AEW’s Abadon was reportedly injured yesterday at Daily’s Place in Jacksonville. According to a report from the Wrestling Observer, Abadon was injured while filming a match against Tay Conti and she was taken to hospital.
No further details are currently available other than she is expected to make a full recovery.
Abadon in AEW
Abadon is a 1-year pro from Colorado. She was trained by Rocky Mountain Pro Wrestling. Her unique look and gimmick put her on AEW’s radar early into her career. She made her AEW debut on an episode of Dark in March. She lost to Hikaru Shida but has since won 5 straight and occupies the #3 ranking in the division.
Abadon’s AEW record:
3/4/20: lost to Hikaru Shida
6/11/20: defeated Anna Jay (Dynamite debut)
7/16/20: defeated Skyler Moore
7/29/20: defeated KiLynn King
8/12/20: defeated Red Velvet
8/27/20: defeated Dani Jordyn
Her opponent at the tapings, Tay Conti, was signed to the company this summer. She’s had 4 matches in the promotion thus far:
Tay Conti’s AEW Record:
7/29/20: Anna Jay & Tay Conti defeated Ariane Andrew & Nyla Rose
7/29/20: Diamante & Ivelisse defeated Anna Jay & Tay Conti
9/9/20: Nyla Rose defeated Tay Conti (Dynamite debut)
Throughout its near two-decades in existence one thing Impact Wrestling/TNA has consistently received praise for is its Knockouts division. Even during periods where women’s wrestling wasn’t a featured part of other promotions, Impact has seemed to have always had a pretty stacked division.
Impact Hall-of-Famer Gail Kim was recently interviewed by Forbes and talked the past and present of the Knockouts division.
“Just to see where we started, and to be along for that whole ride to see where the Knockouts division is now…of course, there are so many women—not just in our company, but across the board in the industry—so many talented women that I would have loved to have worked with,” Kim said.
“I guess it is a little more special to me to have broken out in a time when women’s wrestling wasn’t so hyped up as it is now, and as big as it is now, so I wouldn’t change a thing,” she continued.
Kiera Hogan On The Present Knockouts Division
Forbes also spoke with Kiera Hogan during the interview. Hogan has been teaming with Tasha Steelz as of late in the promotion and feels the Knockouts division is the best in the business.
“I feel like, as a unit, we are the best. As separate personalities and characters, we are the best, so I feel like if it was ever a thing—if it was company vs. company vs. company (WWE vs. AEW vs. IMPACT)—IMPACT would win hands down,” she said.
The Knockouts title will be on the line at Bound For Glory this weekend. Champion Deonna Purrazzo will defend the title against challenger Kylie Rae.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOVBjLeOnNA
Knockouts Championship History
Purrazzo became the 24th wrestler in history to win the Knockouts title when she defeated Jordynne Grace at Slammiversary this year. Gail Kim leads almost all historic categories when it comes to the championship aside from longest single-reign. That record belongs to Taya Valkyrie (377).
During the recent WWE Draft, Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston were drafted to RAW but Big E remained on Smackdown. In recent months, Big E had started a singles career when both Woods and Kofi were on the shelf with injuries. Big E recently spoke to Fox Sports and talked about how he found out that he would be on separate brands from his teammates.
“We probably got two days in advance,” Big E said. “Which, I think a lot of it was to ensure that we didn’t show up to work and if we heard the news then, I assume that people just imagine that we would be tearing up the halls, knocking down doors, crying in public, just fits of rage.”
He continued to talk about how when they were first informed of the change, they weren’t happy about it.
“Initially, obviously, we were not pleased,” Big E continued. “I’d heard some rumors maybe a month prior that it was something discussed. But I’ve heard rumors for years that we’re gonna be broken up, that one of us is gonna turn on the other, and we’ve been able to weather a lot of those storms.”
The New Day had their final match together (for awhile, at least) on last week’s Smackdown. They defeated Shinsuke Nakamura, Cesaro, and Sheamus in 6-man tag action.
“We got to do something that I think was emotional, but was unique in that I can’t think of another time we got to see a faction that had as much staying power split up in the way that we did.”
Rey Mysterio suffered a torn triceps on the Payback PPV back in August. He teamed with his son Dominik on the show and defeated Buddy Murphy and Seth Rollins. According to a report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Mysterio should be cleared to return soon.
“Rey Mysterio should be back any time now as far as in the ring. He said his partially torn triceps healed slower than he had expected but was at about 99 percent,” wrote Dave Meltzer.
Rey Mysterio & Dominik In WWE
Dominik recently commented on possibly facing his father in WWE someday.
“Yes, most definitely. I think that’ll be — that’s still a long time from now, but I remember all the spankings he gave me as a kid. So, I’m sure our match will come.”
Mysterio and his son Dominik were both traded to the Smackdown brand in the recent draft. The 23-year-old Dominik Mysterio has now wrestled 9 professional matches, all on WWE main roster programming. He is 1-4 in singles matches. Dominik is 1-1 against Murphy in singles matches and 0-3 against Seth Rollins. Rey and Dominik are 2-0 in tag matches against Seth Rollins and Buddy Murphy. Dominik and Humberto Carrillo have teamed together twice now, losing both matches.
