Author: Anutosh Bajpai

Former World Champion The Big Show recently had an interview with TVinsider to promote his new Netflix show where he talked about a number of things.

While the Largest Athlete In The World has not officially announced plans for his retirement yet, there has been a lot of talk about him possibly hanging his boots in recent times.

During the interview, The Big Show was asked if he has an opponent picked out for his retirement match and the former Champion responded negatively:

\”I don’t have an opponent picked out yet for my final match because I think that is a ways away. What I have done is stepped back as far as full-time, five nights a week, in the trenches. I’ve done that for 25 years.

Now it’s time for the guys to stake their claim and build their characters and legacies.\” said The Big Show. \”I’m always there to help those guys along. I think that is one of the great advantages of where I am in my career.\”

• Also Read: Update On Roman Reigns\’ Status With WWE

The former WCW star went on to explain that he is able to help guys in his current role in the company and he is still occasionally able to do what he loves.

Apart from this, The Big Show also talked about WWE\’s decision to produce shows without a live audience, saying that this escape is important at this time. You can check out his full interview at this link.

Not much has been heard about Roman Reigns ever since he pulled out of his WrestleMania 36 match against Goldberg and WWE has also ceased any mention of the former World Champion on their programming.

Dave Meltzer talked about the former Shield Member in the latest edition of Wrestling Observer Newsletter and provided some updates on the Big Dog.

Some recent comments from Triple H sparked speculations that the company might already be planning his return, however, Meltzer notes that “it is said to be up to Roman Reigns when he returns”.

When Can Roman Reigns Return To WWE Programming?

While a time frame for his comeback is not known, due to his previous health conditions it\’s believed that the former champion will not return to active competition until the coronavirus outbreak is contained in some way.

This means that the former Champion could stay out of action for months, making it hard for the company to plan something for Reigns\’ comeback.

For those who don\’t know, Triple H had said that the story of Roman Reigns pulling out of WrestleMania would \’unfold in a unique way\’ but it didn\’t turn out to be the case.

The company simply announced that Braun Strowman will be replacing the Big Dog at the Show of Shows and they have not even mentioned his name since Roman Reigns released a video on Instagram explaining his decision to pull out of the event.

Ric Flair is arguably one of the greatest in-ring performers of any generation and during a recent interview, he revealed who he thinks is the best wrestler in WWE right now.

The Nature Boy recently had an interview with WrestlingInc where he talked about WrestleMania 36, the future plans of her daughter Sophia and more.

Talking about Randy Orton, Ric Flair declared the Viper to be the best in-ring wrestler and claimed that he is the best male performer in the business right now:

\”It\’s time that it needs to be said. Randy is the best in-ring wrestler and he has been for a long time, Randy has to be motivated because he\’s been in the business for a long time.

But when it comes down to it, Randy is the best male performer in the business.\” claimed Flair. \”When he takes off that vest, who looks better than Randy Orton?\”

The WWE Hall Of Famer also praised his daughter Charlotte\’s performance at WrestleMania. He said that she set the bar so high in her WrestleMania match against Rhea Ripley that he hopes that nobody will get hurt trying to get over it.

This is not the first time Ric Flair has made such comments and just recently, he had praised Randy Orton while also calling Charlotte the \’female Orton\’. You can check out his comments at this link.

Edge finally got his revenge on Randy Orton at WrestleMania 36 and now that he is done with the former World Champion, the Rated R Superstar is looking at his future and talking about the opponents he would like to face.

The former Champion recently appeared on the After The Bell Podcast, and when asked about potential dream opponents, he pointed out that there is a lot of talent in each one of the WWE rosters.

Edge first took names from NXT and NXT UK including the likes of Adam Cole and Walter. Coming to the SmackDown roster, he explained that he felt a special connection with Roman Reigns when the two met at Royal Rumble:

\”If I look at Smackdown, I mean Reigns and I has to happen someday. There\’s just there\’s no way around it. It just has to and to get that little taste of it at the Rumble, that felt good man. That felt like we were in a pocket.

We are in a zone, and that\’s the first time we\’ve ever touched. So for it to feel like that, that\’s when you know. I had that with [Kurt] Angle.\” said Edge. \”I had that with Randy. I had that with Taker. I had that with Jeff [Hardy]. That can be a rare feeling.\”

The Ultimate Opportunist then moved on to the Raw roster and took names like Aleister Black and Seth Rollins. He also mentioned how AJ Styles has been in the industry for over two decades but Royal Rumble was the first time the two got to face each other.

Apart from this, Edge also talked about his match with Randy Orton, and revealed what reignited his passion for pro wrestling. You can check out his comments on the matter at this link.

The Firefly Fun House match at WrestleMania 36 intrigued the fans and it appears that WWE star Big Show was also impressed with the bout associated to The Fiend.

