Last night on Impact Wrestling, Taya Valkyrie returned after a short hiatus from the promotion. Fittingly, last night’s episode emanated from Mexico City, where Taya has been building a large following since debuting there in 2012.
Knockouts Champion, Tessa Blanchard, had just finished off Valkyrie’s old rival, Faby Apache, when she cut a promo saying she had gone through the entire Knockouts division. Valkyrie appeared on the big screen wearing a “Perros Del Mal” T-shirt, a nod to her longtime faction.
Valkyrie explained that Blanchard couldn’t say she’d gone through the entire division when she hadn’t yet beaten her. She then challenged the champ to a title match at Bound For Glory.
Tessa Blanchard (c) vs Taya Valkyrie – Bound For Glory
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxmRms-qybw
Newlyweds, Johnny Impact and Taya Valkyrie, both have title shots at Impact’s October 14th PPV from New York City. Johnny will take on Austin Aries for the Impact World Championship.
In 2018, the Knockouts division has arguably been the most talked about in the promotion. Blanchard’s performances on Impact Wrestling shows are often the most talked about matches. Valkyrie will be the tough test for Blanchard, who has already successfully defended her title against Su Yung, Gisele Shaw, and now Faby Apache. Blanchard defeated Allie, Rebel, Kiera Hogan, and Alisha Edwards in single’s action before winning the Knockouts title.
Another Canadian wrestler has received a 5-year ban from entering the United States. A similar ban was given to Montreal’s “Speedball” Mike Bailey in 2016. According to a report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Nicole Matthews will be unable to cross the American border for 5 years.
Canadian Wrestlers Crossing American Border
In the past, wrestlers have received similar punishments when they have been turned away from the border and then tried to cross again within a 24-hour period. Usually, this has to do with the wrestler not having a work VISA and/or trying to cross the border multiple times.
It is not clear what led to Matthews’ ban, however. We reached out to Matthews for comment. She offered up the following on Twitter:
Unfortunately, things are about to get a whole lot weirder at the border soon as well. Canada will legalize recreational marijuana on October 17th, 2018 and immigration lawyers are warning Canadians this will drastically increase the number of people turned away when trying to cross into the United States.
Nicole Matthews
31-year-old Nicole Matthews is a 12-year pro out of British Columbia. She’s a former SHIMMER Champion and 2x SHIMMER Tag-Team Champion along with Portia Perez. Matthews was ranked #32 in the 2017 Pro Wrestling Illustrated Top 50 Female single’s wrestler’s category. She’d ranked in at #16 the previous two years.
While some fans from the late-90s may never be able to forgive Arquette for winning the WCW World Championship, Arquette is chasing his pro-wrestling dream all over again at 47-years-old.
Arquette announced his return on the Wendy Show back in March. He explained his history in wrestling and then said he wanted to bring back respect to his name.
“I was promoting a movie I did called Ready to Rumble and it just so happened that I won the championship,” Arquette said. “(Fans) blamed me for ruining WCW, it’s no longer around and maybe I did have something to do with it.”
“For 18 years, I’ve been trolled on the internet,” he continued. “And I just want to bring some respect back to my name!”
Impact World Champion, Austin Aries, has taken a shine to Arquette it seems. Perhaps Arquette will even be the next name after Killer Kross and Moose to join his stable.
Why? I’m keen on @DavidArquette. Passion for pro wrestling, well connected, first hand experience during a dominant NWO faction era, former World Champion, heat magnet, and he doesn’t care what you think of him. Fits right in with what I’ve begun assembling in @IMPACTWRESTLING… https://t.co/eWTeG07Grd
“Why? I’m keen on @DavidArquette,” Aries said in a response to a fan on Twitter. Passion for pro wrestling, well connected, first-hand experience during a dominant NWO faction era, former World Champion, heat magnet, and he doesn’t care what you think of him. Fits right in with what I’ve begun assembling in @IMPACTWRESTLING…”
Arquette can be seen on Championship Wrestling From Hollywood on the FITE App. Most reviews of his work thus far have been positive, noting he’s not exactly a star-studded athlete but he sells well and understands wrestling. Arquette has also earned praise from within the industry for just being a likable guy. In his previous run with WCW, Arquette famously donated all of his earnings to the families of Brian Pillman and Owen Hart.
Randy Orton attacked Tye Dillinger last night on Smackdown. Dillinger was wrestling Shinsuke Nakamura when Randy Orton made a run-in and attacked Dillinger.
When WWE correspondents caught up with Orton later in the show, they asked him why he targetted Dillinger. Orton simply responded that he is not fond of Tye’s “Perfect 10” gimmick.
