While she did not appear live on the show, Charlotte Flair’s presence at the TripleMania event attracted a lot of attention. It was the subject of many headlines because she skipped a WWE show to attend the PPV.
The Queen talked about it on the latest episode of Renee Paquette’s Oral Sessions podcast. She explained that TripleMania was like WrestleMania for Andrade and so she couldn’t miss it for the world:
“[Andrade] was like, ‘Mami, TripleMania is my WrestleMania.’ To see him go back to Mexico, be proud of himself, feel confident in himself,
And be the superstar that he is,” said Charlotte, “Especially in his home country, I was like, I’m not missing this for the world.”
The new Raw women’s champion also opened up about Andrade’s decision to leave WWE. She detailed a conversation the two had before the former NXT champion departed from the promotion:
“He felt deflated from not being on TV and what was happening. I said, ‘I can’t tell you what to do, and I can’t beg you to stay even though our life is together on the road because you’ll resent me. You need to go spread your wings and do what you do,
And if you want to come back, I’m always going to be here.” said Flair, “I’m always going to support you.’ It was the best thing for him.”
For those who don’t know, AAA TripleMania XXIX took place earlier this month. One of the top matches of the card saw Kenny Omega succesfully defending his Mega championship against Andrade.
Things became interesting when Ric Flair came out to accompany Andrade to the ring and then backstage photos of Charlotte Flair on the show went viral.
NJPW’s KENTA has noted on Instagram stories that he recently tested positive for COVID-19. He did experience symptoms, including a fever and loss of smell but is doing better now.
“I got COVID last few weeks,” he wrote. “First of all, I apologize to everyone who had to [change plans] because of me. Fortunately, my symptom was not too bad. Just [had a] fever a few days (102 F) and lost my smell. But now I’m totally fine. And got [a negative test]. Stay safe and healthy, everyone.”
KENTA hasn’t wrested in a month. His last match was the 22-man New Japan Rando match at Wrestle Grand Slam in the Tokyo Dome on July 25th. The night before he lost a singles match to Hiroshi Tanahashi at Summer Struggle in Nagoya.
On August 15th, NJPW announced that several wrestlers had been pulled from shows due to COVID-19 protocols. KENTA was not on the tour by this point, however. IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Shingo Takagi was pulled from the tour and hasn’t wrestled since August 14th.
In NJPW, KENTA is a 1x Never Openweight Champion and won the USA Cup on New Japan Strong in 2020. In Pro Wrestling NOAH, KENTA is a former 1x GHC Heavyweight Champion and 3x Junior Heavyweight Champion.
KENTA responded to CM Punk’s return to pro-wrestling on Friday night’s The First Dance event:
The wrestling world is still buzzing about the return of CM Punk. While many WWE stars have chosen to react to the big development indirectly, Drew McIntyre is openly showing his support for it.
The former WWE champion spoke to Pro Wrestling Bits while promoting the SummerSlam event that took place this past Saturday. He talked about things such as adapting to the Thunderdome and more.
When asked about the pro wrestling return of the Straight Edge star, McIntyre said that he’s all for it. He explained that he supports anything that makes wrestling better:
“Just anything that’s good for wrestling, I’m all about. I was outside the company from 2014 to 2017, working the Independents and with IMPACT, just trying to make wrestling a healthier and better place.
It’s healthy right now, it’s in an incredible place, obviously, WWE is at the top and leading the charge.” said Drew McIntyre, “Anything that can make it better, I’m all about. If it makes a positive difference, it’s a thumbs up from me,”
CM Punk made his long-awaited return to wrestling after 7 years of absence during last Friday’s AEW Rampage. His comeback created a buzz that is seen very rarely.
Drew McIntyre defeated Jinder Mahal in a one on one match at the SummerSlam PPV. We will have to wait and see what the company has planned for him next.
Many wrestlers have talked about how they get creative freedom in AEW. As it turns out, this feeling is not limited to only the wrestling talent and even the ring announcers such as Justin Roberts feel the same.
The former WWE ring announcer recently appeared on AEW Unrestricted podcast. He talked about things such as working the All In PPV, how it transitioned into an AEW job, his ring announcing heroes and more.
Talking about the extent of creative freedom he gets, Roberts said that on a scale of 1 to 10, he would rate his experience at the company at 100:
“If there’s a scale of creative freedom, and there’s a one and a 10, I guess I’m at 100, since day one, it’s just one of those things where I’ve never been handed a script, or I’ve never been told what to say on anything starting from the first show when,
I believe, we had a guest singer for the national anthem.” recalled Justin Roberts, “Even with that, I’m like, I don’t have anything on who they are or whatever.”
