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Ryan Nemeth On What Led To His AEW Debut

Chris Stephens
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“Hollywood Hunk” Ryan Nemeth picked up a win over Marko Stunt on AEW Dark last night. He is scheduled to take on PAC on tonight’s show. Nemeth recently spoke to Chris Van Vliet about how he ended up working in Jacksonville. He noted that he has a lot of friends from his time in NXT that are now in AEW including the Huber family.

“Being there is kind of like a huge reunion,” Nemeth said about AEW. “I have so many friends from NXT or other parts of wrestling. Walking in the locker room felt like home. I went to AEW to see Amanda Huber (the late Jon Huber/Brodie Lee’s wife) because I knew there was going to be a birthday for Brodie Jr, I thought I would surprise her and say happy birthday, I used to babysit him in Tampa.”

“I wanted to say hi to her, I also secretly had my gear with me. They asked me “since you’re here do you want to wrestle?” And I said sure. I think it went well, I blacked out but I think I won (laughs). I was honored to debut on Dynamite. It felt great to be back in the ring. During shutdown I have been doing a lot of wrestling but not in front of a live crowd. It’s been a lot of stunt work or coordinating for TV shows. AEW are super into promoting creativity, very motivational and positive environment.”

Ryan Nemeth On His Older Brother, Dolph Ziggler

Nemeth’s older brother, Dolph Ziggler, has been jokingly ribbing him online about his time in AEW. He spoke about his relationship with Dolph during the interview as well.

“We grew up wrestling for the same school together. But I will say I’ve spent my entire wrestling career looking and dressing the exact opposite of him. He had blond hair, I dyed mine black. He wore pants, I wore shorts. No matter what I do, for a decade, any time I’m in a match, the Internet says I’m a carbon copy of him. But we’ve had pretty different lives.”

Ryan Nemeth On Sexual Assault In Wrestling

https://twitter.com/HotYoungBriley/status/1355627734479773698

Nemeth has been a vocal supporter of the #MeToo movement. His upcoming movie “Heel” deals with sexual assault in pro-wrestling.

“The plot of the film deals with sexual assault in the world of indie wrestling. It comes from a very real place. I was ambushed with stories about assault. That’s why I took a break from wrestling. It was really close to home for me. I can’t speak on behalf of these people. Legally, imagine the trouble I would be in if I did speak on behalf of victims. But I can use art to encourage conversations about these things. I love wrestling and the people in it but there are some bad eggs that do bad things and get away with it. There is not one solution to it, but it’s one that I can try to help with. I would love it to expand to a feature or a series.”

You can view the full interview in the player below:

John Cena Responds To The Undertaker’s “Soft” Comments

Chris Stephens
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The Undertaker recently ruffled some feathers when he appeared on the Joe Rogan Experience and referred to today’s pro wrestlers as “soft” compared to his generation. During a recent interview with Forbes, John Cena weighed in on the controversy.

John Cena’s WWE career spanned nearly two decades, so he also saw the industry change dramatically during that time. Cena tells Alfred Konuwa that today’s product isn’t soft, but it’s certainly different than previous eras. “I may have a bit of disagreement with Undertaker’s word choice because I don’t think it’s soft, I think it’s different.”

Cena came up during the Ruthless Aggression era. This era was toned down from the Attitude Era, but far edgier than what we see today. He recalls “Stone Cold” Steve Austin making an appearance after WWE went PG and having a difficult time adapting.

“I remember one of the first time Steve Austin came back during the height of the PG era, and he was just befuddled,” said Cena. “Because Steve Austin goes out there and runs it. And if he gets stuck, he can curse, he can throw up some middle fingers, he can ask for a beer…but we took away three of the biggest clubs that he can hit with and told him to go out there and be himself. And he came back shaking his head and said ‘I don’t know how you do this!’ But if he had enough time, he’s a great performer, he could get used to it.”

Ever the company, man, Cena gave a glowing review of today’s WWE product. “What do I think of the WWE product right now? I love it!” Cena continued. “I think it’s bold, it’s forcing people to take chances.”

John Cena On WWE’s Current Marquee Stars

Cena would continue to talk about how Sasha Banks, Roman Reigns, and Drew McIntyre are 3 marquee names in the company right now.

“Now you have Drew McIntyre and Roman Reigns, Sasha Banks can be in that conversation, but it’s not what I said it was in 2020. It’s not a scattered fragment of Super Friends. WWE has just refocused, re-shifted and now is consolidating on marquee stars. They have their marquee stars, and going forward they will have their big names. As far as those names being larger than life, the enormity of their impact is up to the individuals themselves.” 

John Cena has two inspirational books coming out in April. You can pre-order them both on Amazon:

AEW Rankings Report 2/10: Chris Jericho & MJF Now #1 Ranked Tag Team

Chris Stephens
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AEW has released new top-5 rankings for its men’s, women’s, and tag-team divisions. There was movement in all 3 divisions this week. Red Velvet moved into the top spot in her division and Jericho and MJF are now the top-ranked tag-team contenders.

AEW Men’s Singles Rankings

AEW World Champion: Kenny Omega (1-0) 
TNT Champion: Darby Allin (1-0)

  1. Jon Moxley (1-0) 
  2. Cody Rhodes (2-0)
  3. PAC (2-0) (+2)
  4. Rey Fenix (3-1) (-1)
  5. Miro (2-0) (-1)

#3 PAC moved up 2 spots in the rankings this week. That drops #4 Fenix and #5 Miro down one spot each. In addition to picking up a singles win on Dark last week, PAC was in the main event of Dynamite last week where his team with #4 Fenix and #1 Moxley was defeated by AEW World Champion Kenny Omega and the Impact tag-team champions, The Good Brothers.

Tonight on Dynamite, #2 Cody Rhodes will team with Lee Johnson against Peter Avalon and Cezar Bononi. World Champion Kenny Omega will team with KENTA against #1 Jon Moxley and unranked Lance Archer.

Screen Shot 2021 02 10 at 1.29.58 PM

AEW Women’s Singles Rankings

AEW Women’s Champion: Hikaru Shida (1-0) 

  1. Red Velvet (4-0) (+1)
  2. Britt Baker (3-0) (+1)
  3. Serena Deeb (2-0) (-2)
  4. Tay Conti (4-1) (+1)
  5. Thunder Rosa (2-1) (-1)

There has been a lot of movement in the women’s rankings the last two weeks. This week #3 Serena Deeb dropped 3 spots due to Baker and Red Velvet each moving up. #1 Red Velvet was victorious on Dark last week and is gearing up for her feud with Jade Cargill.

#2 Britt Baker moved up one spot after her victory over #5 Thunder Rosa on Dynamite. The two had been in the #3 and #4 spots respectively last week.

The title-eliminator tournament kicks off on Dynamite tonight as we get closer to determining Hikaru Shida’s next challenger.

Screen Shot 2021 02 10 at 1.30.07 PM

AEW Tag Team Rankings

AEW Tag Team Champions: The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson) (0-0)

  1. Chris Jericho & Maxwell Jacob Friedman (2-0) (+2)
  2. FTR (Dax Harwood & Cash Wheeler) (1-0) (-1)
  3. Jurassic Express (Jungle Boy & Luchasaurus) (2-0) (-1)
  4. The Acclaimed (Anthony Bowens & Max Caster) (3-0) 
  5. Santana & Ortiz (3-1)

After winning last week’s battle royal, Jericho and MJF are now the #1 contenders to the Young Bucks titles. That drops #2 FTR and #3 Jurassic Express down one spot each.

