Liv Morgan has found some new creative freedom in her main event storyline involving Dominik Mysterio and she makes clear how grateful she is for Triple H.
The WWE Women’s World Champion was on the “Rusic & Rose on The Big Show” and went into detail about how Triple H, the Creative Content Officer for WWE, has been so amazing to work with behind the curtain. She mentions how surreal it’s been to work with someone she grew up idolizing, but the open-mind the ‘The Cerebral Assassin’ has brought to the game makes it all the more beneficial.
“He’s so helpful with any questions that I have or anything I’m thinking. He’s always open to listen and to help me out. I couldn’t be more grateful for that. I walk into work so excited every single week to see what kind of shenanigans we’re going to get into. It’s a very happy, open, creative atmosphere that I think all of my co-workers appreciate as well. It’s been nothing short of amazing and fun. So, I’m looking forward to showing up to work this Monday and seeing what we’re going to get into, so watch us.”
Fans should be in store for another exciting Monday as WWE RAW will continue to build to the likely battle of Liv Morgan and Rhea Ripley. While neither them or Dominik are slated for matches, one would only imagine that storyline will continue to cultivate as they build towards SummerSlam.
Also on tap for tonight’s WWE RAW is the return of CM Punk. You can check out the full preview to WWE RAW below.
There are plans for Jay White and his Bang Bang Gang of Colten and Austin Gunn, but they might be tabled just for a bit.
According to Fightful Select, Jay White is currently dealing with an injury, but their is a gameplan in place for The Bullet Club Gold story to continue to develop.
There certainly was a ripple in that story this past Saturday on AEW Collision when Austin, Colten and Juice Robinson lost the AEW Trios Tag Titles to Christian Cage, Killswitch and Nick Wayne.
White was initially a big signing for All Elite Wrestling, but his star power got lost in the shuffle for quite awhile before he aligned with The Gunn Club. However, that “lost in the shuffle” feeling was further fueled at AEW Full Gear 2023, when White decisively lost to MJF in the main event of the PPV, making ‘Switchblade’ almost feel like an afterthought.
Despite all this, White has continued to excel in the ring and also behind the microphone as he’s gotten the opportunities to showcase his speaking ability on a consistent occassion. If Tony Khan and AEW want to maxumize the most out of White, the company has the opportunity to do so and even he’s gone for a short period due to the aforementioned injury, it could present a good opportunity to gameplan for the former IWGP World Heavyweight Champion.
If you do miss having Jay White on your television, he recently became new DLC content for the AEW: Fight Forever videogame.
The Pro Wrestling Hall Of Fame welcomed Arn Anderson and other legends into their hallowed halls this weekend.
Anderson was joined by Tony Schiavone, Greg Gagne, Tom Prichard, Tony Garea and Don Frye as the 2024 Inductees in Waterloo, Iowa at The George Tragos-Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame. Anderson happened to be inducted by his son Brock and commented afterwards regarding the weekend with family, friends and fans.
“Thank you all for the incredible outpouring of support both in person and online this weekend! It was truly a great honor to be part of this year’s TNT HOF class among so many distinguished peers in the presence of family and friends.”
There was several other names of note joining the inductees this year. Gerald Brisco, JBL, Baron Von Raschke, and 2024 WWE Hall of Famer Thunderbolt Patterson were all in attendance. Also there was the legendary Dan Gable, who the mueseum is named after.
Don Frye was the recipient of the George Trajos Award, Anderson got the honor of the Frank Gotch Award, Schiavone was given the Gordon Solie Award, Prichard became the inaugural Verne Gagne Trainer Award and Garea now holds the Jack Brisco Spotlight Award.
We at SEScoops would like to congratulate all who were inducted into the Hall of Fame this weekend.
MVP’s time could be finally finished with WWE and so could another that has been with the company for a long time.
According to PWNexus on social media, both MVP and Tamina Snuka join Bobby Lashley in being off of WWE’s internal roster. MVP hasn’t been seen on WWE television in over 100 days as he last accompanied Omos to the ring for the Andre The Giant battle royal on the SmackDown before WrestleMania 40. As for Tamina, she’s been off WWE television for well over a year as she last battled Michin on an episode of WWE Main Event.
MVP may have reacted to the report, as he simply posted a “salute” emoji, possibly implying that he could be bidding farewell to WWE and later had a video noting that he was working out with his son and was in good spirits.
Since returning to WWE, MVP has mostly been in the manageriatl role, but would also wrestle from time to time. Along with Lashley, MVP was an intrical part of the notorious Hurt Business faction and his presence certainly helped to elevate ‘The All Mighty’ for a memorable WWE Championship run.
Tamina has been all over the WWE grid, but her most recent memorable run is arguably her tag partnership with Natalya. Nattie was greatly speculated to be leaving WWE in recent months, but she ultimately inked a new deal with WWE.
Bobby Lashley may soon be on his way out of WWE. The former WWE and TNA World Champion has enjoyed arguably the best run of his career in recent years. Lashley’s WWE contract is expiring soon, according to Fightful, and there’s a good chance he’ll be a free agent in the months ahead.
