It was announced during this week’s SmackDown that the Stone Cold Podcast is returning the night after Money in the Bank. Immediately following WWE RAW from Phoenix, Arizona on Monday, June 20th, Steve Austin’s guest will be AJ Styles.
Since making his debut earlier this year at the Royal Rumble, Styles went on to have strong feuds with Chris Jericho and Roman Reigns before turning heel and going full throttle with Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson.
Styles will be hot off his match against John Cena the previous night and is sure to provide some new insight on his first 6 months as a WWE Superstar.
WWE has confirmed that Randy Orton will appear on USA Netowrk’s new original show, Shooter show. Orton will have a guest starring role playing James Richards, a former Navy SEAL and leader of a militia group.The cast also features Ryan Phillippe, Omar Epps, Shantel VanSanten and Cynthia Addai-Robinson.
The series is based on the best-selling novel “Point of Impact” by Stephen Hunter and a 2007 film adaptation starring Mark Wahlberg. Wahlberg joins Emmy Award winner Stephen Levinsion as executive producers on “Shooter.”
The show premieres on the USA Network on Tuesday, July 19th.
– AJ Styles reacts to the announcement for his Money In the Bank PPV match against John Cena in this video. Styles says it won’t be a dream match for Cena because of what AJ will do toh im and no one can stop him with The Club at his side:
It’s official – John Cena will go one-on-one against AJ Styles at WWE’s upcoming Money in the Bank pay-per-view. WWE is promoting the contest as a “dream match” and after the reaction both men received on RAW when they went face to face, it’s clear the WWE Universe is on board with that billing.
It will be Cena’s first match since returning from a 6-month layoff. Following the betrayal by Styles on RAW and the vicious assault suffered at the hands of The Club, John Cena has a score to settle later this month.
WWE Money In The Bank takes place on Sunday, June 19, 2016 from Las Vegas, Nevada at the T-Mobile Arena.
Kevin Kelly provides voiceover for a Bullet Club video package, “A faction reeking havoc overseas has found its way into ROH Wrestling. This week we look at Bullet Club, from its founding members to its newest recruits.”
KK introduces the show from backstage, “Red hot, super controversial, and more dominant than ever, for the next 60 minutes, it’s all about BC. What BC did at Global Wars has the entire wrestling world talking, but we will also take you back in time and show you how the club formed, how it has changed through the years, and how it’s now poised to become stronger and more dominant than ever. Since BC was formed in 2013 in New Japan, they have been popular, but have also seen members come and go. But one thing that has remained the same, BC is always trying to put everyone’s buttons to gain every edge they possibly can. They made their presence felt In New York City, at War of the Worlds 2014. At the time, their leader was Machine Gun Karl Anderson. He and Gallows were IWGP tag team champions, but how they would fare against the 8 time ROH Tag Team Champions, Dem Boyz, the Briscoes?”
Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson (Bullet Club) vs. The Briscoes (IWGP Tag Team Championship Match from War of the Worlds 5/17/14)
When we pick up the action, uppercut by Anderson on Jay, Jay returns with a fist, Gallows back body drops Mark on the floor, whip from Anderson to Jay, but Jay meets him with a boot, Jay hooks for the Jay Driller, but Gallows comes in and slaps him in the face. Anderson with a running kick to the face, Gallows with a back shoulder block, clothesline by Gallows, sitting senton by Anderson, splash by Gallows, Gallows picks him up into a fireman’s carry, Anderson comes off the ropes and kicks him in the face, cover, kick out.
Gallows and Anderson set up for the Magic Killer, until Mark comes in with a kick to Gallows, 3 Mongolian chops to Gallows, a fury of Kung Fu chops to the shoulder, then a running clubbing blow knocks the big man down. Mark tags in officially, and then goes after Anderson. Mark misses with a chop, hits a bunch of Kung Fu chops to the chest, push kick to the chest, running kick to the chest by Jay, clothesline by Mark, spinning forearm by Jay, and then Mark goes off the top and nails the Froggy Bow, but Anderson kicks out.
The Briscoes call for their springboard Doomsday Device, but Gallows runs off the ropes with a boot to the chest of Jay, Mark comes off the top rope, Anderson catches him mid-air and nails the Ace Crusher, and then a sitting slam by Gallows on Jay, BC pick up Mark, hit the Magic Killer, and this one is over, 1-2-3.
Winner and still IWGP Tag Team Champions: Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson (Bullet Club) (War of the Worlds 5/17/14)
On WotW commentary, KK says, “For the first time tonight, BC is victorious over RPH.” MW3 replies, ”You jinxed it.” KK says, “I might have.” MW3 says, ”You dummy, you blew it for Briscoe!”
After the commercial break, KK says, “If you love throwing them up, or too sweeting your friends, or joining a superkick party, then this is the hour for you, because we’re talking all about BC. The wars between BC and ROH didn’t begin at this year at Global Wars, in fact last year at the big event in Toronto, it was an amazing 10-man tag, BC taking on the ROH All-Stars.”
AJ Styles, Karl Anderson, Doc Gallows, Young Bucks (Bullet Club) vs. Strong, War Machine, The Briscoes (ROH All-Stars) (Global Wars 5/15/15)
When we pick up the action, Hanson sets up for a front flip onto everybody and lands it. MW3 says, “Holy… you know the rest!” Hanson rolls Matt back into the ring, then throws in Anderson. Strong delivers knees to Matt, AJ, and Anderson. Strong hits the running knee to Matt, hooks Matt for the superplex and nails it. Strong with running knee to AJ, hooks AJ for the superplex and nails it again. MW3 says, “Jeez Louise!” Strong hits the running knee on Anderson, hooks Anderson for the superplex, MW3 says, “Cheese and crackers, Roderick Strong is on fire!” and nails it for the third time. Strong hits a running knee on Gallows, set him up for a 4th superplex, MW3 says, “No way!” Nick comes up on the apron and pulls Strong down, Strong fights out with forearms and a kick to Nick, Gallows tumbles to the floor, Strong then sets up Nick for a 4th superplex but in the direction of the floor, MW3 says, “Guys guys, too dangerous, oh for god’s sake!” then launches Nick onto the floor onto everyone and the fans go berserker.
Gallows is up first, he climbs back into the ring with Hanson, spinning back heel kick by Hanson, sit down chokeslam powerbomb by Gallows, hits the ropes but Rowe with a sidewalk slam, Anderson with a cutter and AJ with a suplex. “Did AJ styles just curse? I think he cursed!” AJ hooks Rowe for the Styles Clash, but Strong runs the ropes and delivers a kick to AJ, Anderson gets thrown to the outside, MW3 says, “We need 32 camera angles for this.” Nick gets knocked off the apron, Matt gets superkicked by Jay, flipping backbreaker by Strong, and then Jay hooks for the Jay Driller before Mark comes off the top rope with Froggy Bow to Matt, 1-2-3, and the ROH All Stars win.
Winners: Roderick Strong, War Machine, The Briscoes (ROH All-Stars) (Global Wars 5/15/15)
KK continues backstage, “You can’t talk about the BC and their dominance in New Japan Pro Wrestling without focusing on the fact that they have held every belt in that company, and most recently capturing the newly-minted NEVER Openweight 6-man Championship at Honor Rising.”
