In recent years, WWE has renamed it WrestleMania Backlash. For 2023, the WrestleMania branding is being dropped for the upcoming event, which is Mania’s follow-up show.
WWE is also bringing back King of the Ring under the King and Queen of the Ring name on Saturday, May 27. WWE hasn’t used the tournament theme as a pay-per-view event since 2002. Instead, they’ve used it on TV.
Competition
It should be noted that the event will fall on Memorial Day weekend. AEW has held its Double Or Nothing pay-per-view event on this weekend and it will do so again. AEW President Tony Khan recently stated that fans should expect to travel to Las Vegas, Nevada, during Memorial Day weekend to see the show live.
The tournament was originally held on a single night. In later years, WWE spread out the opening round matches on television and saved the semi-finals and finals for the night of the event.
WWE is seemingly writing off Tegan Nox on this week’s episode of SmackDown, an episode that will feature the Elimination Chamber fallout for the SmackDown brand.
Nox returned to WWE TV on the December 2nd edition of SmackDown where she worked three TV matches that month. So far this year, she has only worked two TV matches including a win over Xia Li on January 13 and working this year’s 30-Woman Royal Rumble Match. Since returning in December, she worked several TV matches.
The Idea
Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select reports Nox is in town for the show and booked to do some sort of injury angle, although it’s unclear whether this is being done to write her off TV for a legitimate injury or not.
WWE has yet to announce anything for Sami Zayn or Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns. Here is the updated card for the show that will be held at the Ford Center in Evansville, IN
SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair & Rhea Ripley come face-to-face ahead of their WrestleMania 39 match.
Bray Wyatt\’s Firefly Funhouse
Rey Mysterio vs. Karrion Kross
Braun Strowman, Ricochet and Madcap Moss vs. Imperium
There is “definite interest” from Saudi Arabia about potentially buying WWE, a decision made by Vince McMahon when he forced his way back into the company last month as the Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors ahead of the next media rights deal being made.
Dave Meltzer reported in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that “We know someone involved on the Saudi side about the sale this past week and there is definite interest.”
Saudi’s Plan
Meltzer noted that WWE is not considered as important as Formula 1, which is something Saudi Arabia wanted, or LIV Golf, for Saudi. However, Saudi does want to buy properties in the number one in their market or be in the top five. They also have an interest in the EPL, the biggest and most well-known soccer league in the world, as well as the highest-profile soccer team in the world, Manchester United.
Meltzer pointed out that Saudi is looking to buy franchises that have a worldwide fan base and they are not looking at them for revenue or profitability as they view it as simply getting publicity for their country and normalizing the world views of their country.
If Endeavor, the parent company of UFC, bought WWE they would focus on growing revenue and turning bigger profits.
Meltzer mentioned that if Saudi bought the company it would change the salary structure just like they did with golf as they pay way more than the PGA tour.
Meltzer added, “While those in WWE have told me they prefer to sell to a media company, most stories indicate media companies aren’t looking for that level of a purchase because of uncertainty over the future changes in consumption.”
If WWE is sold to Saudi then it raises questions regarding the future of Sami Zayn, who hasn’t worked any of the WWE events in Saudi Arabia since the partnership began in 2018 due to his Syrian descent.
WWE has added SmackDown star Ronda Rousey to the lineup for Monday’s episode of Raw.
Both WWE’s Events website and the Van Del Arena website are advertising Rousey for the show from Grand Rapids, Michigan. As of this writing, Shayna Baszler is not currently listed for the show, although that doesn’t mean she won’t be there with her good friend.
As of this writing, WWE has not officially announced Rousey for the show. WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Dakota Kai and IYO SKY are scheduled to defend against Becky Lynch and WWE Hall of Famer Lita on Monday’s Raw.
The Angle
It’s been reported that Rousey and Baszler are expected to challenge Kai and SKY for the titles at WrestleMania 39 this April so it’s possible that WWE shoots an angle to set up the future title match on this show.
