SEScoops

Author: Andrew Ravens

  • Bobby Lashley Retains WWE United States Title at SummerSlam

    WWE United States Champion Bobby Lashley made his latest title defense against Theory at SummerSlam. 

    Theory jumped him before the match. The match was a typical big man small man match. Lashley missed a spear and ate the turnbuckle. The finish saw Lashley catch him and hit his finisher. It was a short match. 

    Theory lost the United States Title at Money in the Bank to Lashley, who went over after reversing the ATL and applying the hurt lock, scoring the submission victory.

    The following Monday night on Raw, Theory stated that after he won the United States Championship at SummerSlam, then he would beat whoever was left standing after the Undisputed WWE World Heavyweight title match to become the biggest champion in company history.

    Time will tell whether WWE continues this feud or goes into a different direction heading into the Clash at the Castle pay-per-view event on September 3. 

    What are your thoughts on Bobby Lashley retaining the United States Title? Was this the right call by WWE officials? Sound off in the comment section.

  • Logan Paul Wins his First Singles Match at WWE SummerSlam

    Expectations were high among fans for Logan Paul in his singles debut when he took on The Miz at Saturday’s WWE SummerSlam event from Nissan Stadium.

    The match featured Paul doing some basic moves including a fireman\’s takedown early before hitting a moonsault off the apron. Miz with a codebreaker from the middle rope. Paul with a blockbuster off the rope for 2. Paul with a crossbody then a standing moonsault for 2. Paul hit a Phenomenal Forearm. Paul hit an outside dive to send Miz through the announce table. Paul went over the Skull Crushing Finale. 

    Paul made his in-ring debut at WrestleMania 38 where he teamed with The Miz against the Mysterios (Dominik and Rey). Post-match, Miz turned on him by hitting him with the skull crushing finale. WWE reportedly made a promise to Paul ahead of the match that he would be a babyface as he wanted to portray that role instead of being a natural heel.

    On the July 18th edition of raw, Pail appeared on Miz TV and wanted an answer regarding his SummerSlam challenge. Miz ignored him and show footage of their match. Paul showed footage of Miz turning on him. After Paul insinuated that Miz had “tiny balls”, Miz accepted the challenge.

    Paul signed a multi-year deal with WWE that will see him work several matches. During the signing, Paul said he was coming after The Miz, who ignored the warning and instead suggested the two continue their tag team.

  • Bayley & Dakota Kai Return to Join Forces With Io Shirai at WWE SummerSlam

    Becky Lynch was the latest star to step up and challenge WWE Raw Women’s Champion Bianca Belair for the title. However, the bigger news was Bayley and Dakota Kai also made their return to create a faction with Io Shirai. 

    The title match at SummerSlam opened the show. Lynch hit a leg drop to Belair while on the barricade. Lynch was favoring her right arm.  Belair countered a dive by Lynch from the top rope into a powerbomb. Lynch hit diamond dust for a near fall. Belair hit the KOD on the floor. Lynch pulled her off the middle rope and hit the man handle slam for 2. The finish saw Belair reverse the man handle slam with a Spanish fly and hit the KOD for the win. 

    Post-match, Bayley walked out to the ring to a great ovation, but was still a heel. Dakota Kai, who was released in April, and Io Shirai, who was believed to be leaving WWE with her contract expiring next month, came out. They all stood together before having a staredown with Lynch and Belair. 

    Bayley had been on the sidelines with a torn ACL since last July. The injury happened when she was chain wrestling in the ring with another WWE star at the Performance Center. She had to pull out of her scheduled I Quit Match with Belair for the SmackDown Women’s Title at the Money In The Bank pay-per-view.

    At last year’s SummerSlam, Lynch returned after maternity leave as a surprise replacement for Sasha Banks in a SmackDown Women\’s title match where she beat Belair in under 30 seconds to win the title. They rematched at WrestleMania this year over the Raw Women\’s title, where Belair defeated Lynch. 

  • Triple H: “I\’ve Got a Clean Bill of Health. I\’m 100%”

    Triple H is back full-time with WWE following his health issues last year. While speaking with the media on Friday at the WWE tryouts in Nashville, Triple H talked about being Head of Creative and Head of Talent Relations for WWE following Vince McMahon\’s resignation. 

    All of this is happening more than a year after being rushed to the hospital due to heart failure. 

    \”I appreciate you asking. I feel great. A glitch in the road. Luckily for me, it was caught, right? It took a little bit to get over it, get past it. I\’m over it. I\’ve got a clean bill of health. I\’m a hundred percent.\” I’m very aware of it. I’m very aware of what’s important in life and your family and everything else. For more, I approach it a little bit differently now.” 

    Triple H then joked about how he realized that sleep is good for him and encouraged everyone to try it. 

    “I’m back, I’m 100%, I’m ready to go, I’m ready to tear through this and put on a big pair of shoes. I have a new appreciation for life. It\’s precious, it doesn\’t last long. Embrace it, and get everything you can out of it. It can be over in a  second. Embrace your family. Embrace your friends.