Tonight on Dynamite, #1 MJF and Jericho will face #4 the Acclaimed.

Screen Shot 2021 02 10 at 1.30.16 PM

Britt Baker Wants To Lead AEW’s Women’s Division To More TV Time

Chris Stephens
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Britt Baker was the first female athlete signed by AEW. She will also be participating in the women’s title-eliminator tournament upcoming on Dynamite. Baker spoke to the Bleacher Report recently about wanting to be the one to lead AEW’s women’s divisions to more TV time and potential main event matches.

“I just want to help lead the women’s division to more TV time and the main event eventually,” Baker said.  “We’re getting there, but this is a business, and we need to stay strong. For a long time, the women’s segments weren’t doing well, but now we are getting to a point where the fans want more women’s matches.”

Recently, Baker has been hosting “The Waiting Room” segments on Dark and Dynamite. She also talked about those segments during the interview.

“That was Cody [Rhodes] who came up with the idea for the show,” Baker said. “Him and Tony [Khan] developed the whole concept of it, what we will talk about, and the opening monologue. Reba is ridiculously funny, and we just flow together. It’s a lot of fun because we have a lot of freedom with it while we advance storylines.”

Baker continued to talk about Rebel’s involvement in the segments.

“When we did a vignette in my office, they [AEW] were trying to limit the travel as much as possible. She was a makeup artist for AEW, and we are really good friends. It was Cody’s idea to use her as the makeup artist who gets bullied, and it was just so good that we had to keep Reba around. I don’t want to share the spotlight with anybody. It’s all about me, but Reba is there to have my back.”

Baker addresses several other subjects during the interview including her upcoming action figure, working with Tony Schiavone and more.

Christian Talks What Led To His Return At The Royal Rumble

Chris Stephens
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After returning to WWE at the Royal Rumble on Sunday, Christian appeared as a guest today on WWE’s The Bump. He spoke about how Edge’s return motivated him to see if he could as well.

“It’s been a long process actually to get to the point where I could get myself in physical condition to step in the ring again,” Christian said on the show. “Everybody knows I retired because of injuries 7 years ago and I’d be lying if I didn’t say that Edge returning at the Royal Rumble made me think a little bit.”

“I started thinking that maybe this is a possibility,” Christian continued. He continued to say that at the time he was living the retired life and not making great decisions diet-wise.

“The way that my career ended before never sat well with me as it was,” he continued. “I need to get back in there, I need to finish this on my terms.”

“If it was just that one match at the Royal Rumble then so be it.”

He continued to say that he hired a nutritionist company and built a gym in his garage to get ready. Christian also noted that he didn’t find out he’d be in the Rumble match until Friday night. Edge was one of the only ones who knew he’d be in the match.

Christian’s comments can be heard in the player below:

Bianca Belair On Her WrestleMania Opponent: Asuka, Sasha Banks or Io Shirai

Jake Skudder
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WWE Women’s Royal Rumble 2021 winner Bianca Belair recently spoke to Peter Rosenburg. The ‘EST’ of WWE discussed a number of topics during the interview, including her Rumble win, choosing her WrestleMania opponent and working alongside her husband Montez Ford of the Street Profits.

Discussing her WrestleMania opponent, Rosenburg would bring up how culturally important it would be for a match against Sasha Banks to happen. This would be the first time that two black female Superstars appear in a main event title match at ‘Mania, and whilst Belair agreed, she also wanted to state how important a match against Asuka would be to her on a personal level.

Bianca Belair’s WrestleMania Opponent

“Asuka is an amazing champion on RAW,” said Belair. “She had an undefeated streak when I was in NXT. So that’s another thing that’s like really close to my heart as well. I was in NXT with Asuka, I got to watch the undefeated streak, I got to watch all these Championship matches that she had.”

“I actually had a match with Asuka, when I was very, very, very new” Belair continued. “It was my very first Championship match, maybe in front of 150 people? And I remember coming back through the curtain, my husband was there, and having this moment with him that I felt like, ‘well I’m new and I just hung with the NXT Women’s Champion who’s undefeated.’ So having that in my mind too? That could be like this huge accomplishment, of everything like just coming together and full circle with Asuka as well.”

Bianca Belair finished by stating how important the choice is before he heads to WrestleMania; even alluding to a potential match with NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai. “So it’s just, it’s a really big decision, and I’m still trying to get my emotions together from the Royal Rumble match and winning. There’s just so much in play, also in NXT like Io Shirai? I never got to be NXT Women’s Champion.”

Who would you like to see Bianca Belair face at WrestleMania? Let us know in the comments

Impact Wrestling No Surrender: Final Card For Saturday (2/13)

Michael Reichlin
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Impact Wrestling presents No Surrender this Saturday night on the Impact Plus streaming service.

The following is an updated match lineup coming out of this week’s Imapct on AXS broadcast:

  • Impact World Champion Rich Swann defends against Tommy Dreamer
  • World Tag Team Champions The Good Brothers vs. Private Party vs. James Storm & Chris Sabin
  • Texas Tornado No Disqualification: Knockouts Tag Team Champions Fire N’ Flava vs. Havok & Neveah
  • X-Division Champion TJP defends against. Rohit Raju
  • Decay (Rosemary, Crazzy Steve & Black Taurus) vs. XXXL (Acey Romero & Larry D) & Tenille Dashwood
  • Matt Cardona & Eddie Edwards vs. Brian Myers & Hernandez
  • X-Division #1 Contender Triple Threat Revolver Match: Daivari vs. Suicide vs. Willie Mack vs. Ace Austin vs. Trey Miguel vs. Chris Bey vs. Josh Alexander vs. Blake Christian
  • Jordynne Grace, Jazz & ODB vs. Deonna Purrazzo, Kimber Lee & Susan
  • Cody Deaner vs. Jake Something

Ahead of No Surrender, check out our recap from Tuesday night’s “go home” edition of Impact on AXS:

Et1SNcVXUAMPn5l?format=jpg&name=small

AEW Women’s Tournament Brackets Released, News On Japanese Matches

Jake Skudder
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AEW will be holding their Women’s Title Eliminator Tournament over the next few episodes of Dynamite. The tournament begins this week with a match between Leyla Hirsch and Thunder Rosa. That bout will kick off the US side of the bracket, with the Japanese side being produced by AEW Women’s World Champion Hikaru Shida.

According to Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio, the Japanese brackets of the tournament was already taped at the Ice Ribbon Dojo in Japan. These tapings took with no audience on a closed set. Ice Ribbon was founded in 2006 by AEW star Emi Sakura; AEW Champion Hikaru Shida started her career with the promotion back in 2008.

It has not been confirmed how the tournament matches from Japan will be featured. Hikaru Shida is currently over in Japan helping to produce the content.

Meltzer stated that he was told by AEW President and CEO Tony Khan that “he is working on something cool.” Beyond that we have no details on how the rest of the tournament will be shown.