WWE Superstars soon undergo mandatory ‘relationship counseling’ sessions. According to the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter, WWE has engaged the Total Life Counseling organization to lead the initiative.
“All WWE talent on 10/28 have a mandatory counseling session to attend via streaming on keeping healthy relationships. Total Life Counseling will present a mandatory session for all talent on that subject,” wrote Dave Meltzer.
Per their website, “Total Life Counseling, Inc (TLC) provides individual, marital and family counseling that integrates sound psychological, spiritual and social principles to help people grow in their life satisfaction. Our counseling principles help clients develop a positive self-image, emotional stability, communication skills, healthy thinking patterns, strengthen their ability to cope with stressful situations and enhance their physical, emotional, interpersonal and spiritual development.”
The Observer report states there will be two counseling sessions. The first will be a large presentation. The second will be smaller ‘breakout groups’ where talent will be able to ask questions.
News that WWE roster members will be undergoing a mandatory counseling session on healthy relationships, comes on the heels of the #SpeakingOut movement and allegations against some members of the WWE roster.
Allegations & Lawsuits
Matt Riddle was the subject of allegations from one person during #SpeakingOut. Riddle has denied the allegations. After reports came out that Riddle’s accuser planned on filing a suit against WWE, Evolve, & Riddle, WWE released the below statement:
“WWE has not been served with a lawsuit by Ms. Tavel. However, if served, we will vigorously defend ourselves and contest it,” WWE’s statement reads.
Riddle’s legal team had at one point stated they would be filing a civil suit against his accuser. His lawyer released a statement saying that they planned to do so. At this time, it is not clear if either lawsuit has actually been filed.
The Rock and Kurt Angle have both responded to a Tweet posted by ESPN’s Ariel Helwani on the 20-year anniversary of WWE’s No Mercy 2000 PPV. Kurt Angle defeated the Rock that night to win his first-ever WWE Championship. The event was held in the Pepsi Center in Albany, New York on October 22nd, 2000.
Angle responded to Helwani, noting this was the most important match of his career:
This was the most important match of my career. I won my 1st wwe world title against one of the most popular WWE Superstars of all time, not to mention most popular celebrity I know. @TheRock helped me so much very early in my career. I will always hold him in high regard. https://t.co/t9Ars1Uw8e
The Rock then responded to Helwani’s comments as well.
Love this match! It was a brilliant build up and promotion. Honored to “do the honors” for Kurt. He’s one of the good guys AND one of the greatest athletes of all time. Rare combo. Didn’t know your wrestling roots go this far back, Ariel. We gotta talk ???
“It’s one of my favorite matches ever. I just told my kids about the whole build-up on the way to school today. Been a fan since 85! First event I ever went to was 1991 at the Montreal Forum. @BretHart, my favorite as a kid, and Mr. Perfect fought to a draw. Will never forget it,” Helwani continued.
The Rock’s 8 reigns with the WWE Championship is 3rd all-time. Only John Cena (13) and Randy Orton (9) have won the title more times. His combined 367 days spent with the title ranks 15th all-time. As for Kurt Angle, he held the title for a combined 297 days (across 4 reigns) which is good for 17th all time.
At Full Gear on November 7th, 2020, Matt Hardy and Sammy Guevara’s feud will continue with an Elite Deletion match. According to comments made recently on Wrestling Observer Radio, this will be a cinematic match taped ahead of time.
“This will be a cinematic match,” said Dave Meltzer on the show. “I don’t know if they are going to do it at the Hardy compound, I didn’t ask. But I know that it’s going to be a taped match and it’s not going live.”
The feud between Guevara and Hardy has been somewhat plagued by injuries. Hardy was busted up on an episode of Dynamite after Guevara tossed a heavy chair at his head. Then at the All Out PPV, Hardy was knocked unconcisous after both wrestlers jumped off a lift through a table. The match was re-started after Hardy was cleared to continue.
“I know that the original idea was to do it at Hardy’s house,” Meltzer continued. “I don’t know that they are or they’re not, I haven’t asked that one yet. That was the plan for this feud going back to March. At the beginning, they couldn’t do it there. So, that may be what this is, the plan they always had and finally getting to do this match.”
“Hardy and Sammy Guevara at the Hardy Compound was an idea that they had dating back well before the pandemic,” he continued. “The idea of them doing a cinematic match was always planned.”
AEW Full Gear Card
The following matches are now confirmed for AEW Full Gear, which takes place Saturday, November 7th from Jacksonville, FL at Daily’s Place.
AEW World Heavyweight Champion Jon Moxley vs.Eddie Kingston (I Quit Match)
AEW Tag Team Champions FTR vs. The Young Bucks
AEW World Heavyweight Title Tournament Finals
Matt Hardy vs. Sammy Guevara – Elite Deletion Match
New Jack has 5 children and one of them is a famous drag queen named Washington Heights. The 27-year-old uses she/her pronouns when in drag. She spoke to VICE recently after a Tweet of hers talking about her father went viral.