    Tell them you love them, be upfront with it, and the things you love to do in life, embrace that. Work hard because it doesn’t last long. People ask me about my career. Am I sad not wrestling? No, I gave it everything I had. I rode it until the wheels fell off and that\’s what you\’re supposed to do. Luckily for me, they told me, \’you shouldn\’t do this anymore.\’ Sweet, I\’m done. I was wrapping it up anyway. To me, there didn’t need to be a perfect out.” 

    If you use any portion of the quotes from this article, please credit with an h/t to SEScoops for the transcription.

  • Naomi Books First Appearance Since WWE Walkout Alongside Sasha Banks

    Naomi is set to make her first public appearance as she has been booked for C2E2 2022, which takes place from August 5 – 7, 2022, at McCormick Place. 

    She is going by her real name, Trinity Fatu, and will be doing a signing with fans at the gathering. This is the same first public appearance for Sasha Banks, who is also going by her real name, Mercedes Varnado, and is hyped as \”Sasha Banks\” and from The Mandalorian, since they walked out of WWE. 

    https://twitter.com/c2e2/status/1553123940679274497

    Banks and Naomi walked out of a WWE Raw event in May due to creative differences. WWE noted in their statement that Banks and Naomi felt they weren’t respected enough as champions and later referred to them as ‘unprofessional.” WWE suspended them and stripped them of the Women\’s Tag Team Titles. 

    The latest on their status with the company is that Banks and Naomi were taken off the company\’s internal roster. Banks\’ attorneys were still working on her release, but she has not been released yet. 

    They may get brought back now that Vince McMahon has resigned from the company. 

  • Triple H Explains Paul Heyman’s Role At WWE Tryouts

    WWE is holding talent tryouts ahead of Saturday’s SummerSlam event to sign the next Performance Center class. 

    While speaking with the media on Friday at the WWE tryouts in Nashville, Triple H talked about Paul Heyman possibly being involved in creative and development aspects. 

    Heyman, who had been the Raw Executive Director from 2019-2020, was at the tryouts to help scout talent. 

    \”I want ideas from everybody, I want thoughts from everybody,\” Triple H stated. \”To me, this is inclusive. When I say, that goes for the talent. When I say this is going to take all of us, it\’s going to take all of us. I want that, Paul is one of the best promos in the history of this business. Who better?

    When I asked him to be part of this, he was thrilled. We both joke about the fountain of youth at these things. Paul always does this (rubbing his chest). Who better to come here to talk about that skill? Paul has the gift of gab, always has. Who better to come here and motivate these kids?”

    Triple H mentioned Big E and SmackDown Women’s Champion Bianca Belair as people who have helped out with the tryouts.

    Heyman worked on the WWE creative team from 2001-2003, including the lead writer for SmackDown from July 2002 to February 2003.

    If you use any portion of the quotes from this article, please credit with an h/t to SEScoops for the transcription.

  • Watch Triple H’s First Public Comments Since Becoming WWE’s Head of Creative

    It’s been one week since Triple H was named EVP, Talent Relations of WWE, and Vince McMahon announced his decision to retire from WWE, stepping down as CEO.

    This past Monday morning, it was announced that Triple H would assume all creative duties that were previously held by this father-in-law. It was the first time he had been in charge of creative since stepping away from his duties with NXT last year due to health issues. 

    While speaking with the media on Friday at the WWE tryouts in Nashville, Triple H talked about the undertaking of replacing Vince McMahon. 

    “You’ve gotta watch the show…there are a massive pair of shoes to fill that I am trying to step into, but I do not dream, for one second, that I can fill those shoes by myself. It\’s going to take a lot of us. It\’s going to take a team, it\’s going to take everybody here to fill those shoes and continue this on, but we will.\”

    Triple H continued, \”the intent is to continue the legacy of what has been going on, that made me fall in love with this business that he created and to take it to new levels. To take it beyond where it is now. The only way we\’re going to do that is as a team. That\’s with Steph [McMahon], Nick Khan, myself, Kevin Dunn, everybody that is here. That is with all this talent. The great hardest working talent in the world. I have no doubt in my mind that with this team, we can do it, not an inkling of doubt. It\’s just a lot of hard work, and we\’re all going to grind. We have the greatest fans in the world, and we\’re going to make sure they get everything they want out of this product and then some.\”

    Triple H later added after recapping his week so far, “like I said, it’s going to take all of us to fill a big pair of shoes, but we’re hell-bent on doing it.”

    If you use any portion of the quotes from this article, please credit with an h/t to SEScoops for the transcription.

  • Things Got Awkward When Linda McMahon Was Asked About Vince Leaving WWE

    Vince McMahon’s wife, Linda, has given her first public comments about her husband leaving the company he built into a global empire. 

    It happened during an America First Policy Institute event, and things got awkward. 

    “I’m not going to talk about Vince and WWE, I’m here to talk about AFPI.”

