— WWE held an anti-bullying rally at Wednesday night’s Brooklyn Cyclones game at MCU Field. Garcia sang the National Anthem and Natalya threw out the first pitch for the game. Zack Ryder and Mark Henry were also in attendence. All of the WWE talent signed free autographs.

SEScoops.com correspondent The Solomonster, who handles PR for the Brooklyn Cyclones, was at the event and posted several pictures to Twitter, which can be viewed here.

— The latest on planned WWE Network is that DirecTV has no interest in carrying it. This would be a huge blow to the Network’s potential revenue, as DirecTV serves approximately 30% of potential customers. Other top cable providers have also been hesitant to carry the WWE Network, which is the reason WWE is now considering a subscription-based “premium channel” model, similar to HBO & Showtime.

There is no official date set for the Network’s launch, but WWE recently filmed a new commercial for the channel which is expected to air some time this summer.

* Rumor On The New Permanent WWE GM & Matches Planned For SUMMERSLAM

(Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

— WWE returns to the Landon Arena at the Kansas Expo Centre in Topeka, Kansas on September 29th, 2012 and the Intrust Bank Arena in Wichita, Kansas on September 30th, 2012. (Thanks to Devin Cutting)

— WWE’s North American live event attendance was down 3% in May compared to the previous year.

— Here are some recent WWE attendance figures for the past week:

* 6/22: RAW from Bethlehem, PA drew 4,600 fans and grossed $158,000.
* 6/23: RAW from Wheeling, WV drew 3,400 fans and grossed $115,000.
* 6/23: SmackDown from Springfield, IL drew 3,500 fans and grossed $95,000.
* 6/24: RAW from Huntington, WV drew 3,000 fans and grossed $90,000
* 6/24: SmackDown from Bloomington, IL drew 3,300 fans and grossed $100,000.
* 6/24: RAW from Fort Wayne, IN drew a sellout of 8,500 fans.

— WWE.com did 12.5 million unique visitors in May, down 9% from the prior year (13.7 million).

— WWEShop.com averaged 645 orders per day in May, down 23% from the previous year.

* Rumor On The New Permanent WWE GM & Matches Planned For SUMMERSLAM

(Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

— On Monday’s RAW, John Cena cut a promo that included several comments that made many wrestling fans cringe, including using the word “fudgin'” and telling Chris Jericho that WWE’s television audience is mostly comprised of 9 year old children. It’s worth noting that those comments by Cena were edited off the the replay of WWE RAW that aired on English/Spanish channel Mun2.

Cena’s promo with Chris Jericho was not edited off entirely, but his latest attempts at humor (“fudgin'” and 9 year-olds) were.

* TOP 10 COUNTDOWN Of John Cena’s Best WWE Matches

– Several celebrity news publications are reporting that David Otunga and his celebrity fiance, actress/singer Jennifer Hudson, are once again planning to get married.

Their wedding plans were put on hold during the build-up to the murder trail regarding the deaths of several of Hudson’s family members.

http://youtu.be/2Is9SdaC-X8

Yesterday, June 27th, marked one year since CM Punk’s infamous “Pipe Bomb” promo that shook the foundation of the wrestling world and catapulted Punk from mid-card wrestler on his way out of the company to WWE main eventer. To mark the occasion, the WWE website has a feature up interviewing superstars and divas about the significance of Punk’s promo. You can see the full article at WWE.com. Here are some quotes from:

Zack Ryder: “I remember I was watching the backstage monitor and I was like, ‘Wait a minute. Is this live on TV?’ He was just saying these things about the company that seemed pretty unbelievable. They even cut the mic out from under him. You knew it was one of those moments that created controversy, and people were tuning in the next week to see what would happen. I definitely approved and agreed with what he was saying. I was saying similar things on my YouTube show, so when a Superstar like Punk voiced his opinion, maybe it made people realize a change was necessary.”

