CM Punk believes that a return to WWE was pretty much out of the question.
Punk made his return to the pro wrestling industry after being away for seven years. The self-proclaimed “Best in the World” appeared on the Aug. 20 episode of AEW Rampage. He addressed his decision to return and revealed he will be wrestling Darby Allin at All Out on Sept. 5.
Appearing on The Angi Taylor Show, Punk explained not mentioning WWE by name in his return promo.
“I understand life’s tough and not everybody can do it, but I’m just somebody that will just never compromise myself. And I say the place I used to work because I don’t feel it’s specifically necessary to mention them when I don’t have to. I am full of anxiety and stress doing press for AEW right now that I’m inadvertently going to say a whole bunch of stupid stuff. People are going to break it down and use out-of-context quotes for clickbait.
“But the reality is you can’t talk to me, coming back after seven years, without bringing up the place I used to work. I’m just trying to do my best to not sling mud so to speak because everything I say about them is 100% the truth. I just want to focus on and highlight the positives of the new place I work, AEW. I’m trying here, I’m trying.”
Punk went on to say there was a time when he didn’t even think about making a return to the ring before AEW got started. He also made it clear that he doesn’t feel a WWE comeback was ever going to happen.
“I don’t think I considered it. Three years ago, five years ago I don’t think AEW even existed. I don’t think going back to WWE was ever really, logically, on the table.”
Punk made his exit from WWE following the 2014 Royal Rumble PPV. Punk was said to be destined for a WrestleMania match with Triple H that year. CM Punk told Colt Cabana that he was scheduled to win that match but he was burned out by that point.
The singles match between Pac and Andrade “El Idolo” will no longer take place at All Out.
The All Out PPV event is scheduled to take place this Sunday night (Sept. 5). A feud has been brewing between Pac and Andrade. As of late, Andrade and Chavo Guerrero have been trying to pull Lucha Bros from Pac, which has left “The Bastard” in a foul mood.
The two will not be able to settle their differences inside the Now Arena in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, however.
Tony Khan took to his Twitter account to announce that Pac vs. Andrade is now off the All Out card due to travel issues. He revealed what will replace the match on PPV.
Thank you to you fans supporting #AEWDynamite LIVE next on TNT! The Women’s Casino Battle Royale, which was booked on the Buy In, will now be featured on the ALL OUT ppv card. Due to travel issues, the @BASTARDPAC vs. @AndradeElIdolo bout is postponed until a future #AEWRampage
“Thank you to you fans supporting AEW Dynamite LIVE next on TNT! The Women’s Casino Battle Royale, which was booked on the Buy-In, will now be featured on the ALL OUT PPV card. Due to travel issues, ‘The Bastard’ Pac vs. Andrade “El Idolo” bout is postponed until a future AEW Rampage.”
As Khan mentioned, Pac vs. “El Idolo” will now take place on a future episode of AEW Rampage. There’s no word on exactly which date the rescheduled bout will fall on.
Jon Moxley is going to a dark place ahead of his showdown with Satoshi Kojima.
On AEW TV, Moxley has made it clear that he’s none too pleased with NJPW talent. He feels the likes of current IWGP United States Heavyweight Champion Hiroshi Tanahashi have been ducking him. One man who has stepped up to the plate is Kojima.
While Moxley says Kojima is someone to be respected, he still plans on taking out his frustration on the former IWGP Heavyweight Champion. He went as far as to tell Sports Illustrated that he’s looking to full-on assault Kojima.
“Kojima is here to be celebrated. With that being said, I’m still planning on committing egregious, felonious assault and trying to end his career, and he’d be insulted if I felt any other way. It’s an honor to share the ring with him, and I can’t wait to throw with him.
“He still has gas left in the tank, and there’s still something he wants to prove. He’ll be staring across from the baddest motherf—er in the business. I don’t expect it to be long, I don’t expect it to be pretty. It’s going to be violent, and I can’t wait to get in there with him.”
Jon Moxley vs. Satoshi Kojima is scheduled to take place on Sept. 5. The match will be featured on the All Out PPV card. It’ll be held inside the Now Arena in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. Also featured on that card will be the in-ring return of CM Punk as he meets Darby Allin. Plus, Kenny Omega defends the AEW World Championship against Christian Cage.
Rush has gone under the knife following an injury.
The former two-time ROH World Champion suffered a knee injury during a match at Glory by Honor. The injury was bad enough that he needed to undergo emergency surgery.
“Rush has undergone emergency surgery and his family sent us this image. Likewise; the Muñoz Dynasty will host a press conference next Thursday at noon to talk about the surgery and his future.”
Rush was scheduled to be a part of a Six-Man Tag Team Title match against Shane Taylor Promotions on Sept. 12 at Death Before Dishonor in Philadelphia, PA. Bestia del Ring will be replacing Rush.
