Last night WWE presented their biggest event of the summer. As is often the case when the promotion is in the New York area, plenty of celebrities were backstage. Additionally, several wrestling personalities were backstage as well.
Who Was Backstage At Summerslam?
Shane McMahon hasn’t been seen on camera for several months but was backstage last night. Ric Flair was also on hand to witness his daughter, Charlotte Flair, win back the Smackdown Women’s Championship.
Bayley and Sasha Banks were both backstage at Summerslam too. The other 2 members of the 4 Horsewomen of NXT were involved in the Smackdown Women’s Championship match.
David Arquette was everywhere around Summerslam this year and it’s assumed he was backstage at some point as well.
Teddy Hart was backstage. He wrestled for Joey Janela’s Lost in New York on Friday and was likely wrestling somewhere nearby on Saturday or Sunday as well. Additionally, it is being said that both Carmella and Charlotte’s ring-gear yesterday, which were both pink, were worn in honor of Jim Neidhart.
Comedian Jon Stewart was at Summerslam but did not continue his rivalry with Seth Rollins.
PW Insider is also reporting that Stokely Hathaway, a manager from EVOLVE, was also backstage.
Former UFC Middleweight Champion, Chris Weidman, was in attendance. He tweeted out the following:
New Japan Pro Wrestling have announced their lineups for September. The company will begin the month by building up their 3 big Destruction shows before they land back in Long Beach for Fighting Spirit Unleashed on the 30th.
A 4-man single-elimination tournament for Hiromu Takahashi’s IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship has also been scheduled.
Samoa Joe defeated WWE Champion AJ Styles last night via disqualification.
Joe has been taunting Styles for abandoning his family in order to be WWE Champion. This reached a boiling point last night when Styles’ family were watching ringside. Joe grabbed the mic mid-match and proclaimed to Styles’ daughter that if “Daddy” wasn’t coming home that he would be her new daddy.
This set Styles into a rage and he would later be disqualified for using a steel chair on Joe. Styles then left the arena along with his wife and daughter.
WWE cameras caught up to Styles as he was leaving and captured his apology to his family on video.
AJ Styles’ WWE Championship Reign
Last week, AJ Styles made history when he became the longest-running champion in SmackDown history. Styles’ WWE Championship reign began on November 7th, 2017 when he defeated Jinder Mahal in Manchester, England. Since then, he has defended the title 9 times on WWE programming:
Styles defeated Jinder Mahal (Clash of Champions 2017)
AJ Styles defeated Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn – 2-on-1 Handicap match (Royal Rumble 2018)
Styles defeated Baron Corbin, Dolph Ziggler, John Cena, Kevin Owens, and Sami Zayn – 6-Pack Challenge (Fastlane 2018)
AJ Styles defeated Shinsuke Nakamura (WrestleMania 34)
Double Count Out against Shinsuke Nakamura (Greatest Royal Rumble)
No Contest against Shinsuke Nakamura (Backlash 2018)
defeated Shinsuke Nakamura – Last Man Standing (Money in the Bank 2018)
Finn Balor once again wore the Demon face and body paint last night at Summerslam. He then defeated Constable Corbin in just 1 minute and 35 seconds.
The last time the WWE Universe had seen the Demon was at the 2017 TLC pay-per-view. The October 22nd, 2017 show was changed last-minute due to several Superstars falling ill. Balor’s poorly-reviewed rivalry with Bray Wyatt centering on each character’s alter-ego was scrapped when Wyatt was pulled from the show.
Instead, Balor’s Demon defeated AJ Styles that night. Last night at Summerslam, the Demon made a surprise return:
Finn Balor’s Demon
Balor discussed why the Demon character is used so rarely in an interview last year.
“The Demon character is something I draw on occasion,” Balor told the Australian media. “It’s something that requires a lot of focus to tap into and really requires the right situation for me to sort of draw on that darker side of my personality.”
“Since I’ve been back on Raw, the opportunity hasn’t really presented itself to tap into that side,” he continued. “I’ve had such a good time being back I haven’t wanted to change. I quite like walking out in my sweet new Balor club jacket. popping my collar and being Mr. Cool.”
Summerslam was the 3rd time Balor and Corbin have faced each other in single’s action on WWE programming. Balor leads the all-time series 2 wins to 1.
