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Miro Vows To Retire If He Can’t Win The AEW World Championship

Michael Reichlin
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AEW star Miro has huge aspirations for himself in All Elite Wrestling.

The Bulgarian brute made a bold career move by joining AEW last year. He is aligned with Kip Sabian and Penelope Ford and will serve as “The Best Man” at their wedding next week at AEW Beach Break.

Miro is an avid streamer on Twitch and conducted a Q&A session on the platform this week. When asked when he plans on retiring, Miro declared that he will retire if he does not capture the AEW World Championship.

“When the time is right,” Miro said about retirement. “I’ve said that before. And I can guarantee you that if I don’t become AEW Champion, I’m going to probably retire. Actually not probably, I will retire.”

At 36 years old, Miro still has a lot of gas left in the tank. He is in the best physical shape of his career. He also appears to be very satisfied with his role in AEW. Following up on his stipulation to retire if he does not win AEW gold, he added, “Do you know what that means? That means I’m going to become AEW Champion.”

Miro Welcomes Criticism

Also during the Twitch Q&A, another fan told Miro he sucks and should return to WWE. Instead of getting angry, took a laid back approach with the trash-talking jabronie.

“I respect your opinion that I suck,” said Miro. “You’re right, I suck. But do I? That’s your opinion.”

He encouraged the fan to write Tony Khan a letter and tell him that Miro sucks. He receives a ton of fan mail and has not received anything negative yet.

“If you want to be the first one, please apply, please send that and I’ll make sure that it gets to me.”

CM Punk Celebrates 7-Year Anniversary Of WWE Departure

Chris Stephens
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CM Punk did not appear on the January 27th, 2014 edition of WWE RAW. It was the night after the Royal Rumble and it seemed as though Punk was headed into a feud with Kane. Punk had eliminated Kane from the Rumble match the night before but Kane returned to eliminate Punk later on.

As it turns out, Punk never would return to WWE programming. The closest he’s come is hosting WWE Backstage on Fox, a show that returns this weekend before the Royal Rumble. Punk took to Twitter to comment on the 7-year anniversary of his departure from WWE.

CM Punk’s WWE Future

Punk was initially adamant that he would never return to WWE. In recent years, it sounds as though he has softened on that stance, however.

“The answer changes,” Punk said on the Swing and Mrs. podcast last year. “It’s a very fluid answer. Currently, if the business was right and I had somebody that motivated me across the ring from me, I think, might be able to get it done. Nobody has dangled the correct carrot.”

“There’s a lot of moving parts. I’m busy doing other stuff and nobody has found the right combination of ways to approach me. It’s not all up to me, ladies and gentlemen, it’s up to the people who actually run the company.”

Cody Comments On AEW’s Negotiations With CM Punk

AEW Rankings Report (1/27): Chris Jericho & MJF Crack Tag Team Top-5

Chris Stephens
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AEW has released new top-5 rankings ahead of tonight’s episode of Dynamite. There was a little bit of movement in both the men’s singles and tag-team rankings this week.

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) (+1)
  3. Maxwell Jacob Friedman (0-0) (-1)
  4. Ricky Starks (1-0)
  5. PAC (1-0) (12-7-1)

The only movement in the rankings this week sees Cody Rhodes move up one spot to the #2 position after his victory over Peter Avalon last week. He moves past #3 Maxwell Jacob Friedman who is now ranked in two different divisions.

Nobody ranked in this division is scheduled for singles action tonight. A match between unranked Lance Archer and unranked Eddie Kingston could see the winner move into the top-5, however.

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AEW Women’s Singles Rankings

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

  1. Serena Deeb (2-0)
  2. Big Swole (1-0)
  3. Nyla Rose (1-0)
  4. Penelope Ford (1-0)
  5. Anna Jay (0-0)

There was no movement at all in the women’s division this week. #4 Penelope Ford picked up a win over unranked Leyla Hirsch on Dynamite last week but the rest of the division didn’t compete.

Britt Baker returns to action tonight. She’ll take on Shanna. The winner of that match could find themselves in the top-5 next week.

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AEW Tag Team Rankings

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

  1. FTR (Dax Harwood & Cash Wheeler) (1-0)
  2. Jurassic Express (Jungle Boy & Luchasaurus) (2-0)
  3. The Acclaimed (Anthony Bowens & Max Caster) (2-0)
  4. The Dark Order (Evil Uno & Stu Grayson) (0-0)
  5. Chris Jericho & Maxwell Jacob Friedman (1-0) (Previously Unranked)

Last week, Santana and Ortiz were the #5 ranked team. After the triple threat Inner Circle tag match last week, however, that spot is now occupied by Chris Jericho and Maxwell Jacob Friedman. They are now the official tag-team of the Inner Circle.

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NXT Preview (1/27): Balor & O’Reilly Team Up, Dusty Classic Matches

Michael Reichlin
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WWE returns to the Capitol Wrestling Center in Orlando, FL for tonight’s NXT broadcast on the USA Network.

The following items are confirmed for the show:

NXT Champion Finn Balor will form an unlikely tag team with Kyle O’Reilly of Undisputed Era. They will face NXT Tag Team Champions Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan in a non-title match.

NXT Dusty Classic

We will also three Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic matches.

In the women’s tournament, Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzalez will face Jessi Kamea and Aliyah in a First Round match-up.

On the men’s side, we’ll get two quarterfinal matches:

  • Wes Lee and Nash Carter, the former Rascalz now known as MSK, battle Drake Maverick and Killian Dain.
  • The “Grizzled Young Veterans” (Zack Gibson and James Drake) face. Kushida and Leon Ruff.

Join us here later tonight for our NXT Results & Takeaways feature. Catch up on the Top 10 moments from last week’s NXT in the player embedded below:

Charlotte Flair Says She’s Rejuvenated After 6-Month Hiatus

Chris Stephens
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Charlotte Flair returned to WWE after a 6-month absence at the TLC PPV. She formed a team with Asuka and they won the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships from Shayna Baszler & Nia Jax. Flair recently spoke to Yahoo Sports about her time away from the ring and her attitude toward her detractors.

Flair addressed her detractors who say she’s pushed too hard during the interview.

“It’s almost like you get into the business and say you don’t want to be world champion,” Flair said. “You don’t get into the business saying that. You might not like the sports team that’s always making the championships, but that shouldn’t discredit the person. I got to a point where I wondered if I should apologize to people. If someone else was getting these opportunities would they feel sorry for me?”

“[Critics] don’t know the time I’ve put into what I’m doing. Damn right I’m going to take every opportunity. Who in their right mind wouldn’t take these opportunities just so they can make these people feel better? I have to tell myself that sometimes.”

Flair is easily the most-decorated female athlete active on the roster today. She’s a 4x RAW Women’s Champion, 5x Smackdown Women’s Champion, 2x NXT Women’s Champion, and 1x Divas Champion.

Charlotte Flair On Her 6-Month Hiatus From WWE

Flair also spoke about her time away from WWE during the interview.