The AEW announcer went on to explain that if he has any questions then he goes to the appropriate person but he doesn’t have anyone speaking his language for him.
Justin Roberts worked as a ring announcer for WWE for over a decade from 2002 to 2014. He was officially hired by AEW as a ring announcer in April 2019.
The new NXT champion Samoa Joe was recently interviewed by French YouTuber Hal. He talked about things such as his firing from WWE, a potential return to Raw or SmackDown, and more.
Recent reports about upcoming NXT revamps have been a major topic of discussion among wrestling fans. People have been concerned about Vince McMahon’s apparent directions to change the hiring philosophy for the brand.
Joe was asked what the boss thinks about the brand during the talk. Replying to it, he claimed that Mr McMahon perceives NXT as the future of the company:
“I think he perceives it as the future of his company. I think that he’s heavily invested in it. It’s funny, you know, I read all this stuff that I hear from people…
At the same time, he’s probably the biggest proponent of its existence, and much of what has happened in it thus far.”
Samoa Joe On Taking Backstage Responsibilities In NXT
Samoa Joe also commented on his own return to the brand after getting released from the company. He explained why he took backstage responsibilities in NXT saying that he is excited about introducing new stars to the world:
“NXT – it’s the future of WWE, and it’s a big reason why I’m excited to be kind of associated with it. Because I get to delve into the future.
I get to work on new things and new projects and introduce new stars in the world. And that’s something that, at this point in my career, I’m very, very excited to.”
Apart from this, the NXT champion was asked about the forbidden door and the possibility of making an appearance for Impact Wrestling in the future. You can check out his full interview below:
Paul Wight was known as The Big Show for over two decades during his WWE career. However unusual the name is, it still gets him universal recognization among wrestling and non-wrestling fans alike.
The now former WWE star recently appeared on Insight With Chris Van Vliet. He talked about things such as WWE making him turn down an offer for a role in Gladiator, why he left the promotion and more.
Revealing how he got his WWE name, Wight recalled the time he first got into WWE. He revealed that it was Vince McMahon himself who named him The Big Show:
“That was Vince, when I first came into WWE I was Paul Wight. I just don’t think Vince liked the spelling of my name or just my name. But what would Vince know about marketing? But he walked by me one day and he goes ‘so how’s The Big Show today?’
I go ‘I’m good but who the hell is The Big show?’ He goes ‘you! You can walk, you can talk, you’re an athlete. You’re The Big Show.’ He walked off” recalled Paul Wight, “And I thought ‘oh dear God I hope that is not my wrestling name.’ But it was.”
The former world champion also talked about his decision to leave WWE and claimed that he was not sure he would get a job in wrestling again after he left the company.
He told the story of how Chris Jericho got him into touch with Tony Khan. They then had a long conversation leading to Wight’s AEW signing. You can check out his full interview below:
The SummerSlam PPV featuring the match between John Cena and Roman Reigns created a lot of buzz. However, Nikki Bella is one star who didn’t watch this main event match. The former Divas champion recently had an interview with Extra. She talked about things such as her son taking more interest in dancing than wrestling, her new haircut and more.
Nikki also reiterated her comments about a run with the women’s tag team championship tempting her for a wrestling return. She said that she truly hopes to make a comeback in the future so her son can watch her wrestle:
“I talk to Brie about this on the daily. I look at Tamina and I look at Natalya and I see them hold those tag team championships and there’s nothing more that I would love to come back for that,
I truly hope that in the future I can come back in that ring and compete. Compete in front of my son! He would sit front row. It would be a dream. It’s not over for the Bella Twins. We definitely will come back and make our mark.”
Nikki Bella On Why She Didn’t Watch John Cena’s Match
During the interview, Nikki Bella was also asked about John Cena’s match at the SummerSlam PPV. Replying to it, the former champion claimed that she missed the bout because she was too busy playing roulette:
“You know, I actually have to say when you’re in Vegas, the tables took me away, I was too busy playing roulette, and I was winning big. So I missed it.”
Nikki Bella hasn’t wrestled on WWE TV for more than three years. Her last televised match was when she challenged Ronda Rousey for the Raw women’s championship at Evolution in 2018. While she has been talking about her desire for an in-ring return for some time now, a timetable for her comeback is not known.
Carmelo Hayes has defeated Odyssey Jones in the finals of the NXT Breakout Tournament 2021 to earn a future title shot in the brand.