Neither Luke Gallows nor Nia Jax competed at SummerSlam. Nia Jax lost the Raw Women’s Championship at Money in the Bank earlier this year to Alexa Bliss, who was cashing in the MITB briefcase she won previously that night. Jax was about to be locked in an armbar by Ronda Rousey at the time Bliss cashed in the briefcase.
Jax was given a rematch against Bliss at Extreme Rules but again lost to her longtime rival. She had previously defeated Bliss at both WrestleMania 34 and Backlash 2018.
As for Luke Gallows, the Club failed to defeat the Bludgeon Brother for the Smackdown tag-team championships on two successive occasions this year. The last time Gallows and Anderson wrestled was in a dark match on Tuesday night. They teamed with their fellow club member, AJ Styles, and defeated Randy Orton, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Samoa Joe after 205 Live.
Shinsuke Nakamura’s status with WWE has been the topic of some debate recently. There has been some speculation he could leave WWE and return to NJPW when his contract is up next year. Nakamura signed a 3-year deal with WWE in 2016. He was interviewed by Sky Sports this week and addressed his future.
“Who said that?” Nakamura asked in regards to rumors his WWE run would be a short one. “Moving to the US is a big decision for my family. Long term thing.”
Nakamura insists he’s had no discussion with NJPW., despite the rumors. “New Japan didn’t contact me,” Nakamura said in regards to his former employer.
Nakamura was also asked if he plans to re-sign with WWE in 2019. He indicated it was probable but would depend on the money offered.
Nakamura vs Jeff Hardy
Nakamura will take on Jeff Hardy for the US title tomorrow night at Summerslam. It is the first time Nakamura has held a title on the main roster. Previously, Nakamura has lost multiple WWE Championship matches to Jinder Mahal and AJ Styles.
Nakamura won the Royal Rumble earlier this year but then failed in multiple attempts to take the title from AJ Styles. This resulted in Nakamura’s heel turn and subsequent forgetting of the English language. Nakamura has claimed he is unable to speak the language when asked why he low-blowed Styles so often during their feud.
Paul Heyman surprised the audience of Cheap Heat Live last night in New York’s Sony Hall theatre. The advocate for Brock Lesnar took time out of a busy Summerslam weekend to speak on topics ranging from WWE’s current product to naming a modern-day version of the Dangerous Alliance.
Perhaps the most notable question Heyman answered, however, was in regards to who he feels is the next big rebel in WWE today. The audience member cited guys like Shawn Michaels, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and CM Punk as rebels who launched WWE into very successful runs for the company.
Paul Heyman knows a thing or two about rebels, counter-culture and the X-factors that lead a talent to break away from the pack. Heyman said, “Seth Rollins. Seth Rollins because he continuously comes up with moves that are politically incorrect and they have to tell him to stop doing them but they become so popular that they end up saying to him ‘alright go ahead, we’ll deal with it, go do it.'”
Heyman continued to describe Rollins’ rebellious contributions to WWE. “It’s because he’s innovative and he rebels against the system that tries to be politically correct and he continues to be politically incorrect and when he came up with the saying of ‘Burn it Down,’ he was being honest about what he thought would be the constraints of what was being put on him, that he’s going to break through that and do things his way and innovate a style that you can only see in a Seth Rollins match.”
Paul Heyman on Working For Vince McMahon
David Shoemaker then asked Heyman how he feels about working for Vince McMahon. Heyman didn’t address the answer directly but rather corrected Shoemaker regarding who he works for.
“I really don’t consider myself in the Vince McMahon business, I don’t consider myself in the WWE business,” Heyman said. “I pretty much now have found a place in life where I am in the Brock Lesnar business.”
Paul Heyman’s New Dangerous Alliance
Heyman was also asked about the lack of factions in wrestling today. He was asked to put together a Dangerous Alliance 2.0. Heyman responded that there is already a modern version of the stable, however.
“Would you like me to tell you who’s in it?” Heyman asked. “Two members: 1) Brock Lesnar 2) Paul Heyman. That is as dangerous an alliance as you’re ever going to get in WWE.”
Heyman on running a wrestling promotion & more
The first question of the evening centered around the WWE Universal Champion’s torso tattoo. Heyman took a bit of time to berate the question and the person asking it before he gave his answer though.
“Obviously (he’s) trying to insinuate that the tattoo looks like a penis,” Heyman said. “Because, of course, that’s what would attract *points out question-asker* a p***y.”
Heyman was asked about what it’s like to run a wrestling promotion. He responded with a quote he heard from UFC President, Dana White.