“My dad (New Jack from ECW) cut me out of his life 3 years ago because he didn’t want his fans to know I’m a drag queen, and he didn’t want Wikipedia posting anything about me. Clearly he doesn’t know how Wikipedia works. Anywho, I’m now an official editor for Wikipedia,” Heights Tweeted in August.
She sent out the below Tweet the following day:
Here’s my thing… Was I petty with posting this and changing his Wikipedia? Yes. Could I have handled it better? Possibly. The world is already against me being gay.. I just want someone who created me to embrace what I do and support me. End of story.
During a recent interview with VICE, Heights opened up further about her relationship with her father.
“He said we’d keep in touch, but then why say that and afterwards you haven’t reached out to me?” Heights said during the interview. “It’s been over a year, maybe two years, since we talked.”
She also talked about how pro-wrestling and being a drag queen are pretty similar.
“When I was younger, I went to one of his shows,” she said. “I was fascinated by the entrance music, the costumes, the flashiness, the big personalities, the fireworks. That’s pretty much everything that I’m doing except drag queens don’t slam each other on the floor and attack each other.”
Thank you to @tufayel and @VICE/@VICEUK for reaching out and interviewing me about the situation with my dad! Apparently he responded to them but still hasn’t said anything to me. ????? Read the article for an update! https://t.co/Qn7owT0HZu
“My son was mentioned in my book that just came out last year, so the statement about me disowning him three years ago is simply not true. I’ve heard there was a mention on his Twitter feed that he was upset because he was only mentioned once in a chapter that was half-a-page long,” New Jack emailed to Vice.
“I spoke briefly about him and four of my other children, he was actually one of my kids that was mentioned by name. I also mentioned the fact that I keep any information about all of my kids private, because that has nothing to do with wrestling and is my own personal business, that I prefer to keep private.”
Chris Jericho and Maxwell Jacob Friedman’s steak dinner on Dynamite last night turned into a song and dance routine. The pair’s “Le Dinner Debonair” resulted in them singing a rendition of “Me and My Shadow” made famous by the Rat Pack’s Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr.
After the show went off the air, Chris Jericho came out to address the live crowd. He allowed the fans to sing his ring music and then talked about what went into filming the segment with MJF.
Users on Twitter have been posting footage of Jericho’s post-show promo.
After the show ended, Chris Jericho came out so the audience could sing his theme song and he spoke to the crowd. Here is pt. 1, his theme song. #AEWDynamite 10.21.20 pic.twitter.com/qoG4W4m0hx
Chris Jericho and Maxwell Jacob Friedman in “Le Dinner Debonair”
“If you only knew what we went through to get that up on air. Basically, we had that ready to go about 22 minutes before air,” Jericho said to the live fans. “We filmed last night until about 2 AM. So you never know what’s going to happen on live TV but you buckle up, you get the job done, you put on a great show and make sure you guys always have fun, right?”
On next week’s episode of AEW Dynamite, the Inner Circle will hold a Town Hall Meeting. They will discuss whether or not to allow Maxwell Jacob Friedman into their faction.
Alex Reynolds was rendered unconscious last night during the Dynamite main event. He was hit with a leg-drop/splash combo off the top-rope by Private Party during the match that knocked him out.
According to comments made on Wrestling Observer Radio, however, Reynolds was feeling fine after the match.
“He left on his own and the word from after the show was that he was feeling great afterwards, whatever that means,” Bryan Alvarez said. “I don’t know how you feel great after that.”
Alvarez would continue to mention that those involved in the match didn’t notice that Reynolds was injured.
“When you see it, it’s inconceivable, but if you watch everybody else in the match, like nobody notices.”
Fans on Twitter noted that Cody came out to check on him after the show went off the air:
Reynolds and his longtime partner, John Silver, were wrestling with a chance to face the tag-team champions at Full Gear. The Young Bucks won the match and will take on the champions at the PPV.
Silver and Reynolds are often featured on episodes of Being the Elite as well. They are the recruitment specialists for the Dark Order. The duo has teamed together since 2011 and are former PWG and CZW tag-team champions.
Knockouts Champion Deonna Purrazzo will not be leaving Impact Wrestling anytime soon. Impact announced during Impact Press Pass on Wednesday that the 26-year-old has signed a long-term deal with the promotion. Specific terms of the deal have not been disclosed.
Purrazzo returned to Impact Wrestling in May this year and immediately attacked then-champion, Jordynne Grace. She won the title from Grace at Slammiversary and then successfully retained it in a 30-minute Ironman match on night 2 of Emergence.
Purrazzo took to Twitter to comment on the news:
I’ve been waiting to be able to talk about this publicly!!!
Purrazzo spoke with Chris Van Vliet in June about her decision to go to Impact Wrestling. She mentioned that other promotions had contacted her but Impact was where she ultimately decided to go.
“I mean like, some people had reached out, but it was all kind of like fleeting, there was no like, ‘You’re gonna have a meeting’ or, ‘We’re gonna sit down and do this.’”