AEW Women’s Eliminator Tournament Brackets

AEW Womens Tournament

The competitors for the Japanese bracket of the AEW Women’s Title Eliminator are as follows:

  • Emi Sakura
  • Aja Kong
  • Yuka Sakazaki
  • Veny
  • Ryo Mizunami
  • Mei Suruga
  • Rin Kadokura
  • Maki Itoh

Here’s the field for the US side of the bracket:

  • Serena Deeb
  • Riho
  • Nyla Rose
  • Britt Baker
  • Tay Conti
  • Thunder Rosa
  • Anna Jay
  • Leyla Hirsch

Impact Results (2/9): Go-Home Show For No Surrender

Chris Stephens
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Impact Wrestling 2/9 was the go-home show for No Surrender this Saturday on Impact Plus.

Impact Wrestling 2/9 Quick Results:

  1. Trey Miguel, Josh Alexander, Willie Mack & Suicide defeated Chris Bey, Ace Austin, Daivari & Blake Christian
  2. Kimber Lee defeated ODB
  3. Neveah defeated Kiera Hogan via DQ
  4. Black Taurus defeated Kaleb (with a K)
  5. Impact Tag Team Championships
  6. Chris Sabin & James Storm defeated The Good Brothers (Karl Anderson & Doc Gallows) (c) via DQ – Good Brothers retain titles.

Moose Interrupts Tommy Dreamer & Rich Swann Contract Signing

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jL1Rs8ieI1s

Moose is upset that Tommy Dreamer is getting the title shot at No Surrender. Swann chose Dreamer as his opponent as the event takes place on Dreamer’s 50th Birthday. He came out to confront Swann and Dreamer but D’Amore told him he’ll be suspended if he interferes at No Surrender. Moose said he’s the real world champion, but Swann disagreed. Dreamer then cut a passionate promo about how he doesn’t wrestle for money, he wrestles because he loves this business and there is a locker room full of “Dreamers” in the back and he wants to use his platform for good.

“Being the Impact Champion gives me a larger platform,” Dreamer said.

“I want to spread good throughout this world. For 3 hours, I want people to forget about all the crap in this world. Rich, it’s going to be an honor to tear it up with you.”

Dreamer then signed the contract to bring the segment to a close.

Matt Hardy & Private Party Ruin Tag Title Match, Storm & Sabin Added To No Surrender Tag Title Match

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEYe55n2uOI

Matt Hardy and Private Party appeared on the stage during the tag title match this week. Just as Sabin and Storm seemed to have the advantage in the match, Private Party attacked. Upset that Sabin and Storm were getting a tag title shot before theirs at No Surrender, the idea was to get the match thrown out.

After the match, Hardy told Private Party he was proud of them. He said he’ll give them a bonus if they win the tag titles on Saturday as well. Scott D’Amore then confronted the 3 of them. He said to keep Storm and Sabin from interfering in the match at No Surrender, he’ll put them in the match. So it will be Private Party vs The Good Brothers vs James Storm & Chris Sabin on Saturday.

Tony Khan Talks About Opening Wrestling’s “Forbidden Door”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxBvL88SkR4

Tony Khan and Tony Schiavone were back this week. Khan talked about how he is actually the forbidden door and he realized that when he came to Impact Wrestling.

“I just had to open myself, and that comes from being here with you IMPACT Wrestling! Doing these paid ads, I’ve learned so much about myself. I’ve opened myself up to new experiences, and look at all the great things that have happened. We did a great rating for Dynamite this week with IMPACT people there. We had people from New Japan, who knows who is going to be there next week?”

Sami Callihan Sends A Message To Trey Miguel

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBwizXPNeug

Trey Miguel picked up the win for his team in 8-man tag-team action to kick off the show this week. He debuted a new submission move and got the tapout from Blake Christian in the match. After the match, the lights flicked off and Sami Callihan appeared on the big screen. Last week, Callihan said that Miguel has no loyalty and that’s why the other Rascalz aren’t with him anymore. This week, he said that while Miguel seems to have momentum, he will eventually flake out again. It seems we are building to a big singles match between the two.

Kimber Lee Picks Up Win Over ODB Thanks To Susan & Deonna Purrazzo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veHc9MGM1a4

Despite being heavily outmatched in some areas of this match, Kimber Lee picked up the win over ODB this week. The finish of the match came not long after Susan attempted to distract the referee, perhaps to point out some perceived offense that took place. This brought out Jordynne Grace and Jazz from the back who then got into a melee with Purrazzo and Susan. ODB came off the top and took out both the Knockouts Champ and the woman who frequently wants to see a manager. When ODB came back into the ring, however, Kimber Lee rolled her up and got the 3-count.

After the match, Susan said that “someone needs to talk to their manager” about this, and so she went to Scott D’Amore to organize a 6-person match between the two sides.

Jake Something Turns Down Violent By Design

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKtJLql_8vo

Eric Young’s Violent By Design stable offered Cody Deaner’s Cousin Jake a spot in the faction. Jake turned down the group this week, however. This led to VOD attacking Jake and wrapping a chair around his neck. Deaner told Young that he wants to fight Jake and so instead of attacking him now, Young announced that Deaner will face Jake at No Surrender on Saturday.

Neveah Picks Up Win Over Kiera Hogan Via DQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wys1fAif7I

A fine example of refereeing was exhibited by Brandon Tolle during this match. Tolle was briefly distracted by Havok on the outside and this led Tasha Steelz to feel it was a safe time to interfere. She was wrong. Tolle turned around in time to see her attacking Neveah and called for the disqualification.

Later, Steelz and Hogan complained to Scott D’Amore about Tolle’s officiating. D’Amore said he would take care of things. He then announced that Tolle won’t be the referee when Havok & Neveah challenged Fire N Flava for the tag belts at No Surrender. As this match had not yet been scheduled, Hogan and Steelz were a little upset with D’Amore’s announcement. He also announced the match would be no disqualification.

Black Taurus Joins Decay

Last week on Impact, Team XXXL recruited Tenille Dashwood to help in their feud with Decay. Dashwood, Acey Romero and Larry D will team against Rosemary, Crazzy Steve and a mystery partner this weekend at No Surrender. This week, the members of Decay announced AAA’s Black Taurus as their 3rd member. He then defeated Kaleb with a K in singles action.

Lineup For Impact No Surrender

  • Impact World Championships
    Rich Swann (c) vs Tommy Dreamer
  • Impact Tag Team Championships
    The Good Brothers (c) vs Private Party vs Chris Sabin & James Storm
  • Knockouts Tag Team Championships
    Texas Tornado/No DQ
    Fire N Flava (Kiera Hogan & Tasha Steelz) (c) vs Havok & Neveah
  • X-Division Championship
    TJP (c) vs Rohit Raju
  • Team XXXL & Tenille Dashwood vs Crazzy Steve, Rosemary, & TBD
  • Hernandez & Brian Myers vs Eddie Edwards & Matt Cardona
  • Triple Threat Revolver Match
    Trey Miguel vs Chris Bey vs Josh Alexander vs Blake Christian vs Ace Austin vs Willie Mack vs Suicide vs Daivari
  • Jordynne Grace, Jazz & ODB vs. Deonna Purrazzo, Kimber Lee & Susan
  • Cody Deaner vs. Jake Something

Bully Ray – “Nia Jax Has Some Holes In Her Game, No Pun Intended”

Jake Skudder
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WWE Hall of Famer and co-host of SiriusXM’s Busted Open Radio Bully Ray recently discussed the tag team of Shayna Baszler and Nia Jax. This week’s episode of RAW saw both women lose in their respective matches; with Nia Jax saying the now infamous ‘MY HOLE’ line that started trending Monday night.

