Welcome the Daily Drop, your daily roundup of wrestling news and rumors for Saturday, March 23. Last night’s SmackDown was an eventual episode, and there’s a lot to get into.
Days Until WrestleMania 40: 14
WWE:
– Breakout Talents: Axiom and Nathan Frazer are impressing WWE NXT officials in a big way.
– WrestleMania Surprises: With only 2 weeks until WrestleMania 40, the company is talking about bringing in stars like The Undertaker, John Cena, and Steve Austin.
– WWE Shop Is Lighting It Up: They just released a new Roman Reigns “Family Above All” hoodie on the WWE Shop! So, click here to see what they have to offer on the road to WrestleMania!
Family Above All! Your Tribal Chief Roman Reigns has a NEW tee at #WWEShop! #WWE ?: https://t.co/AUY2zvoWJc pic.twitter.com/0inobnM5Go
— WWEShop.com (@WWEShop) March 22, 2024
– Jade Cargill is SmackDown: WWE ran a promo for Jade Cargill last night on SmackDown, where she proclaimed her allegiance to the blue brand. She will appear on next week’s show for the 3/29 episode.
? THIS IS HUGE!!! ? @Jade_Cargill will make her first official appearance as a #SmackDown Superstar NEXT WEEK! pic.twitter.com/JcNtvMuT0W
— WWE (@WWE) March 23, 2024
– Roman x Punk: Roman Reigns had a bit of a comment about CM Punk, and it drew some attention. He said, among other things, that “I’m not like CM Punk, where I got to the top of the mountain, it’s like, ‘Oh, it’s not what I expect, so I’m gonna bitch about it.'”
– Slammys Return: The Slammy Awards will continue this year. WWE announced the company will bring back their awards show this year on April 7, the same day as WrestleMania 40: Sunday. The ceremony will be hosted by Big E and Cathy Kelley.
– Vince McMahon Netflix Doc: The six-part Netflix docuseries is still happening, and that was confirmed. Bill Simmons and his team will need to edit some to change direction, but the project is still moving forward.
AEW:
– Mercedes’ Big Money: It was said by Swerve Strickland in a recent interview that Mercedes Mone deserves all the money she is getting from this AEW contract.
– Kenny Omega Update: Tony Khan stated he is optimistic about Omega’s return from diverticulitis, but there is no return timetable at this time.
– MJF Removed: Fans brought attention to the fact that MJF was removed from the official AEW shop, and their roster page. He was actually removed from the roster page on January 1.
– Cope Open Return: Adam Copeland confirmed that the Cope Open will return on the March 30 episode of AEW Collision. That will see him defend the AEW TNT Title in an open challenge.
EXCLUSIVE! After making Christian Cage utter the words, 'I QUIT', and capturing the TNT Title for the second time, we hear from the NEW TNT Champion Adam Copeland!@RatedRCope | #AEWDynamite pic.twitter.com/CUFyDk2GAj
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) March 21, 2024
– The CEO of Charity: Mercedes Mone bought a very lucky fan a brand-new television. She did this so he could watch AEW, and it was very appreciative of her generosity.
– Rampage High: AEW Rampage hit a high with their episode this week, which aired directly after AEW Dynamite’s 801k average viewership. This week’s AEW Rampage scored 541,000 viewers and a .27 in the 18 to 49 demographic. That was the highest number for the show since the April 22, 2022, episode of the show.
Upcoming Major Pro Wrestling Events
Looking ahead, here are some of the major upcoming shows that we have in the pipeline:
April 6: NXT Stand & Deliver and WrestleMania XL Saturday from Philadelphia, PA.
April 7: WrestleMania XL Sunday from Philadelphia, PA.
April 21: All Elite Wrestling presents AEW Dynasty live on pay-per-view from St. Louis, Missouri at the Chaifetz Arena.
May 4: WWE Backlash France from Décines-Charpieu, France at the LDLC Arena.