This week’s post Takeover 36 episode of the black and yellow brand featured the finals of the tournament that started last month on July 13.
The finals saw the two men wrestling in a competitive match. The ending of the bout saw Jones trying to pin his opponent after delivering a frog splash.
However, Hayes rolled him over to get the pin and become the winner of the Breakout tournament. The finish left both the superstars in shock as the NXT general manager William Regal came out.
Regal presented Carmelo Hayes a contract for a future championship match against any NXT champion he wants to face. Samantha Irvin then asked him which titleholder he would like to challenge.
Hayes first gave a shout out to Jones saying that he is no joke. He then explained that it’s too soon to know which champion he will challenge.
The NXT tournament winner said that he called his shot to get here and he doesn’t miss whenever he shoots. The segment ended with Carmelo Hayes standing tall on the stage, raising the contract as pyro rained down.
Billy Corgan believes that Mickie James played a crucial role in repairing the relationship between NWA and Impact Wrestling.
The “Forbidden Door” has taken on a life of its own. While the phrase began to hint at Hiroshi Tanahashi of NJPW challenging Chris Jericho for the AEW Championship, other promotions have joined in on the fun over the past year. NWA and Impact Wrestling in particular have been enjoying success through cross-promotion.
When Corgan was ousted from Impact Wrestling and went on to take over NWA, any thought of cross-promotion between the two companies seemed out of the question. Things have changed, however, and Corgan told the folks at The Battleground Podcast that Mickie deserves props.
“Well I think it’s all credit to Mickie, you know, she was the one that had the relationships to go back and kind of reopen that door, which from my end was closed due to some business stuff that had gone on. Then, Pat Kenney, who works behind the scenes in talent relations, has a long-standing relationship with people in IMPACT. I think it just kind of mended the fence and we found some business to do together and they’ve been a great partner in this.
“Obviously, Deonna Purrazzo’s gonna be on the pay-per-view, and it’s a real honor. Let’s not forget, I worked for that championship, so that championship means a lot to me. So to have it on an NWA show is a great honor and it’s a tribute to everybody involved to help put it together. Because, I think it’s now very obvious, you know, everybody calls it the forbidden door, but I’ve been saying it for years, you know, the future of the wrestling business is really great people working together, putting together these Supercards.”
NWA will be running an all-women’s PPV event on Saturday night (Aug. 28). The PPV will feature an NWA Women’s World Title match and an Impact Wrestling Knockouts Title match. New NWA Women’s Tag Team Champions will also be crowned through a tournament.
The August 24, 2021 episode of WWE NXT aired live on the USA Network from Orlando, Florida at the Capitol Wrestling Center.
WWE NXT Results
Ridge Holland defeated Timothy Thatcher.
Kacy Catanzaro and Kayden Carter defeated Jacy Jayne and Gigi Dolin.
Kay Lee Ray defeated Valentina Feroz.
Carmelo Hayes defeated Odyssey Jones.
Xyon Quinn defeated Boa.
Legado del Fantasma defeated Hit Row.
Here are the takeaways from this week’s show:
Let’s Celebrate
Ted DiBiase and Cameron Grimes started the show with a celebration for Grimes’ victory at TakeOver 36 over LA Knight.
DiBiase said that quitters never win while winners never quit. He said that Grimes became the Million Dollar Man. Grimes said that when Ted first showed up, he drove him next. Ted said he did that as a test.
Grimes said he was lacking something before Ted showed up and he realized there was no way of letting Ted become Knight’s butler when he was doing those things. Grimes said they took care of Knight together. Grimes asked where he goes from here. Ted said it’s time to go to the moon. Money started flying out of blowers.
New NXT Champion Samoa Joe entered the ring for a promo where he talked about his big win over Karrion Kross and wondered who his first challenger would be.
He said his knowledge tells him there is a land of savages and there is no time to celebrate. He said the tension in the air can be felt and the stares are more bolder. He asked who is willing to step up.
Pete Dunne, LA Knight, and Kyle O’Reilly came out. They all pitched why they should get the title.
Ridge Holland attacked O’Reilly. Ciampa came out to attack Dunne and Holland with Joe and Ciampa staring down Dunne and Holland.
Odyssey Jones vs. Carmelo Hayes in the finals of the 2021 NXT Breakout Tournament took place.
Carmelo Hayes went over in the contest to win the tournament. This was a really fun match with Hayes just edging him out with a roll up.
Hayes said that Jones is no joke and wouldn’t say who he would challenge with this opportunity.
