John Cena has addressed his loss to The Undertaker at WrestleMania 34.
As seen at WrestleMania 34 at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana on the WWE Network back in April, The Undertaker did, in fact, accept Cena’s challenge to a match after weeks of speculation that it may not happen as The Deadman was last seen on TV at this point back in January.
Before the match started, the referee ran down to the ring and told Cena something which made him upset. Cena got out of the ring, the lights went off and Elias walked out instead of The Undertaker. Elias walked down to the ring while cutting a promo. Cena ended up hitting an AA to Elias. Then a spotlight hit the ring with Taker’s hat and jacket with a lightning bolt hitting it. Lights got out then back on with the hat and jacket gone. The gong hit and Taker’s music played. Taker came out as his deadman gimmick instead of the rumored biker gimmick. Taker won the match in very quick fashion.
Cena recently spoke with Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated where he talked about the match as well as gave some praise to The Miz, who beat Cena for the WWE Title at WrestleMania 27. “I did not do well in this match. My ‘WrestleMania Moment’ was to spend the time in the crowd and not do well in a very short performance, but I loved it because it got the job done. The focus was not me, the focus was someone else. Often times, we look at things so selfishly, asking, ‘What’s in it for me?’ Well, what was in it for me was the chance to reintroduce a WWE icon. I had to stretch the suspension of disbelief to its breaking point to do it, but it was awesome. Every single week, the crowd would chant at the top of its lungs and no one thought I would be sitting in the crowd at WrestleMania, but I was able to do that. I was able to go out and be handily defeated in three minutes and bring back an icon. “That is a message to any performer who is complaining about their spot or that, creatively, they have nothing going for them. I’ve been first, I’ve been in the middle, I’ve been last. I just want to go out there and do something. There are a few performers who share my ideology, with The Miz being one of them. That’s why he is skyrocketing into a new bracket as we speak, and I can’t wait to see what he does next week. But there is also a lot of disdain and complacency. You should be happy with any sort of role, even if it is getting your tail kicked in.”
Cena continued by commenting on the build to his WrestleMania 34 match against Taker by stating, “I loved it, I truly did, and I loved it for so many reasons. Our job is to entertain the audience, so that’s number one. The story was amazingly unbelievable to the public, with a healthy, marquee superstar admitting, ‘Hey, WrestleMania spots are earned. I’ve been on a losing streak, I’ve exhausted every option, so I shouldn’t go to WrestleMania, especially with the flux of new talent.’ But the fans, thinking they know that John Cena is a WWE staple and that I didn’t have another project that same day, thought there was no way I wouldn’t have had a match. Even if people did or didn’t attach themselves to the story, I liked the fact that people still remained interested.”
The sports entertainment company is not advertising Cena for any upcoming events. He was last seen when he beat Triple H in the opening match on the main card of the Greatest Royal Rumble pay-per-view event in April.
What are your thoughts on Cena’s comments? Sound off in the comment section below.
Former World Championship Wrestling Heavyweight Champion, David Arquette, has announced he is returning to pro-wrestling.
Arquette held the title from April 25th, 2000 to May 7th, 2000. He won the title from Diamond Dallas Page during a tag-team match in which he and Page were partners and defeated Jeff Jarrett and Eric Bischoff. The stipulation in the match had been whoever scored the pinfall also won the title.
Arquette then lost the title to Jeff Jarrett at Slamboree 2000. The match was a triple threat against DDP and Jarrett inside a triple-tiered cage. Arquette turned on Page during the match and helped Jarrett win the title. He donated everything he earned from WCW to the families of Owen Hart and Brian Pillman. Arquette is said to be a nice guy and a huge wrestling fan.
Now it appears Arquette is ready to return to pro-wrestling. He made the announcement during an appearance on the Wendy Williams Show, though it’s not altogether clear when/if fans can expect to see the 46-year-old booked on any upcoming wrestling shows.
“I’d like to announce my return to professional wrestling!” Arquette proclaimed.
“I was promoting a movie I did called Ready to Rumble and it just so happened that I won the championship,” Arquette said. “(Fans) blamed me for ruining WCW, it’s no longer around and maybe I did have something to do with it.”
Arquette appears to have adopted a new gimmick as well. His new name is David “the Magic Man” Arquette.
“For 18 years, I’ve been trolled on the internet,” he continued. “And I just want to bring some respect back to my name!”
Check out his appearance on the Wendy Williams Show below:
WWE Hall Of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin recently talked to The Big Show on an episode of his podcast, The Steve Austin Show, to talk about several professional wrestling topics. During their conversation, Show revealed that he actually advised former WWE Intercontinental Champion Kofi Kingston not to do the New Day gimmick with Big E and Xavier Woods.
He said he told Kingston he didn’t need to drag himself down with “a couple of NXT idiots right now.”:
“When Kofi told me he was doing that New Day gimmick, I pulled Kofi to the side about four feet from Xavier Woods and Big E and asked him, ‘what the hell are you doing?'” Big Show recalled, “because [Austin] know[s] how [he] would talk to me about business and Taker would talk to me about business.
“I’ve learned and I’ve passed that along to guys that I help. And I’m not polite about it. I’m blunt, direct, and to-the-point. When it comes to business, it’s serious. Do you know what I mean? So I pull Kofi about four feet to the side and [ask], ‘so what are you doing with these two numb nuts’ and he goes, ‘yeah, it’s a thing’ and I said, ‘damn, Kofi, you were Intercontinental Champion [and] you’re on your way to having a run with the big strap.
“You don’t need to drag yourself down with a couple of NXT idiots right now. You’re really probably going to hurt yourself. You’re pulling yourself out of that world title run. The Intercontinental Championship is a pretty big deal. You keep yourself in that loop and you’ll get a shot at the big one.’ He goes, ‘naw, I appreciate it, Show, but we’ve got a good thing going here.’ I said, ‘alright, man. I’m just telling you that running around with these two idiots isn’t going to help you get over.'”