Dillinger’s response to Orton was just a succinct as Orton’s reasoning for attacking him:
Prior to attacking Dillinger on Smackdown Tuesday night, Orton had been involved in a feud with Jeff Hardy. The rivalry led to Orton pulling a screwdriver through Hardy’s stretched earlobes during Hell in a Cell.
Orton’s rivalry with Jeff Hardy also began after Orton attacked Hardy while he was wrestling Shinsuke Nakamura. In fact, he would attack Hardy multiple times during his matches against Nakamura. It’s possible that Nakamura and Orton could be revealed as having a spoken or unspoken alliance. Neither Orton nor Shinsuke Nakamura has a match scheduled for Super Show-Down in Australia on October 6th.
As for Dillinger, his match against Nakamura on Tuesday was his first match on Smackdown in nearly two months. Prior to Tuesday, his last match was a loss to Samoa Joe on a Smackdown from July.
Rusev, Sheamus, and Lana all participated recently in the WWE 2K19 roster reveal. During their live stream of the roster reveal, Sheamus took a crack at Total Divas. He said something to the effect of “we’re not watching that s**t!”
Evidently, Rusev and Lana asked Sheamus to housesit for them recently. Sheamus posted the following to his Instagram followers, insinuating he’s changed his mind about the show.
Former WWE Champion, Sheamus, is currently part of the Bar with Cesaro. The team recently celebrated their 2-year anniversary, having wrestled their first match together on September 16th, 2016. Originally, the team was a mismatched pair, as fans would cheer for Cesaro and boo Sheamus. Over time, however, they just became a regular team.
Now known as the Bar, Cesaro and Sheamus are 4x former Raw Tag Team Champions. They have yet to win the belts since moving to Smackdown, however. They will have their chance to earn gold for the first time on the blue brand in Australia at Super Show-Down, however. The Bar will take on current champion, the New Day.
Impact Wrestling confirmed today what had only been alluded to previously: the company will film 3 nights worth of television tapings from Las Vegas in November. The venue will be Ring of Honor’s old Las Vegas venue, Sam’s Town Casino. The tapings are scheduled from November 11th, 2018 to November 13th, 2018.
Fans can purchase front row tickets for all 3 nights for just $75. Previously, Impact has been running just 2 nights of tapings per month.
Impact Wrestling 2018 Schedule
The promotion owned by Anthem Sports and Entertainment has made international expansion a key part of their year. Anthem owns the Fight Network which is located in Toronto but works internationally. The company was just able to strike a deal to have the Fight Network aired in the UK.
Impact is said to be the second-highest ratings earner for the Fight Network, which is what led to Anthem being keen on purchasing the promotion.
So far in 2018, Impact has run shows in the UK, Mexico, the United States, and Canada. They have also worked with promotions in Australia as well. The Global Wrestling Network, the Anthem-owned streaming services, features many of the promotions Impact has partnered with so far this year. World Series Wrestling, Destiny, Smash, RISE, and others are all featured on the Global Wrestling Network.
Impact Wrestling presents their second show from their Mexico City tapings tonight. After tonight, just two more episodes will air before Bound for Glory in New York City.
Impact Wrestling Preview 9/27
Knockouts Championship Tessa Blanchard (c) vs Faby Apache
Last week on Impact Wrestling, AAA Reina De Reinas Champion, Faby Apache, defeated Alisha Edwards. After the match, she challenged Knockouts Champion, Tessa Blanchard, to a title match. Blanchard and Faby were involved in an altercation in the locker room earlier when Blanchard was acting entitled regarding where she could put her bag down.
Blanchard will be looking for her 3rd straight title defense. She’s successfully defended the belt against Su Yung on Impact from Toronto and against Gisele Shaw at a One Night Only show from Mississauga.
Johnny Impact & Eddie Edwards vs Moose & Killer Kross
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWuVrcCCU80
This match has been announced as the main event tonight despite the Knockouts title match also scheduled. Johnny Impact’s first episode of Survivor aired last night. He’ll be looking to get revenge on Aries’ two run-in buddies ahead of their title clash at Bound For Glory.
Eddie Edwards will face Moose at Bound For Glory but tonight he’ll have a chance to get his hands on his former ally as well.
Su Yung & The Undead Maid Of Honor vs Kiera Hogan & Allie
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgK0KF5Abts
Allie and Kiera Hogan have made it their mission to stop Su Yung from locking anyone else inside a coffin. They will get their chance to take out Yung and her Undead Maid Of Honor tonight in tag-team action.