Jones defeated Andre Chase in the first round of the Breakout Tournament while Hayes defeated Josh Briggs. Moving along, Hayes advanced to the finals by defeating Duke Hudson. On the flip side, Jones got his spot in the finals by defeating Trey Baxter
Legado del Fantasma (Santos Escobar, Raul Mendoza, Joaquin Wilde) vs. Hit Row (Ashante “Thee” Adonis, “Top Dolla” AJ Francis, NXT North American Champion Isaiah “Swerve” Scott) in an six-man tag team match was booked.
The match was the main event of the show. Elektra Lopez came out and attacked B-Fab with a weapon. She also distracted Scott, which allowed Santos to roll up Scott for the win.
These two factions have been feuding for several weeks including last week where they had a parking lot brawl with Hit Row standing tall as a way to get revenge for Santos stealing the grill of Scott two weeks ago.
Becky Lynch will be making her way to New York City.
Lynch made a surprise return at WWE SummerSlam this past Saturday night (Aug. 21). She took out Carmella and asked Bianca Belair for a SmackDown Women’s Title match on the spot. Bianca accepted and Becky nailed her with a cheap shot followed by a pump handle slam for the victory in less than 30 seconds.
The newly-minted SmackDown Women’s Champion is now being advertised for the “Super” edition of SmackDown inside Madison Square Garden in NYC on Sept. 10.
“BREAKING, ‘The Man’ Becky Lynch is back! See the new Smackdown Women’s Champion live in action when WWE Super SmackDown returns to The Garden on Fri, Sept 10.”
Much has been made over the return of Lynch, which was reportedly supposed to be held off until October before Sasha Banks was pulled from the SummerSlam card. Many believe that Lynch’s actions at the PPV event were heelish and didn’t do Bianca any favors.
As it turns out, the idea is for Becky Lynch to be a heel going forward according to PW Insider. Furthermore, Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio reports that Lynch requested that she returns as a heel and that request is being granted.
AEW has added two matches to tomorrow night’s (Aug. 25) episode of Dynamite.
This week’s episode of Dynamite will take place inside the UWM Panther Arena in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The show will feature an appearance from CM Punk. Plus, Orange Cassidy vs. Matt Hardy, Malakai Black vs. Brock Anderson, Jamie Hayter vs. Red Velvet, and the Lucha Bros vs. The Varsity Blondes will be featured.
There have now been two trios matches announced for the card. Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston will team with Darby Allin to take on The Wingmen. Also, The Factory will meet The Gunn Club with Paul Wight serving as the special guest commentator.
Here’s an updated look at what to expect from this week’s edition of AEW Dynamite.
CM Punk Appears
Orange Cassidy vs. Matt Hardy
Jon Moxley, Eddie Kingston, & Darby Allin vs. The Wingmen
Lucha Bros vs. The Varsity Blondes
Malakai Black vs. Brock Anderson
Jamie Hayter vs. Red Velvet
The Factory vs. The Gunn Club
The tag team match between the Lucha Bros and The Varsity Blondes has major implications in the tag team division. The winner will go on to meet Jurassic Express for a shot at The Young Bucks for the AEW World Tag Team Titles.
AEW has rolled out a special look at the AEW debut of CM Punk.
Punk got the wrestling world buzzing with his return to professional wrestling. He appeared on the second episode of AEW Rampage. The show emanated from the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. Punk received one of the loudest ovations you will ever hear at a wrestling show.
Punk grabbed the mic and discussed making his way back to professional wrestling. He then targeted Darby Allin, who has made a name for himself in AEW. Punk said that Darby is a daredevil but there’s nothing more dangerous than facing CM Punk in Chicago. Punk will have his first match since January 2014 against Darby at All Out on Sept. 5.
Punk is set to appear on AEW Dynamite on Aug. 25 in Milwaukee. He is expected to address his decision to call out Darby Allin for his first match in over seven years.
AEW Rampage viewership totals were significantly increased from the show’s debut thanks to Punk’s appearance. The second episode of Rampage garnered 1.1 million viewers, while Punk’s segment drew 1.3 million viewers. This episode was up 53 percent in viewership from Rampage’s premiere.
Former NXT UK Women’s champion Kay Lee Ray has become a full-time talent for NXT. PWInsider’sMike Johnson reports that she has moved to the United States and will remain with NXT.
Ray has been training at the Performance Center since the first week of August. She made her surprise return to the brand at NXT Takeover 36 on Sunday.