Kenny Omega & Young Bucks (Bullet Club Elite) vs. Toru Yano & The Briscoes (c) (NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship Match from Honor Rising 2/20/16)
Before the bell, Hall comes in with blatant interference and takes out the Briscoes from behind. Yano is alone in the ring with all four men and scared, they stomp him down. The referee throws Hall out of the ring. KK says, “Red Shoes doing all that he can to send the son of the bad guy out, now the bell sounds, now it’s an official contest.”
Nick jumps over turnbuckle and runs the apron with a kick to Yano. Elite pose in the middle of the ring before the Briscoes come in and nail YB from behind. Mark with forearms to Omega, kicks to the gut, whip reversal into the corner, Mark jumps over, rolls through, and then suplexes Omega. Jay throws Matt into the other corner, splash, snapmare takeover, running dropkick to the chest, and then Mark throws him out of the ring. Yano throws Nick back into the ring, Nick turns around slowly, and then gets kicked by the Briscoes. Mark with a punch, Jay with a headbutt, and then they launch him with a front flip up-and-over the top turnbuckle onto the floor as he crashes into on Hall, Omega, and Matt (but mostly Hall), very impressive.
Omega gets back in at 14, he tries to punch Yano, but Yano ducks in the ropes like Yano does, the crowd chants, “Break!” Hall grabs him by the legs, holds him on the ropes and the YB superkick him. Nick crawls out and rolls Yano and his shenanigans back in the ring, Omega throws him out the other side, and then The Elite too sweet each other, before doing synchronized suicide Triple Toffee dives. Nick looks at the camera and says, “The best on planet Earth.” Omega says, “I never knew that one. My God, that was good.” The fans chant, “Young Bucks!“ Matt crotch chops along with the chants, punches to Jay, Nick throws Yano back in the ring, Omega covers, kick out. Omega slams Yano on his head into the turnbuckle, kick to the gut, and then pushes a boot to the jaw, but the referee calls for the break. KK tells us, “Toru Yano is a very interesting athlete, you wouldn’t know it from looking at him. He even ran a marathon, and then wrestled that night. He had a decent time 5-6 hours, but still would take me 5-6 days.” Matt does a You Can’t See Me to Yano while he’s laying in the corner, drags him back to the center of the ring, stomps him in the back and shoulder, drops a forearm, leg drop, cover, kick out, and we go to commercial.
When we return, Omega has an abdominal stretch on Yano, he grabs Hall who is holding Matt’s hand on the outside, while Matt is holding the rail, and all three of them stretch Yano. Cover by Omega, kick out. Omega positions Yano face-first standing against the turnbuckle while Nick and Cody hold him, and then Omega rolls through and rakes his back. Nick does a handstand somersault flips over and rakes Yano’s back. Matt comes in and says, “Come on Yano, what do you got Yano, what do you got Yano, nothing nothing,” and punches him in the face, picks him up off the mat and runs his head into Nick’s foot, pushes him to the turnbuckle, and Nick tags in. YB whip Yano into the corner, Nick runs in, Yano throws them up and over, and then Omega lands a running back shoulder block, while the YB superkick him.
Yano begins to tear off the turnbuckle, Matt holds Briscoe while Nick runs over and kicks him, Yano gets up slowly, YB stomp the mat for the superkick, but he turns around with the turnbuckle, blocks both kicks, baseball swings the turnbuckle and takes both of them out. Omega kicks him in the gut, whip reversal off the ropes, and then he baseball swings Omega with the turnbuckle. Yano crawls over and gets the hot tag to Mark.
Mark with a running corner turnbuckle kick to Nick’s jaw, sets Nick on the turnbuckle, grabs him by the hands and flips him over the top for a suplex, cover, Matt comes in the break it up. Matt fights out with forearms, Jay comes in, they whip him to the corner, and then they kick Matt to the mat. Forearms by Mark to Nick, Mark slides under, give him the Kung Fu pose, goes to kick him, Nick flips him, he grabs Nick’s foot, and then Omega comes in with the superkicks assist. Jay runs in with a boot to Omega, a boot to Nick, closed hand punches to Omega, whip reversal off the ropes, and then Jay connects with a shoulder to the gut, Jay hooks Omega for a neckbreaker, but Matt comes in and superkicks Jay. Omega tags in, Matt with a running turnbuckle bomb into the corner on Mark while Nick kicks him in the back of the head. Omega with a running back elbow, Matt with a cannonball in the corner, then Matt holds Mark on the ropes while Nick swantons onto him, Omega covers, but Mark kicks out. Matt pulls Mark to his feet, snap dragon suplex by Omega, and then all 3 of them superkick Mark, Omega covers, but Jay comes in to break it up. Omega picks up Mark by his hair, knife edge chop, whip off the ropes, flips Mark over his shoulder, he lands on his feet and tags in Yano.
Yano comes in, Omega kicks him in the gut, Matt kicks him in the gut, another kick, and then all three of them setup to whip Yano into the exposed turnbuckle, Yano pleads for mercy, they send him in, but he stops himself, Matt runs into the exposed turnbuckle as Yano gets out of the way, Yano atomic drops Nick with a knee to the crotch, Omega misses a clothesline, Yano ducks a second clothesline, kicks Omega. Omega runs up the exposed turnbuckle, leaps over Yano, Yano gets out of the way, drop toehold sends Omega’s head into the exposed turnbuckle, and then Yano nails a double low blow to the YB, Yano shrugs and looks surprised like “What did I do?”
Hall comes in with a full nelson, Omega uses the spraycan but Yano ducks and Omega spraycans Hall, Yano covers, kick out. Omega with a double clubbing blow to the arm, Yano reverses into a roll-up cover, but Omega spraycans him in the face. Then Matt spraycans both Omega and Nick in the crotch and his own as well.
Jay and Mark comes in with kicks and forearms to Omega and Matt, Jay with 2 headbutts, uppercut to Omega, while Mark nails Matt, and then they hit the ropes, but Elite kick Briscoes, then Omega and Matt set up for dual Indytakers/ Meltzer Drivers as Nick springboards of the top rope and connects. The YB kick the Briscoes out of the ring, Omega with the rolling fireman’s carry slam, handsprings off his head to the ropes, moonsault off the ropes, Nick swantons, Matt hits a 450 splash, and then Omega covers for the victory on Yano.
Winners and NEW NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Champions: Young Bucks & Kenny Omega (Bullet Club Elite) (Honor Rising 2/20/16)
After we return from commercial, KK says, “BC has certainly had their fair share of transition, members coming and going over time. When one leaves someone else steps up, but what would happen when 2 members would leave at same time? We want to show you from Honor Rising, 2 of the mainstays of BC, the last match for machine gun Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows, 8-man tag team action.
Karl Anderson, Doc Gallows, Tama Tonga, & Bad Luck Fale (Bullet Club) vs Katsuyori Shibata, reDRagon, & Hirooki Goto (Honor Rising 2/20/16)
BC are out first, Fale shoves down the ring announcer before the introductions are made. KK says Anderson and Gallows “definitely want to go out on a winning note here tonight.” The softly-beginning punk music for Shibata, ‘Takeover’ by Low IQ 01 (awesome song), leads the faces to the ring.
