Tommaso Ciampa is the new NXT Champion. Title changes on weekly WWE NXT television are rare these days but a changing of the guard at the top of the brand for the developmental system has taken place.

Tommaso Ciampa beat Aleister Black to win the NXT Title on this week’s episode of NXT on the WWE Network, which was taped on Wednesday, July 18, 2018, from Winter Park, FL at Full Sail University. As a result of winning this match, it marks the first time that Ciampa has held the title.

Ciampa is now the 16th champion in the history of the NXT Title that was created back in 2012 when the inaugural champion was Seth Rollins when the brand was first introduced to the WWE fans. Ciampa is also a former NXT Tag Team Champion under the WWE banner when he won the titles with Johnny Gargano, who he had been feuding with for the past few months on television where they would later headline the last two TakeOver events.

Black held the title for 102 days once when he won it from Andrade “Cien” Almas during Survivor Series weekend at NXT TakeOver: WarGames in November of 2017 in Houston, Texas.

The next NXT special is NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn 4, which with everything that has gone on in this brand lately, it will be interesting to see how WWE books the new few weeks of television for the NXT brand leading up to this event that is slated to go down on Saturday, August 18, 2018 in Brooklyn, New York at the Barclays Center and will air on the WWE Network.

What are your thoughts on this title change? Sound off in the comment section.

Stephanie McMahon continues to make the media rounds to promote the upcoming WWE Evolution all-women’s event that goes down later this and spoke about the importance of it during a recent ESPN interview.

Recent Major Announcements

McMahon discussed making announcements for the women’s division which she noted was an honor beyond description to be the one who gets to make these announcements then listed off the first ever all-women Royal Rumble match, and now the first ever all-women pay-per-view. She noted that to be able to honor the memories and legacies of all of those women who have competed in the WWE and paved the way for today’s stars is a demonstration of equality for them as well as for all of the young girls and women around the world.”

Her Evolution Role

Although McMahon didn’t fully answer the question about her role at this show, she did make it clear that her goal is to make it the WrestleMania version of the women’s division.

“What’s awesome about this pay-per-view event is that it’s being treated the same as every other pay-per-view, because we believe in it so much. It has the creative writing team. It has all of our live events production, talent relations — all of the different departments that go into making every pay-per-view a success are behind this pay-per-view. In terms of my role, I’m going to do everything I can to make it as big and as successful as it can possibly be. I’m hoping, at any rate, that this is going to be the WrestleMania of the women’s division.”

The Evolution pay-per-view event takes place on Sunday, October 28, 2018 in Long Island, New York at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum and will air on the WWE Network.

What are your thoughts on McMahon’s comments? Sound off in the comment section.

Cris “Cyborg” Justino has called for a fight against Ronda Rousey for years. However, it won’t take place inside of the Octagon under the UFC banner but it could happen inside of a WWE ring.

The UFC women’s featherweight champion recently said in an interview with TMZ that she would be willing to fight Rousey in WWE when asked if a WWE run was a possibility after her MMA career ends. This is where she admitted that it wasn’t something planning for but would be open to the possibility.

“You know some fans ask me that like, ‘how crazy would it be to fight Ronda Rousey in WWE?'” Cyborg said. “To watch the fight that never happened. I say maybe, you know. It’s not something I have planned but if it’s something the fans would like to watch. I didn’t train for that, but I think it would be great.”

Cyborg would continue by stating that she has seen the WWE product before as she attended a few shows and that it would be cool to compete against Rousey in the company.

“It’s like acting more,” Cyborg said of the difference between WWE and UFC. “It’s very different too because when you’re fighting [in UFC] when somebody punches you have to show like you don’t feel anything.”

She added that in the WWE when someone punches you, you have to act like you’re hurt and it’s different from MMA.

If you’re an MMA fan, visit our partner site MMANews.com.

Rey Mysterio has not only given a timeline on how long he thinks he has left as an active pro wrestler but also where he wants to finish up his pro wrestling career.

The former WWE Champion talked to Noelle Foley for Ringside Collectables and in this interview, he was asked about a potential return to the WWE.

Mysterio stated that Mattel should keep making figures of him no matter what happens between him and the company as well as that he wants to end his career under WWE’s banner.

“It is in my agenda. I would definitely like to close out my career with WWE,” Mysterio said. “With that being said, I don’t have much left on my watch. So I’m thinking anywhere from three to five years and I can really see a possible return to WWE without a doubt.”

Despite his recent appearances for the sports entertainment company this year, (competing in the Royal Rumble Match at the pay-per-view event in January and wrestling in the 50-Man Royal Rumble Match at the Greatest Royal Rumble PPV) Mysterio has yet to agree to terms for a new WWE contract but is expected to sign a new deal that would see him return to the WWE later this year.

The former WWE star is booked for another match for New Japan Pro Wrestling at Budokan Hall on August 12th, the ‘All In’ event on September 1st and Chris Jericho’s upcoming Rock n Wrestling Rager At Sea.

H/T to Wrestling Inc for the transcribed quotes.

WWE is scheduled to release a DVD on the career of WWE Champion AJ Styles on November 6th to fans in the United States.

The three-disc DVD that is titled, “AJ Styles – Most Phenomenal Matches,” features 20 full-length matches spanning his entire career with the WWE from January of 2016 – July of 2018 that includes matches with Chris Jericho and Roman Reigns as well as all of his WrestleMania matches including against Shane McMahon and Shinsuke Nakamura and more.

Courtesy of Wrestling DVD Network, here is the content listing for this DVD:

DISC ONE

This Is Phenomenal

Traveling the World

AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho – RAW • January 25, 2016

WWE Tag Team Championship Match: AJ Styles & Chris Jericho vs. New Day – RAW • March 7, 2016

First WrestleMania

AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho – WrestleMania 32 • April 3, 2016

Fatal 4-Way Match to Determine the #1 Contender for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship: AJ Styles vs. Kevin Owens vs. Chris Jericho vs. Cesaro – RAW • April 4, 2016

The Booing Stopped

WWE World Heavyweight Championship Match
Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles – Payback • May 1, 2016

Extreme Rules Match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship: Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles – Extreme Rules • May 22, 2016

The Face That Runs The Place

AJ Styles vs. John Cena – SummerSlam • August 21, 2016

DISC TWO

WWE Champion

WWE World Championship Match: Dean Ambrose vs. AJ Styles – Backlash • September 11, 2016

TLC Match for the WWE Championship: AJ Styles vs. Dean Ambrose – TLC • December 4, 2016

The Elephant in the Room

WWE Championship Match: AJ Styles vs. John Cena – Royal Rumble • January 29, 2017

Triple Threat Match for the WWE Championship: John Cena vs. AJ Styles vs. Bray Wyatt – SmackDown Live • February 14, 2017

AJ Styles vs. Shane McMahon – WrestleMania 33 • April 2, 2017

Earning Respect

Triple Threat Match to Determine the #1 Contender for the United States Championship: AJ Styles vs. Sami Zayn vs. Baron Corbin – SmackDown Live • April 11, 2017

DISC THREE

A Special Moment

AJ Styles vs. Chad Gable – SmackDown Live • July 4, 2017

Triple Threat Match for the United States Championship: AJ Styles vs. Kevin Owens vs. Chris Jericho – SmackDown Live • July 25, 2017

WWE Championship Match: Jinder Mahal vs. AJ Styles – SmackDown Live • November 7, 2017

Going Beast Hunting

Champion vs. Champion Match: AJ Styles (WWE Champion) vs. Brock Lesnar (Universal Champion) – Survivor Series • November 19, 2017

WWE Championship Match: AJ Styles vs. Shinsuke Nakamura- WrestleMania 34 • April 8, 2018

Last Man Standing Match for the WWE Championship: AJ Styles vs. Shinsuke Nakamura – Money in the Bank • June 17, 2018

The Story Continues

AJ Styles vs. Andrade “Cien” Almas – SmackDown Live • July 17, 2018

Do you plan to buy this DVD? Sound off in the comment section.

Samoa Joe’s Message

It was revealed on Tuesday night that Samoa Joe would be the next title contender for the WWE Title as he will challenge WWE Champion AJ Styles for the strap at the SummerSlam PPV on Sunday, August 19, 2018 in Brooklyn, New York at the Barclays Center that will air on the WWE Network and some traditional pay-per-view outlets.

This comes off Styles’ recent feuds with Shinsuke Nakamura and Rusev. Following the announcement of the upcoming match, the former NXT Champion sent out the following warning to the champ by writing, “@AJStylesOrg Fetch your shine box and get my championship ready. #SummerSlam #andNEW,” on his official Twitter account:

.@AJStylesOrg Fetch your shine box and get my championship ready. #SummerSlam #andNEW

— Samoa Joe (@SamoaJoe) July 25, 2018

R-Truth Stat

As seen on this week’s episode of SmackDown Live in Evansville, IN at the Ford Center on the USA Network, R-Truth was back to wrestling on network television for the company as he lost a quick squash match to Joe, which marked his first singles match in nine months as that previous contest went down in October.

The reason for his absence was due to him needing to undergo shoulder surgery back in December. It should be noted that since that surgery, he did work the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 34 back in April in New Orleans.

What are your thoughts on WWE booking Joe vs. Styles at SummerSlam? Sound off in the comment section.

Former WWE United States Champion Jeff Hardy believes there is a good possibility that The Young Bucks (Nick and Matt Jackson) could end up in the WWE before they retire from pro wrestling.

The younger Hardy brother recently spoke with Riju Dasgupta of sportskeeda.com. In this interview, he was asked about the Young Bucks coming to WWE one day.

“I feel like it’s a possibility. They’re so talented. I mean it’ll be great to mix it up with those guys in the WWE. They’re doing their own thing and in a way, that’s what’s so cool about it.”

He would continue by stating that they’re their own boss and that they can do what they want and nobody tells them what they can’t do.

Switching gears, Hardy was also asked if he originally thought that Bray Wyatt would be the right fit for the Final Deletion match against his brother Matt, which Jeff responded by saying yes as he thinks Bray’s perfect for that because he’s very open-minded and when you’re watching a lot of his promos you’re not sure what he’s talking about and what he means

“I was on the scene when they filmed that (The Ultimate Deletion). And I hope to be a part of the next one if there is one. And I think there will be.”

What are your thoughts on Hardy’s comments? Sound off in the comment section.

PWG has announced the full cards for the upcoming Battle of Los Angeles tournament.  

The first-round matches will occur over the first two nights before the winner is crowned on the third day in the tournament finals. The winner of this tournament will receive a future shot at the PWG World Championship at a later date.

All first-round tournament matches, as well as three non-tournament matches, have been revealed.

Those matches not included in the tournament are Ilja Dragunov & Shingo Takagi taking on Ringkampf (Timothy Thatcher & WALTER) on night 1, Bandido, Flamita, and Rey Horus battling CIMA, Zachary Wentz, Dezmond Xavier on night 2 and The Rascalz (Dezmond Xavier & Zachary Wentz) defending the PWG Tag Team Titles against Lucha Brothers (Rey Fenix & Penta El Zero M).

These events are slated to take place over the course of three days on September 14, 15, and 16 at the Globe Theatre in Los Angeles, California. Tickets for Battle of Los Angeles go on sale Tuesday, July 31st at 8PM PDT.

Night 1

Adam Brooks faces Rey Horus

Flamita faces Puma King

David Starr faces Joey Janela

Bandido faces T-Hawk

CIMA faces Jody Fleisch

Brody King faces PCO

Tag Team Match: Ilja Dragunov & Shingo Takagi take on Ringkampf (Timothy Thatcher & WALTER)

Night 2

Chris Brookes faces Trevor Lee

Robbie Eagles faces DJ Z

Darby Allin faces Jeff Cobb

Ilja Dragunov faces Jonah Rock

Travis Banks faces Shingo Takagi

WALTER faces Timothy Thatcher

Six-Man Tag Team Match: Bandido, Flamita, and Rey Horus take on CIMA, Zachary Wentz, Dezmond Xavier

Night 3

PWG World Tag Team Title Match: Lucha Brothers (REY FENIX & PENTA EL ZERO M) take on The Rascalz (Zachary Wentz & Dezmond Xavier)

Tournament Finals Match

Tickets for the 2018 Battle of Los Angeles will go on sale Tuesday, July 31st at 8PM PDT! Pricing information will be revealed soon!

— PWG (@OfficialPWG) July 25, 2018

What are your thoughts on the lineups for these shows? Sound off in the comment section below.

Two more championship matches were confirmed for SummerSlam on Tuesday’s edition of SmackDown Live from Evansville, IN.

Last week, we reported that WWE had inadvertently ran a promo video for the event that hyped AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe as one of the show’s top matches. On SmackDown, General Manager Paige confirmed that Styles will in deed be defending the gold against former rival Samoa Joe. 

Also on the show, Becky Lynch defeated SmackDown Women’s Champion Carmella in a non-title match to earn a title shot at SummerSlam. This feud was started on last week’s episode after Lynch cut a promo about her desire to become the SmackDown Women’s Champion once again.

Some fans may remember that Lynch was the inaugural SmackDown Women’s Champion following the brand split in 2016. She defeated Alexa Bliss, Carmella, Naomi, Natalya, and Nikki Bella in a six-pack elimination challenge to become the inaugural champion at the Backlash pay-per-view event. WWE recognizes Lynch’s reign as lasting 85 days.

WWE SummerSlam 2018 Card

The card for WWE SummerSlam now features six confirmed matches:

• Universal Champion Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns
• WWE Champion AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe
• RAW Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss vs. Ronda Rousey
• Intercontinental Champion Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins
• SmackDown Women’s Champion Carmella vs. Becky Lynch
• Kevin Owens vs. Braun Strowman (Strowman’s MITB contract on the line)

SummerSlam takes place on Sunday, August 19, 2018 in Brooklyn, New York at the Barclays Center. The show will stream live the WWE Network.

What are your thoughts on the current SummerSlam card? Sound off in the comment section.

We now know who AJ Styles will be facing at the upcoming SummerSlam pay-per-view event.

As seen on this week’s episode of SmackDown Live in Evansville, IN at the Ford Center on the USA Network, SmackDown General Manager Paige revealed the challenger for the WWE Champion at this event, which was Samoa Joe.

As early as last week, there was a lot of speculation online that Joe would be in fact the opponent for Styles at this show due to a few reasons including a cryptic message on his official Twitter account that had fans talking about this potential match and Joe vs. Styles is being advertised for upcoming live events including the Hell in a Cell pay-per-view event that is slated to take place on Sunday, September 16, 2018 in San Antonio, Texas at the AT&T Center.

The SummerSlam pay-per-view event takes place on Sunday, August 19, 2018 in Brooklyn, New York at the Barclays Center and will air on the WWE Network and some traditional pay-per-view outlets. Both Raw and SmackDown brands will be featured.

Updated SummerSlam Card

WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns

WWE RAW Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss vs. Ronda Rousey

WWE Champion AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe

WWE Intercontinental Champion Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins

Kevin Owens vs. Braun Strowman – if Owens wins then he gets the MITB contract

What are your thoughts on WWE announcing this match for this upcoming pay-per-view event? Is this the match you wanted to see? Sound off in the comment section.

Elias recently gave his thoughts on various topics during a recent interview with Olga and Mack at the Complex offices to promote his new “Walk With Elias” album that was released on Monday.

In the interview, he was asked about his run-in with Chris Jericho back in January at the RAW 25th Anniversary special as well as his thoughts on part-timers in the WWE.

“To be honest with you, I’m sick of Chris Jericho,” Elias said. “I’ve had enough of Chris Jericho. I’ve seen him on my TV far too often. I’m the guy that plays guitar and sings on Monday Night RAW, and he shows up, tries to steal my act? It was OK for a quick laugh or something like that but on a personal level, the guy’s personality just rubs me the wrong way.”

He noted that Jericho’s ego is out of control and can’t stand people whose egos are just not deserving. He would continue to say that regarding part-timers, they can do whatever they want as he believes that any WWE events are his show and that as long as they can accept that then they can do what they want. He noted that if they don’t accept that then they will have a problem with him.

Finally, Elias noted that fans should keep an eye on Lars Sullivan and Riddick Moss from WWE NXT as they could become big stars once being called up to the main roster. Keep in mind that his comments were likely in character.

H/T to Wrestling Inc for the transcribed quotes.

Marina Shafir and Jessamyn Duke are slated to make their in-ring debut for WWE’s NXT brand this Thursday at NXT’s live event in Largo, FL at the Minnreg Hall.

Shafir and Duke are part of the ‘Four Horsewomen of MMA.’ The other two members have already made an impact in WWE. With just a handful of television matches under her belt, Ronda Rousey is already one of the company’s top stars. Shayna Baszler is a force to be reckoned with and is the reigning NXT Women’s Champion.

Marina Shafir and Jessamyn Duke announced their upcoming NXT debuts on Twitter:

Ooooooooh weeeeeeeeee Guess who has an in-ring debut in #NXTLargo???? ME!!!! Come out and support this memorable moment and the start of something exciting! Tickets on sale now at https://t.co/GcJETt9Rk5! #SuperNovaTakeOva

— Marina Shafir (@MarinaShafir) July 24, 2018

https://twitter.com/jessamynduke/status/1021856730421108741

No word yet if they’ll be competing at Friday’s show from Jacksonville, FL at the Maxwell Snyder Armory or on Saturday in Tallahassee, FL at the Donald L. Tucker Center.

With all four of MMA’s Four Horsewomen now active on the WWE and NXT rosters, the prospect of a showdown with WWE’s Four Horsewomen (Charlotte, Becky Lynch, Sasha Banks and Bayely) is realer than ever.

The long, winding road to determining Brock Lesnar’s SummerSlam has arrived at a familiar destination. Roman Reigns defeated Bobby Lashley in the main event of Monday’s WWE Raw from Cincinnati, Ohio to become #1 contender to WWE’s illusive Universal Champion. 

Brock Lesnar will make a rare WWE television appearance next Monday night to confront his SummerSlam challenger. It will be interesting to see how fans react to Lesnar and Reigns this time around. It’s been a favorite past time of WWE fans to boo Roman Reigns at every turn, but WWE has been playing up that Lesnar is an absentee Champion – and that’s turned ugly in the past (see: WrestleMania XX).

With Brock Lesnar’s WWE contract nearing its conclusion, the 41-year-old is already back in the USADA drug testing pool ahead of his expected return to UFC in 2019.

In addition to next week’s Raw and his upcoming match against Roman Reigns, Brock Lesnar is advertised for the August 20th episode of Raw from Brooklyn, the night after SummerSlam. This could be Lesnar’s final WWE appearance. 

WWE SummerSlam 2018 Card

Here is the updated card for WWE SummerSlam 2018, which take place on Sunday, August 19th from Brooklyn, New York at the Barclays Center:

– Universal Champion Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns

– RAW Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss vs Ronda Rousey

– Intercontinental Champion Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins

– Kevin Owens vs Braun Strowman with Strowman’s MITB contract on the line

Discussion: What are your thoughts on Roman Reigns being Brock Lesnar’s final WWE opponent?

Ronda Rousey and former WWE Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair were among several superstars to react to the big news that was made official on Monday night.

That announcement was WWE Evolution, which is an all-women’s exclusive pay-per-view event that will take place on Sunday, Oct. 28, at 7 p.m. ET from NYCB LIVE, home of the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in New York.

The event will stream live on WWE Network and be available on pay-per-view featuring Women’s Championship Matches from Monday Night RAW, SmackDown Live, NXT and NXT UK, as well as the finals of the all-women’s tournament, Mae Young Classic 2018.

Rousey, Flair, RAW Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss, Sasha Banks, SmackDown Women’s Champion Carmella, Nia Jax, and Asuka, as well as WWE Hall of Famers and Legends Trish Stratus and Lita, are advertised to appear at this show.

Triple H, Stephanie McMahon and others have sounded off on the announcement, which you can see here:

“Because of all of you, men and women using your voices for change, we are able to provide the platform to show the world that women can do anything and be anything they want to be,” McMahon said on Raw. “Because of all of you, we are able to stand here and make another first-ever announcement. On October 28, over 50 women, then, now and forever, will participate in an event called Evolution, and that event — I am privileged to announce — will be the first-ever all-women’s pay-per-view.”

“Three years ago, our fans demanded a change with the hashtag, #GiveDivasAChance, and an evolution started,” said Paul “Triple H” Levesque, WWE Executive Vice President, Talent, Live Events & Creative. “Since that time, our female Superstars have overdelivered in every opportunity presented to them, and I expect nothing different during our first-ever all-women’s pay-per-view event.”

It has been such an honor to be a part of this women’s division for the last few months. These women have all taught me so much and I couldn’t be prouder to call myself a @WWE Superstar. I’m ready for #Evolution.

— Ronda Rousey (@RondaRousey) July 24, 2018

Wow!!! I have chills!!! What an amazing time to be a woman!!! ?? -Brie #WellDeserved #WomensWrestling #Evolution https://t.co/ZeW0EwO0c9

— Nikki & Brie (@NikkiAndBrie) July 24, 2018

Girl Power. #Evolution

— Miro (@ToBeMiro) July 24, 2018

I’ve stood in that ring @StephMcMahon talked about. I felt the bond @TripleH spoke about. I’m ready to make history with the strongest women I know.
Let’s do this, ladies. #Evolution

— Charlotte Flair (@MsCharlotteWWE) July 24, 2018

Congratulations to each and every woman on the @wwe roster. You’ve fought hard and made it possible for you and so many others. Very excited about this #EVOLUTION #womensdivision #WomensWrestling 2 thumbs of from this fan!! ??

— Dustin Rhodes (@dustinrhodes) July 24, 2018

I remember what they all said.
“You’ll never make it.”
“Just stay to the side.”
“You’re just the girl.”
Well this girl is the #SDLive Women’s Champion and will be at THE FIRST EVER ALL WOMENS PPV! #Evolution

— Mella Is Money ? (@CarmellaWWE) July 24, 2018

It breaks my heart that I’m not standing on that stage with the other superstars….but @StephMcMahon’s announcement is truly incredible. I’m so proud to be apart of this division as it makes history again and again! #Evolution

— Ruby Soho (@realrubysoho) July 24, 2018

It’s easy to get caught up in the excitement of the announcement. But I won’t forget what it took to get us here. And I’ll never stop working until this feeling is the reality for every woman. #Evolution

— Lina Fanene (@LinaFanene) July 24, 2018

So excited for the ALL WOMENS PPV!!!!! Historical and guaranteed we will make it magical! So proud of how far we have come! ?????? @wwe #EVOLUTION pic.twitter.com/sd2UBJjXdb

— Nattie (@NatbyNature) July 24, 2018

It’s not just ALL of us that make this happen, it’s the women who paved the way before, & grinding away to get here! THIS PROVES WOMEN CAN DO EVERYTHING! #evolution @wwe @StephMcMahon @VinceMcMahon pic.twitter.com/amtVXgiDqT

— Ash By Elegance (@Ashamae_Sebera) July 24, 2018

https://twitter.com/BeckyLynchWWE/status/1021567662210646017

It’s that feeling where you can’t stop smiling. Incredibly honored and ready to represent the hearts of all little girls worldwide who’ve always wanted to follow their dreams. #Evolution

— Bayley (@itsBayleyWWE) July 24, 2018

I called myself ‘The Boss’ because no one believed I would be. If they didn’t want me in their club, I’d just make my own. We did it. #Evolution

— Mercedes Moné Varnado (@MercedesVarnado) July 24, 2018

For nearly 2 years, I’ve had the opportunity to be a part of and represent the Women’s divisions of #Raw and #SDLive. #Evolution is not just a victory for us. It’s a victory for women in EVERY sport. ??

— Lexi (Kaufman) Cabrera (@AlexaBliss_WWE) July 24, 2018

Just like Brie said, truly an incredible time to be a woman at @WWE! Thank you @VinceMcMahon @StephMcMahon & @TripleH for the amazing opportunity! And thank you to all the @WWE Female Superstars that continue to help us break barriers! Truly women empowering women! N #EVOLUTION

— Nikki & Brie (@NikkiAndBrie) July 24, 2018

https://twitter.com/RealPaigeWWE/status/1021579433126363136

Congrats to all the @WWE Women! You have always been superstars, now the world will be watching! #Evolution pic.twitter.com/Ge4Cae4ti7

— Booker T. Huffman (@BookerT5x) July 24, 2018

Following Monday’s edition of WWE RAW from Cincinnati, Ohio, the card for next month’s SummerSlam pay-per-view is starting to take shape.

As seen on RAW, there was a backstage segment with Baron Corbin, Kevin Owens, Kurt Angle and Stephanie McMahon where Owens begged for another match with Strowman. This led to the announcement with a stipulation being made as it will be Owens taking on Braun Strowman and if Owens wins this match then he gets Strowman’s Money in the Bank contract that guarantees him a world title match anytime within the next year.

This marked Owens’ first appearance on the flagship show of the company since the WWE Extreme Rules pay-per-view event in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania at the PPG Paints Arena on the WWE Network earlier this month that saw Owens beat Strowman in a steel cage match once Strowman tossed him off the top of the cage.

WWE SummerSlam 2018 Card

Here is the updated card for WWE SummerSlam 2018, which take place on Sunday, August 19th from Brooklyn, New York at the Barclays Center:

– Universal Champion Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns

– RAW Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss vs Ronda Rousey

– Intercontinental Champion Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins

– Kevin Owens vs Braun Strowman with Strowman’s MITB contract on the line

WWE was teasing a historic announcement for Monday’s RAW from Cincinnati, Ohio and they delivered. Vince McMahon, Triple H and Stephanie were on hand to announce WWE’s first-ever all-women’s pay-per-view event titled, WWE Evolution.

WWE Evolution will take place on Sunday, October 28th from the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Long Island, New York. This event will see 50 women from WWE’s past, present and future (WWE, NXT and legends).

Michael Cole noted after the announcement that the RAW, SmackDown, and NXT Women’s Titles will be on the line as well as the finals of the 2018 Mae Young Classic Tournament at this show.

Last week when this idea was rumored, it was reported that this show is apparently being planned due to the lack of female stars at the Greatest Royal Rumble event in April and that it could be a Network Special similar to the show at Saudi Arabia.

Stephanie had not been seen on RAW since the night after WrestleMania 34 in April where she was attacked by Ronda Rousey following their mixed tag team match at the biggest event of the year for the WWE.

What are your thoughts on this PPV event? Sound off in the comment section.

Despite the fact that Braun Strowman is Mr. Money in the Bank, that doesn’t mean that he’s done with Roman Reigns.

Strowman recently spoke with Riju Dasgupta for Sportskeeda to talk about various topics including working and feuding with Reigns on WWE television. This is where Strowman stated that he’ll never be finished with Reigns but rather giving him a break for now.

“He had a pretty rough 2017 when I started the ‘Get These Hands’ movement. He was a very literal punching bag for me. I’m giving him a little break right now.”

Strowman also commented on the comparisons he gets to Lars Sullivan, who is currently working in the NXT brand. The RAW star noted that he’s heard of the NXT star but doesn’t know a whole lot about him and that he sees potential in him.

“He’s got a little mean streak and I like that. And I’m always looking for somebody to get in there with and ‘get these hands’. So, if he wants me, come and get ’em!”

Finally, Strowman commented on how he could cash in his Money in the Bank contract as it will be difficult to do so with WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar not on television each week.

“You know, I get asked that a lot. I might just have to jump on a horse or whatever and find him in the woods of Canada or wherever he’s living. So, yeah. So, fingers crossed, we cross paths in the airport or something. I’ll fight him in the middle of Minneapolis or something.”

What are your thoughts on Strowman’s comments? Sound off in the comment section.

Brian Cage claims to know which feud that fans want to see involving Brock Lesnar next on WWE television.

Cage, who won the Impact Wrestling X-Division Title at Sunday’s (July 22, 2018) Slammiversary pay-per-view event, was recently interviewed by The Sports Daily to talk about various topics including working with Bobby Lashley in his last match in Impact Wrestling before the former ECW Champion made his return to the WWE.

Cage stated that it was a huge honor and was awesome of him to do that for him as he enjoyed working with Lashley and wishes that they would’ve had a slower build-up to their match but he understands the time constraints. He noted that it was a great feud and praised Lashley for being a great athlete.

“They gave him a big push over Reigns, which was awesome, I congratulated him on that. But everyone wants to see [Brock] Lesnar and Lashley. I don’t think we need Lesnar and Roman Reigns for the 16th time.”

Cage continued by stating, “He has that super X-Factor, when it comes to pay-per-view buys, I think he’s only second to Conor McGregor. Even (Ronda) Rousey ain’t drawing the numbers Lesnar is. I think he adds legitimacy both to WWE performers also to any pro wrestlers and MMA. I like his work, as far as in the ring.”

Cage added that Lashley’s got a system that’s actually pretty cut and dry but he still loves his matches and would love to work with him again.

Roman Reigns vs. Bobby Lashley to determine new #1 contender for Universal Title is slated to headline this week’s episode of Monday Night RAW to find out who will be facing Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam.

What are your thoughts on Cage’s comments? Sound off in the comment section.

The first match in the tournament to crown new #1 contender’s for the SmackDown Tag Team Titles has been booked.

It was announced over the weekend by SmackDown General Manager Paige that SAnitY, The New Day, The Bar, and The Usos will be part of the tournament. The winners of this tournament will challenge Luke Harper and Erick Rowan for the SmackDown Tag Team Titles at the upcoming SummerSlam pay-per-view event that is slated to go down on Sunday, August 19, 2018 in Brooklyn, New York at the Barclays Center that will air on the WWE Network.

On Monday afternoon, Paige revealed the first match for the tournament that will take place this week on SmackDown Live, which is New Day vs. SAnitY. She posted the following video on her official Twitter account:

https://twitter.com/RealPaigeWWE/status/1021484260258136070

WWE is in Evansville, IN at the Ford Center for this week’s episode of SmackDown Live.

The company has already announced a match and segment for the show that includes WWE SmackDown Women’s Champion Carmella vs. Becky Lynch in a non-title match with the stipulation that if Lynch wins then she gets a title shot at SummerSlam. Also, Paige will reveal who AJ Styles will defend the WWE Title against at SummerSlam.

What are your thoughts on this first tag team tournament match? Sound off in the comment section.

WWE SmackDown Live 1000 Episode

WWE will be presenting a special episode of SmackDown Live in the near future as it was reported by Pwinsider.com that the 1,000th episode celebration for the show that the blue brand represents is currently scheduled to go down on October 16th in Washington, DC.

It was also noted that WWE is already making plans for the big event, which is similar to what the company did for the 1000 episode of Monday Night RAW back in 2012.

SmackDown made its debut on television back on August 29, 1999 in Kansas City, Missouri and has aired on several networks over the years including UPN television network, The CW, MyNetworkTV, SYFY, The USA Network, and will air on FOX starting next October which is expected to make SmackDown the A-show of the company.

Summer Rae’s New Look

Former WWE star Summer Rae has changed up her look as she dyed her hair red after years of being blonde.

Rae, who departed from the WWE last year and is currently a successful model, posted the following photo on her official Instagram account:

https://instagram.com/p/BlhLPnmHlrq/?utm_source=ig_embed

What are your thoughts on what WWE should do for this special episode of SmackDown Live? Sound off in the comment section.

The build for the upcoming SummerSlam pay-per-view is up and running but one name has yet to be mentioned on WWE television and that’s John Cena.

WWE is not advertising Cena for any upcoming events. He was last seen when he beat Triple H in the opening match on the main card of the Greatest Royal Rumble pay-per-view event in April.

However, over the weekend, Cena had fans talking about an interesting photo on his official Instagram account which led to speculation that he was hinting at a match against The Undertaker. Their first encounter was at WrestleMania 34 earlier this year and was a short match which led to a lot of fans believing that they could do a rematch in the future.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BlaohtXgHzK/?hl=en&taken-by=johncena

Also, a fan asked longtime pro wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer on Twitter if he thinks Cena will appear at SummerSlam, which Meltzer responded with the following:

Rumor has it he will https://t.co/yOJt5fxhrb

— Dave Meltzer (@davemeltzerWON) July 23, 2018

Another interesting turn about this speculation is the fact that since 2004, Cena has worked SummerSlam every year and with WWE considering it being the second biggest event of the year just behind WrestleMania, one would have to assume that there’s a good chance Cena will work this upcoming event.

However, as of this writing, this is pure speculation as WWE has yet to confirm Cena making an appearance at the show.

What are your thoughts on Cena potentially working this show? Sound off in the comment section.

Tyson Kidd not only reflected on his accomplishments in the WWE but also talked about his future with the company in his new role during a recent interview.

The former WWE Tag Team Champion spoke with Chris Van Vliet about various topics including his career-ending neck injury. For those who may not remember, Kidd was seriously injured three years in a dark match prior to a RAW TV event with Samoa Joe after taking the muscle buster. He ended up getting C1-C2 spinal fusion surgery, and doctors said that there was a 95 percent chance of death. Thus, at the time, it was considered a life-threatening injury as well but now he’s moved on as a producer with the WWE.

“I remember everything very vividly. I lost feeling for about five seconds. Everything. Head to toe. Times ten. You just sit there in no control. I was in no control, I was at a higher power’s mercy. You’re just sitting there, all of a sudden your body feels like it weighs like two million pounds. But there was some weird voice telling me this isn’t permanent. Now in that five second span I’m thinking this little voice is telling me this but that doesn’t mean this voice is right though. But luckily, thankfully it was. I ended up going to a hospital then they transferred me to a different hospital.”

Kidd continued by stating that he stayed overnight then the doctor came the next morning and told him that he wanted to do emergency surgery, which he noted is fortunate due to WWE having the best of the best.

He recalled being airlifted a couple of days later from San Antonio to Tampa and the best doctor ended up being in Tampa. He added that once he got hurt, Steve Austin, Kurt Angle, and Edge reached out to him about the injury.

Switching gears, Kidd talked about his new role in the company as a producer as he has been doing it for a year now and claims to love it but did admit that it took a little bit to get adjusted and back in the mix because he was away for two years.

“I love sitting and collaborating with people and just being creative and we are all throwing out ideas and next thing you know some magic is being made in the ring that I had a small little part in. It feels fulfilling and there’s no physical trauma to me. “

H/T to Wrestling Inc for the transcribed quotes.

As noted earlier this week, WWE Chairman Vince McMahon was not backstage for Sunday’s Extreme Rules pay-per-view from Pittsburgh, PA.

In his absence, Triple H and producer Billy Kidman ran the show, with Vince McMahon staying in communication with officials throughout the show.

Especially with Hulk Hogan attending his first WWE show in several years to address the roster, some fans have been wondering where Vince was, since he does not miss many shows. 

According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Vince McMahon usually takes a 1-week vacation each year in mid-July, which explains why he wasn’t at Extreme Rules. 

McMahon has not been seen on WWE television since the March 12 episode of Monday Night Raw, when he made an appearance in a backstage segment with Roman Reigns.

What are your thoughts on McMahon missing this latest pay-per-view event? Now that a few days have passed, has your opinion changed about the show?

It appears that the card for the upcoming Slammiversary PPV event has been finalized.

This show is slated to be headlined by Austin Aries defending the Impact Wrestling World Title against Moose. Other top matches that are set to take place at this show include Su Young defending the Impact Wrestling Knockouts Title against Madison Rayne, and Matt Sydal defending the X Division Title Match against Brian Cage.

As of this writing, there’s no word yet on Rich Swann’s status for this show as he was injured and taken to the hospital following his tag team match at Thursday’s MLW TV tapings for what is believed to be a bad concussion. He is slated to take on Rey Fenix, Johnny Impact, and Taiji Ishimori in a Fatal Four-Way match at Slammiversary.

Impact Slammiveresary XVI

Impact will present Slammiversary live on pay-per-view on Sunday, July 22nd from the Rebel Entertainment Complex in Toronto, Canada. Here is the updated card for the show:

Impact Wrestling World Title: Austin Aries © vs. Moose

Impact Wrestling Knockouts Title: Su Yung © vs. Madison Rayne

X Division Title Match: Matt Sydal © vs. Brian Cage

Mask vs. Hair Match: Pentagon Jr. vs. Sami Callihan

Fatal 4-Way Match: Rich Swann vs. Johnny Impact vs. Fenix vs. Ishimori

House of Hardcore Match: Tommy Dreamer vs. Eddie Edwards

Street Fight: Hernandez & Homicide vs. Santana & Ortiz

Singles Match: Allie vs. Tessa Blanchard

What are your thoughts on these matches being announced? Do you plan on buying this pay-per-view event? If not, why so? Sound off in the comment section.

WWE fans weren’t always behind The New Day as a popular group and Big E has taken the time to reflect on it.

Big E recently spoke with the State Journal-Register to promote this Sunday’s WWE SmackDown live event in Springfield, IL at the Bank of Springfield Center and to talk about various topics including fans not initially buying the upbeat, positive characters that they portrayed on television.

“To me, obviously, what swung things was us finally embracing the fact that the crowd didn’t like us. … The first time we really cheated (in a match) was instrumental because instead of trying to go against the grain and be these good guys that people didn’t like or didn’t care for, we finally decided to cheat … and it ended up working out really well for us.”

He noted that the real change came from just being themselves on TV as there are sometimes where talents are saddled with an idea or a gimmick that doesn’t feel right but you have to make it work and once the reins were finally taken off and they were allowed to be themselves then they took more creative control which is when things took off for them.

Big E also talked about the differences between live and TV events, his background and more. You can read the entire interview here.