“Road Dogg” Jesse James: “I think it caused a revolution, to be quite honest with you. I think people who know the inside track, they always want to hear somebody who drops that on national TV. I think that’s what brought CM Punk to the forefront, and now his popularity has just grown ever since. It’s fun to see him on all our live events and just how popular he is. He never ceases to amaze me. It takes charisma, it takes personality, and Punk has loads of both.”

Kaitlyn: “I was watching it on TV since it was a travel day. When it happened, I was so shocked. I think I actually tweeted about it, like I was so curious about what was going down and what kind of impact it would have. I think his words kind of shifted things. In the WWE fans’ eyes, watching that, it sparked a rebellion in a way and it kind of gave Punk this awesome chance to create himself in any way that he wanted. He totally reinvented himself. It was something that people could really rally around. He related to the WWE Universe and it felt so surreal.”

Ezekiel Jackson: “He stated that his WWE contract was coming to an end, and you don’t know what to expect from somebody who’s about to either quit or do whatever they want to do. He had absolutely nothing to lose. He could have said anything he wanted, and in a way, he did. It was so different. He stepped up to be a natural leader of the WWE locker room. You know that he was trying to make it known that he was representing us. You’ve seen things going in the direction that he wanted it to. One of the points he touched on was a smaller guy like him wasn’t supposed to ever be WWE Champion, but then you’ve got him and Daniel Bryan [as a former World Heavyweight Champion] – smaller Superstars who became champions, who are getting their opportunities, and they’re delivering.”

Justin Gabriel: “I was a huge fan of Punk before, and I think that day made me an even bigger fan. Just the way he walks and talks is so different. Everything he says, you want to believe him. For the guys in the WWE locker room, he definitely hit the right notes, but he obviously ruffled a lot of feathers. But that’s cool. That’s what we need. I think that’s what we needed at the time and we need more of that going forward, too.”

Matt Hardy’s girlfriend Reby Sky is back with another rant about former WWE diva Sunny. The beef started on Monday when Reby Sky tweeted some anti-Sid messages after his appearance on RAW (bashing him for skipping indy dates), which prompted Sunny to come to Sid’s defense and the two ladies have been going back and forth ever since.

Here’s Reby Sky’s latest message about Sunny from Facebook, where she talks about having lost all respect for Sunny:

“Checked my facebook before bed & this is what I see from Sunny: “Not worried about your response” | Refreshes page over & over responding to fan-girls & posts multiple times |
::facepalm::

Look, the internet can implode & tell me I have no right to my own opinion, but I’m not backing down from anything I’ve said. There aren’t “sides” here, but if there were, SOLELY based on what my issue with Sid was – which was no-showing / disappointing fans / not keeping his word on bookings – and you “hate” me because of what I said, you’re implying it’s OK to do those things, the reason being, because he’s a “legend”. Don’t be a mark. There are plenty of “legends” who are pieces of sh*t. Being a “legend” doesn’t make you a good person. Moreover, I don’t need to be 900 years old or employed by any particular company to be able to have/voice an opinion. And the bigger question is, WHO CARES what I have to say ? Ran out of people to pick on, Sunny ?

I stand by my friends through thick & thin but when they’ve done something undeniably wrong I’m not going to justify it when its criticized & that’s exactly what Sunny has done. You’re buddies. Good for you. But your “buddy” has been screwing over a whole lot of fans & promotors – You’re going to back THAT up ? The last shred of respect I tried to hold on to having for you (after discovering you literally sucked Sabu’s dick for somas) is gone.

If people dislike me for some other reason, then by all means, continue to rant on and on about it; You deserve the right to express your opinion as much as I do (although today, people seem to have forgotten I have a right to my own) … but if you’re going to hate me because I said people NO-SHOWING makes me sick then you’re just as bad as he is.”