Lashley, 48, has been wrestling for over 20 years and has not spoken publicly about wanting to retire any time soon. He’s has only wrestled on television five times in 2024, most recently at WrestleMania 40 in the Pride vs. Final Testament Philadelphia Street Fight.
Lashley was scheduled to be part of this year’s King of the Ring tournament, but was forced to withdraw from the tournament due to an unspecified injury.
Reactions to Lashley WWE Contract Situation
Big E calls him a monster, specimen, professional and gentleman.
Lashley had a memorable run as WWE Champion as the main man of The Hurt Business. With MVP at his side, along with Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin, Lashley reached new heights in WWE. During The Hurt Business era, he held the WWE Championship until he lost it to Big E, who cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase in 2022.
Leading up to WrestleMania 40, Lashley had another opportunity to claim World Title gold by qualifying for the Elimination Chamber, but he was eliminated by Drew McIntyre.
Stay tuned to SEScoops to follow Bobby Lashley’s next move.
Shibata may be adding another move to his repertoire and it came courtesy of the legendary Kevin Von Erich.
Marshall and Ross Von Erich reunited with Dustin Rhodes on the latest episode of AEW Collision as the company finds itself deep in the heart of Texas which means their father was not far off. The family was backstage with Rhodes who made clear that he had his generational good brothers’ backs.
They may soon have another ally as it was caught by fan footage during Ring Of Honor tapings that Kevin Von Erich was showing Shibata the proper way to administer the treachorous Claw, a move that has put many a many down at the notorious Sportatorium.
Shibata was clearly excited and honored for the moment as the Japanese star was in the ring with Kevin, the brothers and Dustin.
There could be a good trio feud forthcoming as Chris Jericho and The Learning Tree recently had an angle where they took out Shibata, Samoa Joe and HOOK one by one.
Marshall & Ross Von Erich have always been an ultimate babyface tag team as they cut a great deal of their pro wrestling teeth in Major League Wrestling and Japan. The brothers even became the MLW World Tag Champions by defeating MJF and Richard Holliday years back.
Dustin Rhodes continues to wrestle for AEW as he’s been in a select bit of high-profile matches, even competing in a World Title eliminator match. He also recently made clear he has no plans to retire anytime soon.
Mandy Rose and Mercedes Mone share plenty in common as the two former WWE stars have found their own success outside of the company, but in different manners.
Rose happened to fired from WWE due to her selling provactive content behind a paywall. Mone, on the other hand, walked out of the company due to creative differences.
Speaking with TMZ Sports last month, Mone revealed that she now has creative contral while in AEW, but does work closely with Tony Khan in developng stories and ideas.
As it stands now, Mone is the top heel in the women’s division and has two titles to hold in the TBS Women’s Championship and the NJPW Strong Women’s Championship. She’s now finding herself in a budding feud with the returning Britt Baker, but may have some added allies as she’s formed a friendship with The Elite.
Rose was a recent guest on the “Speaking Alphas” podcast and said that the creative aspect was always a big sticking point for Mone while she was Sasha Banks. She commended her former colleague for getting what she wanted in AEW.
“I remember in WWE, like, if she wasn’t happy with something, it was hard for her to be able to speak out about it because certain circumstances and people really weren’t going to change it. Then it was useless to even speak out cause you’re just wasting your breath. So I think that’s cool that she does have all of that creative control.”
Rose hasn’t competed in the ring since getting fired from WWE at the end of 2022, but she was one of the hottest acts for NXT as the leader for Toxic Attraction alongside Jacy Jayne and Gigi Dolin.
Dalton Castle will not be wrestling at Death Before Dishonor next week and will not be wrestling for quite some time.
Tony Khan announced on social media that Castle will not compete at the upcoming ROH PPV, stating that the former ROH World Champion was injured during his match on AEW Collision against Roderick Strong. What’s even worse is ‘The Peacock’ won’t be strutting in the squared circle for the remainder of 2024.
Some injury news that's forced changes to the plans for this Friday's #ROHDBD Death Before Dishonor@theDALTONcastle was injured in his Saturday Night #AEWCollision bout last week vs @roderickstrong. Sadly Dalton will be out of action for the remainder of 2024. Get well soon DC
Dalton quote-posted Tony Khan, stating he’ll “See y’all baby chickens in 2025.”
Dave Meltzer of The Wrestling Observer claims that Castle was knocked out during his match with Strong after being connected with a flying knee. There was a clear edit in the broadcast of Collision as Castle didn’t kick out, who was out for several minutes after the spot. Up until this unfortunate injury, Castle has been a regular presence on Collision programming.
Currently on the card for Death Before Dishonor is Diamante taking on Leyla Hirsch in a Texas Deathmatch, Billie Starkz defending her ROH Women’s TV Championship against Red Velvet, Athena putting her ROH Women’s World Championship on the line against Queen Aminata and Mark Briscoe putting his ROH World Title up against the aforementioned Strong.
We at SEScoops want to wish Dalton Castle a healthy and speedy recovery.
Charlie Dempsey is a busy man and he may get his newly announced opponent bloodly in Brooklyn for Bloodsport XI.
The pugilist proprietor of Bloodsport Josh Barnett recently revealed that Dempsey would be partaking in the action, and now we know who the NXT star will be facing.