Here is the updated card for Monday’s episode:
WWE Women\’s Tag Team Champion Damage CTRL (Dakota Kai & IYO SKY) vs. Becky Lynch & Lita
Asuka vs. Carmella
Candice LeRae vs. Piper Niven
Will Brock Lesnar show up and accept Omos\’ challenge to a match at WrestleMania?
Cameron Grimes is on the sidelines while waiting to see what WWE comes up with creatively for him on the main roster.
The WWE NXT star has not wrestled since November 8, 2022, when he lost a singles match to Joe Gacy on an episode of Joe Gacy. WWE originally planned for him to be called up after the feud ended. However, that hasn’t happened.
Dave Meltzer reported on Wrestling Observer Radio that WWE creative has nothing for him and Grimes is waiting for that to change, but he is done with NXT.
Creative has Nothing for You
“Cameron Grimes was finishing up in NXT because he was being called to the main roster and right now what\’s going on is that they are waiting for an idea on the main roster so he\’s in limbo,” Meltzer stated (H/T to F4Wonline.com). “He\’s finished with NXT, he\’s supposed to be on the main roster but they don\’t have a story for him so they haven\’t debuted him yet and they\’re waiting to come up with a story for him.”
In October on an episode of Main Event, Grimes beat Akira Tozawa. Since then, he’s only wrestled two matches.
Before going to WWE, he found success in Impact Wrestling as he is a three-time X-Division Champion, and once won the TNA Tag Team Titles along with Brian Myers. In WWE, he’s a former NXT North American Champion.
All Elite Wrestling has announced new matches for their upcoming Revolution pay-per-view event on March 5, 2023, at the Chase Center in San Francisco, California during this week’s Dynamite.
Jamie Hayter will defend her AEW Women\’s Championship against Saraya, and Ruby Soho in a triple threat match. This comes after Soho’s loyalty has been the focal point of a storyline between Saraya and Toni Storm as outsiders, a play on their WWE history, against hometown talent such as Hayter and Britt Baker. Now, Soho will have to decide which side she’s on.
Also confirmed for the show is Chris Jericho vs.Ricky Starks in a bout where \”everyone\” will be banned from ringside. This comes after Starks beat Jericho last month on Dynamite while Jericho scored a victory against Starks and Action Andretti in a recent tag team bout.
For the last several weeks, Starks has since been feuding with the Jericho Appreciation Society.
AEW Revolution Card
AEW World Heavyweight Champion MJF vs. Bryan Danielson – Sixty Minute Iron Man Match.
AEW Tag Team Champions The Gunn Club vs. The Acclaimed vs. Jeff Jarrett & Jay Lethal vs. TBA
AEW TNT Champion Samoa Joe vs. Wardlow.
Jon Moxley vs. Hangman Page – Texas Death Match.
Chris Jericho vs. Ricky Starks – Everyone is banned from ringside
AEW Women\’s World Champion Jamie Hayter vs. Ruby Soho vs. Saraya
Ric Flair has found success in a lot of different ventures throughout his career, whether it\’s pro wrestling, his To Be The Man podcast, and cannabis line, Ric Flair Drip.
The WWE Hall of Famer has also made a significant amount of money on Cameo.
The 16-time world champion was discussing his promo skills on a recent edition of his To Be The Man podcast when he noted that he was so good at speaking that he made a lot of money while doing two-minute messages on the Cameo platform before revealing that he made $700,000 over 21 months.
Show Me The Money
“Listen, I made $700,000 doing Cameos. They’re just a minute long [laughs]. That’s just talking for two minutes. That is 21 months,\” Flair said.
The legendary wrestler proceeded to show the camera the front of his phone that revealed he had made $669,000 on Cameo. He joked with co-host Conrad Thompson about how fans were saying that Flair returned to the ring last July at Ric Flair\’s Last Match in 2022 because he needed the money.
