The third match between Drew McIntyre and Randy Orton ended up serving as the main event of the WWE Hell in a Cell pay-per-view event.
The contest was held inside of the Hell in a Cell structure. It was a long match with them using various weapons.
Orton used bolt cutters to get out of the cell only for them to climb the cell and brawl on top of it. They crawled down the cell until Orton sent him flying through the air and crashing onto the announce table. Back in the ring, McIntyre missed the claymore kick and Orton hit the RKO to win the title. Orton is now a 14-time world champion.
This feud dates back to August. McIntyre successfully retained the WWE Title over Orton at SummerSlam with a backslide.
Orton would then drop a loss to Keith Lee at Clash of Champions. So, WWE decided to have three separate singles matches with the winners of those bouts advancing to a Triple Threat Match later in an August 31st episode of RAW.
Orton beat Kevin Owens to advance to the finals where he would defeat Lee and Seth Rollins to earn a second title match. However, at Payback, McIntyre retained the WWE Title in an Ambulance Match.
The third match was set up with McIntyre wanting to get revenge on Orton, who attacked Big Show, Ric Flair, Christian, and Shawn Michaels on an episode of RAW. These legends got involved in their Payback match with Orton blaming them for costing him the title.
Sasha Banks didn’t come up short while trying to get revenge on Bayley
As seen at Sunday’s WWE Hell in a Cell pay-per-view event in Orlando, Florida, Bayley defended the SmackDown Women’s Title against her former best friend inside of the Hell in a Cell structure.
It was a slow start and then they started using various weapons such as tables, kendo sticks, a fire extinguisher, and the cell. The finish saw Banks use a chair while putting Bayley into the Bank Statement for the win.
This snapped Bayley’s 380-day reign as champion and the first time that Banks has been the SmackDown Women’s Champion.
Last month on an episode of SmackDown after failing to reclaim the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship from the team of Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler, the betrayal happened. Bayley turned on Banks, who was kept off television to sell the angle.
After Bayley retained her SmackDown Women’s Title via disqualification at Clash of Champions, Banks returned to attack Bayley with a steel chair.
Time will tell whether WWE continues this feud or goes into a different direction heading into the Survivor Series pay-per-view event on November 22nd.
Roman Reigns and Jey Uso brought a different intensity to their rematch.
Unlike their previous encounter, which was a singles match, WWE booked them in a Hell in a Cell I Quit Match at the Hell in a Cell pay-per-view event.
The match with the Universal Title on the line saw them open the show. Reigns got the early offense while talking trash. The trend of the match was Reigns dominating with Jey having moments of life only for Reigns to put him down again.
Reigns hit Uso with back-to-back drive-bys on the apron with one of them being with a steel step. Reigns attacked a referee for trying to stop the match. Reigns was about to hit Jey with the steps until Jimmy Uso talked him out of it. When Reigns put Jimmy in the guillotine choke, Jey said he quit and that was the finish.
Their first match took place last month at the WWE Clash of Champions pay-per-view event. Reigns beatdown Jey so much that Jimmy, his brother, had to come out while still injured to throw in the towel.
The following week on SmackDown, WWE set up the rematch during a celebration ceremony was held to crown Reigns as the tribal chief. When Reigns refused to be named as such because Jey did not acknowledge him, it led to this contest being made.
We have an update on AEW star Abadon, who was injured earlier this week at a taping for AEW Dynamite. She wrestled Tay Conti at Thursday’s TV tapings from Jacksonville, FL in a match is scheduled to air next week on Dynamite.
The injury took place mid-way through the match, which was cut short before Abadon was sent to the hospital for an evaluation. Brian Alvarez reports (via Wrestling Observer Radio) that Abadon took an elbow to the throat, which rendered her unable to breathe. This made for a very scary situation and
Despite the serious nature of the injury, doctors determined that she will be fine without any longterm damage. We wish Abadon a speedy recovery.
Abadon is the #3 ranked female competitor in AEW. She first competed for AEW back in March in an AEW Dark match against current Women’s Champion, Hikaru Shida. She currently holds a 5-1 record.
Former WWE Superstar Ryback recently discussed the contentious AEW Dynamite segment featuring MJF and ‘Le Champion’ Chris Jericho.
The musical segment caused a ton of conversation since it aired on Wednesday, with the actual low rating for that quarter hour of the show adding to the back and forth. It would turn out that the quarter hour had an audience of 676,000 viewers.
Chris Jericho, however, would tout the success of the actual musical number, saying that the minute by minute rating proved it was a success. Jericho tweeted, “Just saw minute by minute ratings for #LeDinnerDebonair. I’m stoked that almost 800k checked out our song and dance! Fifth highest demo for #AEWDynamite as well. Add over a million views on Twitter & it looks like our experiment paid off!”
