SEScoops

Author: Andrew Ravens

  • WWE NXT Results (6/24): Title Headliner, Karrion Kross’ Dominance Continues

    The June 24, 2020 episode of WWE NXT aired live on the USA Network from the Winter Park, Florida at Full Sail University. 

    The show was headlined by NXT North American Champion Keith Lee defending the title against Finn Balor and Johnny Gargano. 

    WWE NXT Results (6/24)

    • Cameron Grimes def. Damian Priest.
    • Santos Escobar defeated Jake Atlas.
    • Dakota Kai & Raquel Gonzalez def. Kacy Catanzaro & Kayden Carter.
    • Karrion Kross def. Bronson Reed.
    • Rhea Ripley def. Aliyah
    • Dexter Lumis def. Roderick Strong via countout.
    • NXT North American Champion Keith Lee def. Johnny Gargano and Finn Balor.

    Here are the takeaways from this week’s show:

    Cameron Grimes vs. Damien Priest

    \"\"
    Photo Credit: WWE.com

    WWE booked Cameron Grimes vs. Damien Priest in a singles match after a one week build in the opening segment. 

    WWE did an angle where an hour before the show, Grimes had attacked Priest in the parking lot, and Priest sold his back, which was taped up. 

    The match was fine with the big-small man combo that has been working for decades in the pro wrestling business. The finish saw Grimes hit his finisher for the win. 

    Both stars are in an interesting spot as Grimes comes across as a mid-card talent who has his moments but mostly comes across as a comedy guy. On the flip side, for the majority of his time in NXT, Priest has been protected and pushed as a main player on the brand. 

    However, Priest finds himself in an interesting spot right now as he’s not in a top program. Perhaps that will change in the near future. 

    https://twitter.com/WWENXT/status/1275943898616147968

    Karrion Kross vs. Bronson Reed 

    \"Karrion
    Karrion Kross & Scarlett

    Karrion Kross vs. Bronson Reed in a singles match was booked and as expected, Kross went over strong with his submission finisher. Reed did get some more offense than those who have come before him. 

    Clearly, Reed stood no chance against Kross, who is being groomed as the next big star under the NXT banner. From doing quick squash matches to taking out Tommaso Ciampa, a former NXT Champion and top NXT star mind you, with ease. 

    Next, he has his sights set for the NXT Title. The question is whether that will be Adam Cole or another star. 

    Roderick Strong Doesn’t Face His Fear

    \"\"

    Two weeks of doing therapy with Kyle O’Reilly and getting put into a trunk, Roderick Strong took on Dexter Lumis in a singles match. 

    Of course, this feud started when Lumis put Strong and Bobby Fish in the trunk of his car in the middle of the Backlot Brawl between NXT Champion Adam Cole and The Velveteen Dream at NXT TakeOver: In Your House. 

    Lumis won the contest by countout when Strong retreated from the ring as Lumis walked him down. Thus, it appears that this feud will continue as WWE has already booked them in a Strap Match next week. 

    Lee vs. Gargano vs. Balor

    \"Keith
    Keith Lee

    The first big match announced last week is in the books as NXT North American Champion Keith Lee defended the title against Finn Balor and Johnny Gargano. 

    The stipulation to go along with it was that the winner of that match would go on to the July 8 episode for a \”Winner Takes All\” match against NXT Champion Adam Cole.

    WWE saved this match for last and rightfully so as it was a big match with top names under the NXT banner. As expected, it was a wild contest that saw the finish be Lee surviving the odds and pinning Gargano for the victory. 

    Obviously, Lee will now face Cole in order to determine the undisputed champion in NXT. Post-match, Cole and Lee had a staredown to close the show. 

    https://twitter.com/WWENXT/status/1275968678782275585

  • Keith Lee Retains NXT North American Title, Champion vs. Champion Match Set

    Keith Lee was able to hold onto the NXT North American Championship.

    Lee made his latest title defense against Johnny Gargano and Finn Balor in a Triple Threat Match on this week’s episode of WWE NXT in Winter Park, Florida at Full Sail University on the USA Network. 

    It served as the main event of the show and delivered on the expectations set out by fans. The end of the contest featured Balor hit the double foot stomp off the top rope to Gargano only to have Lee hit his finisher to Gargano for the win. 

    Based on the stipulations set out by NXT General Manager William Regal last week, Lee will now go on to face NXT Adam Champion in a Champion vs. Champion Winner Takes All Contest on the July 8th episode of NXT. 

    Lee won the North American Title Match back on the January 22nd episode of NXT on the USA Network when he beat Roderick Strong for it.

    It turns out that Lee had previously defeated Gargano to retain the championship. That title match happened earlier this month at the WWE NXT TakeOver: In Your House special. 

    https://twitter.com/WWENXT/status/1275968678782275585

  • New Matches Announced For AEW Fyter Fest

    New matches have been announced for the upcoming AEW Fyter Fest special. 