Flair\’s most recent appearance on WWE television came when he introduced his daughter, Charlotte, on the Raw 30 Anniversary show.
AEW has fans talking, and it’s not just about the important announcement that AEW President Tony Khan will make on this week’s episode of Dynamite as something new is coming to the promotion
All Elite Wrestling aired a vignette aired for \”QTV\” with the note that it is coming soon during the February 21 episode of AEW Dark.
The promotion didn’t provide any further details on what QTV is, including whether AEW will keep this exclusive to its weekly streaming shows (Dark and Dark: Elevation) or if it will make its way to their weekly television programs (Dynamite on TBS and Rampage on TNT). Check it out below:
Roman Reigns will seemingly miss a notable WWE premium live event this summer.
For the first time in almost 21 years, the company will host a special from London in the United Kingdom with Money in the Bank from the O2 Arena on Saturday, July 1st. They will also hold a SmackDown episode from the same venue the night before.
This will mark the first WWE special in London since May 2002 with that year’s Insurrextion event and just the second time that one of WWE’s ‘Big 5’ shows will be hosted outside of the US or Canada. The 2002 show was a PPV event that only aired in the UK.
Roman Reigns to Miss MITB?
Tickets go on sale this week and fans have noticed that Reigns is not being advertised for the show on WWE’s website. He’s also not featured on the poster for the show either.
Kevin Owens, Drew McIntyre, Seth Rollins, Becky Lynch, Bianca Belair, Charlotte Flair, and Cody Rhodes are advertised for the show. It’s possible that Reigns will be added to the show later on. However, one would figure that WWE would want to advertise him when tickets go on sale to sell the most seats possible now.
The last PLE event held in the UK by WWE was Clash at the Castle in Wales this past September, which saw him retain his Undisputed WWE Universal Championship against Drew McIntyre.
Reigns most recently retained the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship against Sami Zayn at Elimination chamber and is slated to take on Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 39.
AEW will be having an “after party” following this week’s episode of Dynamite that will feature a DJ set, appearances by wrestlers, and more.
All Elite Wrestling holds the show from the Footprint Center in Phoenix, AZ on Wednesday night. AEW’s Swerve Strickland announced on Twitter that rapper Mega Ran would be performing at the Cobra Arcade Bar after AEW Dynamite.
Ran does have a history with the promotion as he provided music for AEW in the past for two of its events – AEW Fyter Fest in 2019 and AEW Revolution in 2021.
Ran performed his track “Going to the Garden” before being confronted by Bully Ray at the co-promoted ROH and NJPW event, G1 Supercard, at Madison Square Garden in 2019.
The Undertaker has dealt with his fair share of injuries throughout his wrestling career.
The WWE Hall of Famer recently detailed how he suffered a concussion, a broken nose, and issues with his vision in a match with Rey Mysterio thanks to Myster’s butt crushing his face.
During an appearance on the Hawk vs Wolf podcast, the legendary wrestler explained how he suffered orbital bone damage during a WWE match with Mabel in 1995. This is where he revealed that if he got hit in the head again there was a good chance he could’ve lost his eye.
\”The doctor goes, \’you\’ve lost about 50 percent of your orbital floor\’. \’Excuse me?\’ \’You need to go home and find an ophthalmologist and a surgeon\’. Come to find out, I ended up losing 90% of my orbital floor. My optic nerve is setting on a jagged piece of bone. If I got hit on the right side of my head again, there is a good chance I would have lost my eye. Took two surgeons, they go in, take out all the bone fragments, and they put in a fake one.”
Rey Mysterio’s Backside
Several years later, Taker found himself wrestling Mysterio in May 2010 on an episode of SmackDown in a World Heavyweight Title number one contender match. Taker took damage when Rey hit a senton move.