Tessa Blanchard has her eyes on Allie, however, and feels the former Knockouts Champion is just angling to get a crack at her belt. We’ll see if Blanchard gets involved this week. She has a history with both sides of this tag match, after all.
Scarlett Bordeaux Announcement
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_bJnxRv2GE
Scarlett Bordeaux has been giving advice to several wrestlers as of late. Her advice to KM and Fallah Bah helped the team get on the same page and pick up a win. It didn’t help Fallah Bah much in his Impact World Championship match 2 weeks ago, however.
The Smoke Show is set to make an announcement tonight. Bordeaux’s popularity in Mexico has been rising rapidly as of late so it will be interesting to see the reaction she gets. Her highlights on YouTube from AAA are hitting high numbers.
Brian Cage vs Jake Crist
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4apQDLeV-Ik&t=13s
Brian Cage will team up with the Lucha Brothers at Bound For Glory to take on Sami Callihan and oVe. Tonight, Cage gets a chance to get his hands on one of Callihan’s minions when he takes on Jake Crist.
The Desi Hit Squad vs LAX
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4JPgHrVUZU&t=14s
It was revealed last week that the Desi Hit Squad have a non-title match against LAX tonight. A win in a non-title match would likely move Great Gama Singh’s team into position for a title match. LAX will have to look over their shoulders as well since King and the OGZ will likely have something in store for them now that we are less than 3 weeks away from their Concrete Jungle Deathmatch at Bound For Glory.
Last week, reports were that WWE officials met with Scott D’Amore and Ed Nordholm from Impact Wrestling. According to a recent report from the Wrestling Observer, it was WWE who reached out to Impact for the meeting and not the other way around. Previous reports had stated it was Impact doing the pitching but that is now being refuted.
“It was WWE that requested the meeting, that Impact pitching as we reported was not correct,” Meltzer wrote. He would continue to say that reports of Impact being up for sale are not true.
Impact Wrestling Financial Situation Moving Forward
“It was said that no deal of any note came out of the meeting and that while Impact has been a huge money loser for most of its existence, the bleeding money of 2017 has also been turned around this year and it’s a much more efficient business.”
While it appears not much of note came out of the meeting, the two sides appear to have a far more agreeable working relationship than ever before.
“As far as the meeting goes, really the only thing being said is that the days when the two sides were enemies are supposed to be over.”
Don Callis was not said to be in attendance during the meetings, however.
Impact Wrestling airs their second show from the Mexico City tapings later tonight.
In 4 days it will be a full calendar year since Neville (FKA Pac) will have competed in a professional wrestling match. That was an October 1st 205 Live house show match against Enzo Amore. Neville won the match via DQ but failed to regain his lost WWE Cruiserweight Championship.
Then Neville left WWE despite still being under contract. WWE didn’t want to set the precedent that guys could just walk out and be granted a release, so he remained on the sidelines.
According to WWE, Neville has now been granted his release and is free to wrestle wherever, whenever, and against whoever he pleases. Despite this, Neville has gone “off the grid” and is not responding to bookers, wrestlers, or many within the wrestling business who have been attempting to contact him.
Where Is Neville/Pac?
Will Ospreay was hoping he would be able to wrestle Neville at WrestleKingdom this year but his interest in the match appears to be one-sided. His situation was addressed in the most recent Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
“(Neville) was in talks with some promotions but told them he wasn’t ready to start yet, citing legal issues,” Dave Meltzer wrote. “He’s then completely gone off the grid and hasn’t responded to promoters as best we can tell. Will Ospreay wanted to do a singles match with him at Wrestle Kingdom but we have no idea if he’s up for that or anything in wrestling right now.”
It had previously been reported that the “legal issues” Neville had cited was his contract status with WWE, which the promotion denies is the case.
Current IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Champions, Matt & Nick Jackson, will not be appearing on as many NJPW tours moving forward. The Young Bucks are now in a position where it makes sense for them to only participate in the bigger NJPW shows.
According to a recent report from the Wrestling Observer, the Young Bucks will not participate in the World Tag League this November despite being IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Champions. The last time the heavyweight tag champs didn’t participate in the tournament was 2009 when the titles were held by Team 3-D.
The Young Bucks NJPW Schedule To Reduce
“In the spot they are in now, it really doesn’t make sense both for ROH which they are key players on every show, as well as time with family, and even non-wrestling autograph show bookings which they can get when ROH doesn’t have weekend shows,” wrote Dave Meltzer.