Ryback’s Take
“I watched the entire thing and was entertained by it” Ryback began on the Shooting Blanks Wrestling podcast. “It caught me completely off guard, I was not expecting that at all. I don’t know if anybody was expecting that!? We’ve ever seen it.”
“I’m not against stuff like that at all” The Big Guy would continue. “Because I think you do need to try things. I mean, that was why I asked that question ‘let’s see what the rating said and if the rating showed an increase? It’s not something you’re gonna do every week. They’re not gonna have Jericho and MJF just do Broadway’s every week you know?”
Ryback would further praise the pair for the creativity of the segment. “I think it was a way to do something outside the box in a creative way at a time where creativity is kind of. We need creativity right now with everything going on. I didn’t hate it at all and I enjoyed it. I watched the entire thing, and I go ‘whoa I’ve never seen anything like this before.’ And I thought, both of them? They pulled that off as well as they could have.”
The Big Guy would finish by discussing how the segment worked from a character standpoint. “They had the the character stuff up front, and I thought it created a really interesting dynamic and story with them. Just how they’re both kind of scumbags and dropping the girls at the same time and doing little things like that. I thought it was really cool and interesting.”
Do you agree with Ryback? Did you enjoy the segment? Will this help the MJF and Chris Jericho feud? Let us know in the comments
WWE Superstar Charlotte Flair recently signed with the VaynerSports Agency. The agency is owned by entrepreneur and internet personality Gary Vaynerchuk as well as his brother AJ. The agency launched in 2016 and is under the successful VaynerMedia umbrella. Charlotte Flair looks to be their first wrestler that they have publicly represented on their books.
Gary V reacted to the news with a response of “BEEN WAITING TO ANNOUNCE THIS! So pumped!!!” whilst Flair replied, “So excited!!!”
As noted, Flair appears to be the company’s first ‘acquisition’ in professional wrestling. On a recent episode of The Jim Cornette Experience, Corny himself would question why the agency would be taking their first steps in the pro wrestling bubble by representing a major WWE talent.
Jim Cornette on VaynerSports
“If your wrestling agent dealing with wrestling people for you has 30 years of experience in and around the wrestling business? That’s fine” Jim Cornette would begin on the podcast. “But when your wrestling agent starts trying to negotiate a Motion Picture deal…?”
“What I’m saying here…I wish all the best for Charlotte, but does she have to be the canary in the coal mine? The first wrestler they [VaynerSports] represented?” Jim Cornette would continue. “They’ve never talked to any people in the wrestling business and they’re going to start by negotiating with the WWE!?”
Cornette would elaborate further, saying “I’m just…you know that perked my ears up a little bit. But I hope everything works out for the best. I’m sure that they could probably negotiate a wonderful contract for if she was gonna play for the f*cking Chicago Bears, because they’ve represented a bunch of football players. I’m just trying to figure out why they’re getting into wrestling, and she’s their maiden voyage?”
Do you agree with Jim Cornette? Do you think that this could have a detrimental effect on Charlotte’s WWE career? Let us know in the comments
WWE Superstar Dana Brooke recently appeared on SiriusXM’s Busted Open Radio. The newly traded RAW Superstar discussed a number of topics on the show, including her charity work and performing in arenas and buildings with no live fans in attendance.
“I always say ‘never take things for granted.’ But I feel as though now I can look back and say maybe I did a little bit” Dana Brooke began on the show. “Because it was show after show after show on the road travelling night after night after night.”
Dana Brooke on ‘Live’ Crowds
Dana Brooke would then describe the difference in her schedule pre-pandemic and now. “Now only doing it, one or maybe two times a week? And going into an empty arena? The first time I did this, I felt like I’m practising, and then when I’m doing it again I had to come into a mindset where it was ‘okay they’re (the fans) not here with us presently but that red light is on, and there’s cameras all around us.'”
“I’m doing this for the people on the other side of the television” Brooke would continue. “Knowing that they may have had a hard day at work, maybe they had been let go [from their jobs]? The children are rambunctious at home? This is bringing families together, and this is the reason why I’m doing it. I’m doing it for the people on the other side of the TV knowing that we may be gaining new fans, we have returning fans and we have the loyal fans as well too.”
ThunderDome
Dana Brooke would also describe performing in front of the ThunderDome fans, saying how it differs to a live crowd and energy. “So at that point in time? We didn’t have the virtual fans, it was just an empty arena. Now that we have the virtual fans? It’s fun, it’s exciting to see the faces and everybody in the arena. It’s just such a different time.”
