The updated card for TNA Bound For Glory 2025, following the events of Victory Road and the latest news, is as follows:
Bound For Glory 2025 Match Card
TNA World Championship: Trick Williams (c) vs. Mike Santana
TNA World Tag Team Championship Tables Match: The Hardys (Matt & Jeff Hardy) (c) vs. Team 3D (Bully Ray & Devon)
TNA X-Division Championship: Leon Slater (c) vs. Je’Von Evans
TNA Knockouts World Championship: Kelani Jordan vs. Indi Hartwell
Hardcore War: The System (Moose, Eddie Edwards, Brian Myers, JDC, Alisha Edwards) vs. Order 4 (Mustafa Ali, John Skyler, Jason Hotch, Agent Zero, Tasha Steelz)
Call Your Shot Gauntlet Match: Features Mance Warner (#20), Léi Y?ng Lee (#1), plus other entrants to be announced. Winner gets a title shot at any championship, any time, within a year.
Bound for Glory, TNA’s biggest show of the year, takes place October 12, 2025, at the Tsongas Center in Lowell, Massachusetts, and will air live on pay-per-view and TNA+.
Kelani Jordan, a WWE NXT Superstar, won the vacant TNA Knockouts World Championship at TNA Victory Road on September 26, 2025. The title had been relinquished earlier in the event by Ash by Elegance, who announced she was stepping away from in-ring competition.
After a battle royal, Jordan and Lei Ying Lee became the final two competitors, and Jordan ultimately defeated Lee in a match officiated by special referee Indi Hartwell to claim her first TNA Knockouts title.
Kelani Jordan will now defend the TNA Knockouts Championship against Indi Hartwell at the upcoming Bound for Glory pay-per-view.
Alexa Bliss and WWE Hall of Famer The Undertaker are coming to the world of Call of Duty: Mobile as part of a new cross-promotional campaign with WWE. On social media, Call of Duty: Mobile shared that the duo will take center stage in the game on Wednesday, October 1.
Lights down. Arena full. CODM x @WWE is about to take center stage.
This isn’t the first time WWE has allowed its talent in non-WWE video games. In 2023, Becky Lynch and Bianca Belair were added to Fortnite, a game that has also seen John Cena and The Rock involved. A year earlier, The Undertaker, Asuka, and Xavier Woods were all in-game costumes in Fall Guys.
— ? Krxnky – Fall Guys Leaks (@KrxnkyFG) July 14, 2022
Back in the world of WWE gaming, Bliss and The Undertaker continue to be regulars in the WWE 2K franchise. Including the Deadman Edition of WWE 2K25, The Undertaker has been on the cover of 18 WWE video games, an honor Bliss has yet to reach.
Now, fans and gamers alike can look forward to Bliss and the Phenom being part of the world of Call of Duty: Mobile. Their role in the game proves how the popularity of the pair is able to extend far beyond the squared circle.
Naomi won’t be competing in WWE for several more months, but that hasn’t stopped the Raw Superstar from taking a kicking. The former WWE Women’s World Champion took to social media to update fans on her pregnancy, posting a sonogram video. Naomi appreciated the irony of her active child-to-be, adding that “Being out of in-ring action and still getting kicked is crazy.”
Naomi plans on returning to the very top of WWE when she can come back, and also has eyes on working with AJ Lee again. For now, the former Women’s World Champion’s child is proving that they can throw kicks like so many members of their wrestling family.
The excitement didn’t stop at WWE SmackDown in Orlando’s Kia Center after the show went off the air. In a dark match for the live crowd, IYO SKY picked up a hard-fought victory over The Judgment Day’s Roxanne Perez.
This win was a much-needed victory for SKY who was betrayed by Asuka during the previous episode of Monday Night Raw. SKY also came up short at WWE Wrestlepalooza, where she faced Stephanie Vaquer for the vacant Women’s World Championship.
As for Perez, she and Raquel Rodriguez continue to pursue the Women’s Tag Team Championships. The duo are the only currently active members of the Judgment Day without gold as JD McDonagh and Finn Balor hold the World Tag Team Titles while Dominik Mysterio is a double champion. Perez will also have to be wary about Liv Morgan who had her issues with The Prodigy prior to her injury earlier this year.
This dark match demonstrated the skills of the two former NXT Women’s Champions and allowed the fans to leave the Kia Center on a high. Stay tuned to SEScoops for the latest from WWE both on and off-screen.