The Young Bucks will continue to play a key role on big shows, however, especially when the promotion holds shows in the United States. It sounds as though the “Road to ___” shows will rarely feature the Bucks in the future.
At Fighting Spirit Unleashed this Sunday, the Bucks will defend their IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championships against Tama Tonga and Tanga Loa, the Guerrillas of Destiny. At Death Before Dishonor tomorrow, the Bucks will team with Cody, Marty Scurll, and Hangman Page to take on CHAOS.
Carmella has spent much of her time on the main roster as a heel. She won 2 Money in the Bank matches and the Smackdown Women’s Championship while playing the role. Recently, however, “Mella” has been teaming with R-Truth and has seemingly made an abrupt babyface turn. She spoke with TV Insider recently about her new pairing and everything else that has gone on in her career these last few years.
“I want to keep growing and learning,” Carmella said. “And whatever opportunity I’m given right now like for R-Truth, I will be the best rapping manager for Truth. I want to do whatever I can do to be the best at whatever I’m doing.”
She also mentioned she was thrilled to be ranked an 80 in WWE 2K19 this year.
“First off can we talk about how I’m an 80 in the game. That’s so cool. I thought maybe I’d get 47 or something.”
Carmella and R-Truth: The Fabulous Truth
R-Truth and Carmella form the team “The Fabulous Truth” in this year’s Mixed Match Challenge. They dropped their opening round-robin match to last year’s winners, Asuka and Miz.
Carmella also commented on the strides made in WWE’s women’s divisions in the last few years.
“It’s crazy to think in a few months we’ve gone from, ‘Oh my gosh, the women are the main event of SmackDown Live. Can you believe it?’ And now the women are the main event. It’s not even a big deal. It has become the norm. I think that is rightfully so. It’s about time.”
The full interview with TV Insider can be read here.
The Mae Young Classic completes the 1st round tonight on the WWE Network. Matches 13-16 are scheduled to air following tonight’s episodes of NXT and 205 Live.
Mae Young Classic Preview 9/26
Io Shirai vs Xia Brookside
There is a lot of hype around both of these two. Shirai’s hype train was only derailed last year when WWE didn’t sign her following a medical. She was said to have been dealing with neck problems at the time. Shirai seems ready to go now, however, and WWE seems happy to have her.
At only 19, Brookside is likely the youngest person in WWE’s developmental system. Her step-father is NXT trainer and UK legend, Robbie Brookside, however, which likely means she’s been training long before her official debut as a wrestler in 2015 (when she was still only 15 years old).
Rachel Evers vs Hiroyo Matsumoto
Paul Ellering’s daughter, Rachel Evers, is a graduate of the Storm Wrestling Academy in Calgary. While not signed to WWE, Evers has wrestled for the promotion frequently in the last few years. She has also competed professionally in power-lifting.
A 13-year pro, Matsumoto made a name for herself in Japan’s Stardom promotion. PWI ranked her 25th in the female single’s wrestlers in 2017.
Jessie Elaban vs Taynara Conti
23-year-old Taynara Conti is the first female Brazilian wrestler in WWE history. She is well-versed in Judo and Jiu-Jitsu and currently assigned to the WWE Performance Center. Conti has appeared several times on NXT, usually in a losing effort. She has also competed in artistic gymnastics.
Elaban is also signed to WWE developmental but hasn’t been as visible as Conti on WWE programming. She’s wrestled on the NXT live event schedule but tonight will be her first match on the WWE Network. Elaban is said to be a quirky Superstar who describes her style as a mix of clumsy and goofy.
Isla Dawn vs Nicole Matthews
The Scottish Isla Dawn (Stacy Coates above) also took part in the WWE UK tapings recently and will likely become a big part of that brand. She’s still competing elsewhere, however, so it doesn’t look as though WWE has locked her up yet.
Canadian Nicole Matthews is a veteran of the North American independent scene and was an alternate in the tournament last year. She is a veteran of promotions such as Shimmer, RISE, Defy, and PWA in British Columbia.
NXT’s newest “big thing”, Matt Riddle, has let fans know he’s interested in a potential match with Cesaro. He made the comments on ESPN West Palm’s The Main Event recently.
“In my opinion, if I was going to pick main roster guys, I’ve always had a hunch out for Cesaro,” Riddle said. “I just feel like if we were able to just go at it, make it a fight, I think it would be pretty sensational.”
Matt Riddle On Potential Opponents In WWE
Riddle also mentioned several names on the NXT roster he would also like to face.