The former World Champion recently had an interview with Metro.co.uk to promote his new Netflix show where he talked about WrestleMania 36 event and more.

When asked about the cinematic matches at the Show Of Shows, the Big Show first praised the execution of the bouts and then expressed interest in working a similar match with Bray Wyatt:

\”I know I would sign up for the same kind of program if I was working with Bray Wyatt, I would definitely sign up to have my mind picked apart.

I think it would be very entertaining to go through that and do that tortured perspective of trying to convey the hurt, pain, and frustration.\”

• Also Read: Money In The Bank PPV Cancelled Due To Coronavirus

Big Show On How His WWE Role Has Changed

Big Show also commented on his current status with WWE and explaining how his role has changed, the Giant said that he is not in the trenches anymore:

\”My role has changed to where I’m not in the trenches anymore. I come around once in a while, I can help a talent in the ring, or maybe I can put another talent over – maybe I can be a surprise. I’m wide open for whatever.\”

The Big Show Show is now streaming on Netflix in full. You can check out the WWE star\’s full interview including the above comments and more at this link.

Drew McIntyre had missed the WrestleMania go-home episode of Monday Night Raw and instead of having a face to face confrontation with Brock Lesnar, he only appeared through a video package on the show.

Dave Meltzer talked about the episode in the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter and revealed that the new WWE Champion missed the show because he was in quarantine after returning from his home country.

Both McIntyre and Sheamus were in the UK on a tour to promote WrestleMania 36 and they were called back to the United States on March 12 because of the travel restrictions that were being put in the place.

However, both the stars had to quarantine themselves after returning from a foreign country and the former NXT Champion Drew McIntyre could not appear at the show because his isolation period was not over.

• Also Read: Rhea Ripley Clarifies WWE Status

Both Bobby Lashley who was called back from a promotional tour of South Africa and Kairi Sane who went to Japan to get married missed the builds for their WrestleMania feud because of the same reason as well.

Sane, alongside her partner Asuka defended the Women\’s Tag Team Championship against Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross at WrestleMania and dropped the titles while Lashley faced Aleister Black in a match with no build.

Drew McIntyre went on to face Brock Lesnar and he completed the story that started with his Royal Rumble victory by defeating the Beast Incarnate at the Show Of Shows.

The upcoming Money In The Bank event which was scheduled to take place on May 10 has been cancelled due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The Royal Farms Arena in Baltimore, Maryland which was the venue for the show released a statement on the matter on Twitter and announced the cancellation.

They wrote: \”The WWE Money In The Bank event originally scheduled for Sunday, May 10 in Baltimore has been cancelled. Refunds are available at all points of purchase.\”

There were speculations over the show being postponed and now this announcement confirms that the event will at least not be taking place as originally planned.

WWE has not reacted to this announcement so far and the official event page on their website is still visible, though it doesn\’t list any details regarding the PPV.

There are speculations that the company could still move forward with the show and relocate it at the Performance Center in Florida, similar to their approach with the WrestleMania 36 event.

Though the orange county officials have issued a stay at home order that is effective until the end of April and the company will not be able to hold the PPV at the PC if the time limit is extended. We\’ll keep you posted on the matter.

The boneyard match between Undertaker and AJ Styles at WrestleMaia 36 impressed a lot of people and it appears that the WWE Hall Of Famer Ric Flair is one of the persons impressed with the cinematic match.

The former World Champion recently had an interview with WrestlingInc where he talked about the various matches of both nights of WrestleMania 36, among other things.

Discussing the boneyard match between the Dead Man and The Phenomenal One, Flair revealed his text to the former Champion which he sent after watching the bout:

\”I texted Taker, \’You did it again.\’ [Laughs] It\’s incredible. Vince McMahon and Kevin Dunn, they create stuff better than Netflix, Amazon or anything, are you kidding me?

Between that and the Fun House, it was incredible.\” said Flair. \”If I\’m dying as an adult who\’s been watching this forever, can you imagine what a 12-year-old is thinking? They gotta be going, \’Wow! Daddy this is the coolest thing!\’\”

• Also Read: Backstage Production Details Of The Boneyard Match

Ric Flair revealed that he was watching the match with his wife Wendy and according to the 16 time World Champion; she also loved the match between the two veterans.

Later in the interview, the Nature Boy also revealed his text to Stephanie McMahon he had sent after watching the show. You can check out his full interview at this link.

While the WrestleMania go-home episode of Raw had done poor numbers, its counterpart episode of SmackDown managed to hold on better and it actually saw a slight increase in the audience.

Last week\’s episode of SmackDown which was the fourth episode of the show from the Performance Center with no audience drew an average of 2.398 million viewers, according to Showbuzz Daily.

This is an increase from the previous episode of the show which had managed to get only 2.367 million viewers, making the record for the lowest SmackDown viewership for 2020.