“It really just made me miss how much I love doing this,” Flair said. “Not that I don’t have a lot of hobbies, but now I can’t imagine my life without being an entertainer. I also got a mental break. I was able to leave the robe, the boots and the gear at work and go home and try to be a human, not always feeling like you’re on.”

The full interview with Yahoo Sports can be read here.

AEW Awards: Vote Here, Full List Of Categories & Nominations

Chris Stephens
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The first-ever AEW Awards Show takes place tonight, Wednesday, January 27th. The event will stream live on the Bleacher Report App starting at 7pm (Eastern). Fans will vote on a series of categories to determine award winners.

AEW Awards: Voting & Nominees

Update: Voting is now closed.

Here is the complete list of Awards and Nominations for the AEW Awards:

Best Moment on the Mic

  • MJF “We Deserve Better” Speech
  • Cody Rhodes accepts Dog Collar Match
  • Jon Moxley accepts Inner Circle Invitation
  • Brandi Rhodes confronts Jade Cargill
  • Orange Cassidy Debates Chris Jericho

Biggest Surprise:

  • Matt Hardy’s Debut
  • Jake the Snake Roberts confronts Cody
  • Brodie Lee arrives as The Exalted One
  • Sting’s AEW Debut
  • Miro revealed as Best Man

Breakout Star – Male:

  • Orange Cassidy
  • Darby Allin
  • Eddie Kingston
  • John Silver

Breakout Star – Female

  • Hikaru Shida
  • Anna Jay
  • Tay Conti
  • Big Swole
  • Penelope Ford

Biggest Beatdown

  • Inner Circle jumps Orange Cassidy
  • Dark Order attacks Nightmare Family
  • Nyla Rose puts Riho + Shida through tables
  • Brian Cage sneak attacks Jon Moxley
  • The Nightmare Family and Inner Circle brawl

High Flyer Award

  • Rey Fenix
  • Marq Quen
  • Nick Jackson
  • PAC

Hardest Moment to Clean Up After

  • Orange Cassidy drops orange juice on The Inner Circle
  • The Parking Lot Brawl
  • The Bunkhouse Match
  • Big Swole dumps garbage on Dr. Britt Baker

Biggest WTF Moment

  • Cody Rhodes steel cage moonsault
  • Sammy Guevara hit by golf cart
  • Kenny Omega wins AEW World Championship and walks out of AEW
  • Bloody Dr. Britt Baker vs. Hikaru Shida
  • Young Bucks frog splash off the stadium railing

LOL Award

  • Jericho + MJF: Le Dinner Debonair
  • Britt Baker waxes Tony Schiavone
  • Young Bucks kick MJF into a pool
  • Inner Circle Vegas Trip

Best Twitter Follow

  • MJF
  • Orange Cassidy
  • Dr. Britt Baker
  • Nyla Rose

Bleacher Report PPV Moment of the Year

  • Stadium Stampede
  • Moxley wins AEW Championship
  • Shida wins AEW Women’s Championship
  • Omega + Page defeat The Young Bucks
  • Darby Allin wins TNT Title from Cody
  • The Young Bucks win AEW Tag Team title

AEW Dynamite Preview For Tonight, Road To Dynamite Special (Video)

Michael Reichlin
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All Elite Wrestling is back tonight with an all-new episode of AEW Dynamite on TNT.

Dynamite will feature a historic main event, with the AEW World Tag Team Champions, The Young Bucks, teaming with Impact Tag Champs, the Good Brothers. We’ll also see the debut of Ryan Nemeth, Chris Jericho teaming with MJF and Jungle Boy in singles action against Dax Harwood.

This week’s Dynamite was taped last week and we’ve heard very positive reviews about the show, especially the Jungle Boy vs. Harwood match.

The following items are advertised for tonight’s broadcast:

  • The Young Bucks and The Good Brothers vs. Dark Order (Evil Uno, Stu Grayson, John Silver and Alex Reynolds)
  • Lance Archer vs. Eddie Kingston
  • The Inner Circle’s Chris Jericho and MJF vs. The Varsity Blonds
  • Jungle Boy vs. Dax Harwood
  • Britt Baker vs. Shanna
  • Hangman Page vs. Ryan Nemeth

Plus, Sting and Darby Allin will address their upcoming tag team Street Fight against Team Taz at AEW Revolution.

AEW Beach Break is just a week away, so we can also expect to see more hype for that event and some additional match announcements.

Join us here later tonight for our AEW Dynamite Results and Takeaways feature.

AEW released a special Road To preview for tonight’s Dynamite, which you can watch below:

Impact Results (1/26): Trey Miguel Returns, Matt Hardy & Private Party Appear

Chris Stephens
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Impact Wrestling on 1/26 featured the return of Trey Miguel. Matt Hardy and Private Party were back and Eric Young’s stable made an offer to a potential new member. Results and takeaways are below.

Impact Results 1/26:

  1. Matt Cardona & Josh Alexander defeated Ace Austin & Madman Fulton
  2. Brian Myers defeated Eddie Edwards via DQ
  3. Rosemary defeated Tenille Dashwood
  4. Joe Doering defeated Cousin Jake
  5. Rich Swann, Willie Mack, Tommy Dreamer & Trey Miguel defeated Sami Callihan, Moose, Chris Bey, and Ken Shamrock

Trey Miguel Returns To Impact Wrestling

Impact World Champion Rich Swann opened things up this week. He cut a promo about how he wants to face Tommy Dreamer for the world title at No Surrender. This upset Moose, Chris Bey, and Sami Callihan (along with Ken Shamrock), who all came out to complain that they should be getting the title shot. A brawl ensued with Willie Mack coming to the aid of the babyfaces and eventually Swann would request Scott D’Amore make an 8-man tag match for the main event. Swann, Dreamer, and Mack would need a 4th partner, however.

Trey Miguel came out with the good guys for the night’s main event. He would pick up the win for his team as well when he rolled up Sami Callihan for the 1-2-3. Shamrock was furious was the result and assaulted referee Brandon Tolle as the show went off the air.

Matt Hardy Explains Finances To Private Party

Matt Hardy and Private Party cut a promo backstage this week. Hardy explained to Private Party how winning the tag titles from the Good Brothers at No Surrender means more money for all 3 of them. He also noted that the pay scale is higher in AEW than Impact, so he wants them to win those titles too because more victories and titles means more money.

Tony Khan and Tony Schiavone Take Out Another Ad

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

Tony Khan seemed pretty proud of himself this week. He bragged about how Private Party are the top contenders for the tag titles and that sending “Big Money” Matt Hardy to Impact is his revenge. Khan and Schiavone also ran down the card for tonight’s episode of AEW Dynamite.

Violent By Design Sends An Invite To Cousin Jake

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fY9jRq6k2yU

Joe Doering defeated Cousin Jake in singles action this week. After Jake had tweaked his ankle, Doering took advantage and finished things off with a big lariat. After the match, it appeared as though the members of Violent By Design were going to injure Jake’s leg after the match instead, Young threw a towel with the Violent By Design logo down at him. Was this an invitation from Young to join their stable?