\”Rey Mysterio, tiny guy, sweetheart of a guy, he ended up jumping off the top rope, and his ass was supposed to hit me in the chest, but it hit me right in the face. It was a bony ass. Bony ass, right on the bridge of my nose. He lands, I have all of his weight on my head, I hit the mat and blew out the other one. I broke my nose and I was concussed. It\’s hard being injured by an anus. My nose was broke, I fixed my nose right there, I just squeezed my nose back. The second one, to this day and it\’s probably been 15 years, I still have double vision\”.
Because of the injury, Taker had to take three months off and couldn\’t compete for the World title as expected.
Kurt Angle is slated to undergo the knife again, this time on his back, after years of pro wrestling.
The WWE Hall Of Famer walked away from the wrestling business in 2019 after successful runs in WWE and Impact Wrestling. With WWE, he was a six-time World Champion, while in TNA, he doubled that number.
His retirement match happened when he lost to Baron Corbin at WrestleMania 35, a match that Vince McMahon pushed for as Angle wanted to wrestle John Cena instead. Angle dealt with health issues for years after winning a gold medal with a broken neck. He also broke it in 2003.
While speaking on The Kurt Angle Show, Angle stated that he\’s getting a procedure on his back done on March 21, where the doctor is going to clean his back out. The pain in his back also affects his leg.
The Surgery
\”On March 21, I\’m having it done, the day after my vacation. All they\’re doing, they\’re not going to do any fusion or anything like that, thank God. They\’re going to clean it out. They\’re going to clean all the arthritis out because I have a nerve going down my leg, and it\’s bothered me, and there\’s pain in my lower back. So they\’re going to clean all that stuff out, take the bone chips out and the calcium and stuff like that. He said I should be good to go after that. I\’ve had a lot of damage done to my back, but it\’s not to the point where I need fusion,\” Angle said.
The doctor has told him the surgery won’t get rid of all of the pain in his back, but it will help out with pain run down his leg.
The February 21, 2023 episode of WWE NXT aired live on the USA Network from Orlando, Florida at the Capitol Wrestling Center.
WWE NXT Results
Ilja Dragunov def. Trick Williams.
The DYAD def. Chase U.
Gallus def. Malik Blade & Edris Enofe.
Tony D\’Angelo def. Von Wagner.
Alba Fyre def. Ivy Nile
NXT Champion Bron Breakker def. Jinder Mahal
Here are the takeaways from this week’s show:
NXT Champion Bron Breakker vs. Jinder Mahal
NXT Champion Bron Breakker vs. Jinder Mahal took place.
WWE set up this bout last week when Breakker was about to call out Trick Williams only for Mahal to interrupt and told him he would become NXT Champion, leading to the match being booked.
The main event match saw the Creed Brothers brawl with Saurav and Veer to the backstage area. Bron blocked Mahal’s finisher and hit a spear for the win.
Post-match, Grayson Waller took over the TV truck and invited Shawn Michaels to appear on the Waller Effect next week.
Indi Hartwell vs. Jacy Jayne
Indi Hartwell vs. Jacy Jayne in a singles match took place.
Jayne gave an explanation of her reasons for turning against her Toxic Attraction partner Gigi Dolin two weeks ago. She stressed how tired she was of playing the role of the third wheel. Jayne claimed that she was the last lady left in Toxic Attraction and that she was the talk of the town. Hartwell responded to Jayne\’s message later in the show and made it obvious that she wouldn\’t just skip to the front of the line that quickly.
The match took place in the second hour of the show with Jayne getting most of the offense before putting her away with her finisher. Post-match, Dolin returned and attacked Jayne.
Ilja Dragunov wrestled Trick Williams on this show.
Dragunov had been out since October due to an injury, but he made a comeback on NXT two weeks ago and cost JD McDonagh his bout with Carmelo Hayes. he was en route to the ring. Williams was defeated by Dragunov, and the next week, the former NXT UK Champion was declared eliminated by Hayes\’ hype man. Williams ambushed Dragunov from behind after McDonagh caused a distraction, setting up their match for the next week.