“Luckily, I had been to Impact before, I know the people there and it was right away like, ‘We’d like to have you, let’s talk about it when we can.’ It was just more of a secure thing.”
Purrazzo is scheduled to defend the Knockouts title against Kylie Rae this Saturday at Bound For Glory.
Ken Shamrock won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship on the 1st ever TNA Wrestling show back in 2002. The UFC Hall of Famer and MMA pioneer is set to be inducted into the Impact Wrestling Hall of Fame this weekend.
The promotion just announced that Shamrock’s induction will air live and for free on AXS TV and Impact’s digital channels. Impact took to Twitter to announce the news:
BREAKING: @ShamrockKen's Hall of Fame induction ceremony will take place THIS SATURDAY during the LIVE Countdown to Glory pre-show at 7pm ET on @AXSTV and IMPACT's digital channels. #BFG2020pic.twitter.com/yg9gLul0e1
Last month, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson said that he would film a video for Shamrock’s induction. The Rock and Shamrock were rivals during the Attitude Era in WWF.
Congrats, my brother. Awesome news. I will take care of this and get it to you by this weekend. ???
Ken Shamrock is set to become the 9th person inducted into the Impact Wrestling Hall of Fame. Previous inductees are listed below:
2012: Sting
2013: Kurt Angle
2014: Bully Ray & Devon (Team 3D)
2015: Jeff Jarrett
2015: Earl Hebner
2016: Gail Kim
2018: Abyss
Shamrock commented on his pending induction recently during an interview with Yahoo Sports.
“It’s a moment you’re going to cherish for the rest of your life and beyond,” Shamrock said. “You have been recognized by your fans and your peers. Obviously life’s not over, but for a career that you’ve started and that you tried to achieve many goals in, this is a story that comes to a good ending. I’m honored. There’s not enough words to even say.”
Kris Statlander tore her ACL during a tag match on AEW Dynamite back in June. At the time, the alien from the Andromeda galaxy had become one of the top-ranked competitors in her division. She spoke to the Wrestling Inc Daily podcast recently and gave an update on her condition. Unfortunately, Statlander believes she’ll be out of action for another 8 months or so.
“I’m doing pretty good. I think from what I’ve heard overall is that I might be a little bit ahead of others where I’m at right now, but I still have a real long way to go before I can re-debut basically and get back in the ring before I’m debuting again obviously, and I’m going to want to be training a little bit before,” Statlander said. “So I’ll be able to get in the ring before you’ll see me back on TV. It could be another eight months or so.”
Statlander also spoke about her injury which occurred during a suicide dive attempt. She was teaming with Hikaru Shida and taking on Nyla Rose and Penelope Ford.
“I just did a suicide dive, and the way I landed, I guess, was not perfectly right. You can actually see the dive on TV when I heard it, but all you see is me quickly grab my leg when I go down, and then the camera’s off of me. But it doesn’t even look like I did anything super insane, or it doesn’t look very noticeable. ‘Oh, she messed up her leg there.’ You cannot tell at all. So I had no idea what happened. I just kind of felt a little ‘pfft’ in my leg. It didn’t even hurt that bad either. I was just like, ‘oh boy.'”
Statlander had just defeated Penelope Ford in singles competition at the Double or Nothing PPV the previous month before her injury. She unsuccessfully challenged Nyla Rose for the title at the Revolution PPV in February as well.
AEW has released new top-5 rankings ahead of tonight’s episode of Dynamite.
AEW Men’s Singles Division
AEW World Champion: Jon Moxley (20-0) TNT Champion: Cody (19-2-1)
Brian Cage (9-1) (+1)
MJF (9-1) (+1)
Lance Archer (13-2) (-2)
Brodie Lee (8-2)
Shawn Spears (14-2) (previously unranked)
After Jon Moxley successfully defended the AEW World Championship last week on Dynamite, his opponent dropped 2 spots in the rankings. Lance Archer had been ranked #1 before his title shot, but he drops to #3 with the loss.
Archer dropping in the rankings moves both MJF and Brian Cage up one spot. Cage now sits in the #1 spot in the division.
Several unranked wrestlers will compete in a tournament beginning tonight on Dynamite. Fenix, Pentagon, Colt Cabana, Jungle Boy, Hangman Page, Kenny Omega, and Joey Janela are all unranked but with a chance to earn a shot if they can win the upcoming tournament.
TNT Champion Cody retained the title last week after going to a time limit draw with unranked Orange Cassidy. They will meet again on next week’s show.
#5 Shawn Spears has also replaced Scorpio Sky in the final ranked spot. Spears and Sky seem to have a bit of a rivalry going on Dark as well. Spears defeated Christopher Daniels on Dark last night but continued the attack after the match until Sky made the save. Spears would also come to the ring during Sky’s match on Dark last night as well.
AEW Women’s Division
AEW Women’s Champion: Hikaru Shida (18-1)
Nyla Rose (11-2)
Penelope Ford (9-5) (+1)
Abadon (5-1) (+1)
Big Swole (10-5) (-2)
Dr. Britt Baker (5-6)
After dropping a title match to Hikaru Shida last week, Big Swole drops from the #2 spot to the #4 spot. Her drop in the rankings moves Penelope Ford and Abadon up one spot each.