“I think actually the person who said it best was Dana White,” Heyman said. “That when he wakes in the morning and his feet hit the ground he knows he’s already 100-miles deep in s**t to deal with.”
Someone in the audience asked Heyman about a member of New Day going solo and winning a single’s title. Heyman used the Shield as an analogy.
“Why would you break up that group?” Heyman asked. “Why would you take a group like that and split them up? It would be like splitting up the Shie… nevermind on that.”
After some murmuring from the crowd, Heyman continued, however. “Hey, when Roman Reigns was in the Shield you guys thought he was the coolest..” the crowd disagreed with this. “Yes, you did! Yes, you did!”
Heyman continued to say New Day were the most entertaining team aside from the Usos, which got some cheers. If he was a member of New Day and collecting their merchandise cheques, Heyman said, they’d have to sue him to break that group up.
As time ran out during the live show, the Hall of Pain music hit and Mark Henry entered the stage. This spelled the end for Paul Heyman’s eventful surprise appearance in the Sony Hall Theatre.
Just hours before the Lucha Bros were to compete on a card in Daly City California last night, the promotion was forced to tell fans neither would make it to the show.
Fenix and Pentagon Jr. were to team up and take on Reno Scum at the event. Fans were told via Twitter that Pentagon was injured and Fenix was having travel difficulties.
It is with deep regret to inform the APW Faithful that @PENTAELZEROM was injured last night in ??. @ReyFenixMx has also informed us that he is experiencing travel issues. We greatly apologize to everyone and wish Penta a speedy recovery. pic.twitter.com/u58whdj4sa
The Lucha Bros have been the center of controversy as of late. Reports surfaced 2 weeks ago that WWE had interest in the brothers. At the time, both Pentagon and Fenix were thought to be locked into Lucha Underground contracts. Their contracts were believed to be preventative from them from jumping ship, however.
It has since been revealed that both Pentagon and Fenix are of the understanding they can opt out of their LU contracts following the 4th season. They would have to sit out 6 months following the expiration of their LU deals but then would be free to sign with WWE.
Pentagon and Fenix, who are the MLW tag-team champions, were pulled from an upcoming MLW show amidst the above rumors. The Lucha Bros are arguably the two most popular stars for Impact Wrestling at the moment as well.
Pentagon is scheduled to take on Sami Callihan in a Mexican Death match next week on Impact. Fenix will take on Brian Cage for the X-Division title in 2 weeks.
WWE is not interested in hearing fans’ opinions on one of their top superstars. The company sent out a survey to fans recently asking them to select up to 10 superstars that they enjoy seeing on WWE programming. There was one notable omission.
WWE Universal Champion, Brock Lesnar, was not one of the selectable Superstars. His exclusion from the survey may lead to further speculation that Lesnar’s last match with the company will be at Summerslam.
Lesnar’s absence from the survey is notable considering his accompanying notable absence from WWE programming. It is still not clear how much longer Lesnar will be with WWE.
Sunday will the 3rd time Lesnar has defended the Universal Championship against Roman Reigns. He defeated Reigns in the main event of WrestleMania 34 and then again at the Greatest Royal Rumble. His match against Roman at the GRR, however, was a controversial finish after Lesnar and Roman crashed through the cage at the same time.
Kenny Omega has landed a sponsorship deal with Team Razer. The avid video game fanatic uses Team Razer products such as the Panthera Evo fight stick and the Razer Thresher Ultimate headset for PlayStation 4.
“I’ve always been a supporter of Razer and their products, so joining their team is really exciting,” said Omega. “To rise to the next level in wrestling or gaming, a true support system is needed, and that’s where Team Razer comes in. Their top-quality devices and fashion-forward gear are the best on the market, and I’m proud to be working with a company whose motto is ‘for gamers, by gamers’ that is just as driven to win as I am.”
Proud to be a member of the team. Better believe we’re gonna do a ton of cool stuff in the future. Can’t wait to show everyone! https://t.co/egtGMfh5cX
Some felt Omega’s deal with the company was only a cover, however. Omega seemed to profess his love for Brandi Rhodes on an episode of BTE. It was later revealed, however, that Omega was simply talking about his new sponsor.
Omega will face Pentagon Jr. on September 1st at All In. Following that match, Omega will next defend his IWGP Heavyweight Championship against Tomohiro Ishii.