“They’ve got so many talented individuals,” Riddle said. “I’ve worked with the majority of them. In NXT, I have probably worked with every top guy from Ricochet to Roderick (Strong), to Kyle (O’Reilly), Adam Cole. The only guys I haven’t really worked with are Velveteen Dream and Lars [Sullivan], some of the other guys that are homegrown.”
Riddle also mentioned the unique shorts he wore during his NXT debut recently. According to Riddle, the small and colorful shorts were actually his wife’s. His normal ring gear has sponsors logos and Riddle didn’t think WWE or NXT would approve.
“I have other gear I wore while I was on the indies and I have a couple sponsors on there and I didn’t want to wear the sponsors in matches,” Riddle continued. “Especially if WWE didn’t sign off on it and NXT didn’t sign off. I didn’t think it was fair for me to wear sponsored clothing while performing under their umbrella without their permission. I just decided to wear little shorts, which were actually my wife’s shorts.
Tonight’s episode of NXT will feature something WWE 2K19 is unable to boast: Tommaso Ciampa. The NXT Champion will be in single’s action tonight against Heavy Machinery’s, Otis Dozovic.
205 Live will feature two matches, including Noam Dar vs Lio Rush, which had originally been scheduled for last week.
NXT Preview 9/26
Full Sail University
Tommaso Ciampa vs Otiz Dozovic
Otis Dozovic took part in William Regal’s investigation into the attack on Aleister Black recently. In addition to admitting he broke the toilet in the Performance Center, Dozovic mentioned Ciampa’s name as a possible attacker. This resulted in the champ confronting Dozovic backstage and this match tonight.
William Regal To Address Aleister Black Attack Investigation?
William Regal has been questioning everyone on the NXT roster regarding the Aleister Black situation. WWE is hinting that NXT’s General Manager could address the situation tonight.
Street Profits vs the Mighty
The Street Profits got the win the last time these two teams met but recently the Mighty cost their rival team a match against the Forgotten Sons. Neither of these two teams will move up the rankings until they are able to best the other one.
Kairi Sane In Single’s Action
The Women’s NXT Champion will also be in action tonight as Kairi Sane will step into the ring. Her opponent has yet to be announced meaning it’s likely local talent.
Former NXT Women’s Champion, Shayna Baszler, will likely be watching this match close tonight.
Lars Sullivan In Single’s Action
Sullivan is 2-0 since returning from a broken jaw suffered at the hands of Aleister Black. He’ll be looking to make it 3 straight as he steps into the ring for single’s action tonight. No opponent has been named for him thus far, however.
205 Live Preview 9/26
Pepsi Center
Denver, CO
Lio Rush vs Noam Dar
This match was originally supposed to take place last week but Lio Rush informed Drake Maverick he was not able to fulfill his 205 Live duties because of his responsibilities to Bobby Lashley. Maverick informed Rush he will fulfill his responsibilities to the brand.
Dar and Rush have been going back and forth on social media promoting tonight’s match.
Mustafa Ali vs Hideo Itami
Mustafa Ali has been dealing with injuries suffered from his August clash with Hideo Itami. He returned from injury too soon, landing him back on the shelf as a result. Drake Maverick has been hesitant to put Ali back in action following this. Tonight, however, Maverick has given Ali what he wants most: a shot at revenge on the man who put him out of action, Hideo Itami.
Kazuchika Okada will team with his CHAOS stablemate, Tomohiro Ishii, on Sunday night at Fighting Spirit Unleashed in Long Beach. They will take on the team of IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Kenny Omega, and his Golden Lovers’ teammate, Kota Ibushi.
Just days ahead of NJPW’s return to California, Okada spoke with NJPW1972.com about the promotion’s international expansion.
Kazuchika Okada On NJPW’s International Expansion
Okada was in the main event of NJPW’s first Long Beach show on July 1st, 2017.
“I felt like I had to show the people what New Japan Pro Wrestling was all about,” Okada said of his match that night. At the same time, I didn’t want to get caught up in catering to the American audience. I really wrestled that match as if it was in a Japanese venue.”
Okada wrestled Cody that night, who he offered up some heavy praise for.
“Like I expected, he was great,” Okada said of Cody. “I don’t know how much came from his dad and how much he developed by himself, but he’s obviously very charismatic, and more than that, he isn’t excessively flashy. Some fans see guys who do flashy moves and might think ‘this guys a great wrestler,’ or ‘that guys tough’, but without big showy moves, he’s able to get the fans to know he’s really tough. He’s so fundamentally sound, too. A really good wrestler.”
Despite dropping his recent match for the G1 Briefcase to Hiroshi Tanahashi, Okada stresses he is still the “face of NJPW.”
