AEW Women’s Champion Dr Britt Baker recently spoke to Vince Morales of Milwaukee Record. Baker discussed several topics during the interview, including one of the recently re-signed AEW talents, Jamie Hayter.
“Yeah, so when I wrestled her in England, right away we just clicked and I thought she was a fantastic wrestler” Dr Britt Baker began, discussing the former Rev Pro Women’s Champion Hayter. “She has a really cool, edgy personality. We’re kind of similar too in our dry, sarcastic humor and we just really clicked.”
Dr Britt Baker on Jamie Hayter
“We really got along” Baker continued. “They were using her pretty frequently for a while for AEW, but then with the pandemic, the travel ban, of course, everything kind of was at a standstill. But then when stuff is opening up again, you know, I was kinda nudging Kenny and Tony like ‘Hey, remember Jamie Hayter? Remember Jamie Hayter?’”
“Because she’s such a fantastic talent and everybody here—literally every single person in AEW—agrees that she’s fantastic and we need her here,” the AEW Women’s Champion concluded.
Jamie Hayter is scheduled to face Red Velvet on this week’s episode of AEW Dynamite, with Dr Britt Baker D.M.D and Rebel not Reba in her corner.
Baker has not yet been confirmed for a match at the AEW All Out PPV event on September 5th, although there is a very good chance she will be defending her title at the show.
The Casino Battle Royale has been confirmed, with the #1 contendership to Baker’s title on the line. Ruby Soho is being rumored for an appearance during the match, likely in the wildcard slot.
PROGRESS Wrestling has announced that there will be a 2nd Chance Scramble/Thunderb*stard match at the upcoming Chapter event this weekend.
Eight men who have all previously lost against PROGRESS World Champion Cara Noir will be competing to determine the next #1 contender to the World Championship.
Danny Black, Jiody Fleisch, Dan Moloney, ELIJAH, Chris Ridgeway, Charlie Sterling, Luke Jacobs and Kid Lykos have all been confirmed for the contest.
It has not been confirmed if Cara Noir will be wrestling on the show, although he was called out by UK wrestling veteran Dean Allmark during Chapter 118 in a backstage segment.
All of these previous challengers get a second chance to earn a shot, under Thunderbastard rules!
DANNY BLACK, JODY FLEISCH, DAN MOLONEY, ELIJAH, CHRIS RIDGEWAY, CHARLIE STERLING, LUKE JACOBS, KID LYKOS
The company has also released a hype video for the contest, with this being the first Thunderb*stard match since Chapter 105: Bring The Thunder, which was the second Chapter show back after the restart:
No other matches have been confirmed for the event thus far that airs on Saturday 28th August on Peacock, WWE Network and demandPROGRESS.
The National Wrestling Alliance announced last week that Ric Flair was “coming home” and would be at the upcoming 73rd Anniversary show. The NWA has two big shows upcoming from St. Louis. NWA Empowerrr takes place August 28th from the Chase Ballroom and the promotion’s anniversary show takes place from the same venue the night after.
Corgan was recently on the Battleground podcast and spoke about how the deal to have Flair appear on the show came together. According to Corgan, Conrad Thompson played a role in brokering the deal.
“NWA World’s Heavyweight Champion, Nick Aldis had had lunch not too long ago with Conrad Thompson,” Corgan said on the show (transcriptions via Fightful). “Everybody knows Conrad from his success in podcasting but Conrad’s also a member of the Flair family via marriage.”
Corgan continued to say that there was likely some poking around that took place during that lunch meeting to see if Flair was interested.
“I believe it was right around the time that Mr. Flair had left his relationship with the WWE, so I think maybe there was some poking around during that lunch about, ‘Do you think this is something Ric might be interested in?’ So, I think that opened up the channel to talking behind the scenes about whether or not we could put it together, and obviously, it did happen, and I’m very excited.”
The lineups for both NWA shows from St. Louis this week have been revealed.
NWA Empowerrr – August 28th
NWA Women’s World Championship Kamille (c) vs Leyla Hirsch
NWA Women’s Invitational Gauntlet Cup Bianca Carelli vs. Chelsea Green vs. Debbie Malenko vs. Lady Frost vs. Jamie Senegal (with Pollo Del Mar) vs. Jennacide (with Taryn Terrell) vs. Kiera Hogan vs. Masha Slamovich vs. Tootie Lynn vs. Thunder Kitty
Knockouts Championship Deonna Purrazzo (c) vs Melina
Chik Tormenta vs. Diamante vs. Kylie Rae
NWA Women’s Tag Team Championship Tournament Finals
NWA Women’s Tag Team Championship Tournament Semi-Finals The Hex (Allysin Kay and Marti Belle) vs. Hell on Heels (Renee Michelle and Sahara 7)
NWA Women’s Tag Team Championship Tournament Semi-Finals Red Velvet and KiLynn King vs. The Freebabes (Jazzy Yang, Hollyhood Haley J and Miranda Gordy)
NWA 73 Lineup – August 29th
NWA World Heavyweight Championship Nick Aldis (c) vs Trevor Murdoch
NWA Women’s World Championship Kamille/Leyla Hirsch (c) vs Winner of Invitational Gauntlet
NWA World Tag Team Championships Aron Stevens and JR Kratos (c) vs. La Rebelión (Bestia 666 and Mecha Wolf 450)
Thom Latimer vs. Crimson vs. Tim Storm
Mickie James vs. Kylie Rae
Tyrus, The Masked Man, and Jordan Clearwater (with Austin Idol) vs. Da Pope and The End (Odinson and Parrow)
12-Man Battle royal to determine the #1 contender to the NWA National Championship
Be part of wrestling HISTORY! Wrestling returns to the @ChaseParkPlaza in St. Louis.