A few weeks later, after seeing the three in action, Show admitted that his initial perceptions were wrong:
“I said, ‘forget every damn thing I said. What you guy’s’ve got is absolute friggin magic. I love it. Forget every damn thing I said.'” Big Show shared, “Woods loves that story. I call Woods my son now. I’ve adopted him as one of my wrestling sons, so he’s one of my sons now.”
You can listen to The Big Show on The Steve Austin Show by clicking this link here.
In recent weeks, there has been some mild controversy over Vince Russo being specifically excluded from Starrcast. Another podcast host has now fired shots at Cody for how Starrcast is being organized as well.
The producers of the podcast “Wrestling Soup” are booked for Starrcast despite the fact the hosts have been critical of Cody in the past. Cody used their inclusion at Starrcast recently in a Tweet.
I'm not barring people like @WrestlingSoup from an event because they don't like me/disagree with my body-of-work. All In is for everybody. Glad to get them a payday
"The Cody Rhodes Show" on the other hand is the following week & its only for genuine Trek' fans and husky lovers https://t.co/beYkt6iYES
Cody then clarified that talent at Starrcast are being given an opportunity to earn new fans.
Opportunity I suppose. If I was to tally up all my expenses for a single show versus my payday, you'd be quite surprised(rentals, hotels, gym/hair/tan, gear). The chance for more exposure and to grow your brand. To go from a couple hundred fans to thousands is what draws me.
“Cody, this is the same scam that promoters (music, wrestling, etc) have ran for YEARS,” Wrestling Soup’s host said in a Tweet. “It’s an intangible promise therefore basically a lie. I was respecting your hustle till you said “I’m trying to get people paydays” and just NOW you denied making people pay. Wtf man?”
“I’m not seeing your argument,” Cody responded. “No scam ha. I’m not the operations manager of Starrcast, but ill personally refund any expense your team/brand has incurred or I’ll refund you and have somebody else take the spot. All In is meant to be fun, that’s all!”
Are Cody and the Young Bucks Teasing CM Punk Will Be At All-In?
Another fan then accused Cody and the Bucks from attempting to profit off of the talent booked for Starrcast. He also addressed the idea that CM Punk was involved in producing All-In.
Punk isn't related to our event or Starrcast ha. Charging?! Whaaaaa ha
With the latest Star Wars movies in theaters, Cody recently ranked every Star Wars movie from best to worst. Cody is a noted Star Wars fan.
1- Empire
2- Last Jedi
3- Force awakens
4- Return Of the Jedi
5- Revenge of the Sith
6- New Hope
7- Solo
8- Clone Wars
9- Phantom Menace
10- Rogue one
11- Rebels
12- Attack of the clones
Cody most recently competed on Ring of Honor’s Honor United tour. After defeating Kenny King in London, it was revealed Cody will challenge for the ROH Championship before All-In. If Cody holds the ROH World Championship come September 1st, his match for the NWA World Heavyweight belt will be a title vs title match.
On a recent edition of WWE Hall Of Famer Booker T’s Houston Sports Radio 610 show, Heated Conversations, he discussed former WWE Champion CM Punk’s upcoming UFC fight against Mike Jackson.
Punk left WWE back in early 2014 and soon announced he would begin training for a career in mixed martial arts (MMA) after signing a multi-fight deal with the UFC. He lost his debut fight via first round submission back in 2016 to Mickey Gall.
Now he will make his second go of it on the main card of the UFC 225 pay-per-view (PPV) on June 9th. Booker T said that if he loses his second fight in the UFC, he believes Punk will be at the upcoming “All In” event with Cody Rhodes and The Young Bucks, beginning his return to pro wrestling:
“I think he’ll be at All In,” said Booker. “I think if he lose this fight, he’ll be at All In, with the Young Bucks [and] Cody Rhodes, making his way back to the pro wrestling world. I really think CM Punk [misses] the wrestling world. I just think he had a bad taste in his mouth, but he can get it back.”
You can listen to Booker T on Heated Conversations by clicking this link here.
Former WCW President Eric Bischoff recently covered WWE Hall Of Famer Bret Hart’s run in WCW on his podcast, 83 Weeks, with Conrad Thompson. Bischoff first discussed whether or not he wanted Hart to come into WCW with the WWE Championship:
“There were probably two or three different conversations about that. The one conversation that I distinctly remember. I remember that I was in Wyoming. I remember it because my cell phone went off and I was in a cell area that was really sketchy, where I was around a post office in the middle of nowhere.
“I remember going inside the post office to use a pay phone, and I remember standing there thinking, why am I having this conversation again? It is not that important of a deal. I convinced Bret Hart one last time do not worry about the Championship belt. In my mind, I remember thinking this at the time, what I thought Bret Hart should do is given the fact that he is Bret Hart, and you know, Stu Hart and the Hart family legacy, the tradition of the business, what I wanted Bret to do is just pass the belt on.
“Do the right thing. Shake Vince McMahon’s hand. Leave on good terms. The business; the audience would have had more respect for him than to hold on to the belt because he didn’t want to lose in Montreal, Quebec Canada [Survivor Series 1997] because he is a Canadian. That, to me didn’t make any sense.
“Worrying about it didn’t make any sense to me because Bret Hart was coming to WCW. The fans were sophisticated enough to know that if he lost a match it wasn’t going to diminish who Bret Hart was. That logic from talent never made any sense to me. That is when you get sucked in to the work where you work yourself. I tried to explain that to Bret Hart. It just didn’t matter to me”.
He also said that he had a conversation with Hulk Hogan about Hart coming into WCW beforehand:
“I talked to Hulk Hogan. I talked to Kevin Nash, Scott Hall. I talked with Ric Flair It would have been kind of standard operating procedure to have conversations to pick the brains of the top guys that he would have been working with. To make sure there was no chemistry issues, or landmines that I needed to be aware of.
“If there were I would have to deal with them prior to him coming on board not afterwards. I would have probably listened to a number of people suggest best possible ways to take advantage of Bret Hart, including Hulk Hogan. Hulk had a long history with Bret Hart, as did Ric Flair. They had a long history with Bret. They knew Bret Hart better than I did. I had never worked with Bret.
