Alexander Hammerstone and Brian Pillman Jr. will square off on Saturday, June 1st to crown the first-ever MLW National Champion. The battle to crown the inaugural champion of this new “openweight” title is one of the headline bouts of Fury Road from the Waukesha County Expo Center.
Hammerstone vs. Pillman is the latest chapter in the storied rivalry between the Hart Foundation and the Dynasty. The bad blood began back in March when MLW was in Chicago for Intimidation Games. Hammerstone fired the first shot in this feud, humiliating the Hart crew by destroying Teddy Hart’s gold chains. Pillman is out for revenge and looks to pick up championship gold in the process.
If you are in the Milwaukee area, visit MLWTickets.com for details on how you can attend MLW Fury Road 2019 starting at just $10.
Updated Card for MLW Fury Road 2019
Here is the updated card for MLW Fury Road:
MLW World Champion “Filthy” Tom Lawlor, Ross and Marshall Von Erich vs. CONTRA Unit (Tornado Tag Match)
Hammerstone vs. Pillman (National Openweight Championship tournament finals)
Mance Warner vs. Sami Callihan (Falls Count Anywhere)
Monday’s edition of WWE RAW from Albany, NY at the Times Union Center averaged 2.521 million viewers, up from 2.349 million the previous week, which is the third consecutive week that viewership was up.
WWE had to go up against the NBA game between the Warriors and Trailblazers that pulled in big viewership numbers (7.788) that had an impact on RAW’s rating. Here is the hourly viewership breakdown, courtesy of ShowbuzzDaily:
Hour 1: 2.681 million
Hour 2: 2.583 million
Hour 3: 2.299 million
For comparison, the same episode last year drew 2.792 million viewers for hour one, 2.767 in the second hour and 2.447 in the third hour.
The episode was expected to increase in viewership as this show was heavily hyped. This show served as the post-Money In The Bank episode of the red branded show.
RAW featured an opening segment with Brock Lesnar, Paul Heyman, WWE Champion Kofi Kingston, and Universal Champion Seth Rollins. Also, at the top of the third hour, WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley introduced the 24/7 Title.
Some of the matches that took place include Braun Strowman vs. Sami Zayn, Cesaro vs. Ricochet, The Revival vs. The Usos, Alexa Bliss, Becky Lynch & Nikki Cross vs. Lacey Evans & The IIconics, Drew McIntyre vs. The Miz, and Kofi Kingston & Seth Rollins vs. Baron Corbin & Bobby Lashley in the main event.
WWE will attempt to increase with its viewership for RAW next week. In case you missed the show, you can check out the six takeawayshere.
Roman Reigns furthered his program with Shane McMahon through the power of social media shortly after the announcement of their match taking place at the upcoming WWE Super Showdown pay-per-view event was announced.
“The Big Dog” took to his official Twitter account to comment on the match by writing the following where he noted that he’s willing to travel anywhere to punch Shane in the face.
All the years you’ve spent around this business, these athletes, this life and you still haven’t learned your lesson. I’ll go anywhere in the world to prove what this means to me…punching you in the face is a plus. #WWESSD
This is the latest development in the ongoing storyline that goes back to an episode of SmackDown Live last month where Reigns attacked WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon.
It was set up while McMahon revealed the “Biggest acquisition in SmackDown history” segment that turned out to be Elias. This led to Reigns quickly beating Elias in a match at Sunday’s Money in the Bank event.
WWE presents the Super ShowDown pay-per-view event on Friday, June 7th, 2019 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia at the King Abdullah Sports City Stadium that will air on the WWE Network at 2PM ET/11 AM PT.
WWE will be announcing more matches for this show in the coming weeks. This marks the third show in WWE’s 10-year deal with the Saudi General Sports Authority.
Impact Wrestling officials are looking to secure a new TV deal in the United States to air their weekly flagship show this coming Fall. According to a report by PWInsider, Impact has had issues with their current network, Pursuit Channel, which has led to them wanting to make a change.
The media outlet reports that the promotion wants a better home for their TV show as it’s no secret that Pursuit is not available in as many homes as television networks such as Pop, Destination America, and SPIKE (now known as Paramount Network) that they’ve had in the past.
Incidents such as Pursuit being slow to respond to Impact’s requests, and listing the two-hour show as four separate 30-minute episodes have been part of “the latest in a long line of headaches.”