* Rumor On The New PERMANENT RAW & SmackDown General Manager

WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has updated his blog, which you can read in its entirety at JRsBarBQ.com. Here are some highlights of what JR wrote about:

John Cena Marks 10 Years With WWE: “Hard to believe that John Cena has been with WWE for a decade now. I can vividly recall scouting John in UPW in Southern California back in the day and remarking to WWE Management that I felt that we had signed a future Wrestlemania main eventer within the next five years at that time. ”

* TOP 10 COUNTDOWN Of John Cena’s Best WWE Matches

Money In The Bank: ” The upcoming MITB bouts are interesting. One will be dotted with former Champions while the other will have a different selection of talents looking to turn heads and maximize their minutes in a high profile bout. These are dangerous bouts and based on past history have produced some of the most memorable moments that I can recall broadcasting. What some of the men have put themselves through to entertain the fans in MITB has been the personification of high risk, high reward.”

WWE’s Next Big Star: “I’m often asked who the next big star in WWE will be. I always give the same answer. It’s impossible to say or to narrow it down to just one talent. WWE has several, developing talents who have a legit shot at making it big … I will say that one, home grown product in WWE Developmental that seemingly has unlimited potential is Leakee, the son of Wild Samoan Sika and a former defensive lineman at Georgia Tech. A natural athlete with drive and toughness, Leakee is 6’3″-260 pounds and is a bright young man who seems to be grounded and has an excellent work ethic. Time will tell how he evolves but don’t be surprised if Leakee doesn’t make some noise in WWE in the future.”

As always, you can check out JR’s amazing line of BBQ products at WWEShop.com.

— As previously reported, Monday’s RAW did a 3.28 cable rating with with 4.71 million viewers. This week’s show was down from last week’s 3.42, but up from the 3.24 two weeks ago.

For the third week in a row, RAW gained viewers in hour two. The first hour had 4.59 million viewers and the second hour jumped to 4.84 million.

As for demographics, RAW was #1 in all the key male demographics for the night and ranked ranked #2 in total viewers on cable.

— To update the technical issue that occurred during Monday’s RAW, the interruption that was due to a “technical malfunction at USA Network’s Master Control.” WWE issued an appology on Tuesday regarding the slip up, but did not mention that a Linda McMahon campaign ad aired during RAW in Connecticut.

Here is the latest edition of “Superstar Toyz.” In this edition of “Superstar Toyz,” Johnny Curtis shares his awesome skateboard collection with the WWE Universe:

* News On BATISTA’s Big Announcement (TNA?) & When FCW’s Top Stars Will Debut In WWE

(Ratings Credit: PWTorch.com)

– The only DVD extra on the WWE’s upcoming release of the 1980’s cult classic No Holds Barred, starring Hulk Hogan is a photo gallery.

– WWE is advertising a Fatal Four-Way for the WWE Championship for the July 8th WWE Supershow in Rio Rancho, New Mexico featuring CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Chris Jericho vs. and Kane. (Thanks to Steven Fernandes)

– Here is Roddy Piper’s appearance on Celebrity Ghost Stories. Piper’s former best friend, the late Adrian Adonis, has his back even from the beyond:

– Vickie Guerrero donated 90 WWE collectible items to the El Paso Children’s Hospital last week. Her charitable work got picked up by several local newspapers.

– The lead single on the Insane Clown Posse’s new CD is titled, “Chris Benoit.” ICP member Violent J spoke to the Detroit Free Press about the song and said this about the controversial song title:

“It’s about that loss of sanity. It’s about the snapping, that moment of panic.”

– WWE sent out the following on Wednesday announcing that WWE Superstars and Divas will be at MCU Park in Brooklyn, New York tonight as part of an Anti-Bullying Night:

WWE SUPERSTARS AT MCU PARK – JUNE 27th On Wednesday, June 27th WWE Superstars ® Mark Henry and Zack Ryder as well as WWE Divas ® Lilian Garcia and Natalya will be at MCU Park as part of Anti-Bullying Night. They will make a special pre-game presentation on behalf of the “be a STAR” Alliance which encourages people to Show Tolerance And Respect for all people prior to the 7:00 PM game with the Hudson Valley Renedages. Following the presentation the WWE Superstars and Divas ® will remain at the ballpark to sign autographs for fans in attendance To purchase your tickets for this very special night at the ballpark, call 718-507-TIXX, visit the MCU Park box office. ***WWE Superstars ® and WWE Divas ® are subject to change.