Dempsey is set to face Royce Isaacs in singles action who already has a resume on the event. Barnett provided further details on the forthcoming fight.
“Two mat grapplers set to lock up and go hold for hold, submission to submission, catch to catch. Dempsey proved he belonged in Bloodsport in his last outing, capturing victory in a hard fought match with Matt Makowski. Isaacs has been a staple of Bloodsport and was trading hold for hold with submission wizard Minoru Suzuki last time. Both are on the rise and both want a souvenir to hang on the wall – a limb taken from a defeated opponent. Charlie Dempsey vs Royce Isaacs at Josh Barnett’s: Bloodsport XI.”
Two mat grapplers set to lock up and go hold for hold, submission to submission, catch to catch.
Dempsey proved he belonged in Bloodsport in his last outing, capturing victory in a hard fought match with Matt Makowski.
Royce Isaacs has previous experience both in AEW and the NWA and should compliment the “catch style” of Charlie Dempsey. Isaacs already expressed his excitement on social media, stating, “This is Bloodsport, This is what I live for, Nos vamos!”
The son of William Regal, Dempsey has been a notable force for the No Catch Crew and is already well-traveled. In December of 2023, Dempsey competed under the All-Japan banner representing NXT. Saturday night, the No Catch Crew will challenge for the TNA Tag Team Championships.
During the NXT Heatwave media call, Shawn Michaels praised the ability of Charlie Dempsey and commended him for personality and adaptability.
Dempsey will be joining Shayna Baszler and The Creed Brothers for the GCW event on July 28 in Brooklyn, NY.
AJ Francis knows a GOAT when he sees one and he got to see the ultimate “GOAT” in Tom Brady up close and personal.
Speaking with me in an exclusive conversation, I asked Francis how he thinks former NFL quarterback Tom Brady will do behind the broadcast booth. Brady, who will now be two seasons removed from professional football, will join Fox as a new analyst for NFL Sunday games.
Francis is no stranger to the NFL gridiron, but the current TNA Digital Champion and Canadian International Heavyweight Champion has been on his own steady path to greatness after finding a new lease on wrestling life following his WWE release.
Francis promised that he’d be everywhere since his WWE leave and the former Top Dolla has delivered. He’s now set to face PCO with both of his championships on the line at TNA Slammiversary this Saturday in one of the headline fights. However, while Tom Brady won’t be on commentary for that, Francis firmly believes Brady will be incredible calling NFL games.
“I used to play with Tom on the Patriots. Tom has a really good sense of humor that a lot of people don’t know about because he’s very professional aT what he does, and when it comes to football. his brain is computer-like, his brain breaks stuff down.”
RELATED: TNA Slammiversary 2024 Preview: Match Card, How To Watch
AJ Francis On How Tom Brady Gets Analytical
Francis shared a story that while he was on the Miami Dolphins another teammate of his, Michael Thomas, a defensive back was just signed on the practice squad for the Fins. When they were playing the Patriots, someone got hurt and Thomas was put in as an emergency nickel back during a final two minute drive. It’s the last play of game and Thomas is in the wrong spot, but in a happy circumstance Tom read the defense as he was supposed to. However, that happened to be where Thomas was standing and he ended up intercepting the pass, ending and winning the game for his new team.
“He only got that play because Brady is so good that he knew where the receiver was supposed to be open, and if Michael Thomas was where he was supposed to be, the receiver would have been wide open for a game-winning touchdown. So you know, that’s how good he is.”
Francis gives plenty more thoughts as he talks about feuding with Joe Hendry, his fandom of Bret Hart and his thoughts on the new NCAA College Football 25 video game.
Ric Flair has a preference when it comes to who breaks his longstanding 16-time world champion streak, but would be more than honored if it was John Cena to eclipse him.
Cena made a surprise appearance at WWE Money In The Bank to announce that he’d be retiring in 2025, but not before he makes the most of the whole year. Cena aims to be at Royal Rumble, Elimination Chamber and WrestleMania before he hangs up the jorts and sneakers which could open the door for a lot of big matches for the future Hall Of Fame.
With Cena simply stating that he plans to enter the Royal Rumble match, his intentions are made clear that he has his eyes on gold. Cena is notoriously tied with Ric Flair in the amount of world championship reigns he’s had with 16, but if he were to capture one more he’d be atop of the mountain alone.
Since Cena’s announcement, it makes sense that Flair would be asked about that possibility being back on the table of John usurping him in the record books. In a recent interview with Busted Open Radio, Flair said he’d have no problem with John Cena breaking his record, but in a perfect world it would be his daughter, Charlotte Flair.
However, Flair provided further clarity on his comments, taking to social media on July 17 to make clear he’s very happy for John or for anyone that would break the record.
“There Has Been Way Too Much Attention Brought To This. Let’s Just Set The Record Straight For The Final Time. My First Choice Would Obviously Be The Queen Charlotte Flair. I Think The World Of My Friend John Cena, Who Is An Incredible Athlete & Genuine Person! I Will Be The First Person To Shake His Hand & Congratulate Him If He Breaks My Record As I Would For Anybody Who Would Break It. When That Day Comes, It Will Be An Honor! WOOOOO!”
