– NXT Diva Alexa Bliss’ new theme song is called “Spiteful,” and is now available on iTunes. You can also check out the song above.
– WWE Hall Of Famer Bret Hart is undergoing surgery to repair his injured hand today in his hometown of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The hand injury is reportedly an old injury Hart suffered during his active pro wrestling career that he has dealt with for years, but as of late has been bothering him to the point that he felt he needed to take care of it.
– WWE teamed with the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks to create a special commemorative t-shirt for this year’s WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view, which for the first time in its’ 29-year history emanated from Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia on Sunday. The official Twitter account of the Hawks posted the following photo of the shirt.
Our co-branded @WWE Survivor Series shirts are on sale now at the Hawks Shop in advance of the big event Sunday! pic.twitter.com/kXC86vvGCb
As noted, Triple H was a guest on Z107’s Greg and the Morning Buzz radio show and spoke about feeling blessed to be in the position he is in and Vince McMahon’s thoughts on NXT. Below are some of the highlights from the interview.
On never dreaming he’d be in the position in WWE that he’s in now and feeling blessed:
“You hate to use the word ‘blessed’ or anything like that because it’s just so overused and all that. But you hear so many people say it all the time. You hear it in sports and ‘I’m so blessed to do this’ and I guess the guy you just beat wasn’t quite as blessed. But it’s just used and it’s a cliche, right?”
On Vince McMahon’s feelings about the NXT brand:
“Look, at the end of the day, [NXT]’s his company, right? I mean, I’ll see people say, ‘oh, NXT is the second biggest promotion.’ Well, no, it’s part of the biggest promotion in the world. We’ve just kind of created our own thing in our own niche. And to be able to take it from what it was, a developmental thing and trying to get people to that next level, which is still the goal, right? It’s still the goal. To take it to where we have is huge. We’re just giving [the audience] an opportunity to have another brand and another thing to watch and enjoy. And if you’re a fan of what we do, then that’s awesome. And, look, it’s designed to fill that niche. That’s exactly what it’s designed to do.”
– As reported earlier this week, WWE signed CMLL star La Sombra. As is the case with most high-profile NXT acquisitions, Triple H took to social media to post a photo of the two together and welcome him to the company. HHH posted the following on Twitter:
Some are just born with the business in their blood…it is my pleasure to welcome Manuel Oropeza to @WWENXT.https://t.co/iPbJQh0eXB
– As “The Undertaker week continues to roll on the WWE Network, WWE posted another video looking back, this time at The Undertaker’s theme song. Check out the above video as Jon Stewart, Sasha Banks, John Wall and other celebrities and WWE Superstars an d Divas talk about “The Dead Man’s” iconic theme song.
– NXT Diva Gionna Daddio is now going by the name Liv Morgan in NXT. Liv Morgan will face Emma on the December 2nd edition of NXT on the WWE Network.
– The Rock took to social media on Thursday to unveil the official promotional poster for his new movie with Kevin Hart called “Central Intelligence.” He wrote the following in addition to posting the photo of the poster.
WORLD EXCLUSIVE: The only one of its kind Central Intelligence teaser poster! Me and Kevin Hart teamed up to make an iconic, global action comedy the world could enjoy. As y’all know saving the world takes a Big Johnson and my friend Kevin is exactly where he belongs… behind me and sh*tting himself. We’re both excited to bring y’all this movie! Summer may never be the same… #CentralIntelligence #BigJohnson #ScaredHart JUNE 17th
Two familiar faces made their respective NXT returns at the NXT television taping on Saturday night, as Blue Pants (Leva Bates) and former TNA World Heavyweight Champion James Storm both worked matches.
A while back, it was reported that Blue Pants had backstage heat on her in WWE and would not be brought back any time soon, due to an incident involving alcohol during SummerSlam weekend in Brooklyn, New York.
Blue Pants taped a match on Thursday night with Nia Jax that will air on the December 2nd edition of NXT. Her last match with NXT was a loss to Alexa Bliss at the August 13th NXT tapings. Her last NXT appearance was at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn.
In Storm’s case, he recently made his NXT debut at the NXT tapings held October 8th. Storm beat Danny Burch that night. On the 12/2 edition of NXT, Storm will return on NXT television for the first time since his 10/8 debut, as he taped a match with Adam Rose.
A few weeks ago, it was reported that Storm had yet to actually sign an official WWE contract. Whether or not that remains the case now that he has been brought back to NXT TV remains to be seen. We’ll keep you posted.