CM Punk’s appearance on AEW The First Dance on Friday night was quite possibly the biggest moment in the young promotion’s history. According to comments Punk made to ESPN today, it was the greatest moment of his career. Emily Pratt of FanByte recently noted that Punk had two sets of initials printed on his shoes during the show. Fan theories as to what the initials could stand for are running wild.
One set of initials Punk had printed on his shoes are “A.C.” With rumors of Adam Cole signing with AEW rampant after his loss to Kyle O’Reilly at Takeover 36, some believe he is the “A.C” referenced on Punk’s shoes.
“AC” written on CM Punk’s sneaker for his AEW debut (Photo: All Elite Wrestling)
The other set of initials Punk had printed on his shoes was “C.F”. Some have suggested the initials could stand for Charlotte Flair, but other suggestions have been presented as well:
Of course, the initials could have nothing at all to do with wrestling as well.
CM Punk’s long-awaited return to pro-wrestling continues this Wednesday night. On Rampage, it was confirmed that Punk will be on this week’s AEW Dynamite. The show will emanate from UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Punk did his MMA training in the city with Duke Roufus. Milwaukee is about a 90-minute drive from Chicago.
It has been an eventful week. SummerSlam saw the surprise returns of Becky Lynch and Brock Lesnar. NXT delivered another stellar Takeover event ahead of the brand’s upcoming major overhaul. However, the debut of CM Punk at Friday’s AEW Rampage remains the most buzz-worthy topic by a long shot.
Punk appeared on Chicago’s ESPN 1000 radio on Monday morning to discuss his arrival in All Elite Wrestling.
After a few days to process what transpired, CM Punk says The First Dance may have been the greatest night of his career. He took a gamble by coming out of retirement and signing up with AEW. After that memorable night, he feels great about his decision.
“That might have been the greatest moment, the greatest night of my career… The way we set it up as the worst kept secret, selling out the United Center on a rumor that I was going to be there, never announced, never advertised, shows the connection to the fanbase that AEW has.”
– CM Punk
Punk says AEW fans “get it” and are looking for the brand of professional wrestling he loves. Punk and AEW dropped hints that he was coming without explicitly advertising his name. That approach came with some risk, but he thinks it paid off.
AEW has a young roster that includes talent such as MJF, Sammy Guevara, Jungle Boy, Powerhouse Hobbs, Ricky Starks, Dante Martin and many more. CM Punk has been vocal about wanting to work with some of these performers.
During the ESPN 1000 call, Punk said AEW’s youthful roster has a “punk rock” vibe to it. He said it’s a young and hungry roster. Whatever they lack in experience, they make up for with effort.
CM Punk returns to action against Darby Allin at AEW All Out. The upcoming pay-per-view event takes place Sunday, September 5th from Chicago’s NOW Arena. When asked about how he’s preparing for his first match in 7 years, CM Punk said he’s watching a lot of Darby Allin footage. His goal is to tell a story and remind fans one more time why he is still the Best in the World.
Roman Reigns defeated John Cena in the main event of SummerSlam 2021. Cena was looking to win his 17th World Championship on the show. Early this morning, Cena confirmed on Twitter that he will be taking time away from WWE after the loss but vows to return.
“Words cannot describe how appreciative I am that the WWE Universe allowed me the opportunity to return and perform,” Cena wrote. “Thank you staff, superstars, and most of all FANS for giving me an unforgettable summer at “home” with my “family”. The journey takes me away now but I’ll C U soon.”
Words cannot describe how appreciative I am that the @WWEUniverse allowed me the opportunity to return and perform. Thank you staff, superstars, and most of all FANS for giving me an unforgettable summer at “home” with my “family”. The journey takes me away now but I’ll C U soon.
The Summer of Cena Concludes, Still Advertised For Madison Square Garden Show
SummerSlam completed the “Summer of Cena” WWE advertised following his return to the company. Beginning on July 23rd, Cena appeared on 15 different WWE live events.
He wrestled 14x during the tour. Many of his matches were untelevised dark matches or took place on house shows. He went 13-0 (all tag matches) leading up to his SummerSlam loss to Roman Reigns.