“I think both of them need help with their in-ring work” Bully Ray began on Busted Open. “Nia looks like she doesn’t like to get touched, when you swing…now when you go for a punch at Nia? Her head is down and her hands are up. I think she needs to work on some of that stuff. When I say she needs to work on it? I’m saying it in a way where I’m trying to help not hurt or bash somebody.”

Bully Ray on Nia Jax

Bully Ray then discussed the rumors that Vince McMahon has already sent talent back ‘down’ to the Performance Center over the past few months to polish their game. One of the bigger names rumored to be sent back to the PC was Keith Lee, so Bully Ray uses this as a precedent to get more main roster Superstars to get help with their skillset.

“The reason I think this is because we heard reports of Vince McMahon sending certain talent down to the PC for a little bit of extra help” Ray stated. “There’s nothing wrong with that, especially when you have a place like the PC around. So if it’s there. Hey girls, Nia? There’s a couple of holes in your game, no pun intended!”

Ray finished by praising Nia Jax for her work with Lana in the Tables match on Monday night. “Go work on some of this stuff, because the regression is significant to me especially when I see them (Nia and Shayna) together. I like the job that Nia did last night with Lana. I thought that was a decently booked table match with the right outcome, the right payoff, they did it the right way.”

AEW Dynamite Preview: Omega & Kenta vs. Moxley & Archer

Michael Reichlin
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All Elite Wrestling returns to Jacksonville, FL tonight with an all-new episode of AEW Dynamite on TNT.

This week’s show will feature the in-ring debut of NJPW star KENTA, the first match in the Women’s World Title Eliminator tournament, a TNT Championship defense by Darby Allin, Chris Jericho teaming with MJF and much more.

The following items are advertised for AEW Dynamite:

  • AEW World Champion Kenny Omega and KENTA vs. IWGP United States Champion Jon Moxley and Lance Archer
  • TNT Champion Darby Allin vs. Joey Janela
  • Chris Jericho & MJF vs. The Acclaimed
  • Thunder Rosa vs. Leyla Hirsch (Women’s World Title Eliminator Tournament)
  • Cody Rhodes & Lee Johnson vs. Cezar Benoni and “Pretty” Peter Avalon
  • PAC vs. “Hollywood Hunk” Ryan Nemeth

Plus, we’ll also hear from Sting and “Hangman” Adam Page.

Check back here later tonight for our AEW Dynamite Results and Takeaways feature.

Bidet Company Reaches Out To Nia Jax

Chris Stephens
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This week on WWE RAW, Nia Jax garnered a lot of attention for how she sold a missed leg drop in her match against Lana. Nia missed the move on the ring apron and yelled “my hole!” to the delight of many before then being tossed into a table by Lana. Bidet company, Tushy, has reached out to Nia Jax about the incident. Perhaps a sponsorship between the two parties is in the works.

Nia has yet to respond to the company. She has been responding to all the attention she has been getting online through Twitter, however.

“I’ve been receiving a HOLE lotta love, much obliged #myhole,” she Tweeted.

Nia also responded to Naomi’s comments online.

https://twitter.com/NiaJaxWWE/status/1359179574098206728

She also responded to concerns from the Bella Twins as well:

https://twitter.com/NiaJaxWWE/status/1359180423553822722

Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler recently regained the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships from Asuka and Charlotte Flair at the Royal Rumble. They had dropped the titles a little over a month before the Rumble at TLC. Prior to that, Jax and Baszler had held the titles for 4 months between the Payback PPV in August and the TLC PPV in December. They are the 3rd team to win the titles a second time. Sasha Banks & Bayley and Nikkie Cross & Alexa Bliss were the first teams to do so.

Tony Khan: “I Am The Forbidden Door!” Between AEW & NJPW

Jake Skudder
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The “Forbidden Door” is the phrase used to describe the metaphoric barrier between All Elite Wrestling and New Japan Pro Wrestling. According to AEW President Tony Khan, he’s the forbidden door and that door is now wide open. Fans should expect a lot more crossover in the months ahead.

Khan and Tony Schiavone returned to Impact Wrestling this week with their latest ‘paid advertisement’ on the program. Khan says that everywhere he goes, people have been asking when he’s going to open the forbidden door. People want to know, when is New Japan going to come to AEW?

He’s been telling people that he doesn’t know where or what the forbidden door is. “And then I figured it out. The Forbidden door is me! I am the forbidden door!” Khan emphatically stated.

“I just had to open myself, and that comes from being here with you IMPACT Wrestling! Doing these paid ads, I’ve learned so much about myself. I’ve opened myself up to new experiences, and look at all the great things that have happened. We did a great rating for Dynamite this week with IMPACT people there. We had people from New Japan, who knows who is going to be there next week?”

Tony Khan: “Let’s Do This Every Week”

Khan continued, “One thing I do know? The Forbidden Door has been opened. I can’t wait for this week’s main event tomorrow night on AEW Dynamite. One of the biggest matches ever on Dynamite, Falls Count Anywhere, anything goes.”

He then made a huge statement regarding the future of AEW Dynamite allowing talent to ‘cross borders.’

“I just have to say, thank you Kenny [Omega]. Thank you Don Callis, nobody ever expected me to say that. But thanks to you two and everything you’ve done in AEW? You’ve opened me up, you’ve changed me, and you’ve opened the Forbidden Door. I love it, I want to do more big ratings, I wanna have more people show up! Let’s do this EVERY WEEK.”

Tony Khan finished by confirming that the Forbidden Door swings both ways; with IMPACT Wrestling set to see more of the AEW President inside the IMPACT Zone with All Elite talent. You can see this week’s “paid ad” in the player embedded below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxBvL88SkR4

AEW & NJPW

Tony Khan has been outspoken about his desire to work with New Japan Pro Wrestling. Over the past several weeks, we’ve seen the groundwork of a full-blown inter-promotional war coming into focus.

The conclusion of last week’s AEW Dynamite saw the surprise appearance of KENTA, who is feuding with AEW star (and IWGP United States Champion) Jon Moxley. They will square off later this month (2/26) at NJPW’s New Beginning USA event.

This heated feud is just one element of the AEW-NJPW storyline that’s unfolding. Also in play – Bullet Club in AEW and NJPW, AEW World Champion Kenny Omega and IWGP World Champion Kota Ibushi teasing a program.

The main event of Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite will see Jon Moxley and Lance Archer teaming up against AEW World Champion Kenny Omega and KENTA. AEW has billed Moxley as the reigning IWGP United States Champion, another example of relations improving between the two promotions.

The possibilities for the coming together of these promotions is almost limitless. Thus far, we have seen Tony Khan bring AAA, the NWA, Impact Wrestling and now NJPW to AEW programming. Originally it was rumored that the NJPW/AEW ‘deal’ was purely for New Japan to get use of Jon Moxley. As mentioned, the former WWE Superstar is the current IWGP United States Champion, and with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic New Japan wanted to still have use of one of their prized assets. This meant that Moxley would have to work in the United States under the NJPW banner; something that would involve striking a deal with All Elite as he is contracted to only appear on major promotions for them in the US, much like Chris Jericho.