Anderson kicks a young boy in the back, knocking him off the apron and then jaws at O’Reilly. BC attacks before the bell, Anderson stomps O’Reilly, whips him into the corner, O’Reilly jumps over, rolls back to his feet, runs the ropes, kicks to the gut, kick to the chest, and a leg sweep puts Machine Gun to the mat. Armbar by O’Reilly, then a pump handle. KK mentions that “BC has seen the likes of the former Prince Devitt and AJ styles come and go.” Goto tags in and we go to commercial.
When we return, Fale slams Goto to the mat, and then sits on him for a cover, but Goto kicks out. Gallows tags in, pushes Goto to the corner, punches to the gut, and then an uppercut to the jaw, snap suplex by Gallows, cover, kick out. Gallows drops 3 elbows to the chest, cover, kick out again. KK says, “Not many men that size can move with that agility.” Gallows runs Goto’s head into the corner, and tags in Anderson. KK reminds us that “Of course, Karl Anderson had a tag team partner, before the formation of BC actually, Giant Benard. Able to plug in Doc Gallows, 3-time champs.” Snapmare takeover, headlock, Goto gets to his feet and fights out with elbows to the gut, runs the ropes, but Anderson with a jumping leg lariat, cover, kick out, cover, kick out, cover, kick out. KK says, “Marty Asami’s arm is getting worn out.”
Anderson tags in Tonga, 3 punches to the gut, runs around, slides around, jumping forearm to the chest, and then jumping dropkick to the chest, cover, but Shibata comes in to break it up with a kick to the back, Shibata then kicks his tag team partner Goto in the back to wake him up and for a little motivation, Goto looks pissed. Tonga with a stomp, punch to the chest, whip reversal, and Godo nails a clothesline, goes over to his team’s corner, Shibata asks for the tag, but Fish tags himself in instead.
Fish hits a kick to Tonga, and then clubbing forearms knocks the rest of the BC off of the apron, go behind by Tonga, but Fish backs him into the corner, and then reDRagon do their running kicks into the corner, Fish flips him up over his knee, and O’Reilly comes off the top rope with a stomp to Tonga, Anderson comes in to break up the pin. O’Reilly throws him to the outside and then does a crossbody over the top rope onto the floor. Back in the ring, Fish with 3 forearms to Tonga and then a kick to the leg, runs in, Tonga picks him up into a fireman’s carry, Fish fights out with a forearm to the jaw, punch to the gut, kick to the leg, whip but Tonga reverses into a fireman’s carry, and then a spinning airplane face slam by Tonga to Fish, Fish gets the tag to Shibata and Gallows tags in as well. Shibata throws Gallows into the corner, connects with a bunch of forearms, drops him to the mat, he runs in, but Gallows gets to his feet, and uncoils right hand to the jaw, throws Shibata off the ropes, but Shibata kicks the legs, knocking the big man to the mat, Shibata goes to lock in a figure four, but Anderson breaks it up. Anderson then lands blows to the head of Shibata (about 10 of them), dares Shibata to hit him, and Shibata returns with one big strike that knocks Anderson down.
Anderson, Fale, and Tonga come in and clear the ring, Tonga with a splash on Shibata, Anderson with a running kick, Fale with a splash, and Gallows with a splash, Gallows and Anderson nail the reverse neckbreaker, KK says, “It’s not the Magic Killer, but is it a win?” Pin attempt, but everybody comes in, it’s a melee, Gallows sets up Fish between his legs, but O’Reilly kicks Gallows, Tonga takes O’Reilly out with a back shoulder elbow, and then Fish lands a fireman’s carry backdrop on Tonga. Fale with a clubbing forearm to Fish, then Goto with a forearm to Fale, knocking him to the outside. Anderson with an uppercut to Goto, Anderson and Gallows hook Shibata for the Magic Killer, but Goto breaks it up. Anderson goes for the Gun Stun, but Goto fights out, runs the ropes, Anderson jumps over then ducks, goes for another Gun Stun, but Goto fights out again, hooks into a fireman, and then Goto nails a neckbreaker to Anderson, Gallows with a boot to Goto.
Gallows and Shibata in now, right hand by Gallows, Shibata runs the ropes into a boot from Gallows, but Shibata won’t go down, Shibata runs the ropes a second time, meets another boot, finally he goes down. Gallows picks him up with a sitting slam, cover, and Shibata kicks out. Gallows picks him up for a vertical suplex, but Shibata transitions into a rear naked choke, and Gallows begins to go to sleep, Shibata drops him to the mat, and then nails the PK Penalty Kick for the victory.
KK says, “Bullet Club has certainly raised a lot of thoughts in the minds of wrestling fans throughout the world. Were they looking to take over and have a good time? Or were they setting a course to take over the entire world professional wrestling? After what expired at Global Wars, I think we might have some insight of what the future of BC is all about.”
When we pick up the action from Colt Cabana vs. Jay Lethal, Cabana has an Boston Crab on Lethal, Hendrix pulls the referee Todd Sinclair to the outside, and then YB superkick ref and superkick Hendrix. MW3 yells, “I’m going to get the shirt!” They roll into the ring, hold up two Bullet Club shirts, offer them to Lethal and Cabana. MW3 says, “But I’ve worked so hard!” Suddenly, the lights go out, and when we return Adam Cole is in the ring wearing a BC T-shirt and chewing gum. “That’s Adam Cole! Adam Cole! He’s got a BC shirt on!” He yells, “Adam Cole baybay!” and then the YB superkick both Lethal and Cabana.
He grabs the mic and say, “My name is Adam Cole baybay! And we are the BC! Breaking news ladies and gentleman, this is our house, bitches!” and then he and the YB stomp a mudhole in Lethal. Three security guards run to the ring and gets superkicked, then Cole does the crotch chop. One of the security stands up and get super kicked again, Lethal gets superkicked. Guerrillas of Destiny come out, they continue to beat up security and ring crew, Nick with a Indytaker on the floor, another superkick.
GoD spraypaint BC on the table, and then powerbomb a security guard through the table. YB connect with a superkick to the back of the head of Kevin Kelly. MW3 stands up and yells, “KK’s down, KK’s down, woohoo!” and then gets superkicked himself. YB put on the headset, Matt imitates Jim Ross, “Oh dear God, dear God, every one of these people have families, for the love of God, for the love of God, for the love of God! Oh my goodness what does he have, he has the title belt!” Cole knocks Cabana off the apron, Tonga zipties Lethal to the ropes. “I can’t believe it King, what do you think of this, look at these guys with the face paint.” Cole with 3 superkicks to Lethal, picks up the belt and runs around the ring.
We cut to later on, the BC look at the cameraman, he asks to put the camera down first, they wait for it, then superkick him. BC crawl down on the mat, and look at the camera. Cole says, “This is our world now, this is our world now, nobody can touch us, nobody can stop us”, as YB kiss him on the cheeks.