“I am the face of NJPW. I’m going to take that responsibility seriously, and I’m going to tear it up in the Walter Pyramid.”
Dustin “Goldust” Runnells made his professional wrestling debut for Championship Wrestling From Florida in 1988. He would debut on WWE programming in 1990 during his father’s feud with Ted Dibiase.
According to the nearly 30-year professional, it’s almost time to hang up his boots. Goldust was a guest recently on the Sports Guys Talking Wrestling program and insinuated his career is just about done.
“I’ve wrestled just about everybody there is to wrestle, done just about every character reincarnation that I can come up with,” the Bizarre One said. “What’s next? I’m at the end of my career here and about to be 50 in April. What else is there to do? I don’t know.”
He also mentioned he had double-knee surgery recently as well.
Goldust At All In 2?
Previously, Goldust mentioned the WWE office didn’t want him to attend his younger brother’s All In event. Cody previously made the comments on the same Sports Guys Talking Wrestling podcast. He also said he hopes to be at All In 2.
“It reminded me of when Cody and I won the tag team titles because it was a real thing. The storyline was so real with dad and the family against The Shield.”
“It had all the elements you needed to draw a billion dollar house and he laid it out there and he hit a home run with it. I can not wait until “All In 2.” You can bet your ass I will be at that one.”
Shaul Guerrero has signed with the Women of Wrestling promotion. The former WWE developmental Superstar and eldest daughter of Vickie and Eddie Guerrero will serve as the promotion’s new ring announcer. WOW has signed a broadcast deal with AXS and will begin airing shows in early 2019 on the channel.
Earlier this month, WOW announced the signing of Tessa Blanchard, who will also serve as a trainer for the other wrestlers.
“Guerrero’s duties will begin on October 10TH at the WOW – Women Of Wrestling live event in Los Angeles,” a WOW press release reads. Guerrero will take over the ring announcing duties from GLOW creator David McLane, who is part owner of the project along with Jeanie Buss, owner of the LA Lakers.
David McLane Discovers Shaul Guerrero At Lucha Underground Tapings
McLane was with the cast of GLOW at some of the Lucha Underground tapings earlier this year.
“While attending this past summer’s Lucha Underground tapings, I was standing near the back of the arena and heard a powerful, dynamic voice in the ring,” said GLOW creator David McLane. “I had no clue at the time that it was Shaul Guerrero. I just knew whoever it was needed to be the new ring announcer of WOW.”
Nobody has held a WWE tag-team championship title for more combined days than Kofi Kingston. The 954 combined days Kingston has spent as a member of a WWE Tag-Team Championship team just surpassed the 953 days that Billy Gunn spent as tag champ throughout his career.
The number 3 ranked wrestler in this category is the WWE Hall of Famer, Mr. Fuji. Between reigns with Pat Tanaka and Mr. Saito, Fuji held a tag title for a combined 932 days.
Kofi Kingston – Most Days Spent As Tag Champion In WWE History
Kofi is one of the most decorated Superstars in WWE history to never win a world championship. He’s a 4x former Intercontinental Champion, 3x United States Champion, and an 8x WWE Tag-Team Champion. He also won a Slammy in 2012 for his Royal Rumble spot that year. Kingston received the award in the prestigious “Tell Me I Didn’t Just See That” category.
In addition to holding the tag titles with Xavier Woods and Big E of New Day, Kingston has had several other partners during his WWE tenure. CM Punk, Evan Bourne, and R-Truth have all won tag-team gold along with Kingston in the past.
Coming up at Super Show-Down in Australia, Kingston, and his New Day teammates will defend their titles against the Bar. Big E is scheduled to face Sheamus tonight on Smackdown.
Smackdown tonight will be in the Pepsi Center in Denver, the same city and venue which hosted Raw last night.
Smackdown Preview 9/25
AJ Styles and Samoa Joe Contract Signing
Smackdown General Manager, Paige, has announced that Joe and Styles will sign their contract for Super Show-Down tonight. The match will be contested under No DQ, no count-out, and must-be-a-winner rules.
Big E vs Sheamus
New Day and the Bar will face each other at Super Show-Down on October 6th. Big E and Sheamus will go one-on-one tonight as each team looks to build momentum before they head to Australia. Last week, Cesaro defeated Kofi Kingston so the Bar will be looking to keep their winning streak going tonight.
Rusev Wants Answers From Aiden English
Last week on Smackdown, Aiden English turned on Rusev and cost the Bulgarian his chance at Shinsuke Nakamura’s United States Championship.