Eddie Edwards Loses Control In Match Against Brian Myers

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZiHQ7KRKzc

It was a big match against a former champion this week for Brian Myers. It was a back and forth match that ended in bizarre fashion. Edwards had just hit a backpack stunner on Myers for a 2-count, then Myers hit a flatliner on Edwards for a near-fall of his own. Edwards then just snapped and started biting the forehead of Myers. The referee called for the bell after Myers had been split wide open by Edwards’ bite. What is going on with Eddie Edwards??

Decay Pick Up Win But Gain New Enemies

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGGd1KbXTyE

Crazzy Steve and Rosemary are once again aligned as Decay in Impact Wrestling. Rosemary was able to defeat Tenille Dashwood this week in spite of Kaleb (with a K) Konley’s attempts to interfere in the match. They appear to have gained some enemies in Acey Romero and Larry D, however.

Larry D spent some time in prison recently after being framed for John E Bravo’s attempted murder. Team XXXL blames Rosemary for this, as she is the real shooter, Taya Valkyrie’s, friend. Larry knocked out Crazzy Steve to end the segment and it appears the feud is on between Decay and Team XXXL.

Havok & Neveah Ruin Fire N Flava Title Celebration

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kzsOe2gLgUo

Fire N Flava, Kiera Hogan & Tasha Steelz, appeared to have quite the time getting people out to their celebration. Johnny Swinger, John E Bravo, referee Brandon Tolle all seemed less than impressed with the festivities.

Hogan and Steelz then turned their attention to a guest on the outside who appeared to be dressed in a Stay Puff Marshmallow Man costume. This was just Neveah, however, and she attacked the new tag champions. Havok then hit the ring and they chased the champs away from their own festival. It seems Havok & Neveah are hoping for another crack at the titles.

Matt Cardona & Josh Alexander Pick Up Win Over Ace Austin & Madman Fulton

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

“Always Ready” Matt Cardona joined forces with Josh Alexander this week to go up against Ace Austin and Madman Fulton. Cardona defeated Ace Austin via DQ at Hard to Kill in his first match for the promotion. He’d pick up the win for his team tonight as well, he hit Radio Silence on Fulton and got the pin.

Later in the show, Cardona’s longtime friend and tag partner, Brian Myers, ran into Alexander and Cardona in the back. Cardona thought Myers would be happy to see him but Myers was more upset that Alexander hadn’t wanted to be his tag partner earlier. Cardona referred to him as “Bad mood Brian” to end the segment.

Rohit Raju Has A Mysterious Advisor

Next week on Impact Wrestling, Rohit Raju will face TJP in singles action. The X-Division title will not be on the line but if Raju can win, he’ll earn a shot. Raju was seen this week talking to a mystery person in the back who he feels will help him pick up a win over the champion next week.

Upcoming In Impact Wrestling

Next Week:

  • Rohit Raju vs TJP
  • Jordynne Grace vs Susan
  • Josh Alexander vs Madman Fulton
  • Havok vs Tasha Steelz

No Surrender (February 13th, 2021)

  • Impact World Championship
    Rich Swann (c) vs Tommy Dreamer
  • Impact Tag Team Championships
    The Good Brothers (c) vs Private Party

Trey Miguel Returns To Impact Wrestling (Video)

Chris Stephens
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Trey Miguel returned to Impact Wrestling on this week’s Impact on AXS TV. The former Rascalz member was announced as the mystery teammate for Rich Swann, Willie Mack and Tommy Dreamer in the night’s main event.

His return to Impact comes shortly his former stablemates, Zachary Wentz & Dezmond Xavier arrived in WWE’s NXT brand. Wentz is now known as Nash Carter and Xavier as Wes Lee. Collectively, their team is now known as MSK.

You can see video of Trey Miguel’s return to Impact in the player embedded below:

Trey Miguel Post-Rascalz

Shortly after Wentz and Dez signed with WWE, Trey put out a statement on Twitter.

Miguel’s statement was posted after Triple H was asked about him during the NXT War Games post-event media call.

“Well look, I do not want to talk about why people are or are not here, there’s obviously a lot that goes into all of that, but for me, the people that do come here, it’s seeing the heart and the passion. That’s really what it comes down to—it’s a passion business, you have to be all in.”

“Sometimes, I’ve seen a few people that have been at it a long time and it shows. They’ve been at it a long time and I don’t know, sometimes that passion isn’t there. I’ve seen people that are new to it, like ‘oh, they like this’ but it’s not everything to them.”

Miguel recently appeared on the Iron-On Wrestling podcast and spoke about his upbringing.

Tama Tonga Talks Being Open To Working With WWE

Jake Skudder
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The ‘Bullet Club Cold War’ appears to be heating up. Kenny Omega, The Good Brothers and The Young Bucks have all seemingly been trying to bring the band ‘back together’ on US television.

At the recent IMPACT Wrestling Hard To Kill PPV, Kenny Omega, Gallows & Anderson all appeared wearing Bullet Club emblazoned gear. Up to that point, it was assumed that the group could not use the Bullet Club moniker for copyright reasons; New Japan Pro Wrestling still own the rights to the name and logo of the faction.

Whilst the idea of AEW and IMPACT working together has been exciting during late 2020 and early 2021, many fans have been wondering when and if New Japan will be part of the angle.

Bullet Club member Tama Tonga has been vocally unhappy about the US based ex-members of Bullet Club using the ‘too sweet’ sign and wearing BC gear.

Tama Tonga on Working Relationships

Tama Tonga also recently stated that he would be more open to working with WWE than the likes of AEW. “Let me tell you something, man. I ain’t got no problems with WWE. No problems,” Tonga stated on the Tama’s Island podcast. “You know what? Hunter, anybody else out there, Vince McMahon, anybody, we open for business man. You come take care of me and my peoples, and I’m talking about BC and New Japan, let’s do business man.”

“I ain’t got no beef with y’all” Tama continued. “Not like these other cats, building a company just to rival you. Nah, New Japan, we been here. We been here before all of y’all. We been here. So look, we ain’t got no problems. Look, our gates is wide open. Let’s do business.”

credit to WrestlingINC for the transcription

Rumor on WWE Men’s Royal Rumble 2021 Ending

Jake Skudder
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WWE’s Royal Rumble event will be taking place this Sunday at the WWE ThunderDome. Several names have already been confirmed for the event; and WWE Backstage will be confirming the number 30 entrant in the men’s Rumble match this weekend.

The WrestleVotes Twitter account recently stated that WWE may be planning something ‘scary’ for the ending of the men’s Rumble match. “Sorry for the lack of details here but still noteworthy IMO; had a brief conversation earlier with a source regarding the Men’s Royal Rumble match. They said quote: ‘There’s a finish that scares the death out of me. And it’s legitimately getting heavy consideration’ yikes.”

Whilst all rumor should be taken with a grain of salt, WrestleVotes have been correct on backstage instances on several occasions in the past.

There’s absolutely no confirmation on what exactly the ending may be; the ‘scary’ phrasing may be regarding something actually ‘spooky’ on screen such as The Fiend, or it could mean something that could rile up the WWE fans and viewing audience and cause a backlash online. With the way that WWE likes to book their WrestleMania main events, we could well see the likes of Goldberg being the last man in the ring on Sunday.