    During Wednesday’s episode of Dynamite, it was confirmed that MJF and Wardlow will take on Jungle Boy and Luchasaurus in a tag team match. 

    This contest was booked after Wardlow was able to defeat Luchasaurus in a Lumberjack Match. Post-match, a brawl broke out between Jurassic Express, MJF, and Wardlow. AEW President Tony Khan was quick to announce the bout. 

    Also revealed for the show was an eight-man tag team match that will see FTR and The Young Bucks vs. The Lucha Brothers & The Butcher & The Blade

    AEW presents the Fyter Fest special on July 1st and the second week on July 8th in Jacksonville, Florida at Daily’s Place that will air on TNT. Although the card is getting close to being finalized, that will change soon as AEW is still announcing more matches for the special. Here is the updated card:

    AEW Fyter Fest Night 1 Card

    • AEW World Tag Team Champions Hangman Page and Kenny Omega vs. Best Friends 
    • AEW TNT Champion Cody vs. Jake Hager
    • AEW Women\’s World Champion Hikaru Shida vs. Penelope Ford
    • Private Party vs. Santana and Ortiz – Tag Team Match
    • MJF and Wardlow vs. Jungle Boy and Luchasaurus – Tag Team Match

    AEW Fyter Fest Night 2 Card

    • AEW World Heavyweight Champion Jon Moxley vs. Brian Cage
    • FTR and The Young Bucks vs. The Lucha Brothers & The Butcher & The Blade – Eight-Man Tag Team Match
    • Chris Jericho vs. Orange Cassidy – Singles Match
    • SCU vs. The Dark Order – Six-Man Tag Team Match
    • Lance Archer vs. Joey Janela – Singles Match

  • Edge Shares Filming Details On “Greatest Wrestling Match Ever”

    Edge has opened up on the filming process involving his contest against Randy Orton that was hyped as the “Greatest Wrestling Match Ever.”

    The bout took place in the headliner of the WWE Backlash pay-per-view event earlier this month. WWE taped this match in advance to make sure it was the best match possible.

    During a recent appearance on Busted Open Radio, the WWE Hall of Famer opened up on the match. He started out how he was happy with the final product of the match. 

    “Contrary to the experts, it was not taped over seven or eight hours, it was once, straight through, and then we did four pick-up shots. I’ve seen people complain about the (under the rope) shot of the DDT. That’s a total of two seconds.”

    He stated that if that ruined the entire match for you then you have bigger issues. He stated everyone needs something to complain about, but he considers it to be a huge test to see where he’s really at in this new incarnation of how he wants to wrestle going forward. 

    He understands the fans are used to seeing several superkicks and flips in matches, but that’s not going to be his style. He wants the match where Bret Hart, Undertaker, and Gerald Brisco are going to text him after it. 

    He said if that takes a re-education of the industry and fanbase, then so be it.

    “Those pick-up shots, I hated them, and it was my idea. I saw the first cut, without any of that in, and I was like, ‘We don’t need them,’ but Vince loved it. I was like, ‘Damnit, now they’re going to be in there.\’”

    Unfortunately, the former WWE Champion sustained a torn triceps during the re-takes of a spot for the match. As a result, he’s been placed on the sidelines for the next few months if not longer. 

  • Kevin Owens Admits He Didn’t Want To Leave WWE NXT

    Kevin Owens made an appearance on Wednesday’s episode of WWE’s The Bump where he opened up on his run in NXT and the feelings that he had to leave the brand. 

    Owens recalled finishing up in NXT after having a stint where he lost a Ladder Match to Finn Balor at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn in 2015.

    That was in August. Although he had been working on the main roster since May against the likes of John Cena and Cesaro, he continued to work the main roster part-time and NXT full-time. 

    \”I always try to keep my emotions in check until I am just by myself. For some reason, that night I kind of broke down on the apron because I realized it was my last NXT match and it really made me sad.

    Obviously, to be moving on to the main roster, I loved that part of it but all of me just wished I could have done both, I didn’t want to leave NXT. I didn’t want to leave the people I was working with and everybody was so close.”

    Owens continued by talking about how everyone was part of this movement and trying to grow the NXT brand. 

  • Protocol For WWE COVID-19 Testing, Affect On TV Tapings, Latest Numbers

    The fallout from multiple people testing positive for COVID-19 in WWE this week continues. Originally, the word was that three people including in-ring talent tested positive.

    Now, Pwinsider.com reports that the number of positives is in \”the two dozen range\”, although that number has not been confirmed. Per the report, the positive tests were said to be across the board between talent, staff, and production.