“Quite frankly, I never followed him much in WWF. He was never really my cup of tea. I appreciated and understood why fans loved him. I understood the qualities that he brought, but he wasn’t one of the guys where I watched him and thought to myself that I couldn’t wait to have that guy on the roster.
“I was interested in the perspectives of guys like Ric Flair, Roddy Piper, Hulk Hogan, who did know Bret at a much different level than I could possibly know him.”
Bischoff also revealed why it took so long for Hart to finally make his WCW debut:
“Why wouldn’t I just drop everything and take in a guy who had a certain amount of time of a no-compete clause; had a broken hand, and just kind of drop everything and throw him in the middle of something without any real planning, backstory and throw it against the wall in hopes that it would stick? Is that the question? That is the kind of prevailing critique that I hear often; how can you take a guy like Bret Hart, which by the way, he wasn’t drawing, there is a reason why Vince McMahon let him go.
“It wasn’t because he was making Vince McMahon money hand over fist. One of the things that I liked—look at what we did with Sting and Hulk Hogan. I wanted long term plans. One of the reasons I thrust myself in creative, and I may have said this to you before, if I didn’t I apologize, but I was never comfortable with creative. I was comfortable with the business side of it.
“I understood the business side of the business pretty well. What I didn’t know I could pretty easily understand and figure out, but that creative side was the voodoo side that I never got close to. I never got close to the creative in AWA; not only was I not close to it, I wasn’t allowed to be in a room close to it when they were talking about creative. That is how tightly held Verne Gagne believed in kayfabing people who he didn’t believe needed to be in the process.
“I had zero exposure to creative in WCW up until 1993, 1994. Even then I was at a distance. I would talk to Dusty Rhodes because he and I were tight and we would talk a little bit, and would explain to me the ideas that he had and sucked up as much as I could. I was fascinated by it quite honestly, but I was still never comfortable being the guy in the room that said yay or nay on something.
“Ric Flair, when I brought him in as a booker, I was never in that room. I would come in and out. There were certain things that I had to be aware of as Executive Vice President, depending on the timeline was of the company and being responsible financially for things.
“I had to have an idea of where we were going, what the pay per views were going to look like, how the cards are being advertised six months before pay per views and all that kind of crap, but I didn’t sit in a room with a team filled with guys who had hundreds of years of more experience than I did and try to influence their creative decisions. I tried to stay out of that. It wasn’t until later on that I inserted myself in that process.”
Ultimately, Bischoff acknowledged the wide belief that Hart’s run with WCW was a failure:
“I think it all goes back to the very beginning. I think it is fair for Bret Hart and fans of Bret Hart to suggest that there was never really a long term plan with Bret. That is fair. Bret came in rather abruptly. We didn’t have a long time to really lay out in a thoughtful way where we can balance different options and really creatively do the best job that we can do. Even with the time that we had, we didn’t do a great job.
“I didn’t do a great job, so I think if you go back to the very beginning with all the things that were going on; with the pressures of WCW Thunder and some of the choices I was trying to make, and the pressures were we getting from WWE, and the pressure we were getting from our own company, and the fact that they were gutting our budget, all of those things were throwing us off of our game, and a lot of that had to do with the reason why, so we didn’t have a good plan, we just didn’t, and that is fair for Bret, and for fans of Bret, but I will also say that Bret Hart didn’t contribute.
“He didn’t try. Despite the ‘hero’s journey’ and the amazingly, Steven Spielberg-ish where he single handedly, against all odds created in Toronto, Canada so that his fans, the multitude of fans, who stood outside in the freezing cold as Bret Hart had to walk over the almost comatose body of the head booker only to prevail in the ring and to prove to all of the bookers and to everybody else that Bret Hart had the keys to the kingdom that night, but despite all of that, Bret Hart didn’t really contribute as much as Bret Hart could have contributed to Bret Hart’s own success.
“In his own legacy. Right now, Bret Hart’s legacy is a bitter, broken guy who wants to blame everybody from Vince McMahon to Eric Bischoff, to Ric Flair, Shawn Michaels, to Dean Malenko for God’s sake for all of the things that went wrong in his career. Regardless of all the things I did wrong, that is on Bret Hart.”
You can listen to Bischoff on 83 Weeks by clicking this link here.
SmackDown Live star Daniel Bryan recently did an interview with Inside The Ropes to talk about several professional wrestling topics. In the interview, Bryan discusses his experience working in Saudi Arabia at the Greatest Royal Rumble.
Bryan shared a story he had with Titus O’Neil shortly after O’Neil’s embarrassing fall on his way to the ring during the Rumble. Bryan said Titus sort of took out his embarrassment on his face when he got into the ring:
“Titus slides into the ring and punches me in the face like really hard. He’s got these big, huge hands and it’s like ‘boom.’ I’m like ‘woah, what happened?’ I was like enraged and I was was going to kick him in the face.
“I glance up and you see the tron and they played it like twelve times in a row of him tripping, falling and sliding under the ring. I’m like ‘you know what? I understand. I’m going to go over here,’”
There has been a longstanding rumor going around surrounding former Cruiserweight Champion Enzo Amore’s release from WWE earlier this year.
It was speculated that Amore was released from his contract, not because of the sexual assault accusations against him, but because he didn’t notify WWE when he was alerted of the investigation by police.
Earlier this week Amore came back into the public eye when he dropped a diss rap against his accuser, and people who had been doubting him. He now seems to have responded to the rumors going around regarding his release from WWE.
Amore claimed that he wasn’t contacted by the police prior to January 22nd, which was the day he was suspended by WWE, putting a dagger in the theory that he was released because he failed to alert WWE of the investigation:
I hate to be the 1 to pull the nipple out of the baby’s mouth.. but NO. I WAS NOT CONTACTED ONCE BY THE POLICE BEFORE JAN. 22nd. #bigFACTS
There has also been some speculation from fans online that Amore could file a wrongful termination lawsuit against WWE as a result. We’ll have to wait and see what happens.