JD McDonaugh came out and joined commentary. The opening contest came to a close when Dragunov went over with his finisher.
Chase U (Andre Chase & Duke Hudson) vs. The Dyad (Jagger Reid & Rip Fowler) was booked.
It had a lead-in of Tyler Bate doing an in-ring promo thanking the fans for supporting him on his journey. hase U saved Bate from Schism, who were about to attack him. Ava Raine played mind games with Thea Hail at ringside leading to the heels hitting their tag team finisher to Hudson.
It’s been said by countless people over the years that when you work in WWE whether that be talent or staff, you have to walk on eggshells to avoid getting any heat that will lead to you being put in the dog house or getting fired.
This has been the atmosphere for years due to Vince McMahon being in charge. Once Triple H took over creative and Stephanie McMahon was named co-CEO last summer, it was said that the atmosphere improved and things were looser backstage as it comes across as more of a family atmosphere than a corporate environment.
McMahon returned to WWE as the Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors last month with the intent of selling the company ahead of WWE\’s media rights deal coming up.
The Mood
PWInsider\’s Mike Johnson reports that the mood backstage has begun to change as McMahon continues to work towards a sale and the uncertainty of what will happen should a sale go through has led to \”waning morale.\”
Johnson described things backstage as the eggshells starting to return and the \”unbridled energy\” is fading from where it started when Triple H and Stephanie McMahon took power.
Although he doesn’t hear this as much from wrestlers, it does come from those who work backstage at shows. While things are not as terrible as things once were, they know changes will come if a sale goes through.
Chelsea Green made her return to WWE at the Royal Rumble in January and she has been appearing on Monday Night Raw since then with her new Karen gimmick, which has gained her attention.
She wasn’t seen this week on television, and there is a good reason for that absence.
Fightful Select reported today that Green was kept off Raw n this week because she couldn’t travel to Canada until her green card situation is figured out. WWE stated in an angle on the broadcast that Green was sent to Ottawa, Illinois instead of Ottawa, Canada as a way to bridge the gap.
\”With absolutely NO help from WWE management, I found my way out of Ottawa, IL and into a city that\’s more my style!\” the WWE star tweeted. \”Jokes on you, Adam Pearce … but neither of us will be laughing when I pay you a visit about this.\”
The Report
Green is currently landlocked and unable to return to Canada. The report noted “Chelsea is still waiting for her Green card, and then will be able to return. Green has been landlocked for months, dating back to last Summer.”
Instead of being at Monday Night Raw, Green was with her husband, Matt Cardona, in New York City for the screening of The Last Match: A Pro Wrestling Rock Musical.
Because Green is living in the US while on a work visa from Canada, if she went back into Canada while having visa issues then she wouldn’t be allowed to get back into the US.
Booker T has weighed in on the possibility of AEW’s Kenny Omega going to WWE.
As previously reported, some in AEW have overheard the promotion’s founder Tony Khan say that Omega has substantial injury time that “could be” added to his deal if he decides to extend it this year.
Those in AEW don’t believe the injury time has been added yet. Several in WWE believe that they can land Omega as it’s been said Omega had a positive relationship with WWE.
On his latest Hall Of Fame podcast, the WWE Hall Of Famer commented on the reports of WWE being interested in signing the former AEW World Heavyweight Champion.
Booker T on Kenny Omega
Booker T thinks while it would be a big loss for All Elite Wrestling, they could recover from Omega’s departure and Omega could be a big star in WWE
\”I don\’t know how many years Kenny Omega has left in the ring. WWE would make Kenny Omega\’s star shine brighter than any other place he ever could be in. If Omega was to sign with WWE, he would likely be presented as one of their biggest stars and potentially work at WrestleMania.
Booker continued: \”If you don\’t work at WrestleMania, you know throughout your career, you missed out on something. I can understand why Kenny Omega would want to mix it up with AJ Styles, two of the best at what they do, at WrestleMania.\”
Omega is currently an AEW Trios Champion along with The Young Bucks.