    WWE is slated to tape television this Friday and Saturday for the next two weeks of RAW and SmackDown. This includes this week’s episode of SmackDown, which was not taped last week due to a developmental talent testing positive for the virus. 

    Unlike previous weeks, friends and family will not be allowed at the tapings in order to work in the crowd among the WWE Performance Center recruits as fans. 

    Dave Meltzer is reporting at F4WOnline that as a result of the latest batch of positive test results, it does affect at least one person scheduled for the tapings if not more. As a result, there are changes to WWE’s protocols for people working TV tapings. The tapings are not canceled at this point.

    Before the first positive test result, WWE had been taking temperatures of people and asking them questions. 

    One talent said that COVID-19 testing will now take place at every taping. Also, talent will reportedly be tested twice this week and expected to isolate and stay in their rooms and homes for now. WWE issued the following statement:

    \”WWE will continue COVID-19 testing of its talent, production crew and employees in advance of TV productions for the foreseeable future.\”

  • WWE RAW Viewership Sees Dip For ‘Championship Monday’ (6/22)

    Viewership data is in for Monday’s WWE RAW and Friday’s SmackDown. Here is the breakdown of the live and same-night DVR viewership, courtesy of ShowbuzzDaily:

    RAW Viewership

    Monday’s edition of WWE RAW averaged 1.922 million viewers, which is down from the 1.940 million viewers last week. 

    Here is the hourly viewership breakdown:

    • Hour 1: 2.035 million, 0.58 in the 18-49 Demo
    • Hour 2: 1.950 million, 0.53 in the 18-49 Demo
    • Hour 3: 1.782 million, 0.49 in the 18-49 Demo

    WWE RAW Results (6/22): Championship Monday & Title Matches Set For Extreme Rules

    SmackDown Viewership

    SmackDown averaged 2.072 million viewers on FOX in Orlando, Florida at the WWE Performance Center. This is up from the 2.065 million viewers that the show did for the previous week’s episode of SmackDown.

    The show averaged 2.089million viewers in the fast nationals, which was up from the 2.016 million viewers a week ago. This number measured the top metered markets. 

    The first hour drew 2.147 million viewers while the second hour did 2.031 million viewers. For comparison, the first show of last week’s show did 2.036 million viewers while the second hour did 1.996 million viewers. 

    SmackDown pulled in a 0.50 rating in the 18-49 demos, the same from the 0.50 rating as last week’s show.

    WWE SmackDown Results (6/19): Matt Riddle Debuts, Bray Wyatt Returns

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-uQ5BdBEJ

  • Edge Continues His Storyline With Randy Orton Despite Injury Setback

    As promised, Edge made an appearance on Monday’s episode of Raw to provide an update on his future. 

    Of course, the WWE Hall of Famer is on the sidelines after he suffered a torn triceps injury in his latest match under the WWE banner. 

    During Raw, Edge appeared by sitting in a ring. He stated that Orton won their match and injured him, but he kicked out and kept fighting. He stated that Orton is full of BS and brought up Orton hitting him with a low blow. He said that he was disappointed that he didn’t see it coming and he didn’t do it first. Edge said it wouldn’t happen again. Because of the injury and not being able to pick up his daughters on Father’s Day, it showed him that he needed to wake up a side of him that he’s been gone for way too long. 

    Edge said that when Orton punted Christian in the head last week, Orton put the Rated PG Superstar to rest and woke up the side of him that will sink to any level to get what he wants. Edge vowed to make Orton pay for that and Orton has no idea what he has done because he woke up the evil inside of him, the Rated R Superstar. 

    The injury happened while doing re-takes for a singles match against Randy Orton at the WWE Backlash pay-per-view event.

    WWE used the “greatest match ever” tagline to further hype it. At the time of his injury, it was reported that he would be on the shelf for several months due to recovery time. 

  • WWE Title Match Set For Extreme Rules, Stars Change Brands

    The first match has been announced for the upcoming WWE Extreme Rules PPV.

    During the opening segment of Monday’s episode of RAW, WWE Champion Drew McIntyre came out for an in-ring promo only to be interrupted by Dolph Ziggler. 

    This is where Ziggler revealed that due to the trade involving AJ Styles being moved to Friday Night SmackDown, RAW was able to select two SmackDown stars. It ended up being Ziggler and Robert Roode being moved to the flagship show of WWE. 

    Later in the promo, Ziggler brought up how he’s owed a title match, and McIntyre redeeming himself after being fired from the company a few years ago. Now, the former friends turned foes will face off in a match. 

    In this same segment, Ziggler challenged McIntyre for the WWE Championship, which McIntyre accepted on the spot.

    As a result, they’ll wrestle at the Extreme Rules pay-per-view event on Sunday, July 19, 2020 in Orlando, Florida at the WWE Performance Center.