The most recent issue came last week when fans watching Rich Swann and Michael Elgin in the main event didn’t see the end of the match as the Pursuit Channel went to commercial and kept running commercials instead of returning to the broadcast.
This led to Impact having to apologize for the error and added the full show to IMPACT+ app immediately. Impact announced their TV deal with Pursuit back in January.
The XFL continues to make progress as they prepare for their inaugural season.
All of the teams that will be part of the relaunch of this pro football league has been revealed. New York, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, St. Louis, Seattle, Tampa Bay, and Washington D.C will host teams.
The last coach to be announced by the XFL was for the team based in Houston, Texas as June Jones will serve as the Head Coach and General Manager. Here is a list of the teams and the Head Coaches:
June Jones – Houston
Winston Moss – Los Angeles
Jon Hayes – St. Louis
Bob Stoops – Dallas
Kevin Gilbride – New York
Jim Zorn – Seattle
Marc Trestman – Tampa Bay
Pep Hamilton – Washington D.C.
The relaunch season for the XFL kicks off in 2020 on Saturday, February 8 and Sunday, February 9. Earlier this month it was announced that the league had reached broadcast deals with ESPN, Fox, and Disney/ABC
It’s been reported that WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon declined the request offered by the AAF (Alliance of American Football) to merge with his second attempt at launching the XFL. McMahon, who owns the XFL under Alpha Entertainment, shot down the offer in December 2018.
Mick Foley’s segment from RAW last night has garnered strong opinions from fans. The introduction of the 24/7 title was only one of two changes to the show which took place during the segment, however.
Foley stated that he was hoping to make Monday’s “RAW” again. With that line, the lighting in the building changed.
“Starting tonight, the 3rd hour of RAW each and ever week is about to get downright mean and nasty,” Foley said. “A little bit dirty.”
With those words, the logo on the Videotron and LED boards switched from a red and white RAW logo to a more basic red and black one. You can notice the change take place at the 1:34 mark of the video below:
Foley then proceeded to explain the rules for the 24/7 title.
Change of Look To 3rd Hour of RAW
According to a report from Fightful, WWE wants to change the look of RAW’s 3rd hour. This is being done to help the final hour stand out from the rest of the show.
The 3rd hour of the show is expected to feel more “Raw” moving forward. This could mean a return to how the show was shot in the early 90s. Upon debuting, Monday Night RAW had a grittier feel to it.
Becky Lynch defeated Lacey Evans at the Money in the Bank PPV this week. Evans then helped Charlotte Flair defeat Lynch for the Smackdown title, however, likely meaning the rivalry between the two RAW Superstars is not over.
Lynch posted the following earlier today likely in reference to comments Lacey made on RAW:
The Lynch vs Evans RAW Women’s title match from Money in the Bank was just the 4th single’s match Evans has had on the main roster (not including house shows). She lost to Natalya on Main Event in her first single’s match, she then defeated Natalya on RAW 10 weeks later in a #1 Contenders match.
Evans won a squash match over Allie Katrina in just her 3rd single’s match on the main roster before losing to Lynch at Money in the Bank.
Becky Lynch Championship Statistics
Lynch’s run with the Smackdown Women’s Championship ended after 42 days and no successful title defenses on WWE programming. It was her 3rd reign with the title as she was also the inaugural holder of the belt. She also held the title for 91 days in late 2018, losing the title to Asuka at the TLC PPV in December.
According to Konnan, if he didn’t have a wrestling podcast he wouldn’t watch WWE at all. Konnan was recently a guest on the WINCLY podcast and spoke about how the promotion which once cast him as Max Moon has “lost their way.”
“I think they’ve shot themselves in the foot so many times,” Konnan said. “There’s no show that if it was as bad as WWE has been for the last few years, I’d still be watching.”
Konnan specifically mentioned the short Rey Mysterio match at WrestleMania as something which bothered him.
“Just the unnecessary filters and unnecessary backstage politics – you gotta watch what you say and do. Them writing out promos that are brutal, just some terrible stuff said on TV. Rey Mysterio going on WrestleMania and he’s in there for one minute? C’mon!”
If action movies are your thing, John Wick 3, honorable mention to some lucha, wrestling, & MMA moves thrown into the fighting scenes plus the usage of dogs…#BOOM
“It’s almost like this company that was so great at storylines and making stars and vignettes – they’ve lost their way.”