The era of Kazuchika Okada being managed by Gedo has apparently come to an end in New Japan Pro Wrestling. The current belief is NJPW’s booker will no longer be accompanying Okada to ringside or delivering promos on his behalf.
“The whole reason for the dynamic was that Gedo was there to do Okada’s promos and make him feel special at first,” wrote Dave Meltzer. “Okada has gotten to where he doesn’t need anyone doing his promos and he’s already special.”
When the Rainmaker was first put with Okada, he was a cocky up-and-coming prospect. Now, Okada has been established as the greatest IWGP Heavyweight Champion of all-time, minus one record of Tanahashi’s he has yet to surpass.
Okada is scheduled to face Marty Scurll at All In. He will then join the Destruction tours back in Japan.
Kazuchika Okada Gedo
While Okada did not win the A-Block in this year’s G1, he was booked strong all the same. After losing to Kenny Omega, Okada’s character lost his confidence and, as a result, several matches. Okada lost a single’s match to Zack Sabre Jr. before the G1 began. To start the G1, Okada dropped his first two matches as well.
After losses to Jay White and Bad Luck Fale, Okada won his next 6 round-robin bouts before wrestling Tanahashi to a draw. Tanahashi then advanced to the finals where he defeated Kota Ibushi. The story with Okada is that once he got his confidence back, he wasn’t defeated again. Even though he didn’t win the tournament itself, Okada is back to looking like he can’t be beaten.
Natalya penned a letter to her father in the Calgary Sun recently. The wrestling world is mourning the loss of Jim “the Anvil” Neidhart, who passed away on August 13th.
“I really want to thank everyone for all of the love that they’ve shown to my dad and my whole family in the past week,” she begins her letter.
“Daddy — as I affectionately called him — and I were so similar in a lot of ways, and we shared that extra-special bond of professional wrestling and our careers.”
Natalya Remembers Jim “the Anvil” Neidhart
Natalya’s family is one of the most famous in wrestling history. Her father was involved in some of the most highly-praised tag-team matches along with Bret Hart and the British Bulldogs. Natalya mentioned in her letter that Anvil would text her all the time with wrestling advice.
“He would send me random text messages to work on my dropkicks and get at least two dropkicks in every match,” Natalya wrote. “Because that’s what Dynamite Kid would do.”
Natalya shares many heart-warming messages about the Anvil in her article. It certainly sounds like the Anvil was a wonderful father.
“I didn’t know it then, but my dad was my rock star. I’m glad that I got to follow in his footsteps to proudly carry the Neidhart name forward in WWE.”
WWE is said to be interested in both Pentagon Jr. and Fenix. Previously, it had thought to be the case that the two brothers were locked into Lucha Underground contracts which would prevent them from going to WWE anytime soon.
In an update to this story, however, it appears both brothers are preparing to test the free agent market. According to a recent report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, their contracts include an opt-out clause following the 4th season. This would make them free agents 6-months after the last episode of the 4th season airs.
“They have told promoters they are working for that the deal would end with this season, as there was an opt-out,” Meltzer wrote. “If that’s the case, they would be free agents roughly six months after the last episode of the current season ends.”
Pentagon and Fenix have also reportedly told bookers that dates they had agreed to in 2019 are now in question.
The brothers, who are MLW tag-team champions, were also pulled from an upcoming show with the promotion.
Both Pentagon and Fenix are key players in the new version of Impact Wrestling currently airing. Pentagon held the promotion’s World Championship earlier this year.
Impact Wrestling this week featured a main event Street Fight between the OGZ and LAX. Impact World Champion, Austin Aries, would also let the world know the nature of his allegiance with Killer Kross. In tonight’s opener, however, Sami Callihan and Fenix tore the house down.
Takeaways From Impact Wrestling 8/16
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gC86Lw-2yI
Fenix Will Face Brian Cage At Impact Redefined
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=271Q0zvU7kg
Fenix defeated Sami Callihan in a highlight-filled opener this week. Shortly after defeating Callihan, however, Fenix was then told the victory earned him a title shot against Brian Cage.
We would then find out that Cage vs Fenix will take place in 2 weeks on a special branded-episode of Impact, Impact ReDefined.
Johnny Impact Took Out Jimmy Jacobs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFVAdTwQWs0
When Johnny Impact returned to the promotion looking for Jimmy Jacobs’ monster, he didn’t realize that Jacobs’ himself was the monster. Regardless, Johnny got his revenge on both monster and Zombie Princess tonight.