    Since moving to the SmackDown brand, Styles not only won the United States Title by beating Daniel Bryan in the tournament finals but also got into a new program. 

    He just lost to the debuting Matt Riddle on last week’s show and the expectation is that they’ll be feuding going forward. 

  • The Undertaker Discusses His 15 Year Contract With WWE

    The Undertaker signed a 15-year contract extension with WWE last year.

    The Undertaker recently spoke with Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated about the deal. While it’s a long deal, he made it known that it won\’t keep him in the ring for 15 more years.

    \”That extended contract is obviously not a contract that keeps me in the ring for 15 years,\” Taker said. \”It keeps the brand at home, and there are a lot of ways that Vince thinks I can contribute to the company after my days in the ring are done.\”

    Sunday\’s Chapter 5 of The Last Ride on the WWE Network ended with Taker stating that he had no desire to wrestle again, which many took as a hint at the possibility of retirement.

    The Undertaker will be 70-years-old the next time that his contract with WWE expires.

    Going back to 2018, it was reported that Taker was charging $25,000 per hour for non-WWE signing appearances. This new deal came after the non-WWE dates Taker was booking, which upset WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon. 

    It’s been reported McMahon made an offer to Taker that couldn’t refuse financially in August that led to him signing the deal. 

  • AJ Styles Thinks Having Undertaker Rematch At WrestleMania 37 Would Be Ideal

    AJ Styles is open to having a rematch with The Undertaker at WrestleMania despite the recent comments made by the legendary pro wrestler. 

    The former WWE Champion revealed during the fifth and final episode of his WWE Network docuseries that he has no desire to return to the ring again. This has caused many fans to think that he is retired. 

    Styles, who lost to Taker in a Boneyard Match at WrestleMania 36, did an interview with Sports Illustrated where he was asked whether a singles match against Taker is still in his mind. 

    He stated once they were told they were doing a Boneyard match, all the ideas that they had were thrown out the window because they weren’t going to work the same as the Boneyard Match was a fight. 

    “There is still hope The Undertaker is going to have one more match. You can’t blame him if he decides that this is it. I don’t know how he feels about it. I still have ideas of what we’d do in the ring. I’m going to keep them, I’m going to save them if he ever wants us to have that opportunity together in the ring. It’s all up to Taker, but I’m holding onto those spots.”

    Styles was then asked whether the end goal of the story would be to have a rematch at WrestleMania 37. He responded with, “it would be ideal.”

    Styles noted that they need to figure out if Taker wants to do one more because he doesn’t know. However, if Taker does then Styles would be willing to take that ride with him.

  • Mark Henry Appearing On ‘Steve Austin: The Broken Skull Sessions’

    The guest for the seventh episode of WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin’s WWE Network show is set and it’s Mark Henry who will be appearing. 

    The guest for the show, “Steve Austin: The Broken Skull Sessions,” was recently announced.

    On Monday, WWE confirmed via a post on Twitter that Austin’s next guest will be none other than the future WWE Hall of Famer. The episode premieres on WWE’s streaming service on Sunday, June 28 at 10 a.m. ET.

    In February, Austin had the chance to interview former WWE Champion The Big Show, which marked the third episode. Ric Flair, Bret Hart, Big Show, Bill Goldberg, and The Undertaker have also appeared on the show. Now, the seventh installment will see Mark Henryappearing.

    Henry has been with the company since 1996 and during his career, he has held three championships. The WWE World Heavyweight Title, ECW Title, and European Title. He was also a three-time Slammy Award winner.

    Henry’s last match came when he worked a Royal Rumble match at the Greatest Royal Rumble pay-per-view event back in April 2018. This was after 10 months of him confirming that his 21-year in-ring career was coming to an end.

  • WWE Backstage Shuts Down Production, Might Be Done For Good

    WWE Backstage as fans knows it didn’t even last a year in its current format. 

    John Ourand of Sports Business Journal was the first to report that there are changes coming at FS1 as WWE Backstage will reportedly no longer be produced weekly.

    The network is scaling back production on their boxing and WWE programming. As a result, FS1 will have double-digit job losses. 

    Pwinsider.com reports that FOX held a meeting on Monday to inform everyone working on the show that the series was done in its current format for now. There will not be a new episode airing on Tuesday, but instead, a rerun of an older episode will likely air.

    The belief is the show is done entirely – with an outside chance that it could be used for special programming down the line. Per the report, there is no plan for such a thing currently. 

    CM Punk\’s Future

    Regarding CM Punk, who worked as an analyst on the show, he remains under contract with FOX. Because of this, Punk won’t be migrating over to other WWE programming unless he signs a deal with WWE, which doesn’t seem likely at the moment. 

    WWE Backstage premiered on November 5, 2019, and has averaged in the 100,000-200,000 viewers range. Last week’s show had 175,000 viewers for the best viewership of the year, and the second-best in show history.