    The interviewer asked a follow-up question, and she responded:

    “Well, you know what? He’ll just be deciding on how he’s going to spend his free time. I think that’s a good thing, thanks.”

    The Wall Street Journal broke the news about the WWE Board of Directors investigating McMahon over a $3 million settlement that McMahon had agreed to pay a former employee with whom he allegedly had an affair. They also reported he paid them more than $12 million to four women formerly with the company to “suppress allegations of sexual misconduct and infidelity.”

    Since Vince’s resignation, Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan have been named co-CEOs, while Triple H has been named Head of Creative.

    Linda helped launch Titan Sports alongside her husband, where she served as president and CEO of WWE until leaving the company in 2009. Since her departure from WWE, he attempted to secure a seat in the Senate in 2010 and 2012 but was unsuccessful. 

    Former US president Donald Trump named McMahon the head of the Small Business Administration in 2020.

  • Former WWE Champion Thinks AEW Feels ‘Dated’

    AEW President Tony Khan delivers a different product than what fans are used to seeing with WWE, from production to the booking to the in-ring style. He also caters to hardcore fans instead of casual fans. 

    The AEW’s product looks more gritty than what you will see on WWE programming. 

    While speaking on his Kliq This Podcast, WWE Hall of Famer Kevin Nash admitted that he doesn’t watch much modern wrestling but recently caught an episode of AEW Dynamite. 

    The former WWE Champion noted that the production and feel of the show seemed ‘dated.’

    “It just seems…dated? It has a very ‘WCW Thunder’ feel when I watch it.”

    Nash was asked if he was specifically talking about the show\’s production. Nash said everything and noted it feels like the clear number two.

    “It’s almost like a no-borders, ‘Doctors Without Borders’ type of situation over there, and it’s hard for me to figure out who the belts go to, but I don’t watch wrestling that often, and if I’m going to watch a product, just visually … the crystal-clear production, and costuming, and everything else that the WWE gives me, I feel like it’s Cirque du Soleil instead of f*cking, you know, Ringling Brothers.”

    Transcription via Wrestling Inc

  • WWE NXT Results (7/26): Eight-Man Tag Team Match, Title Bouts Confirmed

    The July 26, 2022 episode of WWE NXT aired live on the USA Network from Orlando, Florida at the Capitol Wrestling Center. 

    WWE NXT Results 

    •  
    • Grayson Waller def. Wes Lee.
    • Apollo Crews def. Xyon Quinn.
    • Zoey Stark def. Gigi Dolin.
    • Giovanni Vinci def. Andre Chase.
    • Tony D\’Angelo\’s Family def. Diamond Mine 

    Here are the takeaways from this week’s show:

    It’s Official

    \"\"

    JD McDonagh came out cutting a promo and teasing he could hurt anybody by breaking their collarbone, including a planted fan and Vic Joseph. He then called out NXT Champion Bron Breakker. 

    Breaker stated at Heatwave on August 16th, they will meet and next week, they’ll make it official. JD took a cheap shot and Bron knocked him down. JD took a blood capsule, which was caught on camera. 

    Opening Segment

    \"\"

    Zoey Stark opened the show with an in-ring promo. Last week, Stark made her return to television after she had been out of action since October when she suffered a torn ACL & meniscus in a three-way tag team ladder match where she and Shirai were defending the NXT Women’s Tag Team Titles.

    Stark won a battle royal to earn the right to be the next #1 contender for Mandy Rose’s NXT Women’s Title. 

    Stark talked about how she returned to NXT four months ahead of schedule and was originally told she would be out of action for over a year. She said she didn’t know if the fans would remember her. Cora Jade came out and cut a promo about how she had the match won until Stark ruined her moment. Stark called Jade a piece of trash. 

    Rose came out and mocked them and said neither of them can beat her. Stark challenged Rose to a title match tonight. Gigi Dolin challenged Stark to a match tonight. Stark will get her title match at Heatwave on August 16th. 

    Stark went over in their match with her finisher. Post-match, Jade attacked Stark until Roxanne Perez ran out to make the save. 

    Apollo Crews vs. Xyon Quinn

    \"\"

    Apollo Crews vs. Xyon Quinn in a singles match took place. Quinn dominated the majority of the match, but it was Crews who went over cleanly. 

    Ever since Crews made his return to NXT, Quinn has been reminding him  that he is the next big star and will be waiting for his title shot. Quinn recently cost Crews his match against Giovanni Vinci.

    Eight-Man Tag Team Match

    \"\"

    Tony D\’Angelo\’s Family (D\’Angelo, Santos Escobar, Raul Mendoza, Joaquin Wilde, and Channing Lorenzo) vs. Diamond Mine (Roderick Strong, Brutus Creed, Julius Creed, & Damon Kemp) was booked in an eight-man tag team match.

    Last week, Strong and Kemp were working a singles match when D\’Angelo\’s Family interrupted as he and his crew beat down The Creed Brothers.Strong raced back to check on Julius & Brutus Creed before challenging them to a match. 