There Has Been Way Too Much Attention Brought To This. Let’s Just Set The Record Straight For The Final Time. My First Choice Would Obviously Be The Queen @MsCharlotteWWE. I Think The World Of My Friend @JohnCena, Who Is An Incredible Athlete & Genuine Person! I Will Be The First… pic.twitter.com/C1EqPVZO5S
While Charlotte and Cena are both in contention to pass up ‘The Nature Boy’ another name nipping at the heels is Randy Orton with 14 World Championship reigns. Flair also took note of ‘The Viper’ while on Busted Open Radio. It’s been greatly implied that Orton has been eyeing up Cody Rhodes’ gold despite him being brutally attacked by The Bloodline this past Friday on SmackDown.
Is Scott Steiner, ‘Big Poppa Pump’ all natural? The WWE Hall of Famer wants you to do the math on it.
A&E aired the WWE Legends Biography on The Steiner Brothers and during the episode, Scott Steiner discussed the notion that he used steroids. Steiner pushed back, stating that, “You can make all the accusations you want. I’ve never failed a drug test.” Steiner said he made a concerted effort to make the transformation from Scottie to ‘Freakzilla’ in 1998.
“Take that information and do what you want with it. When I made the transition from Steiner Brothers to Big Poppa Pump, I wanted to get in the best shape I possibly could. A lot of strict diet. Once you are leaner, you’re naturally going to look bigger.”
During a previous interview with Slam Sports, Steiner noted that he was asked to take a drug test back in 2003. Steiner says that he told WWE to take him and Triple H in a limosuine and the two can take a test together. “They never asked again,” Steiner said laughing.
Both Rick and Scott Steiner were inducted into the WWE Hall Of Fame back in 2022. Steiner was greatly known for his main event run in the late days of WCW, but did have a program with Triple H when he eventually made his way over into the WWE.
Rikishi saw a lot of money for WWE if they made Jey Uso the men’s Money In The Bank winner, but that briefcase went to Drew McIntyre.
Speaking on his own podcast. Rikishi gave his reaction to Jey not being the one to pull down the briefcase over a week ago in Toronto. The father of Jey and Jimmy admitted that it “kind of hit a nerve” with him. Rikishi understood not giving him the briefcase because of his “bloodline” background, but just knows there’s money to be made with “Main Event” Jey Uso.
“I’m gonna go back to the numbers. The numbers don’t lie with Yeet. The merchandise that the Yeet Man has done so much for the company. The Yeet Man, he doesn’t have a bad track record. The Yeet Man is not a liability. The Yeet Man shows up to work and does what he does.”
Despite not winning the match, WWE clearly does have full confidence in the star power of Uso. Last week on WWE RAW Uso defeated Chad Gable in the opening match before he high-tailed it out of the ring once The Wyatt Sicks appeared. Jey Uso is undoubtedly a top three babyface on RAW alongside the injured CM Punk and Seth Rollins.
Even though there are no concrete plans for Jey as WWE heads towards SummerSlam, he will likely be involved in something major, whether that’s a crossover with The Bloodline or potentially something with the aforementioned Wyatt Sicks.
Finn Balor wanted to make sure Dominik Mysterio flourished as a heel in The Judgment Day, but Dom already had a hold on being “Dirty.”
Speaking on the “What’s The Story?” podcast, Balor mentioned how much Mysterio took to being a heel. Finn recalled Rey Mysterio asking him and Damian Priest to take care of Dom during his heel turn. Balor respected Rey so much that he was going to make sure Dom did his best as a bad guy, but when Balor approached Dom about help on his first heel promo, he was ready to call it in the ring.
“He said, ‘No, no. I’m good.’ I said, ‘You know what you’re going to say?’ He said, ‘No, I’ll figure it out when I’m out there.And here’s me like naively thinking that me, Damian and Rhea are supposed to be helping Dominik, but in reality it’s Dominik helping us get heat and making us more of a believable heel unit.”
Finn said how at the time, he, Damian and Rhea were having an uphill battle at being heels, but Dominik really made them “guilty by association” and his involvement really helped to establish the faction as a “bad guy” act.
Now as it stands, The Judgment Day are really the fulcrum that all of WWE RAW pivots on. Damian Priest is the current WWE World Heavyweight Champion, Finn Balor and JD McDonagh are the World Tag Champs while Dom and Rhea Ripley are involved in the major Liv Morgan storyline in build for SummerSlam.
Please credit “What’s The Story?” and h/t to SEScoops for the transcription.
Rob Van Dam and John Cena had one of the most memorable matches in pro wrestling history and RVD is confident he and Cena could repeat it before John hangs up the jorts.
Speaking on an upcoming episode of his 1 Of A Kind With RVD, Rob Van Dam was asked his thoughts on John Cena announcing his 2025 retirement tour for WWE. Van Dam is still very active in the squared circle and believes the two could recreate the magic they did back at ECW One Night Stand 2006.
“I Hope they bring me in for a rematch with Cena. That would be super cool. I don’t know if they know, but I know I could have that same match, Absolutely.”