In February 2021, Paul Wight aka The Big Show, shocked a lot of people when he left WWE after being with the company for 20 years for AEW.
Since then, he has mainly worked as an announcer on AEW Dark: Elevation, although he has worked a handful of matches.
He made his in-ring debut at All Out, where he beat QT Marshall. Since then, he’s only worked three other matches, all of them happening on Dark Elevation.
Since August 2022, the former WWE Champion has been recovering from a knee replacement procedure, which kept him from competing inside of the squared circle. During that time, he has continued his duties as a commentator on AEW Dark: Elevation episodes.
The Journey
While doing a new interview with Metro UK, Wight revealed that the procedure kept him in a wheelchair for eleven weeks.
\”Well, I spent 11 weeks in a wheelchair because I was waiting for them to build the implant for my knee because of my size. I had crushed all the bone in the knee, I was bleeding into my shin. So, I’ve got a good pain tolerance, but when I say I rode the tire down to the rim, that’s exactly what I did. But, luckily I still have all my ligaments in that knee, everything’s good there, it’s a nice, brand new titanium joint so it’s good for 35 years. So, I can parachute if I want to – not that I’ll ever jump out of an airplane, we all saw the movie Operation Dumbo drop, I don’t think that’s me, we’re good!\”
It looks like Dave Bautista will get his moment to be honored by WWE for all of his accomplishments and success with the company.
The former WWE World Heavyweight champion had been slated to go in 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic nixed that. The Class of 2020 inductees got their ceremony the following year and was paired with the 2021 class as it was pre-taped inside the virtual WWE ThunderDome.
Previous Induction
Bautista decided to pull out of the 2021 ceremony “due to previous obligations.” Just last month, the former WWE star told ComicBook.com that he did not know if he would be inducted this year but was hoping he would.
Wrestling News Premium, WrestlingNews.co’s Patreon account reported today, “the word going around in WWE is that Dave Bautista will be the headliner at this year\’s WWE Hall Of Fame.”
Per the report, those they spoke with in the company believe that both sides wanted to hold off on his induction as there wouldn’t be fans in attendance to hear his speech, something he wanted to do in front of fans.
It’s still unclear when they will make the announcement nor who else will be going into the class.
WWE had plans in place to bring back The Demon version of Finn Balor, but it didn\’t end up happening.
It was originally reported by WrestlingNews.co in December that WWE was going to do Edge vs. Balor at the Royal Rumble as a way to further the Judgment Day vs. Edge feud that has been going on for almost a year now.
Original Plans
However, that was nixed due to Edge being away with a filming project and his schedule not allowing him to make appearances on WWE TV leading up to the bout.
Originally, WWE wanted to do a Hell in a Cell match at the show. Fighful Select provided more details on WWE’s plans for The Demon, Balor’s alter ego, to make a return based on internal plans.
People that Fightful spoke with “felt as if the Demon persona didn\’t fit during the current iteration of Judgment Day, and were against it in this situation.”
There were others who felt the match would have needed something special and Balor portraying the Demon would’ve done just that.
Although Balor has used the persona seven times in WWE on the main roster, he last portrayed it when he lost to WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns at WWE Extreme Rules last year.
Eric Bischoff gave his thoughts on the beef between Tony Khan and Ariel Helwani during the latest episode of his 83 Weeks Podcast.
It all started when the AEW President tweeted last Friday that Helwani is a fraud for being in the crowd at WWE SmackDown in Montreal. Helwani responded by calling Khan, ‘The Snowman.’
Helwani has known WWE\’s Nick Khan for several years because Nick once served as Helwani\’s agent. Because of this, some of Helwani\’s critics have said say that he is biased in favor of WWE.
Also, Helwani openly attacked the president of the AEW for refusing to answer some of his questions when he spoke with Khan in October.