“Kay Lee Ray is on the WWE NXT roster full-time going forward and will be residing in the United States. This is not meant to be a short run, and then she’s back to NXT UK,” said Johnson.
Kay Lee Ray Return to NXT
Ray made her return after NXT Women’s champion Raquel Gonzalez successfully defended her title against Dakota Kai. The former NXT UK Women’s champion stood at the entrance ramp and taunted Gonzalez. On tonight’s NXT taping, she will face Valentina Feroz.
NXT Women’s Title Picture
With Gonzalez successfully retaining her championship against Kai, it seems she needs a new challenger. Kai has wrestled on Main Event, so it would appear that she’s preparing to leave NXT. However, WWE also hasn’t officially stated that Kai is going to the main roster.
Other than Kai, Gonzalez doesn’t have a clear challenger to face next. However, with the return of Ray, she has an opportunity to be the next contender for the championship.
CM Punk has responded to people who have mocked a fan who cried during his AEW debut.
Punk finally made his return to the wrestling industry on Aug. 20. The jam-packed United Center in Chicago, Illinois gave Punk a thunderous ovation. Emotion filled the arena as Punk appeared to be on the verge of tears and one fan in the crowd was seen on camera crying.
“I’m a Chicago guy. I’m a Chicago sports guy. I cried when the Cubs won the World Series. I cried when the Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup, the time that I was alive when they won the Cup, not back in the sixties. You know, it means a lot. And I think it means a lot because I’m so attached to Chicago and sports especially. I understand. So anybody who’s making fun of that dude, you’re making fun of me too. There’s nothing wrong with being emotional at a sporting event or anything you like. I’ll cry at a Marvel movie.”
Punk will be in Milwaukee for AEW Dynamite on Aug. 25. He is expected to address his decision to call out Darby Allin for his first return match. Punk and Darby are scheduled to collide on Sept. 5 at the All Out PPV.
When Punk enters the ring at All Out, it’ll be his first wrestling match since the 2014 Royal Rumble. Punk’s last singles match took place on the Jan. 20, 2014 edition of Monday Night Raw. He defeated Billy Gunn, who also now works for AEW.
Monday’s edition of WWE Raw averaged 2.067million viewers with a 0.64 rating in the Adults 18-49 demographic. This is up from last week’s 1.857 million viewers and the 0.55 rating.
Here’s the hourly viewership breakdown for Raw, courtesy of Showbuzzdaily.com:
Hour 1: 2.152 million, 0.65 in the 18-49 Demo
Hour 2: 2.094 million, 0.67 in the 18-49 Demo
Hour 3: 1.956 million, 0.60 in the 18-49 Demo
This was the fallout edition for SummerSlam for Raw, which historically increased ratings for the program. This episode of Raw was the second biggest viewership number that Raw has done thus far this year, only being behind the January 4th edition. Here’s the rest of the viewership breakdown for Monday Night Raw:
M18-49: 540,000
F18-49: 287,000
P18-34: 291,000
M18-34: 170,000
F18-34: 120,000
P35-49: 536,000
M35-49: 369,000
F35-49: 167,000
non-P18-49: 1.241 million
This episode featured Logan Paul appearing on Moist TV, Nikki A.S.H. & Rhea Ripley vs. Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler, Damian Priest & Drew McIntyre vs. Bobby Lashley & Sheamus, Karrion Kross vs. Ricochet, Xavier Woods vs. The Miz, and Riddle vs. AJ Styles.
SmackDown Viewership
The episode drew an average of 2.237 million viewers in the overnight ratings, down from the previous week that did 2.499 million viewers. In the 18-49 demographic, it did a 0.57 rating, which was down from the 0.58 rating the week before. The final ratings were 2.102 million viewers, up from last week’s 2.084 million viewers.
WWE Hall of Famer Booker T wasn’t impressed by the promo CM Punk cut in his AEW debut.
Punk had been heavily teased for the second episode of Rampage and AEW delivered. Punk made his entrance inside the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. It instantly became a classic moment with one of the loudest crowd pops ever witnessed. For many, it reminded them of the Attitude Era days when the glass would shatter and Stone Cold would make his way out.
Punk’s return has been praised throughout the wrestling world but Booker T has a different take. During his Hall of Fame podcast, Booker T said he feels Punk wasted his promo time going after WWE.