The RAW Superstar would finish by saying how she is looking forward to a point in time when the crowds can be let back physically into arenas. “I wish I could go back and be that much more excited for the opportunities that I did have when there were thousands of people in the arena. When that time does come? You best believe that I’m going to take full [advantage] of it, every single night that I’m allowed to do so.”
Are you enjoying the ThunderDome compared to the Empty Arena shows like WrestleMania earlier this year? Let us know in the comments
UFC 254 took place this weekend from the Flash Forum at Fight Island in Abu Dhabi. The main event of the historic card saw Khabib Nurmagomedov unify the UFC Lightweight Championships against interim Champion Justin Gaethje.
Khabib took the win in the second round via Submission. Following the fight the 29-0 Champion would announce his retirement from Mixed Martial Arts, following the death of his father (and trainer) Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov to COVID-19 complications.
Several WWE Superstars reacted to the massive main event and emotional ending to Khabib’s career.
CM Punk, who himself fought in the UFC on two occasions tweeted “Best in the World! @TeamKhabib#UFC254.” NXT Champion Finn Balor simply wrote “Khabib #UFC254.”
NXT UK Superstar Eddie Dennis also reacted to the fight on Twitter. Dennis wrote “It’s a shame he never fought Tony [Ferguson].”
The Rock actually admitted to missing the fight, tweeting “gotta crush this training session now but #UFC254 just started. 2pm fights threw me off dammit. Best of luck to all the fighters and put on a great show! Training comes first.. checking my phone for updates. #ineedmyfix #hardestworkersintheroom“
Did you watch the fight? Let us know in the comments
Daniel Bryan has had a great run since his return to in-ring action from a career-threatening injury in 2018 and he has had memorable feuds with foes such as The Fiend, AJ Styles, Kofi Kingston and more since his comeback.
Unfortunately, it appears that we won’t be seeing a lot more of these long feuds featuring the former WWE champion, as according to the SmackDown star himself, his current run is his last stint as a full time WWE superstar.
Daniel Bryan talked about his status on the special episode of Talking Smack that aired this past Friday and the former champion explained that he has made up his mind about this run being his last full time outing:
“I haven’t said anything about this, but in my mind, this is kind of my last run, you know what I mean? This is my last run as a full-time Superstar.”
Bryan also talked about his mentality through his current run saying that he is not thinking that he has to ‘prove to everybody’ that he’s the best and instead it’s about proving things to himself.
While Daniel Bryan did not reveal how long he is planning to continue working as a full-time superstar for WWE, previous reports have confirmed that he signed a new three year deal in 2018.
His current contract is expected to be up in September next year and it’s likely that he will resort to a part-time schedule after the expiry of his current deal.
James Storm had revealed recently that WWE actually wanted to sign him to a contract earlier this year but the coronavirus pandemic derailed those plans.
The Cowboy recently appeared on Busted Open Radio where he talked about things like his previous WWE appearances, being a veteran in the wrestling world, and more.
During the interview, Storm provided some details on the talks he has had with WWE and revealed what role the company wanted him to play upon his signing:
“I think they wanted me to come in and work with the younger talent on RAW and SmackDown. They were basically saying with your personality and stuff like that, I know I would have gotten over, no matter what. I can work with anybody and still make myself get over. As you say, you can go over; you can get over as well,”
When asked which of the current wrestling storylines he is enjoying, James Storm said that he is really enjoying the ongoing storyline with the New Day.
The former champion made his return to Impact Wrestling during the Bound For Glory PPV this week and it would be interesting to see if he sticks around for a longer run.
After being signed to WWE for more than a decade, Big E finally seems to be ready to take his place in the main event scenes of the company and potentially have a run with the world title.
The New Day member recently appeared on Corey Graves’ After The Bell podcast where he talked about a number of things and also revealed some of the names which have had an influence on his career.
Big E talked about his early wrestling career and during the interview, he credited wrestling veteran Curt Hawkins for giving him his finisher, The Big Ending:
“There’s been a lot of people along the way, just people who’ve been there, who’ve helped me like Curt Hawkins. When I was super green, my only finisher I’ve ever used is The Big Ending,
And I remember Curt Hawkins gave that to me, this had to be in 2009. It was called The Body Bag, and he showed it to me.” recalled Big E, “I forgot how we came up with The Big Ending. I remember Darren Young getting in the ring with me a little bit, showing me how to gorilla press.”
The former NXT Champion also talked about the influence former Nexus member Michael Tarver had on his career when he was only getting started with wrestling and was very green.