Present day, Cole cuts a backstage promo, “This, this has been a long time coming. Because unlike those kids in the Kingdom who are trying to play catch-up, myself and the BC, we have a lot in common. We do what we want, we say what we want, and we take what we want. Speaking of taking Jay Lethal, this one is for you, because you’ve been spilling lies lately, you’ve been saying there are no more challenges left for you, come on Jay. Jay you know, the fans know, everybody in this locker room knows, that I’m the guy here, and it’s only a matter of time before I get my ROH Championship back, so how about you grow a set champ, and give me a shot. Just know, if you do, I will take the championship from you, and why? Because I can,” he smiles and the show ends.
– Last night on RAW, AJ Styles welcomed John Cena to the New Era by turning on him and realigning with The Club. The swerve angle was easily the best part of the show and sets up a dream feud between Cena and Styles. After putting on two stellar PPV main event matches against Roman Reigns, it looked like Styles was on the verge of being rotated out of the main event picture. A hot program with John Cena is not a bad place to land. Styles tweeted the following on Tuesday morning, embracing his new heel role:
Did the #TheClub make you mad last night on #RAW? Good!
– Speaking of John Cena, his short-lived “Pabst Blue Ribbon” t-shirt is now arriving to fans who ordered it from WWEShop.com over the weekend before it was pulled. As seen on RAW, the replacement shirt features the same caricature of Cena, without the Pabst styling.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BGEoeIFSZ6R/
– Former WWE Superstar Damien Sandow (now known as Aaron Stevens) appeared on Vince Russo’s The Swerve podcast this week. Part 1 is available now at PodcastOne.com. Of course, Sandow spoke about his time in WWE and the frustrating situation that ultimately led to his release.
After working several matches with him, AJ Styles says Roman Reigns is better than people give him credit for. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Styles talked about his Extreme Rules opponent and the heat he gets from fans.
“I think [Reigns] is a better athlete than a lot of people realize. He should get a lot more credit for his athleticism,” Styles said of the WWE World Heavyweight Champion. “He’s unbelievable, he can do a lot of stuff. I think he’s been able to showcase that with me. We’re doing something right – I don’t think people gave Roman a chance.”
The former TNA World Champion has a theory about why Reigns gets booed so loudly by the live WWE audiences. “In fact, I think a lot of fans jumped on the bandwagon when someone started booing, instead of taking the chance to see what he could do in the ring,” Styles said of Reigns’ heat with the crowds.
AJ also said he never expected to wrestle at a WrestleMania, and that doing so is a big notch on his belt. Styles mentioned working a WWE main event as another highlight for him, and says someday he wants to be in the Hall of Fame.
– Despite losing to Roman Reigns at Extreme Rules and Kevin Owens on Raw last night, WWE still has a big push planned for AJ Styles but we don’t know exactly what they have in the works yet.
– WWE officials were not happy with Cody Rhodes’ Twitter statement on why he left the company, especially the line about one head writer being too busy hitting on developmental Divas.
Vince McMahon is reportedly planning to keep Roman Reigns on top as a focal point of their programming after Sunday’s Extreme Rules event. The Wrestling Observer Newsletter reports that WWE will continue to push Reigns after his feud with AJ Styles ends, and Styles will likely be entering a feud with his former partners Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson.
This means Reigns will likely be retaining the WWE Championship on Sunday, as many fans could have guessed. Vince McMahon’s position on Reigns is “Whether you love or hate him, you’re very passionate about him.” JBL repeated this line on commentary on RAW when the fans booed Reigns.
As of press time, Reigns is still listed as the headliner for WWE’s “A” tours, and Dean Ambrose is listed as the headliner for their “B” tours. John Cena is scheduled to return to TV on May 30th, but isn’t currently scheduled for any live events after that.
Kevin Kelly provides voiceover for a Jay Lethal video package. “Becoming a champion is achieved by rising above all obstacles. With perseverance, passion, and drive. Being a champion does not require perfection, it requires the insatiable desire to achieve perfection, day in and day out. Not everyone can be a champion, but for those who are, they hold onto it with their whole life. Tonight we take a close look at the ROH World Champion and his rise to greatness.”
KK introduces the show from a backstage locker room. “Welcome to a very special edition of Ring of Honor wrestling where we focus on ROH World Champion Jay Lethal. For over the past 2 years, there has not been a day where Jay Lethal has not had gold around his waist. The dominance began at SuperCard of Honor 8, where Lethal accepted help from Truth Martini and defeated Tommaso Ciampa to become the first 2 time holder of the ROH World TV Title,” and we pickup footage from that match.
Jay Lethal vs Tommaso Ciampa (c) (ROH World TV Championship match from SuperCard of Honor 8 on 4/4/14)
Truth throws in a knee brace to Lethal, Lethal nails Ciampa in the head, Ciampa kicks out. Lethal climbs to the top rope and delivers Hail to the King forearm to the chest, but Ciampa kicks out again. Ciampa to his feet, 2 superkicks by Lethal, Ciampa flips him off, Lethal kicks him in the knee, hits the Lethal Injection, and gets the pin.
Winner and NEW ROH World TV Champion: Jay Lethal
KK continues, “Jay Lethal, now in the House of Truth, began his reign as the greatest World TV Champion in history. Facing fierce competition from the likes of Matt Sydal, the legendary Jushin Thunder Liger, ACH, and many others, including one of his most memorable defenses at ROH 14th Anniversary.”
Alberto El Patron vs Jay Lethal (c) (ROH World TV Championship match from ROH 14th Anniversary on 3/1/2015)
When we return from break, we pick up footage from the ROH 14th Anniversary event and his title defense against Alberto El Patron (Alberto Del Rio). Patron kicks J. Diesel from the apron to the floor, dropkicks Lethal to the outside, then suicide dives through the middle rope to the floor onto Lethal. Patron whips Lethal into the barricade, Lethal gets back up and counters with a kick, knee, chop to the chest, whip reversal, but Lethal gets sent into the barricade again. Patron rolls Lethal back into the ring, nails him with a double clubbing blow to the chest off the ropes, cover, kick out.
Side headlock, Lethal gets to his feet and delivers 2 knees, before Patron returns with a knee of his own, and whips Lethal into the corner. Patron runs in, but Lethal throws him up in the air, Paton lands on his groin straddling the ropes. KK notes, “Accidental, says referee Paul Turner. Of course, a blatant foul would lead to disqualification.” Lethal with a running dropkick up the turnbuckle, knocks Patron to the mat, Lethal in a mount position raining closed right fists, stands up and chokes Patron with his foot on the bottom rope, then Martini chokes him on the rope while the Paul Turner is distracted. 2 knife-edge chops by Lethal, sets Patron on the turnbuckle, right hand, chop, right hand, chop, and then Alberto grabs a rope-assisted leg scissors wrist lock on Lethal’s arm, the referee calls for the break at 3, and we go to commercial.
When we return, Lethal has a leg scissors on Patron’s arm, Lethal clotheslines him to the outside, then Lethal nails 3 suicide dives, the third of which knocks Patron over the barricade into the first row. MW3 comments on a fan nearby says, “I think I played craps with that guy earlier today. I like that dude.” Lethal has a bloody mouth, climbs back in the ring, as the ref begins the count on Patron. Patron gets back in at 15, Lethal with stomps to the chest, Patron gets to his feet, Lethal sets him on the top turnbuckle, knife-edge chop, Lethal climbs up, punches to the gut, hooks him for a superplex, but Patron fights out with shots in the ribs, Lethal falls down sitting on the ropes, 2 right hands by Patron, Lethal catches himself hanging upside on the ropes, and then a double stomp to the chest by Patron as Lethal’s head bounces off the mat, cover, but Lethal kicks out at 2.