“CM Punk came back and he had 10 full television minutes to go out there and make his point as far as CM Punk being back. He had the perfect crowd to be able to go out there and really, I’m talking about have a party up in that United Center. But CM Punk came back and took his moment and chose to talk about WWE. That right there was just a total miss as far as I’m concerned [he] struck out. I can only imagine if The Rock had that same 21,000 in Miami, Florida. The Rock would have talked about every landmark in Miami and that everybody in Miami frequented…he would have had those fans going crazy with excitement but CM Punk chose to talk about the WWE and that 9 minutes went back so slow when it could have been a party going on in the United Center.
“I’m saying from a perspective to where I’m making my comeback and I’m thinking about the other side, that’s totally a place that I wouldn’t even be going. As well as you talk about how the moment started out on a rise and after the music stopped playing, the rise just started going down. It never came back up. That’s a moment for you? I get it, I understand that but my point is the moment, once the bell rings and the bell rings after the music stops as far as I’m concerned and I just don’t think CM Punk delivered the way he could have as far as a promo goes because I didn’t feel the promo. I felt like a guy talking about WWE and when you’re talking about the other side, only thing you’re doing is giving those guys airtime. Of course, I know the AEW crowd will eat that up but for me as a professional, that’s the last thing that I’m gonna be thinking about is the other side. I’m gonna be thinking about the here and the now. Like I said, I could be wrong but I just think he missed a moment there in front of his hometown [with] over 20,000 people…”
CM Punk will get more mic time on Dynamite this Wednesday (Aug. 25). His first match with the promotion is scheduled to take place on Sept. 5. It’ll be a part of the All Out PPV inside the Now Arena in Hoffman Estates, Illinois.
While Booker T’s main gripe with Punk’s promo was on the WWE talk, it’s important to note that the former WWE Champion did put over Darby Allin on the mic. Punk mentioned Darby’s toughness and his thirst for danger. The two will meet at All Out.
The NXT brand will be looking to make Johnny Gargano the next major heel.
PWInsider Mike Johnson reports that Gargano will be the next top heel in NXT. This report responds to former NXT champion Karrion Kross moving to the main roster and Adam Cole’s contract status.
“With Adam Cole and Karrion Kross gone, we are told the current plan is for Johnny Gargano to be positioned as the top heel for the brand,” said Johnson.
Johnny Gargano Current Situation
Gargano is currently in a storyline with his faction “The Way” and Dexter Lumus. He and Candice Lerae has tried to prevent Hartwell and Lumis from being together. PWinsider’s Billy Krotchsen shared results for upcoming NXT tapings. From the tapings, it would seem the current storyline will continue in September. However, the report revealed that he might start a feud with LA Knight.
NXT is moving in a new direction soon. With the departure of Cole and Kross, the brand has a unique opportunity for heels to become fill their role. Johnson reported that along with Gargano, Pete Dunne and Roderick Strong would have new positions within the brand. “We are told Pete Dunne, and Roderick Strong will also be main players on the heel side of things,” said Johnson.
Ruby Soho (FKA Ruby Riott) has released a new video on social media. It’s the second video she’s released, the first having been posted last Tuesday.
In her latest video, Ruby steals a car from a gas station and drives away. She then narrowly avoids an accident. The video ends with the words “The Runaway” and “To Be Continued.”
According to a report from Fightful, Ruby is expected to sign with AEW at some point. She was released from her WWE contract on June 2nd, 2021. If she was under a 90-day no-compete clause, she will be free to sign with another promotion at the beginning of September.
Vickie Guerrero specifically mentioned Ruby Soho as someone she would like to see in AEW.
“I think the one that comes to mind is Ruby. You know she was formerly with WWE; I would love to have Ruby on the roster for AEW,” said Guerrero on the Thoughts Count Anywhere podcast.
“She was really underutilized, and I love her. She was on my podcast and just a great talent and a good wholesome human being.”
Former NXT Champion Adam Cole will be a free agent by the end of this week. Following his loss to Kyle O’Reilly at Saturday’s NXT Takeover 36 event, Cole will be free to negotiate with other wrestling promotions as early as this weekend.
As we’ve covered here in recent weeks, WWE officials were recently caught off guard when they discovered Adam Cole’s WWE contract had expired. There was a scramble to tie him up in a short-term extension, so he could compete at NXT Takeover 36, as advertised. Fightful notes that Cole will be a free man on Friday, August 27th.
According to multiple sources, the prevailing belief is that Cole has wrestled his final match for WWE. You can be sure the company will go to great lengths in an effort to re-sign Cole. He’ll have a lot of thinking to do over the next several days.