WWE also has Cena advertised for an upcoming house show in New York’s Madison Square Garden next month. Cena will be on a Smackdown-brand house show in the historic venue on September 10th.
“You can see 16-time World Champion John Cena when the blue brand returns to The World’s Most Famous Arena on Friday, Sept. 10!” a WWE press release reads.
Cena also signed on with an all-star cast for a new spy thriller franchise named “Argyle.” The franchise began filming in Europe this month. It’s not clear what dates Cena will be needed on the shoot.
Much has been said about the assumed end to the Bianca Belair Sasha Banks storyline. What had been one of the most highly anticipated matches on the card turned into a non-affair that has drawn the ire of people far and wide across the wrestling universe.
The real issue with the way things went at Summerslam is not with Becky Lynch returning. It is not even really related to the manner in which she won the title. It goes further back than that to the way WWE hyped the match despite knowing it was a lie. Sasha Banks was never going to appear at Summerslam. Yet, they pushed her match up to the moment it should have begun.
The rumours around Sasha Banks and Bianca Belair were rife after both were pulled from live shows in the build-up to Summerslam. WWE allayed these concerns confirming both women had been cleared to wrestle and all would be fine.
Sasha Banks Misses SummerSlam
The news surrounding Banks was originally broken by PWInsider. They claimed while both women were cleared to wrestle there was still something off about the status of Sasha Banks. They even went so far as to muse the return of Becky Lynch.
As of the time of writing, there is no official word on the status of Sasha Banks. Nor why she got pulled from the match at Summerslam. However, with the bad taste that has been left in people’s mouths, an explanation will surely come.
Fans were clamoring to see a second match between Sasha Banks and Bianca Belair, and feel they were robbed of it. Despite Becky Lynch’s popularity, there was something to this feud that just needed to be added to.
Right now, a match between them is still advertised for the upcoming episode of Smackdown. However, it is widely expected that this booking will be updated closer to the time.
Hopefully whatever is keeping Sasha Banks out of action is nothing serious and she will be back in the ring soon.
Adam Cole is moving on to the next chapter of his career. The longest-reigning NXT Champion in history came up short against Kyle O’Reilly at Sunday’s NXT Takeover 36 event. According to PWInsider, that was Cole’s final match for WWE’s black and gold brand.
News broke earlier this month that Cole’s contract had actually already expired, to the surprise of top WWE officials. Cole reportedly agreed to work through SummerSlam weekend, which has now come and gone.
Following his loss at NXT Takeover, his longtime friends The Young Bucks immediately reacted to Cole effectively becoming a free agent. As they’re known for doing, the Bucks got their message out via their Twitter bio.
The ‘new bio’ linked to a YouTube video titled ‘The Most Infamous Seances in History,’ a compilation of moments from Being The Elite. Many of those moments feature Cole.
Along with this, they updated their Twitter image to a picture from 2016 when together with Kenny Omega they dressed as the Ghostbusters for an NJPW show.
What does this have to do with Adam Cole?
Well, the Young Bucks are masters of the social media art that is cryptic sh*t stirring. The link and image combined to create a tenuous link to Cole in so far as his character on Being the Elite is dead.
Adam Cole: Main Roster or AEW?
Everybody knew he was fighting his last match for NXT. Could their attempts to communicate with the dead be about bringing Adam Cole back to life in AEW?
Nobody knows what is going on with the Adam Cole negotiations behind the scenes at WWE. They reportedly dropped the ball on his original expiry, thinking it ran for longer. However, was the one-month extension just to have him finish his feud or was it to work in a non-NXT no-compete clause?
Time will tell where Adam Cole is going to go with his career. However, it looks as if the Young Bucks are more than happy for him to come over to AEW. As too is Cole’s girlfriend current AEW Women’s Champion Dr Britt Baker D.M.D.
It will not be long before we know more about Adam Cole’s future. With his departure from NXT confirmed, should he not make an appearance on either Raw or Smackdown this week, then the writing could well be on the wall.
The return of Becky Lynch at Summerslam was a moment that caught everybody by surprise. Not only was there zero rumours or spoilers about her in-ring return, but she pinned Bianca Belair in 27 seconds to win the Smackdown Women’s Championship.
This booking has already caused a lot of commotion in wrestling communities. Many are saying that it does a huge disservice to Belair. A woman who went from ESPY award winner to a jobber in less than six months. However, it looks as if this could be part of a larger construct.
Becky Lynch is one of WWE’s most beloved Superstars, but don’t get too comfortable cheering for her. According to PW Insider, who cited multiple WWE sources in their report, the plans are in place for Becky Lynch to play the heel role in her upcoming feud with Bianca Belair.
Becky Lynch has previously had a few heel runs with the company, but this decision would seem a little strange given the anti-hero role she was playing and held on to during her hiatus from the ring. You can’t help but wonder if this really is the best way to book the feud.