#5 Dr. Britt Baker DMD is in action tonight Dynamite. Her opponent has yet to be announced, however.
On Dark last week, #1 Nyla Rose and Vickie Guerrero let it be known that they want another crack at the title.
AEW Tag Team Division
AEW Tag Team Champions: FTR (Dax Harwood & Cash Wheeler) (12-0)
Young Bucks (7-3) (+1)
Best Friends (17-7) (-1)
The Natural Nightmares (8-2)
Butcher and the Blade (10-5)
Santana & Ortiz (8-5)
After FTR successfully defended the tag belts against the Best Friends on Dynamite last week, Trent and Chuckie T drop one spot in the rankings to #2.
#1 The Young Bucks will have a chance to earn a tag title shot tonight on Dynamite. They take on Private Party, Silver & Reynolds, and #4 The Butcher and the Blade tonight with the winner facing FTR at Full Gear.
Impact Wrestling 10/21 was the go-home show for Saturday’s Bound For Glory PPV. The North faced The Good Brothers, a 5-way would determine who enters last in the Call Your Shot Gauntlet at BFG, and Havok took on Rosemary with James Mitchell’s possible reincarnation on the line.
Impact Results 10/20:
Winner Enters At #20 In Call Your Shot Gauntlet Hernandez defeated Rhino, Heath, Alisha & Cousin Jake
Rosemary defeated Havok
Sami Callihan defeated Eddie Edwards
Willie Mack, TJP & Trey Miguel defeated Chris Bey, Jordynne Grace & X-Division Champion Rohit Raju
The North (Ethan Page & Josh Alexander) vs The Good Brothers (Doc Gallows & Karl Anderson) – No-Contest
The Good Brothers Stand Tall To End The Show
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRmCfwIF5WU
Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows appear to have all the momentum heading into Bound For Glory. They met Josh Alexander and Ethan Page, the North, in the night’s main event. The Good Brothers appeared to have the match won when they hit the Magic Killer on Page but Alexander was able to make the save. Shortly after this, all 4 men began brawling in the ring, causing the ref to call for the bell.
The chaos brought out the other two teams in the tag title 4-way match on Saturday. The MCMG and the Good Brothers cleared the ring of Austin & Fulton and the North. The Good Brothers then delivered a Magic Killer on Sabin and stood tall to end the show.
Ken Shamrock Assaults Eddie Edwards
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fslgptf80xE
At Bound For Glory, Ken Shamrock will face Eddie Edwards. In recent weeks, Shamrock has been under the control of Sami Callihan and seems more vicious than ever. This week it would be Edwards and Callihan rekindling their rivalry. Edwards appeared to have the upper hand but right when he went for the Boston Knee Party, Callihan pressed that button he has which turns the lights out in the building. When the lights came back on, Shamrock was at ringside. The distraction allowed Callihan to roll up Edwards for the pin. Shamrock then attacked his BFG opponent to soften him up before the PPV.
Eric Young and Rich Swann Brawl Days Before Bound For Glory
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6xOT51fUO4
Eric Young and Rich Swann will clash for the Impact World Championship on Saturday. Young has attacked Swann numerous times but the former X-Division Champion keeps training hard and getting cleared by Impact’s medical team. Young was cutting a promo stating that he’ll continue to attack people if they get in his way when Swann attacked him.
EC3 Says Moose Is Becoming Who He Is Supposed To Be
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KysbLTEhv1Q
Jimmy Jacobs had the unfortunate task of interviewing both Moose and EC3 this week. Moose was his normal pleasant self, having recaptured the TNA title seemingly having done little to improve his mood. After Moose stormed off set during the interview, EC3’s minions put a hood over Jacobs and took him to an undisclosed location to meet with EC3.
EC3 said that when he was fighting Moose on the bridge last week (when Moose repossessed the title) he saw the kind of guy he wants to fight. He saw the version of Moose that he should always be. EC3 called Moose a false idol but has potential to be something more.
“Lessons not learned in blood are lessons you will forget,” EC3 said. “Moose needs to learn who he has to become but he also must learn at my hands.”
Rosemary Earns James Mitchell’s Reincarnation With Win Over Havok
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaP7rbmndR4
This may take some explaining. Rosemary is getting married to John E Bravo on next week’s show. Since she is a demon, however, she needs someone like Father James Mitchell to officiate the wedding. That would be all fine and good but Mitchell was killed by Rosemary and Havok in the undead realm in a previous storyline. Rosemary needs Havok to agree to help bring back Mitchell to officiate the wedding. Havok agreed to this match with the stipulation that if Rosemary won, she’d help bring back the Sinister Minister. Rosemary picked up the victory with two spears, meaning Father James Mitchell may return to both Impact and the living realm next week for the wedding.