Talk Sportreports that an important stipulation of Cole’s short-term WWE contract extension is that he would NOT be held to a non-compete clause. afterwards. “As part of the extension, Cole also managed to ‘kill the non-compete clause’ he would have had to fulfill.
Theoretically, he would be free to sign with a different company this weekend and appear on “the other channel” as soon as next week. That could present a lot of interesting options for Cole.
Cole’s girlfriend, AEW Women’s Champion Britt Baker, just did an interview discussing the possibility of a mixed tag match featuring Baker & Cole vs. CM Punk and AJ Lee. It seems outlandish, but that match could happen this year in an AEW ring.
Adam Cole joined WWE and NXT back in 2017. He’s been one of the franchise players of the black and gold brand over the past several years. He’s done everything there is to do in NXT, so he’ll need to decide if he envisions himself on WWE’s main roster.
Cole is an avid streamer of video games on the popular Twitch platform. WWE has a policy that talent cannot have their own channels on services like Twitch. However, Cole recently stated that his Twitch channel is not going anywhere.
“There’s been a lot going on lately and I want to make sure everyone knows that this is going nowhere,” he said. “It’s going absolutely nowhere.”
Paul Wight and Shaquille O’Neal had a stare down during the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 32. It was assumed by many after this that a match between the two would happen at some point in WWE. It never did, however, and now both are in AEW.
During a recent interview with Chris Van Vliet, Wight spoke about if he thinks a match against Shaq will happen now that both are in AEW.
“I think that will happen now because there is not as much red tape,” Wight said. “He’s already competed with Cody Rhodes. It was him and Jade Cargill vs. Cody Rhodes and Red Velvet. That was an incredible showing for Shaq, so hopefully we’ll be able to cut some more red tape and make it happen.”
Wight also noted that he’s aware Shaq has been training and putting on size as well.
“He’s been hitting the gym lately, Shaq is pretty big right now. He’s huge Shaq, that’s the best way of looking at it. I think he is nervous about me so he is putting on a bit of size. Whereas I am “Tall Paul” the car salesman [laughs].”
Shaq teamed with Jade Cargill and defeated Cody Rhodes and Red Velvet on the March 3rd Dynamite earlier this year. Rhodes ended up putting Shaq through some tables but Cargill pinned Velvet to secure the victory for her team.
The full interview with Paul Wight can be viewed in the player below:
CEO of Anthem Sports and Entertainment (Impact’s parent company), Len Asper, recently noted online that a new distribution deal for Impact Wrestling is coming soon. Impact currently airs on AXS TV, which is also owned by Anthem Sports and Entertainment. In many regions outside the United States, Impact airs on the Fight Network, another Anthem-owned company.
“Hey y’all I am here. Was busy trying to keep up with Impact Wrestling launching so many new channel streams and products! Getting pumped things thank you for watching in insanely increasing numbers! Big new distribution deal coming soon!”
Recently, Impact launched a new subscription service on YouTube. Subscribers to Impact Wrestling Insiders can watch Impact’s weekly program commercial-free on YouTube beginning at 830 PM on Thursday evenings. The level-one tier subscription costs only 99 cents per month. The show no longer airs on Twitch.
With names like Christian Cage, Kenny Omega, and Jay White appearing on the show in recent weeks, Asper sounds thrilled with the show’s “increasing numbers” across the various platforms it airs on.
Hey y’all I am here. Was busy trying to keep up with @IMPACTWRESTLING launching so many new channel streams and products! Getting pumped things thank you for watching in insanely increasing numbers! Big new distribution deal coming soon! https://t.co/XDghPBOKar
Why Asper decided to make this announcement in response to a Tweet about the Steve Maclin vs Petey Williams match at Emergence is unclear. Maclin won the match on the show, however.
The Good Brothers vs Willie Mack & Rich Swann is being advertised for this week’s show.
WWE is currently taping episodes of NXT that will air on Tuesday nights for the next few weeks. The brand is expected to return to live episodes next month after upgrades are made to the Capitol Wrestling Center/Performance Center. A report from PWInsider has spoilers for tonight’s NXT and the next 2 weeks of 205 Live.
NXT Spoilers: Airing August 24th
The show starts with Cameron Grimes and Ted Dibiase celebrating Grimes winning the Million Dollar Championship at TakeOver. Nobody interrupts them and LA Knight appears to begin a program with Johnny Gargano later in the show.
Ridge Holland defeated Timothy Thatcher
After the match, Holland, Dunne, Oney Lorcan, Thatcher, and Tommaso Ciampa all began brawling. Then Danny Burch made his return from injury to help Holland, Dunne and Lorcan.