Rush first captured the ROH World Title back in Sept. 2019. He defeated Matt Taven for the gold. Rush ended up losing the ROH World Championship to PCO at Final Battle 2019 after a 77-day reign.
Rush won the title back at Gateway to Honor. His second title reign lasted 498 days as ROH had a down period due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Rush lost the title against Bandido at Best in the World 2021.
Stick with SEScoops for updates on Rush as they become available.
It looks like the version of NXT as we know it is coming to an end.
During an edition of Wrestling Observer Live, Bryan Alvarez reported that sources within WWE have claimed that Vince McMahon and Bruce Prichard will be in charge of the production of NXT. This is said to be taking effect on Sept. 14.
Here’s what Alvarez had to say.
“Anything is possible but I talked a while ago about how we’re gonna have a new NXT. It’s gonna be like the old NXT. I have heard from several people now that when they go back to live shows, this is going to be a Vince McMahon-Bruce Prichard production.”
PW Insider first reported that major changes would be made to the NXT brand. Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio later followed up, confirming the brand would have a new look and overall feel. Meltzer also noted that WWE is putting greater focus on making NXT a developmental brand as it once was rather than a major third brand.
We’ve also seen reports claiming that WWE is turning away from signing independent talent. A follow-up update has claimed that WWE talent scouts will still give indie talent a look if they feel it’s worthwhile. With that said, the focus will be on larger-sized talent.
Billy Corgan has responded to Ric Flair’s WWE references at NWA 73.
Flair made his return to the NWA this past Sunday night (Aug. 29). Flair spoke to the crowd inside Chase Park Plaza in St. Louis, Missouri. Flair thanked Corgan for the opportunity and apologized to his family for being on the road so much during his reign as the NWA’s golden goose.
During his promo, Flair also name-dropped a lot of WWE talents. Flair was quite complimentary of the likes of Randy Orton, Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Undertaker, and others. He even thanked Vince McMahon.
During an appearance on Busted Open Radio, Corgan was asked if he knew Flair would make as many WWE references as he did.
“No, but you know what, Ric said, ‘What do you want me to say?’ I said, ‘Ric, you’re Ric Flair, you can say whatever you want.’ He went, ‘Really?’ I said, ‘Yeah, talk about whatever you want. I trust you.’ He said, ‘I want to speak from my heart. I’ve been thinking about what I want to say and it teared me up, thinking about it.’ I said, ‘Do your thing.’ That’s it. That’s what we’re about.
“Ric Flair has earned the right to step through those ropes and say whatever the damn hell he wants. I asked Ric, ‘Did you wrestle here?’ He said, ‘Many times. (I wrestled) Harley, Dusty, Blackjack.’ He rattled off twenty names and I was like ‘oh my God.’ Of course he can step in the ring and say whatever he wants. You don’t think he’s earned that? I do. I don’t care what anyone else thinks with their company. In my company, Ric Flair can say whatever the damn hell he wants.”
Flair has wasted little time exploring his options after being let go by WWE. He appeared at AAA’s TripleMania event, accompanying Andrade “El Idolo” to the ring for his match against Kenny Omega. Reports have claimed that Flair is likely AEW bound but he says he hasn’t heard a word from Tony Khan.
Tony Khan believes that cross-promotion has been serving AEW well.
Ever since Chris Jericho and Hiroshi Tanahashi teased the “Forbidden Door” ahead of their Wrestle Kingdom 14 match back in 2020, fans have been buzzing about potential dream matches. While the COVID-19 pandemic slowed things down, we’ve been seeing the “Forbidden Door” come to life the past few months.
During an appearance on Tuesday Wrestling Tuesday, Tony Khan explained how doing business with other promotions benefits AEW.
“IMPACT, AAA, and certainly New Japan, I’ve done a lot of stuff with. It has to make sense for AEW and we’ve seen wrestlers from AEW go and capture championships in different promotions around the world. A lot of AEW wrestlers still hold championships in various promotions around the world and it’s good for those promotions to have such strong recognizable champions who have a great TV platform to wear their titles. And it’s good for us because it shows that we’re the top company in wrestling, frankly, and a lot of companies out there have had our wrestlers come in and do really well.
“I’m very open to it and it shows good bonds between the companies and allows us access to good wrestlers. We have one of the best rosters, but it’s always good to have fresh and different talent. It’s why I like working with other companies. Also, New Japan has had big shows and have great talent specifically. I’ve done a lot of things with them. The main focus is on AEW and our shows. We have such a big roster and so much bandwidth that it allows us to expand, partner, and help other wrestling companies.”
We’ve seen the likes of Kenny Omega hold titles in Impact Wrestling and AAA. Christian Cage is the current Impact Wrestling World Champion. NJPW stars have been featured on both AEW and Impact. AEW has also done business with NWA.
