Following this week’s edition of WWE RAW, which was taped this afternoon in Liverpool, England and will air in its’ normal time slot tonight, a six-man tag-team match took place as the post-show dark match.
The match featured John Cena, Sheamus and Big Show teaming up to take on the trio of Seth Rollins, Jamie Noble and Joey Mercury.
As soon as the bell rung, Noble and Mercury bailed, leaving “Mr. Money In The Bank” by himself. This led to Sheamus hitting a Brogue Kick, Show hitting a WMD and Cena hitting an Attitude Adjustment on Rollins.
Also, as noted last week, WWE officials were worried about crowd reactions heading into television tapings in England as a result of the WWE Network launch issues. For those wondering, the popular anti-WWE chant throughout the taping this afternoon was “Where’s our Network?!”
For complete spoilers for tonight’s RAW, click here.
– It looks like WWE has dropped the “We’re here” part of the ring entrance for Bray Wyatt.
– The Big Show vs. Randy Orton match scheduled for WWE’s return to Madison Square Garden on December 26th has been changed to Big Show vs. Mark Henry. Also scheduled for the 12/26 MSG live event is Rusev vs. Sheamus for the WWE United States Championship and John Cena vs. Seth Rollins as the main event.
– Another name who was at the most recent WWE tryout camp was Mark Ptasnik, who is Midwest independent wrestler Mark Sterling. He was recommended by Gerald Brisco. The negative on Ptasnik is that he is already 35 years old, which is expected to hurt his chances of getting a deal.
Fans are only days away from the annual Hell in a Cell pay-per-view. Emanating from Dallas, TX, this year’s event will feature a total of eight matches, including a WWE World Heavyweight Championship-less double main event.
With the title being noticeably absent, the company will hopefully try to pull out something to make this a memorable pay-per-view. Here are five potential Hell in a Cell shockers.
WWE Hall Of Famer Mick Foley recently posted the following blog on his official Facebook page:
USA, USA?
Maybe I’ve been too rough on Rusev. Not that I’ve ever said or written anything about him. But in my mind, I think he’s always going to suffer by comparison to The Iron Shiek – a classic anti-American heel who thrived on crowd heat, and was part of an all-time classic brawl with Sgt Slaughter in MSG that had a young Mick Foley on his feet, chanting USA, USA.
But last night, I think I finally “got” Rusev. He showed himself to be a very capable, believable big man – going head to head with Big Show in a hard-hitting, entertaining match. But I sure was bamboozled by the ending. Having Marc Henry hit the ring for the DQ and team up with Show to leave Rusev laying seemed odd and anti-climactic. It also seemed to be decidedly pro bullying, with two larger men ganging up on one smaller man.
I’ll be watching to see if this goes somewhere. Certainly, last night’s scenario lends itself to potential conflict between Show and Henry – and also leaves the door open for a different American hero to conquer the foreign menace…even though I still think Jack Swagger is the right man for the task.
At one point, WWE was planning on having Brock Lesnar return for a brief feud over the WWE World Heavyweight Championship with Big Show. Apparently, that is no longer in the plans and will not be happening.
Lesnar is not scheduled to make his return to WWE until January to begin promoting his Royal Rumble title defense, which is expected to be against John Cena.
It’s been reported that Cena may face Rusev at WrestleMania 31 next year, so the belief is that if they wanted to, WWE could have Rusev cost Cena his match with Lesnar at the Rumble, setting up Cena-Rusev at WrestleMania.
The storyline with Big Show and the Russian flag, including the company’s apology, was all simply part of a planned angle. WWE does have television shows in Russia, so they may have wanted to soften the blow, however it’s said that the entire thing was all planned out in advance.
The incident actually made the news in some Russian outlets, although it wasn’t treated as a major story or anything like that.
The part of the angle where Big Show pulled down the Russian flag ended up being edited off WWE’s Russian version of RAW, as the show airs on a five-day delay.
On a somewhat related note, Rusev and Lana are apparently put over strong by the Russian announcers as national heroes and babyfaces.
Once an occasional treat for the WWE Universe, the Hell in a Cell match has become a yearly event since the introduction of the eponymous pay-per-view in 2009. Since its inception, the company has yet to truly knock it out of the park with Hell in a Cell, although fans have witnessed some memorable moments.
This year, it will be either John Cena or Dean Ambrose headlining the event against Seth Rollins inside the most ominous structure in sports entertainment. As the company builds up its next pay-per-view, here is a look back at the first five Hell in a Cell events.
5. 2012
This event really didn’t have a pay-per-view feel to it. The undercard was primarily filled with forgettable matches that had little impact on future storylines. The main event was also lacking due to injury.