Asuka betrayed IYO SKY during the September 22, episode of WWE Monday Night Raw, but that’s not how the Empress of Tomorrow sees things. While Asuka delivered a painful kick to SKY moments after delivering the mist to Rhea Ripley, Asuka believes that she is the one who was betrayed.
Taking to her YouTube channel, Asuka addressed her actions on Monday Night Raw. Despite a video after Raw showing SKY breaking down in tears after being attacked, Asuka argued that SKY isn’t the one who should feel hurt.
“You. Are. Such. An. Idiot! I saw you crying. You betrayed me. You’re the one who betrayed me! Don’t play victim, I’m the victim! Don’t you dare play victim… You’re a traitor!”
The issues between SKY and Asuka have been simmering for weeks. At WWE Wrestlepalooza, SKY failed to regain the Women’s World Championship after turning down help from Asuka and Kairi Sane.
“You LOST to Stephanie! I told you. Me and Kairi would help you become champion but you said no. That’s why you lost. You were such a loser! You’re a loser, you’re a loser!”
With the long-standing friendship of Asuka and SKY in the past, the pair will be at eachother’s throats moving forward. With Kairi Sane clearly conflicted as Raw went off the air, it remains to be seen where her allegiances will rest in this high-profile feud.
The TNA X-Division Championship will be on the line at Bound for Glory when Leon Slater puts the gold on the line against one of WWE’s brightest prospects. At Bound for Glory, which will take place October 12, in Lowell, Massachusetts, Slater will put the gold on the line against Je’Von Evans.
This match was confirmed at TNA Victory Road following Slater’s victory over Myron Reed. With TNA President Carlos Silva and the Director of Authority Santino Marella present, a video played confirming that Evans will challenge for the gold.
WWE NXT is already home to the TNA World Championship, currently held by Trick Williams. At Victory Road, NXT also captured the TNA Knockouts Championship as Kelani Jordan won the gold. The title was vacated by Ash By Elegance, ending her reign that had begun with her taking the title from NXT’s Jacy Jayne.
As for Slater, the British star is the youngest-ever TNA X-Division Champion and has been endorsed by the inaugural champion, AJ Styles. Fans can expect a high-flying effort from both men at TNA Bound for Glory.
Je’von Evans answered Sami Zayn’s United States Championship open challenge on WWE SmackDown, delivering a breakout performance but ultimately falling short after Zayn retained his title with the Helluva Kick.
The match took place on the September 26 episode of SmackDown at the Kia Center in Orlando, Florida, giving Evans a major main roster spotlight.
Evans’s strong showing on SmackDown has already made an impact, marking him as one of the brightest prospects from NXT to challenge for main roster gold.
Je’von Evans will next appear at NXT No Mercy in a match against Josh Briggs.
WWE Crown Jewel 2025 will feature a blockbuster Women’s Crown Jewel Championship match between Stephanie Vaquer and Tiffany Stratton on October 11, 2025, at RAC Arena in Perth, Australia.
The champion vs. champion bout was set after Tiffany Stratton successfully retained her WWE Women’s Championship on SmackDown in a triple threat match against Nia Jax and Jade Cargill. Following her victory, Stratton immediately confronted WWE Women’s World Champion Stephanie Vaquer to close the show, setting up this highly anticipated clash.
The Women’s Crown Jewel Championship follows the same format as last year’s event, where the top women’s champions from each brand compete for brand supremacy and the honorary title.
Both competitors enter the match with considerable momentum. Vaquer captured her Women’s World Championship by defeating IYO SKY at Wrestlepalooza, while Stratton’s recent triple threat victory showcased her championship credentials against top-tier competition.
The match is positioned as one of the marquee bouts for Crown Jewel 2025, promising a top-tier clash between two of WWE’s brightest rising stars on an international stage. With both champions representing the peak of their respective brands, this encounter will determine who claims the prestigious Women’s Crown Jewel Championship.????????????????
CHAMPION vs. CHAMPION.
WWE Women's Champion Tiffany Stratton will take on Women's World Champion Stephanie Vaquer for the Women's Crown Jewel Championship at #WWECrownJewel Perth!
TNA Knockouts Champion Ash by Elegance delivered a shocking announcement at Victory Road, vacating her championship without providing a specific reason for her decision.