WWE fans were completely baffled when the main event of WrestleMania 34, between Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns for the Universal Title, didn’t go as they had been expecting for the past year.
The stage seemed to be set for Reigns to be the one to dethrone Brock Lesnar after both men had become the only people in history to defeat The Undertaker at WrestleMania. The Beast had been successfully defending his Universal Title all year, getting the pinfall victory after hitting one F5 every time.
Reigns, however, was able to kick out of several, but after Lesnar hit a sixth F5 he got the three count on Reigns and left New Orleans still the Universal Champion.
Bryan Alvarez of Wrestling Observer Live recently explained why the plans were changed at WrestleMania. It was said McMahon had a one-year plan that included Lesnar beating all his adversaries all year by hitting just one F5. At WrestleMania, Lesnar would hit an F5 on Reigns and The Big Dog would kick out before hitting a Spear on The Beast for the win. This remained the plan until the week before WrestleMania, when Vince changed his mind. Instead, Vince came up with the storyline that Lesnar retains his title and Reigns blames The Authority for keeping him back.
As of this writing, Brock Lesnar has been WWE Universal Champion for 423 days.
Discussion: How do you feel about the current Universal Title picture and the last-second change to the WrestleMania 34 main event?
A fan recently Tweeted at RAW commentator Corey Graves, suggesting he and his fellow commentators shut up when Intercontinental Champion Seth Rollins is making his way to the ring.
Graves quickly responded to the fan, destroying him by saying “I don’t come to your job and tell you when and how to apply the mustard.”:
Dear Stephen,
We are LITERALLY paid to talk. I don’t come to your job and tell you when and how to apply the mustard.
The fan has since deleted his Tweet, and has either deleted his account or changed his handle.
No Way Jose Teases Change To His Look
Recent NXT call-up No Way Jose has a signature look that’s part of his appeal on Monday Night RAW. The leader of the conga line comes out ready to dance while sporting his signature afro hairdo. Jose recently teased on his Instagram story that he could be getting rid of the afro.
A fan on Twitter took a screenshot of the image, which shows a lot of Jose’s hair cut off:
WWE has revealed the brackets for the upcoming UK Tournament.
On Wednesday, May 30, 2018, the sports entertainment company posted a video of Cathy Kelley showing the match placements in this tournament as well as announcing that there would be a Bracketology Special airing on the WWE Network at 8pm EST on Thursday, June 8th to hype the tournament.
WWE NXT’s live events as part of the 2018 Download Music Festival in Great Britain on 6/8 through 6/10 will host the opening rounds of the tournament.
The sports entertainment company will then present two live WWE UK Championship broadcast on the WWE Network. 6/18 will feature the tournament finals to determine who will challenge face UK Champion Pete Dunne for the strap on 6/19 on the WWE Network live from Royal Albert Hall.
The rest of this event will feature WWE UK competitors facing WWE NXT stars. You can check out the brackets here:
First Round Matches (Left Side)
– Zack Gibson vs. Amir Jordan
– Drew Gulak vs. Jack Gallagher
– Flash Morgan Webster vs. James Drake
– Tyson T-Bone vs. Jordan Devlin
First Round Matches (Right Side)
– Tucker vs. Joe Coffey
– Dave Mastiff vs. Kenny Williams
– Ligero vs. Travis Banks
– Ashton Smith vs. Joseph Conners
The wait is OVER because we're revealing ENTIRE @WWEUKCT Tournament bracket!
The court trial that has been in the making for four years has finally begun May 29th, 2018.
Crook County, Illinois was home to the trial. WWE’s doctor, Chris Amann is seeking $1 million dollars in damages from CM Punk and Colt Cabana explicit comments toward his practice from the “Art of Wrestling” podcast that occurred back in November 2014.
According to the PWInsider, Amann was “short and curt” during his testimony. Amann was said to be very upset from the comments made by Punk as it trashed his reputation.
The jury listened to the infamous podcast in its entirety and according to Chicago Tribune reporter Gregory Pratt, Punk seemed to be very serious throughout the entire trial, but chuckled and grin at certain points during the podcast listening.
The trial is to resume on May 30th, 2018.
Cabana Missing Live Events
Mr. Shake and Bake Colt 45 is going to take some time off from wrestling to attend some court dates.
The CM Punk and Colt Cabana vs. Chris Amann court trial has already begun and it’s forcing Cabana to pull out of his live events.
I’m sorry to the fans of @Compoundpw. Due to mandatory court obligations I’ll be unable to attend the show this Friday… I’ll still be in NY for @ringofhonor doing commentary though. Thanks.
November 2014 is the month that CM Punk and Colt Cabana collaborated on Cabana’s podcast “The Art of Wrestling” and would attract the media of CM Punk’s grief with the WWE. In the podcast, Punk would go on to mention WWE doctor Chris Amann, and how his treatment for his staph infection was more detrimental than helpful. Comments like those are what sparked the lawsuit by Amann with WWE covering his legal fees.
Time will tell how long the trial will last and if it will continue to cause Cabana to cancel more wrestling appearances.
The baddest woman on the planet has her first singles title match at MITB, but WWE officials are reportedly not sold that she’s ready to be working full-length singles matches.
Original Plans For European Tour
With the European tour behind us, it was originally planned for Rousey to face Mickie James during the duration of the tour. According to Wrestling Observer Radio, WWE officials felt that Rousey was “not ready” for singles competition and opted to stick her in six women tag matches for the remaining tour.
Rousey was scheduled to face Mickie James in singles matches on the WWE European tour that just wrapped up but plans changed at the last minute and Rousey teamed with Ember Moon and Natalya to defeat Mickie, Ruby Riott and Liv Morgan in six-woman matches. Dave Meltzer said that the matches were changed because officials did not feel like Rousey was ready for a singles match with Mickie.
What’s next for Rousey?
With that in mind, it seems that the WWE has jumped the gun by placing Rousey in a title match at MITB. While her Wrestlemania/in-ring debut was considered a classic by many, that match was a mix-tag and included great ring technicians such as Kurt Angle and Triple H but, was heavily scripted move for move. Her singles debut against Nia Jax is expected to draw attention due to the fact that John Cena or Brock Lesnar are not on the card.