Hernandez To Enter Last In Call Your Shot Gauntlet
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4njCE9cIDM
A 10-person tag last week was held with the winning team facing each other this week. The winner of this match would then be granted the #20 entry into the Call Your Shot Gauntlet at Bound For Glory. The winner of the Gauntlet match can challenge whichever champion in the promotion they want. Also, Scott D’Amore has said to Rhino and Heath that if one of them doesn’t win the match, they are both gone from Impact.
Hernandez would pick up the victory here and earn the final entry at BFG. The finish of the match came when Rhino attempted to gore Hernandez, missed, hit Alisha, and then Hernandez rolled him up for the pin.
Everyone’s Gunning For Rohit Raju’s X-Division Championship
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69tKYo1GDP4
X-Division Champion Rohit Raju has done everything he can to avoid facing the top challengers for his title. He’s in tough at Bound For Glory, however, as he’ll have to defend his title in a 6-way match. All 6 competitors in the match were in this tag-team match but the champion’s team failed to get along.
Raju and Chris Bey began arguing over who should pin their opponents and it became clear they were not on the same page. The champion attempted to attack Bey but took a springboard cutter for his trouble. Trey Miguel then kicked Bey in the head and pinned Raju to win the match for his team.
Bound For Glory Lineup
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8R2-IB099AM
Here is the lineup for Saturday’s Bound For Glory PPV:
Impact World Championship Eric Young (c) vs Rich Swann
Knockouts Championship Deonna Purrazzo (c) vs Kylie Rae
Impact Tag Team Championships The Motor City Machine Guns (c) vs the Good Brothers vs The North vs Ace Austin & Madman Fulton
X-Division Championship Rohit Raju (c) vs Jordynne Grace vs TJP vs Chris Bey vs Trey Miguel vs Willie Mack
Elias recently returned to WWE after being on the shelf for months with a torn pectoral muscle. He sat down with Sports Illustrated recently and spoke about his injury, recovery, and current storyline with Jeff Hardy on RAW.
“I don’t know if my chest will ever look the same that it was, but I feel strong,” Elias said of his pectoral muscle tear. “When this happened, it sounded like a piece of paper getting ripped in half. But my strength is back. I’ve been training in the ring; I feel good and I’m ready.”
Elias also spoke about his current storyline with Jeff Hardy. The angle originally played out on Smackdown but both Hardy and Elias were recently drafted to RAW.
“There is a lot to this story,” Elias said. “I know people love Jeff Hardy. I grew up loving him, too. His wrestling ability and longevity, it’s amazing. But if there are people out there that think Elias, who was the man hit by a car, doesn’t know who was driving it, you’re in the wrong.”
Elias has a new music album coming out on October 26th. During the interview, Elias also spoke about what went into this project.
“I searched my soul during my down time, seeking truth, and that’s why I entitled the album Universal Truth,” Elias says. “It is different from the album I put out in 2018. That was very character-driven, and I loved that album, but this is different. It’s spiritual, it’s energy, it’s rock and roll. The lyrics are deep and meaningful. You’re going to feel the energy when you listen.”
Matt & Nick Jackson were reportedly offered contracts to be part of the Lucha Underground roster. Konnan talked about how much show runners for LU offered the Young Bucks recently on an episode of his “Keepin it 100” podcast.
Konnan commented on how the company’s lawyer was the one reaching out to the popular tag-team.
“Here’s why Lucha Underground was — this is the type of sh*t that only Lucha Underground would do,” Konnan said (transcriptions via POST Wrestling). “They had some jackoff, yes you are a jackoff, called Tony Jensen. He was the lawyer of the f*cking company. So they had this guy who doesn’t know sh*t about wrestling, doesn’t know how to talk to wrestlers, you know?”
Konnan then revealed the Bucks were only offered $250 each. He then said that the Bucks countered by asking for 10x as much.
“You gotta be able to talk their language, alright and he calls The Young Bucks and he offers them $250 each. So they basically told me to go f*ck myself and that yeah, they’d sign if they got $2,500 each, and I was like, ‘Bro, Dorian [Roldan], why don’t you let me talk to the wrestlers? I already have a connection, a relationship with a lot of them and I know how to back and forth’ but no, they kept him there.”
Numerous wrestlers had to hire lawyers to get out of their deals with Lucha Underground.
Sami Callihan will go one-on-one with his longtime rival Eddie Edwards tonight on AXS TV and Twitch. At Bound For Glory, Callihan will be in Ken Shamrock’s corner as he takes on Edwards. Shamrock and Callihan have formed an alliance in the promotion. They previously feuded and then formed a tag-team.
“If you told a 14-year-old Sami Callihan that he’d be tag-teaming with Ken Shamrock, he’d freak out,” Callihan said in an interview with Slam Wrestling. “But, now, as a grown man, I don’t just look at him like a legend – I look at him as an equal, a co-worker. I look at it as a big feather in my cap that I’m the person they put with him after he came back to wrestling after being gone for so many years. Because they knew we could really do good business.”
Callihan also spoke about the last couple of years he has spent in Impact Wrestling. He won the company’s world title and has had high-profile feuds with Rich Swann, Tessa Blanchard and others.