The evening began with uncertainty as the scheduled title defense against Masha Slamovich was canceled due to ongoing internal investigations regarding domestic violence allegations against Slamovich. TNA President Carlos Silva and Santino Marella were present in the ring when Ash by Elegance made her unexpected revelation.
“I am no longer able to compete and am vacating the Knockouts Championship,” Ash announced, leaving fans and officials stunned by the abrupt decision.
TNA quickly restructured the evening’s card to address the sudden vacancy. The Knockouts Tag Team Title match was moved to next week’s iMPACT episode, replaced by a Knockouts Battle Royale to determine the new champion. The tournament format saw the final two competitors advance to compete for the vacant title later in the evening.
The battle royale concluded with Lei Ying Lee and NXT’s Kelani Jordan emerging as the final two competitors, setting up an intriguing cross-promotional championship match. Jordan’s participation highlights the continued collaboration between TNA and WWE’s developmental brand.
The championship vacancy creates immediate uncertainty in TNA’s women’s division, with fans speculating about the circumstances surrounding Ash by Elegance’s decision to relinquish the title.
WWE superstar AJ Styles has officially announced his retirement plans for 2026, revealing that next month’s WWE Super Show Japan will mark his final performances in the country that helped define his career.
In an interview with Tokyo Sports, the 48-year-old “Phenomenal One” confirmed his intention to retire, likely at WrestleMania 2026 in Las Vegas.
“I think it will probably be in WrestleMania, but it has not been confirmed yet,” Styles explained. “The details are undecided, but there is no doubt that I will retire within the next year.”
The upcoming WWE Super Show Japan events on October 17-18 at Ryogoku Kokugikan hold special significance as Styles’ farewell to Japanese wrestling fans. “I think this will probably be the last game in Japan, so I’m really looking forward to it,” he stated.
The Reason AJ Styles is Retiring
Styles cited physical preservation as his primary motivation:
“I don’t want to show my fans that I’m not AJ Styles. That’s the main reason. I decided to retire before my body couldn’t move.”
The announcement coincides with fellow New Japan alumnus Hiroshi Tanahashi’s planned retirement at Tokyo Dome on January 4, 2025. Styles praised his former rival, saying, “Tanahashi is a really great player, and I don’t think there are many players who have contributed to the industry so much.”
After retirement, Styles indicated interest in remaining with WWE in a training capacity to develop future talent.
Former WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Chelsea Green recently pulled back the curtain on the creative process in WWE, providing a detailed breakdown of how a show like Monday Night Raw or Friday Night SmackDown comes together.
In a recent interview with WKMG in Orlando, the leader of “The Secret Hervice” was asked about how a show evolves from the page to the screen. It all starts with Triple H and the creative team.
“Basically, it goes from Triple H down to the creative team, and they’ll spend the week molding the show, molding the look of the show, the theme, the arc of the show, and the storylines. Then it’ll trickle down to another team of writers, and they’ll write out the pre-tapes and the scripts and things like that. Then it’s given to the talent, and depending on who it is, we either memorize the script and go out there or improvise. It just depends on the trust and faith that WWE has in you, and also maybe how creative you are, maybe how much you love to improvise.
I love improvisation, and I love comedy, so I like to rework a script to be really outlandish and ridiculous, and then I like to surprise my scene partner with things that I’ll say in the moment to try to make them break character. But we do have little things like rehearsals and stuff like that when we’re going through backstages and things that are going to go live, because at the end of the day, we’ve only got X amount of time we cannot go over. The minute that we go over that time, we’re taking out of somebody else’s precious minutes in the ring or backstage, and you just never want to do that. I want to make sure that as many wrestlers are seen on TV every week as we can possibly see.”
Green is currently in pursuit of the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships, which are held by Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss. Last week on SmackDown, Green and Alba Fyre lost to the champions with the titles on the line.
Before WWE, Penta and Rey Fenix dominated tag-team divisions worldwide as the Lucha Bros. While the pair have been kept apart since both arrived in WWE in early 2025, Penta is confident that a reunion is coming.
Speaking to the In The Kliq podcast, Penta addressed possibly teaming with his brother down the line. For Penta, who has been a hit as a singles star since debuting in January, a reunion isn’t a question of if, but when.
“I know one day, when the Lucha Brothers return, the world will explode... When? I don’t know. How? I don’t know, but I’m sure of it, I feel it in my heart.”
Together, the Lucha Bros. have held tag team gold in AEW, TNA, MLW, ROH, PWG, and beyond. But now, Penta is ready to work with Fenix in the biggest promotion of them all.