Konnan would continue to say that not all of the fault for this lay with Vince McMahon.
“A lot of it can be contributed to Vince McMahon but a lot of it is also the talent,” stated Konnan. “You can’t become complacent. Do you wanna be safe and good or do you wanna take a chance and be great? Almost all the great ones have better drive and more initiative.”
Konnan works backstage with several promotions including Major League Wrestling. He compared MLW CEO Court Bauer (who worked in WWE as a writer for several years) with Vince McMahon during the show.
“I don’t know Vince that well. But like Vince, [Bauer] is a workaholic. To be 70 years and still be going to all of the TV tapings and all that…he built it. That’s his empire. All of the mistakes Vince has made, you also have to look at all of the successes he’s had,” said Konnan. “I believe the one thing Court learned from Vince was probably his work ethic. He’s also working and there’s no better recipe for success than hard work.”
Hangman Page vs PAC will not take place at Double or Nothing this weekend from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The match was pulled from the card due to creative differences but in storyline, it actually took place in Nottingham over the weekend. AEW posted video of the match to Youtube, which you can watch below:
PAC vs Hangman Page
PAC vs Page was scrapped from the PPV due to PAC’s role as Open the Dream Gate Champion. Dragon Gate does not want their champion losing and this is what ultimately led to AEW pulling the match.
“Essentially the deal is PAC is the Open the Dream Gate champion in Dragongate and he wasn’t going to lose and he wasn’t losing in the UK,” Dave Meltzer said on Wrestling Observer Radio recently. “It wasn’t so much this show and I think that’s where everyone’s all confused.”
PAC not being able to lose would create a long-term booking problem for AEW.
“(AEW) have an idea of what they want to do with their storylines and it was a long-term thing and this no longer fit,” he continued. “It wasn’t if he could do the job on this show or not, that wasn’t the issue. He wouldn’t but that wasn’t’ the issue.”
Firing back on her own Twitter account, Charlotte responded to Rusev’s passive aggressive message with “First, win one, then I’ll show you what I can”.
Rusev, rising to the bait, responded with a one-word reply: “How” accompanied with an emoji of a man shrugging.
The Queen’s response included a strategic breakdown in an effort to help Rusev achieve similar championship glory.
According to her, Rusev should first change his name. The second step is demonstrated with the woman emoji shrugging. Finally, the final step in her easy three-step plan simply stated “Championships”.
AJ Styles was the first member of Bullet Club to win the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. Styles joined the group in 2014 just as Prince Devitt was leaving. In an interview with French-language media outlet C’est ca le Catch while in Paris, Styles spoke on the current state of Bullet Club.
“(They’ve) still got some great guys there,” Styles said regarding the stable. “It’s doing just as well as it ever has. A lot of people have left but they still are the Bullet Club no matter what. There’s a lot of guys who didn’t leave.”
Styles took some time to heavily praise “Switchblade” Jay White during the interview.
“Jay White will definitely lead them in the right direction,” Styles continued. “I knew he was going to be a star the moment I met him when he was a young boy. He had it, you knew he wanted it worse than anybody else. I knew all along he was going to be successful.”
Styles would continue to say White is someone he’d like to face in WWE.
You can listen to the full interview in the player below:
Impact Wrestling announced in October that Jordynne Grace had signed with the promotion. It turns out, however, that was not entirely true. Grace had received a contract from the promotion but never signed or returned it. This led to a brief free agency period for the 23-year-old.
It had been her plan to show Impact her worth before coming back to them with her contract. Grace explained her contract situation in a recent interview with Fightful.
“I was hoping to have some good matches and show that I could follow direction and criticism beforehand, of course. I wanted to renegotiate the original deal once I had shown I had value and worth,” Grace said.
“Thick Mama Pump” also talked about offers she had on the table during her brief free agency period.
“I had contact with each of those companies (ROH, WWE, AEW, NWA), and had many options and offers in front of me. At the end of the day, Impact is where I wanted to be. I was ready to make a difficult decision if needed, but I was sincerely hoping everything would work out in the end! I can’t be sure if Double or Nothing had anything to do with it, but it’s a possibility.”
Grace continued to speak in regards to how much she enjoys working for the company.