We will update as and when there’s more to the story.

WWE Raw Ratings See Slight Drop For Go-Home Royal Rumble Edition (1/25)

Andrew Ravens
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Monday’s edition of WWE Raw averaged 1.819 million viewers with a 0.52 rating in the Adults 18-49 demographic. Last week’s show did 1.854 million viewers with a 0.60 rating.

Here’s the hourly viewership breakdown for Monday night:

  • The first hour did 1.904 million viewers and a 0.57 rating (A18-49).
  • The second hour did 1.838 million viewers and a 0.51 rating.
  • The final hour of the show had just 1.716 million viewers and a 0.47 rating.

This was the go-home edition of Raw for the Royal Rumble pay-per-view event.  Historically, these types of shows usually get a bump and the belief heading into this show was that it would be more than in recent months due to WWE not having to go up against the NFL on ESPN.

Next week will be more interesting to follow as there is usually intrigue from fans who want to see the fallout from the Royal Rumble. 

WWE RAW Results (1/25): Goldberg & Drew McIntyre, Randy Orton Attacks Alexa Bliss

SmackDown Viewership

Friday’s SmackDown averaged 2.383 million viewers. This is up from the 2.262 million viewers on FS1 that the show did for the previous week.

SmackDown pulled in a 0.63 rating in the 18-49 demos, up from the 0.67 rating the previous week’s show. The episode drew an average of 2.282 million viewers in the overnight ratings, up from the previous week that did 2.153  million viewers. 

The first hour saw it pull in 2.284 million viewers while hour two did 2.280 million viewers. The show did 2.200 million viewers in hour one while hour two did 2.105 million viewers two weeks ago.

Sasha Banks Wants To Team With Snoop Dogg at WrestleMania

Michael Reichlin
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WWE Superstar Sasha Banks appeared on The Complex Sports Podcast this week to discuss Sunday’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view, her role on Star Wars: The Mandalorian, her WWE Mount Rushmore and much more.

Sasha Banks will participate in the Women’s Royal Rumble this Sunday. Ahead of the chaotic battle royal, Banks is on the lookout for Charlotte Flair. She’s also hoping for a few surprises.

“I’m going to be watching out for that sneaky Charlotte Flair, making sure she doesn’t win again. I’m going to watch for these NXT girls, hopefully there’s going to be some surprises.”

She also reflected on being part of the first-ever Women’s Royal Rumble in 2018. Sasha Banks it was surreal to have a leadership role in a match that meant so much to so many people.

“It’s more than just being a good performer and putting on a good show for you guys,” said Banks. “It’s making sure I show up for all of these women and women that haven’t been in the ring for how many-plus years and then a lot of brand-new women who haven’t been in a WWE ring. It’s a lot of pressure, and being in a crowd in Philly! It’s more than just one thing, it’s more than what you guys really understand, so that’s why I always say ‘if you guys only knew!’”

Sasha Banks, Snoop Dogg & WrestleMania

Sasha Banks’ cousin Snoop Dogg recently appeared on an episode of AEW Dynamite. Snoop got physical and did a splash off the top rope. His execution of the high-risk maneuver got mixed reviews. Banks says she told Snoop the only thing that matters is that he enjoyed himself.

“I saw him two weeks before he did that, and he was talking about how he wanted to do a splash. I wasn’t thinking that splash was going to look like that! He called me right after, just cracked up laughing, asking if I was proud. I was like ‘dude, if you had fun, that’s all that matters.’”

She then dropped a bombshell and said she wants Snoop Dogg to be her tag team partner one day at WrestleMania. She even offered to train Snoop and help him develop a “five star” splash.

“I wanna do matches with him,” she revealed. “I want him as my tag team partner for WrestleMania, so we got time. I got time to train him. That splash is going to be five stars, OK?”

When asked about her WWE ‘Mount Rushmore,’ Sasha Banks named herself, Bayley, Eddie Guerrero and Kurt Angle. She also commented on Roman Reigns’ Mount Rushmore list, which included John Cena, Steve Austin, The Rock, Hulk Hogan and The Undertaker. She joked that Reigns gave a political / company answer that would please WWE officials.

You can listen to Sasha Banks on The Complex Sports Podcast on Spotify.

Impact Preview (1/26): 8-Man Tag Main Event, Matt Hardy & Private Party

Michael Reichlin
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0

We are just hours away from an all-new episode of Impact Wrestling on AXS TV (and Twitch).

The following items are advertised for this week’s broadcast:

  • Impact World Champion Rich Swann teams up with Tommy Dreamer, Willie Mack and a Mystery Partner against TNA World Champion Moose, Chris Bey, Sami Callihan and Ken Shamrock.
  • Matt Cardona makes his Impact in-ring debut. He teams with Josh Alexander against Ace Austin and Madman Fulton
  • Joe Doering vs. Cousin Jake
  • Eddie Edwards vs. Brian Myers
  • Tenille Dashwood vs. Rosemary in Knockouts action.

Plus, AEW stars Matt Hardy and Private Party return to Impact. Private Party are the #1 contenders to The Good Brothers’ Impact World Tag Team Championships.

We’ll have our weekly Impact Wrestling Results & Takeaways feature live on the site Wednesday morning.

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Cody Rhodes Reveals WarnerMedia Pitched AEW Awards Show

Jake Skudder
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AEW EVP Cody Rhodes recently appeared on SiriusXM’s Busted Open Radio. The former TNT Champion discussed a number of topics during his time on the show, including how the AEW Awards show came about. The Awards Show will be taking place tomorrow night on Bleacher Report.

“It’s all gonna be on Bleacher Report” Cody Rhodes began on Busted Open. “It’s very exciting because this award show, like, I don’t know how much inside baseball this is, but this award show was an idea from our partners at AEW on TNT, the WarnerMedia folks” Cody then revealed.

Cody Rhodes on Awards Night

“This was an idea that they presented us” Rhodes continued. “They produced it, they sent the crew and they worked with Tony Khan on it. I just really appreciate all that crew at WarnerMedia; it’s very much a lot of the same crew who helps with Go Big show.”

Cody then finished by further praising WarnerMedia and the company’s partners. “It’s great to have a good partner in the space, and someone who’s proud of what we’re doing as a AEW on Warner media networks” Cody Rhodes stated. “That’s why I really enjoyed it. They got to do everything and we just got to sit back. [Tony] Schiavone and Britt Baker hosted it, we just got to sit back and accept some award, it’s real physical awards, so that was, that was cool. It was a real treat.”