“Imagine this, the best tag-team in the universe returns in the best company in the universe.”
For now, the pair remains separated across brands, with Penta impressing on Raw while Rey Fenix continues to find his place on SmackDown. But with Rey’s recent tag-team partner Andrade parting ways with WWE, a Lucha Bros reunion could be coming sooner than later.
Drew McIntyre has officially been cast in Amazon MGM Studios’ Highlander reboot from United Artists, directed by Chad Stahelski, where he will star opposite Dave Bautista and Henry Cavill as Angus MacLeod, the brother of Cavill’s character, MacLeod. This news was first reported by Rosy Cordero for Deadline.
The movie is expected to modernize the Highlander mythos, adding new dynamics with the MacLeod brothers storyline.
This marks a major Hollywood role for McIntyre, who is a two-time WWE Champion and has previously acted alongside Dave Bautista. The cast also includes Russell Crowe, Marisa Abela, Karen Gillan, Djimon Hounsou, and Max Zhang.
Drew McIntyre’s casting alongside Henry Cavill in Highlander brings a high-profile wrestling star into a major film franchise, elevating both the reboot and McIntyre’s profile beyond WWE.
The screenplay is written by Michael Finch and reimagines the 1986 cult classic Highlander, which originally centered on immortal warriors battling through centuries.
Filming was set to begin soon, but production is now anticipated to start in early 2026 after Henry Cavill sustained an injury during pre-production.
In the 1980s, WWE became the dominant force on the pro wrestling landscape when a national expansion saw the company breakdown territorial boundaries by touring across the country and around the world, besides leveraging syndication, cable, and pay-per-view TV models to broadcast into the homes of fans all over.
The back half of the 1990s were largely defined by the Monday Night War when WWE found itself in its first and arguably only real dog fight as WCW surged and, in the short-term, actually got bigger than WWE by a number of metrics. By 2000, WWE had taken a decisive advantage and 2001 saw the company achieve its most decisive victory of all: buying the competition.
While roughly two decades to follow saw new talents emerge, new changes to the business model, and new considerations, the truth remained that WWE was on top of the wrestling world and, within the sphere of pro wrestling, there wasn’t really any competition for them.
Between the rise of AEW, Vince McMahon’s fall from grace, and TKO acquiring WWE, recent years have seen the next evolution of WWE as a business and how it’s approaching the larger wrestling landscape. One consistent thread has been progress toward world domination. WWE is not settling for being the top wrestling promotion in the world, but rather seems intent on owning the business from top to bottom. This multi-part series will consider the new opportunities, growing pains, and nuanced factors that fans are watching play out before their eyes.
The ID Program Was Established In 2024
In October 2024, WWE rolled out its ID program, which saw it flag a select number of indie promotions and schools for resources and direct pathways to eventual careers with WWE.
The development of this program is too recent to have amounted to much just yet, but, for better or worse, it clearly positioned WWE as more formally associated with the larger world of professional wrestling. Indeed, while casual or non-fans might altogether equate WWE with pro wrestling, the ID program took a step toward that connection proving literally true, as even some objectively small, local wrestling outfits became affiliated with the largest entity in the business.
The ID Program Looks Like A Win-Win-Win
Image credit: WWE
On paper, the ID Program stood to benefit everyone involved. For many talents, WWE is the ultimate goal. So, constructing a better-defined path to lead from a training program or small-scale promotion benefits talents with a better chance to be seen by WWE.
The program also benefits the affiliated indies themselves. A WWE ID designation is a mark of credibility to distinguish a little-known company. On top of that, a WWE partnership can help local companies attract the best talents available—ones who may not be ready for WWE just yet, but who really do have the potential to grow into that kind of spot.
Finally, the ID program benefits WWE. During the national expansion, the company infamously raided top talents from a range of promotions, with names ranging from Hulk Hogan to Roddy Piper to Junkyard Dog to The Texas Tornado less homegrown than poached after proving their top star potential in regional territories.
The nature of the business in 2025 means that it’s hard for a truly breakout star to emerge in the US outside WWE, AEW, and maybe TNA. Just the same, having a finger on the pulse of top training programs and indies gives WWE a chance to snap up the cream of the crop for their own developmental system, if not the proper main roster, before they think of going abroad or signing with AEW.