Rob Van Dam has shown he hasn’t missed a beat in the several matches he’s had in AEW and even over WrestleMania 40 weekend, competed against Speedball Mike Bailey in a memorable singles match that featured Jerry Lynn as the special guest referee.
Due to injury, RVD was unable to compete at the first WWE version of One Night Stand in 2005, but fate would have it that Van Dam would battle Cena for the WWE Championship a year later. RVD arguably had one of, if not the greatest Money In The Bank cash-in, by calling his shot ahead of time to challenge Cena at the Hammerstein Ballroom.
Van Dam was asked what it was like grappling up with Cena that night and he commended John for his pure strength, but also how he handled the hostile crowd in the Hammerstein Ballroom.
“He was able to pull the strings with the crowdvand he knew going out there that he was going to be up against a crowd that that hated him. A really vocal, physical, most opinionated crowd ever, but he was ready for it, and he handled it great, and I enjoyed working with him. And also he was very, very snug.”
“What a rush” may have been running through Donald Trump’s mind after an assasination attempt was made on the WWE Hall of Famer on July 13.
The forthcoming Republican Presidential nominee was mere inches from death as he was doing a stump speech in Butler, PA. Trump’s ear got grazed by a bullet before secret service swarmed him to make sure he was safe.
However, once matters were settled and the shooter was taken out, Trump made certain to stand himself up and give a fist pump to the people in the crowd. The moment certainly created a lot of memorable photographs for the press and felllow WWE Hall Of Famer JBL made note that Trump must have been taking notes from a certain legendary tag team in Road Warrior Hawk and Road Warrior Animal.
Although JBL was posting in jest, it’s heaviily believed that Trump has adopted a lot of his speaking style and “promo skills” from the world of pro wrestling. There’s the urban legend that during his WWE Hall of Fame induction in 2013, Trump was really impressed with the promo work of Zeb Coulter, better known as Dutch Mantell.
Trump did issue a statement following the assasination attempt, thanking the police and the secret service for their work, but also sending his condolences to the victims of the shooter as one rally attendee was killed and two others were in critical condition.
After great speculation that Natalya could be heading to AEW once her contract expired, it appears as if the ‘BOAT’ will be sticking around WWE.
PWInisder first reported that Natalya re-signed with WWE and Fightful Select later confirmed that news. Her new deal has reportedly been in place since late June but contract negotiations seemed to begin back in May. The new contract is reportedly a multi-year deal.
Natalya had interest from companies outside of WWE and it’s understandably so considering she has been very hands-on with wrestlers from all promotions. A lot of different names have gotten some extra training at her Dungeon 2.0.
An added point of note regarding the Natalya news was that Tyson Kidd had interest from outside companies as an agent too. WWE was reportedly in the right to be concerned about losing Natalya and the company wanted to make certain they locked her down. The deal happened to get done before she hit the free agent market.
Natalya is one of the longest-tenured names on the WWE roster, being over 16 years with the company. Within the last year, she’s been a big part of helping talent in NXT and also has been major in getting rising talent over, recently competing against Lyra Valkyria on an episode of WWE RAW. There was a good deal of speculation that she could be available to head to AEW and compete in the Owen Hart tournament, but that obviously didn’t happen.
This recap was originally written on MLW.com by SEScoops’ Dominic DeAngelo.
Major League Wrestling is back in the notorious Coliseum in St. Petersburg, FL and its a stacked card and a main event with high stakes between Matt Riddle and Sami Callihan. We kick it off with a unique clash that features the opening round of The Opera Cup.
MATCH 1 Opera Cup Round 1 Atlantis Jr. vs. Shigeo Okumura
It’s a youngster vs. a veteran in this first round fight and Okumura was ready to unleash some tough love on Atlantis Jr. Okumura slowed the pace down to keep Atlantis underwater. However, the innovative generational talent got Okumura off-his-game with an airplane blue thunder bomb. Although Okumura kicked out Atlantis quickly followed up with a frog splash for the 1-2-3.
WINNER & ADVANCING: Atlantis Jr.
Post-match, both fighters paid one another respect. Can Atlantis go the distance and become the first CMLL star to capture The Opera Cup?
Alex Kane nor does Mr. Thomas plan for that not to happen, but they actually have to go through one another in their own opening round match. If you thought their match between could cause a rift with each other, think again. Both Kane and Thomas know it’s called the BOMAYE “FIGHT” Club!
MATCH 2 Opera Cup Round 1 Tom Lawlor vs. Jake Crist
Lawlor is a former Opera Cup winner and Crist was well-aware of that. The Ohio-born boy wasted no time in taking it to Filthy Tom, not even letting him get to the ring before starting the fight. The two used all elements of the ring in attempt to keep one another down, but it actually took Lawlor a superplex turned to Kimura Lock to cause Crist to pass out.
WINNER & ADVANCING: Tom Lawlor
Post-fight, Lawlor got on the mic to talk trash to Tampa, but up on the screen popped Paul Walter Hauser who issued a major challenge to Lawlor – an MMA cage fight! MSL banned from the building! Lawlor accepted!
It’s Suzuki’s first match as a CONTRA soldier and joining the ranks may have even furthered his sadism. AKIRA, however, was game for the battle. Some intense shots were traded as AKIRA found it hard to shake Suzuki, but the Death Fighter kept bringing it. However, a Gotch Piledriver was good enough for Suzuki to ultimately get the 1-2-3.