It appears as though the deal has now been completed, with a huge shift in the momentum for the 2nd and 3rd biggest pro wrestling promotions in the world coming together. Once again AEW have managed to make Dynamite, IMPACT and even NJPW Strong appointment viewing.

Bad Bunny Selling A Ton Of Merchandise At WWE Shop

Jon Fuentes
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Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny has reportedly hauled in some big numbers on WWE Shop. In fact, per a report from Fightful, his merchandise sales have exceeded $500,000 so far this year. At one point last week, Bunny’s merchandise held four of the top five selling spots on the site. It placed number one for the men’s t-shirt, three for the women’s, and came in fourth for the youth size. His pullover hoodie ranked second. At that time, the only other WWE Superstar in the top five was Universal Champion Roman Reigns at five. Bunny’s initial merchandise, which released around the time of the Royal Rumble last month, sold out fast. Now, WWE has released new limited edition merchandise for the music star.

Bad Bunny at WrestleMania

As we’ve noted, Bunny is expected to be teaming up with Damian Priest against the team of John Morrison and The Miz at this year’s WrestleMania. The rapper began a feud with the duo at the Royal Rumble when he attacked The Miz in retaliation for destroying his DJ booth. This was followed up by Bunny and Priest aligning themselves together against Miz and Morrison on Monday Night Raw during a Miz TV segment.

Now, the stage is set for Bunny and Priest to take on the former WWE Tag Team Champions at “The Showcase of the Immortals.”

What do you think about Bunny having a match at this year’s WrestleMania? And how do you feel about him being the top seller on WWE Shop so far this year? Let us know in the comments!

WWE Raw Ratings Fall To 2021 Low (2/8)

Andrew Ravens
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Monday’s edition of WWE Raw averaged 1.715 million viewers with a 0.49 rating in the Adults 18-49 demographic.

This is down from last week (1.892 million viewers with a 0.58 rating) and is now the least-watched episode of Raw this year. The all-time low in the history of the show was at 1.527 million viewers in December.

Here’s the hourly viewership breakdown for Monday night:

  • The first hour did 1.821 million viewers and a 0.54 rating (A18-49).
  • The second hour did 1.735 million viewers and a 0.48 rating.
  • The final hour of the show had just 1.589 million viewers and a 0.44 rating.

Next week will be interesting to see what numbers Raw does as it will be the go-home edition of the red brand for the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view event.

SmackDown Viewership

Friday’s SmackDown averaged 2.257 million viewers. This is down from the 2.304 million viewers on FS1 that the show did for the previous week.

SmackDown pulled in a 0.65 rating in the 18-49 demos, down from the 0.62 rating the previous week’s show. The episode drew an average of 2.126 million viewers in the overnight ratings, down from the previous week that did 2.228 million viewers. 

The first hour saw it pull in 2.144 million viewers while hour two did 2.108 million viewers. The show did 2.294 million viewers in hour one while hour two did 2.161 million viewers two weeks ago.

AEW Releasing Two Music Albums Next Month: 8-Bit & Women’s Themes

Michael Reichlin
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All Elite Wrestling is set to release two new music albums next month.

Producer Mikey Rukus announced that a “Double AEW Album Release” is scheduled for Friday, March 5th.

One of the albums will feature theme music from AEW’s top women’s competitors. These are the songs we’ve heard on AEW programming.

The other album will be comprised of “8-bit” remixes of popular AEW theme songs. What exactly does an 8-bit theme song sound like? Unrelated to these official AEW releases, producer J.D. Spears has composed a bunch of 8-bit entrance themes on his YouTube channel. Listen here to get an idea of what the official Cody Rhodes 8-bit theme might sound like:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7tGTJuFG6A

Below you can find the announced tracks for each album. Mikey Rukus noted on Twitter that these track lists are incomplete, so expect a few more songs to be added to each album by release day.

AEW Women’s Themes: “We Got This” Album

  • AEW Heels
  • Tay Conte
  • Diamante
  • Red Velvet
  • Reba Giggle
  • Leva
  • Allysin Kay
  • KiLynn King
  • Leyla Hirsch
  • Metal Vickie

AEW: “8-Bit Mayhem” Album

  • Cody Rhodes
  • Ricky Starks
  • Kip Sabian
  • Kenny Omega
  • Dark Order
  • Nyla Rose
  • Penelope Ford
  • Best Friends
  • PAC
  • Joey Janela
  • Miro
  • Thunder Rosa
  • Britt Baker
  • TH2
  • Brodie Lee

Sasha Banks Broken Skull Sessions Episode Premieres 2/21

Chris Stephens
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WWE SmackDown Women’s Champion Sasha Banks will be the next guest to appear on Steve Austin’s “Broken Skull Sessions.” The episode premieres on Sunday, February 21st immediately following the WWE Elimination Chamber PPV.

Banks recently took to Instagram to express her enthusiasm for the upcoming episode.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CLE4ajThfQK/?igshid=11t0h3hfiqqcn

Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Sessions

Previous episodes of Broken Skull Session with Steve Austin have featured The Undertaker (2x), Goldberg, Kane, Big Show, Bret Hart, Ric Flair, Mark Henry, Jerry Lawler, Kurt Angle, Drew McIntyre, and Banks’ longtime tag partner and rival, Bayley.

Banks also recently appeared on the Normal Not Normal podcast. During that interview, she spoke about how the reduced WWE travel schedule has been helpful to her and her career.

“I’m not just talking about in one state,” Banks says of the usual WWE travel schedule. “I’m driving five or six hours to different states every single day. But we’re not just talking about driving, I’m talking about flying as well – early in the morning – and I’m talking about wrestling too. I’m beating my body, jumping into a car, and driving five hours and getting to the hotel at maybe four in the morning. Sleep in until 12, work out, get your food, and doing the exact same thing. That will beat up your body.”

Lars Sullivan Posts Images Of Proposed “Brilliant Behemoth” Gimmick

Chris Stephens
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Lars Sullivan was released by WWE last month. He took to Instagram recently and posted a picture of what many are taking as images of a canceled gimmick he was to have in WWE.

Feast your eyes on The Brilliant Behemoth, Lawrence Sulivan.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CLDmynMJJbK/

Reason For Lars Sullivan Release

Sullivan’s release from WWE was addressed recently on Wrestling Observer Radio.

“He was going to get a push, a real big push as a matter of fact, and he could not handle the pressure. He had an anxiety attack, he was suffering even before. Then he stopped coming, kept not coming, and at that point, this has happened before,” said Dave Meltzer on the show.

“He was supposed to beat John Cena at the 2019 WrestleMania and he no-showed the angle where he was going to layout Cena to set up the angle,” Meltzer continued. 

“They brought him back a second time with a big push, he got the knee injury. They brought him back a 3rd time with a big push, he stopped coming. At that point, I think it was inevitable how it was going to end up.”

Sullivan signed with WWE and reported to the Performance Center in 2014. His last official match was a win over Shorty G on Smackdown back in October.

Top WWE Executive: We Want Cardi B

Jake Skudder
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WWE wants to work with pop music superstar Cardi B.