Bischoff’s Thoughts
\”I was disappointed to see that. Look, I\’ve heard a lot of the same rumors and I\’ve heard them from people that are in AEW, to be blunt, and I don’t put any stock in them. I think it\’s bad for him, no matter who you are, unless you were sitting down and watch someone, anyone, actually doing something, whether it\’s snorting a line of blow or, you know, beating their wife, or whatever, unless you witness it with your own eyes, shut the f**k up.”
Bischoff thinks starting rumors like that is a bad reflection on the person and he doesn’t listen to that type of talk.
\”It\’s just bad. Bad. You don\’t want to do that to people. I\’ve had it done to me. There’s no reason for it. Tony is inviting a lot of this criticism. He acts like a petulant child in the way he responds, and his response to Ariel in the crowd was a petulant child whose feelings were hurt because somebody took his toy away from him. I mean, it\’s just so absolutely childish. I think that\’s a reflection, at least in my mind, of who Tony Khan is. He\’s immature. He is a child with a vanity project. He\’s passionate.”
Bischoff stated that he’s not taking that away from him, but thinks the way that Khan reacts to things further gives off a negative impression of who he is.
He added, “Tony should have never reacted the way he did to Ariel being out there.”
Jon Moxley is no longer set to appear as planned at the Scrappermania event by Ireland\’s Over The Top Wrestling.
The top AEW star had been advertised for the show on March 17, but the promotion confirmed today that he had been pulled. In addition to him wrestling Trent Seven, he was also slated to do a meet & greet with fans.
This turns out to take place the day before AEW’s House Rules live event on March 18 in Troy, Ohio, Moxley\’s home State. As a result, All Elite Wrestling pulled Moxley from the show so he could work their event.
The Announcement
However, as a make-good, AEW is sending Eddie Kingston and another star to the event. The promotion issued the following statement on Twitter:
“OTT have announced their first ever FanFest for Scrappermania 7. Due to circumstances out of their control, Jon Moxley will no longer be available to appear. Eddie Kingston, a 2nd unnamed AEW star, will appear along with Santino Marella, Davey Richards, Big Damo and more.”
At the house show presented by AEW, the promotion is advertising Moxley, Britt Baker, Orange Cassidy and more for it. The former AEW World Heavyweight champion will wrestle Evil Uno on this week’s Dynamite episode.
Other bouts confirmed for the show include a tag team battle royale for a spot in the Tag Team Title match at Revolution, AEW All-Atlantic Champion Orange Cassidy vs. Wheeler Yuta, The Acclaimed vs. Lee Moriarty & Big Bill, and more.
Sami Zayn and Roman Reigns had their highly anticipated bout at this year’s WWE Elimination Chamber premium live event when “The Tribal Chief” made his latest defense as Undisputed WWE Universal Champion.
The match opened with a long staredown before they looked around at the crowd. After tossing him to the floor, Zayn hit an outside dive. Reigns cut him off with a right hand. While the beatdown was going on, Reigns was talking trash about Zayn to Zayn’s wife. Zayn then made a comeback. Zayn with the superman punch then a big boot for two. Reigns cut off a DDT attempt with an uppercut.
Zayn avoided the spear and Reigns went through the barricade. Zayn hit the blue thunder bomb for 2 once in the ring. The referee was taken out by accident and Jimmy Uso came out to hit Zayn with superkicks. Reigns hit a spear after Zayn knocked Jimmy off the apron. After the second referee was knocked down, they did double superman punches. As Reigns was about to hit Zayn with a chair, Jey Uso showed up. Zayn accidentally speared Jey and Reigns hit Zayn with a chair. Reigns retained with a spear.
Kevin Owens came out to make the save for Zayn in a post-match beatdown. Owens with a stunner to Reigns then one to Jimmy. Owens with a powerbomb to Jimmy through the announce table. Owens with a stunner to Paul Heyman. Zayn laid out Reigns with the big boot in the corner to end the show.