Becky Lynch vs. Bianca Belair
Currently, Bianca Belair is a face who has done so much for her character despite very limited storytelling in WWE. However, the decision to turn Becky Lynch heel still doesn’t necessarily feel as if it is the right one.
The character of The Man dominated WWE headlines. The Stone Cold Steve Austin style rebel who didn’t care what people thought or felt. The Man, in many ways, transcended the heel/face stereotypes.
Either way, it would appear that creative minds have been set. The returning Becky Lynch is going to be the villain for the foreseeable future. Whether she will continue with her current moniker or change to something else also remains to be seen.
Back in 2011 and the Summer of Punk was in full swing. All that was missing were some good, old-fashioned ice cream. Fast forward a decade and CM Punk is back in a wrestling ring and finally got his hands on an ice cream bar.
When CM Punk’s music hit and he walked out into an AEW ring fans around the world felt as if things were finally getting back to where they should always have been. It didn’t take Punk long to broach the subject of ice creams.
“One more thing. Seven years is an awful long time to wait for somebody. I appreciate everybody here who has waited. So on your way out of the United Center tonight, grab yourself a free ice cream bar on me.”
The crowd went wild. However, there was one thing nobody really understood at the time. The entire affair was not just some publicity stunt thought up by AEW executives. It was not just some extra way to get a little barb shot out at WWE.
He Came To Us 2 Years Ago
The entire idea was CM Punk’s brainchild. Furthermore, it was not something he thought up on the spot. It was an act of generosity two years in the making. This was confirmed in a statement released by Pretty Cool Ice Cream, the company that produced the frozen treats.
“He came to us on his own and asked us to help him do this 2 years ago, and finally the moment was right. Our small team worked tirelessly to hand-make every bar.”
“CM Punk wrote the check for the entire bill himself”
Pretty Cool Ice Cream
That’s a pretty awesome thing to do, and one heck of a way to fulfil a promise made a decade earlier.
The return of CM Punk to professional wrestling has further heightened the electricity that is buzzing around the industry right now. Grabbing the attention of old-school wrestling fans, and potentially bringing fresh, experienced eyes to AEW.
Despite the rumours surrounding other more recently released WWE stars possibly signing with the company, the acquisition of CM Punk will be the story that dominates AEW headlines for some time to come.
Asuka is well aware of reports regarding her WWE absence and she has disputed them.
Asuka hasn’t been seen on WWE television since the July 18 Money In The Bank PPV. She competed in the women’s MITB match, which was won by Nikki A.S.H. Many were wondering where “The Empress of Tomorrow” had gone.
Dave Meltzer of The Wrestling Observer Newsletter reported that Asuka’s absence has nothing to do with health-related issues. Meltzer also claimed that Asuka was in attendance for a recent Monday Night Raw taping but left early since she wasn’t being used.
Asuka caught wind of the report and took to her Twitter account to deny it.
Nothing has been revealed. That information is totally wrong. Really different. Completely different. Everything is different. I would like to ask the information provider. Don't make a fake story. https://t.co/Y2XHDSFLfi
“Nothing has been revealed. That information is totally wrong. Really different. Completely different. Everything is different. I would like to ask the information provider. Don’t make a fake story.”
Asuka is one of the most decorated women’s wrestlers in the industry. She made a name for herself in Japan as Kana, which is short for her real name. Since transitioning to the world of WWE, Asuka became a two-time Raw Women’s Champion, a former SmackDown Women’s Champion, and a former NXT Women’s Champion.
Time will tell when “The Empress of Tomorrow” will return to the ring. One thing we know for sure is she’s none too pleased with reports on her absence.
SummerSlam gave people a lot to talk about. From Brock Lesnar’s return to a returning Becky Lynch squashing Bianca Belair, the PPV created both positive and negative buzz for WWE.
Dave Meltzer talked about the PPV on the latest episode of Wrestling Observer Radio. He provided a lot of interesting backstage tidbits about the event.
According to Meltzer, WWE originally planned to hold off the Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns match till WrestleMania 39 in 2023 but they changed the plans. After the SummerSlam confrontation, it looks likely for the upcoming Saudi event.
As for John Cena, despite the beatdown angle after last night’s event, he seems to be done with the company. There are no immediate plans to bring him back anytime soon and he is not being discussed for any future storylines as of now.
The company apparently knew that Sasha Banks will not make it to SummerSlam 8 days prior to the event. So they brought Becky Lynch back earlier than planned.
Though it’s not known whether the short match was a result of Lynch not being ready for a longer bout or just a creative decision. There was no mention of the reason behind Sasha’s absence so it’s hard to say when she will be back.
Some fans were concerned about the new US Champion Damien Priest. He looked to have injured his hip during the show but he was said to be fine backstage.
Fianlly, WWE announced during the show that there were 51,326 fans attending the SummerSlam 2021 event. The actual number was close to 45,000.
WWE NXT TakeOver 36 aired live on Peacock from Orlando, Florida at the Capitol Wrestling Center.