It was clear that the company had no idea what to do after John Cena went down to injury, leading to Ryback receiving a premature main event push. From top to bottom, this event was lacking and easily locks up the honor of being the worst Hell in a Cell pay-per-view to date.
Main Event: CM Punk vs. Ryback (Hell in a Cell Match for the WWE Championship)
Best Match: Big Show vs. Sheamus
Worst Match: Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara vs. The Prime Time Players
There continues to be discussions within WWE creative regarding the idea of having Rusev feud with Sheamus over the WWE United States Championship once he is done with his current program with Big Show.
The main idea behind the Rusev-Sheamus feud is that Rusev would defeat Sheamus for the title, and then brag about how he is the “United States Champion” to get heat based on his Russian character.
WWE issued the following statement regarding the angle that saw Big Show pull down the Russian flag during his segment with Rusev and Lana on Monday’s edition of RAW.
“We at WWE would like to apologize to the Russian people for the incident on Monday Night Raw that could have been construed as disrespect for their nation’s flag.”
– On Monday, WWE announced and promoted a match between Dean Ambrose and Randy Orton for the post-Night Of Champions edition of RAW. An hour later, they removed the advertising for that match and ended up going a different direction. During Monday’s RAW, WWE promoted a Night Of Champions rematch between The Usos and Goldust and Stardust, however just before the taping last night, they switched the advertisements to feature a Big Show vs. Rusev match instead.
– Below is the “Top 10 Moments from this week’s RAW” video for Monday’s show.
Ronda Rousey vs. TRANSSEXUAL?!, Wanderlei Silva BANNED FOR LIFE From MMA + MORE!
Since bursting on the scene last fall, Bray Wyatt has been one of the most diabolical and confusing characters on the WWE roster. Fans are likely to find him delivering a soliloquy in a dark room one minute, while serenading an audience the next.
Along the way, Wyatt has taken out a number of superstars, including Kane, Daniel Bryan, and John Cena. However, it seems as if Wyatt has lost momentum in recent weeks.
Wyatt has lost momentum since his feud with John Cena.
Everything seemed to be going fine for Wyatt and his Family during his program with John Cena. Wyatt was able to defeat Cena during one of the three matches, and although he wasn’t able to win the series, he looked strong at times and amassed more followers. At the same time, Luke Harper and Erick Rowan were challenging for the Tag Team Championships and it seemed like only a matter of time before they would capture gold.
However, the stable has seemed lost since the Cena program. Wyatt feuded with Chris Jericho in a program that was underwhelming and did little to advance either superstar. As for Harper and Rowan, they could never overcome the Usos and it now appears that they are out of the title picture for the time being. The current Wyatt Family situation begs the question: Is the stable quickly losing relevance?
In recent weeks, Wyatt has been fed to a number of superstars as they attempt to build up Night of Champions. Nowhere was this more evident than a few weeks ago when John Cena tore through the entire three-man stable just one week after being destroyed by Brock Lesnar.
This week on Raw was no different, as the Big Show delivered a double chokeslam to Harper and Rowan, once again sending the Wyatt Family running for the hills with their tails between their legs.
Feeding the Wyatt Family to the Big Show makes little sense. After all, it is not like the Big Show has a match at Night of Champions, so unlike the Cena situation, the company isn’t really building for the pay-per-view by burying the future of the company. Instead, it was just another pointless beating and loss for the Wyatt Family.
– It was announced on the WWE Night Of Champions “go-home” edition of RAW on Monday night that at the “Kickoff Show” for this Sunday’s pay-per-view, Christian will conduct a “Peep Show” talk show segment with special guest Chris Jericho.
– Also announced on RAW was a big six-man tag-team match for this week’s SmackDown, which will see Big Show and The Usos vs. Bray Wyatt, Luke Harper and Erick Rowan.
As everyone knows by now, the Beast and the (former) Champ will once again square off in less than two weeks at Night of Champions. This contest will be John Cena’s championship rematch and figures to be the last time the two competitors will square off.
Since losing his title last month at SummerSlam, John Cena has been running through the roster, destroying everyone in his path while being booked as a threat to Lesnar. Along the way, he wiped out the entire Wyatt Family, took out Seth Rollins, and has vowed to kick Lesnar’s ass during their next meeting.
John Cena will hope to exact a bit of revenge in two weeks at Night of Champions.
It seems apparent that Cena will not be reunited with his precious championship belt. Instead, he is being booked very strong in an attempt to make things believable, but he could be hurting other members of the roster during the build (Bray Wyatt, in particular). It makes little sense to have Cena run through one of your top guys (especially one who was building momentum) like he’s a nobody when there are plenty of other guys that could have done the job.
Nonetheless, the build in this case is not as important as the aftermath. The consensus seems to be that Cena will not regain his title in a few weeks at Night of Champions. This leaves fans with one question: Who is next for Brock Lesnar?