“I cannot stress this enough. I love Impact,” Grace made a point to say.”No company is flawless, of course, and I think anywhere I went, there would have been some sort of problem. No company is truly without issue. Whether it’s not enough exposure, not enough money, not being used properly, not being used enough… I’m sure I would have gripes with ANY company. Impact is a company I truly believe in, and they’re doing their best. I have amazing friends there, and I have a blast backstage.”
Braun Strowman has accomplished a lot during his time as a main event Superstar.
“The Monster Amongst Men” is not only a Money In The Bank winner, he also won the Greatest Royal Rumble and is an ex-RAW Tag Team Champion with his partner, Nicholas. Most recently he emerged victorious in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at this year’s WrestleMania 35.
One prize continues to elude him, however: the WWE Universal Championship.
“It’s Motivation To Keep Working Harder”
Despite being primed for numerous title opportunities, Braun has yet to call RAW’s red championship belt his own.
In an interview with Daily Star Online, Strowman addressed his championship aspirations. He claimed that 2019 will be the year in which he climbs back up the mountain.
“[…] it is a little frustrating as it’s been so close so many times,” Braun admitted. “Literally had my fingertips on it, but it’s motivation to keep working harder.”
“The big goal this year is getting back in that WWE Universal Championship picture as I have slid down the mountain a little bit.”
He continued, “But I am going to keep clawing tooth and nail to get back as it’s the one thing that’s eluded me. I want it, I am hungry, and the monster’s ready to eat.”
“You Can’t Fight The Inevitable”
Strowman believes it’s only a matter of time until he claims the Universal Championship, calling it “inevitable.” According to him “you can’t fight the inevitable. Its gonna happen.”
Braun Strowman is scheduled to face off against former Intercontinental Champion Bobby Lashley. The two will face off on June 7th, 2019, for WWE’s Super ShowDown event in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
R-Truth is the new 24/7 Champion. The title was introduced last night by Mick Foley and is open to any Superstar from any brand.
Truth had a referee ready before attacking Robert Roode and winning the title during the 3rd hour of RAW last night. He has since posted the following to Twitter:
Truth may have been in Albany last night as part of the Wild Card rule, or he may have just confused which show he was supposed to be on. Regardless, he’s the new 24/7 Champion and plans on bringing the title to Smackdown tonight.
24/7 Championship
As of this writing, the championship is approximately 10.5 hours old and has changed hands 3 times already. Titus O’Neil was the first to win the title, he did so by simply grabbing the title belt that Foley had left on the ring mat. Robert Roode would then win the title shortly before R-Truth did.
R-Truth Championship Statistics
This is the second title with a 24/7 rule R-Truth has won in WWE. Truth is also a 2x Hardcore Champion as well. He’s a former 2x United States Champion, 1x Tag Team Champion, and won Season 2 of the Mixed Match Challenge with Carmella.
Seth Rollins and AJ Styles had a phenomenal match at Money In The Bank, with Rollins managing to successfully defend his Universal Championship.
After the match had concluded, the two shook hands. As they did, Styles said something to Rollins that wasn’t caught on camera.
In an interview with Newsweek, Styles divulged what he told Seth Rollins at that moment. He also addressed his next steps and ambitions for gold.
“I told Seth I was right when I said 13 years ago that he would be something special in this business,” he said.
“We both respected each other that was never in question,” Styles said. “It was two guys, two egos and a lot of testosterone that you’re going to get a fight when two big dogs get next to each other. Tempers go awry and next thing you know we’re fighting and it is what it is, but when it’s over and someone comes out the better man you shake hands.”
“I Want To Be Universal Champion Before My Career Is Over”
But just because he lost once, doesn’t mean his journey towards the Universal Championship and a potential rematch against Seth Rollins is over. He promised that this loss is “100 per cent” not the end.
“Just because you lose doesn’t mean it’s over,” Styles said. “I’ve lost before. I’ve lost the WWE championship before. You find your way back into the hunt. You may get derailed by going to the back of the line but you want what you want. And I want to be Universal Champion before my career is over.”
Not everyone was happy to see Brock Lesnar make a surprise entrance this past Sunday at Money In The Bank.
When “The Beast Incarnate” arrived, he injured a couple of cameraman with a ladder as he stampeded towards the ring to claim the Money In The Bank briefcase.
Once inside, he would confront SmackDown Live Superstar, Ali.