Here’s the full list of the 2021 AEW Awards categories and nominations:

Best Moment on the Mic

  • MJF “We Deserve Better” Speech
  • Cody Rhodes accepts Dog Collar Match
  • Jon Moxley accepts Inner Circle Invitation
  • Brandi Rhodes confronts Jade Cargill
  • Orange Cassidy Debates Chris Jericho

Biggest Surprise:

  • Matt Hardy’s Debut
  • Jake the Snake Roberts confronts Cody
  • Brodie Lee arrives as The Exalted One
  • Sting’s AEW Debut
  • Miro revealed as Best Man

Breakout Star – Male:

  • Orange Cassidy
  • Darby Allin
  • Eddie Kingston
  • John Silver

Breakout Star – Female

  • Hikaru Shida
  • Anna Jay
  • Tay Conti
  • Big Swole
  • Penelope Ford

Biggest Beatdown

  • Inner Circle jumps Orange Cassidy
  • Dark Order attacks Nightmare Family
  • Nyla Rose puts Riho + Shida through tables
  • Brian Cage sneak attacks Jon Moxley
  • The Nightmare Family and Inner Circle brawl

High Flyer Award

  • Rey Fenix
  • Marq Quen
  • Nick Jackson
  • PAC

Hardest Moment to Clean Up After

  • Orange Cassidy drops orange juice on The Inner Circle
  • The Parking Lot Brawl
  • The Bunkhouse Match
  • Big Swole dumps garbage on Dr. Britt Baker

Biggest WTF Moment

  • Cody Rhodes steel cage moonsault
  • Sammy Guevara hit by golf cart
  • Kenny Omega wins AEW World Championship and walks out of AEW
  • Bloody Dr. Britt Baker vs. Hikaru Shida
  • Young Bucks frog splash off the stadium railing

LOL Award

  • Jericho + MJF: Le Dinner Debonair
  • Britt Baker waxes Tony Schiavone
  • Young Bucks kick MJF into a pool
  • Inner Circle Vegas Trip

Best Twitter Follow

  • MJF
  • Orange Cassidy
  • Dr. Britt Baker
  • Nyla Rose

Bleacher Report PPV Moment of the Year

  • Stadium Stampede
  • Moxley wins AEW Championship
  • Shida wins AEW Women’s Championship
  • Omega + Page defeat The Young Bucks
  • Darby Allin wins TNT Title from Cody
  • The Young Bucks win AEW Tag Team title

Chris Jericho & Jim Cornette Exchange Insults On Social Media

Chris Stephens
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AEW star Chris Jericho and legendary manager/promoter Jim Cornette are the latest wrestling personalities to exchange trash talk in public.

Jericho recently addressed Cornette’s negative comments about him on the Jim Cornette Experience podcast. Jericho said that Cornette and his co-host’s comments don’t bother him. In fact, he’s happy to give them material to talk about. Cornette fired back, as seen below.

Jericho posted the following Monday afternoon:

Cornette then issued two responses earlier today.

Shortly after that Tweet, Cornette realized he forgot to comment on Jericho’s band “Fozzy” playing the Sturgis festival this summer. The event has been labeled a “Super Spreader” event by some.

Jericho also expressed similar sentiment in a Tweet sent to Sebastian Bach yesterday.

Bach has criticized Jericho for numerous things in the past. He was upset that Jericho’s band called their tour “Fozzy Across America” which he felt was a take on Skid Row’s “Skids Across America” tour. The singer eventually deleted his Tweet regarding this, however.

Bach has also accused Jericho of lip-syncing.

Jericho’s guitarist spoke about Bach in a reply to this thread as well.

“Any time I have witnessed Sebastian’s name come up in a group setting, the room enthusiastically lines up to say the worst things about him. He’s universally disliked, never witnessed a more unifying topic. @IAmJericho has ALWAY come to the guy’s defense and shuts it down.”

AEW Dark Preview (1/26): 15 Matches & A “Walk Off” Competition

Michael Reichlin
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0

All Elite Wrestling has released the lineup for Tuesday’s edition of AEW Dark.

The updated card features now features 15 matches. For whatever reason, one match is no longer being advertised for the show. That 6-man tag team match involved Dustin Rhodes, QT Marshall & Nick Comoroto vs. Ryan Nemeth, Vary Morales & Shawn Dean.

  1. Red Velvet vs. Madi Wrenkowski
  2. Powerhouse Hobbs vs. Jake St. Patrick
  3. Shanna vs. KiLynn King
  4. SCU vs TNT
  5. Santana & Ortiz vs. Ryzin & Mike Verna
  6. Miro vs. Fuego
  7. The Butcher and The Blade vs. M’Badu & KC Navarro
  8. Danny Limelight vs. Sean Maluta
  9. Jurassic Express vs. Lee Johnson & Aaron Solow
  10. 10 of the Dark Order vs. Ray Jaz
  11. Rey Fenix vs. Baron Black
  12. Davienne vs. Tay Conti
  13. Britt Baker vs. Brooke Havok
  14. Ivelisse vs. Jazmin Allure
  15. Abadon vs. Vertvixen

Plus, “Pretty” Peter Avalon and Lee Johnson will have a ‘Walk Off’ judged by Brandi Rhodes, Aubrey Edwards and Jerry Lynn.

Cody Rhodes noted on Twitter that he’s especially looking forward to the match between Britt Baker and Brooke Havoc. Havoc is the first student he ever trained and he can’t believe how fast she progressed.

“This is my very first student,” Cody said of Brooke Havoc. “I never anticipated somebody would be ready this early on, but she did the work and earned this opportunity. (She was actually Britt’s “intern” when she shadowed tv). VERY tough draw for her here, but I love this! Brooke’s true first pro match.”

You can see AEW’s rundown of the card in the player embedded below:

https://twitter.com/AEW/status/1353025419306528771?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1353025419306528771%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.redditmedia.com%2Fmediaembed%2Fl3g2zu%3Fresponsive%3Dtrueis_nightmode%3Dfalse

Arn Anderson On Having COVID-19: “I Was Hallucinating”

Chris Stephens
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0

Arn Anderson recently spent some time on “The Arn Show” discussing having recently gone through having COVID-19. Double-A noted that the virus left him really sick. The 62-year-old detailed some of the symptoms he suffered from on his podcast.

“I got really, really sick a couple of weeks ago for about 10 days,” Anderson said on the show. He continued to say his illness took place during a window that AEW did not have a show at Daily’s Place.

“I know the symptoms vary hugely from person to person and age group but let me tell you, I got sick as hell. It scared me to death. I was in the bed for probably a week. Couldn’t drink anything, couldn’t eat anything, I was hallucinating. I was looking at my ceiling and I saw ice forming on the ceiling.”

“I had one day there for a minute where I couldn’t catch my breath and it was a lot of things I had never experienced in my life. It just scared me to death.”

Anderson then encouraged people to where a mask and socially distance.

“I’m begging you as a member of our family, tell everybody you know, wear the mask, do the social distancing,” he continued.

Anderson also mentioned that he tested positive later for having the COVID-19 antibodies but never actually tested positive for the virus while he was sick.

The rest of the show focused on the 2016 Royal Rumble event.

MLW Teasing More Lucha Underground Content With Azteca Underground

Chris Stephens
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0

Major League Wrestling (MLW) appears to be introducing a brand known as Azteca Underground.

MLW star Salina de la Renta’s “Promociones Dorado” organization has been purchased by Azteca Underground, Inc. The purchase occurred shortly after Salina brought former Lucha Underground Champion, Mil Muertes, to the fight league.

