Roman Reigns will be teaming up with an unlikely ally for his WWE return match against Bloodline at the upcoming Bad Blood PLE event.

The SmackDown season premiere on USA Network opened with Cody Rhodes defending the Undisputed WWE Championship against Solo Sikoa in a cage match.

The Bloodline didn’t like it when Cody managed to beat Solo once again with a Cross Rhodes to retain his title. The group attacked the American Nightmare once the bell rang. After Jacob Fatu landed a moonsault off the top rope, Sikoa ordered him to get to the top of the cage.

Before Fatu could fly, however, Roman Reigns’ music hit, and the Original Tribal Chief came out to a huge pop. He brawled with the Bloodline for a bit and took out the group with help from Cody. The two stood in the ring unsure of each other to end the segment.

Later in the episode, Nick Aldis revealed that Solo Sikoa & Jacob Fatu have challenged Rhode & Reigns for a match at the upcoming PLE. At first Cody declined the offer saying that he was done with The Bloodline and they were Roman’s problem.

• New WWE SmackDown Logo, Intro Video & Theme Song

Roman Reigns Gets A Unlikely Partner

The final segment of the show saw Roman Reigns taking the contract from Aldis and declaring that he didn’t need a tag team partner to take care of family business. Reigns proclaimed that he remains the Tribal Chief and that the WWE ring still belongs to him.

Cody Rhodes took an exception to this claim. He came out to tell his WrestleMania 40 opponent that WWE is not his anymore since he got dethroned at the Show of Shows. Solo Sikoa then came out with Jacob Fatu while Tanga Loa and Tama Tonga tried to take out Rhodes and Reigns from behind.

Roman and Cody sent the two crashing before Reigns signed the contract. Cody stared at him for a second before extending his hand to ask for the papers. The WWE Champion signed it as well, making the Head of the Table’s return match official.

WWE Bad Blood will take place at the State Farm Arena in Cody’s hometown of Atlanta, Georgia on Saturday, October 5. You can check out the other matches announced for the show here.

• Watch: What Happened With Roman Reigns After (9/13) SmackDown Went Off Air

The first night of WWE SmackDown’s return to USA Network was pretty eventful with Roman Reigns’ big return opening the show and a big Bad Blood match being made official at the end of the episode.

The Original Tribal Chief made his return to confront the Bloodline after Cody Rhodes scored another victory over Solo Sikoa in the cage match. He made the save for the Undisputed WWE Champion and the two worked together for a bit to take out the faction.

Nick Aldis then announced that Cody and Roman will be teaming to take on The Bloodline at the upcoming WWE PPV. The American Nightmare declined the offer at first, claiming that he was done with the group.

The main event of the show then saw a confrontation between the two top stars being cut short by an attempted sneak attack from Tonga Loa and Tama Tonga. Realizing that he had no other choice, Rhodes finally agreed to the tag bout, signing the contract to end the broadcast.

WWE released a video of Roman Reigns after the show went off air. The former champion was the first to exit the ring and his expressions say that he is still not sure about the team up:

• New WWE SmackDown Logo, Intro Video & Theme Song

This wasn’t all that happened after SmackDown however as fans also got to witness a SummerSlam rematch before the night was over.

The World Heavyweight Champion Gunther was in the house and he successfully defended his title against Damian Priest to end the night.

• WWE SmackDown Video Highlights: Sep. 13, 2024

There has been a lot of chatter about how different WWE Raw would be on Netflix but one thing that won’t be changing is the inclusion of commercials.

Many fans have been hoping that the show will ditch the ads once it moves to the streaming giant but it won’t be the case according to Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

In the latest edition of his newsletter, the wrestling journalist noted that one of the reasons Netflix has picked up the wrestling show is to make the incorporation of ads to their service easier:

“One of the reasons Netflix picked up Raw is because they are trying to add commercials to programming and the Raw and pro wrestling audience is used to commercials on the shows.”

• Dominik Mysterio On How Netflix Move Will Affect WWE Programming

The difference with Netflix would more be about the order of the commercials as they will be able to adjust the length of breaks and the placement of ads more freely.

Another thing that fans have been discussing is the expected runtime of the Red Branded Show after it was announced that Raw would be reverting back to 2 hours for the rest of the year on USA Network from October 7.

The belief is that the program will have a variable run time once it leaves the traditional cable network and they’ll be able to extend or reduce the time as needed.

The flexibility will allow the company to change the length of the show to not only fit in things as required but also make the finish of matches less predictable.

There has been no update on how the programming itself will change with the freedom of content offered by Netflix. A number of stars such as Roman Reigns and Dominik Mysterio have spoken in favor of keeping things family-friendly instead of opting for more mature content immediately.

• Roman Reigns Explains How WWE Content Could Change with Raw’s Move to Netflix

Matt Riddle has explained why he didn’t want to join AEW after being fired from WWE and detailed the one awkward conversation he had with Tony Khan.

Many expected the former WWE star to land a deal with the company’s biggest rivals when he was released. In a recent interview with Sports Illustrated, however, he explained that he was actually relieved after being fired from the TKO-owned promotion.

Riddle mentioned how he is a very provocative character and being on TV was stressful for him because it magnified everything. The reason he didn’t go into AEW straight away was because he didn’t want to get the attention for a while.

Though the former US Champion didn’t completely rule out the possibility of an AEW appearance in the future. He mentioned how MLW works with NJPW which in turn works with the promotion of Tony Khan.