Nick Khan, WWE’s President and Chief Revenue Officer, recently spoke to Forbes about the business side of the company.

During the discussion, Khan addressed WWE utilizing celebrities to generate additional interest in the product. In recent weeks, we’ve seen rap star Bad Bunny involved in storylines.

There’s also been some buzz about WWE working with Cardi B. Khan confirmed WWE wants to work with the “WAP” singer in the near future. “Obviously, there is no touring right now,” he said. “The ability to get Bad Bunny for however long this run is going to be, and you’re going to see a lot of him; I don’t believe that would have existed in a world where Bad Bunny was on tour.”

The Covid-19 pandemic has forced WWE to adapt the way it does business in many ways. The silver lining is that it has also created the opportunity to work with big names from the entertainment industry, since they’re less busy and not on tour.

“We’re always going to want Bad Bunny, Cardi B to get involved,” Khan continued. “It made it a touch easier to get a deal done this time because they weren’t, over the course of however long the deal is, is not in 25 different cities during that time. The bulk of concert money is made in the summertime. It doesn’t appear as if there are going to be big tours during the summer. Even we’re all hopeful, so we’ll see what folks we’re talking to and who you’ll see in the mix.”

Cardi B was recently name dropped during the RAW Legends Night episode. This lead to several back and forth exchanges between Cardi B and several WWE Superstars, including Trish Stratus and Lacey Evans.

Whether WWE will be able to bring the hip-hop megastar into the fold remains to be seen; although she would be a major name to bring in for a WrestleMania appearance. Bad Bunny will already be performing at WrestleMania, and it is rumored that he will be teaming with Booker T or Damian Priest to take on The Miz and John Morrison in a tag team bout.

Cody Rhodes Clarifies: Is The Nightmare Family A Faction In AEW?

Chris Stephens
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The Nightmare Family added two new members yesterday when Nick Comoroto and Aaron Solow joined the group. Cody Rhodes recently clarified that The Nightmare Family is not a traditional pro-wrestling faction.

“I will say it’s not a routine wrestling “faction”. More a ensemble of focused individuals, some who train at the factory together, who just have a singular focus over the sport. Authentic relationships. Not always together, but ready when the call comes, and will have your back,” Cody Tweeted.

Nightmare Family Roster

The updated Nightmare Family roster is below:

  • Cody Rhodes
  • Dustin Rhodes
  • Brandi Rhodes
  • Diamond Dallas Page
  • Arn Anderson
  • QT Marshall
  • Lee Johnson
  • Billy Gunn
  • Austin Gunn
  • Colten Gunn
  • Aaron Solow
  • Nick Comoroto

A little under a year ago, Cody got the Nightmare Family logo tattooed on his neck. He explained his decision to do so in an Instagram post.

“I’m humbled by the run I’ve been on and the love of the fans. Incredibly lucky man. It was very simple, I wear a lot of brands…I wanted to make sure mine was one of them. And I wasn’t hiding it,” he wrote.

Sting Segment Confirmed for AEW Dynamite (02/10)

Jake Skudder
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AEW has confirmed that ‘The Icon’ Sting will be appearing on this week’s episode of AEW Dynamite. The former WCW and WWE Superstar has made sporadic appearances for the promotion ever since the ‘Winter Is Coming’ episode of Dynamite back on December 2nd 2020.

Sting’s appearances thus far have mainly seen The Icon confront Team Taz and stand alongside TNT Champion Darby Allin. It was confirmed recently that Sting will be taking part in a Streetfight at the AEW Revolution PPV. That show will be taking place on March 7, 2021 at Daily’s Place in Jacksonville, Florida. 

All Elite sent out a tweet to reveal that Sting will be speaking to Tony Schiavone this Wednesday on Dynamite. “We are on the road to #AEWRevolution and this Wednesday on #AEWDynamite, @tonyschiavone24 interviews @sting! Watch Dynamite at 8/7c on @TNTDrama.”

It is unknown at this point what the interview will entail, although it may be time for AEW to shed some light on why Sting has chosen to align himself with the aforementioned Darby Allin; perhaps the fact that the mysterious characters have a common enemy in Team Taz? Or could it be more?

Nia Jax Trending After Bizarre Moment On RAW

Chris Stephens
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A highlight featuring Nia Jax on last night’s edition of RAW is garnering a lot of attention online. Jax was wrestling Lana last night and missed a leg drop on the ring apron. Nia opted to sell the move by screaming “My hole!” just before being pushed through a table by Lana. You can see a clip of the moment in question here:

https://twitter.com/gif_skull/status/1358982180454625284?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1358982180454625284%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fcomicbook.com%2Fwwe%2Fnews%2Fwwe-raw-nia-jax-trending-my-hole-lana-tables-match%2F

Nia Jax tweeted the following on Tuesday morning after having a few hours to reflect on her viral moment from Raw:

https://twitter.com/NiaJaxWWE/status/1359178888954454017

Nia Jax “My Hole” Reactions

As you can imagine, Nia Jax screaming, “My Hole!” in pain got a lot of attention on social media. Numerous wrestling personalities have been reacting to the clip on Twitter.Mick Foley believes that “My Hole” could become Nia Jax’s version of Austin 3:16.

https://twitter.com/RealMickFoley/status/1358981577179545604

Mickie James was sympathetic to Nia’s plight online. She posted the following:

Bryan Alvarez of Figure Four Weekly seems to be having a good time with it.

The following Twitter user was questioning the time they spend watching wrestling. Nia Jax was able to show them it’s all worth it, however.

“I don’t know anything that’s happening today really other than Nia Jax said my hole on RAW cause that’s my entire feed,” Shazza McKenzie Tweeted.

“On a crisp February evening with scattered clouds and occasional starlight, on a Monday filled with both promise and potential, Nia Jax landed on her butt and screamed “My hole!”” Tweeted Matt Fowler.

Nia’s loss to Lana on RAW last night comes on the heels of her and Shayna Baszler winning back the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships at the Royal Rumble on Sunday.

Rapper Bow Wow Says He Wants To Wrestle For WWE, Superstars Respond

Chris Stephens
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0

Rapper Bow Wow hopes to fulfill a lifelong dream of wrestling for WWE one day.

The 33-year-old is getting headlines for a tweet about his future career plans. He’s working on his final rap album and then plans to focus on other areas of interest. He will continue acting in movies and serving as a television host. He also wants to climb into the squared circle.

NXT’s Bronson Reed was quick to welcome Bow Wow to the industry.

Retribution’s T-Bar is not shy on social media. He posted the following reply to Bow Wow’s comments:

https://twitter.com/TBARRetribution/status/1358797149547487234

“Are you mad because ill become champ faster than you? Or are you mad that like mike is more legendary than you will ever be? DROPS MIC,” Bow Wow replied.

“Those sound like fighting words Air Bud. Why don’t you fly your “private jet” down to the @WWE ThunderDome and back them up?” T-Bar answered.

Earlier today, Bow Wow said that Bad Bunny is on his list.

John Morrison seemed to invite Bow Wow to help with his feud with Bad Bunny.

Ricochet seems interested in facing him.

Bow Wow wants to tag with Rey Mysterio and win the WWE tag-team championships. This drew a reaction from Mysterio’s current tag partner, his son Dominik.