WWE has discussed continuing the Wrestlemania two-night event trend. According to Fightful Select, WWE has discussed keeping Wrestlemania 38 a multi-night event.
The event is currently scheduled to be held on Sunday, April 3rd, 2021 from AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Per Fightful:
“After the reception of the last two years of WrestleMania being split up into two nights, Fightful has learned the working plan internally as of last week was for WrestleMania 38 in Arlington, Texas to also be split up into two nights. The shows are scheduled for Saturday, April 2, and Sunday, April 3.”
Wrestlemania Being a Two-Night Event
For the last two years, Wrestlemania has been a two-night event. However, WWE has not had a Wrestlemania with full capacity in those two years. Wrestlemania 36 had no fan attendance, while 37 ran with a limited capacity. If Wrestlemania 38 is a two-night event, WWE could try to have a full capacity crowd for both nights. However, it is unknown if health concerns due to COVID-19 will play a factor.
The report also acknowledged that it is not official that WWE will make Wrestlemania 38 a two-night event. However, it states that “…As things stand, many people internally have been given the plans of a two-night show.” The report also shared the WWE roster, likes Wrestlemania being two nights.
Update on The Rock vs Roman Reigns
It is unclear what matches that WWE is scheduling for next year’s Wrestlemania. The Wrestling Observer Newsletter’s Dave Meltzer has reported that WWE wants The Rock to wrestle at Wrestlemania 38. Meltzer also noted WWE wants WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns to wrestle The Rock in a single or tag team match with The Usos involved.
WWE hasn’t made an official statement regarding if next year’s Wrestlemania will be a two-night event. AT&T Stadium is advertising Wrestlemania 38 for April 3, 2022, only.
WWE Superstar Sasha Banks has stepped up to take the Paqui One Chip Challenge.
Paqui sells extremely spicy tortilla chips. The #OneChipChallenge involves the participant testing their resolve against the Carolina Reaper Chip. The Carolina Reaper Chip is laced with Carolina Reaper and Scorpion peppers.
“One eye-watering, curse-inducing chip made with the hottest peppers on the planet.”
The goal is to last 5 minutes after eating the chip before needing to drink water or milk to offset the heat.
Sasha Banks and host Sean Evans subjected themselves to the Carolina Reaper Chip as part of a sponsored promotion with Paqui. Watch how they did here:
Wrestlers on Hot Ones
Sasha Banks is no stranger to spicy food. She previously appeared on Hot Ones, the show that sees celebrities being interviewed while eating increasingly hot chicken wings. Pro wrestlers have have appeared on Hot Ones include:
Steve Austin
Ronda Rousey
Chris Jericho
Ronda Rousey
Sasha Banks
Which of these pro wrestlers were able to take the heat? Visit the link below to see all of their appearances on Hot Ones:
All Elite Wrestling is requesting fans to show proof of vaccination for COVID-19 for their September 22nd event in New York City.
The decision to show proof of vaccination is a mandate for NYC. However, AEW’s event on September 22nd, billed as AEW Dynamite: Grand Slam, must follow NYC requirements. In a press release, AEW has given fans attending instructions to follow the NYC guidelines.
“…all ticket holders age 12 and older are required to provide proof of at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine to enter the grounds of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center and Arthur Ashe Stadium on Wednesday, Sept. 22, for AEW DYNAMITE: GRAND SLAM,” said AEW.
Proof of Vaccination to Enter AEW Dynamite: Grand Slam on Wednesday, September 22
On August 3rd, NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio announced in a press briefing that the city would require proof of vaccination for COVID-19. However, the NYC mandate is only for indoor dining, fitness, or entertainment. New York Post’s Nolan Hicks and Sam Raskin covered Mayor de Blasio’s announcement. In Hicks’ and Raskin’s report, de Blasio said, “…The only way to patronize these businesses indoors is if you’re vaccinated.”
The Arthur Ashe Stadium is considered an indoor stadium, so AEW must follow the guidelines.
AEW has given information on how fans can show proof of vaccination at the event on September 22nd. One of which is simply showing a photo or photocopy of the attendee’s COVID-19 vaccination card. Another way is by using the NYC COVID Safe App by uploading the attendee’s vaccination card and photo ID. AEW is also recommending that fans wear a mask at the event.
AEW also noted that Ticketmaster would “…provide refunds to fans who refuse to show proof of vaccination or are unvaccinated.” Fans that want to be at AEW Dynamite: Grand Slam will have to decide if following the NYC mandate is worth it.
Former WWE Universal Champion Adam Scherr (FKA Braun Strowman) will face EC3 on October 1st. The match will take place at EC3’s “Free the Narrative 2” and will be streamed on Vimeo here. The event will serve as a sequel to EC3’s first Free the Narrative PPV which aired in July. EC3 wrestled Matt Cardona on that show.