Patron lines up for the kick as the fans chant “Si!”, Lethal catches him, they exchange right hands, Patron gets the better of it, hits the ropes, but Lethal nails the Lethal Combination, cover, but Patron kicks out. Martini can be heard yelling from the outside, “Stay on him!” Lethal points to the turnbuckle, takes off his elbow pad, climbs up to the top rope, but Patron is up to his feet and hits a running enziguri up the ropes. Martini runs in with the Book of Truth, but Patron kicks him and syncs in a wrist lock, Martini taps but as KK recognizes, “It doesn’t affect the outcome.” Lethal jumps off the top rope for the Hail to the King elbow, but Patron catches him in a wrist lock with a leg scissors around the head, Lethal picks up the Book of Truth and slams Patron in the skull, cover, 1-2, kickout by Patron. MW3 asks, “What is in that book?” KK says, “Far from light reading.” J. Deisel and Martini are walking around the outside. Patron gets to his feet and hits a dropping armbar, goes for kick, then gets bicycle kicked by Lethal. Lethal goes for the Lethal Injection, but his arm is too weak and he collapses. Patron with a rollup, Lethal pushes him off, Martini hits him with the Book of Truth, and this time Lethal hits the Lethal Injection for the win.
Winner and still ROH World TV Champion: Jay Lethal
KK says, “We live in a result-driven industry, and while the result will say Lethal is still the champ, I have a problem with the way I got done.” Mr. Wrestling 3 responds, “Of course you have a problem, you’re a nice guy.” and KK replies, “Yeah, I’m a square.” MW3 explains, “But in the world of professional wrestling, a win is a win is a win.” KK says Patron had to fight 3-on-1 odds, plus KRD on the outside of the ring, and somehow he still almost became the champion. But Lethal gets another win and another title defense.”
KK from the locker room, “Shortly after that victory, Jay Lethal began to proclaim himself as the ROH Champion, going so far as to have a new belt minted that simply said ‘ROH Champion.’ You knew that was going to get the attention of then World Champion Jay Briscoe. Eventually these 2 champions would meet but it was anyone’s guess as to how it would turn out,” and we go to commercial.
KK welcomes us back, “By now, Lethal had held the TV title for over a year, but at the same time, Jay Briscoe had not been pinned in over 2 years. And you knew that these 2 men would collide and they would indeed, at Best in the World 2015, in a winner take all showdown, it was the battle of the belts, and it was one of the greatest matches in Ring of Honor history.”
Jay Lethal (c) vs Jay Briscoe (c) (Champion vs. Champion match, winner take all, from Best in the World on 6/9/2015)
When we pick it up, Lethal is on the mat, Briscoe picks him up, Briscoe with a forearm, goes for a whip, Lethal reverses, kick, back forearm, goes for the Lethal Injection, but Briscoe hits a double underhook slam, cover, and Lethal kicks out. Briscoe with the headlock choke, but Lethal crawls to the ropes. Briscoe with a knee to the gut, goes for the Jay Driller, but Lethal gets out, kick to the gut, goes for the Jay Driller again, but Lethal fights out and hits the Lethal Combination on Briscoe, cover, but Briscoe kicks out.
KK comments on the unique setting of Terminal 7, “Fans are basically hanging over the ring from the balconies above, and they are dead-even split, dueling chants for each great champion,” as the fans yell, “Let’s go Lethal! Let’s go Briscoe!” Lethal with a power slam, slowly climbs up to the top turnbuckle, Nigel McGuinness says, “It would look like Lethal has it, but he’s taking his sweet time getting up there, in my mind, way too long. Is Briscoe playing possum? Looks like it.” Briscoe to his feet, catches him, Lethal perched on the turnbuckle, Briscoe hooks him for the superplex, but Lethal is dead weight and blocks twice, 3 punches to the gut by Lethal knocks Briscoe to the mat, but Briscoe lands on his feet, comes back and nails a running dropkick to Lethal. Briscoe climbs back up again, MW3 comments, “You can see the sweat pouring off both of these warriors.” Briscoe hooks for another superplex, but Lethal counters again with shots to the ribs. Briscoe climbs back down as Lethal lands clubbing punches underneath the pec muscle, and then a big right hand to the head knocks Briscoe to the mat. Lethal nails the Hail to the King top rope elbow, cover, kickout, and then right away Lethal locks in the Koji Clutch, until Briscoe finds the ropes.
Now both men are on the apron, KK comments that, “Both the timekeeper & Bobby Cruz have moved.” Lethal hooks, Briscoe fights out, Briscoe pushes Lethal away, hooks him for the Jay driller, but Truth Martini distracts Todd Sinclair on the other side of the apron, and Lethal lands a low blow. Nigel McGuinness crawls up onto the apron next to Truth and says, “What are you doing?” and throws Martini out of the building, Martini stomps around and throws a chair on his way out. Both men to their feet, kick by Briscoe, then Briscoe nails the Jay Driller on Lethal through the table, and we go to commercial.
When we return, Lethal goes for the Lethal Injection, but Briscoe nails a running forearm to the head, cover, kick out. Lethal gets to his feet, and Briscoe nails a huge clothesline, cover, kick out again. Both men are down, Lethal is flipping around on the mat like a fish out of water. The cameraman shows both Lethal’s parents and Briscoe’s parents. They get up, but Briscoe meets a boot from Lethal, back forearm by Lethal, springboard cutter off the second rope, nails the Lethal Injection, but somehow Briscoe kicks out.
Lethal can’t believe it, laying in the corner asking what happened, shaking his head in his hands. The fans chant, “This is awesome!” Briscoe is laid out flat, Lethal gets to his feet, picks up Briscoe, hooks for Briscoe’s own move the Jay Driller, but Briscoe blocks twice dropping to a knee and running his shoulder into the gut, sunset flip by Briscoe, goes for the Jay Driller, reversal by Lethal into a Jay Driller on Briscoe, then Lethal hits a second Lethal Injection, cover, 1-2-3, and Lethal becomes double champion.
Winner and still ROH World TV Champion and NEW ROH World Champion: Jay Lethal
MW3 calls the victory, “He has done it! A dream that started 14 years ago, tonight Jay Lethal is the World Champion.” Lethal pounds the mat in celebration as Truth Martini comes in the ring and congratulates him. Lethal is in shock, they hand Lethal both belts, he lifts them high in the air and lets out a victory yell in the middle of the ring. Commercial.
Back in the lockerroom, KK says, “Amazing to think Lethal has held the ROH World Championship for close to one full year. However, not only did the competition gets stronger when Lethal became a double champion, but so did the workload. At All Star Extravaganza VII, Jay Lethal made history by successfully defending both belts in different matches on the same night. One of the greatest wrestlers ever in ROH, Roderick Strong pushed Lethal to the limit at Death Before Dishonor in an epic 60-minute draw that had the whole wrestling world talking. And in the much anticipated rematch, Lethal was able to defeat Strong with a huge assist from Truth Martini. Strong wanted for one more chance, and was named #1 contender for ROH TV Championship.” We pick up footage of that match.
