WWE taped Friday night’s episode of SmackDown on Tuesday from Hershey, PA. Credit to prowrestlingnet for this report:
Dark Match:
* Justin Gabriel defeated a local wrestler.
* Former WWE star Kenny (“KENNY!”) Dykstra returned to action and lost to Justin Gabriel.
WWE SmackDown (Airing Friday)
* The show started with Mark Henry assaulting Daniel Bryan backstage. He dragged Bryan to ringside and continued the attack. The refs rolled Bryan out of the ring, and then Henry cut a promo on delivering more pain to Big Show and retaining at Survivor Series.
* Dolph Ziggler defeated Sin Cara. Vickie Guerrero announced before the match that Dolph will be doing double duty at Survivor Series, as he will defend the U.S. Title against Zack Ryder. Dolph won a good five-minute match with a roll up after Jack Swagger came out.
After the match, Mason Ryan came out to even the sides. Mason Ryan beat the crap out of the heels, with Dolph Ziggler showing once again that he’s one of the best “bump men” in WWE.
* Mason Ryan defeated Jack Swagger. Ryan won with a Full Nelson Slam. Expect to see a lot of replays of Ryan throwing Ziggler. Backstage, Zack Ryder got Big Show and Justin Gabriel to sign his petition. He informed Big Show of what Henry said in the opening promo.
* Backstage Ted DiBiase was playing WWE12 with Hornswoggle. Teddy Long came in with Aksana. Long was falling all over her.
* Christian came to the stage with a neck brace, boot, and crutch. He complained a lot and said even though he can’t wrestle at Survivor Series, he’ll be there to “inspire” Team Barrett. Due to his injuries and the uncertainty that his career holds, his dream is to wrestle at leaset “one more match.” He got a lot of heat and then said good riddance and walked off stage.
* There was a backstage segment with Big Show and AJ checking on Daniel Bryan in the trainers room.
* Ted DiBiase defeated Derek Bateman with Dream Street.
* Big Show was shown backstage looking for Mark Henry.Jinder Mahal and Tyson Kidd said he wasn’t around. Mahal said something in Punjabi. Show asked Kidd if he understood what Mahal said. Kidd didn’t, and Big Show knocked out Jinder Mahal for speaking a language other than what he speaks. Kidd gingerly walked away hoping not to upset the giatn.
* Big Show came to the ring in a sweatsuit. He cut a promo on Henry and said that after Henry forced Bryan to be carried out tonight, Show is gonna force Henry to be carried out at Survivor Series.
* Kofi Kingston pinned Hunico with the SOS. Hunico cut a promo in Spanish before the match.
* A promo aired for Ezekiel Jackson.
* Beth Phoenix and Natalya defeated A.J. and Kaitlyn. Natalya made A.J. tap to the Pinup Strong hold.
* Mark Henry vs. Big Show with Booker T as special referee was announced as the dark match.
* They showed the full Survivor Series lineup and only the two world title, the traditional tag, and the Rock and John Cena vs. The Miz and R-Truth matches were shown. No sign of a U.S. Title match there.
* Randy Orton came out followed by Sheamus. Then Wade Barrett and finally Cody Rhodes.
* Sheamus and Randy Orton defeated Wade Barrett and Cody Rhodes by DQ. Christian came out on crutches during the match and hit Sheamus with a crutch for the DQ. Sheamus hit the Brogue Kick on Cody, and Orton delivered the RKO to Barrett. Sheamus hit Cody with the Celtic Cross.
– WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross tweeted on Tuesday afternoon that he’s not scheduled to be at Sunday’s Survivor Series pay-per-view:
“I’m not booked at Survivor Series @this time. I am booked in Waco to see OU-Baylor Sat. IF I set up sauce stand @ MSG Sunday, wud u come by?”
– After rocking Boston’s TD Garden on Monday night, The Rock was back on the movie set on Tuesday filming the new GI Joe movie. Rock tweeted a picture today (view here) of himself holding a gun with the caption, “On set. Handlin’ business. #WhatAreYouHandlin?”