Additionally, MLW has been re-tweeting posts from a newly created Azteca Underground account. The mysterious company (and the association to Mil Muertes) are drawing comparisons to shuttered wrestling promotion, Lucha Underground.

Mil Muertes was a featured character on the cult-favorite show, Lucha Underground, from 2014-2018. Unlike other characters on the show, however, Ricky Banderas obtained the rights to be able to portray Muertes outside of Lucha Underground. MLW has kept the character’s appearance and back story, noting that he was buried alive during the Mexico City Earthquake in 1985. This is what led to Muertes developed a deep connection with death.

Also of note here, is that the network that formerly aired Lucha Underground, the El Rey Network, shut down broadcasting on January 1st.

There have also been reports that MLW is looking at developing a second weekly show as well as special events for DAZN. Muertes recently defeated Brian Pillman Jr. in his first match with MLW.

MLW Fusion This Week

This week on MLW Fusion, we will get the culmination of a long-running feud between Richard Holliday and Savio Vega. TJP will team with Bukudao to go up against Team Filthy’s Violence is Forever (Dominic Garrini & Kevin Ku).

  • Caribbean Strap Match
    Richard Holliday vs Savio Vega
  • TJP & Bukudao vs Violence is Forever (Dominic Garrini & Kevin Ku)

Also in MLW, Salina de la Renta is building a feud with interviewer Alicia Atout. They have been exchanging insults on social media as of late.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RuD9hqmu_Jo

Rod McMahon, Brother Of Vince McMahon, Has Passed Away

Chris Stephens
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0

Roderick James “Rod” McMahon, the brother of WWE Chairman Vince McMahon, has passed away. He was 77-years-old. A cause of death is not currently known.

Although Rod McMahon never did enter the world of pro-wrestling, there were once plans for him to do so. Vince’s brother was planned to be part of the 2007 angle regarding Vince’s death in a limo explosion. The angle was eventually scrapped due to the real-life double-murder suicide of the Benoit family.

Rod McMahon graduated from the University of Memphis with a degree in business administration in 1969. He would go on to found and serve as President of the North American Metals company.

SEScoops extends our condolences to the family and friends of Rod McMahon.

Rod McMahon

Ryback has spoken about being friends with Rod McMahon previously on his podcast. On an episode from 2019, Ryback had the following to say regarding his relationship with Rod.

“The only communication that I’ve had is with Vince McMahon’s brother, Rod McMahon, who uses Feed Me More Nutrition. We go back and forth in emails,” Ryback said.

“He lives in Houston, which is where I met him at Gold’s Gym many years ago. I told Vince McMahon that I met his brother and told him that I could see the resemblance, they look very similar and Vince got red in the face and got extremely angry with me and then he locked me in a room with his mother to meet his mom in Houston.”

WWE Superstar Spectacle Results

Michael Reichlin
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0

The WWE Network presents Superstar Spectacle next Tuesday, January 26th at 9:30am (Eastern). sThe event was taped on Friday at the Thunderdome in St Petersburg, FL.

The following are complete results from the tapings:

  • Jinder Mahal came out first and cut a promo talking about India Republic Day.
  • The New Day and The Street Profits introduced a special Bhangra performance.
  • Triple H narrated promo about the importance of India to WWE history. John Cena, Bret Hart and Daniel Bryan were featured. They ran down the various Indian wrestlers who are under contract.
  • NXT Champion Finn Balor def. Guru Raaj.
  • Dilsher Shanky, Giant Zanjeer, Rey Mysterio & Ricochet defeated Dolph Ziggler, King Corbin, Shinsuke Nakamura & Cesaro.
  • AJ Styles w/ Omos defeated Jeet Rama.
  • Sareena Sandhu & Charlotte Flair defeated Bayley & Natalya.
  • Ric Flair cut a promo but was interrupted by Jinder Mahal and the Bollywood Boyz. WWE Champion Drew McIntyre came out to and introduce Indus Sher to set up the main event.
  • WWE Champion Drew McIntyre & Indus Sher def. Jinder Mahal & Bollywood Boyz.

After the main event, McIntyre and Triple H posed in the ring with the various Indian Superstars. They all celebrated and had garlands bestowed on them as Superstar Spectacle ended.

WWE RAW Results (1/25): Goldberg & Drew McIntyre, Randy Orton Attacks Alexa Bliss

Robert Lentini
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0

WWE RAW aired live from the ThunderDome. It was the final episode of RAW before WWE Royal Rumble 2021 this Sunday. Asuka put her RAW Women’s Championship on the line against Alexa Bliss in this week’s main event.

RAW Results (1/25)

  1. Charlotte def. Shaya Baszler via DQ
  2. Nia Jax, Shayna Baszler, Lacey Evans def. Charlotte, Mandy Rose, Dana Brooke
  3. Xavier Woods def. Slapjack
  4. Sheamus def. John Morrison
  5. The Miz & John Morrison def. Sheamus in a Handicap match
  6. AJ Styles def. R-Truth via submission
  7. Riddle def. Shelton Benjamin, MVP, Cedric Alexander in a Gauntlet match to earn a US Title shot
  8. Asuka vs. Alexa Bliss ended in a no contest

Here are the takeaways from this week’s show:

McIntyre & Goldberg Attacked Miz & Morrison

WWE Champion Drew McIntyre returned from his battle with Covid-19 and made his way to the ring to begin the show. McIntyre said it feels so good to be back on RAW and thanked the WWE Universe for the get well wishes. Drew stated that he only had a little bit of fatigue and lost his sense of smell and was really lucky. Drew dedicated the match against Goldberg this Sunday to all those that have dealt with the virus.

McIntyre switched his attention to Goldberg and broke down his incredible career and how he went 173-0. Drew added that Goldberg has started a new streak and has defeated every champion he has challenged. Drew vowed to end the new Goldberg streak and remain WWE Champion.

The Miz and John Morrison interrupted and suggested that McIntyre versus Goldberg is WWE’s version of Kong vs. Godzilla. Miz and Morrison said they were going to beat down whoever wins the match and then The Miz is going to cash in and become new WWE Champion. Goldberg joined the party and got in McIntyre’s face.

Goldberg said “you’re next” and dropped the microphone. The Miz and Morrison started daring them to fight and it backfired. Goldberg hit The Miz with a Spear and McIntyre hit Morrison with the Claymore. McIntyre then raised the WWE Championship and had a stare down with Goldberg to end the segment.

Nia Jax, Shayna Baszler, Lacey Evans Picked Up A Win

Charlotte Flair squared off against Shayna Baszler in the first match of the night. Charlotte started off the match in control and applied a Headlock. Flair sent Baszler to the corner and then leveled her with a boot to the face. Charlotte went for the Figure Four but Nia Jax hit her with a Leg Drop to end the match in a DQ. Mandy Rose and Dana Brooke rushed the ring and attacked Nia and Shayna. Lacey Evans joined the party and went after Charlotte as RAW went to a break.