Ali, who was ready to secure the briefcase, instead found himself getting busted up at the hands of the Beast. Lesnar would go on to unhook the briefcase and become the winner of the 2019 Money In The Bank Ladder Match.
Clearly unhappy with how the matchup transpired, Ali took to Twitter to take a jab at the former Universal champion:
“Look at the bright side, @brocklesnar climbing a ladder is the most wrestling he’s done all year.”
Look at the bright side, @brocklesnar climbing a ladder is the most wrestling he's done all year.
Ali isn’t the only wrestler to be outspoken over WWE’s decision.
All Elite Wrestling wrestler, and former WWE Superstar, Chris Jericho was one of the first to mock the decision:
“Awesome to see @BrockLesnar win the #MoneyInTheBank match…even though he wasn’t officially entered! Brock is the future of the biz and this perfect example of genius booking shows why @WWE will remain on top FOREVER! #GoBrockGo”
Awesome to see @BrockLesnar win the #MoneyInTheBank match…even though he wasn’t officially entered! Brock is the future of the biz and this perfect example of genius booking shows why @WWE will remain on top FOREVER! #GoBrockGo
Brock Lesnar would appear on last night’s episode of Monday Night RAW to gloat about his victory. The question remains, however, over whom he will cash the briefcase against: Seth Rollins or Kofi Kingston?
Rey Mysterio emerged as the United States Champion during Money In The Bank. He earned a surprisingly quick victory over Samoa Joe. After the match, Joe would ambush and beat down the new champ in front of his son, Dominick.
Unfortunately, it turns out that Mysterio suffered a legitimate injury during his match with Joe. He allegedly separated his shoulder on his way to a win—albeit a controversial one, given that Joe’s shoulder was not on the mat.
This injury was acknowledged by WWE on Monday Night RAW, with the company teasing the future of the United States championship given Rey’s injury.
They highlighted that Rey won the matchup due to a bad call by the official and stated that the WWE Universe can find out what will happen to the state of the championship next week on Monday Night RAW.
In an effort to continue incorporating Mysterio’s son into the feud, Samoa Joe has sent out a veiled threat directed at Dominick.
“There will be justice, lest the Son suffer the sins of the Father..”
In a backstage segment, he gave Rey Mysterio an opportunity to “do the right thing and hand me back my United States championship. Rey, I’m giving you the opportunity to lead by example. So be the man that I know you hope Dominick grows to be. Because if you don’t, just imagine the example that I will set for you.”
The Women’s Money In The Bank Ladder Match would kickstart WWE’s recent event this past Sunday. It’s often advertised as a dangerous, high stakes matchup where its competitors don’t always come away the way they entered.
Unfortunately, this appears to be the case for at least one of the women involved.
During the matchup, Carmella appeared to suffer an injury to her knee after an exchange with Mandy Rose. The two had an awkward exchange in the ring after Carmella seemingly suffered the injury, refusing to engage with Mandy Rose and telling her to go away.
Taking to Twitter, she would lash out after being baited by a recent tweet by Mandy, which read:
“Aw how’s your knee hunny? Also, go back to being a brunette, you’re never gonna look like me. #MITB #GodsGreatestCreation”
Whether the injury is legit or not is up for debate, especially as the “Staten Island Princess” would return late into the matchup in her efforts to become a three-time Money In The Bank winner.
What isn’t up for debate, however, is Carmella’s frustration with Mandy Rose—a frustration that may just play out on WWE.
Everybody makes mistakes, but it turns out that WWE’s referees may have been making theirs deliberately. At least, that appears to be the case coming out of their recent event, Money In The Bank, which took place this past Sunday.
Commenting on the perceived botches made by WWE officials at the event, Dave Meltzer of F4WOnline.com said the following:
“It was so obvious that it was part of the scripting of the match. That was so obvious. That was the theme of the show, that was the second time in a row they did it,” he explained.
“They weren’t both screw-ups. No, this was obviously part of the match. That’s why I’m so sure that it wasn’t a screw up because they played off of the idea of that [WrestleMania] screw-up. It was so clear.”
He would continue, highlighting that the way the commentary team addressed the officiating made it apparent the “mistakes” were “very clearly a part of the story of the match.”
At least two matches at Money In The Bank featured obvious referee botches. The first being Shane McMahon versus The Miz, where Miz’s pin was incorrectly broken up by a rope break during their steel cage match. The second saw Mysterio pick up the win over Samoa Joe, despite Joe’s shoulder being off the canvas. This victory would see Mysterio win the United States Championship.
So it appears that in an effort to continue justifying Becky Lynch’s WrestleMania 35 victory—which caused controversy due to a pinfall being made despite Ronda Rousey’s shoulder being off the mat—WWE has decided to purposely make their officiating team unable to correctly officiate their matches.
WWE has confirmed a Money In The Bank rematch and a couple
of segments for this week’s episode of SmackDown Live which will be the
follow-up episode for the PPV.
The first thing the company has announced is the return of the New Day Member Big E. He has spent the past month on the shelf following a knee surgery.
While E is not expected to compete or get involved in action
anytime soon, his brothers will still be throwing a party for him and it’d be
interesting to see how this return turns out.
The second segment the company has announced will see Bayley
celebrating her Women’s Championship victory over Charlotte Flair during the
latest episode of the Blue Branded Show.
Finally, the match which has been made official for the
event will see the Big Dog Roman Reigns in action as he goes head to head
against his MITB opponent Elias.
Shane McMahon will be in Elias’ corner for this bout and after the announcement of McMahon vs. Reigns match for the Super Showdown, it’s easy to imagine that Shane will be getting involved in this bout.
Apart from this, the company is also advertising Daniel Bryan and the newly introduced 24/7 title for this week’s episode of SmackDown Live.
When Braun Strowman was removed from the Money In The Bank
ladder match, it was speculated that the Monster Among Men was dealing with
some sort of injury.
However, Brock Lesnar’s run in at the show changed things. A lot of people started believing that the company simply removed Strowman from the bout to protect him as they probably didn’t want to do the beatdown angle with Braun they did with Sami Zayn.
Now The former Wyatt Family Member has also denied such
reports. He was asked about his condition during a recent interview with the
Daily Star and replying to it, he explained that there is a difference between
being hurt and being injured:
“We are all banged up, but there is a difference
between being hurt and being injured, I am in the best shape of my life,
stronger than I have ever been, faster than I have ever been, and a little
lighter than I have ever been”
Continuing on the topic, Braun Strowman explained that he is
in the best shape of his life and he can go longer than ever, claiming that he
can work 45-minute matches without getting exhausted.
Apart from this, Braun revealed the best advice he has received in WWE and he also talked about his frustrating chase of the Universal title. You can check out his full interview at this link.
The Money In The Bank PPV received mix reaction from fans
with most of the PPV being praised by the WWE Universe with the exception of
the finish of the show.
The segments which were highly praised included Bayley’s
Money In The Bank Win and her successful cash in on Charlotte Flair for the
SmackDown Women’s Championship.
And it appears that Bayley’s former partner Sasha Banks liked this booking too and the former Women’s Champion reacted to it via the following tweet after the event:
For those who don’t know, Bayley won the Women’s Money In
The Bank ladder match while Charlotte was able to defeat Becky Lynch for the
SmackDown Women’s Championship during Money In The Bank.
However, Flair didn’t stop after winning the title and she
along with Lacey Evans unleashed a post-match beat down on the Man after the
bout.
This provoked Bayley to come out to help Lynch clear the
ring and seizing the opportunity, she cashed in her Money In The Bank contract
on Charlotte.
There has been no recent updates on Sasha Banks’ situation and currently, it’s hard to say when or if Banks will return to the WWE Programming in future.
WWE was able to pull off a big surprise at the Money In The Bank PPV in form of Brock Lesnar’s shocking win and it appears that the company went to great lengths for being able to do so.
It was reported shortly after the PPV that the Beast was kept hidden backstage and not many people were aware of his presence before he came out in the arena.
However, Pwinsider reveals that the company went even further and even the participants of the ladder match didn’t know that it was going to be the former Universal Champion who will win the match.
According to the report, the participants, as well as the other wrestlers backstage, were kept under the impression that Ali would be winning the bout. Even the former 205 Star was led to believe this up until the last minute.
He was told the real finish of the match very late and even
then, Ali was only aware that a star would come out and throw him off the
ladder to win the bout but the officials didn’t reveal who it was going to be.
How Brock Lesnar’s reign as Mr. Money In The Bank turns out is something we’ll have to see but for now, people’s reaction suggests that they are not very happy with this decision from the company.
The May 20th, 2019 episode of WWE RAW aired live from the Times Union Center in Albany, NY. It was the first episode of RAW following WWE Money in the Bank 2019. In addition to the takeaways below, it was announced that Roman Reigns will face Shane McMahon at WWE Super Show-Down.
Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman kicked off this week’s show. Brock Lesnar won last night’s men’s Money in the Bank match, without having ever been announced as a participant.
The crowd booed Lesnar and Heyman out of the building, but Brock had a giant grin on his face the whole time. Heyman stated that Kofi and Seth should be paranoid because Brock Lesnar could cash in whenever he wants.
Universal Champion Seth Rollins interrupted and marched down to the ring. Seth stated that he is out here trying to be a champion that inspires people. Rollins challenged Brock to cash in the briefcase right now.
Heyman told Rollins that Lesnar will cash in whenever he feels like. Heyman then joked that Rollins should know what waiting feels like since he waited around for 7-hours at WrestleMania for his girlfriend to main event WrestleMania. Paul then added that Brock might want to cash in on Kofi Kingston.
WWE Champion Kofi Kingston joined the party and came down to the ring. Kofi shouted “wild card!” to no reaction from the crowd and apologized to Rollins for interrupting him. Kofi said that he was out here trying to establish his legacy as WWE Champion and challenged Lesnar to a match.
Heyman pointed out that Rollins and Kingston were both auditioning to have a main event match with Brock Lesnar. Paul noted that is because Brock Lesnar is a box office attraction. Heyman finished the promo that Brock Lesnar will be around tonight and could cash in at any moment.
Braun Strowman was set to face Sami Zayn tonight. Braun chased Sami backstage and started beating him down. Bobby Lashley stared at Strowman and Braun told him that he will deal with him at Super Show-Down.
Strowman carried Sami down the entrance ramp but Zayn was able to escape and shoved Braun into the ring post. The match officially started and Braun hit him with a Clothesline.
Braun followed that up with a shoulder tackle outside the ring and then rolled Sami back inside. Strowman then hit the Running Powerslam for the pinfall victory.
Zayn cut a few great promos, but WWE is already back to treating him like a joke. It is honestly impossible to care about Strowman at this point, so this was pointless.
Cesaro squared off against Ricochet tonight on RAW. Cesaro came down to the ring with new theme music and dominated the match early. Ricochet battled back and connected with a Moonsault off the ring apron.
Ricochet then flipped onto Cesaro on the outside of the ring as the crowd chanted “this is awesome!”. Cesaro leveled Ricochet with an uppercut and followed it up with a Backbreaker. Cesaro then hit the Neutralizer for the pinfall victory.
I’ve been waiting for Cesaro to get a push since he arrived in WWE. He is an unbelievably talented in-ring performer. I was pumped when he was briefly paired with Heyman, and thought he was finally going to get the singles run he deserved. I’d like to think that WWE has finally decided to start building him up again, but I’ll believe it when I see it.
Alexa Bliss told Nikki Cross that she was disappointed in her for losing the women’s Money in the Bank match. Bliss then welcomed Becky Lynch as her guest on A Moment of Bliss.
Bliss kept getting distracted because Nikki Cross was apparently too close to her. Alexa finally asked Becky how it felt to no longer be Becky 2 Belts. The IIconics interrupted and bragged about still having their Women’s Tag Team Championships.
Becky stated that she defended her titles last night more than The IIconics have since becoming the Women’s Tag Team Champions. Lacey Evans joined the party and claimed that she was the reason Becky lost her SmackDown Women’s Championship.
Lynch noted that Evans tapped out last night and added that she can now slap Lacey around full-time on RAW. Becky wanted a fight and Nikki agreed to be her partner. Lynch then told Alexa to join the team, stand there and look pretty as The Man takes care of the rest.
Alexa Bliss, Becky Lynch, and Nikki Cross battled The IIconics, and Lacey Evans. Becky Lynch dominated early and tagged in Nikki Cross. Nikki connected with a Crossbody on Royce for a near fall as Alexa Bliss drank her coffee outside the ring. Lynch got back in and connected with a Leg Drop off the second rope on Billie Kay for the pinfall victory.
The only thing I enjoyed about this was Becky Lynch mocking The IIconics and their lackluster run with the titles so far. Billie Kay of The IIconics was also the superstar pinned tonight, which just makes the titles even more irrelevant.