Roderick Strong vs Jay Lethal (c) (ROH World TV Championship match at Glory By Honor XIV on 10/23/15 and as seen ROH TV on Episode 218)
Lethal with 3 covers, but Strong kicks out each time, they exchanged blows, 2 superkicks by Lethal and then a jumping knee by Strong that hooks Lethal around the back of the head, fireman’s carry into a double knee gutbuster, and then a running sick kick that turns Lethal inside-out. Strong picks up Lethal and delivers a double knee spine buster, and then locks in the Strong Hold and Lethal taps out. (In the video, you can see KK pointing and marking out at ringside as Lethal taps, very cool.)
Winner and NEW ROH World TV Champion: Roderick Strong
KK tells us, “Strong picked up the victory, ending Lethal’s 18 month reign. With close to 30 defenses over that span of time, Lethal holds all records associated with the ROH TV Championship, and it will be a long time before anyone comes close to breaking it.” Commercial.
After the break, KK continues, “After losing the ROH TV Championship, Jay Lethal was still the number one wrestler in the world because after all, he was still the ROH World Champion. And he has still has not been beaten. But Lethal was stung over losing to Strong, and set out to prove that he was indeed the number one wrestler in all the world of professional wrestling, and he challenged anyone and everyone to try to take that title away from, including a match against The Phenomenal AJ Styles at Final Battle 2015.”
AJ Styles vs Jay Lethal (c) (ROH World Championship match at Final Battle 2015 on 12/18/15)
When we pick up the action, Lethal with a suicide dive knocks Styles into the front row. As the fans gather around Styles, Lethal yells, “You might want to move back,” and then taps a fan on the shoulder who is not paying attention and says “Get off of him.” After the fans clear way, Lethal climbs back into the ring, watches and waits until AJ gets to his feet, goes for another suicide dive, but Styles counters with leaping Phenomenal Forearm off the barricade. Taeler Hendrix and Truth Martini, dressed all in white, kneel nearby in shock. Styles and Lethal get up and roll back into the ring at the same time.
They get to their feet, exchange forearms, AJ gets the better of it, before Lethal drops him to the mat and locks in the Koji clutch, roll through, Styles reverses into the calf cutter submission, but Lethal crawls to the ropes and breaks the hold. AJ to his feet, Lethal connects with a boot to the face, gets to his feet and then a bicycle kick to the back of the head by Styles. Styles climbs to the top rope, but Lethal with a right hand to the face, climbs up with AJ, goes for the superplex, but AJ slides under, back elbows by Lethal, and then a second rope springboard cutter takes out AJ. Lethal goes for the Lethal Injection, but AJ gets to his feet, and Lethal rolls over his back, Pele kick by AJ, Bloody Sunday, Styles points at Lethal and yells to the fans, goes for the Styles Clash, but Lethal picks him up and throws AJ over the top to the outside through the table. The fans chant, “This is awesome!” KK says, “The table turned to literal sawdust, just to our left.”
Styles climbs back in at 19, Lethal waits until he gets to his feet, goes for the Lethal Injection and nails it, cover, 1-2, but Styles kicks out. NM says, “I do not believe it and nor does anyone else in Philadelphia tonight. Mandy Leon was ready to ring the bell. Somehow AJ Styles dug deep inside, found that faith in himself.” Lethal grabs him by the hair and yells, “Let me tell you something AJ, this is my time! You hear me? Screw you!” before AJ fights out with forearms, chops, kicks, goes for the Pele kick and misses it, goes for the Styles clash, but Lethal reverses into a cradle piledriver (Jerry Lynn’s move, who is on commentary) and then hits the Lethal Injection for the second time and AJ is out cold, cover, 1-2-3.
Winner and still ROH World Champion: Jay Lethal
After the commercial, KK welcomes us back, “A very special look at Jay Lethal. Think about the greatness of Lethal, all the records he set as the longest ROH TV Champion in history, now holding the ROH World Title for almost 1 year. Lethal has taken the title all around the world, to England, as well Japan, where he wrestled Michael Elgin in front of 40,000 fans at the Tokyo Dome at Wrestle Kingdom 10. He then returned to Japan earlier this year to face off against Tomoaki Honma at the famous Korakuen Hall at Honor Rising.
Tomoaki Honma vs Jay Lethal (c) (ROH World Championship match at Honor Rising 2/20/2016)
Lethal goes for a kick, Honma catches him, throws him up in the air, but Lethal lands on his feet, pushes him off the ropes and then nails the Lethal Combination, cover, kickout. KK tells us, “Todd Sinclair was brought over exclusively to referee championship matches here at Honor Rising. That’s the importance of these events, MW3.” Lethal climbs to the top turnbuckle and nails the Hail to the King elbow drop from the top rope, cover, but Honma kicks out. Lethal tells Honma to get up, slaps him in the head, goes for the Lethal Injection, but Kokeshi by Honma to the back of Lethal and he tumbles out to the apron. They exchange forearms at the apron, and then a headbutt knocks Lethal into the railing, Honma delivers a powerslam on the floor, climbs the ropes as the fans begin to cheer, and then Honma lands the Kokeshi from the top turnbuckle on Lethal on the floor (KK and MW3 say he lands it, but he totally missed) and both men are down.
Honma is up and he looks dazed, Honma hears the referee count, stands up and rolls Lethal back into the ring, cover, but Lethal kicks out at 2-and-a-half. Honma picks Lethal up by his hair, but Lethal is slow to rise, so Honma pulls on his hair really hard, hits the ropes, but Lethal nails a superkick, and then Honma hits a lariat that turns Lethal inside out, cover, kick out by Lethal. Honma hits a brainbuster, cover, Lethal kicks out again. MW3, “Can Honma do it? Can he become the 2nd Japanese wrestler to win the ROH World Title.” KK says, “Takeshi Morishima was first. Honma looks to add his name.” Honma goes for the tombstone piledriver, but Lethal gets out, and hits an enziguri to the back of Honma’s head.
Truth Martini yells, “You’re the ROH World Champion! Show everybody here what you’re made of!” as the crowd at Korakuen Hall chants, “Honma!” Lethal runs into the corner, but meets a boot, and Honma hits a second rope diving headbutt, running fall away headbutt, power slam, goes to the top rope for the Kokeshi and leaps off, but Lethal moves out of the way. Honma is out flat, with spit coming from his mouth. Both men get to their feet, Honma runs in, but nails Todd Sinclair by accident as Lethal gets out of the way. Suddenly, Los Ingobernables run in with clubbing blows to the back and stomps to Honma, they hold him as Truth Martini nails The Book of Truth on Honma’s head, but you can’t hurt Honma in the head, he’s like a Samoan. Honma stands up and takes out all three men, Naito comes in tosses him up in the air, nails a low blow kick, and then Lethal hits the Lethal Injection as Todd Sinclair wakes up and counts the 1-2-3.