    Renee Young On When She Found Out About CM Punk’s WWE Backstage Return

  • Kurt Angle Talks How His Storyline With Jason Jordan Might Have Ended

    WWE Hall of Famer Kurt Angle recently did a Q&A on Facebook and commented on a number of interesting topics.

    During the session, a fan asked how his storyline with Jason Jordan was supposed to end. If you recall, Jordan had neck surgery in early 2018. 

    At the time, WWE announced that Jordan wouldn’t be able to return in time for WrestleMania 34. The procedure Jordan underwent is called a minimally invasive posterior cervical microdiscectomy.  

    Angle responded with, “I’d imagine that Jason and I would have wrestled at WrestleMania.”

    Clearly, that didn’t happen. Instead, WWE booked the pro wrestling legend in a feud with Baron Corbin that resulted in Angle losing his retirement match to the heel wrestler at WrestleMania 25 in 2019. 

    Jordan still hasn’t been cleared to return to in-ring action. Since then, the former NXT Tag Team Champion has been working as a producer for the company. 

    In January, it was reported that he was doing better but still had issues gripping and making a fist. It’s been reported by Dave Meltzer that the likelihood of Jordan wrestling again isn’t likely. 

  • Wade Barrett Says He Hasn’t Retired From Wrestling, Open To In-Ring Return

    Wade Barrett is keeping the possibility of a return to in-ring action open. 

    The former WWE star recently did an interview for the Wrestling Inc. Daily Podcast where he noted that while he has put more of a focus on his acting career, he still has the ambition to perform in the ring.

    \”I am not retired in any sense of the word, in terms of pro wrestling. I love doing commentary, and I love working with NWA, as that\’s been a goal of mine, for a long time,\” said Bennett. \”I started off in FCW working for Dusty Rhodes and being the color commentator down there in 2008 to 2009, and I\’ve always loved it, ever since. So, I\’m really enjoying working with NWA on that. Obviously, things are shut down at the moment, and I don\’t know when it\’s all coming back. But at some point, it will kick off again.

    He continued, \”In terms of in-ring, maybe at some point; if the right place, the right time, the right offer, comes in. Then, I can see myself dusting off the boots…I might need some new trunks, as they might have gotten thrown out, but I still have the boots.\”

    Barrett decided to leave WWE in 2016 and hasn’t wrestled a match since then. Part of that was due to his passion for acting as well as there not being many viable alternatives in terms of wrestling promotions in the United States. 

    Barrett has stayed in the pro wrestling business where he has worked as a wrestling commentator for various promotions.

  • Matt Riddle Makes In-Ring WWE SmackDown Debut

    After weeks of hype, Matt Riddle has made his in-ring debut on the main roster. 

    The former NXT star did so during Friday’s episode of SmackDown on FOX when he interrupted AJ Styles’ Intercontinental Title celebration in the opening segment. 

    He faced Styles in a non-title match that was taped earlier this week from Orlando, Florida at the WWE Performance Center. Riddle went over with his finisher. 

    The former UFC star wrapped up his successful run under the NXT banner when he competed in a Fight Pit match against Timothy Thatcher with special guest referee Kurt Angle during the May 27th episode of NXT. He lost the bout. 

    Just two nights later on SmackDown, WWE had the Hall of Famer Angle announce the main roster call up of the Riddle. the company had been promoting his arrival ever since with vignettes. 

    It turns out that WWE officials had a manager in mind for the new SmackDown star. WWE offered Angle to manage Riddle on the main roster, but Angle turned down the opportunity due to him being committed to an outside business. 

    Riddle has also stated that he thought the real money would have been in him attacking the Angle instead of being introduced by him.

  • Jack Gallagher Released By WWE

    Jack Gallagher is no longer under contract with WWE. 

    PWInsider.com reported that Gallagher was released on Friday. WWE announced the news via a statement, which you can read here: 

    “WWE has come to terms on the release of Jack Gallagher (Jack Claffey).”

    This comes after a story about him surfaced as part of the #SpeakingOut Movement. He joins a few names including Jordan Devlin, Ligero, Dave Lagana, Joe Coffey, Jim Cornette and his wife Stacey.

    A woman named Becky came out alleging the WWE Superstar got her drunk on New Years\’ Eve in 2014 after he poured straight spirits into her glass. This is when he allegedly made unwanted advances and wouldn’t take no for an answer.

    In her accusation, she claimed to have resisted his advances, but when she tried to push him off, he grabbed onto her. As a result, he hanged onto her skirt that caused it to rip. She left the party after that.

    Gallagher earned a place in the WWE Cruiserweight Classic in 2016, but was eliminated from the tournament by Akira Tozawa in his second-round match.