The Raja Jackson Issue Sheds Light On Major Issues
Beyond the opportunities outlined above, WWE’s ID Program looks as though it would offer a nice balance of indies maintaining their autonomy while still having some access to WWE resources. On the flip side, WWE wouldn’t necessarily have to expand to manage another promotion, but rather enjoy the benefits of an independent feeder system.
The incident of Raja Jackson brutally injuring Syko Stu at a Knokx Pro event on August 23 complicated things for the WWE ID Program. Knokx Pro had a WWE ID designation, with WWE legend Rikishi at the indie’s helm. The apparent miscommunication between Jackson and Stu—Stu seemingly thinking he was working an angle with Jackson only for Jackson to give him a disproportionate receipt in the ring—led to an ugly scene. The aftermath and fuller explanations for what happened are still unraveling.
Before the incident could reflect poorly on WWE, WWE seemed to quietly sever the relationship, removing KnokX Pro from at least their public records. On one hand, this happening demonstrated a real vulnerability for WWE—to have its name associated with a small promotion that may well play host to objectionable activity, whether it’s real violence like this incident entailed, an offensive angle, or other issues.
On the other hand, it’s also arguably not a great look for WWE that they cut ties the moment things got rough—distancing themselves from a PR problem while also seeming to demonstrate they wouldn’t stand by or support a promotion that found itself in real trouble.
Assuming the WWE ID Program carries forward into the future, there’s little doubt it will continue to evolve perhaps with a wider reach or perhaps reining in oversight of indies they associate with. Regardless, the first year of the program has highlighted both opportunities and pitfalls as just one aspect of WWE’s march toward further domination of the wrestling world.
The Miz has made a bold declaration, stating that he believes the current era of WWE is bigger and better than the Attitude Era of the late 1990s. The Miz, who has been with the company for over two decades and grew up as a fan during that popular period, made the comments during a recent interview with The Schmo.
While the Attitude Era is widely regarded as the commercial peak of professional wrestling, The Miz argues that by every modern metric, from live event revenue to the depth of the roster and storylines, today’s WWE has surpassed it.
“Last year was a record-breaking year. It’s the biggest WrestleMania we’ve ever had. I’ll say this time and time again, there was an Attitude Era. This is bigger than the Attitude Era. The storylines are bigger than they’ve ever been. The stars, our roster is deeper than it’s ever been, whether you’re cheering someone or booing someone. WWE always finds a way to do better the next year. As best as you could possibly do, which I think we did amazingly last year here at Allegiant Stadium, it’s going to be nothing compared to what happens at WrestleMania 42 at Allegiant Stadium.”
While the Attitude Era boasted massive television ratings, the current era under TKO has seen WWE’s overall revenue, live gates, and global media rights deals reach record-breaking highs.
Tonight, WWE SmackDown broadcasts live from the Kia Center in Orlando, Florida. The blue brand continues its build toward WWE Crown Jewel, the next premium live event on the schedule. The fallout from WrestlePalooza is still fresh, and top superstars will be in action as storylines heat up en route to the global spectacle that is Crown Jewel.
This week’s marquee showdown is a WWE Women’s Championship Triple Threat Match, where Tiffany Stratton defends her title against the formidable Jade Cargill and Nia Jax.
Confirmed Matches & Appearances
WWE Women’s Championship: Tiffany Stratton (c) vs. Jade Cargill vs. Nia Jax
Giulia & Kiana James vs. Michin & B-Fab
Also advertised to appear are Randy Orton, Solo Sikoa, Charlotte Flair & Alexa Bliss, Damian Priest, Drew McIntyre, Jacob Fatu, Jimmy Uso, and more
Catch SmackDown tonight at 8pm ET on USA Network (Netflix internationally).
Stay tuned to SEScoops for complete WWE coverage and the latest news on the road to Crown Jewel on Saturday, October 11, 2025.
Matches confirmed for Crown Jewel: Perth include:
John Cena vs. AJ Styles
Men’s WWE Crown Jewel Championship: Seth Rollins (Raw World Heavyweight Champion) vs. Cody Rhodes (SmackDown Undisputed WWE Champion)
Women’s WWE Crown Jewel Championship: Stephanie Vaquer (Raw Women’s World Champion) vs. SmackDown Women’s Champion (TBD after SmackDown’s triple threat)
Penta has his sights set on the Intercontinental Championship. The WWE star has publicly pitched a big match for next year’s WrestleMania 42, calling for a championship rematch against his former rival and current Intercontinental Champion, Dominik Mysterio.