He had Jacobs right where he wanted him when Kongo Kong interfered. Despite this, Johnny still came out the better of a 2-on-1 attack from Kongo and Jacobs.
Johnny rammed Jacobs in the head with steel stairs following his DQ victory over him. Jacobs could be out for quite a while.
The Smoke Show Gives Advice To KM & Fallah Bah
KM & Fallah Bah have not been seeing eye-to-eye as of late. Losses to the Desi Hit Squad further prove this point. Scarlett Bordeaux was able to give them some good advice this week, however.
Bordeaux stressed to KM that they had tried it his way and that maybe they should try things Fallah Bah’s way now. KM seemed enthused by the idea and stressed he would get matching tights so he and Bah looked more as a team.
Aries introduced his newest ally, Killer Kross. He reaffirmed that this was the “hurt business” and said the only one who truly understood this was Austin Aries. Kross said they were going to shove change down the throats of everyone.
Eddie Edwards came out. He took out Kross with a kendo stick and was just about to take out Aries as well when Kross grabbed his leg and Aries hit him with the title belt. Kross then choked Edwards unconcious.
Grado Cost Joe Hendry His Match Against Eli Drake
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLxboF9ujSg
“the Prestigious” Joe Hendry debuted a new music video for Eli Drake this week. Despite Hendry’s musical tribute to his opponent, he lost the match all the same.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_1rwQopAWE
The Cult of Lee has been following Eli Drake around as of late. They would get involved in the match but Grado attempted to fend them off. In the end though, it was Grado’s distraction which allowed Drake to get the roll-up victory over Hendry.
Sami Callihan Challenges Pentagon To A Mexican Death Match
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6p_73F6etiA
Sami Callihan is sick of losing to the Lucha Bros. He lost his mind and hair to Pentagon at Slammiversary and lost the opener tonight against Fenix.
Callihan wants Pentagon in his own style of match next week: A Mexican Death Match.
Matt Sydal Questions Everything
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGzp6buX6QA
Matt Sydal has said the X-Division Championship chose Brian Cage. That the title was once his destiny but now he must blaze a new path.
The above trippy video helps illustrate the inner workings of Matt Sydal’s consciousness.
Tessa Blanchard Interrupted Allie vs Su Yung
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9JPMQXLKS4
Tessa Blanchard does not believe Allie when she says she’s not after Su Yung’s title. Allie promised she will stop Su Yung from locking anymore of the Knockouts in coffins and took on Yung in a non-title match tonight.
Just when it looked as though Allie had the match won, however, Blanchard interfered, causing the match to be thrown out.
What this means for the next Knockouts Championship match is currently not clear.
LAX Regain Their Tag Team Title Belts In A Street Fight Outside Of Rebel
In a match which involved knives and a mock-execution finish, LAX defeated the OGZ and took back their title belts. The match was filmed in the space between Rebel Nightclub and the parking lot.
The show closed with Konnan hitting King in the head with a slapjack mock-execution style.
John Hennigan, known in Impact Wrestling as Johnny Impact, will be taking part in Chris Jericho’s Rock N Rager at Sea. The Survivor contestant recently announced that not only will he be on the cruise, he’s calling out the entire Bullet Club.
Brian Cage has issued a similar challenge to the faction.
Johnny Impact on Chris Jericho’s Cruise
It’s been a big year for Johnny. He married Taya Valkyrie earlier this summer and filmed the upcoming season of Survivor. You can check out Johnny currently on Impact Wrestling and Lucha Underground.
The upcoming season of Survivor will begin airing n September 26th, about a month before Chris Jericho’s cruise takes place. It’s possible that episodes featuring Johnny will still be airing by the time the cruise begins. Most contestants on such shows are required to sign a non-disclosure agreement preventing them from saying what happened on the show, however.
In Impact Wrestling, Johnny is currently engaged in a feud with Jimmy Jacobs meanwhile in Lucha Underground, Johnny’s World Wide Underground is doing battle with the Reptile Tribe.
In addition to the Sea of Honor tournament, LAX will face the Young Bucks on the cruise. Also, Jericho and the Young Bucks will face Cody, Marty Scurll, and Hangman Page.
Unlike his former tag-team partner, Enzo Amore, Big Cass will be continuing his professional wrestling career post-WWE. Cass will make his return to wrestling on September 21st for Big Time Wrestling, just days after his 90-day no-compete clause with WWE expires.