When RAW returned, it was now a 6-woman tag match with Evans and Mandy battling in the ring. Evans shoved Mandy and did the Ric Flair strut to annoy Charlotte. Mandy took control and brought Evans to the corner. Dana tagged in and planted Lacey with a Suplex for a two count. Shayna and Charlotte tagged in and circled each other in the ring. Charlotte beat Shayna down and sent her into the steel steps outside the ring. Shayna couldn’t get back into the ring in time and the match ended in a countout.

Adam Pearce restarted the match during the commercial break. Nia hit Dana Brooke with a slam for a two count. Baszler tagged in and stomped on Dana’s elbow. Nia Jax tagged in and applied a Headlock in the middle of the ring. Mandy tagged in and cleaned house. Rose sent Lacey to the corner and unloaded some strikes. Mandy followed it up with a knee to the face and went for the cover but Shayna broke it up. Charlotte hit Shayna with a Spear and Nia tagged in.

Flair chased Lacey Evans backstage as Dana Brooke tagged in. Dana Brooke hit a Neckbreaker for a two count and made her way to the top rope. Nia hit her with a punch and launched her to the canvas. Jax then slammed Dana to the canvas with a rough looking Powerbomb and then hit a Leg Drop for the pinfall victory. Later on RAW, Charlotte Flair confronted Ric Flair backstage as he was conversing with Lacey Evans. Charlotte told Ric that he has gone from legend to old man. Lacey Evans then hit Charlotte with the Woman’s Right.

Opinion: This was the match that would never end and killed off about thirty minutes of RAW’s go-home show for Royal Rumble. What a uniquely horrible way to start off this week’s RAW. I find the Ric Flair storyline to be awkward as hell and one of the worst parts of the show.

Mustafa Ali Sent A Message To Kofi Kingston

Xavier Woods faced Slapjack tonight on RAW. Woods started off in control and connected with a Back Body Drop. Slapjack hit Woods with a knee to the face and then slammed Xavier to the canvas for a near fall. Woods hit a Russian Leg Sweep and followed it up with a Clothesline for a two count. T-Bar tried to distract Woods but it didn’t work and Xavier booted Slapjack in the face for the pinfall victory.

After the match, T-Bar hit Woods with a kick to the face and rolled him into the ring. Mustafa Ali instructed Mace & T-Bar to Chokeslam Woods and then sent Slapjack to get a steel chair. Mustafa was about to hit Woods with the chair but decided not to. Ali took a seat and asked for a microphone. Mustafa joked that Woods wants to be king of the ring but sure looks like a peasant right now. Ali said he heard the sad news that Kofi Kingston won’t be cleared to compete in the Royal Rumble but he will be replacing him.

Riddle Interrupted VIP Lounge

Hurt Business came to the ring for an episode of the VIP Lounge. MVP said they have a Gauntlet match against Riddle and referred to him a “brain dead moron that can be crafty”. MVP told Cedric Alexander to focus on the task at hand before United States Champion Bobby Lashley grabbed a microphone. Lashley noted that the Hurt Business has only just begun and Shelton Benjamin was about to say something but Cedric Alexander interrupted. Cedric said everything was because of MVP and Lashley presented him a gold Hurt Business chain. Cedric claimed that he was working with the designer and Shelton said that Alexander has no idea what he was talking about.

R-Truth interrupted and wondered why he wasn’t on the list for his own surprise party. R-Truth noted that his birthday was last week but better late than never. R-Truth thought the “THB” chain stood for “Truth Happy Birthday”. Lashley told R-Truth that he almost forgot his birthday but got him a gift and it is inside the ring. A few superstars chased R-Truth around for the 24/7 Championship and Hurt Business laid them out. Riddle got into the ring and hit MVP with a knee to the face before running away to end the segment. If Riddle wins the Gauntlet match later, he will earn a shot at the United States Championship.

Miz & Morrison def. Sheamus

Sheamus faced John Morrison tonight on RAW. The Miz was ringside for the match. Sheamus brought Morrison to the canvas and went for an Armbar. Morrison escaped and went for a Headlock but Sheamus battled to his feet. Sheamus tackled John to the mat and went for the Headlock again. Morrison escaped but Sheamus connected with a Back Body Drop that sent John flying across the ring. Morrison hit a knee to the midsection and knocked Sheamus to the apron. Morrison stretched out Sheamus’ knee over the rope and then booted him to the floor outside the ring.

Back in the ring, Morrison took Sheamus down with a Dragon Screw for a one count. Sheamus hit Morrison with a knee to the face and connected with White Noise for the pinfall victory. After the match, The Miz suggested a Handicap match and Sheamus accepted as RAW went to a commercial break. Sheamus was in control when RAW returned and sent Morrison out of the ring.

Sheamus caught Miz with an elbow to the face but Morrison hit the Celtic Warrior with a chop block. Miz and Morrison then beat Sheamus down for the next several minutes. Sheamus eventually battled back and sent Morrison out of the ring. Sheamus made his way to the top rope and hit Miz and Morrison with a Flying Clothesline. Sheamus set up for the Brogue Kick but Miz hit him with a Crossbody. Sheamus hit Morrison with the Brogue Kick but Miz planted him with the Skull Crushing Finale for the victory.

AJ Styles def. R-Truth

AJ Styles faced R-Truth tonight. If R-Truth won the match, he would qualify for the Royal Rumble match. Styles connected with a Backbreaker as Omos watched on from ringside. R-Truth hit the Five Knuckle Shuffle and went for the Attitude Adjustment but Styles countered into the Calf Crusher for the submission victory.

Riddle Won The Gauntlet Match & Earned A US Title Match

Riddle faced Hurt Business in a Gauntlet Match. If Riddle won he would earn a shot at the United States Championship in the future. Riddle faced Shelton Benjamin first and beat him down in the corner. Shelton went for a German Suplex but Riddle landed on his feet and connected with an overhead kick. Benjamin hit a Spinebuster and went for the cover but Riddle was able to kick out at two.

Benjamin hit a Body Slam for a two count. Benjamin kept Riddle grounded and controlled the next few minutes of the match. Riddle hit Benjamin with a knee to the face and went for a roll-up but Riddle reversed it. The referee was distracted with Cedric Alexander and didn’t see the cover. Benjamin argued with Cedric and Riddle capitalized with a roll-up for the victory. Riddle then faced MVP next. Riddle immediately locked in the Heel Hook on MVP for the submission victory.

Riddle faced Cedric Alexander in the final bout of the Gauntlet match. Cedric Alexander dominated early and kept Riddle on the canvas. Riddle battled back and hit a series of kicks in the corner of the ring. Alexander connected with a Dropkick out of nowhere and went for the cover but Riddle was able to power out at the last moment.

Cedric hit Riddle with a DDT for another near fall and MVP complained about Alexander’s technique going for the cover. Riddle hit a Pele Kick and followed it up with an Exploder Suplex. Riddle went for the Broton but Cedric was able to get his knees up. Riddle responded with a German Suplex but Alexander shrugged it off and hit a Brainbuster for a two count. MVP once again got pissed about how Cedric went for the cover.