    This was the main event of the show that ended with Tony hitting his finisher on Julius. 

    https://twitter.com/WWENXT/status/1552112416242208768%20
    https://twitter.com/WWENXT/status/1552111504484360193%20

    Giovanni Vinci vs. Bodhi Hayward

    \"\"

    Giovanni Vinci vs. Bodhi Hayward was set up last week when the Chase U bus blocked Vinci in the NXT parking lot. 

    Hayward hasn\’t wrestled on NXT since March when he lost a singles match to Von Wagner. The former Fabian Aichner has won three straight since being repackaged as Vinci.

    This was a really good match with Vinci going over. 

  • WWE SummerSlam Betting Odds

    The betting odds for the matches that will take place at the WWE SummerSlam event have been released.

    The card for the show that takes place this Saturday appears to be finalized. So far, nine matches have been announced for the show.

    Roman Reigns is a major favorite at -500 to retain the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship against Brock Lesnar in a last man standing match. Logan Paul is the biggest favorite on the card at -1500 and there are no titles favored to change hands.

    • WWE SummerSlam Preview

    SummerSlam Betting Odds

    Here are the betting odds, courtesy of Bet Online:

    • Happy Corbin is an underdog (+200) against Pat McAfee (-300)
    • The Mysterios are underdogs (+150) againstFinn Balor & Damian Priest (-200) in the No-DQ tag match.
    • Bobby Lashley is expected (-300) to retain the United States championship against Theory (+200)
    • Bianca Belair is favored (-400) to retain the Raw Women’s title against Becky Lynch (+275)
    • The Usos are favored (-300) to retain the Undisputed Tag Team Champions against the Street Profits (+200)
    • Riddle and Seth Rollins are even.
    • Logan Paul is heavily favored (-1500) to beat The Miz (+650)
    • Liv Morgan is favored (-200) to retain the SmackDown Women\’s title against Ronda Rousey (+300)
    • Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns is favored (-500) to defeat Brock Lesnar (+300) in the Last Man Standing Match

  • WWE NXT Peacock Special to Air on Same Day as AEW All Out (Report)

    WWE is planning to hold the next premium live event for the NXT brand on Sunday, September 4, the same day as AEW’s next pay-per-view, All Out, according to internal messaging at WWE.

    Brandon Thurston of WrestleNomics reported the news today. There’s no word yet on the name of the show. All Out is slated to air at 8 pm Eastern with the pre-show airing one hour earlier. 

    Dave Meltzer previously reported that WWE was “tentatively planning a major NXT show for late August, with 8/20 and 8/27 being looked at as possible dates.” It’s unclear what changed. WWE holds its Clash at the Castle event on September 3rd. 

    It should be noted that it’s unclear whether this event will run head-to-head in primetime against the AEW PPV. The show will take place in Orlando, likely at the Performance Center, although the venue is not confirmed. 

    The report also noted NXT’s next special TV episode will be Tuesday, August 16, branded “Heatwave,” formerly used as PPV events by ECW.  The announcement is expected to be made tonight on NXT television.

    WWE will also hold NXT TV tapings on September 20, and 27 will be taped on September 14. 

    This upcoming event will be NXT’s fourth special event on Peacock and the WWE Network since the last TakeOver show in August 2021. 

  • Nick Wayne\’s Flight Diverted Due to a Bomb Threat

    Nick Wayne and his mother were on a plane ride home when the flight was diverted due to a bomb threat.  

    They were flying to Seattle from Frankfurt, Germany, on Condor flight DE2032 when a bomb threat was found written on a bathroom mirror. The flight changed course over Greenland and landed in Keflavik, Iceland.

    Iceland police conducted a search of all carry-on items and passenger belongings. On today’s Wrestling Observer Radio, Bryan Alvarez noted that Nick’s mother was interrogated because she had eyeliner, and the threat was scrawled in eyeliner or makeup on the bathroom mirror. 

    According to a report from Air Live, two hundred sixty-six people aboard the flight have been sent to an area guarded by police. It is not clear if the passengers are still being detained. 

    Shayna Edwards assured family that they were okay in a Facebook post by writing the following, courtesy of Slam Wrestling:

    “Yes, Nick and I were on a flight with a bomb on it. Yes, it was 6 hrs of madness like I’ve never experienced. Yes, we are safe. No, we are not home. And no, I don’t know when we will be.”

    Nick is the son of late wrestler Buddy Wayne and the grandson of Ed “Moondog.” He was given an AEW contract in February 2022, contingent on finishing high school. 

    On Sunday at the PROGRESS Chapter 136: 24/7 event from the Electric Ballroom in London, England, Wayne defeated Robbie X.

    PROGRESS has issued the following statement:

    PROGRESS Wrestling are delighted and relieved to hear that rising star, and recent UK and European debutant Nick Wayne, and his mother Shayna Edwards are safe and sound, and home in Seattle.