This week, Rusev wants answers from his former tag-team partner.
Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair Segment
While nothing has been announced for the Becky Lynch/Charlotte Flair rivalry for tonight, there will likely be some type of segment to preview their match at Super Show-Down. Last week, Charlotte came out during Lynch’s Championship celebration and let the champ know she’ll be receiving her rematch in Australia.
Daniel Bryan and Miz Segment
Nothing has been announced for tonight between Daniel Bryan and the Miz but the stakes have risen quite a bit for their clash in Australia. The winner of the single’s match between Bryan and Miz will earn a WWE Championship.
Asuka/Naomi and Iiconics Segment
WWE hasn’t announced anything for tonight but Naomi and Asuka are scheduled to team up at Super Show-Down against the Iiconics. Asuka defeated Billie Kay last week but the week prior Billie was victorious over Naomi. Royce and Naomi went 1-1 against each other in matches dating back to the August 21st Smackdown.
Last night on Monday Night Raw, WWE teased that Dean Ambrose might turn on the Shield. He didn’t, however, and the show ended with all three members standing in the ring together.
According to a recent report on Wrestling Observer Radio, however, when the Shield originally reformed last year, the plan had been for Ambrose to turn on the other two members.
Original Plan For The Shield Reunion Revealed
“Originally, Dean Ambrose, before he tore his triceps and had surgery, he was going to turn heel on the Shield,” said Dave Meltzer. “That was the plan and Dean Ambrose was going to wrestle Seth Rollins at WrestleMania this year.”
How long the Shield was going to remain reunited before Ambrose turned on the others is not clear.
“I had always assumed when Roman Reigns won the title, that Dean Ambrose was going to turn just because it was always the plan, I figured they might as well.”
As it stands now, the Shield is scheduled to face Braun Strowman, Dolph Ziggler, and Drew McIntyre in a 6-man tag team match scheduled for Super Show-Down in Australia on October 6th. Reigns will then look to defend his newly won Universal Championship against Braun Strowman and Brock Lesnar at Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia in November.
Ring of Honor was back on television last night. The main event for last night’s episode featured Jonathan Gresham teaming up with Jay Lethal to take on Silas Young and Bully Ray.
ROH Results 9/24
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkyXc6AhpPA
The Best Friends defeated the Boys
It was a big week for the Best Friends. They went 1-1 against the Killer Elite Squad on the Destruction tour for NJPW and they defeated the Boys to start things off on ROH TV this week.
The Boys got some offense in but this was generally a showcase match for Chuckie T and Beretta. They finished it off with simultaneous Dudebuster and Awful Waffle.
The Best Friends will be part of Team CHAOS as they take on Bullet Club in a 10-man tag at Death Before Dishonor.
Kenny King defeated Adam “Hangman” Page
Kenny King is now 2-0 in recent matches against Bullet Club. He also defeated Marty Scurll recently. King won when he reversed a pinning combination and grabbed ahold of Page’s trunks in the process.
King will take on Jushin Liger Friday night at Death Before Dishonor.
Jeff Cobb is the Top Prospect
Jeff Cobb prevented any matches in the Top Prospect tournament from happening again. He took out both competitors this week and then cut a promo saying he was the top prospect.
Cobb was recently booked for the NJPW Fighting Spirit Unleashed show Sunday for NJPW.
Bully Ray & Silas Young defeated Jonathan Gresham & Jay Lethal
Bully Ray and Silas Young spent the whole match refusing to tag each other and generally being terrible to one another. The commentary team speculated the more the two bully each other, the more respect they earn from one another.
A low blow by Bully with the referee out of position allowed Young to hit Gresham with his finisher and pick up the win.
Death Before Dishonor Lineup Friday, September 28th, 2018
Cody, Marty Scurll, Adam Page, and the Young Bucks vs Kazuchika Okada, Chuck T, Beretta, Rocky Romero, and Tomohiro Ishii
ROH World Tag Team Championships
The Briscoes (c) vs Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian
ROH TV Championship
Punishment Martinez (c) vs Chris Sabin
Kenny King vs Jushin Liger
WOH Championship
Sumie Saka (c) vs Tenille Dashwood
ROH World Championship
Jay Lethal (c) vs Will Ospreay
Tables Match
Flip Gordon and Colt Cabana vs Bully Ray and Silas Young
WWE has signed 29-year-old former Knockouts Champion, Mia Yim. There had been speculation WWE had signed the 2-time Mae Young Classic competitor last week but a recent report has confirmed the news.