“To go from someone like Pentagon Jr. then to Brian Cage, to Rich Swann, to Tessa Blanchard, then to Ken Shamrock. Anyone you put me in the ring with, I’m going to bring out the best in them.”
Scarlett Bordeaux has provided an injury update on Karrion Kross. The former NXT Champion was forced to vacate the title shortly after winning it from Keith Lee at TakeOver 30 due to suffering a separated shoulder.
According to an Instagram post from Bordeaux, however, Kross’ recovery is going well. “Everyone loves a comeback, but not everyone is willing to do what it takes.”
“We’re getting closer… and he’s about to be the deadliest piece on the board,” Scarlett wrote regarding Kross’ recovery. “
Bordeaux included a video of Kross using a pulley to life both her and another person from a seated position in her post.
Kross currently holds a perfect 7-0 record in NXT. He’s defeated Leon Ruff, Liam Gray, Tommaso Ciampa, Bronson Reed, Dominik Dijakovic, Danny Burch, and Keith Lee. There is currently no timetable for his return.
Separated shoulders typically take between 2-3 months to recover from but it depends on the severity of the injury.
Kross became the 18th wrestler to ever win the NXT title when he did so at TakeOver 30. He began the 20th reign in the title’s lineage before being forced to vacate the belt the next week.
Darby Allin says that he and Steve-O have something planned for Dynamite tomorrow night. Allin will challenge for the TNT Championship coming up on November 7th at Full Gear.
Allin posted a short video featuring him and Steve-O talking about this upcoming episode of Dynamite.
“Hey everybody, I’m Steve-O,” the Jackass star begins the video. “And we all know that Darby Allin is going to be competing for the TNT Championship on November 7th and clearly, there is something really wrong with him because before that match he is going to do this…”
The camera then pans down to reveal a body bag with the words “Face of TNT” on it.
“All kidding aside, this has bad news written all over it,” Steve-O continued.
Darby Allin’s video with Steve-O can be viewed in the Tweet below:
This isn’t the first time Steve-O has been involved with wrestling. Along with Chris Pontius, he appeared on an episode of WWE RAW from 2006. They ended up getting physically involved with Umaga during the show and the Samoan Bulldozer didn’t take kindly to them not selling moves enough to his liking.
“The Samoan Drop, I’ll tell you, it hurt. Like, I woke up in the middle of the night and I couldn’t breathe,” Pontius later said of the experience.
“So now the match is supposed to be over, but I don’t know that I have to play dead,” Steve-O added. “So, I keep moving around and I’m like, ‘Oh!’ and he’s not done beating me up. Now, he’s going to hit me with a f–king elbow that actually knocked me into a blackout. And I showed this to Jason Ellis and he said, ‘Dude, that is not a WWE elbow. That is an MMA [elbow]’, and I’m begging him, like, ‘Please stop doing this to me!’ But that means that he has to keep doing it because I’m moving around. I don’t remember leaving the ring and they just cut to commercial.”
Former President of TNA/Impact Wrestling, Dixie Carter, recently sent out a Tweet promoting the Bound For Glory PPV scheduled for this Saturday. Carter was responding to a Tweet from Scott D’Amore when she made the comments. D’Amore is promising to send a personal video to anyone who pre-orders the PPV from FITE.
Elijah Burke Says Dixie Carter Doesn’t Get Enough Credit
Elijah Burke recently mentioned that he doesn’t feel Dixie Carter gets enough credit for her work in wrestling. He was speaking with the Wrestling EpiCenter podcast when he said Dixie gets a bum rap.
“Certainly, she gets a bum rap and she doesn’t get enough credit for what she did do, which was take a company that was going under and made it a national company and made it a somewhat profitable company. Sure, she was not the wrestling genius or wrestling mastermind, as so many other people have pointed out. But, when it came to the promotion and what needed to be to get IMPACT to a respectable number 2 at the time, she did that. She did that!”
The Lineup For Bound For Glory
Here is the lineup for Saturday’s Bound For Glory event:
Impact World Championship Eric Young (c) vs Rich Swann
Knockouts Championship Deonna Purrazzo (c) vs Kylie Rae
Impact Tag Team Championships The Motor City Machine Guns (c) vs the Good Brothers vs The North vs Ace Austin & Madman Fulton
X-Division Championship Rohit Raju (c) vs Jordynne Grace vs TJP vs Chris Bey vs Trey Miguel vs Willie Mack
WWE’s Paige recently took to Instagram to celebrate 2-years of sobriety. She posted a photo of her from 2 years ago and placed it side-by-side with a current one. It definitely appears the 28-year-old is in a much better place these days.
“I’ve posted something like that before. But so proud of my progress! 2 years of soberness. Mumma feeling goooooddd,” Paige said in the post.
Paige also mentioned that her brother is celebrating 6-weeks of sobriety. She noted that he seems to have aged backward in the last 2 months.
“He is 6 weeks in of being sober and I’m SO proud!!! He aged backwards in just under 2 months. Please throw some support in the comments, he deserves it ? Can’t wait for him to come visit me and ronnie for his 40th in February.”