    Gallagher later worked in the Cruiserweight division and on its weekly television show, 205 Live. 

  • Michelle McCool Says She Didn’t Want The Undertaker’s WrestleMania Streak To End

    Michelle McCool sides with WWE fans over the belief that The Undertaker’s undefeated streak at WrestleMania shouldn\’t have ended.

    Of course, Taker suffered his first loss at the event in 2014 at WrestleMania 30 to Brock Lesnar, which at the time had shocked the world. 

    While doing an interview with Digital Spy, McCool noted that she didn’t want the streak to end, but understands that it was a business decision. Despite this, she was shocked that it was decided upon by WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon. 

    “The streak is just so big to me and as a fan being selfish, I didn’t want the streak to end like a lot of other people. Obviously, it’s business. There were no questions asked when they asked Mark to do it and obviously he’s a consummate professional. But it was shocking. I think I was just as shocked as a lot of people, it was so crazy.”

    The Undertaker’s most recent contest and possible last bout came at this year’s WrestleMania 36 pay-per-view event in a Boneyard Match against AJ Styles. The legendary pro wrestler went over the former WWE Champion. 

    Since that time, there’s been speculation as to whether this was the retirement match for “The Deadman.” Time will tell, but we could get that answer when the fifth and final episode of Taker’s docuseries on the WWE Network airs this Sunday. 

  • AEW Dynamite Viewership Improves, NXT Edges Closer (6/17)

    Viewership data is in for this week’s battle in the WWE NXT vs. AEW Dynamite Wednesday Night War.

    AEW won the night in total viewers and in the key 18-49 demo, but both shows were up. Here is the breakdown of the live and same-night DVR viewership, courtesy of ShowbuzzDaily:

    WWE NXT Viewership

    NXT on the USA Network averaged 746,000 viewers, up last week’s 673,000 In the 18-49 demo, they drew a 0.20 rating, up from 0.16 last week.

    The episode featured Women’s Tag Team Champions Bayley and Sasha Banks vs. Tegan Nox and Shotzi Blackheart, Tag Team Champions Imperium vs. Breezango, and Damian Priest vs. Killian Dain.

    AEW Dynamite Viewership

    AEW Dynamite on TNT was watched by 772,000 viewers, up from the 677,000 viewers last week. In the 18-49 demo, Dynamite pulled in a 0.28 rating, up from the 0.23 rating that the show did last week. 

    AEW Dynamite featured bouts such as Le Sex Gods (Chris Jericho and Sammy Guevara) vs. Best Friends, Billy Gunn vs. MJF, AEW TNT Champion Cody Rhodes vs. Ricky Starks, The Natural Nightmares (Dustin Rhodes and QT Marshall) vs. AEW Tag Team Champions Hangman Page and Kenny Omega, and Superbad Death Squad (Kip Sabian and Jimmy Havoc) vs. Young Bucks

  • WWE NXT Results (6/17): Title Matches, Top Stars Exchange Promos

    The June 17th, 2020 episode of WWE NXT aired live on the USA Network from Winter Park, Florida at Full Sail University. 

    WWE NXT Results (6/17)

    • NXT Tag Team Champions Imperium (Marcel Barthel & Fabian Aichner) (c) def. Breezango (Tyler Breeze & Fandango)
    • Damian Priest def. Killian Dain
    • Aliyah def. Xia Li
    • Dakota Kai (w/Raquel Gonzalez) def. Kayden Carter (w/Kacy Catanzaro)
    • Bronson Reed def. Leon Ruff.
    • Women’s Tag Team Champions Sasha Banks & Bayley def. Tegan Nox & Shotzi Blackheart

    Here are the takeaways from this week’s show:

    WWE NXT Tag Team Titles 

    \"\"

    NXT Tag Team Champions Imperium defended their titles against Breezango.

    It was a decent back and forth match that opened the show. WWE gave Fandango and Tyler Breeze quite a bit of offense. In the end, the champions retained the titles. 

    Indus Sher made their way out to make their presence known. However, they were interrupted by Danny Burch & Oney Lorcan as the match continues.

    A Triple Threat Match to determine the new #1 contender’s for the Tag Team Titles took place back on June 3rd as Breeze & Fandango battled The Undisputed Era (Bobby Fish & Roderick Strong) and Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch. The babyfaces went over to win the contest. 

    It’s clear that the majority of fans didn’t think Breezango would win and didn’t take them seriously, but it was a nice change and we got a title match out of it. 

    WWE Women\’s Tag Team Titles

    \"Sasha

    Tegan Nox and Shotzi Blackheart challenged Bayley and Sasha Banks for the WWE Women\’s Tag Team Titles. 

    WWE saved this contest for the main event of the show. It was a fun match with Bayley and Banks successfully retaining the titles. Post-match, Io Shirai came out and attacked both Bayley and Banks. They had a staredown to close out the show. 