The Beast Incarnate has expanded his deal to allow for the company to book its champion for more dates, but it remains to be seen who his next opponent will be. It’s likely that Lesnar will hold the title until WrestleMania to generate interest before passing it on to the next generation, leaving many pay-per-views between now and March.
The WWE rolled through midwest tonight, as they set up shop in Des Moines, Iowa. This week’s card featured a total of eight matches, including a life changing six-man tag main event. It’s time to once again take the WWE to school, and I’ll be the one doling out the grades.
As always, matches will be graded based on usual factors such as workrate, in-ring psychology, move variety, crowd reaction, and overall impact on the storyline. Important in-ring promos will also be graded based on factors such as originality, believability, and importance. Without further ado, here is this week’s Raw report card.
Chris Jericho’s Highlight Reel
Tonight’s show started with Chris Jericho’s Highlight Reel, and featured a shitload of guests, including the Authority, John Cena, and Roman Reigns. There was some entertaining banter during the segment, including Triple H and Jericho hurling corny insults at one another as Jericho dissed Triple H’s pink tie, while the Game chose to attack Y2J’s scarf during a hilarious back and forth. Rollins was extremely over during the promo and got the biggest pop of the night in his home state. Cena threatening to sue the company was pretty lame, however, and held the promo back a bit. It was an overall decent segment, it set up the main event, and the crowd seemed to be into it.
Grade: B
Sheamus and Dolph Ziggler vs. Cesaro and the Miz
The first match of the night was a tag team match featuring the United States and Intercontinental Champions. The Miz showed up with his body double Damien Mizdow and a personal stylist, complete with chairs and makeup. Miz and Sandow were hilarious throughout the contest and the ending was solid. Ziggler and Cesaro also worked well together during the opening portion of the match, with Cesaro’s fall away slam into a pinning combination being one of the most impressive spots I’ve seen in a long time. Overall, it was an entertaining contest and was a good way to advance both feuds.
The following are highlights of a new interview with Cesaro:
On having a hero in wrestling: “It’s always good to have heroes and people you look up to, and it’s very important to look to them for inspiration. But you need to be your own hero. The way I went to get here, nobody else did it this way, so I’m very proud of that.”
On making a big first impression in the first ever Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal: “You only get one chance to make the first impression. And I made the biggest first impression ever by throwing the Big Show over the top rope.”
The following are highlights of a new Alternative Nation interview with Hornswoggle:
On a backstage conversation he had with The Rock: “I told him, ‘I met you backstage the night you came back in [Anaheim], when you were revealed as the guest host for WrestleMania, and you thought I was a Make a Wish kid. You tapped me on the shoulder and said, ‘Did you have a good time tonight buddy?’ Then you walked off and you realized it, then you said to Big Show, ‘Hornswoggle thinks I thought he was a Make a Wish kid, and I did think he was.’”
On the Vince McMahon son angle: “I did that for about three months, where I was his son, maybe longer, and there were days in the beginning where I would go, ‘Oh my god, I’m working with the most powerful man in wrestling.’ Then I realized that he’s joking around, he’s playing ribs on guys more than I am. You just realize that he is this billionaire, but still just loves this business. When it comes to wrestling, I use that word instead of sports entertainment, I use wrestling all the time, because I am a wrestling fan. CM Punk once said this is still wrestling to us, this isn’t sports entertainment to us, because we grew up on wrestling.”
On Finlay: “My old buddy, my ‘Dad’ Dave Finlay. He’s still working backstage as an agent and producer, and he has helped me more than anybody else in this company. He has gone to bat for me more times that he probably wanted to, and that’s because he literally cares about me as a son.”
Campuses around the country are infested with returning college students this week. In honor of all the alcohol that will be consumed and the knowledge that will hopefully be absorbed, it’s time to take the WWE to school, and I’ll be the one doling out the grades.
Welcome to the first ever WWE Raw Report Card. Matches will be graded based on usual factors such as workrate, in-ring psychology, move variety, crowd reaction, and overall impact on the storyline. Important in-ring promos will also be graded based on factors such as originality, believability, and importance. Without further ado, here are this week’s grades.
Hall of Fame Forum
This week’s Raw started with a roundtable discussion regarding the upcoming rematch between John Cena and Brock Lesnar. First off, I never thought I’d see the day where Shawn Michaels was the worst dressed man in the ring, but his combination of cowboy hat, jacket, and Remington t-shirt didn’t do him any favors.
Overall, it was nice seeing the legends together, even if it did feel a bit scripted at times and offered little insight. One hilarious moment was when Michaels said everyone loves Cena, eliciting massive boos from the audience. Speaking of Cena, his promo was surprisingly compelling, and it was nice to see him own up to the beating he took at SummerSlam.