Another promotion, Championship League Wrestling, has booked Cass 8 days later but not to wrestle a match. Instead, CLW is advertising that Cass has somethings to get off his chest and will use their show to do so.
“Hot off of his release, Former WWE Superstar “Big Cass” will be making one of his first post-WWE appearances on our debut show on September 29th,” a company release reads. “And he will be doing so in a big way.”
“What is sure to make this interesting is he will be given an open mic with no limitations. The big man has been silent since his WWE departure. On September 29th, he promises to deliver his first public comments since being released.”
Big Cass Release
Cass was released from his contract on June 19th. WWE did not wish him well in his future endeavors when they announced his release either. While there are many rumors regarding the reason for Cass’ release, he has not made any public comment on the matter. Evidently, he plans to do just that at the end of September.
AJ Styles is now the longest reigning WWE Champion in Smackdown history. He passed JBL’s record recently to earn the honors. JBL himself commented on Styles’ achievement.
My record has been broken and I Could not be more proud of ?@AJStylesOrg? -a world class individual and athlete, looking forward to watching this incredible performer Sunday at @WWE Summerslam. pic.twitter.com/VjT33wKsVj
John Bradshaw Layfield won the WWE Championship on June 27th, 2004 from Eddie Guerrero. He would hold the title until WrestleMania 21 when he lost the title to John Cena. At that point, the title was drafted from Smackdown to Raw.
In 2016, the second brand extension era began and the WWE Championship once again became the property of Smackdown. AJ Styles won the title from Jinder Mahal on November 7th, 2017 in Manchester and has held for 281 straight days since.
AJ Styles WWE Champion – Longest Reigning WWE Champion in Smackdown History
Styles currently ranks #13 all-time in combined days spent with the WWE Championship. In a little over 40 days, Styles will pass CM Punk for the 12th spot on that list.
Combined Days Spent as WWE Champion:
Bruno Sammartino – 4,040 days
Hulk Hogan – 2,185 days
Bob Backlund – 2,138 days
John Cena – 1, 257 days
Pedro Morales – 1027 days
Randy Orton – 658 days
Bret Hart – 654 days
Triple H – 609 days
Brock Lesnar – 579 days
Stone Cold Steve Austin – 529
“Macho Man” Randy Savage – 520 days
CM Punk – 562
AJ Styles – 421
Styles will take on Samoa Joe for the WWE Championship Sunday at SummerSlam. Joe has yet to win a title belt on the main roster.
Impact Wrestling is back tonight with a show on Pop TV. They will also be back on Sunday as they present “Uncivil War” in Knoxville, TN airing live on Twitch.
Several matches have been booked for tonight’s show as well as a segment where we will hear from Austin Aries and his new ally, Killer Kross.
Impact Wrestling Preview 8/16
Austin Aries and Killer Kross Segment
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZerVEuPtYCU&t=32s
Last week, Killer Kross helped Austin Aries retain his Impact World Championship against Eddie Edwards. Aries is a smart and strategic veteran and he knows if he wants to keep his title, he’s going to need some insurance. Kross makes for some very large insurance.
Tonight, we’ll hear from Aries and Kross and find out more about the nature of their allegiance.
The Smoke Show with Scarlett Bordeaux
Last week on Impact, the management team was left all fluttered after Bordeaux interrupted their meeting. She managed to convince the group of men that the other Knockouts in the division are jealous of her. They somehow decided that giving her a talk show would solve the problem.
We will find out just what Bordeaux has in store for her show tonight.
Fenix vs Sami Callihan
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fG6vUSY0YuA
Sami Callihan’s mental stability has never been in more question. After having his head shaved by Pentagon at Slammiversary, Callihan has become even further unhinged.
He’ll have a chance for revenge tonight, however, when he takes on Fenix in single’s action.
Street Fight
LAX vs OGZ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UiepoXsV2I
Fans have been raving about how good this match was live and it airs tonight.
LAX may have won a battle at Slammiversary but they didn’t win the war. The OGZ have possession of their tag titles and have even tagged them. If LAX want back their possessions, they’ll have a chance tonight.
As for Konnan, he has been very strategic in how he has approached this rivalry. I wonder if there is more Konnan is worried about…
Johnny Impact vs Jimmy Jacobs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=44ecq5OJV04
Johnny Impact came looking for Kongo Kong but when Jacobs wasn’t quick enough to produce his monster, Impact punched him in the face.