– WWE ran two segments during commercial breaks at Tuesday’s WWE SmackDown tapings from Evansville, Indiana.

*SPOILERS* WWE SmackDown Tapings Results For Friday

The first involved WWE Hall of Famer Jerry “The King” Lawler, who came out and interrupted a post-match promo by Jack Swagger. Lawler, who got a huge pop from the crowd, hit the ring, knocked Swagger down and nailed him with his trademark second rope first drop.

Later in the evening, while David Otunga was in the ring after his match, Triple H’s music played and he came out and Pedigreed Otunga. Booker T then attacked Otunga and gave him a Spin-a-rooni, which got the crowd very fired up, based on live reports from fans who were in attendance.

– The new WWE Main Event television show that will debut in October on ION Television, f4wonline.com’s Bryan Alvarez reports that Main Event will basically be “WWE Superstars with a new name.”

With NXT no longer taped before SmackDown, it’s expected that WWE will tape matches for Main Event on Tuesday nights prior to SmackDown tapings.

— WWE Tag Team Champion Kofi Kingston appeared on SyFy’s Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files on Tuesday night. Kingston helped the team determine if the famous Stonehenge in Britain was built by extraterrestrials.

A short clip of the apperance can be seen at WWE.com.

— Episode 22 of the WWE Inbox Youtube show is now online. In this edition, Ezekiel Jackson, Alicia Fox and other Superstars answer Twitter questions from fans, including which remake of a movie they would star in and why:

– John Cena tweeted the following message on Wednesday morning in response to the overwhelming support he’s received from fans:

Thank u everyone for this mornings well wishes. It truly means the world. #hustleloyaltyrespect

— John Cena (@JohnCena) June 27, 2012

TOP 10 COUNTDOWN Of John Cena’s Best WWE Matches

– Suspended WWE superstar Randy Orton continues to respond to fan questions on Twitter. When asked about why WWE banned his skull punt but not Zack Ryder’s Broski Boot move, he responded, “Good Q”.

Ryder’s Broski Boot actually is banned, also due to potential concussions.

– John Morrison appeared at the 10th Annual Los Angeles Improv Comedy Festival at IO West back on June 10th. The following videos from that show have been posted online of a segment titled, “Cut That Promo” –

– Today, June 27th, marks 10 years since John Cena made his WWE television debut on WWE SmackDown.

During the 6/27/02 episode, Kurt Angle made an open challenge to anybody who had not wrestled before so he could show them “ruthless aggression” and make them tap.

A virtually unknown wrestler named John Cena came out and answered the challenge. He had a competitive match with Angle, but experience won out and Angle was victorious. After the match, Cena went to shake Angle’s hand, but Angle just laughed at him.

Later in the show, several of WWE’s top superstars congratulated Cena for a valiant effort. The Undertaker shook Cena’s hand and told him he did a good job.

TOP 10 COUNTDOWN Of John Cena’s Best WWE Matches

– Shawn Michaels’ MacMillan River Adventures hunting show had its Season 2 premiere on Tuesday night. While the show was airing, Michaels did a Q&A on Twitter and answered several wrestling-related questions from fans.

Among the highlights, Michaels said the episode of his show featuring a guest appearance from “Stone Cold” Steve Austin will air later this year – while an episode featuring Jim Ross will air in 2013.

When asked who has the most potential to be a main eventer in WWE, Michaels says he barely watches WWE anymore but has always had his eye on Dolph Ziggler.

Michaels also called CM Punk a “nice guy” and said Triple H vs. Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam “should be good.”

During the Twitter Q&A session, Michaels encouraged fans to get “#MRA” to trend worldwide – which they did, first time a show on the Outdoor Channel has trended worldwide.

– Dean Ambrose will almost certainly be the next wrestler from developmental to debut on the main roster. WWE writers have been told to come up with storylines to introduce Ambrose. He will debut on the RAW brand.