    In an extraordinary and quite alarming incident, their return to the USA was interrupted by a bomb scare and an alleged hoaxer putting a note in the airplane bathroom to the effect that there was danger on board.

    The Condor pilot quite correctly took immediate action and diverted the Seattle-bound plane to Keflavik in Iceland, with a then very stressful 24 hours for both Nick, Shayna and the other 264 passengers on board.

    Lee McAteer, co-owner of PROGRESS said, “We are so pleased to hear that both Nick and his mother are safely home and can start to relax after what had been a triumphant first trip to the UK.”

    Nick has been widely tipped for stardom, and after a remarkable start to his career with Defy Wrestling and GCW, had absolutely shone on his debut with PROGRESS at their 24/7 show in an exciting encounter with Robbie X. He and his mother had made many friends, and Nick is due to return in September for a joint show with TNT Extreme and GCW, with his finale at PROGRESS on their Handshakes and Cheeseburgers show on Sunday 18th September.

    Shayna, who runs her late husband’s wrestling school, The Buddy Wayne Wrestling Academy had said to the PROGRESS owners Martyn Best and Lee McAteer, “After such a wonderful weekend, and such an exciting one for Nick at being on one of his dream promotions, we were then really shook up with what happened on the plane. It was so unreal, and we are just so grateful that everyone is safe. 

    “We had a very scary six hours until the authorities were able to find out what was really happening, and then it was a long wait to finally board a plane back home.

    “We really want to say such a big thank you to all our friends for your kind thoughts and concerns for us – and PROGRESS guys, don’t worry, we know this won’t happen every time that Nick comes over to be with you.”

    Martyn Best added, “We had to change Nick’s original opponent due to a traditional flight issue delay, and the weekend had gone so well with Nick having had a terrific fight on his UK, European and PROGRESS debut. He had generated so much joy with everyone, and we were very proud that he and Shayna had chosen PROGRESS to make such a debut. 

    “Having bid them a fond adieu, it was really quite astonishing and distressing for us to then hear about the trauma that followed, and we are totally relived and happy that all ended well. We really look forward to Nick and Shayna returning to both Liverpool and London in September.”

  • Vince McMahon Needed to be \”Filtered\” During WWE Creative Meetings (Report)

    News has come out regarding the creative environment Vince McMahon inspired in recent years in WWE while in charge of creative. 

    Although he temporarily stepped down as CEO and Chairman due to the hush money scandals, he was still heavily involved in creative up until last week before he resigned. 

    Fightful Select reports sources from within the creative process have indicated that many writer’s assistants effectively needed to ‘filter’ McMahon and needed to know what not to write for McMahon when taking notes for him.

    The report stated that minutes were ‘heavily edited’ for a long time, claiming that edits were made for various reasons ranging from simple kayfabe terms to McMahon saying things that would appear insensitive or offensive. 

    A former production employee reportedly noted, “If a live feed of Vince McMahon on a headset any given night ever made it out, that it would provide a picture of that production experience, especially for the announcers. There were plenty of times he was in a good mood, but he would blow up at the most ridiculous things and act like they ruined an angle far past its expiration date anyway.”

    Fightful previously noted that sources who worked with him are more open to speaking about their experiences following his exit from the company. 

  • Details on Triple H\’s Talent Meeting at WWE Raw

    Triple H is leading up creative in WWE in place of Vince McMahon, who resigned from the company last Friday and is already talking to talent about the expected changes they can expect. 

    This move comes days after it was also announced he was the new EVP of Talent Relations. 

    Fightful Select reports Triple H spoke at a talent meeting before Monday’s episode of Raw. Talent they spoke with “said that the meeting went really well, and there was a lot of optimism surrounding the change in creative from others in the company.”

    Triple H led the meeting and promised them transparency that some don\’t feel has existed under the previous regime. He said that he wants open lines of communication between himself and talent. 

    The report noted, “Talent waiting for hours for the opportunity to maybe speak to Vince McMahon had become commonplace in recent years, with face time with him dwindling.” 

    Triple H said that he wants work to be fun. The general consensus has been positive regarding the meeting.

    Monday\’s WWE Raw was the first event that Triple H was in charge of creative. 

  • Vince McMahon\’s WWE Retirement Hastened By Federal Investigations

    The Wall Street Journal has a new report regarding Vince McMahon and his retirement from WWE. 

    The report notes McMahon was driven into retirement by investigations from federal prosecutors relating to his hush money scandals. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is also investigating McMahon.

    WWE alluded to investigations in their SEC filing but did not state a specific entity. WWE stated they had received \”regulatory, investigative and enforcement inquiries, subpoenas or demands\” regarding the hush money payments. McMahon\’s departure was listed as a resignation by WWE. 

    The WSJ report noted they tried to reach out to spokespeople for McMahon and WWE, but they did not immediately respond to the requests.  A spokesman for the independent directors of the WWE board declined to comment. Neither the SEC nor the spokesman for the U.S. attorney\’s office in Connecticut provided any comment.