While there is some time between now and MITB, it will be interesting to see how Rousey will fair against the current Raw Women’s Champion.
Impact wrestling will host two days of television tapings this weekend from Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The city is home to Scott D’Amore’s long-running Border City Wrestling promotion. Border City Wrestling has long been a top feeder promotion to bigger organizations especially during periods in which D’Amore has been working with Impact Wrestling.
Tickets for the tapings are still available although all floor seats have been sold. Impact will then head to Mississauga, ON, Canada on Sunday to film a One Night Only PPV.
Confirmed Matches for Upcoming Impact Wrestling Tapings
The following matches are being advertised for the first night of tapings on June 1st, 2018:
Austin Aries vs Aiden Prince
Matt Sydal and Kongo Kong vs Reverso and A1
Dezmond Xavier vs Phil Atlas
The following matches are confirmed for the 2nd night of tapings held on June 2:
A1 and Moose vs Austin Aries and Phil Atlas
Fenix vs Rich Swann
New wrestlers debuting during the tapings:
Aiden Prince:
Prince is a local wrestler from Windsor who has been a pro since 2012. In addition to wrestling with BCW, Prince is active in the Toronto independent wrestling scene. He has competed with Smash Wrestling and Greektown Wrestling in Toronto.
Prince has also wrestled on Impact Wrestling One Night Only PPVs run in association with BCW. Prince also wrestles for Santino Marella’s Destiny Wrestling promotion in Mississauga.
El Reverso
Another local Windsor talent, El Reverso wrestled from 2004 to 2008 with BCW before retiring. He recently ended a nine-year retirement and has been competing in Windsor and the surrounding area.
A1
A former member of TNA’s Team Canada stable in 2006, A1 is a long time veteran. As with El Reverso, he retired in 2008 during a low period for the business. He returned to the independent scene in 2015, however, wrestling for various promotions. Border City wrestling has always remained his home, however.
Phil Atlas
33-year-old Phil Atlas has also been a regular for Border City Wrestling, and Destiny Wrestling, which are basically both feeder systems for Impact at this point. He’s also wrestled for the Toronto promotion, Superkick’d, and several other Canadian independent companies.
The current Executive Co-Chairman of 21st-Century Fox, Rupert Murdoch, is believed to have been the creative mind behind the pitch which landed his network WWE Smackdown.
According to a recent report from the Hollywood Reporter, Murdoch let WWE know that their competitors at NBC (USA Networks parent company) are embarrassed by sports entertainment on their network. This despite the ratings and revenue WWE brings in for them.
In the end, the USA Network was willing to let Smackdown go to another network. The Fox Network was then willing to do the same with the UFC after landing Smackdown.
Fox Pitch to WWE Centered Around “New Fox”
Fox recently cleared up a lot of budget by canceling several sitcoms and scripted programs. It is believed that with most of their assets being sold to Disney or Comcast, sports and live programming will become the most integral piece of the company’s broadcast schedule.
The report continued to say that the meeting between Stephanie McMahon, Triple H, and Fox executives concluded in under 3 hours. Within that time, the two sides had reached a handshake agreement and a new relationship had been forged.
The 81-year-old Murdoch reportedly told WWE that NBC was embarrassed by pro-wrestling. On the other hand, Murdoch said Fox plans to make them a key part of their lineup. WWE would fit right in with their plans for the new Fox. He promised WWE that Smackdown promos will air across sports programming on every night of the week. Fox also said they will produce a weekly studio show on FS1. This show will likely be similar to what they have done with UFC in the past.
In a private phone call with Vince McMahon, Murdoch is also believed to have said the new agreement would usher in the beginning of a marriage between the Murdochs and the McMahons. Both McMahon and Murdoch view themselves as rebels who built media empires.
WWE and Fox’s agreement will begin in October 2019. It covers the period from October 1, 2019, all the way to 2024.
The early betting odds for some of the WWE Money in the Bank matches have been released.
Braun Strowman is the early favorite to win the men’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match as oddsmakers have placed him at +350 while in the women’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match, Ember Moon is favored at +300.
It should be noted that WWE has yet to reveal which member of The New Day will compete in the upcoming men’s ladder match.
The Money in the Bank pay-per-view event takes place on Sunday, June 17, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois at the Allstate Arena and will air on the WWE Network and some traditional pay-per-view outlets. Both Raw and SmackDown brands will be featured. Here are the betting odds:
Men’s Money In The Bank Ladder Match Braun Strowman: +350 The Miz: +500 Rusev: +500 Samoa Joe: +700 Finn Balor: +700 Kevin Owens: +950 Bobby Roode: +1500 Big E: +1000 Kofi Kingston: +1250 Xavier Woods: +1500
Women’s Money In The Bank Ladder Match Ember Moon: +300 Alexa Bliss: +450 Charlotte Flair: +450 Becky Lynch: +750 Natalya: +750 Naomi: +1500 Lana: +1750 Sasha Banks: +2750
WWE Title Last Man Standing Match Shinsuke Nakamura: +130 AJ Styles: -150 WWE Raw Women’s Title Match Nia Jax: +150 Ronda Rousey: -170 WWE SmackDown Women’s Title Match Carmella: +130 Asuka: -150 Singles Match Roman Reigns: -350 Jinder Mahal: +300 WWE SmackDown Tag Team Title Match The Bludgeon Brothers: -750 Karl Anderson/Doc Gallows: +600
What are your thoughts on these early betting odds? Sound off in the comment section below.
PWG has announced the full card for their next event, which is titled Threemendous V.
The show will be headlined by The Rascalz defending the PWG Tag Team Titles against The Young Bucks. Another big match on this card is ROH World Champion Dalton Castle taking on David Starr
The event is slated to take place on Friday, July 13 at the Globe Theatre in Los Angeles, California. Tickets for Threemendous V go on sale Thursday, June 14th at 8PM PDT. Here is the full card:
NXT this week will be a taped down from Full Sail University in Florida. The main event will feature an NXT Women’s Championship match. Shayna Baszler will defend her title against Dakota Kai.