WWE NXT Results
Ridge Holland def. Trey Baxter
WWE NXT Women’s Champion Raquel Gonzalez def. Dakota Kai
Ilja Dragunov def. WALTER to win NXT UK Title
Kyle O’Reilly def. Adam Cole
Samoa Joe def. WALTER to win NXT Title
Here are the takeaways from the show:
Karrion Kross vs. Samoa Joe
WWE NXT Champion Karrion Kross vs. Samoa Joe headlined the show.
The match saw Joe start off hot with then Kross dominating. Joe with a sleeper on Kross, but Kross got out of it and went for the Kross Jacket, but Joe got out of that. Joe with the muscle buster for the win and a new era has begun.
Joe is now the first-ever three-time NXT Champion.
Many expected for Joe to go over in his first match in NXT in several years and his first match since being put on the shelf due to a severe concussion. Joe was favored heading into the match to dethrone Kross, who had beaten all challengers up to this point only for him to do jobs to the likes of Jeff Hardy and Keith Lee on the main roster. It appears Kross will be moving on from NXT for good and making his tenure on Raw full-time.
WWE NXT UK Champion WALTER vs. Ilja Dragunov was one of the top matches and highly anticipated encounters of the year.
As expected, these guys started throwing chops right out of the gate. WALTER also hit a nasty powerbomb on the apron. IIja was bleeding from his eyebrow. Ilja made his comeback with a series of chops then a power suplex. WALTER went to the top rope and Ilja hit a superplex for good measure then a drop kick. WALTER with a series of powerbombs then a splash off the top rope for 2.
Leading up to this bout, WALTER had beaten down Dragunov on several occasions. However, Dragunov was cutting pretty good promos to further build up the underdog story.
In fact, Dragunov was the favorite to win the title here despite WALTER’s lengthy title reign.
WWE NXT Women’s Champion Raquel Gonzalez vs. Dakota Kai took place after months of slowly building to it.
After a strong start by the champion with a series of power moves, Kai fought out of the corner and caught her with a big boot. Kai caught her in an armbar, but Gonzalez tossed her into the corner a few times. Gonzalez launched her onto the top rope that sent Kai crashing to the ramp. Back in the ring, Kai hit a back stabber. Gonzalez hit her finisher off the middle rope for the win.
Post-match, Kay Lee Ray came out to the stage and had a staredown with Raquel.
Kai had been the manager of Raquel for several months and was portrayed as her best friend who would do jobs when WWE didn’t want to pin the champion. That all changed when Kai turned heel by attacking her former friend in a double character switch and turned Raquel into a babyface.
Kyle O’Reilly vs. Adam Cole in a Best 2 Out Of 3 Falls Match took place. The 1st fall was a singles match, the 2nd fall was a Street Fight and the 3rd falls was a Steel Cage Match.
Cole went for a panama sunrise, but O’Reilly blocked it and covered him for the first fall. Onto the street fight. O’Reilly hit a drop kick off the apron to Cole, who had a trash can on his head. Cole won the second fall when he tossed Kyle off the top rope onto standing chairs then hit the last shot. Cole came off the top rope to hit the panama sunrise for a near fall. Cole brought out handcuffs and locked Kyle to the cage. Kyle caught a kick and locked in a knee bar for the win.
These two guys have been feuding for months and really, the booking of it had been in reverse by starting out with a gimmick match only to work a normal match. The fact that WWE booked them in various bouts in one night, but perhaps, they could’ve gone in a different direction considering Cole’s unknown status with the company. Whether he leaves WWE or re-signs and goes to the main roster, maybe a loser leaves NXT match would’ve been better despite it being predictable.
WWE Million Dollar Champion LA Knight vs. Cameron Grimes was booked with the stipulation that if Grimes loses, then Ted Dibiase becomes Knight’s new butler.
The match saw Grimes start off strong. They brawled at ringside where the WWE Hall of Famer helped out Grimes a bit. The tide turned when Knight knocked him off the apron. Knight beat him down for a few minutes until he missed a spring board moonsault. This is when Grimes started to make a comeback. Knight hit a reversed suplex off the top rope for a near fall. Dibiase punched Knight then put him in the Million Dollar Dream at ringside when the referee wasn’t looking. The finish came when Grimes hit Knight with the double footstomp.
Hopefully, this will be the end of this feud as they’ve worked several times and it being one-sided in the favor of Knight. However, since Knight did lose the title, he does deserve a rematch. Time will tell.
The highly anticipated first-ever match between Samoa Joe and Karrion Kross for the NXT Title took place in the main event of the WWE NXT TakeOver 36 event.
The match was a strong showing for both men with them getting plenty of offense. Joe looked like he hadn’t missed a beat inside of the ring. Joe with the muscle buster for the win and to become the NXT Champion.
Joe was favored to win the championship considering Kross made his main roster debut last despite some questionable booking after losing to Jeff Hardy. Kross is slated to be on the Raw roster going forward, but without Scarlett.