    McMahon announced his retirement from the company last Friday. Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan were named new co-CEOs on Monday, and Paul \”Triple H\” Levesque is the Head of Creative. 

    The Wall Street Journal previously broke the news about the WWE Board of Directors investigating McMahon over a $3 million settlement that McMahon had agreed to pay a former employee who he allegedly had an affair with and him paying more than $12 million to four women formerly with the company to “suppress allegations of sexual misconduct and infidelity.”

  • Read Vince McMahon’s Memo to WWE Employees About his Retirement

    Vince McMahon sent an internal message to WWE talent informing them of his retirement from the company, in addition to his tweet and WWE’s press release. 

    The memo was shared by an Reddit insider and confirmed by F4Wonline.com. McMahon noted that he enjoyed sharing his passion with talent and encouraged them to be everything they can be as a person and a performer.

    “To all WWE Superstars: as I approach 77 years old (OMG am I really that old?), I feel it\’s time for me to retire. I\’ve thoroughly enjoyed sharing my passion, wisdom, and love of the business with you. No longer will you see the smiling, docile, level-headed, calm presence at Gorilla every week.

    Your dedication to WWE will ensure that our company will continue to grow and prosper. Our organization is nothing without you. You are WWE\’s only natural resource, chosen to perform in front of a global audience.

    You are all WWE Global Ambassadors. Carry the WWE flag wherever you go. Wave it high and proud. And bust your ass to be all you can be as a person and as a performer.

    One other thing-I won\’t be with you, but I\’ll be watching. Remember to keep your hands up, grab a hold, and sell. Btw, SmackDown airs live tonight at 8pm Eastern/7pm Central on FOX.

    Vince”

    Although McMahon is retiring as WWE\’s Chairman and CEO and is no longer in charge of creative, he will continue to be WWE\’s majority shareholder. Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan are WWE\’s new co-CEOs.

    All of this comes after the reports from the Wall Street Journal about the WWE Board of Directors investigating McMahon over a $3 million settlement that McMahon had agreed to pay a former employee who he allegedly had an affair with and him paying more than $12 million to four women formerly with the company to \”suppress allegations of sexual misconduct and infidelity.\”

  • Wrestling World Reacts to Vince McMahon\’s Retirement

    Several wrestlers have reacted to the bombshell news on Friday afternoon that Vince McMahon has retired from WWE. 

    McMahon’s decision to step down as Chairman and CEO came after the Wall Street Journal stories about him paying out $12 million in hush money to cover up alleged sexual misconduct with former talent and employees.

    Vince will no longer be involved with the WWE creative process. It remains to be seen how Vince\’s retirement affects the day-to-day operations, especially with the weekly TV shows. He still owns the majority of WWE stock, but will no longer be seen backstage at WWE shows. Nick Khan and Stephanie McMahon will serve as co-CEOs going forward now that Vince is out. 

    AEW President Tony Khan wrote an interesting tweet shortly after the news was made where he noted that he is “grateful to now be the longest-tenured CEO in pro wrestling.”

    You can see the reactions below: 

  • Brock Lesnar Leaves SmackDown Amid Vince McMahon’s Retirement Announcement

    Shortly after the announcement made today by WWE and Vince McMahon that he is retiring from the company, Brock Lesnar made headlines. 

    F4Wonline’s Bryan Alvarez reported on Twitter that Lesnar left tonight’s SmackDown from TD Garden in Boston, MA. 

    Alvarez also tweeted out, “Brock\’s line was some derivative of, ‘If he\’s gone, I\’m gone.’”

    Fightful Select reports there were immediate internal rumors that Lesnar was \”very pissed off\” about the news and left SmackDown. They’ve also heard this rumor.

    WWE had been promoting Lesnar for this show since last week to further build to his match at SummerSlam where he will challenge Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns for the title in a last man standing match. 

    WWE is still advertising Lesnar for the show along with the following: 

    • Maximum Male Models debut Maxine Dupri & their beachwear collection
    • Liv Morgan & Ronda Rousey have a face-to-face confrontation
    • – Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Ludwig Kaiser

    WWE had a talent meeting with everyone backstage at SmackDown. Triple H, Nick Khan, and Stephanie McMahon are there for it. There will be more fallout throughout the evening. 

  • Another WWE Hall of Famer to be Backstage at Monday’s Raw

    WWE Hall of Famers Edge and Beth Phoenix are expected to be back on television soon. 

    As previously reported, WWE is bringing Edge to Monday’s Raw from Madison Square Garden. It’s been rumored Edge will return to resume his feud with Damian Priest and Finn Balor of The Judgment Day after they attacked him several weeks ago as a way to write him off television. 

    The Judgment Day has promised to crash Rey’s 20th-anniversary celebration when they take on  The Mysterios 

    Pwinsider.com reported today that WWE is also bringing Phoenix to Raw as well. The married couple is booked to be at WWE SummerSlam. It’s still not confirmed whether they will be wrestling at SummerSlam, but this will be Raw’s go-home edition for SummerSlam so it’s likely.