The SmackDown star revealed that Tarver used to sit down with him and talk about in-ring psychology and E said that the former WWE star gave him a sense of confidence like no one else.
UFC legend and veteran wrestler Ken Shamrock was inducted into the Impact Wrestling Hall Of Fame during the pre-show for tonight’s Bound For Glory PPV event by none other than The Rock via a video message.
Shamrock was announced for the Hall Of Fame in February this year and last month he asked The Great One if he could send greetings for this induction.
The Impact star had called his time with the Rock his ‘greatest memory’ in wrestling and The People’s champion had replied to his request positively.
Tonight’s pre-show then saw Shamrock receiving video messages from the likes of WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart, WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley, Bas Rutton, Ariel Helwani, and Chael Sonnen congratulating him on his induction.
The final message was from the Rock who credited his rivalry with Ken Shamrock as a big moment in his wrestling career and congratulated the former champion for the achievement.
Shamrock then delivered a speech where he thanked his friends and family. He also thanked pro wrestling personalities like Bret Hart, The Rock, and even Vince McMahon for giving him a shot in WWE:
This induction makes Ken Shamrock the ninth person to join the Impact Wrestling Hall Of Fame alongside people like Sting, Kurt Angle, and Team 3D.
My pleasure, brother. Ken was very instrumental early in my career and I’ll always be grateful to him. Thanks to you as well for being so kind to me on that Indy show we did back in ‘97. Tell all the Impact boys (and girls) I said keep working hard and have fun ??
Former WWE star Rich Swann became the new Impact Wrestling World Champion in the main event of tonight’s Bound for Glory pay per view event.
Swann faced the former champion Eric Young in a one on one match in the main event and he got an early advantage over the champion, forcing Eric to hit the floor to collect himself.
The world champion however, came back and took control of the bout after hitting a big neck breaker on the challenger. Young continued to beat up the former 205 Live star for the next few minutes.
Though Rich Swann never stayed down for long and the two lightweight stars had a hard-hitting match for the biggest prize in Impact Wrestling.
The ending of the bout saw Rich Swann trying to hit a phoenix splash but the Impact champion wrenched his ankle against the turnbuckle.
The challenger countered this with a handspring cutter. Rich Swann then finally delivered the phoenix splash and pinned Young to become the new Impact World Champion.
After the match, several Impact babyfaces came to the ring to congratulate the new champion and the show ended with him celebrating in the ring with other wrestlers. You can check out some photos of the bout below:
This title change ends Eric Young’s second reign as the Impact World Champion of 70 days and marks the beginning of the first World title reign for Rich Swann.
Former WWE, TNA, WCW and NWA personality Jim Cornette recently discussed the role of female performers in modern wrestling. Cornette made the comments whilst discussing the potential return of Melina to WWE. This is something that has been rumored over the past few weeks.
Jim Cornette would discuss how the MNM group was massively successful in the OVW developmental territory. MNM (Joey Mercury, Johnny Nitro/John Morrison and Melina) were originally part of the Cornette run Ohio Valley Wrestling. This was back in the mid 2000s. The team were brought up to WWE television based on their impressive run in Ohio Valley.
With Melina now potentially returning? Cornette discussed how her career ‘suffered’ when she went into the ring herself, leaving behind her manager position with Mercury and Nitro.
Jim Cornette on Female Performers
“If you get a chance to be part of a really good f*cking team or unit [do it]” Cornette would begin on The Jim Cornette Experience. “Especially now that there’s so many girls matches.”
Cornette would go on to state that with the level of Women’s matches in professional wrestling today, it is difficult for female talent to stand out. “The girl that will stand out will be the one that doesn’t wrestle but is capable of being the 21st century manager type. With a f*cking team and an integral part of that team or with a singles [wrestler].”
The former Midnight Express manager has in the past given credit to top Women’s matches in WWE; such as the WrestleMania bout between Charlotte Flair and Rhea Ripley. However, Cornette has made it clear that in general he is not a huge fan of the level of performance from the likes of AEW’s Women’s division.
Whilst Cornette did not name examples, it was clear that he was referencing characters like Chyna and NWA’s Kamille. “That’s where you’re going to draw money with a woman that may otherwise just be on the card.”
WWE have in recent times found success with the likes of Zelina Vega playing a manager role on-screen with very sparse in-ring matches.
Do you agree with Jim Cornette? Do you think that there’s a ‘gap in the market’ for this type of female performer in 2020? Let us know in the comments
The environment backstage at Friday’s WWE SmackDown TV event was said to be chaotic.
Heading into the show, there were no matches announced, but rather a few segments. Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer reports that the reason there were no matches advertised in advance is due to the WWE creative team rewriting the show on Thursday night.