“Gotchu Dom but now i got TBarr and little ricochet wanting the smoke. Im all for it,” Bow Wow responded.

Updated Card For WWE Elimination Chamber (2/21)

Michael Reichlin
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The road to WrestleMania continues with WWE’s next pay-per-view event, Elimination Chamber.

The big news coming out of Monday’s Raw was Shane McMahon returning to announce the show’s main event. We now have three matches confirmed. The following matches are set for the PPV:

WWE Championship Elimination Chamber Match:
Drew McIntyre (c) vs. Jeff Hardy vs. The Miz vs. Randy Orton vs. Sheamus vs. AJ Styles

United States Championship Match:
Bobby Lashley (c) vs. Riddle vs. Keith Lee

RAW Women’s Championship Match:
Asuka vs. (c) Lacey Evans (w/Ric Flair)

With less than two weeks until the event, expect to see more match announcements on Friday’s SmackDown.

WWE Elimination Chamber takes place Sunday, February 21st from the ThunderDome in St. Petersburg, Florida. The event will air live on the WWE Network.

WWE RAW Results (2/8): Title Matches Set For Elimination Chamber, McIntyre vs. Orton

Robert Lentini
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0

WWE RAW aired live from the ThunderDome inside Tropicana Field. Drew McIntyre battled Randy Orton in the main event. There were three title matches set for WWE Elimination Chamber announced tonight. Lashley will defend the United States Championship against Riddle & Keith Lee in a Triple Threat match and Asuka will put the RAW Women’s Championship on the line against Lacey Evans. Drew McIntyre will defend the WWE Championship against Sheamus, Jeff Hardy, Randy Orton, The Miz, and AJ Styles inside the Elimination Chamber.

RAW Results (2/8)

  1. AJ Styles def. Jeff Hardy via submission
  2. New Day def. RETRIBUTION
  3. Lacey Evans def. Charlotte Flair via DQ
  4. Damian Priest def. Angel Garza
  5. Keith Lee def. Riddle
  6. Lana def. Nia Jax in a Tables match
  7. Naomi def. Shayna Baszler
  8. Randy Orton def. Drew MCIntyre via DQ

Here are the takeaways from this week’s show:

McIntyre Will Defend The WWE Title Inside Elimination Chamber

Adam Pearce kicked off the show and welcomed Shane McMahon back. Shane said that he had a blockbuster announcement and Adam Pearce announced that Drew McIntyre will defend the WWE Championship inside the Elimination Chamber match. Pearce added that all of McIntyre’s opponents will be former champs including Randy Orton, Jeff Hardy, AJ Styles, The Miz, and Sheamus.

Shane exited and AJ Styles made his way to the ring with Omos. Styles told Pearce that he was doing a great job and that he was a genius for having McIntyre defend the title in the Elimination Chamber match. AJ noted that it is the road to WrestleMania and it will be a perfect time for him to become WWE Champion for the third time. Styles joked that he always thought Pearce was a dumbass and that he is going to give everyone a preview of what is going to happen in the chamber match tonight.

Drew McIntyre confronted Shane McMahon and said he thought he would be facing Sheamus at Elimination Chamber. Shane told McIntyre that they needed something big for the Elimination Chamber and that Drew should want to prove that he is a fighting champion.

Sheamus later confronted Adam Pearce and complained about not getting a one on one match with McIntyre. Sheamus wondered if Adam Pearce didn’t think he was a draw because he heard Shane say this was all Pearce’s idea. Sheamus vowed to unleash hell at Elimination Chamber and told Pearce that it will be his responsibility.

AJ Styles Tapped Out Jeff Hardy

Jeff Hardy squared off against AJ Styles in the first match of the night. Hardy controlled the action early and focused his attack on AJ’s arm. Jeff took AJ down with a Clothesline and went for the cover but Styles was able to kick out at two. Jeff Hardy tweaked his knee and limped out of the ring. Jeff struggled to his feet and Styles leveled him with a chop block. Styles then slammed Hardy’s knee into the ring post and rolled back into the ring as RAW went to a commercial break.

When RAW returned, Styles was still in control and was stomping on Hardy’s injured knee in the corner. AJ locked in the Calf Crusher in the middle of the ring but Hardy was able to reach the bottom rope to break the submission. Styles tried to sent Hardy to the ropes but Jeff’s knee gave out and he fell to the canvas. Styles went for the Phenomenal Forearm but Jeff saw it coming and tripped him up on the top rope.

Hardy hit a Dropkick and followed it up with a Splash for a near fall. AJ went for the Styles Clash but Jeff escaped and connected with the Twist of Fate. Jeff slowly made his way to the top turnbuckle and went for the Swanton Bomb but Styles got out of the way. Styles locked in the Calf Crusher once again and Hardy tapped out.

New Day def. RETRIBUTION

New Day faced RETRIBUTION (T-Bar and Slapjack) in a tag match tonight and Kofi Kingston returned to action. Mustafa Ali joined commentary for the match as Mace stood behind him. Slapjack got Woods in a Waist Lock and Xavier quickly broke free. Woods applied a Headlock and then leveled Slapjack for a two count. Woods went back to the Headlock as Mustafa Ali called New Day “coporate puppets”. Kofi tagged in and hit Slapjack with a chop to the chest.

Slapjack battled back with an uppercut and T-Bar tagged in. T-Bar leveled Kingston with a Clothesline and then slammed him to the canvas. Kingston sent T-Bar out of the ring and leaped over the top rope onto him as RAW went to a commercial break. When RAW returned, T-Bar had Woods trapped in the corner of the ring. Slapjack tagged in and connected with a boot to the midsection.

Xavier tried to battle back but Slapjack caught him with a knee to the face. T-Bar tagged in and prevented Woods from tagging out with a big boot to Kingston on the apron. Slapjack tagged in and hit Woods with a Belly to Back Suplex. Kofi finally tagged back in and hit Slapjack with some chops. Kingston connected with the Boom Drop and then Trouble in Paradise to T-Bar on the apron. New Day hit Daybreak on Slapjack for the pinfall victory.

Lacey Evans Earned A Title Shot At Elimination Chamber

Lacey Evans came down to the ring with Ric Flair to begin the 2nd hour of RAW. Ric shouted that he doesn’t take orders from any woman and will not stay home. Ric added that everyone knows that Charlotte doesn’t need him but he has found someone that has all the physical tools to be a star that needs him. Flair vowed to train Lacey Evans to become the next RAW Women’s Champion and that their relationship is just casual. Lacey called Ric “cute” and claimed that Charlotte is ungrateful.

Charlotte interrupted and joined them in the ring. Charlotte told Lacey that if she really wanted to learn she would go to the Performance Center but instead is trying to use Ric Flair to advance her career. Charlotte told Ric that she never said she didn’t need his help and is simply telling him how he really looks. Charlotte told Ric that she doesn’t care who he manages as long as he doesn’t bring her down with him.

Lacey Evans suggested that they work together as a tag team and Flair said Asuka is already her tag team partner. Lacey said her sights on the RAW Women’s Championship and that Ric has heard from WWE officials that if she beats her, she will be next to challenge Asuka for the RAW Women’s Championship. Charlotte said she wanted the match now and Ric shouted “no!”. Lacey then attacked Charlotte and slammed her into the steel steps before accepting the match.