The ratings are in for Monday’s 3-Hour “RAW Gets Rocked” edition of WWE RAW.
The 3-hour broadcast drew a 3.25 rating with an average of 4.74 million viewers. The final two hours (RAW’s usual timeslot) did a strong 3.37 rating (4.95 million viewers), up from recent weeks. Here are the hourly numbers:
Hour 1: 4.31 million viewers Hour 2: 5.00 million viewers Hour 3: 4.91 million viewers
Once again, for the 9th time in the past 12 weeks, RAW lost viewership in the final hour.
USA Network executive Ted Linhart tweeted the following about Monday’s RAW ratings:
“Key 18-49 demo 8:00 p.m.=2.1M (best 8:00 p.m. Raw hour since June 09) 9:00 p.m.=2.55M (best since May) 10:00 p.m.=2.6M (best since April)… Full Raw show=2.44M P18-49 & 4.7M total viewers making USA #1 cable ent. net by large margins, attracting more men than some bdcasters.”
– Mick Foley has addressed the Rock Bottom he took from The Rock on Monday’s RAW.
Foley tweeted on Tuesday afternoon:
“Why did (The Rock) layeth the smacketh down on my candy ass? I just wanted a hug. I bet he’s feeling quite a bit of remorse right now,” Foley tweeted.
Following Mick Foley’s return to WWE RAW on Monday, THQ announced that Mrs. Foley’s baby boy will be a downloadable character in the upcoming WWE ’12 video game.
– The New York Post is giving away free tickets to Sunday’s Survivor Series PPV. Click here for more information.
– Devin Cutting sent in word that WWE returns to the Sun Dome in Yakima, Washington on Friday, January 13th, 2012 at 7:30 PM. Tickets go on sale November 26th, 2011 at 10 AM.
– Hulk Hogan was impressed by The Rock’s appearance on Monday’s WWE RAW. Hogan tweeted on Tuesday morning:
“The ROCK looked jacked,in perfect shape,dieted down and in the zone! He looks better than any wrestler/actor I’ve ever seen! total respect HH”
– WWE will tape this week’s NXT and SmackDown shows tonight from Bridgeport, Connecticut.
SEScoops.com will have LIVE SPOILERS of tonight’s SmackDown tapings
The main event of SmackDown will see Randy Orton and Sheamus team up against Intercontinental champion Cody Rhodes and Wade Barrett.
The dark match main event is advertised as Big Show, Orton and Sheamus vs. Henry, Rhodes and Christian with Booker T as the guest referee. Due to Christian’s ankle injury, he almost certainly won’t be participating.
– WWE returns to Fort Lauderdale, FL on Saturday, December 3rd. The top matches for that show will be WWE Champion Alberto Del Rio vs. CM Punk and John Cena vs. The Miz.
– Episode 6 of Tommy Dreamer’s new Youtube show is now online, you can check that out here:
– It was announced to the live crowd at Monday’s RAW that RAW returns to Boston, MA on Monday, March 5th, 2012.
– Several WWE superstars and divas will be appearing at Florida Championship Wrestling’s Turkey Bash event on Wednesday, November 23rd at the Orlando Armory in Orlando, Florida.
Among the stars set to appear: Natalya, Mason Ryan, Tyson Kidd, Jinder Mahal, Ricardo Rodriguez, Epico, Hunico, Derrick Bateman, Percy Watson, Kaitlyn and Brodus Clay.
– Speaking of Brodus Clay, his RAW return was rescheduled once again – and it currently set to take place next week from Hershey, Pennsylvania.
During a backstage segment on RAW, John Laurinaitis was shown talking to Clay on the phone and said he did not want Clay’s debut to be overshadowed by The Rock.
– Today would have been the 59th birthday of wrestling legend Randy Savage. Savage passed away on May 20th of this year after suffering a fatal heart attack while driving.
– On Monday’s RAW, we saw the debut of a new Mark Henry t-shirt. That t-shirt, along with a new “retro” items, are now on sale at the WWE Shop website.