The wedding of Dexter Lumis and Indi Hartwell is scheduled for the September 14th episode of NXT.
Kacy Catanzaro & Kayden Carter defeated Gigi Dolin and Jacy Jayne.
Raquel Gonzalez began cutting a promo on Kay Lee Ray but was interrupted by the Robert Stone Brand, who said they want to take the NXT Women’s title from her.
Kay Lee Ray defeated Valentina Feroz
NXT Champion Samoa Joe cut a promo about beating Kross at TakeOver. Several people came out to claim a title shot. These included Pete Dunne, LA Knight, and Kyle O’Reilly. Ridge Holland, Pete Dunne, and Tommaso Ciampa get involved as well and a wild brawl erupts.
Carmelo Hayes defeated Odyssey Jones to win the NXT Breakout Tournament.
After the match, Hayes said it was too early to decide which title he will challenge for.
Xyon Quinn defeated Boa.
Boa had been distracted by Mei Ying, leading to his loss.
Johnny Gargano is seen asking William Regal to call off the wedding between Dexter and Indi, although what authority Regal has to do this is unclear. LA Knight then interrupted this conversation and began arguing with Gargano. So, it appears something could be starting between those two.
Malcolm Bivens cut a promo claiming that Roderick Strong is the uncrowned cruiserweight champion due to KUSHIDA being on the shelf.
Ridge Holland vs Tommaso Ciampa is announced for next week’s show.
Legado del Fantasmo defeated Hit Row in trios action.
Santos Escobar pinned Swerve Scott. Before the end of the match, however, B-Fab was attacking Escobar while the referee was distracted and an unknown woman came out and attacked her with a weapon.
205 Live Spoilers
Airing August 27th
Drake Maverick was on commentary for the opening match of this show.
Kofi Kingston was not on the road with WWE this weekend. He had originally been scheduled to join his New Day partner Xavier Woods in a segment at SummerSlam with John Morrison and the Miz. Woods was dressed up as Scott Hall and sprayed a water gun at the Miz and Morrison but Kofi ended up not being involved. The segment was a promotional spot for Pure Life Purified Water, one of SummerSlam’s sponsors.
According to a report from PW Insider, Kofi is not cleared to compete and that is why he was not used this weekend. The original plan was for him to dress up as another member of the NWO. WWE is currently marketing a New Day parody NWO t-shirt.
It is not clear why Kingston has not been cleared to perform. His last match was on the August 16th RAW. In a dark segment, New Day defeated Miz and Morrison on the show from San Antonio.
Yoooo! Thanks to everyone who took the time out of their day to wish me a happy birthday! ?? I love y’all! ?
New Day are 8-3 in televised tag-team matches in 2021. They are 1-2 in title matches as well. They won the RAW tag belts in March and then lost them to AJ Styles and Omos a WrestleMania.
Video of Xavier Woods, John Morrison, and The Miz from SummerSlam is below:
Dr Britt Baker is currently leading the AEW women’s division. While she is cutting a steady path through everybody on the women’s roster as well as calling other her Forbidden Door opponents, there is one other name she would love to get in the ring with.
She also addressed the possibility of his wife, AJ Lee ever coming out of retirement to wrestle in AEW. With the good doctor admitting she was a big fan of AJ Lee during her time with WWE.
“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.”
Dr Britt Baker went on to say that while she would love to get in the ring with AJ, it would be an even more special moment for the fans and giving them another special moment that would resonate with them.
“I would love to see her back in the ring. I would love to see her in the ring with me.”
– Dr Britt Baker D.M.D.
Britt Baker Agrees AJ Lee Was a Trailblazer for Women’s Wrestling
There can be no denying that AJ Lee is a formative figure in the world of women’s wrestling. She spent her entire career with WWE and build a name and a brand for herself and helped push women’s wrestling to the next level. Even Dr Britt Baker couldn’t deny that AJ Lee was an influential superstar.,
However, at this point in time, there has been no talk of AJ Lee getting back into the ring. Her memoir attributed her retirement being driven by injuries to her spine. However, if she does want to get back into the ring, it would seem there is a spot for her in AEW. Dr Britt Baker even has a match in mind that she would love to work should the chance arise.
“I could think of a mixed tag that I would like to see. One involving her, him (CM Punk), me and … somebody else.”
Of course, that was another in a recent run of not-so-subtle hints involving Dr Britt Baker’s real-life partner Adam Cole, whose WWE future is currently unclear.