WINNER: Minoru Suzuki
Post-fight, there was no respect shown as Minoru and Ikuro Kwon went on to further attack AKIRA devastatingly laying him out with more diabolical ideas in mind. Minoru was going for another Gotch when MLW World Champ Satoshi Kojima ran down to clear the evil out!
A concerned Cesar Duran saunters down to the ring to demand to see who Salina de la Renta’s baby daddy is after she revealed she has a bun in the oven. Well Salina showed up, but she was not without her mind games to her estranged daddy. Before making the reveal, she teased that the father was Bad Dude Tito and EVEN MSL but it was a surprise that made Duran literally sick: one of his own AZTECA henchman. The mysterious man pulled off the mask, revealing a Rudolph Valentino face with an even stronger libido as he and Salina started making out! Duran couldn’t take the discuss and fainted in the ring!
MATCH 4 Three Stages Of Destruction (First Blood + Street Fight + Medical Evacuation) Mads Krule Krugger vs. Matthew Justice (Bill Alfonso)
Matthew Justice was not only ready to roll for this intense battle, but so was Fonzie who certainly has had his issues with CONTRA. Do both bring it to Krugger in the First Blood round of the fight as plenty of plunder is used. Justice gets Krugger off his feet with the indirect help of his own CONTRA soldier as he leapt off the back of a downed man to spear Krugger! Fonzie then tossed Justice a chair with barbed wire as he cracked Krugger HARD with it. Then Justice had some Mr. PPV plans as Fonzie held the chair for Justice to leap all the way across the ring for a Van TERMINATOR!! A few more cracks with the chair had the ref call for the bell noting that Krugger has poured enough crimson!
WINNER of STAGE 1: Matthew Justice
Next stage was a street fight and Justice continued to keep at his business of violence. He even showed his strength by hoisting the monster Mads up for a Death Valley Driver onto a chair! A massive ladder gets set up and Justice has to fight off a CONTRA soldier, allowing Mads to climb up and superplex Matt through a table! Krugger does drape an arm over Matt for the 1-2-3!
WINNER of STAGE 2: Mads Krugger
Someone will now be leaving in an ambulance. The two begin to brawl on the entryway as another ladder is presented. Justice gets Krugger on a table for his own plans of retribution, but the table collapses under the weight of Krugger. That doesn’t stop Justice who still decides to splash on top of Mads! Justice has a gameplan in mind as he gets a dolly. Both he and Fonzie get Krugger on it and push the massive man to the back! Fonzie hydrates Matt as they get Krugger to the ambulance, but when he opens the door to the back Ikuro Kwon is there to spray mist into Matt’s eyes! The fix was in! Kwon and Krugger gang up on Matt, set up a table, light it aflame and powerbomb Justice through it! Krugger tosses Matt in the ambulance and the match is over.
WINNER: Mads Krule Krugger
MATCH 5 MLW World Featherweight Championship Gigi Ray vs. Janai Kai (c)
The Kick Demon Kai aimed to keep the momentum moving for CONTRA against Gigi Ray who definitely showed up ready for battle. Ray received plenty of kicks in this fight, but she had her own share of offense in this fight. However, Kai caught Ray with a roundhouse thrust in the corner and it was good to keep Ray down for the pinfall.
WINNER and STILL MLW World Featherweight Champion: Janai Kai
MATCH 6 Opera Cup Round 1 Bobby Fish vs. KENTA
Fish is ready to unleash “beautiful violence” onto KENTA who is making his Major League debut tonight. KENTA had an off-the-beaten path gameplan against Bobby as he was very disrespectful to the squared circle veteran, basically treating him like a young boy in the ring. Both men delivered in this battle though and Fish got his fair share of strikes in, but KENTA did take the mouthpiece out of Bobby with a GTS and it was good enough to advance in the Opera Cup.
WINNER & ADVANCING: KENTA
MAIN EVENT No Ropes, No Hold Barred Sami Callihan vs. Matt Riddle
The stakes are high in this brutal battle as if Riddle loses, he forgoes his future World Title shot to Callihan, the right he won at Battle Riot VI.
Tampa was all behind The Super King Of Bros and Callihan was less than pleased, getting on the mic to say he’s going to beat Riddle in less than five second. That didn’t happen as Riddle rocked him with a foot to the face. Despite that, Callihan had some nasty plans in mind.
Sami pulled out all types of violent ideas including paper cuts, lemon zest and staple gun tags. He got Riddle right in the foot with one but before that, wrapped Matt’s hair around a barbed wire bat! A broken beer bottle was introduced and its remaining chards became a factor.
The ring was ripped up, boards were broken and literal nuts and bolts became a bed of brutalitiy. Despite all that, Riddle persevered and caused Callihan to submit when he crossfaced Sami with loose ring ropes!
Both The Rock and Logan Paul have their respective ties to politics, particularly in 2024, and a hypothetical was pitched for the two stars to be on the presidential ticket.