– WWE’s SmackDown brand will be at the Maverik Center in West Valley City, Utah on Super Bowl Sunday, February 5th for a 1pm show. Tickets for that show go on sale this Friday, November 18th.
– After making his WWE television return on RAW several weeks ago when the Muppets were guest hosts, WWE is advertising Hornswoggle for several upcoming SmackDown live events.
Prior to her release from WWE last month, WWE was planning to start a “love interest” storyline with former Diva Maryse and Hornswoggle.
During a recent interview with the UK’s Daily Record newspaper, WWE Superstar Drew McIntyre spoke about Vince McMahon endorsing him on television shortly after his WWE debut.
“It was obviously a positive thing to hear for me because he had never done that before. But it was a negative in that it caused a lot of resentment and jealousy. Imagine if somebody walked into your workplace and the boss stood up rubbing your head and said, ‘Hey everybody, this is the man here’.
But for me, it has motivated me to live up to that and be the best – to get up to that level. Everybody is like a big family here and we are on the road so much that we see each other more than our families. For me, the big target is to get into the Hall of Fame but I’d like to win the heavyweight title first. I’m putting in all the work and the effort to get there. Wrestling is my life and, if I’m not training or in the gym, then I’m watching videos to learn more about it.”
McIntyre says it still blows his mind that he’s made it to the “big leagues” of WWE and hopes to continue proving himself to the world.
WWE Champion Alberto Del Rio (photo credit: Hombre)
As we saw on Monday’s RAW, WWE Champion Alberto Del Rio is featured on the cover of the new issue of Hombre Magazine. Here are some highlights from Del Rio’s interview:
Pressure Living Up To His Family’s Legacy In Wrestling:
“Well yes, because my dad and my uncle aren’t so popular in the United States because they wrestled here 35, 40 years ago. But in Mexico, they’re a big dynasty. They’re the most popular wrestlers in Mexican history. So in Mexico there was a lot of pressure for me. But I’m sure I’m doing a great job now; I’m the first Mexican in history to become the WWE champion, and actually this year I won it all: the Money in the Bank, the Royal Rumble, the WWE title. I can just say that this year’s been perfect for me.”
Having His Own Action Figure:
“I was just waiting for it to happen, it was great. I was excited when they told me…and when I saw the action figure for the first time it was amazing, because it looks like me: the face, the hair, the smile… they captured me all the way in that action figure.”
What He’d Be Doing If He Wasn’t A Wrestler:
“I’m also an architect. I finished my career in Mexico, but that was really for my father. I’m really glad that I finished my school, but when I was younger I dropped school in my second year because I was so crazy to become a wrestler and my dad forced me to go back. He talked to all the promoters in Mexico after I did that and told them, “Don’t give this guy a job because I want him to finish school.” Of course when I was younger I was mad that my father did that, but I’m just grateful that he did because now I have something else. Probably if I wasn’t a wrestler right now I’d be designing buildings or building houses in Mexico.”
His Expectations For The Future:
“Like I said, this year’s been great for me, I won it all, starting with the Royal Rumble then the Money in the Bank. Then I conquered the WWE title. At the beginning of the year we had WrestleMania, which is like the Superbowl of wrestling. In WrestleMania I competed for the World Heavyweight title; unfortunately, I lost against Edge, and actually that was Edge’s last match, So that’s something that’s stuck in my mind, I can’t sleep because I’m thinking about it all the time. It was my biggest night and my biggest failure because we were in front of 80 something thousand people and we sold 2 million pay-per views. My plans are to keep the WWE title as long as I can and if someday I lose this title I will try to go back to the other brand, which is Smackdown, and compete for the World Heavyweight title because that’s something I need to do. I must be the first Mexican wrestler in history to win everything in one year.”
Crossing Over To Movies Like The Rock:
“Definitely. Now I’m totally focused on the WWE and my wrestling career, but that’s something I want do. I’m planning to do the WWE for another five or six years, no more than that, and of course if they invite me to do movies, soap operas, whatever, I’m down for it!”