“Free The Narrative” is completely independent of any wrestling promotion. Set to an original score, FTN blends professional wrestling, cinema, and harsh reality in what will become the true definition of “creative freedom” for an industry that desperately needs it, and any performer that truly seeks it,” reads a description of EC3’s series.
Strowman was released from WWE on June 2nd. His 90-day no-compete window is believed to have expired yesterday.
“After his shocking dismissal from the corporate wrestling realm, join Adam Scherr on a journey of self-discovery in his return to the ring when Scherr battles ec3 in “Free The Narrative II: The Monster In Us All.”
Where Else Might Braun Strowman End Up?
There has been plenty of speculation as to where Strowman might end up next. According to a report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, he is expected to end up in Impact Wrestling. It was also noted that the former Buddy Murphy is expected in the promotion as well.
“It appears that the former Braun Strowman and Buddy Murphy will be here, with Murphy as Buddy Matthews (his real name is Matthew Adams) and not sure what name Strowman will use,” wrote Dave Meltzer.
CM Punk puts rest to any rumors brewing about his wife AJ Lee returning since he made his return to AEW on August 20. He gave her a shout-out on the show, saying “One more thing, I just wanna say hi to my beautiful wife, sitting at home. I love you April.” Lee even joked about it later on Twitter, responding, “Wasn’t expecting to hear my government name tonight.” While Lee’s fans are hoping she will follow in her husband’s footsteps and make a return to wrestling herself, it unfortunately seems like it won’t be happening anytime soon.
CM Punk stated that Lee’s not gonna make a return to wrestling and he’s going to quash any rumors about it. The reason he stated is that Lee’s neck is not in a good condition and it would jeopardize her health to be in the ring right now.
“I just want to say, no,” Punk told The New York Post. “Just because [of] her neck. The reason she stopped wrestling is because of her neck. She’s got a bad neck, you know. I wouldn’t want her to jeopardize [her] health and neither would she, so we’ll put an end to that rumor right now.”
Dr Britt Baker recently said that she would like to see AJ Lee come out of retirement and wrestle in AEW. She revealed that she was a big fan of AJ Lee during her WWE run and would love to wrestle her. She also added that a Punk & Lee vs Baker & Adam Cole match could happen too. “I was a big AJ Lee fan. One of the first moves I asked my trainer to teach me when I was training was her finished the Black Widow. So, that would be really cool. I would love to see her back in the ring. I would love to see her in the ring with me.”
Big E, however, has said that if Lee decides to return to the WWE, the company would pull out the red carpet for her and she could even have a schedule akin to Brock Lesnar. “I also think, if she wants it, of course, there very easily is a massive place for her,” he said. “I feel like she’s in this legend territory where she comes back and she gets a massive pop. She can have a Brock Lesnar type schedule if she wanted to and work a few times a year. So, if it’s something she wants, of course there’s a place for her.”
GCW Champion and Pabst Blue Ribbon spokesman, Matt Cardona, was recently Chris Jericho’s guest on Talk is Jericho. During the discussion, Cardona spoke about his brief time in AEW and why it didn’t lead to something more permanent.
“AEW, it just didn’t work out at the time,” Cardona said (transcriptions via WrestlingNewsCo). “There’s so many people there, and there just wasn’t anything for me at the time.”
Cardona has wrestled twice for AEW. His first match was on the July 30th, 2020 episode of Dynamite when he teamed with Cody Rhodes and defeated the Dark Order’s John Silver and Alex Reynolds. He then teamed with Dustin Rhodes, QT Marshall, and Scorpio Sky to defeat the Dark Order at All Out 2020.
“No hard feelings, not to say I’ll never be there again because I would love to be. Obviously, there’s no doubt AEW is the place to be. It’s the talk of the wrestling business every single week. Timing is everything, and it wasn’t the right time.”
In addition to his run in GCW, Cardona is also currently active in Impact Wrestling. He defeated Rohit Raju on the Emergence show on Impact Plus last month. Cardona also teamed with his partner Chelsea Green and made it to the semi-finals of Impact’s Homecoming King and Queen tournament in July.
Matt Riddle has long wanted a match against Brock Lesnar. When the two met backstage at the Royal Rumble in 2020, however, it is believed that Lesnar told Riddle that a match between the two was not going to happen. According to comments Riddle made recently to BT Sport, however, he believes if he can keep raising his stock in WWE, the match will eventually make sense for all parties.
“When we had our little back and forth backstage at the Royal Rumble – I think about two years ago at this point now – he did not like me,” Riddle said about Lesnar (transcriptions via 411Mania). “Ever since I was a kid, people either hated me or loved me and I think I just rubbed them the wrong way just like I rubbed Bill [Goldberg] the wrong way.”