Last week, Jacobs gave Impact a stern warning: He is the real monster. Jacobs and Impact collide tonight.
Su Yung vs Allie
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPvxFLFUlmE
There are no title belts on the line here as Allie takes on Su Yung. Allie isn’t concerned with championships, she just wants to make sure Su doesn’t lock anyone else in a coffin.
Someone who does care about titles, however, is Tessa Blanchard. Expect the 3rd generation star to be watching this match closely.
Brian Cage has been added to All In. The current X-Division Champion in Impact Wrestling will take part in the Over Budget Battle Royal during the Zero Hour pre-show on WGN.
When speaking about the event previously, Cody used Brian Cage as an example of a truly talented wrestler that there originally wasn’t a spot for on the show.
Cody said they would not want to job someone like Cage out. It looks as though the Zero Hour battle royal had an open spot, however, and now Cage is booked for the event.
All In Lineup
September 1st, 2018
Sears Center Arena
Chicago, ILL
Main Event
the Young Bucks & Kota Ibushi vs Rey Mysterio Jr., Bandido, and Fenix
NWA World Heavyweight Championship
Nick Aldis (c) vs Cody
Christopher Daniels vs Stephen Amell
Pentagon Jr. vs Kenny Omega
Marty Scurll vs Kazuchika Okada
The Briscoes vs Scorpio Sky and Frankie Kazarian
Madison Rayne vs Britt Baker vs Tessa Blanchard vs Chelsea Green
ROH World Championship
Jay Lethal (c) vs Over Budget Battle Royal Winner
Killian Dain wore a singlet during his match with New Day on Tuesday night. Some people aren’t letting this fact go either.
Smackdown creative head, Road Dogg, has had to deal with complaints about it on Twitter recently. Fortunately for him, Killian Dain came to his rescue.
While his choice in ring gear is questioned by some, there is little question Dain has potential. The 33-year-old was originally trained by Robbie Brookside via NWA Scotland but honed his skills in the WWE Performance Center when he was sent there in 2016. Oddly enough, Brookside is now a coach at the WWE Performance Center.
“I don’t think there is enough hyperbole to explain how good a coach he is,” Dain said of Brookside. “I can’t think of a better coach I’d met in any sport”
Real name Damian Mackie, he began competing with ICW in 2013. He wrestled Drew Galloway for the EVOLVE title in 2014 as well. Dain would wrestle a couple of matches in 2015-2016 for Jeff Jarrett’s Global Force Wrestling and with TNA. He was signed by WWE that summer and began competing on the NXT house show circuit under the name Damo. In December of 2016, Dain was put alongside Eric Young and Sawyer Fulton as Sanity.
Ring of Honor fans in the UK will be upset to learn Tenille Dashwood has been pulled from the upcoming tour. ROH has announced Dashwood has is dealing with a non-serious medical issue.
Correction: Our original headline on this story stated that Tenille Dashwood was “injured” – the article has been updated to clarify that it is a ‘medical issue’ and not an injury.
ROH also announced Chardonnay is off the tour. ROH will be bringing in Kay Lee Ray as a replacement.
BREAKING: Due to unfortunate medical issues affecting @TenilleDashwood and @ladyCDarcy, @Kay_Lee_Ray will step up with huge opportunities on the #HonorReUnited Tour this week
Peyton Royce blasted Dave Meltzer on Twitter after hearing a clip of the wrestling journalist criticizing her appearance. On the August 9th episode of Wrestling Observer Radio, Meltzer made a reference to Royce being a lot “lighter” while in NXT.
“I thought they had a cool act in NXT and on the main roster, I don’t get a thing out of them,” Meltzer said. “I think Peyton Royce’s transformation to look more attractive, I don’t know, I don’t want to say.”
When Meltzer’s co-host Bryan Alvarez questioned if Royce was more attractive in NXT, Meltzer answered, “I thought so, yes, to me yes. She doesn’t stand out to me; when she was in NXT she did. She was a lot lighter.”
Meltzer has since issued multiple apologies to Royce, but the damage was done and the backlash was significant.