    It was nice to see Bayley and Banks, who are NXT originals, come back to the yellow and black brand, but it’s not likely that many fans thought they would drop the titles to the makeshift team of Nox and Blackheart. 

    NXT doesn’t really have a tag team division in NXT so it appears they’ll go back to being singles stars. 

    Adam Cole Responds, Title Matches Galore

    \"Adam
    Adam Cole

    NXT Champion Adam Cole decided to respond to Karrion Kross’s challenge from last week’s show. Of course, last Wednesday’s show closed with Scarlett walking out to the ring and placed an hourglass in the ring then there was a Kross logo placed on the screen. 

    Cole did a promo backstage about how Kross tried to scare him but he’s not worried because he’s seen this film play out many times, but knows how it ends. It ends with him overcoming a challenger and standing tall as the NXT Champion. 

    This led to Keith Lee walking up and telling him that his time is coming to an end as NXT Champion. However, it won’t be Kross taking the title from Cole, it would be him. Lee smashed the hourglass and Cole walked away. 

    In the following segment, Cole did a promo in the ring to open the second hour. He said he’s never taken his reign for granted. He said Kross throwing his name out for a title shot doesn’t work. He put over Kross for beating Ciampa. 

    Cole addressed Lee’s threat and noted maybe he wants a second title. He likes the sound of champ-champ. This led to Lee coming out to do another straight promo segment with Cole, but Johnny Gargano came out for a promo. Gargano brought up coming after the NXT North American Title but questioned why he would stop there and thinks he should go after the NXT Title as well.

    Finn Balor followed and said they can stop being marks for themselves and go back to being a mark for him. Balor said that he’s never held the NXT North American Title and sent a warning to Lee about taking his title before telling Cole that he’s coming for his title. He called Cole a transitional champion. 

    William Regal appeared and announced Lee defending the title against Gargano and Balor next week. The winner of that match will take on Adam Cole in a Champion vs. Champion Winner Takes All Contest on July 8th. 

    Killian Dain Is Back

    \"\"

    In a return after a hiatus, Killian Dain took on Damian Priest in a singles match that served as the second bout of the night. 

    Dain controlled the majority of the match with Priest making a comeback in the later stages of it. It was a hard-hitting style between two big men with Priest going over in the end. 

    Dain hadn’t been seen since the March 25th episode of NXT and was absent since then. Up until his most recent hiatus, he had been working squash matches in order to build him up further as a monster. 

    He took a clean loss in this match, which only further shows how high WWE officials are of Priest. 

    Therapy For Roderick Strong

    \"\"

    We saw Adam Cole, Bobby Fish, and Roderick Strong in a limo where they were trying to get Strong to go see a therapist in order to get him over his fear of Dexter Lumis. 

    They tried to hype him up about how this therapist is the best in the world. It turns out that the therapist was Kyle O’Reilly, who was dressed up with glasses and a hat. 

    Strong detailed how he couldn’t stop thinking of Lumis and how he hates people staring at him.

    They showed him various pitches and asked Strong to describe what he saw. O’Reilly told Strong that he needed to face the trunk that is behind his fears of Lumis. They tried to get him to go into the trunk, but he ran away. 

    Cole said he thought he made progress but they needed to go get Strong. 

    https://twitter.com/WWE/status/1273419449341816833

  • Ricky Starks Answers Open Challenge In AEW Debut

    Ricky Starks is All Elite. 

    The former NWA star made his AEW debut on this week’s episode of Dynamite in Jacksonville, Florida at Daily’s Place on TNT. He did so by answering the open challenge set out by Cody Rhodes in the middle of the show. 

    After an in-ring promo by Rhodes and Arn Anderson, a video hyped Starks’ debut.

    This saw him challenge Rhodes for the AEW TNT Championship, which featured a back and forth contest that ended with “The American Nightmare” hitting his signature finisher, Cross Rhodes, for the win to allow him to retain the title. 

    Based on social media, Starks had an impressive performance in his first outing under the All Elite Wrestling banner. 

    https://twitter.com/AEWrestling/status/1273420682710470657
    https://twitter.com/AEWrestling/status/1273421112731451395
    https://twitter.com/AEWrestling/status/1273421449836015624

    Just last month, Starks announced his departure from the NWA and free agency status. Clearly, his time on the market didn’t last long. 

    Starks had been with the NWA since August of 2019. During his time with the NWA, he had been praised by many and seen as a rising prospect in the pro wrestling business. 

    https://youtu.be/ZQTFoYcR1I8

  • Top WWE Star Decided Against Working Wednesday\’s RAW Tapings

    The trend of WWE stars deciding against working TV tapings while the world deals with the coronavirus continue. 