    With Phoenix in the mix, it’s possible WWE does a mixed tag team match with Edge & Beth against Priest or Balor & Rhea Ripley. The former Raw Women’s Champion has been out of action since mid-June with a brain injury. 

    The married couple last teamed together at the WWE Royal Rumble back in January when they defeated The Miz and Maryse. It also marked Beth’s first match since the 2020 Royal Rumble Match and her first tag team match since WrestleMania 35 in 2019.

  • Steve Austin On Ric Flair’s Last Match: ‘It’s Gonna Turn Out Great, I Can’t Wait To Watch It’

    Steve Austin has weighed in on Ric Flair working his last match over SummerSlam weekend at the ‘Ric Flair’s Last Match’ event at Starrcast. 

    The WWE Hall Of Famer is set to team with Andrade El Idolo against Jeff Jarrett and Jay Lethal in the show\’s main event. 

    Austin, who came out of his retirement and worked his first match in 19 years against Kevin Owens in the main event of WrestleMania 38 Night One, noted in an interview with SportsKeeda’s Bill Apter that he’s looking forward to the match. 

    “Well, it’s gonna be his final match, so I guess he’s in the mood to have one more go and to prove he was the man,” Austin explained. “I’ve said before, I think he was the greatest traveling world champion that there ever was. There’s a reason he had the belt as many times as he did, because he was that damn good. He lived the lifestyle on the road to the nth degree, let’s say.

    “For him to have his final match, I wish him nothing but the best. I hold him in the highest regard and have the highest respect for him,” he continued. “I’m behind everything he does in the ring. So, I look forward to seeing it. I wish I could be there in person. Again, I’m not traveling anywhere right now, but I wish him all the best and I know it’s gonna turn out great and I can’t wait to watch it.”

  • Edge Returning To WWE TV With His Old Gimmick

    Edge is reportedly slated to return to WWE television on next week’s episode of Raw. 

    On Today’s episode of Wrestling Observer Live, Bryan Alvarez was asked whether Edge appearing on the show will end up being a swerve with the WWE Hall Of Famer re-joining The Judgment Day stable.

    Alvarez said that Rated-R merchandise has already been made for his return.

    \”I think they\’ve already got Rated-R Superstar merch, so I\’m pretty sure he\’s returning as the Rated-R Superstar. Now what that means as a babyface [or as] a heel, I don\’t know. I don\’t think he\’s coming back to Judgment Day. Especially because he left Judgment Day, he left because he didn\’t want to be involved with anything spooky, but then they haven\’t done anything spooky [with Judgment Day].\”

    WWE has been airing vignettes for Edge\’s return to TV for weeks, featuring old memorabilia from past rivals such as Randy Orton, John Cena, The Dudley Boyz, and others. 

    Edge was written off after being attacked by The Judgment Day and replaced by Finn Balor. Considering Edge is returning with his old gimmick, it looks like he will also have his \”Metalingus\” song instead of continuing to use \”The Other Side.”

    H/T to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription

    Backstage Update On Edge’s WWE TV Return (Spoiler)

  • Wardlow Wants To Bring Back AEW TNT Title Open Challenge

    It’s been a big year for Wardlow as he won his freedom from MJF at AEW Double or Nothing before becoming the new TNT Champion after defeating Scorpio Sky a few weeks ago on Dynamite. 

    Wardlow wants to be a fighting champion like original TNT champ Cody Rhodes was in 2020. His number one goal right now is to bring back the open challenge gimmick that Rhodes did.

    He also stated that he doesn’t plan on changing the design of the TNT Championship belt, similar to what past champions Scorpio Sky and Sammy Guevara did. 

    “That’s actually my number one priority. I want to bring back the open challenge,” Wardlow said in a recent interview with Telegram & Gazette. “I’m not sure if that’s what we’re going to do, but I would definitely like to bring that back. Right now, I have the original design, which I love, and I don’t have any plans to customize it. If they give me the opportunity, maybe I will, but I do love the original.”

    Wardlow made his first defense of the TNT Championship a week ago when he took on Orange Cassidy and successfully retained the title. 

    Wardlow’s next challenger has yet to be determined, and he has not been announced for tonight’s AEW Dynamite.

  • WWE NXT 2.0 Results (7/19): Title Match, Battle Royal

    The July 19, 2022 episode of WWE NXT 2.0 aired live on the USA Network from Orlando, Florida at the Capitol Wrestling Center. 

    WWE NXT Results 

    •  
    • JD McDonagh def. Cameron Grimes.
    • Roderick Strong def. Damon Kemp.
    • Axiom def. Dante Chen via pinfall 
    • Josh Briggs & Brooks Jensen def. Pretty Deadly  to retain the NXT UK Tag Team Championships.
    • Zoey Stark won a battle royal

    Here are the takeaways from this week’s show:

    Cora Jade Speaks

    \"\"

    Cora Jade broke her silence on this show after costing Roxanne Perez last week in her match against Mandy Rose for the NXT Women’s Title. Jade previously attacked Perez in the parking lot, but it was a mystery as to who did. After Rose beat Perez thanks to outside interference by Jade, Perez’s former best friend attacked her. 