Matt Riddle’s Strange Encounter With Tony Khan

Matt Riddle explained that it’s possible for him to make an AEW debut that way before revealing an awkward conversation he had with Khan at New Japan’s Windy City Riot show in April:

“I talked to Tony, I don’t know if he likes me. He seemed happy. I wrestled Zach Sabre Jr. in Chicago. He seemed cool about it. I don’t know. When you meet me, I’m very sarcastic. But when I met him, I was like, ‘Oh, you like that match’?

But I said it a different way, and he looked at me all confused. And I was like, ‘Never mind, dude’. I just walked away. So that was my experience with that.”

• Matt Riddle Says CM Punk’s WWE Return Shows He’d Be Welcomed Back

The former WWE star later also explained why he hasn’t made a TNA appearance so far either. Riddle mentioned that he took a lot of indie bookings following his release.

So when he talked to Tommy Dreamer about potentially working for the Anthem-owned promotion, they couldn’t find dates where he was free to participate in TNA tapings.

Matt Riddle joined WWE back in 2018 and found a lot of success in the company. He was involved in a lot of controversies as well, however. Following one such controversial incident at the JFK airport in September 2023, Riddle was released from his contract.

• Matt Riddle Believes He Can Have An RK Bro Like Run With WWE Hall of Famer

The goal of any wrestling talent is generally to get to a bigger promotion and continue growing their brand but Moose has a different mindset.

The 3-time TNA World Champion has spent the majority of his wrestling career working for the Anthem-owned promotion and his plan is to continue wrestling for them until the time comes to hang his boots.

The wrestling star recently appeared on the Battleground podcast to promote tonight’s Victory Road PPV event. He is set to challenge Nic Nemeth for the world title in the main event of the show.

During the interview, the former champion explained that in time he wants people to think of himself when they think of TNA, just like they think of AJ Styles right now.

This is why he has dedicated his career to the company instead of going elsewhere. Unlike many other wrestlers who continue competing long after their prime, the 40 year old plans to retire with the promotion once his current contract ends:

“That’s the plan. I’m not one of those guys that wants to keep wrestling until he’s 50 or 60, I want to hang those boots up and ride into the sunset and enjoy some of this money I made with pro wrestling and pro football.”

After retiring from professional football, Moose started training under Mr. Hughes. He made his pro wrestling debut in 2012 and he was competing for promotions such as ROH and NJPW by 2015.

He has been a regular part of the Impact roster since making his debut in 2016. He has won a number of titles in the promotion since then while also winning the company’s signature matches such as Call Your Shot Gauntlet.

The former NFL star confirmed that he signed a new 5-year deal with Impact back in February 2024. Barring any injuries or other unforeseen circumstances, that would put the timeline of his retirement sometime in early 2029.

Kayla Braxton didn’t realize officials had a planned heartfelt farewell for her at her final WWE appearance until the last minute.

The former WWE personality recently spoke to Adrian Hernandez. She discussed things such as meeting Ron Pearlman, her love for Game of Thrones, and more.

Speaking about her exit from the wrestling promotion, Braxton mentioned how her responsibilities had been reduced significantly after WWE pulled The Bump off air. A number of other opportunities were knocking on her door at the same time and according to the female star she thought about the decision for a long time.

Braxton mentioned that everyone at the company was very supportive of her when she finally made the call. Discussing her last appearance for the company, Kayla revealed that she had actually planned a go away party for all her colleagues:

“I had no idea they were going to give me that kind of send-off. I was already—I keep telling people—it was my last day. I had a party planned. Peter Rosenberger helped me plan a go-away party; all the talent were coming. I was already in the last set, thinking about taking tequila shots, and I was getting ready to leave.

And they’re like, ‘Kayla, don’t leave yet.’ I’m like, ‘Why?’ They’re like, ‘Don’t leave yet.’ I’m like ‘It’s my last day—I’m about to go party.’ They’re like, [don’t] And I’m thinking there’s a plan B, which is when the show runs short, they need us to run out and fill time with an interview.’ I’m like, ‘Fine.'”

• Kayla Braxton On WWE Exit: My Time In Pro Wrestling Is Done

I Still Get Emotional: Kayla Braxton

Kayla Braxton’s last WWE appearance came on the June 28th episode of SmackDown this year. The show held at the legendary Madison Square Garden saw Cody Rhodes cutting a heartfelt promo for the broadcast personality after the event went off air.

The fans made things even special with huge applause for the former NXT star. According to her, the whole thing will always be one of the pinnacles of her life:

“And then Triple H came up to me, and Nick Khan—I was like, ‘Something’s going on.’ So, I went to the gorilla, and then Cody was out there. That’s when I started realizing, ‘Oh, they’re about to do something really sweet for me.’ I was in tears.

And then hearing all of Madison Square Garden erupt with ‘Thank you, Kayla’—which is something I hear my name like that—I still get emotional thinking about it. I am very aware that most people don’t get that kind of send-off, especially people who decide to walk away on their own. That will always be one of the pinnacles of my life. It was so great.”

Kayla Braxton has since confirmed that she is not looking to join any other promotion and her time in wrestling has come to an end. Real name Kayla Becker, the former broadcast star has also revealed the first post-WWE project she has worked on.

Ricochet doesn’t believe he will be able to revive the Prince Puma character from Lucha Underground but he definitely plans to pay tribute to that time of his career.

The newest AEW signing recently had an interview with the Battleground podcast. He discussed things such as making his debut at Wembley Stadium, a potential showdown with Will Ospreay, his exit from WWE, and more.

When asked about the potential of donning the Prince Puma mask once again in the future, Ricochet mentioned that he does plan on doing some throwback stuff. Bringing back the character for a prolonged period, however, would only be possible if AEW acquires the rights:

“People keep asking, but that’s like — they own that character guys. They own all of that—that’s not our stuff to even…I guess if they wanted to contact Lucha and try to get the rights to use the thing and do the…I guess maybe. But all their stuff, that’s all their stuff.

[I] definitely already planned on doing some throwbacks and stuff for sure. That’s always going to be tied in there, for sure. But as far as the actual stuff goes, like they own all that, so yeah, we’ll see.”

• Ricochet Teases Match Against Will Ospreay At AEW Dynamite Grand Slam

They Were Trying To Make It Different: Ricochet

Prince Puma was one of the prominent stars of the Lucha Underground roster. The high-flying star, managed by Konnan, main evented the first-ever episode of the show.

He became the inaugural Lucha Underground champion after winning the Aztec Warfare battle royal and went on to rack up a number of other accomplishments during his three years with the brand.

Discussing the unique production style of the company, Ricochet mentioned how they were trying to be different than anything that came before. According to the former champion, the show helped make wrestling cool again:

“Well, that’s the thing—they were trying to make it different. They were trying to be a TV drama about a wrestling company, and not just another wrestling company on television. So, they were trying to really be like a television show about a wrestling company.

That was a really cool aspect, and I think it really did help wrestling become cool again as well. So, um, yeah, I was really happy with everything that all the guys were doing—you know, the Brian Cages, the Lucha Brothers, Johnny Mundos—you know, everybody was really putting in work.”

The One and Only was later asked about his experience at the company and he said that everyone was really nice to him and he had some of the most fun of his career working there.

• Ricochet Returning To Japan For The First Time Since 2017

AEW star Blade has revealed that he recently underwent a back fusion surgery

The 44-year-old has been out of action most of this year with not a lot of updates on where he has been or what’s the reason behind his absence.

The wrestling veteran then took on his Instagram earlier on Wednesday. He shared some photos of himself in the hospital revealing that he underwent a successful surgery recently:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by The Blade (@thebladeofbuffalo)

A number of wrestling stars wished the best to the former NWA star on his post including names such as Matt Hardy, Rey Fenix, Ethan Page and more.

• Ricochet Teases Match Against Will Ospreay At AEW Dynamite Grand Slam

The Butcher And The Blade

Blade, real name Jesse Guilmette made his in-ring debut way back in 2000. He had some early matches for WWE under his real name but was never signed to a long-term deal by the company.

Despite the struggles, he continued competing in the independent circuit and had stints with companies such as CZW, ROH and TNA.

The wrestling star alongside his tag team partner The Butcher and wife Allie made his debut for All Elite Wrestling during the November 27, 2019 episode of Dynamite.

The duo have been a regular on AEW programming ever since, having wrestled over a hundred matches for the promotion since their first appearance.

The Blade has not been seen in the ring since February when he worked at an indie event in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. His partner Butcher has continued making occasional appearances on AEW programming in his absence.

• Swerve Strickland Responds To Negative Reactions of Brutal All Out Match

AJ Lee says she has no idea what’s going on with CM Punk and Drew McIntyre.

The retired wrestling star has been mentioned a number of times during the feud between the two current WWE stars. The bracelet featuring her name and the name of her and Punk’s dog Larry has been the anchor of the whole storyline.

The former Divas Champion spoke to ComicBook recently to promote her new comic release with Scrappy Hearts Production partner Aimee Garcia, Day of the Dead Girl.

When asked for her thoughts on the ongoing WWE storyline between her husband and McIntyre, Lee claimed that she has no idea what’s going on:

“I mean this in the most loving way, I have no idea what’s going on [laughs]. I’m weird about like — I don’t want to watch my husband wrestle live because I’m scared. It’s like a weird juju thing.”

My Dog Is Famous All of A Sudden: AJ Lee

The former WWE star, real name April Mendez mentioned how she is focused on her own projects and doesn’t keep up with the product. While Punk still gives her some updates, she is not really immersed in it as people would think:

“I kind of don’t know what’s happening in the storyline. I know that my dog is famous all of a sudden! He’s got some surprise merch coming. I’ve been privy to that. But it’s cool. I’m happy that he’s happy and healthy and just killing it. I’m proud.”

Fans have been rooting for an AJ Lee return for a long time. NXT Women’s Champion Roxanne Perez who has become a protege of Punk has expressed the desire to wrestle the former champion many times.

The wrestling veteran, however, has been busy with outside projects. Punk himself has said that AJ knows there are options for her but he doesn’t want to give fans false hopes of her return.

• WWE Pulls CM Punk Bracelet From Shop, Creator & Drew McIntyre Comment

Former WWE star Nikki ‘Bella’ Garcia has filed for divorce from husband Artem Chigvintsev after the latter’s domestic violence arrest late last month.

This doesn’t come as a huge shock as the WWE Hall of Famer had been spotted without her wedding ring after the incident and she had reportedly been in the hunt for a divorce lawyer since then.

According to TMZ, the retired wrestling star has hired lawyer Evan Craig Itzkowitz and she officially filed her petition after 2 years of marriage on Wednesday this week.

Artem was briefly arrested in Napa, California back on Thursday, August 29 on a felony charge. This came after deputies responded to a domestic violence call and observed visible injuries on the alleged victim. Though he posted bail for $25,000 the same day.

The couple have one child together, 4-year-old Matteo. Nikki has continued living in their family home in Napa Valley through this time while Artem has been staying over at a friend’s place.

Nikki Garcia and Artem Chigvintsev’s Relationship

Nikki Garcia and Artem first became friends when they were paired on the 2017 season of the Dancing With Stars reality show. Garcia was still dating John Cena at the time.

After the WWE couple broke up, Nikki reconnected with Chigvintsev. The two announced their engagement in late 2019 and the celebrity duo welcomed their son in August 2020.

They officially got married in Paris back in August 2022 and the unfortunate incident took place very close to their second marriage anniversary.

A Bull Rope match featuring current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes has been announced for an upcoming UK Event.

The company announced the return of the classic stipulation on its website early on Monday morning. The match will be taking place at the upcoming live event from Co-op Live Arena in Manchester on Wednesday, October 16. The American Nightmare will defend his title against Solo Sikoa at the show.

Other matches currently advertised for the event include Gunther vs. Jey Uso for the World Title and Nia Jax vs. Bayley for the Women’s Championship. Apart from this, names such as LA Knight, Shinsuke Nakamura, Bianca Belair, and Jade Cargill are also listed for the event.

• Cody Rhodes & WWE Face Lawsuit Over ‘American Nightmare’ Copyright

Bull Rope Match

A Bull Rope match sees two opponents being bound by a 14-foot bull rope and a cowbell. The attachments are considered legal during the contest and the first person to score a pinfall or submission wins the match,

This won’t be the first Bull Rope match Cody Rhodes competes in during his WWE career. He previously defeated Shinsuke Nakamura in a match of the same stipulation during the February 5, 2024 episode of Monday Night Raw.

Cody’s dad Dusty Rhodes was part of many classic encounters under the stipulation and he played a crucial part in making it popular.

He defeated the likes of Gary Hart and Terry Funk while competing under the same stipulation in the 70s. Dusty’s match with ‘Superstar’ Billy Graham during a 1977 Madison Square Garden event was one of the very early instances of the bout. It helped establish it as a serious stipulation.

The late Hall of Famer’s final wrestling match was actually a Bull Rope match. The bout where Randy Orton defeated the wrestling legend took place during the 2007 Great American Bash event. Cody Rhodes made the save for his father after this bout.

• Cody Rhodes Dominates WWE Merch Sales, Outshines CM Punk in Europe

Swerve Strickland has noticed and responded to the discourse going around his unsanctioned cage match with Hangman Page at AEW All Out.

The horrifying new chapter in the feud between the two arch-rivals featured unprecedented violence that made a lot of people uncomfortable. More than 24 hours after the bout, the discussion around it is still going strong. The former AEW Champion has noticed the debate, especially the questions around whether or not such extreme brutality was necessary for the bout.

Swerve responded to it with a tweet mentioning that this is what fans should have expected from a bout that was unsanctioned.

• Related: How AEW Foreshadowed Hangman Page Burning Down Swerve Strickland’s House

AEW’s Unsanctioned Matches

Labeling a match as unsanctioned is AEW’s way of telling fans to get ready for a true fight instead of a pro wrestling contest.

The first of its kind match took place at Full Gear 2019 between Kenny Omega and Jon Moxley, though at the time it was dubbed as a ‘Lights out’ match. The ending of that bout saw Mox exposing the wooden panel under the ring mat and delivering a Paradigm Shift on it for the win.

The first official unsanctioned match took place between Adam Cole and Chris Jericho at Double or Nothing 2023. The bout ended via referee stoppage when Cole wrapped a chain around his knee to deliver his finisher and continued beating Jericho afterward.

The match between Swerve Strickland and Hangman Page topped both these bouts with weapons such as a cinderblock and a syringe being used during the memorable encounter.

This fight ended after Hangman delivered a brutal chair shot to Strickland on the head. You can check out a report about what’s next for Swerve after the PPV here.

• Latest On Reports Of A Backstage Incident At AEW All Out 2024

It might be a while before we see Swerve Strickland back on AEW TV after his brutal match with Hangman Adam Page at last night’s All Out PPV.

The former AEW Champion confirmed the signing of his new contract before All In 2024 event a couple weeks ago. According to Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio, the new deal factored some much-deserved time off for the 33-year-old, and the closing to last night’s event was a way to write him off for it:

“I heard a long time ago that Swerve was going to sign the contract and get some time off, and this was the angle.”

• Rumor Killer On Alleged Backstage Incident At AEW All Out 2024

Swerve Strickland vs. Adam Page

Strickland and Page wrote another horrifying chapter of their rivalry during the lights out unsanctioned cage match that main evented the latest AEW PPV.

Both men were in no mood to show any mercy after the highly praised closing angle of Wednesday’s Dynamite that saw Page burning down the childhood home of his arch-rival.

The competitors topped their previous encounter with this extreme bout which started with Strickland attacking Hangman even before the bell had rung. The duo then used unconventional weapons such as a staple gun and a cinderblock to brutalize each other.

The ending of this fight saw Page sticking a needle into his opponent’s cheek and hitting him in the head with a brutal chair shot. The referee had to call for the bell after this because Swerve was in no condition to continue the bout.

It makes sense for Strickland to be off TV for a while after this ending. One thing is for sure however, that the rivalry between these two is far from over and Page will have a lot to worry about when the former champion does return from his absence.

• Tony Khan Confirms Current Status of AEW TV Deal

Tony Khan has confirmed that the AEW media rights renewal deal with WarnerBros Discovery has not officially been signed just yet.

The company’s TV deals have been a major topic of discussion among fans. There have been many reports saying that both parties have been having positive talks for a while but nothing solid has come out of it yet.

The AEW President was once again asked about it during the post-All Out media scrum and he said that the company is discussing a very detailed package with their broadcast partners:

“We’re still in very very close and exciting negotiations with Warner Brothers Discovery. It’s been going on throughout the summer that we’ve been having these conversations. It’s a very detailed package that we’re having discussions about,”

• AEW All Out Results: Ongoing from the NOW Arena

I’m Still Working On Things: Tony Khan

Tony Khan then talked about how AEW’s relationship with WBD has grown over the years and how they have gone from having 2 hours of programming to 5 hours of programming on the network. Though he also confirmed that a pen has not been put to paper yet:

“I said that ‘I think it’s safe to say, I believe AEW is here to stay on TNT and TBS.’ I think that’s true for a very long time and I believe it. I have not put pen to paper. I’m still working on things.

It’s an exciting time, without getting too specific, but while giving everybody that anticipation of things to come. There’s really exciting things to come in AEW,”

The AEW official was later asked about the chances of an AEW TV deal being announced in the next month in percentage and Khan responded with 90%.

• Rumor Killer On Suspected Backstage Incident At AEW All Out 2024

A new trademark filing may have revealed one of the announcements Tony Khan has been teasing for All Elite Wrestling in recent weeks.

The AEW President claimed that the most important announcements in his company’s history ‘were looming large’ earlier this month.

Now it has been revealed that on September 6, the promotion filed a new trademark application with USPTO for ‘AEW: SHOCKWAVE’ for ‘Entertainment services in the nature of production of professional wrestling programs and events.’

It’s unknown what the officials intend to use the trademark for at this point, but the naming scheme suggests it to be a special similar to NXT: Heatwave instead of a weekly show.

AEW’s New TV Deals

AEW’s current TV deal with WarnerBros Discovery is scheduled to expire later this year. The company’s media rights renewal has been a hot topic of discussion among fans.

There have been many reports of positive talks between the wrestling company and its TV partners but so far there has been no solid development in the matter.

President Tony Khan has teased some big announcements for the company a number of times. While addressing the crowd after last night’s Collision, Khan said that he thinks AEW on TNT and TBS was ‘here to stay.’

One of the things people are expecting to see with the new deals is the inclusion of a streaming agreement which will finally provide a home to the promotion’s tape library.

While not confirmed, it’s possible that the new trademark is in preparation for a media rights renewal announcement. It can be used for specials on streaming platform or TV, that gets announced alongside the new media deal.

Mercedes Mone will be defending her AEW TBS Championship against Hikaru Shida at the upcoming All Out PPV in a week’s time.

This week’s episode of Collision featured a fatal four-way match among Thunder Rosa, Serena Deeb, Queen Aminata, and Hikaru Shida to determine the next challenger for the former WWE star.

Shida got the upper hand early in the bout when she sent Rosa crashing into the other two women. Though she couldn’t maintain the momentum for long and Thunder Rosa came back with a chop.

This bout went on for almost 15 minutes. The ending saw Aminata turning a back body drop on Shida into a roll up to try and sneak a pin. The Japanese star countered with a forearm and an enzuiguri. She then followed it up with a Katana for the win.

• Mercedes Mone Reveals Real Identity of Corgis Used For All In London Entrance

AEW All Out Match Card

This is the sixth match that has been announced for the upcoming AEW PPV event. The show includes matches such as Bryan Danielson defending his AEW World Title against TNT Champion Jack Perry and more. Here is the updated All Out match card:

• AEW International Championship: Will Ospreay (c) vs. Pac
• Chicago Street Fight: Willow Nightingale vs. Kris Statlander (with Stokely Hathaway)
• Steel Cage Match: Swerve Strickland vs. “Hangman” Adam Page
• Singles Match: MJF vs. Daniel Garcia
• AEW TBS Championship Match: Mercedes Moné (c) vs. Hikaru Shida
• AEW World Heavyweight Championship Match: Bryan Danielson (c) vs. Jack Perry

AEW All Out 2024 will be taking place from the Now Arena in Hoffman Estates, Illinois next Saturday, September 7.

The location for WrestleMania 42 in 2026 has not been locked in just yet.

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro got people talking when he stated that the biggest wrestling show of the year will be coming back to Philadelphia so soon, after hosting the PPV just this year.

In a Q&A video posted on X, Shapiro was asked if anything ‘cool’ was scheduled in Philadelphia for America’s 250th anniversary in 2026.

In the answer to the question, the Governor counted a number of big sporting events that were scheduled for the area, including the FIFA World Cup, Major League Baseball All-Star Game and WrestleMania.

This inclusion was surprising as WWE usually makes a big deal of any WrestleMania developments and fans would expect a big announcement if the location had indeed been decided.

• WWE WrestleMania London: Everything We Know Right Now

WrestleMania 42 Location Not Locked In

PWInsider provided an update on the situation after the video went viral saying that WWE sources ‘across the board’ were pretty surprised by this claim as it was not something that had been discussed internally.

The site also claimed that a well-placed source who would be involved in such decision-making had expressed that a location for WrestleMania 42 had not been locked in as of Saturday morning.

Josh Shapiro has since taken down the original video, further suggesting that he might have been talking about some other event or WWE as a whole instead of the specific show.

The Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia hosted WrestleMania 40 with an attendance record of 120,239 across both nights. Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas has been announced to host the 41th edition of the show on April 19 & 20 next year. 

Update: Manuel Bonder, Spokesman for Governor Shapiro issued a statement to Fightful Select confirming that the claim made in the video was a mistake:

“This statement was mistaken, and we apologize for the confusion amid all the incredible events Pennsylvania is excited to host in 2026. While WrestleMania won’t be here in ‘26, we look forward to continuing to work with WWE and wrestling fans all across our Commonwealth to bring more great events to PA in the future,”

In addition, WrestleVotes sources note that WWE supposedly decided on the location for WrestleMania 42 months ago but they’re not ready to make the announcement just yet:

• Indianapolis To Host 2025 Royal Rumble, Future WrestleMania & SummerSlam Events

Cody Rhodes has opened up about his mindset during the infamous segment with The Rock after his Royal Rumble 2024 victory.

The Undisputed WWE Champion recently had an interview with Inside The Ropes. He discussed things such as how his daughter motivates him to continue working hard, his AEW exit, and more.

When the topic of the build to WrestleMania 40 came up, Cody was asked about comments made by The Rock’s personal writer Brian Gewirtz about his infamous segment with The People’s Champ. Gewirtz had expressed that Rhodes could have looked more enthusiastic while handing his Mania opportunity to The Great One.

The American Nightmare explained that Brian might be right because things were so real that he wasn’t thinking of himself as a performer in the moment:

“He might have a point. He might, only because I didn’t think of myself. The moment was so real—I guess I didn’t think of myself in a performance sense of ‘You’re not smiling or you are smiling,’ and then the Final Boss had whispered something in my ear that was actually really kind and nice, and I did smile.

And then, I think not so much about my face; the thing I remember about it is I wanted to get out of there. I wanted to get out of there. I did want them to have their moment. I wanted to be gone. I didn’t want people to linger on me.”

• Cody Rhodes Shares What The Rock Gave Him On Post-WrestleMania 40 Raw

Cody Rhodes’ Boo Boo Face

The segment in question happened during the February 2 episode of SmackDown, days after Rhodes won the 2024 Royal Rumble.

Due to his expressions, fans started a huge campaign on social media rejecting the idea of The Rock taking his spot. The backlash forced the Hollywood star to change his plans and it put Cody back on the path to finish his story.

Talking about his expressions during the segment, Cody Rhodes explained that he didn’t think the production would focus so much on him. He was just looking to get out of the spotlight as soon as possible:

“It seems like…I would never shade our production team, especially with what Brian Fadem, and Lee Fitting – everyone is doing. I think they might have spent a little too much time focused on me in the first place—and not focused on that potential matchup. Because, yeah, I don’t think I offered up, Brian probably has a point, I don’t think I offered up the best faces for what that should have been.

I certainly wasn’t trying to be a ‘boo-boo’ face—you know, boo boo is famous in the industry when something’s up and you can tell upon somebody’s entrance. But maybe I was like the number one case of it of all time—who knows?

I did not think they would spend so much time on me. I did not think they would be looking at me while I was in the aisle. I just wanted to get back to my bus. I actually didn’t go through gorilla; I walked around it. I didn’t want to see anybody. I just sprinted and got on my bus and just locked the door.”

Cody Rhodes is currently scheduled to defend his Undisputed WWE Championship against Kevin Owens at the Bash In Berlin PPV on August 31. You can check out the betting odds for the show here.

One half of the current TNA Knockouts Tag Team Champions Alisha Edwards suffered a legitimate injury during her match at tonight’s Emergence PPV.

The female star teamed up with Ash by Elegance & Masha Slamovich to take on Jordynne Grace, Jody Threat & Dani Luna in a six women tag team match on the show.

At one point in the match, Jody Threat hit a flip dive to the outside on her opponents taking everyone out. When Edwards bumped down for the spot, however, she appeared to have hit her head on the floor or the bottom of the entrance ramp.

The champion was knocked out for real according to PWinsider. Other participants of the bout tried to raise her up for a spot after this but failed.

After realizing that she was knocked out, they brawled with each other instead. The officials then checked on Edwards and the medical staff took her to the back.

• WWE Hall of Famer Makes Surprise Debut At TNA Emergence

The match continued without the wrestling veteran. The ending saw Ash missing a Swanton and Threat capitalized on the opportunity with an F5 for the win.

Alisha was treated backstage and the belief is that she suffered a concussion during the spot. Though this hasn’t been confirmed.

Edwards made a couple of appearances for TNA before joining the company in a regular capacity in 2017. She has been a part of the Knockouts roster since then. She won the Knockouts Tag Team Championships with Masha Slamovich during the Under Siege event back in May.

SEScoops wishes Alisha Edwards a speedy recovery.

Former WWE Champion JBL has been making appearances all over the wrestling world and his latest stop was the TNA Emergence PPV event.

The main event of the show featured Nic Nemeth defending the TNA World Championship against Josh Alexander in a 60-minute Iron Man match.

Nemeth picked up early pins in the match to take a 2-0 lead but Alexander evened the score with two consecutive C4 spike piledrivers.

The former WWE star hit the Danger Zone on Josh when only 1 minute was remaining in the match. Instead of going for the pin, however, he executed a C4 spike piledriver of his own to get the score to 3-2 and win the match.

The champion couldn’t celebrate his victory for long as he was interrupted by JBL making his TNA debut. The WWE Hall of Famer entered the ring and whispered something in Nemeth’s ear. The world champion nodded his head in agreement and the show went off air with the debuting star exiting the ring.

• Current Champion Legitimately Hurt During TNA Emergence PPV Match

Apart from this, the show also featured the return of the X Division match. Mike Bailey entered the bout as champion but it was Zachary Wentz who came out victorious.

Joe Hendry was in action teaming up with The Hardy Bros & Mike Santana. This team was defeated by Moose, Brian Myers, Eddie Edwards, & Johnny Dango Curtis in the 8 men tag team match.

Kevin Owens has revealed why he wasn’t happy during his run on the top in WWE and how his perspective has changed since then.

The former Universal Champion recently spoke to CBS Sports’ Shakiel Mahjouri ahead of the WWE Bash In Berlin PPV. He discussed things such as Sami Zayn being a very unreliable friend, Cody Rhodes’ journey to the top and more.

During the interview, Owens was asked about some comments he previously made about his mindset. Kevin had expressed that winning titles or main eventing WrestleMania was not as important for him anymore and instead, he was more focused on having fun and creating moments for fans to remember.

The 40-year-old explained his stance saying that wanting all these things is natural for anyone and things like winning a title is still flattering to him. He has just become less obsessed with chasing accolades because of a shift in mindset:

“I think what helped me be less obsessed, I guess, by that aspect of it is from 2015 to 2018, 2019—that’s all I could think about. That was when I was Champion all the time. I was Intercontinental Champion, I was US champion, I was the Universal champion, and I was never happy. Never happy. I always wanted to do more.

I wanted the next week to be bigger. I’d finish a match and think, ‘Okay, what’s next week now?’ And you know, the people I’d speak to were like, ‘I don’t know, we don’t know what’s next week, we’ll figure it out.’ You know what I mean? And I just—I really didn’t enjoy any of it as much as I should have.

Then I went away and had double knee surgery in 2018. I spent five months at home, away from it, and I think that really helped me put things in perspective. I really needed to get that time away because at that time, I’d been on the road for four years with WWE, and it’s like a train—you know, you get on and you just don’t get off. You don’t realize how quickly time passes.”

• Kevin Owens WWE Contract Update

I’m Able To Pull Back: Kevin Owens

Kevin Owens made his main roster debut back in 2015 answering the US Open challenge of John Cena. He still held the NXT Championship during the time and Owens continued appearing on the development brand for a while.

His first singles title win on the main roster came at Night of Champions in September when KO defeated Ryback for the Intercontinental Championship. Between 2015 to 2018, the Prizefighter had two IC title runs, three US title reigns and one lengthy run with the Universal Championship.

The former champion went on a hiatus in October 2018. During this time he got the chance to appreciate everything he had achieved. According to Owens, a talk with Shawn Michaels during his break was instrumental in changing his perspective:

“When I went away, I talked to a lot of people about how it was really hard for me to shut it off and just not be consumed by wrestling all the time. I actually remember one of the very useful talks I had was with Shawn Michaels. I called him out of the blue, and he was kind enough to listen to me, and he just kind of helped me.

He told me in a lot of ways, throughout his career, he was a lot like me, always obsessed with ‘what’s next,’ not enjoying the ride. Just hearing it from somebody I looked up to so much just kind of helped me let go of that. And since then, I’ll still have my moments where I’m—you know, I get swept up, but I’m able to pull back, go like, ‘Hey, this is pretty incredible.’ Maybe it’s not perfect, or maybe it’s not the way you think it should be sometimes, but come on. That’s been very helpful.”

Kevin Owens is currently scheduled to challenge Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Championship at the Bash In Berlin special on August 31. You can check out streaming details of the show here.

Artem Chigvintsev, the husband of former WWE star Nikki ‘Bella’ Garcia was briefly arrested on Thursday in Napa, California on charges of domestic battery.

TMZ broke the story of his arrest noting that a 911 call was made from Chigvintsev’s home reporting a ‘medical emergency’ at around 8:30 AM in the morning. It’s unknown who made the call.

As paramedics and the fire department were en route, however, someone from the house called 911 again and cancelled the request but did not give a reason. The paramedics and fire department both returned to their stations after this call, never making it to the house.

At 10 AM that morning, the deputies responded to a domestic violence call, at a location in the town of Yountville. The Dancing With The Stars regular was arrested on the spot for felony corporal injury to spouse or cohabitant. In order to make the arrest for a felony, the injury on the victim has to be visible.

BBC News revealed that Chigvintsev had been arrested under section 273.5(a) of the California penal code – corporal injury to spouse. If charged as a felony, it could lead to up to a four-year sentence.

Artem has since been released from jail. People has confirmed that Artem was booked in Napa County Jail within an hour of his arrest. He was given a $25,000 bail and released at 2:18 PM PT according to the county records.

Nikki Garcia and Artem Chigvintsev

Nikki Garcia fka Nikki Bella and Artem Chigvintsev first met when they were paired together on the 25th season of the Dancing With The Stars reality show in 2017.

Garcia was still in a relationship with her then-fiancé John Cena at the time but the couple split up a year later. Bella reconnected with Chigvintsev the same year and they announced their engagement in late 2019.

The couple welcomed their son Matteo in July 2020 and they officially got married in a private ceremony held in Paris in August 2022. The duo own a home together in Napa Valley and Instagram stories indicate Garcia was in Napa on Wednesday, presumably to celebrate their second wedding anniversary.

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At the time of this writing, the identity of the alleged victim has not been revealed as they have asked for total confidentiality per sheriff’s rep.

The Napa County Sheriff’s Office has said that the alleged victim has so far been open to talking with investigators. They have provided some info as to what happened and law enforcement wants the alleged victim to help determine if there is a history of domestic violence with Artem.

The investigation remains ongoing and there is a possibility of other witnesses in the case. The Sheriff’s Office is also planning to discuss the case with prosecutors, with one of the topics of discussion being potential criminal charges against Artem.

Stay tuned with SEScoops for more details on the story.

You can call 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) for Domestic Violence Hotline or text START to 88788. More details about the issues can be found at US Department of Justice website here.