In recent weeks, Kai has seemed to be quite intimidated by the champion. It will be interesting to see how she reacts to being in the ring with her tonight.
NXT Preview 5/30/18
Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa Segment
Gargano will face Ciampa in a street fight at Takeover: Chicago.
Candice LeRae does not appear to support Gargano’s decision to continue the rivalry, however.
We should get an update on this rivalry tonight.
Bianca Belair Sit Down Interview
Belair is becoming one of the most highly featured members of the NXT women’s division.
She’ll take part in a sit-down interview tonight.
EC3 In Single’s Action
EC3 will be in single’s action tonight.
No opponent has been named for him, however. This will most likely be a squash match.
Aleister Black Appearance
Aleister Black will make an appearance in front of the live crowd at Full Sail tonight.
We don’t know who his opponent will be at Takeover: Chicago but wrestlers such as the Velveteen Dream, Lars Sullivan, and Ricochet appear to be in the mix.
NXT Women’s Championship Match Shayna Baszler (c) vs Dakota Kai
While this might seem like a big opportunity for the challenger, she has been rather intimidated by the champion in recent weeks.
Last week, Dakota appeared determined to conquer her fears and get in the ring with Baszler, however. Behind the scenes, Nikki Cross is said to be driving Kai’s new found confidence.
What will happen when Kai finally gets in the ring to conquer her fears, however, won’t be known until tonight.
Tonight we will find out who goes into Takeover: Chicago as the champion and will likely find out more about who will be the challenger on that show.
Mickie James On How It Feels To Be Part Of Women’s Revolution
Former Women’s Champion Mickie James returned to WWE during the Women’s Revolution and since then she has once again become an important part of the Women’s Division.
During a recent interview with WTVR, James talked about how being an inspiration to a lot of female talents on the current roster warms her heart.
While discussing the revolution of the female stars, the former Champion said that it’s humbling and exciting to be the part of this process:
“For these women to be able to do the one of a kind, first time ever types of matches…to come back and be a part of that is just very humbling. It’s exciting because you can just imagine what the generations to come are going to be able to do.’
Corey Graves On Fan’s Complain
A fan recently made a tweet complaining about the Raw Commentary team. In the tweet which has since been deleted, he said that the trio of Corey Graves, Michael Cole and Jonathan Coachman should stay quiet during the entrance of Seth Rollins.
Graves answered to this complaint via a tweet of his own, saying that they are paid to talk and discussed how he doesn’t go to the fan’s job, telling him how to do his work:
Dear Stephen,
We are LITERALLY paid to talk. I don’t come to your job and tell you when and how to apply the mustard.
While Kurt Angle has wrestled in several matches since his return at TLC last year, the Raw General Manager is yet to participate in a one on one bout on TV.
Though now the former World Champion is teasing a one on one match for the future, that too against a current Champion from the brand he manages.
Kurt recently shared a photo of himself and current Intercontinental Champion Seth Rollins on Instagram. In the photo as seen below, he asked who wants to see this bout and the post has started rumors of this match taking place in future:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BjV92YNBcIO/
Kurt Angle made his in-ring return during the TLC PPV last year where he replaced Roman Reigns and teamed up with the Shield’s Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins.
This trio went against the team of Braun Strowman, ‘The Bar’ Sheamus and Cesaro, Kane and The Miz in a 5-on-3 handicap match and the three won the bout despite the odds.
Since then Angle has wrestled in a number of more matches and he last competed in a standard bout at WrestleMania 34 where he teamed up with Ronda Rousey to face the duo of Triple H and Stephanie McMahon.
Though Kurt has yet to wrestle in a singles match on TV since his return and after this post, the question is if we will see this bout happening in the future?
205 Live has made some good progress in the past several months ever since Triple H took over the brand and it appears that the company has already taken the next step in the show’s evolution.
The cruiserweight talents have not been appearing on Raw in recent weeks and noticing it, a fan asked Dave Meltzer on twitter if the 205 Live stars will not be used on the Flagship Show at all now.
Answering the question, the Wrestling Journalist said that the lightweight stars are still part of the Red Brand’s Live Events, but implicated that the Cruiserweight Division is no longer part of the Televised Show itself:
@davemeltzerWON I may have missed a report on it but is 205 talent not going to be used on raw at all now? Are they officially their own brand?
Triple H took over the duties of running the Cruiserweight Exclusive Show afterward and since then the Game has made many changes to help stabilize the brand.
Now, this latest decision which has apparently been in effect for a while essentially makes 205 Live a brand of its own and it wouldn’t be a surprise if the company tries to run 205 Live House Shows again in future.
This week’s episode of SmackDown Live saw not one but two dark title matches with both United States Championship and the SmackDown Women’s Championship being defended during the show.
The first match which took place before SmackDown Live saw the United States Champion Jeff Hardy defending his title against Shelton Benjamin. Hardy won the bout in front of his home state crowd.
The second dark match of the night which took place after the show went off air saw Carmella defending the SmackDown Women’s Championship against Charlotte Flair prior to her title defense against Asuka at Money In The Bank.
The Champion was able to keep her title after she pinned Flair via a roll-up with her feet on the rope. After the bout, Charlotte attacked Carmella to send the crowd home happy.
Top Ten Raw Moments
This week’s episode of Monday Night Raw had many interesting matches and several noteworthy moments like Finn Balor slapping Braun Strowman.
The main event of the show saw a second chance gauntlet match which gave all the remaining women on the Raw roster a final chance to earn their spot at the upcoming Money In The Bank match.
The gauntlet match was won by Sasha Banks and after the show, WWE posted the following video of the top ten moments from this week’s episode of Raw from Richmond:
Many believe that John Cena is in the best phase of his career right now and in the past 2-3 years, he has helped in introducing a number of NXT Stars to the main roster.
Recently there has been another fellow from the development territory who has expressed his desire to face the Cenation Leader and it appears that Cena himself is interested in going against him too.