Every time I do an interview I watch you all scramble to either to tell me how much you hate me or how much you love me and I just love how easy it is to get you all worked up. Also don’t get worked into a shoot especially with a former UFC fighter bro ? pic.twitter.com/mfeYwakn2s
Riddle feels like at the time he spoke with Lesnar at the Royal Rumble, he wasn’t seen as valuable enough to Brock. He says that both Lesnar and Goldberg have seen him rise up the ranks in WWE recently, however.
“I made it a point to make myself valuable and I felt like at that point when I talked to Brock, I wasn’t valuable enough to him. Same thing to Goldberg when I was talking some trash. But now, they’re starting to see my stock rise.”
Riddle and Goldberg are said to have met backstage this summer in WWE. Things were much more respectful between the two and Goldberg even congratulated Riddle on his success on the main roster.
“I think as long as I keep working, I keep upping my value and upping my stock, eventually, it’s gonna be the right choice for them,” Riddle concluded.
Riddle recently made some comments about Roman Reigns in an interview with Sports Illustrated. Perhaps this is a case of the RK-Bro member targetting Reigns in the same way he has with Lesnar and Goldberg.
“No disrespect to Roman, he seems like a swell fella, but at the same time, it’s like when people say they’re a good parent. You know what? If you were a good parent, your kids would be telling you you’re a good parent. When he’s saying ‘Acknowledge me’ or ‘I move the needle,’ no, you don’t. You’re related to The Rock. Shut up. Like, I’m not impressed, I can beat you up in a real fight. So, shut your mouth,” Riddle said.
WWE Chairman Vince McMahon does not always see eye-to-eye with his top stars. CM Punk was no exception. Their personal relationship became so contentious that it became material for on-air storylines. It ultimately led to his departure from the company.
Punk is doing the media rounds this week to promote Sunday’s All Out pay-per-view, where he’ll debut against Darby Allin. During an appearance on Chicago’s 670 The Score on Tuesday, the Best in the World recalled his first big disagreement with his former boss.
“I was always going tell him the truth. I was always going to be honest.”
– CM Punk
CM Punk says the heated conversation took place at the end of 2006. The topic at hand was the creative plans for the infamous ECW December to Dismember event. He says this was the first time he was honest and truthful with Vince McMahon and feels it laid the groundwork for their relationship.
You can hear Punk recall the conversation in the player below:
https://youtu.be/lvmiFwjfUno
CM Punk: Wrestling is Art
Punk covered a lot of topics during his appearance on 670 The Score, ranging from the origin story of the Cult of Personality to what brought him back to wrestling.
In the lead-up to his pro wrestling return, CM Punk stated several times that it would take more than a big paycheck to lure him back. For him, it was more about working with young talent and being part of compelling storylines.
To Punk, pro wrestling is an art form. He considers himself an artist and questions anyone who attempts to interpret his art.
“I’m not so much worried about what other people think of my art. It’s just my art & i’m here to use it as an expression of myself.”
– CM Punk
Listen to CM Punk’s comments about “wrestling is art” –
Kurt Angle got his release from the WWE in April 2020, and we haven’t seen him anywhere since he became a free agent. It was speculated that we’d see him somewhere soon enough — most likely AEW, but he’s said that it’s off the table. The Olympic gold medalist has recently said that he’s received offers from AEW comprising of different roles from being an active in-ring wrestler to simply being an on-screen personality.
Angle detailed the various offers he’s received from AEW and stated that while Tony Khan’s been really nice to him, he can’t accept any offers at this time. “Yes, they offered me a couple of different contracts,” Angle told Wrestling Inc. Daily. “I turned it down for personal reasons, but Tony Khan’s been really nice to me, very generous, and I really appreciate his interest in having me there. But at this particular time, I can’t do it.”
Angle added that with AEW’s first offer they offered him “many” matches with the company, and the subsequent deal included three matches and deal following after that included an on-screen role with no wrestling.
Back in July, Kurt Angle revealed that he was contacted by Triple H and he was offered a role of a trainer at NXT. He was told that his task would be to go over stuff with talent, and that he could even do it from home on his computer. All he had to do was go through tapes and give the talent notes on what they did right or wrong. Angle said he was interested but he was ghosted by WWE and never heard back from Triple H. “I never heard back from him. Long story short, they were interested but at the last second they must have backed out, which is okay with me.”
It has been a tough few months for Will Ospreay. After reaching the pinnacle of his career, capturing the IWGP Heavyweight Championship in April, injury forced him to vacate the title in May. After several months on the shelf, he made a shocking return at NJPW Resurgence to announce he was once again cleared to wrestle. However, now, the British superstar finds himself laid low once more after confirming he has tested positive for COVID-19.
Will Ospreay took to Twitter to confirm the news, adding that he was double vaccinated and that fans should not worry.
“I’ve got COVID, but I’m fully vaccinated, I’ll be fine. I’ll just rest for these 10 days, keep you updated and I’m sure I’ll be back in no time soon.”
Ospreay looked tired in his video but reassured fans he was going to be back soon promising to beat Covid as he was on another level to the illness.