Matt Riddle believes he can do for RVD what he did for Randy Orton and have a great tag team run with the WWE Hall of Famer.

The team, collectively known as RK Bro, was one of the highlights of WWE programming during the pandemic era. Their run, however, was cut short due to Orton’s back issues which resulted in the Legend Killer taking the longest break of his wrestling career in mid-2022.

The Ultimate Bro discussed his time working with The Viper during an interview with New York Post. He mentioned how Orton was dealing with extreme pain even before they started working together and he was actually able to assist the wrestling veteran by taking more damage himself:

“He wanted to keep wrestling and keep showing his value because the thing about wrestling is you’re only as valuable as the last show you can make it to.

Once, you can’t make it, you’re not as valuable to that company. I wanted to extend his career as long as I possibly could and I knew I could by taking a little of the damage and the brunt of the match.”

Matt Riddle Says WWE Creative Originally Laughed At The Idea Of RK Bro

We Could Probably Have A Crazy Run: Matt Riddle

Orton isn’t the only wrestling legend Matt Riddle has a good relationship with. Having first met RVD at a cannabis party hosted in the Playboy mansion in 2008, Riddle’s acquaintance with Mr. Monday Night predates his friendship with the 14-time world champion.

RVD has been on a part-time schedule since his last run with WWE ended in 2014 and Riddle believes that he can help extend the career of the former ECW champion:

“I think kind of what I did for Randy, I could kind of do for Rob, if he wanted to, we could probably have a crazy run as a tag team.”

Riddle previously stepped in the ring with RVD during an indie show in March this year. They teamed up to defeat America’s Most Wanted. The duo then had a singles match which ended in no contest.

The two have a partnership outside of the ring as well. They are working on an RV-Bro glass pipe line among other things. 

MJF has revealed that his Dynamite Diamond Ring has been stolen ahead of today’s ALL IN PPV from Wembley Stadium in London.

The American Champion revealed the news on Twitter earlier today saying that UK is a godless and lawless country:

The Dynamite Diamond Ring was first introduced back in November 2019 as a reward for the winner of the Dynamite Dozen Battle Royale.

Originally the battle royal concluded when 2 members remained in the ring. The final 2 contestants then faced each other in a match with the winner getting the reward.

Maxwell and Adam Cole were the last two competitors for the inaugural battle royal with MJF subsequently defeating the Undisputed Era star to win the ring.

• AEW All In 2024 Start Time: US, Australia, Europe, and More

The 28-year-old continued his winning streak for the next two years and defeated Orange Cassidy in 2020 and Dante Martin in 2021 to retain possession of the ring.

The rules were changed in 2022 due to MJF’s exceptional success with the winner of the battle royal facing the Salt of The Earth directly for the prize.

Ricky Starks and Juice Robinson won the battle royal in 2022 and 2023 respectively but they both failed to take the ring away from the former AEW champion.

Cody Rhodes had stated that the original Dynamite Diamond Ring was valued at $42,000. The design was updated in 2021 with the claim that it was now worth $150,000.

It’s unknown if the ring going missing is part of a storyline for today’s PPV or if the artifact has actually been stolen. We’ll update the story with more details when they become available.

• AEW All In London Zero Hour Pre-Show Live Stream: How to Watch

Bryan Danielson wants to move away from the spotlight after he has retired from wrestling.

The 43-year-old will be putting his career on the line when he challenges Swerve Strickland for the AEW World Title at Sunday’s All In event. Bryan has previously revealed that his contract with the company has already expired, so there is a lot of chatter about what he plans to do after the show.

Tony Khan has stated multiple times that he would love for Danielson to stick around in whatever role he sees fit. For someone as knowledgeable as the wrestling veteran, there are a lot of career opportunities even if he chooses to never wrestle again.

During a recent interview with TMZ Sports, fellow WWE alumni Dean Muhtadi asked the AEW star about his plans after his retirement. Bryan explained that a lot of options have been presented to him, but he isn’t interested in any of them:

“So I don’t know. I’ve had people want me to do lots of things and I don’t really want to do any of them. I’d really like to just disappear. At least from the public eye.

What I’d really like to do is help with the community, help with…like be involved in my kids’ lives. As far as like my wife got to coach our son’s t-ball team last year, I’d love to be able to do that this year. Those sorts of things. Those are the kind of things that I’m putting focus and priority on.

• AEW All In 2024 Card: Every match taking place

I’d Like To Just Retreat Into The Forest: Bryan Danielson

Bryan Danielson then revealed an interesting conversation he had with fellow BCC member Claudio Castagnoli, while also discussing the downsides of being in the spotlight:

“Claudio had just mentioned to me on Wednesday when we were driving back to our hotel after Dynamite, he goes, ‘You know, Bryan, whenever you’re done, I kind of hope I never see you again.’ What he meant by that, and then he added later, he was like, ‘I mean I’d love to come visit you at your house, like far away from everybody, but I kind of hope that that’s it.’

Because I think he kind of knows that that’s what I want. You know what I mean it’s to kind of disappear. There’s definitely benefits to being in the spotlight but then there’s also a lot of trade-offs. I think sometimes if you experience mental health issues and stuff like that, being in the spotlight isn’t necessarily a good thing.

So yeah, I’d like to just kind of retreat into the forest. I don’t watch a lot of TV but I vaguely remember Homer Simpson, he’s in the bushes and he just slowly disappears out, right. That’s me but into the woods.”

AEW All In will be coming live from the Wembley stadium in London. International viewers can check out local start times and other details for the show here.