As noted, former TNA and ROH star Austin Aries is backstage at the NXT television tapings at Full Sail University this evening, however he isn’t the only former TNA star at the show.
It was rumored earlier this week that James Storm would be making his NXT return after debuting a few weeks ago. As it turns out, Storm is indeed backstage at the show and is expected to wrestle during tonight’s taping.
Finally, Storm’s former TNA World Tag-Team Champion partner Gunner is backstage at the show in Winter Park, Florida as well.
In the case of Gunner, much like Aries, it isn’t exactly clear what he is doing at the show and is in no way confirmed that he will be debuting for NXT tonight.
Former TNA and ROH star Austin Aries was spotted arriving at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida, the site of tonight’s NXT television tapings.
Aries, who has been part of both the TNA and ROH rosters during the 2015 calendar year, stopped briefly to sign a couple of autographs on his way into the building.
Although Aries is at the taping, his reason for being there is unclear and it is not confirmed that he will be part of the taping.
Make sure to visit SEScoops.com later this evening for spoiler results from the NXT television tapings.
UPDATE: Two more former top TNA stars backstage at the NXT television tapings this evening as well. Find out who by clicking here.
– In the video featured above, Chad Gable and Jason Jordan talk about defeating The Ascension on this week’s edition of NXT.
– Announced for next week’s NXT is a contract signing between NXT Champion Finn Balor and Samoa Joe for their match at the upcoming NXT TakeOver: London special, which takes place on Wednesday, December 16th at SSE Wembley Arena in London, England. As noted, the special will air live on the WWE Network at 3pm EST. / Noon PST. on 12/16.
– In addition to the contract signing, the following matches were announced for next week’s NXT, which will be taped on Thursday night, November 19th from Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida.
* Bayley vs. Eva Marie
* Asuka vs. Dana Brooke
* The Mechanics vs. The Vaudevillains
WWE has been more aggressive as of late when it comes to contacting contracted stars in both Ring Of Honor and Lucha Underground about coming into the company through NXT.
All the top names you’d expect that WWE might be interested in are being contacted, without the previously held “looks” and “size” limitations that the promotion has been known to be biased about in the past because the plan is to load up on the NXT roster.
WWE wants to add a lot of top workers to the NXT roster in 2016 for more extensive touring with what would basically be a WWE branded and WWE-level production type of show, but with ROH level main event matches.
A key, as was explained to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, is that Vince McMahon didn’t want ROH or TNA talents on the main WWE roster if they had been exposed on national cable television already, and if they had been merchandised.
The issue with ROH talent, which is said to be changing, was the fact that the promotion blindsided WWE when they got on Destination America. This is reportedly not an issue when it comes to those same talents working in NXT, where there is more of an emphasis on it being a work-rate promotion.
Because some people ask for a label: Yes, this is an editorial.
Last night’s show-closing segment on Monday Night Raw was not the first time WWE has, uncomfortably, worked someone’s real life death into an angle. That goes back a decade to Eddie Guerrero’s death, and you can go back further for them using it outside of the storyline context, like the Raw interview with Brian Pillman’s widow in 1997. It’s never a good thing and it’s always uncomfortable, but what they did last night was, in its own unique way, the worst of them all.
“You know what, Charlotte? You’re wrong sweetheart. ‘Cause your little baby brother? He didn’t have much fight in him, did he?” -Paige
It’s been over two and a half years since Reid Fliehr’s death at just 25 years of age from an overdose of heroin and prescription medication. Ashley/Charlotte considers her wrestling career, in large part, her way of fulfilling his dream and keeping his spirit alive, .as he had been working for independent promotions and All Japan Pro Wrestling. As you might think from the cause of death, he had been battling drug addiction for years. Which is the beginning of why last night’s scripting stands out as so objectionable.
The Eddie Guerrero exploitation was terrible and crass, but was never really about demeaning him in a direct way. The same goes for the Paul Bearer stuff, and that at least had th slight improvement of it being more clearly delineated that the Paul Bearer character was killed off because William Moody had actually died. How they died was off limits.
Last night? It wasn’t.