Alexander reigned down punches and stomps to Riddle in the middle of the ring. Cedric made his way to the top rope as MVP rolled his eyes. Riddle got out of the way and applied a Triangle choke. Alexander hit a Powerbomb but Riddle didn’t let go of the hold. Riddle then rolled up Alexander for the victory. Riddle earned a shot at the United States Championship. After the match, United States Champion Bobby Lashley attacked Riddle from behind and applied the Hurt Lock.

Edge Announced That He Is Entering The Royal Rumble

Edge provided an injury update during tonight’s show. Edge said that 2020 has taught all of us that you cannot sleep on tomorrow and you need to fight for it every day. He brought up going to bed as champion after WrestleMania 27 but had to forfeit it and his career within a week. Edge stated that he will never forget when he told his mom that he was going to be a wrestler and she said “just go do it”. Edge noted that those words fueled him for 9 years to get his career and dream back and then Randy Orton tore his triceps at Backlash. He then announced that he is entering the Royal Rumble and that he knows it will not be like last year because the stakes are higher. Edge admitted that the window is closing on him every day and vowed to win the Royal Rumble to take back his dream.

Randy Orton Attacked Alexa Bliss

Asuka defended the RAW Women’s Championship against Alexa Bliss in this week’s main event. Asuka started off the match in control and stomped on Alexa in the corner of the ring. Bliss sent Asuka out of the ring and rode a rocking horse as RAW went to a commercial break.

When RAW returned, Asuka hit Bliss with an elbow to the face and went for a Dropkick but Alexa got out of the way. Bliss stomped Asuka down in the corner and then applied a Headlock in the middle of the ring. Asuka broke free and hit a Hip Attack in the corner. Asuka followed it up with a German Suplex and a boot to the face for a near fall.

Asuka approached Bliss in the corner and Alexa’s music hit. Alexa was in her normal ring attire all of the sudden and was crying in the ring. Bliss stumbled to her feet as Asuka was confused. Asuka charged at her and Alexa sent her into the turnbuckle. Bliss stared off into the distance and the lights in the ThunderDome went out. When the lights came on, Bliss was in her dark attire and and Asuka caught her with a knee to the face. Asuka went for the Asuka Lock but Bliss escaped. Alexa then locked in the Mandible Claw on Asuka but Randy Orton appeared with burns on his face. Randy then planted Alexa Bliss with the RKO to close the show.

Opinion: As ridiculous as it is, I’m am very entertained by the storyline with Orton, Bliss, and The Fiend. Alexa Bliss has simply been fantastic in this role and I thought she was going to win the title tonight. However, the majority of this week’s show was forgettable and it seemed like WWE was trying to stretch everything out to fill the three hours. The Gauntlet and Handicap matches were examples of that during tonight’s show. I’m hoping that Royal Rumble acts as a reset and RAW greatly improves as WWE builds towards WrestleMania.

Updated WWE Royal Rumble Card: Title Match, New Competitors Announced

Andrew Ravens
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During Monday’s episode of WWE Raw, the company announced more competitors for both the Men’s Royal Rumble Match.

Elias, Ali, Sheamus and John Morrison have entered the Men’s Royal Rumble Match.  As noted, Edge also declared his entry into the match.

WWE announced a new title match, which will see Charlotte Flair and Raw Women’s Champion Asuka defend their Women’s Tag Team Titles against Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler. It turns out that this is a rematch from last month’s WWE TLC pay-per-view where Asuka and Flair dethroned their opponents to become the champions. 

WWE has announced that the two wrestlers who will be kicking off the Women’s Royal Rumble Match as the first and second entrants will be announced on WWE Backstage this Saturday. Also on this show, the wrestler who will be entering the Men’s Royal Rumble Match last at number 30 will be revealed. 

Updated WWE Royal Rumble Card

WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens – Last Man Standing Match

WWE Champion Drew McIntyre vs. Goldberg

Daniel Bryan, WWE United States Champion Bobby Lashley, AJ Styles, Randy Orton, Otis, The Miz, Jey Uso, Cesaro, Jeff Hardy, Shinsuke Nakamura, Sami Zayn, SmackDown Tag Team Champion Dolph Ziggler, WWE Intercontinental Champion Big E, Sheamus, John Morrison, Edge, Elias, Mustafa Ali, 12 Superstars TBA – Men’s Royal Rumble Match: 

Nia Jax, WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Charlotte Flair, Bayley, Bianca Belair, Mandy Rose, Dana Brooke, Peyton Royce, Alexa Bliss, Shayna Baszler, Liv Morgan, Ruby Riott, Tamina Snuka, 18 Superstars TBA – Women’s Royal Rumble Match

WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Asuka & Charlotte Flair vs. Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler

Edge Declares Royal Rumble Entry On WWE Raw

Andrew Ravens
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Edge made an appearance on Monday’s episode of Raw by providing an injury update and also making an announcement. 

WWE didn’t announce this segment ahead of the broadcast, but rather in the first hour of the show on the USA Network. On the show, Edge cut a pre-recorded promo inside of a ring backstage. He said that 2020 taught him that nothing is guaranteed.

He said that 10 years ago he went to bed as the world champion yet within a week he was told he couldn’t wrestle again. Now that he has his career back, it’s time to go do it again and declared himself for the Royal Rumble.

He said that the window closes on him each day and wants to get back what is his, something that he never lost. He said that it’s time to fight to get his dream back of being a world champion. 

Edge Returns

The WWE Hall of Famer suffered a torn triceps injury when he lost to Randy Orton in a singles match at the WWE Backlash pay-per-view event last year in Orlando, Florida. At the time, the belief was that he would be back in time for WrestleMania 37. 

Since he went down due to the injury, it had been reported that there had been talk about Edge finishing up his program with “The Viper” at WrestleMania 37. 

WrestleVotes reported last November, “WrestleMania update: Source states that while Edge vs Randy Orton has been the long-standing plan, and still is at the moment, the idea of Edge vs The Fiend has been discussed a great deal for the show.”

Backstage Reaction To WWE Selling Network Streaming Rights To NBCU

Andrew Ravens
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0

News broke on Monday that WWE and NBCU had reached a streaming rights deal to the WWE Network in the United States that will see all WWE programming – PPV events, archives, and new series – move to the Peacock service come March 18th. 

Fightful Select has some notes on the backstage reaction to the news. One WWE star said they hadn’t heard of the news before it broke and said the company’s profit would be massive. The first impressions were the additional eyes on the product with this new deal. 

Another wrestler stated they didn’t care where the shows aired, but would if it affected their pay. There is no negativity among those in WWE but did consider it a big move for the company.

Talks about such a move to a different streaming service have been ongoing since last January. Fightful notes they were not able to confirm that one of the companies was Peacock at the time. ESPN had been one of the players in these talks. 

Several people within the company said they actually expected a move much sooner than this, but understood it was easier said than done from a negotiating standpoint.

This topic was also discussed by Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez on the latest episode of Wrestling Observer Live this afternoon.

It was also reported that the move to Peacock caught the WWE Network employees off-guard and word is that WWE Network employees did not know about the actual move to Peacock as of one week ago.

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