    Kevin Owens did not attend Wednesday’s WWE RAW TV tapings, per a report at Fightful. Owens had communicated to WWE that he wouldn\’t be at the set of tapings on Wednesday morning.

    Owens\’ decision came just two days after it was revealed that a WWE developmental talent had tested positive for COVID-19 after working last Tuesday’s TV taping.

    The word going around backstage is that Owens expressed his decision respectfully and he was not pressured to participate once he spoke up.

    WWE is hoping to have Owens back by the next set of tapings. However, his status is unclear at this point. 

    Roman Reigns was the first star to decide against working the tapings and followed by Sami Zayn, who was eventually stripped of the Intercontinental Title. 

  • WWE Using Friends And Family At TV Tapings Is Start Of Plan To Have Fans In Attendance

    WWE continues to make plans in order to have fans attend their shows again. 

    Earlier this week we noted how WWE officials are preparing to host fans at events again by the end of this summer. There are several people in the company who are hoping to start in August. 

    Fast forward to Monday, WWE allowed friends and family to attend television tapings. There was also reports that local fans were allowed to be in attendance, but those reports were dismissed. 

    In an update, it was reported by Wrestling Inc that having limited fans is just the \”beginning\” phase of having full crowds again.

    The next phase would see NXT recruits be removed from being used as fans in order to use just family, friends, and a select group of fans who knew someone to be able to attend. NXT recruits would still have to be available for tapings if they needed more people.

    The third phase would be to have only fans in the audience with likely at least 50% capacity to show people watching at home that things are returning to normal and it\’s okay to attend live events again when the company holds shows. 

    Finally, the last stage in the phase would be a return to touring for at least TV and pay-per-view events in the fall.

  • Rusev Thought Vince McMahon Telling Him About Wrestling The Undertaker Was A Rib

    Rusev told a great story in a recent video that was posted on his Youtube channel involving Vince McMahon and The Undertaker. 

    The former WWE star took on the legendary pro wrestler in a Casket Match at the Greatest Royal Rumble event in 2018.

    Originally, WWE had wanted Rusev to face Taker at this show. However, plans changed with Chris Jericho being Taker’s opponent and then a third change was made with Rusev finally being booked against “The Deadman.”

    After putting over Taker and stating that not only was it great to wrestle Taker, but it was a dream come true, he recalled Vince McMahon telling him about the match. 

    “I thought it was a rib. I got called in the office by Vince. He said \’Miro, I got you working with The Undertaker in Saudi Arabia\’. I\’m like (laughs) and ‘I\’m winning right?\’ That\’s exactly what I said, that\’s what exactly my reaction was. Because I thought he was joking.”

    Rusev noted that he knew at that time he was nowhere near the level of being able to work with such a legendary star. While he had his Rusev Day gimmick going on at the time, he never thought he would wrestle Taker in Saudi Arabia in such a large crowd. 

    “So I said and ‘I\’m going over, right?’ He was like ‘hahaha.’ He looked at me kind of weird. I\’m like \’Alright sir, I\’ll see you next time\’\”

    \”Then I went out and Road Dogg goes, ‘why did you act like this?’ I\’m like \’what do you mean?\’ He\’s like ‘why would you say that?’ I\’m like \’well, he\’s joking with me, I would joke back with him, I\’m not gonna just sit there.\’ He\’s like ‘no that\’s not a joke, you are actually working Taker.’ I was like, \’no freaking way! I\’m such an a**hole\’ Yeah, it was a funny story.\”

    Rusev then brought up why he was pulled from the match. WWE wanted to turn him babyface and not have him drop a loss to Taker.

    Thus, he was pulled, but when the Crown Prince asked why Rusev wasn’t wrestling Taker, McMahon changed the plans for the third time. 

  • CM Punk Shares John Cena Won Big Match He Was Originally Planned To Win

    CM Punk shared an interesting story that he hadn’t told in recent memory that involves John Cena. 

    The former WWE Champion did so during Tuesday’s episode of WWE Backstage on FS1. The match was the Men’s Royal Rumble bout that took place at the pay-per-view event in 2008. 

    It turns out that Punk was supposed to win the contest. However, plans changed as WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon decided to have Cena win the contest instead. 

    This was a big surprise return at the time as Cena was out of action with a torn pectoral muscle at the time. However, Cena, who’s known to recover fast, made a quick turnaround and returned earlier than anyone anticipated.

    “I was supposed to win! I was supposed to win that Royal Rumble, then John Cena comes back after three months from a torn pec. Thanks a lot, John.”

    While plans for the winner of this contest did change, that didn’t stop WWE’s plans to push CM Punk as a top player in the company. Just months after the Royal Rumble event, WWE had him win the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania 24. 

    This allowed him to later cash in to become World Champion.