The trial segment with Otis caused things to get chaotic as the segment became the top concern and everything got delayed because of it.
Nobody backstage could understand why so much time was devoted to the show because it aired on FS1 instead of FOX. Thus, the belief just like last year is that it will have a dramatic decline in viewership as they were bumped off FOX for the World Series.
Triple H was brought in to help out with the show like he did last week.
As noted, FOX Sports 1 was supposed to air a one-off episode of Backstage following SmackDown, but things were changed at the last minute as Talking Smack took its place in the time slot.
Deonna Purrazzo spoke with Wrestling Observer Radio this week to promote her Knockouts title defense against Kylie Rae at Impact Wrestling’s Bound For Glory PPV.
Purrazzo discussed her time in Impact thus far, her NXT run and her character, The Virtuosa.
“The Virtuosa persona really started at Ring of Honor back when I was there and building their women’s division and I just kind of needed something other than Deonna Purrazzo, is kind of how it was explained to me,” she said during the interview.
Purrazzo said the name “Virtuosa” at the time was just meant to tie in her Italian heritage. The term literally means, ‘a woman who excels in the technique of an art.’
Pitching The Virtuosa
“Going into NXT right from Ring of Honor, I didn’t expect to need a character more than I was. I was just like ‘I’m a wrestler!’ you know what I mean? I’m Italian.”
She continued to talk about developing her character and pitching it to management.
“I wrote up a character synopsis. I wrote up promo ideas, I pitched to have a manager because I know promos aren’t necessarily my strongest thing. Then the feedback was, it’s too outlandish of a character, you need to be more real-life.”
She would continue to talk about not getting a great reception from NXT management about the Virtuosa character. Purrazzo said she was told that they didn’t get what Virtuosa meant.
“Then it was ‘we don’t understand what Virtuosa means’, I just felt there were so many excuses. I was the person that it didn’t matter what I said or did or changed. They had an opinion and that was that.”
After being released from NXT in April, she then pitched the same character to Impact.
“There was obviously hesitation going into Impact and pitching the same thing. I was a little hesitant to hear their feedback but because I had presented it in such a way of like this is exactly who I am, this is how I want to speak, this is how I want to dress, here’s my entrance music, here’s my gear, I just have constantly been able to evolve that. I think I gave them no choice and because it was a fresh start, they were willing to let me explore myself and explore this persona a little bit more.”
She continued to talk about how she’s happy to see the character working in Impact after having it be rejected in NXT.
“For 18 months I was told, it doesn’t work, we don’t understand, no no no, and to then have it work is kind of like ‘okay, now you see it and you missed out on it.'”
Major League Wrestling is coming back soon. New episodes of Fusion are expected to begin airing next month. Storylines for the promotion’s restart have been taking shape on episodes of MLW Pulp Fusion. One storyline involves Salina de la Renta being exposed as a spy operating on behalf of Contra Unit.
“For nearly two years the league, fans and athletes have all speculated and theorized on who could be enabling CONTRA to gain access to arenas with heavy security as well as access to MLW’s headquarters and production trucks. Now, all evidence points towards Salina de la Renta,” reads an MLW press release.
Salina de la Renta In MLW Storylines
In MLW storyline, Contra Unit is a faction that has taken over the company. The last episode before the pandemic featured members of the faction taking over MLW offices in New York. On a recent episode of Pulp Fusion, Konnan revealed that he discovered Salina has been working with the faction.
It appears that Salina de la Renta’s Promociones Dorado was struggling financially. Salina is believed to have owed a significant amount of money to the “wrong people” which may have led to her aligning with Contra Unit.
The 23-year-old from Puerto Rico now lives in the Orlando area.
“All options are on the table, including suspending her license to promote in MLW,” said Court Bauer.
Last year, Salina spoke with SI.com about being the first Latina to serve as an executive producer on a wrestling show.
“This is a sign of change. Not only for women, but for Latinos as a whole. We are often not in a position of power or influence in American wrestling. For MLW to encourage me, and others, to break barriers is important and yes, historic. It is a huge honor to be able to be the first-ever at something.”
Ahead of tonight’s Bound For Glory PPV, Impact Wrestling has made its streaming service, Impact Plus, free for the entire weekend.
“In celebration of the biggest weekend on the IMPACT Wrestling calendar, IMPACT Plus has been unlocked – MADE FREE – so every fan can get ready for tomorrow’s huge event. Dive into the vast IMPACT Plus library and relive every previous BOUND FOR GLORY, all the moments, all the shock and all the championship glory,” Impact’s press release reads.
BREAKING: @IMPACTPlusApp is FREE this weekend – every single episode of IMPACT, every PPV and every event is now unlocked FOR FREE!