On “The Good Guys” podcast, co-hosts Josh Peck and Ben Soffer pitched the notion of ‘The People’s Champion’ becoming ‘The People’s President.’ Not only that, but what if ‘The Final Boss’ appointed WWE United States Champion Logan Paul as his running mate?
“Do you think if The Rock ran with Logan Paul as his running mate, they would win?
“I think that if The Rock ran with Helen Keller as his running mate, he would win.
“If The Rock ran with anybody, he would win. I think Logan would hurt his chances.
“That’s how much of a shoe in The Rock is by himself. Nobody’s ever asked The Rock for his political affiliations. He is separate of party.
“He is just the quintessential perfect human. He’s perfect.”
Someone who doesn’t think The Rock is perfect is Cody Rhodes as the two stars had quite the confrontation during WrestleMania 40. However, whenever it comes to politics The Rock has decided not to take a side this election year. Back in 2020, The Rock ended up endorsing Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, but in an interview earlier this year, expressed his disappointment in doing so. A lot of people have been clamoring for the Final Boss to run for the highest office in the land — and he hasn’t ruled it out.
The connections between wrestling and politics are endless. Logan Paul just had 45th US President and WWE Hall of Famer Donald Trump on his Impaulsive podcast. Meanwhile, former WWE President Linda McMahon was recently named a top donor to Trump.
WWE is not wasting any time incorporating Stephanie Vaquer into their universe.
All this week, Vaquer left CMLL and was swiftly welcomed by Shawn Michaels into the WWE fold on social media. Now to close out the work week, Vaquer will be put to work in the ring. The company announced that their newest signee will represent the brand south of the border on Saturday and Sunday.
“See Stephanie Vaquer LIVE at #WWEMonterrey and #WWEMexicoCity this weekend!”
Vaquer is getting thrown right into the WWE deep end as also advertised for those live events is Rey Mysterio, Damian Priest, Jey Uso, Drew McIntyre and Cody Rhodes.
It’s not very often that WWE completely puts their chips behind a new signee right off the bat, but names like Vaquer and Jade Cargill have been their few exceptions and for good reasons.
Both Cargill and Vacquer have their AEW ties, but in different fashions. Cargill was an established talent on their television while Vacquer is fresh off a very memorable match against Mercedes Mone at AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door.
Speaking in a recent interview Vaquer mentioned how her previous experience with WWE in 2018 mentioned how it helped her out “a lot and it was an experience that I will take with me forever.”
CJ Perry is all done with All Elite Wrestling. The former Lana in WWE had a (very small) cup of coffee in AEW and her time with the company is already over. Speaking with USA Today at the 2024 ESPY Awards, Perry was direct and to-the-point regarding her status.
“[My] time with them has just finished.”
She was quietly released in April 2024, according to Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful. Perry first appeared in AEW as Miro’s wife, but the former WWE power couple announced their separation shortly afterward.
During her time in WWE, Lana was popular as the heel valet to Miro’s Rusev, but creative changes drastically altered the course for both stars. Lana later took on a role similar to Maxxine Dupri’s current portrayal as a valet turned wrestler.
Before joining AEW, Perry was vocal about the company’s misuse of her husband, Miro. AEW arguably mishandled the debut of “The Bulgarian Brute,” presenting him as an affable babyface rather than capitalizing on his “monster heel” persona.
Both Perry and Miro have been absent from AEW programming for months. Miro has shared on social media that he has been back in his home country of Bulgaria. While Perry was still with AEW, photos surfaced of her attending several events with the current AEW World Champion, Swerve Strickland.
Perry joins several former WWE women now under the AEW banner, including Saraya, Ruby Soho, Mercedes Mone, and Toni Storm. Among these, Saraya and Storm are arguably the company’s top two women’s acts, though Saraya has been miscast. Soho has also faced challenges, though she is currently away from programming due to her pregnancy.
Damon Kemp, aka Bobby Steveson, is one of the recent NXT exits and a new report states that there is a current concern amongst the roster at what their future may hold for them.
According to Dave Meltzer in the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the exit of Steveson has prompted nervousness amongst the young stars in the Capitol Wrestling Center. While there were some recent exits with NXT ties including Steveson’s brother Gable and Dijak, WWE saying goodbye to Bobby hits a different tone. The former Damon Kemp was overall considered a good worker and had no issues backstage. To many, his exit could be indicative to the roster that they could also be on the chop block and nobody, aside from the prominent names on brand, is safe.
Gable Steveson was let go by WWE this spring due to his lack of development in the ring as well as attitude problems. However, his brother was a featured talent on the show, being apart of Diamond Mind and later aligning with Charlie Dempsey and the No Quarter Catch Crew.
Gable may be the most celebrated Olympic wrestler since Kurt Angle and the 1996 Olympics. Angle was high and above Steveson in the pro wrestling ring, both from a workrate standpoint and a major charisma standpoint.
Bobby Steveson may have plenty of cache in the pro wrestling world despite his WWE leave. The seasoned athlete is only 26 years old and could have opportunities in AEW or TNA.
Pittsburgh is a city steeped in wrestling tradition and the “City Of Bridges” is continuing a new one for the pro wrestling world.