Grade: B-
Rusev vs. Jack Swagger
This was likely the last contest between Rusev and Swagger, and all I can say is, “Good riddance.” This match featured a lot of downtime that resulted in a poor workrate, and a lot of the match was spent outside of the ring with nothing going on.
The in-ring psychology was pretty good (Swagger sold the rib injury well) and the crowd was into it, so that raised the grade a bit, but it was ultimately a fitting ending to a rather pointless program that saw Swagger dominated at nearly every stage of the feud.
Grade: C
Rob Van Dam vs. Cesaro
This was a rather short match, but both superstars worked well together during the time they were given. One criticism is that the ending felt a bit rushed. One moment Cesaro was rolling outside of the ring to avoid the Five Star Frog Splash and only a few seconds later he was hitting the Neutralizer for the win in a sequence that felt a bit off.
The match also served its purpose by building a championship match between Cesaro and Sheamus – a program that looks like it could be entertaining with two of the company’s better workers.
– It was announced on this week’s edition of RAW that on Friday’s edition of WWE SmackDown, Luke Harper and Erick Rowan will take on Big Show and Mark Henry in tag-team action.
– Jeff Hardy: My Life, My Rules debuts this Wednesday on the WWE Network. Below is a video preview.
– The official WWE website is currently running a poll asking fans which WWE Superstar they would most like to see in a WWE Studios film. The options are Brock Lesnar, The Undertaker, Roman Reigns, Bray Wyatt, Seth Rollins, Daniel Bryan, Dolph Ziggler, Chris Jericho, Sheamus and Stardust. Leading the pack with a considerable amount of the vote is Undertaker, followed by Reigns and Wyatt. You can vote in the poll today at WWE.com.
– Although he has yet to be cleared to return, Daniel Bryan is being advertised for the WWE European tour in November. Matches advertised for the tour include Big Show vs. Rusev and John Cena vs. Seth Rollins on one side, with the other set featuring Roman Reigns vs. Randy Orton and Dean Ambrose vs. Kane.
Big Show and WWE are currently facing a lawsuit against former WWE road producer Andrew Green, who claimed that Big Show roughed him up during the filming of a backstage segment.
WWE officials felt that having another similar incident, like the one with Alberto Del Rio and WWE Social Media producer Cody Barbierri, that it would strengthen the case against Big Show and also strengthen a potential Barbierri case. This was reportedly another factor behind the decision to release Del Rio.
Last night’s Raw was held in Las Vegas, Nevada and featured a total of seven matches, including another classic between Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins.
Notably absent was former WWE World Heavyweight Champion John Cena, as he was recovering from injuries sustained at SummerSlam. Overall, a few questions were answered, but many still remain. Here are five questions that need to be answered following this week’s episode of Raw.
5. Can Big Show/Mark Henry Generate Interest?
The so-called “World’s Largest Team” has been running through the tag team division over the past week or so. The two giants once again teamed up this week on Raw, destroying Luke Harper and Erick Rowan in a relatively short contest.
Both of these guys have been largely absent over the past few months, so it’s good to see some sort of program, but can they generate interest as a tag team? With the Usos having beaten every team on the roster, it makes sense to find new challengers and I think Show/Henry against the Usos could make for a decent program. Obviously both teams are working as faces, so the best way to go about the feud could be to turn Show and Henry heel.
4. Should Swagger Be Given More Time to Speak?
Zeb Colter was notably absent last night after taking a kick from Rusev at SummerSlam. In his absence, Jack Swagger cut a surprisingly decent promo before his match with Cesaro.
Although Colter has served as Swagger’s mouthpiece for well over a year and the only words I’ve heard come out of Swagger’s mouth are “We the People,” I believe he should be given more time to speak. It would allow him to develop a non-robotic character, while also still receiving mentorship from one of the top managers in the business.
On Monday’s post-SummerSlam edition of WWE RAW, many announcements were made regarding matches and segments on several of WWE’s upcoming television shows.
First up, on WWE Main Event, which airs live on the WWE Network on Tuesday night, Big Show vs. Erick Rowan is the featured match.
On Friday’s edition of SmackDown on SyFy, which will be taped on Tuesday night, Randy Orton vs. Rob Van Dam is one of the featured matches.
Finally, on next week’s edition of RAW, John Cena will “address the WWE Universe” for the first time since losing his WWE World Heavyweight Championship to Brock Lesnar at the SummerSlam pay-per-view on Sunday night in Los Angeles, California.
– WWE has yet to announce a SummerSlam “Kickoff Show” match, however their official previews claim there will be one. For what it’s worth, WWE United States Champion Sheamus and WWE Tag-Team Champions The Usos do not have matches on the show yet.
– Big Show and Mark Henry are featured on the latest edition of WWE’s “SmackDown Fallout,” which you can check out below.