Impact Wrestling Roster Comments On Bound For Glory
Several members of the Impact Wrestling roster have commented on the importance of Bound For Glory.
“Headlining BOUND FOR GLORY is everything to me. I’ve trained so damn hard for this. I’ve going to soar higher than ever this Saturday. I’m bringing everything I’ve got to this match,” said Rich Swann who will challenge Eric Young for the World Championship on the show.
“BOUND FOR GLORY always has a special feeling. It’s all about creating memories. Moments that will live on for years to come, moments that we will never forget, moments that will be around long after we are gone. Last year, I won the Gauntlet Match. I feel like that victory was my reset button. That win set me on my path to becoming the IMPACT World Champion for the second time,” said Eddie Edwards who will wrestle Ken Shamrock on the show.
AEW’s Abadon was reportedly injured yesterday at Daily’s Place in Jacksonville. According to a report from the Wrestling Observer, Abadon was injured while filming a match against Tay Conti and she was taken to hospital.
No further details are currently available other than she is expected to make a full recovery.
Abadon in AEW
Abadon is a 1-year pro from Colorado. She was trained by Rocky Mountain Pro Wrestling. Her unique look and gimmick put her on AEW’s radar early into her career. She made her AEW debut on an episode of Dark in March. She lost to Hikaru Shida but has since won 5 straight and occupies the #3 ranking in the division.
Abadon’s AEW record:
3/4/20: lost to Hikaru Shida
6/11/20: defeated Anna Jay (Dynamite debut)
7/16/20: defeated Skyler Moore
7/29/20: defeated KiLynn King
8/12/20: defeated Red Velvet
8/27/20: defeated Dani Jordyn
Her opponent at the tapings, Tay Conti, was signed to the company this summer. She’s had 4 matches in the promotion thus far:
Tay Conti’s AEW Record:
7/29/20: Anna Jay & Tay Conti defeated Ariane Andrew & Nyla Rose
7/29/20: Diamante & Ivelisse defeated Anna Jay & Tay Conti
9/9/20: Nyla Rose defeated Tay Conti (Dynamite debut)
WWE has released the behind the scene footage from The New Day’s farewell match at last week’s episode of SmackDown from the WWE Thunderdome.
The trio who has been together for 6 years was split up during the latest WWE Draft when Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston were picked up by Raw while Big E remained on SmackDown.
The footage sees all three of the stars arriving in the arena for their 6 man tag team match against Sheamus, Cesaro and Shinsuke Nakamura and getting ready for the bout.
They talk about things like how it’s gonna be tough knowing that they won’t be seeing each other at shows and the emotional connection The New Day has.
The video follows them as they get into the ring for their bout which they won and features the post-match comments from the three as well. You can check out the full video below:
Reports suggest that WWE wants to give a big push to Big E. This break up of New Day is part of the plan for the former NXT Champion as the company wants him to become a more serious wrestler.
On the other hand, there is no word on what the officials are planning for Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston but they have started off strong with a recent tag team championship victory.
It appears that one-half of the former NXT tag team champions Chad Gable is done being Shorty G and the former NXT star will not be using the gimmick moving forward.
This week’s episode of SmackDown saw Shorty G losing a quick match to The Freak Lars Sullivan. In the post-match interview with Kayla Braxton at the ringside, the WWE star said that he was quitting.
Producer Adam Pearce reached out to the former champion in the trainer’s room later in the show and asked Gable about his comments on quitting.
The former American Alpha member then ranted about being tired of lying to people that they can achieve what they want by believing in themself and said that he is done being the Shorty G character.
The former NXT star listed some of his accomplishments as an amateur wrestler and declared that only one man can achieve anything he wants: Chad Gable. You can check out the segment below:
The Shorty G character was introduced in Gable’s feud with Baron Corbin in 2019. Corbin originally called him Shorty Gable as a tease but WWE later decided to adopt the gimmick and they officially changed his name to Shorty G.
Now these segments suggest that WWE is doing away with the gimmick and it would be interesting to see what the company is planning for the future of the SmackDown star.
WWE SmackDown aired from the ThunderDome in the Amway Center. It was the final episode of SmackDown before WWE Hell in a Cell this Sunday night.
SmackDown Results (10/23)
Kevin Owens, Daniel Bryan & Kevin Owens def. Nakamura, Cesaro, Ziggler, Roode
Bianca Belair def. Zelina Vega
Lars Sullivan def. Shorty G
Seth Rollins def. Murphy
Here are the takeaways from this week’s show:
Owens, Bryan & Street Profits Picked Up A Win
Kevin Owens kicked off this week’s show with an episode of the KO Show. Owens welcomed everyone to the first edition of the KO Show in his new home on SmackDown. Owens announced Daniel Bryan as his guest. Bryan said that they have pushed each other to be better in the past and that is the attitude he wants everyone to have on SmackDown.