John took part in a Q&A session at the MegaCon Convention this past weekend and during the session; he was asked which current NXT Star he wants to face.
Answering the question, the 16 Time World Champion said that he puts the former TNA Star EC3 on the top of his list because he was with WWE before and he is now back:
“There is a fellow who just arrived and his name is EC3, I put him at the top of the list because he has been involved with WWE before, and he is now back, reinvigorated, revitalized, in good shape and is feeling confident about himself.”
What’s interesting to note here is that in a recent interview with WWE.com, EC3 had also made similar comments about John, saying that he wants to face the Former World Champion and “vanquish” him at WrestleMania.
Furthermore, the two have also been trading shots at each other on twitter, and it looks only a matter of time before we see these two WWE stars confronting each other.
The May 29th, 2018 episode of WWE SmackDown aired live in Raleigh, NC. The final participant in the men’s MITB Ladder Match was decided in the main event.
Samoa Joe came down to the ring to start off this week’s episode of SmackDown. Joe grabbed a ladder and set it up in the middle of the ring. Joe climbed the ladder and grabbed the briefcase that was suspended above the ring. He held up the briefcase and stated that after MITB, he will be smiling because he has secured his championship oppurtunity.
Joe vowed to release a campaign of anxiety and fear on SmackDown after he wins the MITB Ladder Match. Joe added that he will prove to Daniel Bryan that there are things that are far worse than forced retirement. He suggested that Bryan call Brie to tell their daughter that their father will be home for Money in the Bank, but he won’t be the same man.
Daniel Bryan interrupted and told Joe that there are certain lines you don’t cross. Bryan threatened to break Joe’s leg if he mentions his wife or daughter again. Daniel said that they don’t have to wait for the main event, they can fight right now. Big Cass’ music hit and he came down to the entrance ramp in a suit. Cass had a smile on his face as he hobbled down the ramp with a crutch.
Cass asked if Joe and Bryan were children on the playground. He then called Bryan and Joe “the shrimp and the blimp”. Big Cass bitched about Bryan getting another opportunity to qualify for the MITB Ladder Match. Cass added that he spoke to SmackDown GM Paige and claimed that she told him that match will not happen. Cass said that he will face Samoa Joe to qualify for the Ladder Match when he is cleared to compete.
Big Cass then said that he was already cleared and swung his crutch at Bryan. Daniel ducked and Cass hit Samoa Joe. Cass launched Bryan into the ladder and bashed Joe in the face with the MITB briefcase. Cass then paraded around the ring with briefcase as his theme hit.
Paige announced backstage that the qualifying match will now be Big Cass vs. Samoa Joe vs. Daniel Bryan.
Paige was confronted by Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville. Rose and Deville said that Paige was making a lot of mistakes and giving people opportunities that didn’t deserve it. They didn’t believe that Asuka deserved a title shot because she hasn’t accomplished anything on SmackDown. Paige then made a match between Asuka and Mandy Rose later tonight.
SmackDown Women’s Champion Carmella joined commentary for the match. As Asuka was making her entrance, Sonya Deville attacked Mandy Rose from behind. Asuka still wanted to have the match after the attack. Rose took advantage and dominated the first couple of minutes of the match.
Carmella boasted about defeating Charlotte Flair twice and how that makes her better then Asuka. Rose connected with a knee to the face for a two count as SmackDown went to a commercial break. When SmackDown returned, Asuka battled back with a series of kicks and then a knee to the face.
Asuka followed it up with a kick to the face that knocked Mandy to the corner. Asuka climbed to the top rope and hit a Dropkick for a two count. Asuka then applied the Asuka Lock for the pinfall victory. After the match, Carmella got in the ring and raised the SmackDown Women’s Championship in Asuka’s face.
Shinsuke Nakamura was shown walking backstage with pieces of paper that had the numbers 1-10 on them. Nakamura will battle AJ Styles for the WWE Championship at Money in the Bank in a Last Man Standing Match. Once Nakamura reached #10, he ripped up the paper and made his way to the ring for a match versus Tye Dillinger.
Dillinger shoved Nakamura to start off the match. Tye connected with a chop to the chest and then delivered another one in the corner. Dillinger then hit a series of punches in the corner and Nakamura escaped out of the ring. Tye followed him and Nakamura connected with a few knees to the ribs.
Tye battled back with a Dropkick that knocked Shinsuke to the barricade. Dillinger went for a Suicide Dive, but wound up diving into a knee to the face from Nakamura as SmackDown went to a commercial break.
When SmackDown returned, Nakamura was in control of the match and started counting to ten. Dillinger got back up, but Nakamura dropped him right back to the canvas with a kick to the back of the head. Shinsuke started counting once again, but Tye got up at 7. Shinsuke connected with a few knees in the corner and then draped Dillinger across the top rope. Nakamura hit a running knee to the ribs and Tye crashed to the mat.
Nakamura began his count once again, but Dillinger got up at 9. Tye did the perfect ten pose and then mocked Shinsuke’s “come on!” taunt. Tye then decked Nakamura with a Clothesline and followed it up with a knee to the face. Shinsuke quickly battled back with a knee to the face of his own and then the Kinshasa for the pinfall victory. After the match, Nakamura hit another Kinshasa to the back of Tye’s head and then finally was able to count to ten.
WWE Champion AJ Styles was then immediately interviewed backstage. Styles stated that somewhere down the line, Nakamura snapped and he is more dangerous than he has ever been. AJ said that he fights harder than anyone else and that he is the last man to back down from a challenge. He then guaranteed that he will be the last man standing at WWE Money in the Bank.
Lana competed with Naomi in dance off tonight on SmackDown. Rusev and Aiden English accompanied Lana to the ring. The Usos accompanied Naomi to the ring. The winner of the dance off was decided the audience applause. Lana went first and got a good reaction. Naomia went second and also got a good reaction.
Naomi and Lana then danced together and posed in the ring. Lana then dropped Naomi with a Neckbreaker and started punching her. Lana slapped Jimmy Uso in the face and that allowed Naomi to get back up. Naomi dropped Lana with the Rear View as The Usos Superkicked Rusev and Aiden English out of the ring.