Charlotte still managed to start off the match in control and beat Lacey down in thecorner. Evans battled back but Charlotte caught her with a boot to the face. Flair connected with a Dropkick that knocked Evans to the apron. Lacey tripped Charlotte up and hit her with an Elbow Drop for a near fall. Evans did the Flair strut and that pissed Charlotte off. Charlotte hit a Suplex that sent Lacey out of the ring. Charlotte then strutted around and Lacey awkwardly tripped her up on the apron as RAW went to a break.

When RAW returned, Lacey went for an Armbar but Charlotte broke free with a kick to the face. Evans responded with a Clothesline and went for the cover but Charlotte was able to kick out. Lacey went for a Moonsault but Charlotte got her knees up and unloaded some chops that sent Evans to the canvas. The action tumbled out of the ring and Charlotte got distracted by Ric. Lacey capitalized and slammed Charlotte’s injured arm to the floor.

Back in the ring, Lacey went for the Figure Four but Charlotte broke free and connected with a Spear. Charlotte stared at her father before punching Lacey in the face a few times. Charlotte then lost it and continued to beat Lacey down in the corner for a DQ. It was later announced that Asuka will defend the RAW Women’s Championship against Lacey Evans at Elimination Chamber.

Damian Priest def. Angel Garza

Edge said last week was a long week but it was amazing because it all started by winning the Royal Rumble. He noted that he went to RAW, NXT, and SmackDown and came face to face with all three champions. Edge said that landscape has changed since Drew has to defend his title in the Elimination Chamber against five former champions and claimed that he liked his odds against every single one of them. Edge added that he doesn’t like Drew’s odds of walking out as the champion and said he was going to wait until after Elimination Chamber.

The Miz interrupted with Angel Garza and John Morrison. Miz stated that Edge has always been the ultimate opportunist and is waiting for the perfect moment to strike. The Miz said he will be there with the MITB contract if Edge does win and will leave WrestleMania as champion. Edge told Miz that he put the MITB contract on the map and claimed that he thinks on a different level than The Miz. Edge said Miz is content with being “awesome” and he did that 20 years ago. Edge added that he needs to see this story through and become champion before leaving the ring.

Angel Garza squared off against Damian Priest. The Miz, John Morrison, and Bad Bunny were ringside for the match. Priest leveled Garza with a boot to the face for a two count. Garza hit Damian with a cheap shot as Miz and Morrison distracted the referee. Angel Clotheslined Priest out of the ring and distracted the referee as Miz and Morrison stomped on him. Bad Bunny distracted Miz and Morrison by stealing the briefcase. Morrison got it back but the referee kicked them out. Angel Garza was then distracted by Bad Bunny and Preist capitalized with the Reckoning for the pinfall victory.

Keith Lee Outlasted Riddle

Keith Lee faced Riddle tonight on RAW. MVP joined commentary for the match and had the United States Championship with him. The match started out back and forth for the first couple minutes. Riddle applied a Sleeper Hold but Keith wouldn’t go down. Keith Lee slammed Riddle to the mat to break the hold and then locked up with him in the middle of the ring. Riddle hit Keith with a Pele Kick and Lee stumbled to the corner.

Riddle hit a forearm to the face and went for an Exploder Suplex but Keith blocked it with the Grizzly Magnum. Keith went for the Spirit Bomb but Riddle escaped and hit a knee to the face for a one count. Riddle climbed to the top rope and hit the Floating Bro for a near fall. Riddle went for a knee strike but Keith caught him. Riddle locked in a Triangle submission in the middle of the ring but Riddle broke it up with a Buckle Bomb. Riddle hit the Final Flash but Keith bounced off the ropes and hit the Spirit Bomb for the pinfall victory.

After the match, United States Champion Bobby Lashley attacked Keith Lee from behind. Keith charged at him but Lashley planted him with an impressive Chokeslam. Riddle went after Lashley but the United States Champion applied the Hurt Lock. Lashley leveled Keith Lee with a Clothesline outside the ring and then launched him into the ring post. Lashley grabbed the steel steps and bashed Keith in the face with them. It was later announced that Bobby Lashley will defend the US Title against Riddle and Keith Lee in a Triple Threat match at Elimination Chamber.

Lana Put Nia Jax Through A Table

Nia Jax faced Lana in a Tables match tonight on RAW. Shayna Baszler and Naomi were ringside for the match. Nia shoved Lana to the mat, pulled her back up and elbowed her in the face to start off the action. Jax followed it up with a massive Powerbomb and then delivered another one as Naomi looked concerned. Nia smirked and started taunting Lana before locking in a Stretch Muffler submission. Lana shouted at Nia to stop but she opted to slam her face into the turnbuckle.

Lana caught Nia with a couple of kicks and avoided a Splash. Nia just shoved Lana to the canvas to stop her momentum. Lana was able to get Nia to the apron and hit her with a few kicks. Jax held onto the ropes and knocked Lana back down with a headbutt. Jax then put her boot on Lana’s throat and went for a Leg Drop but Lana got out of the way. Lana then shoved Nia through a table to win the match. After the match, Shayna tried to attack Lana but Naomi made the save and sent her on the retreat.

Naomi def. Shayna Baszler

Naomi then faced Shayna Baszler when RAW returned from a break. Shayna went after Naomi’s arm and stomped on it in the middle of the ring. Lana was still ringside as Nia Jax was helped to the back during the break. Shayna locked in the Kirifuda Clutch but Naomi was able to reach the ropes. Baszler attacked Lana and launched her into the barricade before returning to the ring. Naomi capitalized and rolled up Shayna for the victory.

Sheamus Interfered In The Main Event

Randy Orton battled Drew McIntyre once again in this week’s main event. Orton went for an RKO right away but Drew was ready. Orton rolled out of the ring to regroup and got a kick to the face he tried to get back inside. McIntyre went for the Draping DDT but Orton broke free. McIntyre exploded out of the corner with a Clothesline and then Sheamus’ music hit. Sheamus ran down to the ringside area but didn’t into the ring. Orton capitalized on the distraction and sent McIntyre into the ring post as RAW went to a commercial break.

When RAW returned, Orton bounced Drew’s head off the announce table and slammed him on top of it as Sheamus looked on. Orton brought McIntyre back inside the ring and hit him with a knee to the ribs. McIntyre and Orton then traded punches to the face in the middle of the ring. McIntyre hit a Neckbreaker and went for the Future Shock DDT but Orton countered into a cover for a two count.

McIntyre planted Orton with a Spinebuster for a near fall. Drew made his way to the top turnbuckle but Orton caught him with a jab to the face. Randy connected with a Superplex and both superstars crashed to the canvas. Randy attempted a cover but the WWE Champion wouldn’t stay down. McIntyre hit the Glasgow Kiss but Orton shrugged it off and hung up Drew in the ropes.

Orton connected with the Draping DDT and went for the RKO but Drew countered into the Future Shock DDT. McIntyre set up for the Claymore but Sheamus hopped into the ring. Sheamus went for the Brogue Kick but McIntyre dodged it. Sheamus accidentally leveled Orton with the Brogue Kick to end the match in a DQ. McIntyre then hit Sheamus with the Claymore to close the show.

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