Bryan stated that his vision for SmackDown was for it to highlight the best superstars in the world. Daniel added that the Intercontinental Championship should be defended in the ring every week on SmackDown. Owens brought up the SmackDown Tag Team Championships and said that he has never been a tag team champion.
Daniel joked that Owens has betrayed a lot of friends in the past and Kevin suggested that they become a team. Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode interrupted and claimed that they were two of the greatest SmackDown acquisitions in history. SmackDown Tag Team Champions Street Profits joined the party and came to the entrance ramp.
Street Profits said that they were excited to be on SmackDown because they want the smoke. Cesaro and Shinsuke Nakamura interrupted and said that they have been carrying the SmackDown tag team division for months. A brawl then broke out as SmackDown went to a break. When SmackDown returned, Adam Pearce made an 8-man tag team match.
.@ScrapDaddyAP should call Teddy Long and get some pointers on how to handle situations like this.
Match Recap: Cesaro beat Angelo Dawkins down and tagged in Robert Roode. Roode bounced Dawkins face off the top turnbuckle and then missed with an Elbow Drop. Montez Ford tagged in and leveled Roode with a shoulder tackle. Ziggler tagged in and connected with a Dropkick on Ford for a two count.
Shinsuke hit Montez with a cheap shot as Dolph distracted the referee. Roode tagged back in and continued to beat Ford down in the corner of the ring. Roode connected with a Backbreaker and went for the cover but Ford kicked out at two. Cesaro tagged in and stomped on Ford’s head.
Cesaro hit Montez with an uppercut and tagged Shinsuke in. Nakamura hit a Knee Drop for another two count before tagging Cesaro in. Cesaro applied a submission hold as Owens, Dawkins, and Daniel Bryan pleaded for a tag. Ford battled back and caught Cesaro with a kick to the face.
Daniel Bryan tagged in and unloaded some uppercuts on Cesaro. Bryan sent Cesaro out of the ring and hit him with a Suicide Dive. Back in the ring, Bryan climbed to the top rope and went for a Crossbody. Cesaro caught him but Bryan escaped and connected with a running kick.
Competing in his first @WWE match since June, @WWEDanielBryan hasn't lost a BEAT!
Bryan tweaked his knee and Cesaro capitalized with an uppercut. Owens checked on Bryan but Cesaro broke it up and targeted his attack on Bryan’s knee as SmackDown went to another commercial break. When SmackDown returned, Bryan was still trapped in the ring and Ziggler wrapped his injured right knee around the bottom rope.
Cesaro tagged in and locked in a Half Crab on the injured knee. Dolph tagged back and started to taunt Bryan. Dolph waited for Bryan to get up and went for a Dropkick but Bryan blocked it. Daniel launched Ziggler into the turnbuckle and both superstars fell to the canvas.
Roode tagged in and once again prevented Bryan from making a tag. Roode perched Bryan up on the top turnbuckle but Bryan battled back with a headbutt. Daniel followed it up with a Dropkick off the top rope and finally tagged in Angelo. Dawkins leveled Shinsuke with a Clothesline and then knocked Ziggler out of the ring with a Dropkick.
Dawkins planted Nakamura with a Bulldog for a near fall. Nakamura caught Dawkins with a Backstabber for a two count. Cesaro tagged in as Nakamura hit Ford with a cheap shot. Cesaro hit Dawkins with a Spinebuster and went for the cover but Owens broke it up. Owens hit Roode with a Stunner but turned around into a DDT from Ziggler.
Cesaro rolled up Dawkins and used the ropes for leverage but the referee caught it. Dawkins hit Cesaro with a Spinebuster and tagged in Montez Ford. Montez connected with a massive Frog Splash for the pinfall victory.
After the match, Daniel Bryan said he was with the smoke and shouted “fist me boys!”. After an awkward silence, Street Profits and Owens fist bumped Bryan before walking away. Intercontinental Champion Sami Zayn showed up and told Bryan that he doesn’t share Daniel’s vision of defending the IC Title every week. Zayn boasted about defeating Bryan at WrestleMania and said he is going to do things his way as long as he has the Intercontinental Championship.
Otis Will Face The Miz With The MITB Contract On The Line At Hell In A Cell
The Miz and John Morrison brought Otis to court over the MITB briefcase. Otis represented himself and APA reunited during the segment with JBL serving as the judge. The Miz immediately interrupted his lawyer and presented his case. The Miz said he was here for the truth and Otis has victimized him physically and emotionally.