As bad as it is to invoke his death for some lame pro wrestling angle in the first place, here, the inference is, effectively, “Ha-ha, your junkie brother ODed!” It prostitutes his worth as a human being and the mental illness he struggled with from his teens (and yes, addiction is as much a mental illness as OCD, depression, or bipolar disorder are). And for what? Some doomed to fail skit put at the end of the show because the third hour is siphoning viewers anyway?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2WR40HgDbU
What gives this more wide-ranging, real world consequences that past WWE death exploitation angles is that mental illness is heavily stigmatized, especially in the United States. Die from cancer and the perception is that you lost your valiant battle. Die from a mental illness and the perception is that you’re weak. Unless, by some small chance this storyline ends with a passionate Charlotte promo about destigmatizing mental illness, then what exactly is the point?
No, most viewers don’t know how Reid Fliehr died. But plenty do: Charlotte talks about him all the time when she does media appearances and more fans than ever follow wrestling news online, anyway. Being cryptic helps WWE, because, like with Lana’s promo last year that viewers thought was about the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines Flight 17, you can always say that’s not what they meant.
As for Charlotte, it’s really quite simple: If it wasn’t her idea, it’s disgusting as her employer to script her to take part in last night’s angle. If by some chance it was her idea, and her mom’s tweets certainly suggest that it wasn’t, then she should have been vetoed anyway.
To think this company wonders why they have trouble getting advertising rates at the level of non-wrestling programming with the same viewership. They’re in the bubble. Nothing will ever change.
Triple H announced earlier today that NXT will be holding a special TV taping in Orlando, FL on Friday, January 22nd during Royal Rumble weekend.
Instead of holding the taping from Full Sail University, NXT will be invade the CFE Arena on the campus of the University of Central Florida. The venue has a capacity of approximately 10,000 for MMA events.
A ticket pre-sale will be taking place this Friday, November 20th at 10AM (EST).
On 1/22 @WWENXT is coming to CFE Arena/UCF Campus for the biggest Orlando taping ever. Pre-sale tickets on sale 11/20 at 10am ET. #GetReady
As noted, Billy Gunn was fired from his job as a trainer at the WWE Performance Center over the weekend after he tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs at a power-lifting competition back in July. WWE was unaware of Gunn’s suspension or the fact that he was active in power-lifting competitions.
Bryan Alvarez noted on Wrestling Observer Live that it’s believed WWE only tests contracted talent, not the WWE coaches or staff at the WWE Performance Center. This is likely why there was never a negative WWE Wellness test for Gunn.
WWE officials were forced to release Gunn when they became aware of the situation, as they felt they couldn’t have one of their trainers testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs without it making their entire developmental program look bad.
No official decision has been made regarding Gunn’s replacement, however WWE is reportedly considering two people for the job.
NXT Diva Alexa Bliss has responded to rumors spreading online that were apparently started by another WWE developmental talent.
The rumors were started on a gossip website called TheDirty.com, which is a website that allows people to anonymously submit “dirt” on other people. The website has been in the center of many big scandals involving athletes and other celebrities in the past.
The anonymous user who submitted the information on Bliss claims to be a talent currently training at the WWE Performance Center and claims Bliss needs to be called out for being a “ring rat.” A ring rat is a pro wrestling insider term that refers to someone, generally female fans or wrestlers, that is known for sleeping with the wrestlers on a regular basis.
The post regarding Bliss read as follows:
“THE DIRTY ARMY: Nik, I am currently training with WWE to be a wrestler. We train at NXT in Orlando. A great group of men and women are down here but I have to call out one girl, Alexa Bliss. I wish to stay anonymous but this needs to be out. She is a ring rar as we call it. She sleeps with just about every person who walks in the door here and has slept with trainers, higher ups, wrestlers and whoever else she can get her hands on. I have heard nasty stories I refuse to share. She is cute and nice but is a total slore. She is not very good in the ring but isn’t bad as a manager. I hope she sees this and cleans her act up asap.”
Bliss acknowledged the post on her Twitter account, writing “All false” in one tweet before deleting it and simply leaving this one up:
One Thing my mother always taught me… "Your reputation is something you will NEVER out grow, so make sure it's one you're proud of"
WWE announced this week that the next NXT TakeOver special, which is scheduled for Wednesday, December 16th, will air live on the WWE Network from the SSE Wembley Arena in London, England at 3 p.m. Eastern time and Noon Pacific time.
Although an official lineup has yet to be released, the card is loooking like:
NXT Champion Finn Balor vs. Samoa Joe
Apollo Crews vs. Baron Corbin
Asuka vs. Emma
The 12/16 TakeOver show is also expected to include NXT Tag-Team Title and NXT Women’s Title matches. Those two title matches should become clear on November 19th when the final television tapings leading up to the show are taped at Full Sail University.