As previously reported, it’s believed that his online feud with Mick Foley has been dropped.

– The first match has been announced for next Tuesday’s WWE Super SmackDown “Great American” Bash special: WWE Divas Champion Layla and The Great Khali vs. Aksana and Antonio Cesaro.

Next Week’s Interim General Manager Revealed

– WWE Champion CM Punk will be participating in a charity bowling event today at the 10pin Bowling Lounge in Chicago, IL. The event will benefit the Wood Family Foundation and there will also be members of the Chicago Cubs there, including pitcher Kerry Wood.

(Partial Source: PWInsider.com)

– Sid continues to tweet about his surprise return to WWE television on Monday’s RAW:

https://twitter.com/sidneyeudy/status/217683718209404928

https://twitter.com/sidneyeudy/status/217729499813527553

– The WWE website has launched a new feature called the “Hall of Shame.” The first class of entrants includes John Laurinaitis, Michael Cole, The Miz and former WWE superstar Batista.

– Speaking of Batista, his manager John Ryan Jr. continues to tease that they are on the verge of making a huge announcement about Batista’s next project. He tweeted on Tuesday night:

https://twitter.com/johnnyryanjr/status/217838764725239809

– WWE has released their monthly business data, including an updated buyrate for WrestleMania 28 back in April.

While WWE initially touted that the event did 1.3 million buys (making it the most purchased WWE PPV of all time), the latest numbers who that the event did 1.1 and 1.2 million buys.

WWE has also released preliminary buyrate information for Over the Limit. While the actual number is skewed due to the WM28 buyrate, WWE is touting that the show did more buys than in 2011, but fewer than Over The Limit 2010.

– The WrestleMania 28 DVD has sold 175,000 units in the first two weeks of it being available, making it one of the best selling DVDs in a long time.

The recent DVD set from The Rock (released in February) is tied with Steve Austin’s DVD (from November), with 147,000 units shipped in the last nine months.

The following contains SPOILERS for Friday’s SmackDown:

The following superstars qualified for the SmackDown brand’s Money in the Bank match at next month’s pay-per-view, with a contract to wrestle the World Heavyweight champion (at any time) on the line.

– Christian

– Tensai

– Damien Sandow

– Santino Marella

– Tyson Kidd

*SPOILERS* WWE SmackDown Tapings Results For Friday

– The WWE website is now officially advertising Brock Lesnar for the 1,000th RAW celebration on July 23rd from St. Louis, Missouri.

– In a dark match that took place after Tuesday’s SmackDown tapings, John Cena defeated Big Show and Tensai in a handicap match. It was advertised as Show and John Laurinaitis teaming, but instead Tensai replaced Big Johnny. Cena got the biggest pop of the night. Late in the match, Show accidentally hit Tensai with the WMD. Cena hit Show with the Attitude Adjustment and pinned Tensai. Afterward, Big Johnny came out and hit Cena with a chair. Cena came back and took him out with the AA. The crowd was happy. (Credit: prowrestling.net)

WWE taped this week’s SmackDown show on Tuesday night from Evansville, Indiana. Credit to ProWrestling.net for these spoiler results:

1. Layla defeated A.J. in a non-title match. Daniel Bryan showed up and chanted “Yes!” which distracted A.J. and cost her the match. While Bryan and A.J. argued and dueling “Yes!” chants occurred, Vickie Guerrero showed up to massive heat.

Bryan said he wants A.J. banned from ringside at Money in the Bank. Vickie said a WWE website poll said 75 percent of the fans want A.J. to be the guest referee at Money in the Bank. Nick wrote that Vickie said A.J. will be special referee for the match. Vickie also announced that qualifying matches would occur to determine Money in the Bank match competitors.

2. Damien Sandow defeated Zack Ryder in a Money in the Bank qualifying match. Sandow rolled up Ryder for the three. He was supposed to have his feet on the ropes, but he missed the spot. The referee restarted the match. Sandow won with his finisher. One can only assume that they will edit the finish.