After months of embracing him into The Bloodline, Zayn finally turned on The Bloodline at the Royal Rumble after Reigns retained the Undisputed WWE Universal Title over Kevin Owens. The Bloodline beat down Owens after the match. Reigns was going to hit him with a chair, only for Zayn to stop him. Reigns wanted Zayn to hit Owens with the chair and Zayn refused to do it. Zayn hit Reigns in the back. The Bloodline beat down Zayn, except for Jey Uso, who walked out.
Reigns will make his next defense as the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion against Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 39.
WWE stacked the deck in storyline against Austin Theory when he put his United States Title on the line against Seth Rollins, Bronson Reed, Johnny Gargano, Damian Priest, and Montez Ford in an Elimination Chamber Match at the themed PLE on Saturday night.
The match opened with Rollins and Gargano. Theory was the third star in only to be beaten down by Rollins and Gargano. Priest was the fourth star in which he hit a front senton to Gargano over the top rope. Rollins with falcon arrow to Priest for 2. Reed came in as the fifth star and Ford was the last to enter.
Ford climbed the fence to the top and jumped off to take everyone out. Reed was eliminated after taking everyone’s finisher. Gargano did a hurricanrana to Rollins off the top of a pod. Gargano was eliminated by Priest with the razor’s edge. Priest was sent packing after Rollins and Ford did an overcastle/powerbomb double team move. Ford was eliminated by Theory after Ford took the stomp by Rollins. Moments later, Logan Paul came out after Ford was taken to the back by medical and hit a stomp to Rollins allowing Theory to hit his finisher for the win.
WWE held qualifying matches for the competitors in the match. Reed defeated Dolph Ziggler, Gargano defeated Baron Corbin, Rollins defeated Chad Gable, Priest pinned Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford pinned Elias to advance.
Theory is reportedly slated to wrestle John Cena at WrestleMania 39 in April.
What are your thoughts on Theory retaining the United States Title? Was this the right call by WWE officials? Sound off in the comment section.
Mercedes Moné, formerly known as Sasha Banks, is outside the WWE bubble now that she is an NJPW talent.
Moné walked out of WWE last May with Naomi due to creative differences and was on hiatus for the rest of 2022 while negotiating her WWE release. She became free and clear of WWE last month before officially signing with New Japan Pro Wrestling.
Moné made her promotional debut last month at Wrestle Kingdom, where she confronted KAIRI, setting up their IWGP Women’s Title match at Saturday’s Battle in the Valley event.
While speaking with Marc Raimondi of ESPN, Moné was asked about a possible return to WWE one day.
“I guess people like to say ‘never say never.\’’ You never know in life. I never knew life would take me here, but I always follow my heart so wherever my heart takes me is where I’m going to go.”
When asked whether returning to WWE is a greater chance of happening than fighting UFC’s megastar Amanda Nunes, Moné responded, “Probably the same chances.”
WWE has signed another independent star and that’s Colby Corino.
On Saturday, Cassidy Haynes of Bodyslam reported that Colby Corino has signed with the company. Per the report, Corino is expected to report to the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida where he will work in NXT as early as March.
Where It Started
Last month, Corino announced that he was a free agent after finishing his run with the National Wrestling Alliance. Corino made his NWA debut during the tapings for The Circle Squared in 2019, but wasn\’t brought back until 2021.
It was reported by Hayes in December that WWE was interested in Corino and he was slated to travel to the training facility to do a tryout with the company once he was free and clear of the NWA.
As of this writing, WWE has not confirmed Corino signing with the promotion.
Many fans will recognize the name as Colby is the son of Steve Corino, who currently works for WWE as a trainer/producer for the NXT brand.
Colby last wrestled on January 22 at Catalyst Wrestling Rock The Bell House when he faced Homicide in a Last Man Standing match but came up short.
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