Make sure to join us here at SEScoops.com on Wednesday, December 16th for the best NXT TakeOver: London live results coverage on the web!
WWE has officially confirmed the release of their new “WWE NXT’s Greatest Matches Vol. 1” DVD and Blu-ray set for the United Kingdom and Europe. The set is scheduled to be released on March 7, 2016, one day before the North American release date.
Additionally, WWE has released an official trailer for the DVD and Blu-ray, which you can see above. They also confirmed the following matches for the set.
NXT Title Match: Big E vs. Seth Rollins, 1/9/2013
NXT Title Match: Sami Zayn vs. Neville, Takeover: R Evolution
NXT Title Match: Finn Balor vs. Kevin Owens, Beast In The East
NXT Women’s Title Match: Bayley vs. Sasha Banks, Takeover: Brooklyn
NXT Women’s Title Match: Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte, 7/15/2015 (Blu-ray exclusive)
Tyler Breeze vs. Apollo Crews, Takeover: Respect (Blu-ray exclusive)
– WWE taped the following matches on Tuesday afternoon in Manchester, England for tonight’s edition of WWE SmackDown. For complete WWE SmackDown spoilers for tonight, click here.
* Braun Strowman vs. Fandango
* The Usos vs. Luke Harper & Erick Rowan
* WWE Title Tournament: Neville vs. King Barrett
* WWE Title Tournament: Ryback vs. Kalisto
* WWE Title Tournament: Alberto Del Rio vs. Stardust
– A company called Internet Marketing Ninjas announced this week that they are teaming up with WWE Hall Of Famer “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan for a fan-engaged event centered around the WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view event on Sunday, November 22nd. The event will be streamed on their official YouTube page at 8pm EST. For all of the details, visit InternetMarketingNinjas.com.
– Aiden English of The Vaudevillains posted a tweet after his team lost the NXT Tag-Team Titles to The Mechanics on last night’s NXT TV show that suggests their rivalry isn’t over quite yet. English tweeted the following:
A cheap shot to steal gold is one thing…try to put me out like you did Cass? That's something else entirely. We are not finished here…
As seen on this week’s NXT on the WWE Network, The Mechanics (Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder) defeated The Vaudevillains (Simon Gotch and Aiden English) to become the new NXT Tag-Team Champions.
Dawson and Wilder were congratulated on social media by Triple H, as well as their good friend, WWE Hall Of Famer Adam “Edge” Copeland. Below you can see their comments, as well as what appears to be a challenge to the main roster from Dawson. Additionally, you can check out a video of The Mechanics’ backstage interview after winning the titles below.
WWE officials have continued to have discussions regarding their working relationship with WWN Live, the parent-company of EVOLVE, however things are said to be moving slow and no one appears to be rushing anything.
If Triple H and others have their way, NXT will become a full-blown touring brand by the end of 2017, which means a lot of expanding and growth planned for NXT next year. There is reportedly talk of WWN helping to fill some of the void that is created when NXT does go on the road full-time. The idea is that NXT talents who aren’t perceived to be ready for touring can take bookings with WWN in Florida while WWE helps with some of the costs.
WWN is rumored to become somewhat of a WWE territory based out of Florida, with WWE sending them their least experienced developmental talents to improve so that they are ready for NXT tours across the globe. As noted, right now things are still in the very early stages.
New NXT star Rich Swann recently spoke with WWE.com about signing with the company, his goals and more. Below are some of the highlights.
On how training at the WWE Performance Center compares to training in dojos in Japan:
“It’s very similar [as far as] the training regimen and the schedule, but WWE’s facility is just a bit nicer. [Laughs.] The dojo’s grimy; in the winter it’s cold and in the summer it’s hot. No air conditioning. It’s crazy. Plus, you’re in a country where you barely speak the language in the beginning, it definitely takes a toll. In Japan, you gotta get it, you’ve gotta go after it. You have to prove yourself and wrestle what they call the “young boys.” They don’t teach them the art of wrestling until they feel they deserve it, so when you’re in there with them, you’re getting beat up and bruised and smacked and thrown around and you’re having to prove yourself.”
On who he was influenced by:
“Wrestlers like Psicosis, Eddie Guerrero, Chavo Guerrero, Rey Mysterio, RVD, Jerry Lynnn, Super Crazy, like that. Once I found out what ECW was when I was in middle school — boom — that turned me. WCW, too. I love these bigger guys, but I knew I was never going to be that big. The cruiserweights, however, look at these guys move, flipping around, doing crazy things and being daredevils. Guys like The Hardys. I was drawn to them because that’s what I wanted to do.”