The episode drew a 0.6 rating in the key demographic of 18-49 and it tied at #3 for the ratings in the 18-49 demographic with 20/20, Blacklist and Dateline.

In comparison, the go-home episode of Monday Night Raw which featured the return of big names like The Undertaker and Edge had sunk under 2 million. It managed to bring only 1.923 million viewers, which was the lowest Raw viewership for 2020.

Latest reports suggest that WWE is planning to air live episodes of the shows once again very soon and it would be interesting to see if the live episodes help the company regain the lost numbers compared to the taped shows they have been airing.

This week\’s episode of Raw saw Nia Jax making her in ring return but the former Women\’s Champion wasn\’t the only superstar who made her return to the show tonight.

During the episode, Aleister Black came out for a match and then Apollo Crews, who was a part of the SmackDown roster made his way to the ring.

Tom Phillips then revealed the reason behind this brand switch and he mentioned that Crews has been drafted back to Raw from the SmackDown roster due to the draft picks that were going to expire.

The former NXT star went on to have a lengthy match with Black and the bout was won by the former NXT Champion after he pinned Crews with a Black Mass.

Apollo Crews was originally brought up to the main roster as part of the Raw brand in April 2016 but he was drafted to SmackDown not very long after this in July the same year.

He was moved to the Red Brand once again during the 2017 drafts. After this move, the former NXT star joined Titus Worldwide but this storyline didn\’t go anywhere.

He was moved a fourth time when Apollo Crews was drafted back to SmackDown during the Superstar Shakeup in 2019 and it would be interesting to see if the company has a plan for him this time.

After years of hard work, Drew McIntyre finally realized his life long dream when he beat Brock Lesnar for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 36.

The former NXT Champion had gone from getting an early push in the company to becoming a jobber with 3MB and finally getting released in 2014 after failing to capitalize on his early success in the promotion.

Though he didn\’t quit and the Scottish star worked hard to reinvent himself in the independent circuit. McIntyre then returned to the company with a revitalized work ethic in 2017 when he joined the NXT brand once again.

• Also Read: Drew McIntyre On Where He Would Be If He Wasn\’t Fired In 2014

He had been on a journey to reclaim his place on the WWE roster ever since and the former Intercontinental Champion faced his biggest challenge yet when he went up against The Beast in the main event of WrestleMania 36.

Though he overcame this challenge as well and Drew McIntyre finally became the WWE Champion after beating Brock Lesnar with not one but four Claymore kicks.

The newly crowned world champion made his first comments on his victory on Twitter. He quoted his old theme song and dedicated his win over Lesnar to the fans, saying that he made his broken dreams come true for them:

It\’s not known what WWE is planning for Drew McIntyre after this championship win but we should get an idea about his first challenger on this week\’s episode of Monday Night Raw.

Drew McIntyre recently had an interview with Sporting News ahead of his WrestleMania 36 clash with WWE Champion Brock Lesnar this Sunday night.

During the interview, the former NXT Champion talked about his WWE journey in detail. When asked where he would be if he hadn\’t been released by WWE in 2014, the Scottish star said he surely won\’t be in the position he is now:

\”Not where I\’m at now, that\’s for sure. I think for a number of reasons, I think if you transition me from the 3MB guy to fighting for the WWE title, the fans wouldn\’t have bought it because of the way I was positioned for such a long time.

McIntyre then explained that it would have been difficult to get where he is now without being away from WWE where he was allowed to grow and try things at smaller stages first.

• Also Read: 8 Takeaways From Night 1 Of WrestleMania 36

Drew McIntyre On Becoming The First Scottish-Born WWE Champion

The former IC Champion was also asked what it would mean for him to become the first Scottish born wrestler to win the WWE championship and Drew McIntyre said that it would mean everything because it has been his goal since he was a kid:

\”Everything. That was a goal of mine before I got signed to WWE and ever since I was a kid. It\’s just not being the (first) Scottish-born (champion) even though that\’s really cool as there\’s only, like, like, 5 million Scots in the world, which is crazy considering our unique history\”

McIntyre continued by claiming it would be a very special deal to become the first person from UK to win the Royal Rumble and then the WWE Championship and inspire the people over there. You can check out his full interview at this link.

The Undertaker put on an epic Boneyard Match against AJ Styles Saturday night at WrestleMania 36. According WWE Hall of Famer Kurt Angle, the match was the result of the Dead Man wanting to redeem himself in the eyes on fans.

ESPN\’s Marc Raimondi recently made a tweet in which he revealed a recent conversation he had about the Last Outlaw with WWE Hall Of Famer Kurt Angle.

Per Marc, Undertaker had a discussion with Angle where he showed his disappointment over his match with Goldberg and expressed the desire to redeem himself.