Yim appeared in a video filmed at the WWE Performance Center and then posted from NXT’s social media accounts.
According to a recent report from PW Insider, Yim reported officially started with the company on September 16th. She was victorious in her first-round Mae Young Classic match against Allysin Kay (Sienna) which aired last week. She was eliminated in the second round last year by her roommate, Shayna Baszler.
Mia Yim Career Highlights
Despite still only being 29, Yim is a 9-year pro. From 2013-2017 she was a featured performer for TNA Wrestling. Along with Marti Belle, Yim was part of the Dollhouse faction for part of her run with the company.
Yim won the Knockouts Championship on March 17th, 2016 in a 3-way match featuring Gail Kim (who was champion at the time) and Madison Rayne. The victory ended a nearly 9-month reign as champ for Kim.
Additionally, Yim is a former Shine Champion, Shine Tag-Team Champion (with Leva Bates). She was ranked 16th on the 2017 PWI top-50 female rankings. She was ranked 6th the year prior.
Yim is also a former Ironman Heavymetalweight Champion in Japan’s comedic DDT promotion, having defeated Joey Ryan for the honors.
AJ Mendez-Brooks (AJ Lee) recently sent out a congratulatory message to her husband, CM Punk. The former WWE Champion just wrapped filming on his first major feature film. The movie is titled “The Girl on the Third Floor.”
The horror film is set to be released sometime next year.
CM Punk: The Girl On The Third Floor
“At the heart of the film is Don Koch (CM Punk), a man who is failing as a husband,” a description for the film reads. “For years he has skated by on charm and charisma, until it nearly landed him in jail. He now views fixing up an old house as a chance to make up for past mistakes. Meanwhile, his wife, Liz Koch, is concerned about the renovation timeline as they have a baby on the way. With all this pressure it’s no wonder Don responds to the flirtations of an attractive stranger. As Don tears the house apart, it begins to tear him apart as well, revealing the rot behind the drywall.”
The film is written and directed by Travis Stevens. He also worked on the films We Are Still Here, Teenage Cocktail, Cheap Thrills, and Mohawk.
Sean Waltman has just announced his ex-wife and mother of his 2 children has passed away. Waltman announced the news recently to his followers on Twitter.
“I’m numb right now over the death of Terry, my wife of many years & the mother of my children. She lost her battle with Mental Illness & Addiction. She had 2 other children(7 &12)that my kids had to break the news to a short time ago. My heart hurts for them so bad right now.”
Responses To Sean Waltman Losing His Wife
Numerous wrestling personalities have reached out to Waltman to offer condolences. Konnan offered up the following message:
Stay strong for your kids they are gonna need it..Wish I could take away your pain my bro…If you feel like talking, please don't hesitate to call me…
“Hey Sean, I’m so sorry for your loss,” Tweeted Rocky Romero. “My heart goes out to you and your family. Take care my brother.”
The 46-year-old Waltman hasn’t wrestled since July but played a big part in the Starrcast festivities over All In weekend. Waltman performed a live version of his popular podcast, 12360 with X-Pac.
The NWA has posted the full Tim Storm vs Peter Avalon match from Championship Wrestling From Arizona. Following the match, the nearly 70-year old promotion also made an announcement that Jim Cornette will be the color commentator on October 21st when the NWA holds their anniversary show at the Nashville Fairgrounds.
Joe Galli also stated that he will be the play-by-play announcer for the NWA 70th Anniversary show coming up next month. Tony Schiavone will also be calling the main event of the show.
Galli noted he’s been the play-by-play broadcaster for Championship Wrestling From Hollywood for the last 3 years.
Storm recently attacked Championship Wrestling From Arizona matchmaker, Peter Avalon, leading to the match posted below:
NWA 70th Anniversary Special
October 21st, 2018
Nashville Fairgrounds
Nashville, TN
NWA World Heavyweight Championship
Cody (or Willie Mack) (c) vs Nick Aldis
“It’s such an honor to be leading this historic brand into its next chapter,” Corgan said. “The enduring legacy of the National Wrestling Alliance — the men who forged it and the champions who defended it — illuminate our path in 2018. This event celebrates our first full year shepherding this brand while honoring the everlasting milestones, legends and champions of the NWA.”
Cody will defend the NWA World Heavyweight Championship against Willie Mack on September 29th in Las Vegas as part of the ROH tapings.
The return @nwa Title match with @RealNickAldis vs. @CodyRhodes was what enticed me back to broadcasting–it'll be a real stemwinder! (We're in Nashville so I must use a Lance Russell-ism!) https://t.co/qwHZyTWuFG