Thanks to Eric for the following spoilers from tonight’s TNA Impact Wrestling tapings in Orlando. These will air this Thursday, November 17th:
* Bobby Roode opens the show and is interrupted by James Storm. Security stops Storm from rushing the ring but AJ Styles comes in from the crowd and goes at it with Roode until security stops it. Sting comes out and announces Roode vs. Styles in a 30 Minute Iron Man Match at Final Resolution for the belt.
* TV Champion Robbie E. beat Devon.
* James Storm accuses Samoa Joe of beating him up before last week’s main event and they fight backstage.
* Brian Kendrick and Jesse Sorensen beat Austin Aries and Kid Kash. Aries walked out on Kash after they kept arguing, which led to Kash getting pinned. Good X Division tag match.
* Mickie James became the new #1 contender by winning the Knockouts Gauntlet Match. It consisted of Mickie, ODB, Velvet Sky, Angelina Love, Miss Tessmacher, Rosita, Tara, Winter, Madison Rayne and Sarita. Mickie pinned Madison to win.
* Backstage segment with Sting and Garrett Bischoff. In comes Matt Morgan and Crimson. Sting talks about the state of TNA’s tag team division and gives the new team of Morgan and Crimson a shot against Mexican America for tonight.
* Karen Jarrett comes out to call Jeff Hardy to the ring. She runs him down until Jeff Jarrett tries to attack by coming in through the crowd. Hardy fought him off and escaped.
* Crimson and Matt Morgan won the Tag Team Titles by beating Mexican America.
* Garrett Bischoff beat Gunner.
* James Storm wants to know who attacked him last week. AJ Styles comes out and they start fighting. Kazarian comes out to break them up and walks with Styles to the back. Kurt Angle returns and attacks Storm, laying him out with an Angle Slam. Angle reveals that it was him who laid Storm out last week before the main event, to end the show.
– After Monday’s WWE RAW Supershow from went off the air, CM Punk, John Cena & Randy Orton b. Awesome Truth & World Heavyweight Champion Mark Henry. The crowd started chanting “we want Ryder” so Zack Ryder came out. The finish saw Punk hit GTS on R-Truth, Orton hit the RKO on Henry and Ryder hit Rough Ryder onThe Miz.
– As we saw on RAW, WWE is going into overdrive with the Twitter integration. With The Rock talking about he can instantly make topics trend worldwide on the social networking service, “Boots To Asses” and “Cena’s lady parts” were trending during the show.
Shortly before Rock went out live, he tweeted:
“Seconds from electrifying RAW. Time to feed the beast and make 3 words trend worldwide.. #BootsToAsses”
WWE’s shop website is now selling The Rock’s new “Boots To Asses” shirts. (Buy Here)
– Actor Jonah Hill will be the special guest host of next week’s WWE RAW Supershow.
– Friday’s SmackDown will feature Randy Orton and Sheamus vs. Wade Barrett and Intercontinental champion Cody Rhodes
– The man who portrayed John Cena’s Little League coach on Monday’s RAW during the Mick Foley “This Is Your Life” segment was independent wrestler Fabulous Johnny Vegas.
– CM Punk vs. Alberto Del Rio for the WWE Title and Triple H vs. Kevin Nash have been all but confirmed for WWE’s TLC pay-per-view next month. No word yet on the stipulations.
– The final rating isn’t available yet – but it preliminary estimates for the November 11th episode of SmackDown is that the show drew a 1.95 rating. This is down from recent weeks, which were above 2.0.
– Dolph Ziggler will replace Christian at Survivor Series as a member of Team Barrett in their match against Team Orton.
The match is now Wade Barrett, Cody Rhodes, Jack Swagger, Hunico & Dolph Ziggler vs. Randy Orton, Sheamus, Mason Ryan, Kofi Kingston & Sin Cara.
From Monday’s Impact Wrestling tapings – airing Thursday on Spike TV:
– The main event of TNA’s Final Resolution pay-per-view will see TNA World Champion Bobby Roode defend against AJ Styles in a 30-Minute Iron Man Match.
– Matt Morgan and Crimson are the new TNA tag champions after defeating Mexican America.