After hearing about the situation, the Olympic Gold Medalist suggested him to wrestle AJ Styles and Angle assured him that a match with The Phenomenal One will be the best bout he has had in years:

Undertaker\’s Match With AJ Styles

It seems that the Dead Man took this advice from Angle as reports suggest that Taker picked Styles to be his opponent for the Show Of Shows himself.

The decision seems to have worked in the favor of the former Champion as well because the boneyard match has received universal acclaim and it\’s receiving praise from fans and WWE stars alike.

For those who don\’t know, Undertaker had a match with Goldberg at Super Showdown in June 2019. However, the bout turned out to be a disaster and It received criticism from fans for the poor execution of the match.

• Also Read: 8 Takeaways From Night 1 Of WrestleMania 36

Becky Lynch managed to retain her Raw Women\’s Championship against Shayna Baszler at WrestleMania 36, but this victory wasn\’t free of controversy.

The Man reversed a Kirifuda Clutch from Baszler and she flipped the hold for a surprise pin, leaving the former NXT Women\’s Champion puzzled at the turn of events.

Lynch was interviewed backstage after the match and when asked about her victory over Baszler, the Raw Women\’s Champion said that the match was about skill over heart, and she has got the heart:

\”She is incredible. I never underestimated her. I think she underestimated me. But the fact of the matter is that she has been a top-ranking cage fighter for ten years straight. She is the longest combined Women\’s NXT Champion in history.

Her skill set is maybe unmatched in what we have in WWE today\” explained Becky Lynch. \”But the fact of the matter is tonight was a test of skill over heart and I have got the heart.\”

Becky Lynch On What\’s Next For Her

When asked what\’s next for her, the current champion said that if Shayna has a problem with the finish of their match, she knows where to find her:

\”Well, Shayna has a problem. She thinks she has my number, she certainly doesn\’t,\” said Becky. \”But if she has a problem with that finish tonight just tell her to not go missing. She knows where to find me. I\’ll be holding down the fort. Every single week.\”

These comments from Lynch suggest that the feud between these two stars is not over just yet and it would be interesting to see how the company moves forward with this storyline.

• Also Read: 8 Takeaways From Night 1 Of WrestleMania 36

Braun Strowman was a last-minute addition to this year\’s WrestleMania but the Monster Among Men ended up benefitting big time from this sudden change.

The former Wyatt Family member faced Goldberg for the Universal Championship at night 1 of WrestleMania 36 after Roman Reigns pulled out of the bout.

The former WCW star dominated the early parts of the bout but Strowman managed to take control of the match later on and he defeated Goldberg to win the title after delivering 4 massive power slams.

Braun Strowman Comments On WrestleMania Victory

The new Universal Champion was then interviewed backstage after his big win on the Show Of Shows and commenting on the victory, he said that this is the proof that you can achieve anything:

\”This is something that so many people have told me I would never achieve.\” said Braun Strowman. \”So many people told me I didn\’t deserve to because of what I have been through in life and things like that.

But this is proof right here that no matter what, if you work your butt off for something that you believe in and dream then you can achieve anything. Right here is the proof that you can achieve anything if you put your mind to it.\”

Roman Reigns was removed from the Universal title match after he decided to pull out of the show and reports have revealed that the Big Dog picked Braun Strowman as the replacement himself.

Ric Flair\’s retirement match against Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania XXIV received universal acclaim and it\’s remembered as one of the most emotional moments in the history of professional wrestling.

However, The Nature Boy decided to break the vow. He returned to the ring during the Hulkamania tour in 2009 and has wrestled a number of matches since then.

During a recent interview with Metro.co.uk, the 16 Time World Champion recalled his WrestleMania match with HBK and Flair said that being in the ring with Michaels was the greatest thing anybody could have ever given him

\”I was nervous, extremely nervous. That was at a time when my self-confidence levels were up and down. I should have realized that being with Shawn alone was the greatest thing anybody could have ever given me. He just led me through the match, and afterwards it was a really emotional moment for me, my family. \”

• Also Read: Backstage News On Austin Theory Replacing Andrade At WrestleMania

Ric Flair Expresses Regret On Wrestling After WrestleMania XXIV

Ric Flair then claimed that it was the greatest moment of his life and admitted his regrets on wrestling again after the WrestleMania match:

\”The best answer I have is that was the greatest moment of my life, the saddest moment in my wrestling career, and I wish I’d never wrestled again after that. ‘I just couldn’t stay away. At the end of the day people remember that like it was my last match, and that’s the important thing,\”

The WWE Hall Of Famer also talked about the upcoming WrestleMania 36 event and how it will be a taped show with no audience due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Flair said that it\’s difficult but the technologies will make it look as live as possible and while he wishes he was there for the event, he is still excited for it.

Relive the iconic WrestleMania bout between Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels in the video below: