The former member of La Résistance and WWE tag team champion Sylvain Grenier is back with the company. According to comments Grenier made to the French- Canadian publication TVA Sports, he has been working backstage in WWE for the last week beginning at the RAW show from Kentucky.
Grenier told TVA that he contacted WWE last April in order to get photos from his career.
“When WWE came to Montreal in April 2019, I went to meet Kevin Dunn (Executive Vice President of TV Content) to ask him for pictures of the time I won the team titles at the Bell Center,” a translation of Grenier’s comments reads. “I needed it for the intro to my new fitness TV show.”
The conversation led to Grenier being told the company was looking for backstage agents.
“I had just had a child, I was working on my show, I didn’t want to end up on the road as much as before. But he told me that things had changed. The company then invited me to the premiere of SmackDown on FOX in Los Angeles and a few exchanges later, we had an agreement.”
Grenier has yet to be assigned to a brand and stated he is currently in training. The full French language article with TVA Sports can be read here.
Brandi Rhodes is not on the Jericho cruise due to not having a passport. She Tweeted recently that she would not be on the cruise due to her passport having been stolen. Rhodes has since deleted the original Tweet, however.
“I hope this doesn’t disappoint anyone, as I was having to leave early to deliver the keynote at NATPE next week (which I am insanely excited for!) but I will not be on the cruise at all this year. My passport was stolen this evening and I cannot attend. Be safe and have fun,” Rhodes Tweeted.
Rhodes would continue to Tweet that she was not scheduled to be on the cruise the entire time.
I wasn’t scheduled to be on the cruise the entire time, I have to get back to the states to deliver an important keynote, which means an international flight. Not possible.
Rhodes recently spoke to the Bleacher Report about her on-screen relationship with Awesome Kong.
“I have to give a lot of credit to Awesome Kong because she came to me wanting something specific for herself and that’s always a great thing, a great sign from a talent when they come in and say, ‘Hey, this is my vision, this is what I see. Can you help me create this?’” Rhodes explained. “Because nobody’s going to be able to create their own vision better than they do themselves.”
Roman Reigns teased Goldberg through the power of social media.
It all started when a fan asked Reigns on Twitter about a small, black pad that’s placed on the stage during his entrance. It turns out that Reigns does his signature fist pound to the floor that sees his fist hit the pad.
Roman Reigns Teases Goldberg
Reigns responded to the fan by noting that he does it so he doesn’t break his hand.
“Nothing to explain, Nick. It’s a little piece of pad,” Reigns wrote. “So I don’t break my hand on steel grate. I gotta perform like 48 weeks a year man. So that would be stupid. It would be like [thinking emoji] head butting a door before my match level of stupid. Anyway, have a good day, Nick.”
Regarding Reigns’ “head butting a door” reference, this was a nod to Goldberg’s pre-match ritual before his matches.
It turns out that this became a bit of an issue during Goldberg’s 2016-2017 run in WWE. He has since revealed in interviews that he would knock himself silly on the door before going out to a cut a promo where he would forget his lines in the process.
Goldberg spoke about what happened that night during an interview in 2017 on the podcast hosted by Edge and Christian:
“How about when I knocked myself out on the door? Did you hear that one? You didn’t hear that one? I did that, I don’t know, a month ago. My way of getting ready, you know me, man. They knock on my door, I pour water on my head, so I don’t catch on fire from the sparks, and I headbutt the door. I’m a neanderthal. That’s what I do, right? I’m walking to the ring, and I go through Gorilla, and then, I get in the ring, man, and I literally forgot every single thing that I was supposed to say.”
Reigns and Goldberg have never had a one-on-one bout against each other. The closest that fans came to see this was when they competed in the Men’s Royal Rumble Match in 2017 from the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.
Paige has named the person that she would want to wrestle should she be medically cleared for in-ring action.
The speculation of her making a potential comeback started when she fueled speculation as she believed her glory days were far from over. Paige did so by posting the following on her official Twitter account earlier this month.
“I get told that my glory days are over with my career & that I’m a ‘slut’ [because] of the crap that got released about me,” Paige wrote on Twitter. “Just know again. people make mistakes when they’re young. I’m not that person. Also my glory days are far from over. I have a whole a lot of career left in me. 2020 will be a good year for me.”
Paige Names Opponents
Fast forward a few weeks later, Paige talked with Daily Mail Online where she named WWE RAW Women’s Champion Becky Lynch as a talent that would be at the top of her list as someone she would want to face.
It should be noted that she also mentioned NXT Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley and Candice LeRae as other dream opponents.
“You’d want to face the top person in the company and obviously that would be Becky [Lynch], so I’d want to face her,” Paige responded. “There’s so many. I’d want to face Rhea Ripley. I’d want to face Candice [LeRae]. All the Four Horsewomen. I’d want to face everyone, bring them all on.”
The former WWE Divas Champion and SmackDown General Manager has spinal stenosis, which has kept her from not being medically cleared by WWE doctors to wrestle again.
Whether she works another match remains to be seen. Previously, WWE hasn’t cleared a talent to make a return to the ring with such an injury but she could be the first.
The journey of bringing the WWE NXT UK brand to the more fans has continued as the company held TV tapings on Saturday from York, UK at the York Barbican.
As of this writing, there’s no word yet on when these shows will air but WWE is likely to start to air these episodes on their streaming service, WWE Network, shortly. Here are the spoilers:
NXT UK TV Tapings Spoilers
Grizzled Young Vets cut a promo in the ring where they proclaimed themselves the best
Joe Coffey defeated Amir Jordan. Post-match, Coffey then cuts a promo on Ilja Dragunov.
Mark Coffey & Wolfgang defeated Oney Lorcan & Danny Burch
Ilja Dragunov runs out but gets beatdown out by Gallus
Aoife Valkyrie defeated Amale
Tyler Bate defeated Joseph Conners
Jinny cuts a promo on the announce table about Jazzy Gabbert
Noam Dar defeated Josh Morrell
Ilja Dragunov defeated Joe Coffey
Grizzled Young Vets defeated The Hunt
Kassius Ohno defeated Jack Starz
A-Kid defeated Brian Kendrick
NXT UK Women’s Champion Kay Lee Ray defeated Toni Storm – I Quit Match
Alexander Wolfe defeated Travis Banks
Ridge Holland defeated Saxton Huxley
Aoife Valkyrie defeated Isla Dawn
NXT UK Title Champion WALTER defeated Dave Mastiff
Kairi Sane returned to in-ring action after being sidelined with an injury.
It happened at Friday’s WWE live event in Lafayette, LA at the Cajundome when RAW Women’s Champion Becky Lynch, Charlotte Flair and Natalya defeated Sarah Logan and WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Sane and Asuka.
Kairi Sane Returns To Action
Earlier in the day, she indicated that she was back for in-ring action as she posted the following on her official Twitter account:
WWE has sent one main roster star to NXT and that’s Mike Kanellis.
WWE held an NXT house show on Friday in Melbourne, FL at the Melbourne Auditorium where he teamed up with Tony Nese to defeat Mohamed Fahim and Nick Ogarelli in a tag team match.
As a result, Kanellis worked a match since September 24th where he lost to Chad Gable in seconds at a SmackDown TV event. It appears that Mike will be in NXT going forward.
Back in October, he requested his release from WWE and took to social media to share the news with fans. Obviously, WWE didn’t grant him the release.
This comes after Mike and his wife, Maria, had signed new WWE contracts that would’ve seen them be with the company for the next five years. In the statement, he confirmed that he signed a new deal back in June.
Results From WWE Live Event in Lafayette, LA
Jaxson Ryker defeated Cal Bloom
Catalina defeated Marina Shafir
Cameron Grimes defeated Babatunde Aiyegbusi
Mike Kanellis and Tony Nese defeated Mohamed Fahim and Nick Ogarelli.
Austin Theory defeated Dorian Mak
Chelsea Green defeated Kayden Carter
Shane Thorne defeated Daniel Vidot
Kacy Catanzaro defeated Vanessa Borne. This was Kacy’s return to singles action
AEW Executive Vice President Cody Rhodes recently appeared on Sirius XM’s Busted Open Radio show. During his interview with Dave LeGreca and WWE Hall of Famer Mark Henry the discussion of AEW finally heading to the Tri-State area came up. All Elite will be taking their weekly Dynamite show to Newark, New Jersey on March 25th at the Prudential Center.
Tri-State Is ‘WWE’ Country
Although professional wrestling is no longer ‘territory’ based, it has been fairly common knowledge that the North East of the United States has been WWE country for quite some time. This relates as far back as the days of the WWWF with Bruno Sammartino, with WWE now having their headquarters based in Connecticut. Having been a part of the wrestling industry for most of his life Cody Rhodes is more than aware of this. and he discussed the difficulties of ‘loyalty’ for the buildings in that geographic area.
“I didn’t even go to that site survey” – Cody Rhodes
“I’m looking forward to the Prudential Center” Cody Rhodes began. “It’s a wonderful building. I was involved in some of the WWE events that were there. I was involved with Hell In a Cell there. Actually that was my only pay-per-view main event ever with WWE. But the building itself? I didn’t even go to that site survey” Cody revealed.
“I know that building well enough. I’m beyond excited to be in the New Jersey and the New York area.”
Cody Rhodes then talked about the ‘loyalties’ of staff in the buildings; “It’s not easy. As you guys know, in some of those buildings they’ve got long standing history [with WWE], there’s a lot of loyalty elements. There’s a lot of young men and women that want it in the offices. And a lot of old men and women who are you know; trepidatious about this wild disruptive wrestling company coming in. They [the younger generation] were the ones who said ‘no this is great. We’ve seen what they’re doing in these other venues. They’re filling them up and we want them.’ That first show is going to be…It’s going to be gangbusters.”
“…slowly chipping away on the area”
Cody Rhodes also revealed that this will not be the only event in the Tri-State area for the company; at least that is the current plan. “I’m really, really looking forward to that Tri-State debut. And…slowly chipping away on the area. But that Prudential building has a soft spot in my heart for being the ones to say ‘hey, doors are open.’
Tickets for the Prudential Center show go on sale January 24th, further information can be found via the tweet below:
Charlotte Flair recently took part in an interview where she stated she loses more than any other wrestler in WWE. Flair spoke to Sportskeeda recently and mentioned her win/loss record.
“If you look at my stats, I have THE HIGHEST losing record out of anyone on the roster,” Flair said. “It’s just, ‘Oh, it’s Charlotte Flair.'”
In 2019, Flair wrestled 20 single’s matches on WWE programming (not including house shows). She sported a 12-7-1 record in those matches. She went 3-3 in PPV single’s matches last year. Her record on house shows is abysmal, however, as she usually wrestles and loses to whoever is champion at the time. This year, Flair has worked the house show tours losing matches every night to Bayley, Becky Lynch, or earlier in the year, Asuka. It is not uncommon for Flair to lose a dozen or so house show matches in a row.
“I think a detriment to me, which is also a positive, is I am consistent,” Flair continued. “I am consistent, I am never hurt, I am always here. It’s almost like, ‘Yes, that is awesome,’ but at the same time, it’s like, I’ve never had the opportunity for the fans to miss me, but that’s what people forget.”
Flair wrestled in 4 triple threat matches in 2019 on WWE programming and went 0-4. She also went 7-8 in tag team matches on WWE programming, most of the time teaming with Becky Lynch.
“It’s like, yes, I won a match this week – Oh, my God, I won a match – but they’re like… ‘Oh, she wins all the time.’ But that’s not been the case. Actually I’ve, like you said, lost more matches than probably any female booked currently. It’s crazy. I think it’s the stigma of the name and always being in the title picture – but I’m consistent and a workaholic. It’s a good thing and a bad thing, you know?”
Flair is currently 1-0 on WWE programming in 2020, having defeated Sarah Logan.
Kevin Reilly is the chief content officer for HBO Max and president of TNT, TBS, and truTV. He spoke to Variety recently about the new deal his company struck with All Elite Wrestling. Reilly also talked about the second AEW show WarnerMedia plans to air.
“I just had this idea that this was the time to invest,” Reilly told Variety. “This is a startup. It’s already over-delivered out of the gate. That’s really when you want to hit the gasoline a little bit. The guys already have ideas about additional talent and things they want to do and I wanted to incentivize them as a partner to do that. We also wanted to gave fans and talent who potentially want to come work with us the sense that this is here to stay. You can invest in it, it’s here to stay, and it’s only going to get better.”
Reilly spoke about bringing AEW Dark to the network as opposed to YouTube.
“We just figured, ‘Let’s bring it onto the network and make it a place where you truly plant up and coming talent,’” he continued. “I think we’ll start doing more packages there and filming some behind-the-scenes stuff, not for the matches that night but with other talent to plant stories and grow things that could eventually become another show in and of itself.”
A story from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter recently stated, however, that Dark will continue to air on YouTube and a second show broadcast by WarnerMedia will extend tapings to 4 hours every Wednesday night.
The spoilers from the Impact Wrestling TV taping that took place on Friday, January 17, 2020, in Mexico City, Mexico has surfaced online.
This taping served as the fallout from Impact’s latest pay-per-view event, Hard to Kill, that aired last Sunday night in Dallas, Texas at the Bomb Factory. The headliner saw Blanchard beat Sami Callihan to become the new Impact World Heavyweight Champion.
These matches and segments will air over the coming weeks on AXS TV. You can read the results here, courtesy of PWinsider.com:
Impact Wrestling TV Taping Results
Impact World Champion Tessa Blanchard came to the ring for a promo about her historic title win at Hard to Kill. Knockouts Champion Taya Valkyrie (with John E. Bravo) interrupts by proclaiming herself the #1 Contender. A brawl erupts.
TJP defeats Johnny Swinger
Fallah Bahh defeats Ethan Page
Taurus defeats Moose and Rhino – Triple Threat Match
AJ Styles has looked back on what was one of the more special debuts in the history of WWE, which was no doubt a memorable night for him.
Styles recently spoke with Yahoo Sports where he talked about competing in the 30-Man WWE Royal Rumble Match. Styles made his WWE debut in 2016 at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view event.
Styles brought up how you have to think about it all as not only is it one of the biggest pay-per-views in WWE, it’s WWE in general. He recalled it being his first time under contract, working for a company that is easily the biggest in the world.
AJ Styles Looks Back On His WWE Debut
Styles talked about how he was a little nervous about it and remembering if anyone knew who he was despite him working in TNA, which he called a little place in Orlando, and in Japan.
“I was a little nervous because I didn’t know what to expect. I was in a position that gave me the opportunity to really shine,” Styles recalled. “When I walked out for the Royal Rumble, there was only one man in the ring. I went No. 3 and the spotlight was on me. The fans had no idea whose music was playing and then when they figured out who it was, it was even more exciting because they had no idea what would happen and they had no idea that AJ Styles was coming to WWE.”
Styles lasted almost 30 minutes in his debut before being eliminated by Kevin Owens. His career took off starting that night in WWE.
He continued, “It couldn’t have been any better. Once I step into the ring, those jitters and that nervousness goes away, that doesn’t exist anymore. Walking down the aisle, yes, you’re still feeling it.”
Former Cruiserweight Champion Kalisto has joined the list of stars to have signed new contracts with WWE in recent times by signing a multi-year contract extension, according to reports from Pro Wrestling Sheet.
The site is reporting that the masked star has decided to
re-sign with the promotion because he feels that he has a lot left to
accomplish in the company.
There is no word on the length of his new deal but the standard length for new WWE contracts has been 3 to 5 years recently and it’s likely that the former NXT star Kalisto has inked a similar deal.
The Usos Comment On Their SmackDown win
This week’s episode of SmackDown saw the former tag team
champions, The Usos return to a WWE ring after an extended break from the
company.
The duo of Jimmy Uso and Jay Uso squared off against former
Raw tag team champions The Revival in a tag team match and the brothers were
able to pick up the win in this bout.
They were interviewed backstage after the show and when asked how it feels to get back in the winning column, the Usos claimed that tonight was all about getting the momentum going:
WWE SmackDown aired live from the Ford Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina. Roman Reigns battled Robert Roode in a Tables Match tonight.
WWE SmackDown Results (1/17)
John Morrison defeated Big E
The Usos defeated The Revival
Lacey Evans defeated Bayley
Alexa Bliss defeated Sonya Deville
Roman Reigns defeated Robert Roode in a Tables Match
Here are 5 takeaways from this week’s SmackDown:
Daniel Bryan Challenged The Fiend To A Strap Match At Royal Rumble
Kane returned and made his way to the ring to begin tonight’s show. He said that the Royal Rumble is his favorite event of the year and added that it is a match that you go through hell but the reward is chance at immortality.
Kane noted that he holds the record for most eliminations and that it was a lot of fun ruining every superstar’s dreams. Bray Wyatt interrupted with an episode of Firefly Fun House.
Wyatt assured everyone that Ramblin’ Rabbit is alive and recovering quite nicely. Bray pointed at Kane’s picture on the wall and claimed that The Fiend will never forget Kane.
The lights in the arena went out and The Fiend came up from under the ring. Kane asked The Fiend what took him so long and Daniel Bryan came out from the crowd. Bryan leveled The Fiend with the Running Knee and then ripped out some of his dreadlocks as he escaped back under the ring. Bryan and Kane then did the “yes!” chant to end the segment.
Bryan was then interviewed backstage and said that he was sick of The Fiend running away. Daniel challenged The Fiend to a Strap Match at Royal Rumble and vowed to take his Universal Championship.
Big E squared off against John Morrison tonight on SmackDown. The Miz and Kofi Kingston were ringside for the match.
Match Recap: Big E dominated the match early and sent Morrison to the corner. Morrison battled back and planted Big E with a Neckbreaker off the apron and to the floor outside the ring. The Miz and Kingston started arguing outside the ring and Kofi shoved Miz into the steel stairs.
John Morrison launched himself off the top rope and took out Kofi outside the ring. The Miz then distracted Big E and Morrison capitalized with a kick to the face. Morrison climbed to the top rope and hit Starship Pain for the pinfall victory.
Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville had a conversation backstage. Sonya said that she knew why Mandy was being so nice to Otis and suggested that she ask him to be ringside tonight for her match against Alexa Bliss.
Match Recap: Otis and Tucker stood on the entrance ramp as Sonya Deville controlled the match early. Alexa battled back with a Dropkick and then beat Sonya down in the corner of the ring. Mandy hopped on the ring apron and made her way up the top rope. Nikki Cross then shoved Mandy off the top rope but Otis caught her. Sonya was distracted by this and Alexa capitalized with a roll-up for the pinfall victory.
SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley and Lacey Evans were shown brawling backstage. Sasha Banks was on the ground holding her knee. Banks was able to get out of her scheduled match tonight against Lacey Evans but Bayley was forced to take her place. It was a non-title match.
Match Recap: Evans controlled the match early and sent Bayley flying out of the ring. Lacey followed her out there and bounced her head off the apron several times. Back in the ring, Bayley rolled Evans up and used the ropes for leverage but the referee caught her. Evans went for a Moonsault but Bayley got her knees up. Lacey Evans hit the Woman’s Right out of nowhere for the pinfall victory.
It was later announced that Bayley will defend her SmackDown Women’s Championship against Lacey Evans at Royal Rumble.
Opinion: Evans and Bayley had a solid match tonight and Evans got a good reaction from the crowd. I just cannot stand WWE consistently having champions lose on television and for it to lead to a rematch.
Reigns & Corbin Will Battle In A Falls Count Anywhere Match At Royal Rumble
Roman Reigns squared off with Robert Roode in a Tables Match in the main event of this week’s episode of SmackDown. If Reigns won the match, he would get to choose the stipulation for his match against King Corbin at the Royal Rumble PPV. If Roode won the match, Corbin would decide.
Match Recap: Roode attacked Roman from behind during his entrance. Roode bounced Roman’s face off the steel steps but Reigns battled back and cleared off the announce table. Roode raked Roman’s eyes and sent him flying into the steel steps once again. Roman sprinted around the ring and went for a Spear but Roode got out of the way and Reigns went crashing through the barricade. King Corbin was then carried to the entrance ramp as the show went to a break.
When SmackDown returned, Roode had set up a table in the ring and tried to Suplex Roman through it but Reigns escaped. Reigns hit a Superman Punch and fired up the crowd. Roman set up a table in the corner of the ring and geared up for the Spear. Corbin hopped on the apron for a distraction and Dolph Ziggler hopped in the ring and leveled Roman with a Superkick.
Corbin and Ziggler set up Reigns on top of the announce table as Roode climbed to the top rope. The Usos rushed the ring and took out Roode with a Superkick. They then set up Dolph on the announce table and hit him with a Splash off the barricade. Reigns then Speared Roode through the table in the corner of the ring for the victory. After the match, Roman Reigns announced that he will battle Corbin in a Falls Count Anywhere Match at Royal Rumble.
Opinion: Corbin and Reigns’ match at TLC was horrific so hopefully they have something entertaining planned for their match at Royal Rumble. Overall, this week’s SmackDown was a forgettable show. There are a few matches on the Royal Rumble card that I do not have any interest in.
Two new matches have been announced for the upcoming WWE Royal Rumble PPV.
It was revealed on Friday Night SmackDown in Greensboro, NC at the Greensboro Coliseum Complex on FOX that SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley will make her next title defense against Lacey Evans. This match was originally slated to take place at the TLC PPV event last month but was nixed.
Chad Gable will also battle Sheamus in a singles match. This will mark Sheamus’ first in-ring match on PPV in almost a year.
WWE presents the Royal Rumble pay-per-view event on Sunday, January 26, 2020 Houston, Texas at the Minute Maid Park and airs on the WWE Network.
WWE will be announcing more matches for this show in the coming days. Here is the updated card:
Updated WWE Royal Rumble Card
WWE Universal Champion Bray Wyatt vs. Daniel Bryan – Strap Match
Men’s Royal Rumble Match: Brock Lesnar in the #1 spot, Roman Reigns, Randy Orton, Drew McIntyre, Ricochet, Rey Mysterio, AJ Styles, Erick Rowan, King Baron Corbin, Dolph Ziggler, Otis, Tucker, Elias, Aleister Black, Buddy Murphy, Rusev, Bobby Lashley, R-Truth, Braun Strowman, WWE Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura, Cesaro, 9 Participants TBA
Women’s Royal Rumble Match: Charlotte Flair, Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, Sarah Logan, 26 Participants TBA
WWE RAW Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. Asuka
Baron Corbin vs. Roman Reigns
WWE SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley vs. Lacey Evans
Sheamus vs. Chad Gable
What are your thoughts on these matches being added to the card? Sound off in the comment section.
Kane made his return to WWE television and it was a noteworthy appearance.
He did so on Friday Night SmackDown this week on FOX in Greensboro, NC at the Greensboro Coliseum Complex. As seen on the show, Kane cut a promo about how the Royal Rumble Match works.
Kane Returns On SmackDown
Bray Wyatt appeared on the big screen where he brought up the history between Kane and The Fiend. This led to The Fiend coming out from out of the ring and Daniel Bryan took out The Fiend.
Kane, real name Glenn Jacobs, is the Mayor of Knox County in Tennessee.
His previous appearance on WWE television came when he appeared on the September 16, 2019 episode of Monday Night RAW in Knoxville, Tennessee at the Thompson-Boling Arena.
This was where he won the WWE 24/7 Title and briefly held it until he dropped the championship back to R-Truth. Fast forward to the main event, Seth Rollins was battling Robert Roode in a singles match.
Once The OC (AJ Styles, Karl Anderson, and Luke Gallows) ran down to attack him, Kane, dressed in his wrestling attire, came down to make the save. This led to Bray Wyatt appearing and putting Kane down.
He was last seen in action when he competed at the WWE Crown Jewel event last November in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia at the King Saud University Stadium that aired on the WWE Network.
Kane and The Undertaker lost to Triple H and Shawn Michaels in a tag team match at the Crown Jewel show. Since then, he has put his focus on his political career.
Kane made an appearance on WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin’s WWE Network show, “Steve Austin: The Broken Skull Sessions” earlier this month.
Kurt Angle has offered some high praise to top heavyweight boxer Tyson Fury for not what he has done in the boxing ring but inside of the squared circle.
Angle did so when he did an interview with Seconds Out where he spoke about Fury. Obviously, Angle went from being an Olympic medal-winning amateur wrestler to a Hall of Fame pro wrestler.
Kurt Angle Offers Praise To Tyson Fury
Thus, Angle can understand what Fury went through as Fury transitioned from one sport to another. According to Kurt Angle, he thinks Fury did a great job and even offered him a rating for his performance.
Angle stated, “I think Tyson did a really good job, I would say he nailed a 10. He got through the match. He wasn’t a professional wrestler by any means but he adapted well. I don’t think he expected more than he gave and I don’t think the company expected more than he gave.”
Fury beat Braun Strowman by count-out in October at the WWE Crown Jewel pay-per-view event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This marked his in-ring debut.
Since then, Fury has talked about wanting to do another match. It’s been reported that this possibility will have to wait until after his next fight, which will see him take on Deontay Wilder for the second time in February.
The final stars in a championship match at the upcoming WWE Worlds Collide event has been revealed.
WWE held NXT UK TV tapings on Friday from York, UK at the York Barbican. This is where it was revealed that Jordan Devlin and Travis Banks will be joining Isaiah “Swerve” Scott against WWE NXT Cruiserweight Champion Angel Garza in the Fatal 4 Way match at the WWE Worlds Collide event.
Devlin defeated Ligero to qualify for the match. Banks then defeated Brian Kendrick to qualify.
As noted, Scott qualified for the bout by defeating Tyler Breeze and Lio Rush in a Triple Threat on this Wednesday’s NXT episode.
WWE presents the Worlds Collide event on Saturday, January 25, 2020 in Houston, Texas at the Toyota Center that will air on the WWE Network. WWE will be announcing more matches for this show in the coming days. Here is the updated card:
Updated WWE Worlds Collide Card
The Undisputed Era (Adam Cole, Roderick Strong, Kyle O’Reilly & Bobby Fish) vs. Imperium (WALTER, Alexander Wolfe, Marcel Barthel & Fabian Aichner) – Eight-Man Tag Team Match
The journey of bringing the WWE NXT UK brand to the more fans has continued as the company held TV tapings on Friday from York, UK at the York Barbican.
As of this writing, there’s no word yet on when these shows will air but WWE is likely to start to air these episodes on their streaming service, WWE Network, shortly. Here are the spoilers:
NXT UK TV Tapings Spoilers
Imperium cut a promo about The Undisputed Era for the match at Worlds Collide. NXT UK GM Johnny Saint and assistant Sid Scala rechristened the WWE UK Title to WALTER
Jordan Devlin defeated Ligero to qualify for the Fatal 4 Way Cruiserweight Title match at Worlds Collide
Ilja Dragunov defeated Josh Terry. Post-match, Dragunov cut a promo on Finn Balor. Joe Coffey interrupted and they exchanged words.
Travis Banks defeated Brian Kendrick to earn the final spot in the Cruiserweight Title Fatal 4 Way
Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch defeated The Hunt
Eddie Dennis cut a promo about Takeover but Trent Seven interrupted and they brawled.
Isla Dawn defeated Nina Samuels
Ridge Holland defeated Tyson T-Bone
Imperium (Marcel Barthel, Fabian Aichner, Alexander Wolfe) defeated Dave Mastiff, Flash Morgan Webster, Mark Andrews
Tyler Bate defeated The A-Kid. Post-match, Joseph Conners confronted Bate and challenged him
Piper Niven defeated Dani Luna
Ashton Smith and Oliver Carter defeated Sam Stoker and Lewis Howley
NXT UK Women’s Champion Kay Lee Ray challenged Toni Storm to an “I Quit” match with the title on the line. Storm can no longer challenge Ray for the title if she loses.
Aoife Cusack (Valkyrie) defeated Amale
Dave Mastiff defeated Saxon Huxley
Trent Seven defeated Eddie Dennis in a Steel Corners Street Fight
There are two stars who could make a return at the upcoming Royal Rumble PPV event.
PWInsider reports that those talents are WWE NXT Superstar The Velveteen Dream and WWE RAW Superstar Jinder Mahal. It was noted in the report that Dream and Mahal are both currently scheduled to be in the same city as the first pay-per-view event of the year for the company.
Although there’s no word yet on if there are plans for them to return in the 30-Man Royal Rumble match, it’s a possibility.
Return At WWE Royal Rumble
First up is Dream, who has been at the WWE Performance Center regularly since being pulled from the ring. He’s also been at all of the live episodes of NXT on the USA Network. He’s been out of action with a back injury in October.
Dream’s back injury was said to be “pretty serious” and there was no solid word on when he will be back in action, according to a report that surfaced this week. It was reported back in November that he was expected to be out for “a few months.” Thus, this timeline would have put him back in the ring in late 2019 or early 2020.
Regarding Mahal, he has been out of action since suffering a patellar tendon rupture since June 15, 2019 at a WWE live event in Denver. This led to him undergoing knee surgery in late June. At the time, it was reported that his expected return would be in the first few months of 2020 at the earliest.
WWE presents the Royal Rumble pay-per-view event on Sunday, January 26, 2020 Houston, Texas at the Minute Maid Park and airs on the WWE Network.
There are 12 open spots for the contest. The following names have been announced:
WWE Champion Brock Lesnar in the #1 spot, Roman Reigns, Randy Orton, Drew McIntyre, Ricochet, Rey Mysterio, AJ Styles, Erick Rowan, King Baron Corbin, Dolph Ziggler, Otis, Tucker, Elias, Aleister Black, Buddy Murphy, Rusev, Bobby Lashley, R-Truth.
Charlotte Flair talked about the possibility of another WWE Evolution event while doing a recent interview.
She did so while speaking with Cultaholic. At the first show, Flair battled Becky Lynch in a Last Woman Standing Match for the SmackDown Women’s Championship.
Charlotte Flair Talks Evolution 2
According to Flair, she thinks it would be okay for her to not be featured in another show like this or the company holding a second event for all women at all. The reason for that, Charlotte Flair talked about how she wouldn’t view it necessarily negative if it doesn’t happen again.
“I thought the first Evolution was such a success and it was really fun to see the past, the present, and technically the future from NXT altogether on one card in one night. But if it doesn’t happen again.
Personally, for me, I always want to be on the card where the entire men’s roster is on it because I want to go, ‘I had the best match, male or female.’ So to me, it’s not necessarily a negative if it doesn’t happen again, but if it does happen again I think it’s so exciting.“
This was the first-ever women’s pay-per-view event under the WWE banner, which took place on October 28, 2018, at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, in Uniondale, New York.
Nikki Bella vs. Rousey for the RAW Women’s Title served as the main event of this show. Lynch vs. Flair was a heavily promoted contest that basically served as the co-main event of the show.
Flair has her next match booked as she’ll be competing in the Women’s Royal Rumble Match alongside Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, Sarah Logan and 26 other participants that have yet to be announced.
The Royal Rumble pay-per-view event goes down on Sunday, January 26, 2020 Houston, Texas at the Minute Maid Park and airs on the WWE Network.
The Royal Rumble is quickly approaching and most of the card has been revealed but there are also expected matches to be announced.
Dave Meltzer reported in the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that there are still a few matches to be revealed for the Royal Rumble.
WWE Royal Rumble Expected Matches
This is where he shed some light on the expected bouts such as SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley vs. Lacey Evans and Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Braun Strowman.
Although they have not been officially announced by WWE yet, these bouts have built up on TV. In fact, these two matches were originally slated to take place at the WWE TLC pay-per-view event in Minneapolis, Minnesota at the Target Center last month.
However, they were nixed. In particular, the Strowman vs. Nakamura was called off due to Strowman dealing with an injury at the time.
WWE has been building for an Andrade vs. Humberto Carillo match for Andrade’s United States Championship. As of this writing, it’s not yet certain if that will be on the Rumble card.
A SmackDown Tag Team Championship match between New Day and Miz & John Morrison is being built up as seen on the last few episodes of SmackDown, but there’s no word yet on if that match will be on the show.