Joe hadn’t wrestled since February 2020 due to concussion issues. He was working as a commentator for the Raw brand until he was released by WWE this past April. Fast forward to June, Joe returned as an on-screen authority figure for NXT and also worked in the talent scouting department in NXT.
Joe was supposed to keep order for NXT General Manager William Regal, but when Kross choked out Joe after retaining his title over Johnny Gargano then attacked Regal the following week, that was enough to make Joe snap and demand to be allowed to wrestle again.
Joe wanted Regal to sign a contract to have him back as an active in-ring performer in NXT and sign a contract for the match at TakeOver. Regal agreed to what Joe was offering and made the match official.
Kross won the title back from Finn Balor at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver – Night 2 this past April.
A rematch of one of 2020’s best matches took place with WWE NXT UK Champion WALTER defending the strap against Ilja Dragunov at Saturday’s (August 22, 2021) WWE NXT TakeOver 36 event in Orlando, Florida at the Capitol Wrestling Center on the Peacock.
The match was stiff and hard-hitting just as expected. The chops sounded like gunshots. WALTER dominated early until Ilja made his comeback. Not only did IIja win, but he did it with a sleeper.
Their first match saw WALTER defeat Dragunov on NXT UK last October to retain the NXT United Kingdom Championship, which was highly praised. Since then, in storyline, Dragunov has struggled with temper issues, but managed to get it under control.
In June, Dragunov defeated Rampage Brown and Joe Coffey in a triple threat match on NXT UK to be set up as the next challenger for WALTER’s Title. Post-match, WALTER came to the ring and attacked Dragunov.
The match was supposed to take place on the Thursday, July 22 episode of NXT UK, but since WALTER suffered an injury, it got delayed to this show.
WALTER had been the NXT United Kingdom Champion since winning the strap from Pete Dunne at NXT TakeOver: New York in 2019.
After weeks of building to it, WWE NXT Women’s Champion Raquel Gonzalez vs. Dakota Kai finally took place at Sunday’s (August 22, 2021) WWE NXT TakeOver 36 event in Orlando, Florida at the Capitol Wrestling Center on the Peacock.
The match was second on the card with both girls shining. Kai took a nasty bump from the top rope to the rampway. Gonzalez hit her finisher off the middle rope for the win.
It all started when Kai turned against Gonzalez by laying her out with a kick in late July. Kai later explained her actions when she called Gonzalez selfish for going after the NXT Women’s Championship when it should have been Kai’s opportunity. She also didn’t appreciate Gonzalez taking the spotlight from her.
At TakeOver: Stand & Deliver this April, Gonzalez won the NXT Women’s Championship by defeating Io Shirai. Since that time, Gonzalez had successful title defenses against Mercedes Martinez, Ember Moon, and Xia Li.
WWE holds the fallout episode from this show of NXT on Tuesday. It will be interesting to see if WWE continues this feud or goes in a different direction. Either way, they put on one heck of a match that delivered.
Nick Khan says WWE would get even more TV time if it was up to him.
One of the criticisms WWE has received from fans has to do with the number of hours their content takes up per week. Some believe that the quality of Monday Night Raw has suffered ever since extending to three hours back in July 2012.
During an interview with Ariel Helwani of BT Sport, Khan, the President and CRO of WWE, said he’d add even more hours if he could due to the money it brings in.
“From my point of view, Raw would benefit from being four hours, so we would get paid more money and SmackDown would be eight hours,” said Khan.
“But I understand that our creative folks, as amazing as they are, there is only so much great content they can do on a weekly basis. So, I’m good with the three and two system.”
LA Knight vs. Cameron Grimes had their third match at the WWE NXT TakeOver 36 event in Orlando, Florida at the Capitol Wrestling Center.
The bout had the WWE Million Dollar Championship on the line with the stipulation that if Grimes lost then Ted Ted Dibiase would become Knight’s new butler.
This opened the show. It was a fast-paced bout that resulted in Grimes hitting Knight with the double foot stomp. Near the end, the WWE Hall of Famer even got in some shots on Knight.
Grimes had been Knight’s butler in storyline since he lost to Knight for the title at NXT Great American Bash last month. Their first match took place t NXT TakeOver: In Your House this June where Grimes was unsuccessful in challenging for the Million Dollar Championship while battling Knight in a ladder match.
After TakeOver: In Your House, Knight turned against DiBiase and attacked him. Two weeks ago, Knight walked out on Grimes during a tag team match against The Grizzled Young Veterans, which led to DiBiase to come out and try to tell Grimes to get out of being Knight’s butler.
Last week, Knight defeated Andre Chase and following the match, DiBiase challenged Knight to give Grimes another shot at the title, but the only way Knight would agree is if DiBiase agreed to his stipulation.
Nikki Bella is not a fan of how the SmackDown Women’s Championship reign of Bianca Belair came to an end.