Mick Foley Introduced The 24/7 Title
24/7 Championship
Mick Foley came down to the ring as the crowd chanted his name. Foley stated that there has been something missing on Monday nights. Foley got into the ring and asked for a drumroll.
Foley then announced the 24/7 Title and pointed out that it will obviously be defended any place and any time. Foley added that the title is open to anyone in WWE, including RAW, SmackDown, NXT, and NXT UK.
Mick exited the ring and called for the bell. A bunch of Superstars brawled on the entrance ramp and then Anderson and Gallows fought over the titles in the ring. Drake Maverick tried to sneak into the ring but Titus O’Neil sent him flying to the outside. Titus O’Neil grabbed the title and was crowned the first 24/7 Champion. Robert Roode then rolled up Titus from behind to win the title. R-Truth later won the title in the parking lot.
WWE barely gives a damn about half of their titles, so this will likely be a miserable failure. It is an interesting concept and was entertaining for a bit during the Attitude Era. It just seems like this is going to be a watered down version of the Hardcore Title and won’t last too long.
Kofi and Seth isolated Lashley in the ring to start off the match. Kingston connected with the Boom Drop and followed it up with a Crossbody for a near fall. Corbin knocked Rollins off the apron and demanded a tag. Corbin and Lashley launched Rollins and Kingston into the barricade as RAW went to a break.
When RAW returned, Corbin and Lashley were still in control. Corbin and Lashley buried Rollins under chairs next to the announce table and then beat down Kofi in the ring. Seth got back in the action and connected with a knee to Corbin’s face.
Rollins set up for The Stomp but Lashley dragged him to the outside. Kingston sent Corbin and Lashley out of the ring and Seth hit them with a Suicide Dive. Kofi followed that up with a Splash off the top and brought Corbin back in the ring. Kingston caught Corbin with the Trouble in Paradise for the pinfall victory.
After the match, Lashley hit Seth and Kofi with a Spear. Brock Lesnar’s music hit and he made his way down the entrance ramp. Lesnar slowly walked around the ring as Kofi and Seth watched along.
Lesnar handed Heyman the briefcase and hopped on the apron. Brock hopped down and laughed as Heyman told him that he was in their heads. Heyman added that they will be back next week on RAW and tell the world who he wants to face.
Lesnar will likely announce next week that he is going to cash in at Super Show-Down and face either Rollins or Kingston. It was quite obvious that he wasn’t going to cash in tonight, so I don’t know how anyone could have been shocked by this. In the end, we were just left with Bobby Lashley and Baron Corbin in the main event of RAW. I couldn’t think of a better way to end another terrible show.
WWE has introduced a new 24/7 Championship title. The belt can be challenged for any time and any place. Wrestlers from the entire WWE roster are eligible to vie for it, including Raw, SmackDown, 205 Live, NXT and NXT UK.
WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley unveiled the new title on Monday’s Raw. The crowd’s reaction to the belt was mixed, at best. Foley announced the first champion would be crowned later in the show in a scramble match.
Titus O’Neil was first to claim the new prize, but was later pinned on the stage by Robert Roode. The title would change hands once again later in the show, with R-Truth sneak attacking Roode backstage to leave Raw as the 24/7 Champion.
WWE’s New 24/7 Championship
When this announcement was first made, there was a wide range of speculation including WWE bringing back the Hardcore Title due to Foley being a big part of that title back in the Attitude Era. He introduced the now-defunct Hardcore Championship in 1998. The other speculation was an introduction of a Legends Title.
While it’s not the old WWE Hardcore Title, it will feature aspects of the title as it can be defended anywhere, at any time, on any brand. The original Hardcore Title had a 24/7 rule that was introduced once Crash Holly captured the strap.
This allows for title defenses and changes take place in all sorts of locations and for title changes on WWE TV and live events. WWE got rid of the title in October 2002 where it was unified into the Intercontinental Championship.
It’s no secret that WWE is looking to boost ratings and this appears to be their latest attempt to get some more eyes on their flagship show. It will be interesting to see the viewership numbers for this show as historically, post-pay-per-view shows of RAW tend to increase.
What are your thoughts on WWE creating this championship belt? Did you hope for WWE to bring back a retro title? Sound off in the comment section.