Miz claimed Otis doesn’t deserve the briefcase and that he should have it. Otis said that he deserves the contract because he won the Money in the Bank Ladder match. The Miz’s lawyer said that was a good argument and he fired her.
Later on SmackDown, John Morrison said that Otis assaulted him and he hasn’t overcome the emotional scars from it. Rey Mysterio took the stand and said that Otis won the Money in the Bank Ladder match and that he should be able to cash in anytime he wants. Asuka shouted a bunch of words and then asked Teddy Long if he got any of that. Teddy said he got every single word of it.
Tucker said Miz crossed the line by having Mandy Rose traded to RAW and he deserved everything that happened to him. The Miz claimed that Otis neglected the MITB contract and Tucker said he wanted to beat the crap out of him right now. Ron Simmons demanded that everyone shut up and JBL called for a short recess.
The Miz presented a briefcase and Simmons brought it to JBL. He opened the briefcase and smirked as a cash register sound effect played. JBL decided that Otis will face at Hell in a Cell and the winner will get the MITB contract. Ron Simmons shouted “damn!” to end the segment.
Bianca Belair squared off against Zelina Vega tonight on SmackDown.
Match Recap: Vega slapped Bianca in the face and Belair responded launching her across the ring with ease. Belair followed it up with a Body Slam and then a massive shoulder tackle. Belair connected with a Standing Moonsault and then posed in the ring. Zelina held onto the ring apron out of desperation as Belair tried to drag her to the middle of the ring. Vega booted Belair in the knee and hit a Hurricanrana off the second rope. Belair hit Vega with a punch to the face and then hit the KOD for the easy pinfall victory.
Lars Sullivan faced Shorty G tonight. Before the match, Shorty G said he is fed up because he wasn’t drafted. Shorty G called it blatant disrespect and tonight he is going to prove that he belongs here.
Match Recap: Shorty G went for a Crossbody but Lars caught him and connected with a Fallaway Slam. Sullivan laughed and lifted up Shorty G but he raked his eyes. Shorty G went for a Splash but Lars dodged it and launched Shorty G across the ring. Lars followed it up with a Clothesline and then the Freak Accident for the pinfall victory. Kayla Braxton asked Shorty G how he felt after the match and he said he quit.
Adam Pearce approached Shorty Go backstage and asked if he is really quitting. Shorty G said he is done being the smiley punching bag around this place. Shorty G stated that he is going back to Chad Gable.
Chris Jericho and MJF received high praise for their Le Dinner Debonair segment.
The segment aired this past Wednesday on AEW Dynamite. Fans didn’t know what to expect from it going in, but the majority of fans liked it while a minority of the fanbase didn’t.
There was tension as they tried to one-up each other while ordering steaks until they started signing. Jericho took to his Twitter account where he touted the success of it:
Jericho wrote, “Just saw minute by minute ratings for #LeDinnerDebonair & I’m stoked that almost 800k checked out our song and dance! Fifth highest demo for #AEWDynamite as well. Add over a million views on Twitter & it looks like our experiment paid off! The #DemoGod wins again! @The_MJF.”
Dynamite drew 753,000 live viewers on TNT and ranked #13 among the top 150 shows on cable by doing a 0.30 in the 18-49 demographic.
Next Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite Card
TNT Champion Cody Rhodes vs. Orange Cassidy
Wardlow vs. Hangman Page (AEW Tournament Match)
Kenny Omega vs. Penta El Zero M (AEW Tournament Match)
Inner Circle Town Hall Meeting to decide if MJF will join the group
Mark Henry has made it clear that he’s willing to do one more match if it can be against The Rock.
The WWE Hall of Famer did an interview with Heavy.com’s Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson where he noted that if he was to wrestle again then it would be against the fellow Nation Of Domination member
“I’m 2-0 against The Rock,” Henry said. “I think I should give him the opportunity to get one, to get a ‘chip against me. I think if I was to come out of retirement and wrestle somebody, I would say, “Hey man. You wrestling again, huh?
You know you never beat me. Don’t that bother you a little bit? You should wanna get that ‘chip…” and see what he says. He would say, ‘Your ass is going down this time! You might as well go on and look up at the lights!’ I would have to look at the lights.”
Henry has been with the company since 1996. During his career, he has held three championships. The WWE World Heavyweight Title, ECW Title, and European Title. He was also a three-time Slammy Award winner.
Henry’s last match came when he worked a Royal Rumble match at the Greatest Royal Rumble pay-per-view event back in April 2018.