3. Tyson Kidd defeated Jack Swagger in a Money in the Bank qualifier. A big win for Kidd, who joins Sandow in the Smackdown version of the MITB match.

After the match, Swagger cut a promo about his hair and was interrupted by Jerry “The King” Lawler, who knocked him down and fist-dropped him off the ropes. It was unclear whether this will be on the show.

In a backstage segment, Dolph Ziggler told Vickie to ban the Brogue Kick and the Cross Arm Breaker in the main event, but she slapped him when he told her he was more important than her. After that he said it was okay, but he wanted her to introduce him tonight and raise his hand as the World Heavyweight Champion.

4. Santino Marella and Christian defeated Cody Rhodes and David Otunga in a Money in the Bank qualifier. Christian pinned Otunga with a spear. Santino and Christian both earned MITB spots.

David Otunga told Evansville that he wouldn’t leave without flexing a few times. He was stopped by Triple H, who let Otunga pose a few times and then Pedigreed him. This is unlikely to appear on TV. Booker T got a shot in after Otunga spilled to the floor and then got in the ring and did the Spinarooni. Also, the only shirt they are sold out of is the pink Dolph Ziggler shirt.

In a backstage segment, Daniel Bryan talked to A.J. She killed it with her performance again.

5. Ryback beat a pair of local wrestlers. They jobbers were billed as being from Henderson, Kentucky, which got massive heat. There was a very loud “Feed Me More” chant that broke out, which was awesome.

Teddy Long announced that he will be the general manager for next week’s Raw and Smackdown television shows. He said Antonio Cesaro and Aksana will team up to face Layla and The Great Khali on the live Smackdown.

6. Tensai (w/Sakamoto) beat Justin Gabriel in Money in the Bank qualifier. A convincing win for Tensai. It was interesting to see Sakamoto was at ringside with Tensai, as apparently the beating did nothing to dissuade his loyalty.

7. Sheamus defeated Dolph Ziggler and Alberto Del Rio in a Triple Threat match to retain the World Hvt. Championship. A good TV main event with good near finishes. The actual finish came when Ziggler had Del Rio rolled up, but Sheamus hit him with the Brogue Kick. Sheamus threw Del Rio out of the ring and then pinned Ziggler.

John Bradshaw Layfield had a near death experience on Monday during the first part of his Seven Summits mountain climbing adventure. While attempting to climb (Russia’s Mount Elbrus), the former WWE superstar encountered a huge snow storm that pushed them off the mountain.

JBL says he suffered frostbite and hypoxia (a condition where your body is deprived of adequate oxygen supply) and is “lucky to be alive.”

Prior to his attempt to climb Mount Elbrus, he tweeted:

Bad weather but suppose to get worse so…. GameTime!! Gonna be very cold and wet, see u in about 16 hours after I reach top of Europe!

— John Layfield (@JCLayfield) June 25, 2012

14 hours later, he followed up with this harrowing account:

Got hypoxia and was fighting frostbite, still made it to 1,000 feet of summit then huge storm pushed us off mountain. Lucky to be alive.

— John Layfield (@JCLayfield) June 26, 2012

On Tuesday afternoon, he provided an update on his frostbite and hypoxia symptoms:

@VidaliaDar @pantheraj thanks for kind words, all is good frostbite is fine and hypoxia symptoms left when I got off mountain. Thanks:)

— John Layfield (@JCLayfield) June 26, 2012

WWE sent out the following press release on Tuesday detailing Charlie Sheen’s role as the special Social Media Ambassador for Monday Night RAW’s 1,000th episode celebration on July 23rd:

#SheenGetsRaw on July 23

STAMFORD, Conn.–(EON: Enhanced Online News)–WWE® (NYSE: WWE) today announced Charlie Sheen, star of the highly anticipated FX comedy series Anger Management, as the Social Media Ambassador for Monday Night Raw’s historic 1000th episode live on July 23 at 8/7C on USA Network.