Last night (Aug. 21), WWE SummerSlam took place inside Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. Belair was expected to put her gold on the line against Sasha Banks. Wrestling Inc. reported that Banks was off the card and WWE ended up having Becky Lynch replace her as a surprise.
Fans didn’t get much of a match, however. Lynch extended her hand to Belair but ended up taking a cheap shot followed by a pumphandle for the three-count. The match lasted about 27 seconds.
During a post-SummerSlam event, Nikki Bella made it clear that she wasn’t happy with the finish to Belair vs Lynch.
“I can tell you what wasn’t my favorite moment and it was when she lost [points over to Bianca Belair, who was also at the event]. That definitely was not my favorite moment. I don’t actually know if I had a favorite moment, because, you know, I’ve always backed the women and always for the women.
“You have someone like Bianca, who is such an incredible talent and you can’t help but get frustrated when you see moments like that of like, a championship that meant so much and was lost within seconds. So, I have to admit, for this SummerSlam, there truly wasn’t anything that was my favorite moment.”
Belair recently commented on the quick loss, saying she was glad to be a part of the moment. Belair vowed to get the SmackDown Women’s Championship back in the future.
Samoa Joe has weighed in on the changes that will be coming to the NXT brand.
Dave Meltzer of Wrestler Observer was the first to report that NXT will be overhauled. This applies to a new logo, new lighting, and a new feel to the brand. It’s also been noted that WWE will be taking NXT more in the direction of a developmental system rather than a third major brand.
WWE President and CRO, Nick Khan, confirmed the report during an interview with Ariel Helwani of BT Sport. Khan also confirmed that NXT will be shifting away from indie talent in order to focus on younger talent elsewhere.
Samoa Joe, who will be competing for the NXT Championship tonight (Aug. 22) at TakeOver 36, spoke to Wrestling Inc. on the upcoming changes.
“Absolutely, it always changes. This is the thing that really is a touch confusing about the ‘NXT is changing’ thing. It’s never been the same thing its entire existence. From when I entered NXT to now, it’s been drastically different, it’s changed so much.
“The athlete, the stars that have come from NXT have completely shifted over from 4,3,2,1 year ago. To see this big vale of surprise that things are changing in NXT, it’s just yet another evolution of NXT and it will change again and after that it will change yet again. I’m failing to see the uproar when NXT is essentially doing what it has always done and what it will continue to do in the future.”
Joe had been released by WWE back in April. He was brought back in short order to work on the NXT brand. Recently, Joe was able to get medical clearance to return to the ring.
Where do you think Samoa Joe will fit in once the changes to NXT are in effect?
Nick Khan has confirmed reports of NXT receiving a significant makeover.
Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer reported that major changes are coming to the NXT brand over TakeOver 36. Meltzer said that fans can expect new lighting, a new logo, and an overall different feel to the brand soon. On top of that, Meltzer has said that the idea is to treat NXT as the developmental system, rather than the third brand. He claimed the focus will shift from smaller indie wrestlers to bigger and younger talent.
During an interview with Ariel Helwani of BT Sport, Nick Khan said that fans can expect a new experience with NXT in the coming weeks.
“We’re doing a complete revamp on NXT, led by Triple H, Paul Levesque, who’s really one of the architects of the original NXT. What we found, it’s probably why we did the tryout yesterday, what we want to make sure is easy for folks who want to be WWE superstars is figuring out how to become WWE superstars. If you think of the life of an elevated athlete throughout their career, the opportunity to go play somewhere has always been easy, being able to play somewhere is not.
“In terms of an NXT rebrand, look for it in the upcoming weeks, it’s going to have a whole new look, it’s going to have a whole new feel, and we believe because of a lot of the ‘indie wrestlers’ if you will, have come through our system, and are in our system with SmackDown and RAW now. We don’t want to keep doing that same thing, we want to look elsewhere for great young talent.”
TakeOver 36 takes place tonight (Aug. 22). Samoa Joe will challenge Karrion Kross for the NXT Championship. Also set for the card is a two-out-of-three falls match between Adam Cole and Kyle O’Reilly. This could be Cole’s final match with NXT as his brief contract extension is set to expire.
WWE President and CRO, Nick Khan, has given his explanation for the wave of WWE releases.
Fans were surprised when news broke that Braun Strowman was let go from his contract earlier this year. After all, Strowman won the WWE Universal Title at WrestleMania 36 and defeated Shane McMahon at WrestleMania 37.
Aleister Black was also released, despite having just started an angle with Big E. He has since signed with AEW as Malakai Black. There were more names on the list, including Murphy, Lana, Ruby Riott, and Santana Garrett.
The real shocker, however, came when “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt received his walking papers. Those releases were just part of this year’s wave as 12 NXT talents including Bronson Reed and Bobby Fish were later cut as well.
Ariel Helwani of BT Sport spoke to Khan, who gave his take on the number of roster cuts WWE has been making.
"When something's a disaster I want all the credit, when it's a hit I want none of the credit. If I'm blamed for what the fans don't like, that's good by me."
