards return to brawl with Aries/Kross/Moose.
– LAX (Ortiz & Santana w/ Konnan) def. The Desi Hit Squad (Rohit Raju & Gursinder Singh w/ The Great Gama Singh). After the match, King & The OGz appear on the screen with old photos of Konnan. King talks about how Konnan lost his mask years ago and they end up burning a Konnan mask.
– Allie & Kiera Hogan def. Su Yung & The Undead Maid of Honor
– LA Park def. Eli Drake via countout.
– The Lucha Brothers (Fenix & Pentagon Jr.) def. Matt Sydal & Rich Swann. After the match, oVe try to attack but Brian Cage comes out to stop them.
– Moose & Killer Kross (w/ Austin Aries) def. Eddie Edwards & Johnny Impact when Moose pinned Eddie after Aries interfered.
Former American Ninja Warrior star and current Mae Young Classic competitor Kacy Catanzaro recently spoke to ESPN. Catanzaro talked about transitioning into a WWE career, competing in the Mae Young Classic, and Triple H suggesting she could be a heel.
The most difficult part of transitioning to WWE
Catanzaro said there are a lot of things about wrestling that are different from what the traditional athlete is taught. “Everything that you do in a wrestling match is something that your body doesn’t want to do,” she said.
She admitted that it has taken time to adapt to what it means to be a pro wrestler. Your body does not naturally want to take big falls or flat-back bumps. She said it has been ‘really cool’ to learn the style of pro wrestling, but reiterated it’s been difficult.
How she feels about competing in the Mae Young Classic?
Catanzaro said Mae Young is a huge figure in the history of pro wrestling. She was a very tough lady who didn’t care what people expected women’s’ roles to be. She never let the challenges get to her, she didn’t accept the way things were. She pushed the envelope, sacrificed and broke barriers for the women who would follow her.
“Mae Young, along with a lot of other women, they sacrificed so much and everything that they have done has made me sitting here be possible because of what they endured and what they didn’t accept and because of all of the hardships that they went through.
“They did all of that and now I get to be here when there is this amazing women’s revolution and when we do get to be part of those main events that they didn’t get to. It’s amazing to see that process and be a part of it now and know that they paved the way for us and we, being here, get to blaze the path for the future women.”
Triple H insisting that she work heel:
Before she started training at the WWE Performance Center, she assumed that she would be a babyface. She considers herself a nice person and felt that being a babyface was a natural fit. But Triple H told her, “I think I’m nice too, but I made a lot of my career by being a heel”.
She now sees the chance to work as a heel as really fun. “Honestly, for me, I feel like there’s so many times that you have those moments where that heel wants to come out of you in normal life, but you decide to be a good person so you don’t let it come out. I feel like I have those moments a lot, and I’ll know these are my two choices.”
“I could flip out on this person or I could be the bigger person and walk away. Walking away is what I usually try and choose, but I think it would be fun to be in a situation where I could choose the other one and to be a little bit “heelish.””
Former WWE World Heavyweight Champion Batista was recently interviewed by SPORTbible. “The Animal” talked about several professional wrestling topics, including the grind of being on the road with WWE. Batista said he has always had a great work ethic, but it skyrocketed after working with WWE:
“I also think that being on the road with WWE is such a grind,” Batista said. “It really just developed my work ethic, I always had a strong work ethic but nothing like after I came out of the WWE.
“It really prepared me to just tolerate anything. You have to have a really thick skin there to begin with, but you also have to just pull your weight and be willing to sacrifice.”
While the travel schedule may improve one’s work ethic, it may strain the relationships of talents with their loved ones. Batista said that he had to make a lot of family sacrifices, including one of his marriages:
“I have sacrificed a lot,” Batista said. “I have been through a lot of injuries, a lot of lost time with family. Throughout my wrestling career I just… I was never home. I lost a marriage with someone who was a very, very close friend of mine. We still remain friends, but just never being home just tore our marriage apart.”