Sheen will tweet during Raw, providing up-to-the-minute commentary on the night’s action to his 7.5 million Twitter followers. Sheen has more than 12 million fans combined on the social media platforms Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram. WWE fans and Sheen followers will be able to ask the actor questions during the broadcast via Twitter using the #SheenGetsRaw hashtag.

In Anger Management, Sheen stars as “Charlie,” a non-traditional therapist specializing in anger management. He has a successful private practice, holding sessions with his group of primary patients each week, as well as performing pro bono counseling for an inmate group at a state prison. Selma Blair, Shawnee Smith, Daniela Bobadilla, Michael Arden and Noureen DeWulf co-star.

The series premiere of FX’s comedy series Anger Management starts this Thursday, June 28 with the first two episodes airing at 9:00 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.

Follow Charlie Sheen on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @CharlieSheen. Follow WWE on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @WWE.

* Rumor On The New PERMANENT RAW & SmackDown General Manager

After Monday’s RAW Supershow, the following matches have been confirmed for next month’s WWE Money In The Bank pay-per-view

WWE Championship Match:
CM Punk (c) vs. Daniel Bryan

MITB Match (WWE Title Match Contract On The Line)
John Cena vs. Chris Jericho vs. Big Show vs. Kane

MITB Match (World Title Match Contract On The Line)
Participants TBA

WWE Money In The Bank 2012 takes place on Sunday, July 15, 2012 from the US Airways Center in Phoenix, Arizona.

– The new WWE Main Event show on ION Television scheduled to premiere on Wednesday, October 3rd will reportedly feature first run programming that will likely be taped on Tuesday nights prior to the weekly SmackDown tapings. It’s expected that the show will feature top WWE superstars and divas from both brands in action and will be treated as a bigger deal than Superstars.

– WWE diva Eve was scheduled to return at Monday’s RAW, but was not there. She has been off television for several weeks filming the new NBC reality competition, Stars Earn Stripes.

– The WWE-related terms that trended on Twitter during RAW included: Brock Lesnar, Vickie Guerrero, Sid, Kane, Jack Swagger, Santino Marella, Bob Barker, Charlie Sheen and Star Wars.

– WWE Champion CM Punk tweeted the following message this week about his upcoming DVD release:

Watching an early copy of my DVD. I'm pretty speechless. Very humbling…

— player/coach (@CMPunk) June 26, 2012

So many people I respect. Telling stories about my life and career. I can't put it into words.

— player/coach (@CMPunk) June 26, 2012

– Tonight’s WWE SmackDown tapings will take place Evansville, Indiana at the Ford Center.

The main event of the show will be a Triple Threat match for the World Heavyweight title featuring Sheamus vs. Alberto Del Rio vs. Dolph Ziggler.

Vickie Guerrero will serve as the General Manager of SmackDown this week. John Cena, Triple H and John Laurinaitis are all advertised for the tapings.

The scheduled dark match main event will once again be John Cena vs. Big Show and John Laurinaitis in a Handicap Match.

– WWE Hall of Famer Afa will be visiting WWE developmental this week to help train the FCW wrestlers.

– Chris Jericho tweeted the following after his return to RAW on Monday night:

Awesome to be back on Raw! Great time working @JohnCena and the crowd was amazing!#byebyesuspension

— Chris Jericho (@IAmJericho) June 26, 2012

Cool to see the @FOZZYROCK footage from @DownloadFest on Raw! Such a great gig! Glad that those of who weren't there, got a taste of it…

— Chris Jericho (@IAmJericho) June 26, 2012

– WWE Tag Team Champion Kofi Kingston will be appearing on the SyFy Network’s original series Fact Or Faked tonight at 9pm (Eastern).

– WWE’s new Best of Falls Count Anywhere Matches DVD and Blu-ray sets have officially been released and can be ordered now from Amazon.com.

– Former WWE Diva (and wife of Brock Lesnar) Sable has joined Twitter and can be found at@RealSable.

– The “big surprise” that Lilian Garcia was hyping for Monday’s RAW was that she worked as ring announcer for the show, her first time announcing RAW since returning to the company.