On his goals in NXT:
“Definitely. If you’re in wrestling, you want to be the top guy and you want to be the champion. But my goal right now is to make it onto NXT Live Events, make it onto NXT at Full Sail and TakeOvers, and I want to take it one step at a time. And as the time comes, I just want to have killer matches and do things that have never been done before.”
– NXT Champion Finn Balor is scheduled for several WWE RAW and SmackDown television tapings after the WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view on November 22nd. Unless Balor is introduced on the main roster in the next few weeks, he will likely be working dark matches at the TV tapings.
– As noted, Monday’s taped edition of RAW in Manchester, England drew 3.173 million viewers, down from last week’s average of 3.248 million viewers. The final RAW rating came in at 2.23, which was also down from last week’s show, which finished with a 2.32 final rating.
– Speaking of Monday’s RAW, WWE posted the following “Top 10 Moments” compilation video for the show.
– In an update from yesterday’s WWE SmackDown television taping in Manchester, England, it appears that The Undertaker and King Barrett segment in the middle of the show was actually a dark segment for the live crowd. As noted, the segment began with Barrett talking about the Wayne Rooney incident from RAW and ended with The Undertaker coming out and hitting him with a Tombstone piledriver.
– As noted, Triple H and Corey Graves recently appeared as Christopher Nowinski’s Concussion Legacy Foundation’s 8th annual Impact Awards in Boston, Mass. and presented the foundation with a check. That check was for $1.5 million. You can check out photos from the event at WWE.com.
– WWE and James Storm are still hyping the former TNA stars’ NXT debut and teasing his eventual return. Storm and the official NXT account tweeted the following this week:
– There are rumors going around claiming that WWE is planning on announcing one or two NXT talent cuts in the near future. While we can confirm the talk, there hasn’t been any word yet regarding which talents may be on the chopping block. The cuts are expected to be announced in the next month or two.
– As noted, WWE will be running a special “Undertaker Week” on the WWE Network starting next Monday. As part of the special theme, a new episode of “Legends with JBL” will premiere. The show will feature “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, Triple H and Shawn Michaels talking about “The Dead Man.”
– Triple H posted the following photo of himself with U.K. soccer stars Wayne Rooney, Ryan Giggs and Darren Fletcher at backstage at Monday’s RAW in Manchester, England.
There has been speculation recently regarding the WWE coaching status of Sara Amato after she appeared on a recent episode of the new WWE Network original series, “WWE Breaking Ground.”
Amato is still working as an agent with the main WWE roster, however she also doubles as a developmental trainer of talents at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida. Additionally, former TNA Knockout Sarah Stock (Sarita) is also working with the female developmental talent in Orlando.
In related Breaking Ground news, the show gave the impression that William Regal teaches the promo classes at the Performance Center, however it is actually Ryan Katz who handles that responsibility.
Katz is a former independent wrestler by the name of “GQ Money,” who was said to be a “Dusty Rhodes Guy” and worked closely with The Dream before his passing.
– On the second episode of WWE Breaking Ground, WWE Senior Director Of Talent Development Canyon Ceman played the role of the executive who had to inform aspiring talent that they were being let go. In all actuality, Canyon was just brought in to fill that role on the show, as normally NXT Head Coach Matt Bloom is the guy who does that, according to PWInsider.com.
– Next Monday, November 16th, WWE will kick off “The Undertaker Week” on the WWE Network. WWE will soon be announcing full details on the special programming scheduled for the week long theme, which is expected to be similar to the recent “Brock Lesnar Week.”
– WWE confirmed via the official NXT Twitter account that the new “NXT: Greatest Matches Vol. 1” DVD and Blu-ray is scheduled for a March 8th release. Additionally, it was announced that Seth Rollins vs. Big E. for the NXT Championship will be on that set, and the NXT Women’s Championship match between Charlotte and Sasha Banks will be a Blu-ray exclusive.
Former NXT Diva Zahra Schreiber made her in-ring debut at the Dreamwave Wrestling live event in La Salle, Illinois on Saturday night.
Schreiber teamed with four other male wrestlers to defeat her opponents in a ten-man elimination tag-team match. She used the “Curb Stomp” for her finisher during the match, the same move previously used by her boyfriend, Seth Rollins. Schreiber was the “sole survivor” for her team.
Below are some photos from Twitter of Schreiber’s appearance last night in La Salle.