    Jade did a promo in the ring about how she should have turned on Perez a lot sooner. She said that fans were originally behind her and she wanted to take her best friend along with her for the ride. The fans were behind Perez and they turned on Jade. She said Perez used her to get to NXT and Perez is a selfish bitch. Jade threw the Women’s Tag Team Title in the trash. 

    https://twitter.com/WWENXT/status/154955263225099878

    Ready To Rumble

    \"\"

    A 20-woman battle royal to determine the new top contender to Mandy Rose\’s WWE NXT Women\’s Championship took place. Those part of the match included Yulisa Leon, Sloane Jacobs, Lash Legend, Tatum Paxley, Tiffany Stratton, Elektra Lopez, Arianna Grace, Valentina Feroz, Kianna James, Sarray, Wendy Choo, Amari Miller, Fallon Henley, Indi Hartwell, Cora Jade, Alba Fyre, Nikkita Lyons, Katana Chance, Kayden Carter, and Ivy Nile. Zoey Stark made her return. 

    Rose successfully retained the championship on last week’s show after Jade turned on challenger Roxanne Perez.

    The match came down to Tiffany and Stark. They did some near elimination spots including when Tiffy’s foot hit the ground. Stark eliminated Tiffany and then Jade came out of nowhere to try to eliminate her, but it backfired and Zoey eliminated Jade for the win. 

    Axiom Debuts

    \"\"

    Axiom (A-Kid) made his debut on this show when he beat a jobber in a one-sided bout. 

    There have been vignettes hyping his arrival. The latest one that aired last week featured a wrestler who was shown in a comic book store, then in a ring in a mask. 

    A-Kid last appeared on WWE programming on the May 26 episode of NXT UK where he lost to Charlie Dempsey in a match taped in April. 

    JD McDonagh vs. Cameron Grimes

    \"\"

    JD McDonagh vs. Cameron Grimes in a singles match took place. 

    The match opened the show and was a fun back and forth match. JD went over with his finisher. 

    Last week, they had a confrontation as Grimes was interrupted when he was talking about his failure to capture the NXT title from Bron Breakker at The Great American Bash. McDonagh taunted Grimes over his loss. The two ended up getting into a brawl.

    Later in the show, Breakker came out and cut a promo about how he hasn’t forgotten about what JD did to him. This led to JD appearing on the screen where he had a dummy and talked about the ligaments in the shoulder. JD said Grimes hurt Bron, but he will take him out. 

    Bron said if one day JD will have to face him. JD said an unnecessary evil has arrived in NXT. Bron called him out for a match. 

    Title Match

    \"\"

    NXT UK Tag Champions Josh Briggs & Brooks Jensen defended their titles against Pretty Deadly. 

    WWE set up this match last week when Briggs & Jensen were shown with Fallon Henley at their barwhen Pretty Deadly walked in, dressed like cowboys. They traded words before Henley stopped the fight and said if Pretty Deadly wanted a match, they could get it.

    The match took place in the second hour and ended in outside interference thanks to Fallon helping out her guys. 

  • Seth Rollins on Cody Rhodes Wrestling With Torn Pec: “I Didn’t Expect it to Look Like That”

    Seth Rollins headlined the WWE Hell in a Cell event in June with Cody Rhodes, who had a torn pectoral muscle. 

    The pectoral muscle was completely off the bone ahead of the match, and Rhodes, who defeated Rollins inside the Hell in a Cell structure, had a huge bruise covering his upper body.

    While speaking with Stephanie Chase for Digital Spy, Rollins noted that he didn’t expect Rhodes to look how he did and felt the same as everyone else in attendance.

    “It was pretty gnarly. I don’t think I expected it to look like that. I’ve had some torn muscles in my day, and I know that the blood seeps down, gravity just takes over, but I had never seen anything like that. I remember Triple H had torn his pec some time ago at an event and shared a picture of it, and it was pretty brutal but nothing like what we saw from Cody at Hell in a Cell.

    “His bicep, tricep, shoulder, pec it was down to his belly button almost, it was pretty gnarly. It was definitely shocking and I think the way I felt about it was how the audience in Chicago felt. They were just very uncomfortable for the first little bit. I think people were even wary just to cheer for him because it was so wild.”

    Rollins stated it’s one of those things that he has never encountered before and was completely new to him to prepare for. 

    “It was a full hurdle thrown my way that I’d never seen before and so trying to wrap ourselves around it was an interesting process. I think what we got out of it was magic, how we got there wasn’t ideal but that’s life, you gotta roll with the punches sometimes.”

    Rollins will face Riddle in a singles match at SummerSlam on July 30 in Nashville. 

    Transcription via Fightful.