Paige and former WWE Champion Alberto Del Rio became engaged in 2016. The couple announced they had split in late-2017. There were concerns at the time that substance abuse was rampant in their relaionship. Del Rio will go on trial early next year for aggravated kidnapping and sexual assault. If convicted, Del Rio could face as much as 99 years in prison.
Former NBA referee Tim Donaghy was sentenced to 15 months in prison for his role in the 2007 NBA betting scandal. An FBI investigation concluded that Donaghy bet on games that he was officiating in the 2005/06 and 2006/07 seasons. While his career officiating basketball is over, he is about to begin one as a pro-wrestling referee.
Donaghy and Major League Wrestling have reached a deal that will see the 53-year-old return to officiating.
“Pro wrestling is entertainment, and I always joked the NBA was a form of entertainment and I compared it a little bit to pro wrestling behind the scenes,” Donaghy said to Sports Illustrated. “When I was growing up, I always enjoyed pro wrestling, guys like Hulk Hogan and Ivan Putski. I thought it would be fun to get involved and see where it goes.”
Donaghy is set to be the “personal referee” for Richard Holliday in the promotion. Holliday is part of the Dynasty faction in MLW. He is also the self-proclaimed “Caribbean Champion” although the title actually belongs to Savio Vega.
“If there is a good response, who knows where it can go from here?” Donaghy continued. “I’m willing to do whatever I can to make the show entertaining and fun for everyone watching, and I’m excited to be a part of it.”
Kia Stevens, aka Awesome Kong, plays the role of Tammé Dawson on the Netflix series GLOW. The show was canceled due to the pandemic but efforts are underway to possibly end the series with a movie.
According to a recent Instagram post by Stevens, the show does not have any writers who are persons of color. She also stated the show has been irresponsible with how they have portrayed storylines related to racial stereotypes.
“It has been problematic to use our faces, oftentimes solely in the context of a racist storyline, and to be brief with our story development to serve the in-depth white storylines,” she wrote.
Stevens continued to mention that there are no persons of color on the show’s writing team.
“With zero persons of color in the writer’s room this season, it’s a huge oversight to be writing our narratives without anyone else to represent us besides ourselves,” she continued.
She also pointed out that a central theme of the show is performers from the original GLOW dealing with portraying characters who are racial stereotypes. She noted that the same thing is happening again with actors on the Netflix series.
Kia Stevens Statement On GLOW
“The meta-narrative of our show — actors dealing with the conflict of perpetuating stereotypes in order to have opportunity — is exactly what is happening in our real life.”
“We can no longer be quiet about the pain this has caused and the harm it has done in perpetuating the representation of people of color as sidekicks to elevate white leads.”
Stevens concludes her statement with a call for showrunners to hire an executive producer who is a person of color. They also would like the show to address how portraying racial stereotypes has impacted the performers and amplify their voices and characters in Season 4.
Stevens’ comments seem to imply some version of the show will be returning for a new season or a movie. This cannot be confirmed, however. It was also revealed recently that Taya Valkyrie was cast in season 4. At least one episode had been filmed before the pandemic shut down production. The series was always scheduled to end following the 4th season as well.
Kong returned to the wrestling world last year with AEW. She was briefly a member of Brandi Rhodes’ Nightmare family before the angle was scrapped.
WWE and Lillian Garcia have announced that the longtime ring announcer’s podcast “Chasing Glory” is headed to the WWE Network. The show will be available on the free version of WWE’s streaming service. Garcia’s podcast heading to the WWE Network is just the latest in a series of shows that are doing the same.
“I’m proud to announce that my show, ‘Chasing Glory’ will now appear on the WWE NETWORK!!! That’s right! You will now be able to see it on the FREE side of the Network beginning Monday, October 26!!”
Garcia commented on her decision to start the show in 2016 after leaving WWE.
“Since departing the WWE in 2016, I reflected on what would be next, and it didn’t take long to know the next chapter would be to create positive impact in the world! That is exactly what has happened with “Chasing Glory” as the very real stories of my WWE colleagues, athletes, entertainers and entrepreneurs have impacted millions around the world! On the show, they have had the freedom to express who they are, feel connected to one another, and leave the listeners empowered.”
WWE Network To Feature Several New Podcasts & Shows
In addition to Lillian Garcia’s podcast headed to the WWE Network, so too will the “Swerve City” podcast by Isiah “Swerve” Scott. he noted the show will have a bigger budget as well.
Sam Roberts is also set to host a new show on the WWE Network. This will not be a different version of his podcast but an entirely different show, however. His new show will premiere Thursday morning.
This will be a brand new show- not a video version of the podcast, produced by me, every Thursday morning on @WWE Network. This is surreal. Let’s have some fun. pic.twitter.com/Wn2zj487ro
All 3 podcasts are currently hosted in video form on YouTube and on various podcast platforms. They will be available in video once debuting on the WWE Network as well.
A new episode of Steve Austin’s “Broken Skull Sessions” will also premiere next month. The Undertaker will return to Austin’s show as part of the “30 Days of the Deadman” series announced recently.