“Brawl Under The Bridge” is entering it’s ninth year in the Homestead neighborhood of Pittsburgh and the event name is as advertised. The event, which takes place on July 13, occurs under the Homestead Grays Bridge. The vibe of the fight is more of a communal event for the whole area with beer stands and sandwiches from the Steel City.
The Keystone State Wrestling Alliance have aligned with comic book artist Frank Cundiff, who always had an interest in putting on a pro wrestling event and he came up with a fresh idea with strong Pittsburgh ties.
“I worked on comics before I started the event, and I was familiar with the area because I was also the sound guy for Oyster Fest that was held at the Homestead-Grays bridge.”
The event will be headlined by ‘The Face Of Pittsburgh’ Lou Martin as he’ll defend his KSWA Championship against Freek E. Doyle. Also, former ECW and WCW talent T-Rantula will be in action for the Brawl Under The Bridge title. Also on the card is Shane Starr taking on Shawn Blanchard in a Steel City strap match.
Martin and KSWA have been running for years and the champ knows how special “Brawl Under The Bridge” is for the promotion and for the area.
“The venue for the event under the historic Homestead Grays Bridge is pretty unique for an event,” Martin said. “The bridge just adds to the overall aura of the event as a whole.”
In the past, Brawl Under The Bridge featured notable wrestling names like Nikolai Volkoff, Doink The Clown and more.
Will Ospreay has an ecletic taste in music, but his wrestling fandom runs as deep as his affection for his favorite songs.
Speaking with Kerrang, ‘The Billy Goat’ listed 10 different songs that have changed his life and you better believe that one of them was a classic pro wrestling entrance song.
In addition to ABBA, Oasis, Dolly Parton & Kenny Rogers, Will Ospreay listed Jim Johnston’s “I Won’t Do What You Tell Me” as the song that reminded him of his “first love” and that love so happened to be the one true sport. If you’re not familiar with the song titles “I Won’t Do What You Tell Me” is Stone Cold Steve Austin’s theme. Ospreay gives his reasoning as to why he chose Austin’s infamous song that begins with breaking glass.
“From the first time I heard that glass breaking as a kid, and saw the audience go crazy as this guy just ran to the ring and beat everybody up, I was like, ‘Oh, wow, wrestling is cool!’ I don’t actually remember when the first time was that I heard that track specifically, but it was during the Austin vs. McMahon era. I’ll always remember the time in 2001 when [the old] WWF bought WCW [with the ensuing Invasion storyline] and Austin being a big part of that.”
Austin’s theme was previously noted to be inspired by Rage Against The Machine’s “Bulls On Parade” and it’s arguably one of the greatest wrestling entrance songs of all time. In credit to Ospreay, he has himself a pretty catchy tune in AEW that cultivates that soccer chant mentality.
In the interview, Ospreay said that Oasis’ “Live Forever” is a tune that gets him pumped up for the wrestling ring. Funny enough, he got inspired by watching Oasis perform at Wembley, something he did in 2023 and something he’s planning to do in 2024.
WWE is boosting up it’s commentary bullpen in a big way with famed ESPN announcer Joe Tessitore. In a press release sent in to SEScoops, the company touted him as, “one of the most versatile and veteran voices in sports television.
He join the company as a play-by-play broadcaster beginning this summer working alongside analysts Wade Barrett and Corey Graves. Michael Cole and Pat McAfee will remain teamed up.
Tessitore has been a lifelong wrestling fan. He’s been gearing up for this opportunity and expresses the utmost respect for the WWE Superstars and broadcasters he’ll be working alongside.
“It’s an honor to be a part of WWE. The recent success and trajectory are undeniable,” said Tessitore. “Being there at WrestleMania XL, one could feel it – from Cody, Seth, Roman and The Rock, to creative and production, these are some of the very best storytellers in TV. Corey and Wade are absolute stars and it is my privilege to join their team. Pat and Cole are just magical together and Cole is the greatest to ever sit in that chair. As a lifelong viewer, I’m humbled to join this team and to serve our fans.”
Triple H on Joe Tessitore Joining WWE
WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque had this to say in the press release:
“Whether it’s a world title fight that’s got the globe buzzing or a college football rivalry that’s grabbed the nation’s attention, Joe’s voice provides that big event feel each time he is behind the microphone.
We’re excited for Joe to join legendary WWE broadcaster Michael Cole and our esteemed announce team, bringing his signature energy and meticulous preparation to our WWE telecasts each week.”
Over the past few months, Graves has steered the SmackDown ship as the lead play-by-play man with Barrett being on color commentary. Graves didn’t miss a beat in the new role as his usual broadcast partner Michael Cole joined up with Pat McAfee on WWE RAW.
Tessitore has a notorious commentary past in the fight game. He’s been the go-to voice for boxing on ESPN, led their Monday Night Football coverage and called College Football Playoff games.
If you peel back the relationship layers, Tessitore signing with WWE makes plenty of sense has he has a long history with WWE CEO Nick Khan. Khan actually used to be the super agent for Tessitore and now the two will be under the WWE banner together.
Experienced sports commentary names outside of WWE haven’t always been successful when they sit behind the pro wrestling commentary table. Mike Adamle and Adnan Virk both assumed play-by-play roles on WWE RAW and unfortunately, both didn’t last long.