I'd like to apologize to you. You are an exceedingly attractive woman. I do realize the lengths and pressures on women in the entertainment world to maintain unnatural looks at times and am glad you pointed this out. https://t.co/qkgOrpVQOX
What a true piece of sweltering hot garbage. You’re an angel too good for this earth. He’d be lucky if you gave him the time of day. Which you would, because you’re also a great person. Love ya girl. Let’s set better examples
This is unacceptable on so many levels. How dare you say that someone is more attractive when they are ‘lighter’. You have no idea how stupid comments like this can affect someone for life. @PeytonRoyceWWE is PERFECT just the way she is. A strong & beautiful WOMAN! https://t.co/1FDakcolpf
Major League Wrestling has signed a highly-touted prospect in Brian Pillman Jr. MLW sent in word that this is a multi-year deal that will keep the blue chipper with the conpany through 2020.
“Brian is a franchise player in the making,” stated MLW CEO Court Bauer in a press release. “Brian has a bright future ahead of him and now MLW fans can look forward to seeing his journey each and every week on MLW FUSION. This kid has IT.”
On MLW Fusion as of late, the young 2nd generation star has received mentorship from not only his family friends in the new Hart Foundation but also his father’s old rival, Kevin Sullivan.
Sullivan is worried Teddy Hart and Harry Smith will only lead the young Pillman in the wrong direction. Pillman told Sullivan he’s just paying his respects, however.
Brian Pillman Jr.
In an interview earlier this year, Pillman stressed that his character will evolve over time.
“My gimmick is that I’m Brian Pillman Jr. That’s my gimmick,” Pillman told the Sporting News earlier this year. “Eventually I’m going to have to change, I’m going to have to evolve and drop the ‘II’ or drop the ‘Jr.,’ become somebody else, somebody fresh, somebody new. I’m kind of in that process of that. I’m trying to develop my first beyond-the-legacy gimmick.”
He also appeared on Wrestling Observer Radio recently and spoke on how he originally felt his father’s untimely death was a work.
Pillman posted the following after making his independent wrestling debut late last year:
Current NXT Women’s Champion, Shayna Baszler, has turned heads with her talent and ability since competing in the Mae Young Classic last year. Baszler made it all the way to the finals of the tournament before being defeated by Kairi Sane.
Now with the second Mae Young Classic due to air on the WWE Network in a few weeks, Baszler is getting ready to face Kairi Sane again. This time, it will be Baszler defending her championship against Sane at Takeover.
During the first Mae Young Classic, however, Baszler’s 4 Horsewomen of MMA faction got into an altercation with the 4 Horsewomen of NXT. Despite this, a feud between the two similarly named teams never came to fruition. With both Marina Shafir and Jessamyn Duke now competing in NXT as well, however, the idea of the Horsewomen feud has been brought up again. Baszler addressed the potential angle herself recently during an interview with Inside the Ropes.
Shayna Baszler Horsewomen vs Horsewomen Feud
Baszler was asked about the potential angle and had the following to say:
“If they want it to happen, the four of us are fighters,” Baszler said. “We’ve never turned down any sort of fight. They want to argue about who’s the “4 Horsewomen” and what and who owns it. We had it first and that’s fact. It was given to us, we didn’t just call ourselves that.”
NXT is back tonight with the go-home show before Saturday’s Takeover event. 3 matches have been booked for tonight along with one segment meant to build anticipation for a key match on Saturday.
NXT 8/15 Preview
Roderick Strong vs Tyler Bate
The feud between the Undisputed Era and Moustache Mountain continues tonight as Roderick Strong takes on Tyler Bate.
Moustache Mountain and the Undisputed Era have each won the NXT tag-team titles from the other team once this summer. The rubber match between the two top teams in the division goes on Saturday but single’s action between Strong and Bate takes place tonight.
the Street Profits vs the Mighty
The Mighty defeated the Street Profits the last time the two teams met. The Street Profits caused a distraction last week which allowed Heavy Machinery to pick up the win over the Australian tag-team.
One of these two teams moves closer to the top of the tag division and one moves closer to the bottom. Which team is which will be decided tonight.
Kairi Sane vs Aliyah
Kairi Sane will have what is commonly referred to as a tune-up match tonight. Sane will take on NXT Women’s Champion, Shayna Baszler, Saturday at Takeover. Before then, however, she’ll take on Toronto’s Aliyah tonight.
These two met last September, with Sane coming out the victor.
Shayna Baszler will most likely be keeping an eye out on this match as she prepares to face Sane again.
Velveteen Dream Verbal Assault
EC3 threw the Velveteen Dream in a pool during a somewhat bizarre segment on last week’s show. This week, Velveteen Dream is said to have a verbal assault planned for his Takeover opponent.