Lana & English will face Jimmy & Naomi in a Mixed Tag Team Match next week on SmackDown.
New Day faced The Bar & The Miz tonight on SmackDown. Big E planted Cesaro with a Belly to Belly Suplex to start off the match. Kofi tagged and connected with a Splash for a two count. Cesaro trapped Kingston in the corner and Miz tossed him to the floor outside the ring as SmackDown went to a commercial break.
When SmackDown returned, Kofi was trapped in the corner as Cesaro decked him with an uppercut. Sheamus tagged in and knocked Woods off the ring apron. Cesaro tagged back in and hit an Elbow Drop for a two count. Kofi battled back and knocked Cesaro out of the ring.
The Miz and Sheamus then grabbed Big E from the ring apron and threw him into the barricade outside the ring. The Miz tagged in and went for the Skull Crushing Finale, but Kofi countered into an SOS. Kofi then dove across the ring and tagged in Woods. Sheamus tagged in and Xavier greeted him with a knee to the face.
Woods booted Miz out of the ring and then used Sheamus’ back as a springboard to jump onto Cesaro outside the ring. Woods then planted Sheamus with a DDT for a two count. The Miz distracted Woods and Sheamus crotched him on the top turnbuckle. Cesaro took out Kofi ringside and then tagged back into the match.
Big E tagged himself in and then slammed Cesaro’s back into Woods’ knees for a two count. The crowd chanted “this is awesome!” as Big E circled Cesaro and waited for him to get up. Cesaro escaped the Big Ending and The Miz tagged in. Miz planted Big E and went for the cover but Kofi broke it up. Woods knocked Sheamus out of the ring and went for a Crossbody. The Bar caught Woods and launched him into the barricade. Kofi then leaped off the top of the barricade and took out The Bar. Big E then connected with the Big Ending to The Miz for the pinfall victory.
Samoa Joe Qualified For The Men’s MITB Ladder Match
Photo Credit: @WWE on Twitter
Big Cass, Samoa Joe and Daniel Bryan battled in a Triple Threat Match in the main event of this week’s SmackDown. The winner of the match will qualify for the men’s MITB Ladder Match.
Cass was knocked out of the ring right away and Joe beatdown Bryan in the corner. Bryan battled back for a moment and hit Big Cass with a Dropkick through the ropes. Joe leveled Bryan with a Clothesline and then connected with a Suicide Dive onto Big Cass outside the ring. Bryan climbed to the top rope and took them both out with a Crossbody as SmackDown went to a break.
When SmackDown returned, Big Cass and Joe were in the ring. Joe connected with a boot to Cass’ head and went for to lock in the Coquina Clutch. Bryan got back into the ring and Joe knocked him to the canvas. Joe followed it up with a Senton and went for the cover but Cass broke it up.
Cass threw Bryan to the outside and then tossed him over the announce table. Big Cass got back into the ring as Samoa Joe was on the second rope. Bryan hit Joe with a Dropkick and knocked Cass out of the ring. Daniel sent Joe flying across the ring with a Hurricanrana and followed it up with a couple of Dropkicks in the corner. Bryan went for a third, but Cass got back into the ring and turned Bryan inside out with a Clothesline for a two count.
Big Cass dropped an elbow on Bryan and then unloaded a few right hands to his face. Bryan tried to fight back, but Cass halted his momentum with a knee to the ribs as SmackDown went to a break. SmackDown returned as Cass hit Joe with the Empire Elbow. Bryan broke out up the cover, but was planted with the East River Crossing by Big Cass.
Bryan took down Cass and Joe and hit them both a series of Yes Kicks. Joe charged at Bryan, but Daniel ducked and Joe went flying out of the ring. Daniel then applied the Yes Lock to Cass, but Joe dragged Bryan out of the ring. Bryan hopped up on the apron and connected with a knee to Joe’s face and both Superstars fell to the floor outside the ring.
Back in the ring, Bryan connected with a knee to the face to Big Cass and went for the cover. Joe grabbed Bryan from behind and locked in the Coquina Clutch in the middle of the ring. Bryan passed out and Joe won the match. After the match, Big Cass got back into the ring and waited for Bryan to get up. Cass knocked him back down with a big boot to the face and then raised his first in the air as SmackDown went off the air.
Opinion: I thought tonight’s episode of SmackDown was decent. The match of the night was New Day versus The Bar & The Miz. Samoa Joe’s promo was great to start off the show and the main event was entertaining. Joe is not only one of my favorite wrestlers in WWE, but his promos are excellent. He is one of the only Superstars on the roster that actually seems genuine when he speaks. I buy everything he is saying and I don’t feel like I am listening to someone that is trying to remember their lines.I have no issues with Bryan coming up short and going through adversity now that he is back in the ring. Bryan’s character is at his best when he has to overcome obstacles and battle his way back to the top. I just wish his first feud back wasn’t with Big Cass.
What did you think of this week’s episode of SmackDown? Let us know in the comments below.
As seen on this week’s episode of SmackDown Live in Raleigh, NC at the PNC Arena on the USA Network, Samoa Joe beat Daniel Bryan and Big Cass in a triple threat men’s qualifying Money in the Bank match.
As a result of this win, Joe has been added to the men’s Money in the Bank Ladder match at the upcoming MITB event. He joins Braun Strowman, Finn Balor, The Miz, Rusev, Kevin Owens, and Bobby Roode in the match.
The Money in the Bank pay-per-view event takes place on Sunday, June 17, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois at the Allstate Arena and will air on the WWE Network and some traditional pay-per-view outlets. Both Raw and SmackDown brands will be featured. Here is the updated card:
– Men’s Money In The Bank Ladder Match: Braun Strowman vs. Finn Balor vs. The Miz vs. Rusev vs. Kevin Owens vs. Bobby Roode vs. Samoa Joe
– Women’s Money In The Bank Ladder Match: Ember Moon vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Alexa Bliss vs. Becky Lynch vs. Natalya vs. Lana vs. Naomi vs. Sasha Banks