WWE presents the Royal Rumble pay-per-view event on Sunday, January 26, 2020 Houston, Texas at the Minute Maid Park.
Updated Card
WWE Universal Champion Bray Wyatt vs. Daniel Bryan
Men’s Royal Rumble Match: Brock Lesnar in the #1 spot, Roman Reigns, Randy Orton, Drew McIntyre, Ricochet, Rey Mysterio, AJ Styles, Erick Rowan, King Baron Corbin, Dolph Ziggler, Otis, Tucker, Elias, Aleister Black, Buddy Murphy, Rusev, Bobby Lashley, R-Truth, 12 Participants TBA
Women’s Royal Rumble Match: Charlotte Flair, Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, Sarah Logan, 26 Participants TBA
WWE Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. Asuka
Baron Corbin vs. Roman Reigns
Cain Velasquez Claims He’ll Compete In WWE Royal Rumble Match
Rocky Johnson passed away this week. News of the WWE Hall of Famer and father of Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson’s passing was first released by the Cauliflower Ear Club. The Rock took to social media today to post a tribute to his late father on Instagram.
“Dad, I wish I had one more shot to tell you, I love you, before you crossed over to the other side,” the Rock wrote. “But you were ripped away from me so fast without warning. Gone in an instant and no coming back. Im in pain. But we know it’s just pain and it’ll pass.”
WWE issued a statement on Rocky Johnson’s passing.
“WWE is saddened to learn that Rocky “Soul Man” Johnson (born Wayde Douglas Bowles), a WWE Hall of Famer, former World Tag Team Champion, and father of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, has passed away at age 75,” a WWE statement on Johnson’s passing reads.
Ric Flair posted the following:
I'm Saddened To Hear About The Passing Of The GREAT ROCKY JOHNSON! I Wrestled Him Many Times Throughout His Illustrious Career. His Physique And Conditioning Were Unparalleled! He Was So Proud Of His Son Dwayne! He Raised Him To Be The Rock!! RIP Rocky Johnson! pic.twitter.com/GiXXFQhGlE
I’m really sorry to hear of the passing of Rocky Johnson. We always had lovely chats and he always referred to me as “Mate”. My deepest condolences to all of his family.
Prayers and Condolences to @TheRock and His entire family and Friends inside and outside of the @WWE as we all mourn in the passing of his Trailblazing and Amazing Father Rocky Johnson ?? pic.twitter.com/cWrk5yNAz9
“Thank you Soulman Rocky Johnson. A true trailblazer who’s life and career made immeasurable contributions to the wresting industry. People of color continue to reap the benefits. My condolences to @TheRock and family,” Shelton Benjamin Tweeted.
Killer Kross has become one of the hottest free agents in
the wrestling world since his release from Impact Wrestling and latest reports
suggest that WWE is making a strong play to sign the former Lucha Underground
star.
According to reports from Wrestling Observer Newsletter, there was interest in him across the board after Kross became a free agent last year and WWE seems to be interested in signing him as well.
The company’s interest is evident from the fact that Kross has a scheduled meeting with none other than Triple H this week and the ‘betting line’ is that he will end up in WWE.
It’s worth mentioning here that his wife Scarlett Bordeaux who signed with WWE last year, recently hinted at the Heavyweight star possibly joining the company’s roster as well. She retweeted a photo of the two and teased a reunion.
Killer Kross wrestled for a number of promotions such as
Lucha Underground and AAA after making his debut in 2014 but he started getting
recognization in the US after joining Impact Wrestling in June 2014.
Though he decided to ask for his release from the company in May last year due to disagreement over the creative direction of his character and his pay. At the time, the company officials had decided not to grant his request.
Killer Kross was finally released from Impact when his original contract expired in December last year and the company chose not to roll it over for another year.
WWE has filed to trademark the name “Harlem Heat” for wrestling purposes recently. According to documents publicly available through the US Patents and Trademark Office, WWE filed to trademark the term on January 13th, 2020.
The popular WCW tag team was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame last year. They are former 10x WCW tag team champions. Harlem Heat was named the Tag Team Of The Year in 1995 and 1996 by Pro Wrestling Illustrated. They were also honored with the Tag Team Award by the Cauliflower Ear Club in 2018.
“My brother and I, we paved the way for so many other young African-American wrestlers that watched us and said ‘man if Booker T and Stevie Ray can do it, we can do it too’,” Booker said on ESPN radio after Harlem Heat’s WWE Hall of Fame induction was announced.
“We talk about how there’s not that many black wrestlers in this business, it’s because they didn’t get a chance to see a whole lot of them in there actually doing it. That’s why my brother and I — us getting that nod — of course, yeah, we deserve it because we paved the way, not just for so many black wrestlers like Street Profits, but so many young white kids as well. We represented for everyone!”