“I’m going to beat COVID. Why? Because I am on another level!”
Will Ospreay went on to confirm his isolation will mean he misses two upcoming Revolution Pro Wrestling shows. This was also confirmed by Revolution Pro Wrestling who also broke the news via social media.
Will Ospreay has tested positive for Covid-19. He is fully vaccinated, only has mild symptoms & is otherwise healthy. He will be following protocols and will be out of this weekends shows.
Will Ospreay Expected Back for Rev Pro High Stakes on September 19th
Will Ospreay was scheduled to appear at two upcoming Rev Pro Shows in both Sheffield and London. However, there is no reason to believe he won’t be back in time for their High Stakes show. That event is set for September 19th and will see Ospreay look to unify the Rev Pro British Heavyweight and Southside Heavyweight belts in a match against Ricky Knight Jr.
Will Ospreay is also back on the NJPW scene. However, has adamantly stated he will not be returning to Japan in the near future. Instead, he will make appearances for their spin-off brand NJPW Strong. NJPW Strong airs out of California. It is not known if this is part of a longer-term story angle with him and Shingo, or something deeper-seated. There has been no shortage of talk surrounding the happiness of gajin talent in Japan since COVID hit.
The August 31, 2021 episode of WWE NXT aired live on the USA Network from Orlando, Florida at the Capitol Wrestling Center.
WWE NXT Results
Sarray def. Mandy Rose via countout.
Kyle O’Reilly def. Duke Hudson.
Imperium def Drake Maverick & Grayson Waller
LA Knight def. Johnny Gargano.
Raquel Gonzalez def. Jessi Kamea
Roderick Strong def. Ikemen Jiro.
Tommaso Ciampa def. Ridge Holland.
Here are the takeaways from this week’s show:
Sarray vs. Mandy Rose
Sarray vs. Mandy Rose opened this episode of NXT. The match was controlled by Rose for the majority of the time. Rose got hit with a double drop kick and she walked to the backstage area while having a towel over her face. Sarray won via double count out.
Last week, Rose aligned with Gigi Dolin and Jacy Jayne as she offered to take them under her wing after they lost a tag team match against Kayden Carter & Kacy Catanzaro.
Rose made her return to NXT this past Jily where she scouted a match between Sarray and Dolin. Before the return, Rose had been part of a tag team with Dana Brooke on Raw. On the flip side, Sarray was last in action on NXT three weeks ago where she lost to Dakota Kai.
Good to see @WWE_MandyRose back in a ring. #WWENXT
Wade Barrett hosted a sit-down interview with NXT Champion Samoa Joe. This came just a few weeks after Joe beat Karrion Kross at NXT TakeOver 36 to win the title.
Last week, Joe welcomed all challengers as the likes of Pete Dunne, LA Knight, and Kyle O’Reilly made their cases as to why they should get the next title shot.
In this interview, Joe stated he plans to dominate his opponents and wants to establish what it means to be NXT Champion. This started before he became champion, but rather coming back. He said he was at the talent tryouts in Las Vegas then straight back to Florida on a red eye and tired while challenging for the title.
He said he needed to win the title because the precedent needed to be set. He said the legacy of the title and those who have held it before him is important. The path that he goes is the way that all future champions will follow him. He wants to know who will step up.
Ilja Dragunov made his first appearance as NXT United Kingdom Champion on this show.
Ilja cut a promo in the ring about how he’s looking for someone with passion, soul and struggle to take away the title from him. He said the ring general has fallen and long live the Czar.
Dragunov defeated WALTER to win the NXT United Kingdom Championship at TakeOver 36. Dragunov is the fourth-ever NXT United Kingdom Champion as Tyler Bate, Pete Dunne, and WALTER previously held the title.
WALTER held the title for 870 days. Dragunov had two matches on NXT leading up to the title match where he lost to Pete Dunne and beat Roderick Strong.
WWE booked Duke Hudson vs. Kyle O’Reilly in a singles match.
This was a short hard-hitting match that saw Hudson get some offense and looked impressive even if it was against O’Reilly, who can make anyone look good. Hudson got a near fall spot with a belly-to-belly suplex.
Ridge Holland and Tommaso Ciampa ended up working a singles match on this show.
Just last week, Holland beat Ciampa’s tag team partner, Timothy Thatcher, in a singles match. After the match, a brawl broke out with Ciampa and Thatcher being left lying thanks to Danny Burch and Pete Dunne. Thatcher is out of action indefinitely following Holland’s attack.
The match was saved for last and it didn’t disappoint. Holland continued to show off and had a good performance as he dominated the majority of it with Ciampa fighting back. Ciampa went over. Post-match, the heels beat down Ciampa until MSK came out to make the save.