Nick Khan addresses the number of releases this year.
“I don’t know that there’s one explanation for it. I think ultimately what’s looked at is, is this person for us going to move the needle now or in the imminent future? By the way, we had a two-day tryout in Las Vegas which ended yesterday, which Triple H and Johnny Laurinaitis and Bruce Prichard were all across as were the rest of us. We’ve signed over a dozen new talent coming out of that tryout and I’m not suggesting, ‘oh that’s why we cut the other talent,’ but we’re always looking for what’s next.
“We live in the present, we live in the future, we don’t live in the past. So when people leave and they move on with their life and their careers, that’s good by us. For us, it’s what works for us and our product at that moment and time and again what’s gonna work down the road, and largely in part the existing roster is based on that.”
People on social media often blame Khan whenever WWE releases are announced these days. Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio reported that the NXT cuts had nothing to do with Khan and that it was Vince McMahon, Bruce Prichard, and John Laurinaitis who collectively made the call.
Many have speculated that the releases have been done in an effort to make WWE look as attractive as possible when it comes to a potential sale. Nick Khan stirred the pot with his “open for business” line but he later said the company isn’t looking to sell.
WWE Superstar Brock Lesnar made a shocking return to the company this weekend at the WWE SummerSlam 2021 PPV event. Lesnar appeared following the main event of the show, confronting Universal Champion Roman Reigns.
The plan now is for the two men to feud heading into the rest of the year, with the added storyline incentive of Paul Heyman in the mix adding more intrigue on top of a face Lesnar and heel Reigns feud.
According to Dave Meltzer, the original plan for Roman and Lesnar was for the feud to actually take place in 2023, with the two men meeting in the main event of that year’s WrestleMania.
Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns
Meltzer reported as such on the latest Wrestling Observer Radio show, claiming that WWE wanted to have Roman vs The Rock in 2022 and Roman vs Lesnar the year after.
It was not confirmed when these plans were changed, however with AEW bringing CM Punk back to pro wrestling, it appears as though both sides will be looking to fire on all cylinders.
Meltzer did not confirm when the first Lesnar vs Reigns match for the Universal Championship will be taking place in 2021, however, the Survivor Series 2021 PPV is likely the destination for the first bout.
The Rock will reportedly be a major element of the Survivor Series event, as it marks the 25 anniversary of his WWE debut as Rocky Maivia.
Bray Wyatt was released from WWE on July 31st, but that hasn’t prevented fans from supporting the former WWE Champion at live events. WWE sent shockwaves throughout the wrestling world when they announced Wyatt ‘s contract was terminated after 11 years with the company.
“We want Wyatt” chants have been audible at WWE TV tapings since his departure. During Sunday’s SummerSlam kickoff show, a large Fiend sign was shown at ringside. It did not take long for security to approach the fan and confiscate the sign, which incorporated the Fiend mask into the Las Vegas Raiders logo.
Here it is in all it’s glory, took me about 30 hours to draw it with colored pencils. I hope it put a smile on your face and shows that your fans really appreciate you! You are the most creative wrestler ever and definitely one of the most talented! #RaiderNation @WWEBrayWyatt pic.twitter.com/8NxWRtPd7V
Bray Wyatt’s 90-day non-compete clause runs through the last week of October. He will be unable to work for other wrestling companies until then, but it is believed he’ll be joining All Elite Wrestling (AEW).
The night CM Punk returned to wrestling at AEW Rampage: The First Dance, Bray Wyatt posted an Eddie Van Halen Quote on Twitter. Many wrestling fans are interpreting this as another indication that we have not seen the last of Bray Wyatt inside the squared circle.
Rock Stars come and go. Musicians play until they die.
Bianca Belair suffered what can only be described as a disheartening loss at the SummerSlam PPV where she lost the SmackDown women’s championship to a returning Becky Lynch in a quick match.
The now-former champion gave her first reaction to this loss at the PPV while speaking to Denise Salcedo of Instinct Culture at the SummerSlam after party.
Bianca explained that she is still trying to collect her thoughts on the development. While she said that she is happy to be part of the big moment involving Becky’s return, Belair also admitted that she is feeling defeated:
“Right now, I’m just trying to collect my thoughts and get my mind together. Everything happened quickly and so fast. I was ready to fight Sasha Banks, and Becky came out, which was an amazing moment and I’m happy to be part of that moment,
But I lost my title and right now, I’m just emotional and trying to wrap my mind around it.” said Bianca Belair, “I have to be honest, I feel defeated right now and okay with being vulnerable and being honest about that. I’m ready to get my title back.”
The former SmackDown star was then asked how she felt hearing Lynch’s music at the show. Replying to it, she said that it was a bittersweet feeling and she couldn’t help and be a little sad about the situation.
While Bianca Belair kept her first reaction respectful and didn’t blame anyone, the wrestling world doesn’t seem to be very happy with the treatment she got at the show. You can check out some of the top reactions to her loss here.