Winner and still ROH World Champion: Jay Lethal
KK closes out the show, “Thank you for joining us for this special look at Jay Lethal. Next week here on ROH Wrestling, we took a very special look at Bullet Club. Don’t you dare miss it.” End of show.
– John Cena’s first match back from injury takes place on the May 30th edition of Raw in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
According to the official website of the Resch Center, Cena will team up with WWE World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose to take on the team of AJ Styles, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson. This will likely be a dark match.
– According to this week’s issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, there is talk within WWE of finding a woman to team with Kalisto to face Rusev and Lana in mixed tag team matches. Lana has been wrestling more frequently at live events in case the idea transpires.
Lana made her NXT in-ring debut at last Friday’s show in Lakeland, Florida. Teaming with Mandy Rose, the blonde bombshells lost to Carmella and Daria Berenato.
– Some WWE fans who attended Friday’s house show in Greenville, NC were not happy about AJ Styles being advertised. Tweets from fans in attendance indicate they were still expecting to see Styles vs. Sheamus vs. Roman Reigns in the main event but Styles was not there. We reported before that Styles was off weekend house shows so he could rest up and let some nagging injuries heal. Styles confirmed on Twitter that he had an ankle injury but will be at RAW.
– Darren Young posted on Twitter that he was attending the GLAAD Media Awards in NYC:
– AJ Styles has confirmed our report from earlier this week that he’ll miss this weekend’s live events due injury. Styles says his ankle is banged up, but he will be ready for action this coming Monday.
For those of you who were expecting to see AJ Styles this weekend, I apologize. Banged my ankle up pretty good, but I'll be ready for RAW.
– WWE Studios has released the trailer for Incarnate, starring Aaron Eckhart and featuring Mark Henry in a supporting role. The film follows “an unconventional exorcist who can tap into the subconscious of the possessed”, who meets his match when he confronts his next case, a 9-year-old boy possessed by a demon from his past. Incarnate hits theaters in the United States on September 30.
As noted earlier, AJ Styles is currently suffering from several nagging injuries and didn’t wrestle at this week’s SmackDown taping as a result. PWInsider.com now reports that AJ has been pulled from this weekend’s live events so he can try to heal up. WWE wants AJ to recover as much as he can before his May 22nd Extreme Rules match against Roman Reigns for the World Heavyweight Title.
Styles was originally scheduled to wrestle on Friday in Greenville, SC, Saturday in Raleigh, NC, and Sunday in Columbia, SC, but those plans have now reportedly changed. It’s unknown whether WWE intends to have Styles wrestle another singles match or not before the pay-per-view on the 22nd. There is one more episode each of RAW and SmackDown left before Extreme Rules.
AJ has back issues that flared up last year after working a busy independent schedule. He credits DDP Yoga with helping him rehabilitate his back.
AJ Styles is reportedly working through several injuries right now. According to PWInsider.com, WWE made the decision not to have Styles wrestle at Tuesday’s SmackDown taping out of concern for his health.
The Phenomenal One is booked in the main event of Extreme Rues on May 22nd, and WWE officials reportedly want him healthy and rested for his main event match against Roman Reigns for the World Heavyweight Title. PWInsider says Styles is currently suffering from numerous nagging injuries that the company wants him to heal up from before the pay-per-view.
Styles has been on the road heavily with WWE since his debut back in January.
Ahead of their WWE Championship rematch at Extreme Rules later this month, WWE has released a video looking at Roman Reigns’ feud with AJ Styles.
– Several fans have reported issues with ordering tickets for the WWE NXT live event in Nashville next month as the pre-sale began Thursday morning with glitches. No word yet on how the Evansville show, did but the Atlanta live event pre-sale quickly sold out.
– WWE and the Susan G. Komen foundation will be sending a few lucky fans to this year’s SummerSlam in Brooklyn, New York.
TNA will soon be releasing their Best Of The Asylum Years Vol. 2 on DVD, and the collection will heavily feature several talents currently under WWE contract. AJ Styles, Sting, Ron Killings (R-Truth), and Eric Young are all being advertised, and while Bobby Roode isn’t mentioned by name on the ShopTNA.com listing, he is in the Team Canada matches from 2004. Late WWE Hall of Famer Dusty Rhodes is also featured in action in a six-man tag match from 2003.
Currently contracted UFC fighter CM Punk is also featured on the DVD set, mainly in tag matches with Julio Dinero against former ECW stars.
The two-disc set, which will run over six hours, doesn’t have an official release date yet. The above video is the trailer for the collection, which is currently available for pre-order on ShopTNA.com. Here’s the full match listing for the Best Of The Asylum Years Vol. 2:
– July 17, 2002: X Division Title: AJ Styles vs. Low Ki
– July 24, 2002: Low Ki vs. The Amazing Red
– September 25, 2002: Best Of 3 Match: AJ Styles vs. Low Ki
– October 23, 2002: X Division Title: AJ Styles vs. Sean Waltman
– October 30, 2002: X Division Title: AJ Styles vs. The Amazing Red
– November 13, 2002: X Division Title: Jerry Lynn vs. AJ Styles vs. Kid Kash
– January 8, 2003: Tag Team Title Match: America’s Most Wanted vs. The New Church
– April 9, 2003: Jerry Lynn & The Amazing Red vs. Triple X vs. Chris Sabin & Johnny Storm vs. Shark Boy & Jason Cross
– July 2, 2003: House Of Fun Match: CM Punk vs. Shane Douglas
– August 13, 2003: Dusty Rhodes & America’s Most Wanted vs. Glen Gilberti & Simon Diamond & Johnny Swinger
– September 30, 2003: Super X Cup Final: Chris Sabin vs. Juventud Guerrera
– September 17, 2003: Hair vs. Hair: Raven vs. Shane Douglas
– November 5, 2003: CM Punk & Julio Dinero vs. Kid Kash & Lazz
– November 5, 2003: World Title: Sting vs. Jeff Jarrett
– November 19, 2003: AJ Styles vs. Abyss
– January 7, 2004: CM Punk & Julio Dinero vs. Raven & The Sandman
– January 7, 2004: Ultimate X Match: Chris Sabin vs. Michael Shane vs. Christopher Daniels vs. Low Ki
– February 4, 2004: CM Punk & Julio Dinero vs. Terry Funk & The Sandman
– February 25, 2004: CM Punk & Julio Dinero vs. Raven & Sabu
– May 26, 2004: Ladder Match: Eric Young vs. Jerry Lynn vs. Mr. Aguila vs. Taichi Ishikara
– May 26, 2004: Ultimate X Match: Petey Williams vs. Chris Sabin vs. Hector Garza
– June 9, 2004: Team Canada vs. Jerry Lynn & Heavy Metal & Hector Garza
– June 16, 2004: Flag Match: Team Canada vs. Team USA
– July 21, 2004: Steel Cage Match: The Naturals vs. America’s Most Wanted
– August 25, 2004: AJ Styles & Jeff Hardy & Ron Killings vs. Monty Brown & Kid Kash & Dallas
AJ Styles appeared on ESPN SportsCenter on Tuesday night for Jonathan Coachman’s weekly WWE segment. Coach asked if there was ever a point AJ felt he wouldn’t make it to WWE. AJ said yes and he was coming to terms with it. It was depressing thinking that he’d never get a WrestleMania moment.
Styles talked about his WWE debut at the Royal Rumble and being unsure if anybody would know who he was. Coach talked about social media educating WWE fans to performers who are not part of the Universe, which helped AJ come in to great fanfare. Styles credits a big part of his success to social media.
They spoke about WrestleMania, with Styles calling it “mind-boggling” to perform in front of the largest crowd of his career.
Styles talked about his dream opponent, Shawn Michaels. He thinks HBK made everything mean something in the ring, whether it was a punch or a slam. Even if HBK was performing crazy moves, he did all the little things right and always put on great matches. Unfortunately, he doesn’t think HBK will ever wrestle again.
Other topics discussed includes Styles being a big fan of video games and Christian hip-hop.
– WWE will tape SmackDown and Main event tonight from Kansas City, MO at The Sprint Center. On SmackDown, Sami Zayn will be Chris Jericho’s guest on the Highlight Reel. Check back later tonight for our live coverage of the tapings.
– AJ Styles talk to Jonathan Coachman’ tonight on ESPN SportsCenter.
– Episode 2 of Camp WWE is titled “Not Without My Eyebrow” and focuses on The Rock. ‘Panic ensues after someone shaves off The Rock’s eyebrow and Ric Flair is tasked with helping The Great One regain his mojo.’ It premieres Sunday on the WWE Network (on demand).
– WWE has released the following backstage videos from RAW:
During last night’s Smackdown tapings AJ Styles appeared to suffer from an injury during his match with Alberto Del Rio where he landed on his neck after a botched move. AJ was able to continue and finish the match with a roll up. Styles has subsequently taken to Twitter to address concerned fans –
@AJStylesOrg I spent half my month's salary to see you tomorrow in Dubai. Please tell me you didn't get injured??!! :'(
Although the severity of the injury remains unclear – another potential injury to a main roster talent would be devastating, especially considering Styles is scheduled to be in the main event of Payback against WWE Champion Roman Reigns.
On the latest episode of his Talk is Jericho podcast, Chris Jericho briefly commented on the length of his current run with WWE – essentially telling fans, it’s none of your damn business.
“For all you jack-offs that think you can predict what my future is, I’m not going anywhere.” Jericho said. “Am I going to be here next week? Yeah. Am I going to be here one more month? I’m not going to tell you. You’re just going to have to wait and see.”
WWE’s first-ever Undisputed World Heavyweight Champion got a big win over AJ Styles this past weekend, an outcome that most fans did not see coming. Jericho said he had an amazing time at the event and said it’s addictive working in front of the massive crowds WWE draws for its biggest shows of the year.
“When you actually get there, you get to that stadium and see 101,000 people, I’ll tell you what, man, it’s an experience like no other. And it doesn’t matter how many shows I’ve done, how many matches I’ve had, how many WrestleManias I’ve had, there [have] been 12, nothing beats going out there in front of that type of crowd and having a great match. And it’s what we do this for.”
Jericho thinks he and Styles had one of the top 3 matches on the show, along with the IC title ladder match and the Women’s Championship match.
“I had a great time working with AJ Styles all four of our matches and the last one at WrestleMania [32] was exactly what we wanted. And especially after the amazing spectacle of the seven-man Intercontinental [Championship] ladder match. Our mission was to bring it down a bit and then build it back up with wrestling. And we did that. It was one of the best matches on the show. I don’t mind saying that.”
You can listen to the entire episode now over at PodcastOne.com.
H/T to William Windsor of WrestlingINC.com for the transcribed quotes
In an interview during WrestleMania weekend, AJ Styles revealed that he had a chip on his shoulder when he left TNA. The former TNA World Champion told the Sam Roberts Wrestling Podcast about the difference between him leaving TNA and leaving New Japan Pro Wrestling.
“I didn’t shed one tear when I left TNA. I was very emotional when I left New Japan,” Styles said. He mentioned that he had nothing but respect for NJPW, and that the opportunity to work for them helped make his decision to leave TNA.
Styles also noted that he was approached by WWE in 2002 and was offered a developmental deal, but it would have conflicted with his family life so he turned it down. Styles also feels he wasn’t ready for WWE back in 2002.
It’s no secret that the WrestleMania 32 card underwent several rounds of changes as a result of the injuries that have plagued WWE’s roster over the past 6 months.
In the latest Wrestling Observer, it was revealed that original plans called for Dean Ambrose to work a feud against Chris Jericho at the show. The proposed angle would have been Jericho teaming with Ambrose for a while before turning him, similar to what played out with AJ Styles.
When AJ signed with the company back in January, WWE changed gears and went with the Y2AJ storyline. Say what you want about Jericho getting the win at WrestleMania to cap off that rivalry, but AJ is now the #1 contender to WWE World Heavyweight champion Roman Reigns in a match that is scheduled for Payback.
In a minor spoiler for this week’s SmackDown, the seeds are planted for an eventual match between Ambrose and Jericho, so it appears WWE is now going in this direction.
AJ Styles was Michael Cole’s guest for this week’s WWE.com sit-down interview. Here are the highlights:
– Styles was asked about his first three months in WWE since making his debut at the Royal Rumble. Styles said it’s unbelievable that he’s already the #1 contender to the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. It’s been a wild ride thus far, having defeated Chris Jericho on RAW, making his Madison Square Garden debut at competing at his first WrestleMania. It’s going to get even better now that he’s challenging for the industry’s top prize.
– Styles said competing at WrestleMania was everything he expected and more. Working in front of 100,000+ fans was an indescribable moment and nothing could have prepared him for it.
– Cole mentions how Jericho had Styles’ number at WrestleMania. Styles says the great thing about losing is that you learn to hate it. He’s not naive enough to think he’ll never lose again – but he was victorious the following night and is already moving on to bigger and better things. Styles says Monday night was emotional for him, especially when fans chanted “you deserve it” at him.
– Cole says we’ve never seen Styles face someone with the size and power of Reigns. Styles says there’s no doubt he can handle Reigns, he’s handled guys as big as Reigns outside of WWE before. He knows he’ll have to make everything count in the ring when he faces Reigns. Reigns has a chip on his shoulder as the new champ – but his job is to knock that chip off.
On Monday’s post-WrestleMania 32 edition of WWE RAW in Dallas, Texas, AJ Styles became the new number one contender to Roman Reigns’ WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
At the top of the show it was announced that Shane McMahon would be running RAW, and one of the decisions “Shane-O-Mac’ made was to announce a fatal four way match to determine the number one contender to the WWE World Heavyweight Title.
Originally, it was announced to be Kevin Owens, Chris Jericho, Sami Zayn and AJ Styles, however it was announced right before the match that due to an attack from Owens, Zayn would not be medically cleared to compete. It was then revealed that Cesaro was returning to take his spot in the match.
Unfortunately for “The King of Swing” it was “The Phenomenal” one that would come out victorious, as Styles hit Jericho with the Styles Clash to score the 1-2-3 and become the new number one contender to the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
With the win, Styles is now expected to challenge Reigns for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at the next WWE pay-per-view, which will be WWE Payback on May 1, 2016 from the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois.