Strong was supposed to challenge for Kushida’s NXT Cruiserweight Championship two weeks ago. However, it was announced that Kushida wasn’t cleared to compete and there’s still no word yet on when it will happen. On that episode, Strong instead issued an open challenge and lost to NXT UK Champ Ilja Dragunov.
On the flip side, Jiro has been a regular on 205 Live since signing with WWE last December. He also worked the NXT Breakout Tournament.
Johnny Gargano vs. LA Knight
Johnny Gargano vs. LA Knight did not end up being the main event of this show. Instead, it kicked off the second hour.
The match was back and forth. It ended with Knight hitting the BFT thanks to an accidental distraction by Lumis.
Knight had just finished up a program with Cameron Grimes and Ted DiBiase at NXT TakeOver 36 where he dropped the Million Dollar Title. Gargano had been in a feud with Dexter Lumis and even though he won the Love Her or Leave Her Match, Lumis is slated to have a storyline wedding with Indie Heartwell.
The betting odds for most of the matches that will air during the AEW All Out pay-per-view event have been released.
The card for the show that takes place on Sunday, September 5, 2021 is still taking shape. So far, nine matches have been announced for the show with four of them having a title on the line.
However, there are no titles favored to change hands. CM Punk and Paul Wight are favored to win their AEW in-ring debuts. Punk hasn’t worked a match in seven years as his previous bout came in January 2014 at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view event. Chris Jericho is also favored to beat his arch-rival MJF.
The favorites to win are listed as – while the underdogs are listed with +. Here are the betting odds, courtesy of Bet Online:
AEW World Heavyweight Champion Kenny Omega -600 vs. Christian Cage +350
CM Punk -500 vs. Darby Allin +300
Andrade El Idolo -300 vs. PAC +200
Paul Wight -600 vs. QT Marshall +350
Chris Jericho -250 vs. MJF +175 (If Jericho loses, he can never wrestle in AEW again)
Jon Moxley -500 vs. Satoshi Kojima +300
AEW Women’s Champion Britt Baker -200 vs. Kris Statlander +150
AEW Tag Team Champions The Young Bucks -225 vs. Lucha Bros +165 – Steel Cage Match
WWE Chairman Vince McMahon was reportedly unhappy with the original Monday Night Raw plans yesterday.
The original Raw plans were advertised by WWE ahead of the show airing, including a non-title match between Bobby Lashley and Sheamus. However, McMahon decided to make adjustments to the show. PWInsider’s Mike Johnson reports that McMahon was “extremely unhappy” with the original rundown.
“PWInsider.com was told by several that Vince McMahon, extremely unhappy with the original plans for Monday Night Raw, “ripped up the script” several times, including the original plans and then the initial rewrite,” said the report.
Johnson’s sources also said that “…McMahon then began requesting new ideas, some of which we are told were good, and others no so good, but rejected everything pitched to him before decreeing the new plans for last night’s episode.
Creative issues with Vince McMahon
The report states that WWE made no official plan for the episode until 6 pm est. While it isn’t uncommon for WWE to change plans before a show, yesterday’s episode was challenging. The report called yesterday “…one of the “longest” days in a long time for the WWE Creative team.” Johnson also noted that “One source who went through the process described it as “the loudest and angriest” they’d ever seen McMahon on a show day.”
Monday Night Raw results
The main event of Raw featured the team of Bobby Lashley & MVP vs. RK-Bro for the Raw Tag Team Championships. RK-Bro successfully retained their title when Riddle pinned MVP. After the match, Lashley attacked Riddle with his spear move. However, Randy Orton landed an RKO on Lashley, and the show ended with RK-Bro posing with their titles.
Instead of facing Lashley, WWE had Sheamus compete in a triple threat match against Drew McIntyre and Damien Priest for the United States Championship. Priest successfully retained the U.S title after pinning McIntyre.
WWE is slated to hold its upcoming Queen Of The Ring tournament and a new trademark filing has seemingly confirmed the name of it.
The company filed for the phrase “Queens Crown Tournament” with The United States Patent and Trademark Office last week. The description notes that it’s for entertainment services.
WWE is returning to Saudi Arabia on October 21st for its next pay-per-view event in the country that will be called Crown Jewel, which has been used for past shows.
WWE has plans to present the King of the Ring and Queen of the Ring tournament starting on the October 8th edition of SmackDown and continuing on the October 11th episode of Raw.
“Being that I’m already The Queen, if it was to happen, I believe whoever wins it has to face me, since I am The Queen of Queens, right?” asked Charlotte. “Like I don’t think I have to be in it. I already have the title. I think they should have the opportunity to face me if they win.”
It’s been reported that only talent from Raw and SmackDown will be part of both tournaments, so it’s very likely that no talent from NXT will participate. As always, anything in WWE can change.
CM Punk got the internet buzzing with some initials he drew on his sneakers and he has revealed the meaning.