— KYPost.com has an article up about Andre Davis, the former WWE developmental wrestler who is now on trial for multiple felonious assaults for allegedly failing to tell sex partners that he was HIV positive.
Davis, 29, faces 15 counts of felonious assault for having sex with 12 women between 2009-2011 and failing to inform them he is HIV positive. He faces up to 120 years in prison if convicted on all charges. He rejected a plea deal by prosecutors which would have put him in away for 15-20 years.
Davis, who wrestled as “Andre Hart,” received a contract offer from WWE but had it pulled after he tested positive for HIV during a physical.
— Former WWE Diva Maria Kanelis has announced that she’s training for a return to pro wrestling. She did not specify which promotion she is looking to return to.
– To update the health condition of former WWE star Mark Canterbury (“Henry O. Godwin), he is said to have made a little progress in his recovery over the weekend.
Canterbury drove his car off a cliff last week in West Virginia and had both his spleen and appendix removed on Wednesday. While performing surgery, doctors discovered a tumor in his appendix, resulting in its removal. His leg was broken in three places, and both of his lungs were punctured. He also suffered thirteen broken ribs.
The top priority at this point is to focus on healing his punctured lungs.
– SmackDown superstar Christian left WWE’s recent European tour early due to injury. Upon returning home from the states and visiting doctors, he’s been diagnosed with a severe high ankle sprain.
At this time, it’s unknown how long he’ll be out of action, but he’s been pulled from the “Team Orton vs. Team Barrett” elimination match at Sunday’s Survivor Series pay-per-view.
Wrestling legend Kamala checks in from the hospital and confirms that he did have his leg amputated due to complications related to high blood pressure and diabetes:
Former WWE diva Maryse has done yet another photo shoot with the Snaps Studio group. Here’s a behind-the-scenes description of the photo shoot, courtesy of Snaps:
This photo shoot was a bit more challenging then others we normally do. When you are outside of a studio environment the location can present its own set of complications. The shoot was set in a garage with limited space and the outside temperature was 95 degrees. Sugar melts; but in this case Maryse managed to keep her cool and her curls! Even while posing in a custom leather jacket with the Heritage colors, Maryse posed like a champion.
For more on Maryse, check out her official website at FrenchKissMaryse.com.
To update our previous story, audio has been posted online of John Cena’s interview on Boston’s 98.5 morning radio show. A reader who listened to the broadcast stated that The Rock would be wrestling tonight in the RAW dark match main event – however, we can now confirm that Cena said he’s be teaming with “Punk” – not “Rock.” We apologize for the error.
Here’s the original story:
Tonight’s special 3-hour WWE RAW SuperShow from Boston has been dubbed “RAW Gets Rocked” – and will feature an appearance from The Rock.
The Rock is currently scheduled to wrestle this Sunday at Survivor Series for the first time since WrestleMania XX back in 2004 – but The Rock’s tag team partner this Sunday says The Rock will be wrestling tonight in Boston.
During a radio appearance on Monday morning the Toucher & Rich morning show on Boston’s 98.5 station, John Cena stated that The Rock will be wrestling in the dark match after RAW.
Cena says The Rock will be teaming up with him and Zack Ryder to face World Heavyweight champion Mark Henry, Miz & R-Truth.
– John Cena and CM Punk paid tribute to the late Eddie Guerrero at Saturday’s WWE live event from Minehead, England.
“RIP Eddie Guerrero” was trending on Twitter this weekend and several current and former WWE stars paid tribute to the late superstar.
Guerrero passed away on November 13th, 2005.
– WWE Hall of Famer Superstar Billy Graham was released from a hospital this weekend after battling pneumonia for several days. The former WWWF World Heavyweight Champion has been sent home with some strong antibiotics to continue the healing.
– As noted before, WWE is now selling a “Future Endeavors” t-shirt for John Laurinaitis. Former WWE Diva Cherry wrote the following on Twitter regarding the new shirt:
“I have 2 say that t new “Future Endeavor” tshirt is pretty hurtful for me at least! A lot of dreams were crushed w that statement. Not cool”