Speaking on the “In the Kliq” podcast, Penta discussed his ambitions for the next WrestleMania, making it clear that winning his first singles championship in WWE is his top priority.
“At WrestleMania 42, I’m ready to conquer everything. To conquer maybe my first title, or… I have a lot of options for the next WrestleMania. But now I am focused on (winning) the Intercontinental Championship from Dominik Mysterio. Why not have a rematch at the next WrestleMania? At WrestleMania 42, we can conquer everything.”
The two men previously faced off for the Intercontinental Championship at the WWE Backlash Premium Live Event in May of this year. In that bout, Dominik Mysterio was able to defeat Penta and retain his championship. Now, it appears Penta is looking to avenge that loss and finally capture the prestigious championship that has eluded him so far in his WWE career.
An update has been provided on the status of “The Samoan Werewolf” Jacob Fatu, whose absence from WWE programming over the past month has been a topic of discussion among fans. According to a new report from Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Fatu is expected to make his return to television imminently.
This is welcome news for fans who felt that the powerhouse superstar’s momentum had been derailed after a strong start to his WWE career in 2025.
The brief but direct report from the newsletter states: “Jacob Fatu will be back imminently.” The last time fans saw Jacob Fatu on television was during the main event of the August 29, 2025, episode of Friday Night SmackDown. On that night, he played a key role, helping his cousin Sami Zayn defeat Solo Sikoa to become the new United States Champion.
Despite being on the winning side of that major angle, Fatu has not appeared on television in the weeks since. During his absence from the main broadcast, he has reportedly been competing in non-televised dark matches for the live crowd after the SmackDown tapings have concluded. It is unclear what WWE has planned for his return, but fans are eager to see the former United States Champion back on television.
Zaria and Sol Ruca have proven to be an impressive duo in WWE NXT, but how well do the pair know each other outside of the ring? On social media, the pair recently took part in a ‘How Well Do You Know Each Other?’ quiz with some interesting results.
The pair agreed that Zaria would over-indulge at a restaurant, and make a joke at a bad time. Zaria is also more likely to hurt herself doing something stupid and embarrass herself in front of a wrestling crowd. As for Ruca, the pair agreed that out of the two, she’d spend too much money on clothes, be more likely to appear on Love Island, and would also be more likely to win a reality show.
The pair, known affectionately by fans as ZaRuca, didn’t agree on everything. When asked who’d be more likely to get a driving ticket, Ruca and Zaria both picked themselves. The pair both believed that they had the better chance of surviving a haunted house.
Sol Ruca and Zaria both believed that the other would be willing to lie about their birthday for free cake at a restaurant. Thinking highly of one another, the pair believed that the other would have the better chance of becoming a successful private detective.
While the pair have their share of agreements and disagreements, ZaRuca have proven to be dominant on WWE NXT programming. With Ruca already a double champion as Women’s North American Champion and WWE Speed Women’s Champion, time will tell when Zaria goes for gold of her own.
Mr. Anderson has made his return to the ring in TNA Wrestling, close to a decade after his previous match with the promotion. During the go-home episode of TNA Impact before Victory Road, Anderson teamed up with Steve Maclin in tag team action and picked up a victory over Jake Something and Frankie Kazarian.
While Anderson was part of the previous week’s episode of Impact, this was his first match with TNA Wrestling since 2016. Before this tag-team victory, his previous TNA match saw him earn a disqualification victory over Eric Young. This week’s match was also only Anderson’s second match in any promotion since 2022. He made his in-ring return this past July for Battleground Championship Wrestling.
Anderson joined TNA in 2010 after four years on WWE as Mr. Kennedy and is a two-time former TNA World Champion. During his tenure, he was part of some of TNA’s highest-profile storylines, including being involved with Immortal and also being a high-ranking member of Aces and Eights.
IYO SKY will compete outside WWE this October, as part of Marigold Wrestling’s Grand Destiny 2025 at Ryogoku Kokugian in Tokyo, Japan. In a video, SKY shared that she’ll be part of the event where she will take on Mayu Iwatani.
“Marigold fans, long time, no see. It’s WWE Superstar IYO SKY. So why am I here? There’s one reason. Mayu Iwatani! Over the past few years, when you and I didn’t meet, we’ve each walked such wonderful paths. Let’s speak to our hearts’ content and tell our story inside of the ring. October 26 at Marigold’s Ryogoku Kokugikan show, Mayu Iwatani vs. IYO SKY is official! Hey Mayu, let’s shock the world with an amazing match we’ll have. See you soon!”
SKY and Iwatani wrestled several times in STARDOM before IYO joined WWE. In 2017, the pair battled for the World of STARDOM Championship at that year’s Galaxy Stars event, where Iwatani emerged on top. SKY’s final STARDOM match saw herself and Iwatani team up to battle Hazuki and Kagetsu.
Now, SKY has the chance to prove herself outside WWE. Marigold Wrestling’s Grand Destiny 2025 will take place on October 26.
A new report from Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio has provided insight into the booking of the recently announced match between John Cena and AJ Styles. While the match was made official this week through a social media campaign initiated by Cena, Meltzer reports that the bout has been the plan for the upcoming WWE Crown Jewel Premium Live Event for a long time. The narrative of the match coming together spontaneously was reportedly part of the intended storyline build.
According to Meltzer, several moments in recent weeks that seemed like standalone tributes or frustrations were actually deliberate seeds being planted for this encounter.
“This match was always scheduled for Australia — always. So the whole deal about Cena and AJ, you know, the idea that Cena was doing the tribute to him because he wasn’t going to get to wrestle him. That was actually to build to this match, that was not actually ever the case.”
Meltzer noted that a “worked-shoot” promo that AJ Styles cut during a commercial break on a recent episode of Monday Night Raw was also part of the subtle, long-term build to the match announcement. The one-on-one encounter will be the first between the two legendary rivals since 2018. It will be one of the final four matches of John Cena’s career.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson became emotional while speaking about his daughter, WWE NXT’s on-screen General Manager Ava, during a recent media event for his new film, “The Smashing Machine.” The Rock expressed pride in his daughter for her determination to carve her own path in the wrestling industry without relying on his influence.
During the interview, which was posted by MTV UK, Johnson was asked how proud he is of Ava’s success. He had to take a moment to compose himself before answering.
“Oh man, I’m so proud of her. I got it. Let me lock in. I am so proud of her because it’s what I did and I love what I did and I love wrestling, I grew up in wrestling. She was born into it too just like I was and when she said, ‘Hey, I wanna do what you do.’ But the difference is — it’s where I get emotional because she’s like, ‘I wanna do what you do… I wanna carve my own path,’ and that’s the difference and that was a big deal when I heard that. You know, because it’s easy, I think, for any kid who wants to come up and do what their parents are doing to — maybe it’s not overt, but to utilize the influence. I’m telling you, it never happened. I never got that call. Like, hey, can you call someone? I never got that call and that’s the truth, and that’s the thing that makes me proud… When you don’t get that call — look, I would have been there anyway. I would have made that call. But when you don’t get it, it gave me a profound sense of pride because I was like, alright, I helped, with her mom, raise an amazing human being.”
Ava joined WWE as a trainee at the Performance Center and first appeared on television as a member of The Schism faction before transitioning into her current role as the General Manager of the NXT brand.
The Miz headlined WrestleMania for the first (and so far only) time in 2011, facing John Cena in a match many expected would end with a Cena victory. Instead, The Miz defeated WWE’s “GOAT” in one of the biggest wins of his career—a victory he struggles to recall.
During the match, The Miz suffered a concussion after hitting his head on the outside. Speaking to Adrian Hernandez of Unlikely, The Miz admitted that much of his memory of the main event is gone.
“Pieces. I remember bits and pieces of it, which sucks because it’s one of those moments you want to remember. That’s what you work towards your entire life. And I can’t remember it. I remember blips.”
With his sole WrestleMania main event lost to him, The Miz instead reflects on other moments as career highlights. For the A-Lister, nothing compares to sharing the spotlight with his wife, Maryse.
“Not many people get to actually do what Maryse and I got to do, which is walk down the aisle in our wedding and walk down the aisle in our career at the biggest stage of all, WrestleMania. That was a really cool moment.”
The Miz also cherishes his family’s involvement in his career. He recalled his father George Mizanin’s appearance at WrestleMania 35, when George confronted Shane McMahon during Shane’s Falls Count Anywhere match with The Miz.
With more than two decades on WWE television, The Miz has built a career full of highlights. While his WrestleMania 27 win over Cena remains memorable for unfortunate reasons, the veteran continues to stand as one of WWE’s most enduring success stories.