Punk made his electric return to wrestling on Aug. 20. He made his AEW debut inside the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. Punk then had an in-ring interview with Tony Schiavone on the Aug. 25 edition of Dynamite.
It didn’t take long for fans to notice several initials on Punk’s sneakers such as “AC” and “CF.” Theories ran rampant on the Internet with some believing that “AC” stood for Adam Cole and “CF” stood for Charlotte Flair.
Speaking to the New York Post, Punk revealed the true meaning behind two of those initials.
“I stole this from LeBron James; a lot of basketball players will write messages on their shoes and stuff. I wrote AC on my shoes and CF on the other foot. AC is Always Chicago and CF is Chicago Forever.”
CM Punk
Punk had some other initials on his sneakers that he did not address. One of them was “BW.” This has led many to speculate that it stood for Bray Wyatt, who was released by WWE.
CM Punk is scheduled to have his first match since January 2014. He will meet Darby Allin at the All Out PPV on Sept. 5. The action will be held inside the Now Arena in Hoffman Estates, Illinois.
Punk left WWE following the 2014 Royal Rumble PPV event. He cited the lack of time off, a misdiagnosis of a staph infection, and creative differences as the reasons for his departure.
Monday’s edition of WWE Raw averaged 1.907 million viewers with a 0.54 rating in the Adults 18-49 demographic. This is down from last week’s 2.067 million viewers and the 0.64 rating.
Here’s the hourly viewership breakdown for Raw, courtesy of Showbuzzdaily.com:
Hour 1: 1.955 million, 0.56 in the 18-49 Demo
Hour 2: 1.936 million, 0.57 in the 18-49 Demo
Hour 3: 1.830 million, 0.50 in the 18-49 Demo
This show was expected to drop from last week’s Raw, which was the fallout edition for SummerSlam, and set the second biggest viewership number the show has done thus far this year, only behind the January 4th edition.
This episode featured Rhea Ripley vs. Shayna Baszler, The Viking Raiders (Erik & Ivar) vs. Jinder Mahal & Veer, United States Champion Damian Priest vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Sheamus, Nia Jax vs. Charlotte Flair, Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro (Randy Orton & Riddle) vs. Bobby Lashley & MVP, and more.
SmackDown Viewership
The episode drew an average of 2.874 million viewers in the overnight ratings, up from the previous week that did 2.237 million viewers. In the 18-49 demographic, it did a 0.59 rating, which was up from the 0.57 rating the week before.
The final ratings were 2.250 million viewers, up from last week’s 2.102 million viewers.
This week’s episode of Dynamite will mark the 100th episode of the show. Dynamite first aired on October 2, 2019. Tomorrow’s episode will be significant for the 100th episode and the last episode before All Out. AEW also announced five matches for the 100th episode. However, the promotion hasn’t revealed what the main event would be.
AEW promoted on August 29th that Chris Jericho would do an in-ring interview with Jim Ross on tomorrow’s episode. Today, AEW shared that CM Punk will also appear on the show to promote his upcoming match with Darby Allin at All Out.
CM Punk Return to Chicago
Punk will be making his return to Chicago after his debut on AEW Rampage on August 20th. As a Chicago native, Punk received a thunderous ovation from the crowd. On the August 20th episode of Rampage, he also challenged Allin to a match at All Out.
In his return, Punk said to Allin, “…You’re the first on the list. I’m going to help you because you are a daredevil and you like danger. Well, Darby Allin, there is nothing you could do that is more dangerous than wrestling CM Punk. Except wrestling CM Punk in Chicago.”
CM Punk makes his in-ring debut for All Elite Wrestling this weekend at AEW All Out. He’ll face Darby Allin in the most anticipated match of what’s happing up to be AEW’s biggest show of the year.
Punk appeared on ESPN’s SportsNation this week and was asked about his decision to sign with AEW. According to Punk, AEW’s locker room has really impressed him.
“It kind of helped breathe life back into my love of professional wrestling,” Punk said of AEW. “I see this young, upstart company that’s full of what I call punk rock youthful exuberance. Rough around the edges but just so eager to learn and soak up everything they possibly can. It’s new and it’s exciting.”
CM Punk on AEW’s Locker Room
Punk continued to talk about how the AEW locker room keeping news of Brodie Lee’s illness a secret impressed him.
“One of the big things that turned me on to them and made me consider going there was, unfortunately, the wrestling world lost Brodie Lee last December,” he said. “His sickness and everything that came with it was known in the company but they kept it so secret. And wrestlers will always tell you that ‘oh the boys, we’re a big family, we care about each other, the wrestling business…’ none of that is entirely true but to see everyone in the company band together just to keep a secret about somebody’s health, I was blown away by that. I was blown away that it wasn’t plastered all over every single website and it was just kept secret. And that made me go, ‘there’s something to that locker room.'”
Watch CM Punk’s comments about choosing AEW over WWE below:
