– WWE taped The Shining Stars vs. two local jobbers and Darren Young vs. Jinder Mahal last night for this week’s Superstars episode.
– Tonight’s WWE SmackDown will feature the fallout from No Mercy plus Randy Orton and Kane vs. Bray Wyatt and Luke Harper.
– Below are backstage RAW videos with Titus O’Neil and Dana Brooke. Following her beatdown on Bayley, Dana says playtime is over because playtime is for kids and that’s exactly what Bayley is, a kid.
Titus tries to hold another “Titus Brand” press conference to address his loss to R-Truth but only Tom Phillips shows up and he has more technical difficulties.
A few weeks ago at Backlash, Bray Wyatt was supposed to face off against Randy Orton. Unfortunately, Orton was unable to compete due to the concussion he suffered during his match against Brock Lesnar at Summerslam. The WWE smartly had Wyatt attack Orton backstage as an excuse to not have the match. Wyatt came down to the ring and forced the ring announcer to proclaim him as the winner of a match that never took place.
A random No Holds Barred match was then made between Kane and Bray Wyatt. Bray Wyatt got in some offense but Kane actually controlled the majority of the match. The finish of the match saw Randy Orton coming down to the ring and hitting an RKO on Wyatt. Kane then followed this up with a Chokeslam and won the match. Kane was Chokeslamming someone named The Milk Man on Smackdown before Backlash, now he was defeating the “Eater of Worlds” on a PPV. Kane has also done absolutely nothing since defeating Wyatt.
Fast forward to today. No Mercy is on the horizon and Orton and Wyatt will finally have their match. Last night on the greatest Smackdown of all time according to the comment section, Wyatt tried to play mind-games with Orton. He set up a maze backstage with words on the arena walls. “Predator or Prey” and “I am a God” were written all over the place. Erick Rowan observed Orton as he walked around backstage. Orton almost opened a door. It was just riveting television.
Smackdown opened up with Orton stating that Wyatt was afraid of him. By the end of the night, that was proven to be true. Orton confronted Wyatt backstage with a sheep mask on and Wyatt took off running. Orton then sang that he has got the whole world in his hands and the crowd sang along. Thus, Wyatt was once again proven to be a coward. It would be astonishing if Wyatt somehow defeated Orton clean at No Mercy. If he does win it will be due to outside interference, which is fine. I just don’t understand how anyone can view Wyatt as a monster or a “God” anymore. The WWE seems to be booking Bo Dallas as a more dominant figure than Bray Wyatt.
Do you think Wyatt will win at No Mercy and finally get back on track? Or will Wyatt once again lose and go continue to cut ultimately meaningless promos every week? Dolph Ziggler obviously has the highest stakes at No Mercy but I think this is a match/feud that Wyatt really needs to win.
Bobby Lashley: “There’s a Tremendous Amount of Money” in Facing Lesnar at Wrestlemania
Randy Orton is not expected to wrestle at tonight’s WWE Backlash PPV, but is backstage at The Coliseum in Richmond, VA for the show.
Kane replaced Orton at a WWE house show in Raleigh last night (defeating Bray Wyatt) and is the likely replacement for Orton at Backlash.
Orton’s injury is said to be concussion-related, according to PWInsider. Dave Meltzer noted that he couldn’t get confirmation regarding the injury, but that was the word going around backstage today and Orton did take legitimate beating from Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam.
WWE officials were hoping Orton would be cleared to to compete tonight. His upcoming rematch against Brock Lesnar at WWE’s 9/24 live event from Chicago is up in the air at this point.
– Today’s wrestling birthdays include Apollo Crews (29), Neville (30), The Usos (31) and Paul Ellering (63).
– Despite the SummerSlam loss to Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho, Big Cass and Enzo Amore are focusing on the WWE Tag Team Championships. Cass spoke with The Times-Ledger of Queens this weekend and commented on going for gold:
“It’s our No. 1 goal and it’s where we’re focused. You need guys that are competitive, you need guys that hate losing, you need guys that always want to win. That’s the team I want to be on.”
– It was expected that Bray Wyatt would appear at SummerSlam after weeks of feuding with Dolph Ziggler and WWE Champion Dean Ambrose but he did not. Wyatt did take to Twitter after the PPV and tweet the following:
Bray Wyatt did in fact sprain his ankle during this week’s SmackDown main event against Dolph Ziggler, as confirmed by Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio. As of this writing, Wyatt is still planning on wrestling at this weekend’s live events.
Regarding Paige’s mother stating that she’s out of action due to injury, Paige been dealing with back and shoulder issues. She’s expected to be out of the ring for at least 2 more weeks. Meltzer hinted that there are “other, significant” problems with Paige, but there’s no talk of her being in danger of being released.
As for Jimmy Uso’s injury, he was expected back at this week’s TV tapings but was held off TV this week.
Bray Wyatt had an injury scare during the main event of last night’s SmackDown from Nashville. During his match against Dolph Ziggler, Wyatt rolled his ankle and was visibly upset. The referee threw up the “X” symbol to bring out trainers, but Wyatt refused help. He finished the match, but was not putting much weight on the ankle in question.
We’ve reached out to WWE for a statement and hope to have an update later. Here’s a look at how it went down:
Bray Wyatt rolled his ankle last night on SmackDown, waiting for an update on his status pic.twitter.com/XwdlXzv0LP
RAW Superstars Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns appeared after tonight’s SmackDown went off the air in Buffalo.
The dark main event saw Reigns and WWE Champion Dean Ambrose defeat Rollins and Bray Wyatt when Ambrose hit Dirty Deeds on Rollins.
The RAW Superstars wrestling in the SmackDown dark March main event is similar to what fans who were in attendance at last night’s RAW saw, when SmackDown stars John Cena, Dean Ambrose & Seth Rollkms wrestled after RAW went off the air. It remains to be seen if this will be a regular occurrence or if the cross brand involvement ends once the dust settles from the Brand Extension.
We have a full report from tonight’s SmackDown at this link.
– It seems like former NXT tag team champion Wesley Blake could be in line for a singles push. He debuted new ring gear and theme music at Thursday’s NXT TV tapings. He will face Shinsuke Nakamura on the 7/27 NXT episode.
– Big E has responded to a recent Bray Wyatt tweet and shut him down without using words. We noted earlier how Wyatt took to Twitter to respond to Matt Hardy and some of the social media talk on Wyatt Family compound segment – Final Deletion comparisons. As seen below, Big E responded to one tweet and shut Wyatt down:
Bray Wyatt took to Twitter on Tuesday night and commented on the controversy surrounding his Wyatt Family compound segment from Monday’s RAW and the similarities to TNA’s “Final Deletion” match with The Hardys.
– We noted before how there was talk of having Dolph Ziggler cover the Republican and Democratic National Conventions this year for WWE. Those plans were apparently nixed as Ziggler will be covering the RNC next week in Cleveland, for FOX Business’ Kennedy Nation. Ziggler tweeted:
– It looks like The Wyatts have some interesting surprises waiting for The New Day for when they visit The Wyatt Family compound this week on WWE TV. Bray Wyatt posted this teaser today:
– The 2016 WWE Survivor Series PPV has been confirmed for Toronto on 11/20. Tickets go on sale Friday, as detailed in this announcement from WWE:
Toronto will host the 30th annual WWE Survivor Series on Sunday, Nov. 20, and you can get tickets to the gigantic event beginning this Friday at 10 a.m. ET.
Tickets start at just $30 and will be available at www.ticketmaster.ca.
Among the richest traditions in sports-entertainment, Survivor Series is the second longest-running pay-per-view in WWE history, behind only WrestleMania. This November’s card is the first Survivor Series to take place in Toronto, and the first to happen in Canada since 1997.
What kind of excitement awaits when WWE’s fall classic makes its long-anticipated debut in one of the world’s great wrestling capitols? Find out for yourself by securing your tickets this Friday!
Bray Wyatt and The Wyatt Family appeared on ESPN SportsCenter last night for this week’s “Off The Top Rope” segment with Todd Grisham, who was filling in for Jonathan Coachman. We have full video below.
Wyatt was asked about working with The Rock at WrestleMania 32 this year and he said it was cool but they have unfinished business. Wyatt went on to say that he would love to finish the business at WrestleMania 33 in Orlando next year.
Wyatt was also asked about working with The Undertaker at WrestleMania 31. He said working with Taker at WrestleMania is as big as it gets in WWE as Taker is above titles. Wyatt said just being around Taker is fascinating.
They also discuss Wyatt’s favorite WWE star of all-time being Jake Roberts, the best attribute for a new WWE star to have, NFL star JJ Watt fitting with The Wyatts and more.
A photo has been circulating online of Bray Wyatt looking a lot trimmer than the last time we saw him on WWE television. Bray has been out of action since April when he suffered a calf injury (VIDEO) during a WWE live event in Milan, Italy. Bray and the rest of the Wyatt family are expected back in a matter of weeks.
Finn Balor’s WWE main roster call-up is said to be imminent. There are rumors of Balor debuting at Money In the Bank on Sunday but the debut could be held off until the WWE Draft.
It will also be interesting to see if The Wyatt Family, Randy Orton or Neville return at MITB on Sunday. They are all set to return in the next few weeks and The Wyatts have been rumored for MITB.
WWE is expected to sellout the 13,000 seat setup for Sunday’s PPV, their first at the new T Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
– Former WWE star Zach Gowen will be on NBC’s “American Ninja Warriors” Indianapolis qualifier episode tonight. Indy wrestler Gregory Iron, Gowen’s friend and tag team partner, will be in attendance with him.
– We’ve noted how Bray Wyatt may be returning to WWE TV at next week’s RAW from New Orleans. According to F4Wonline.com, Wyatt is all cleared to wrestle and the speculation is that he will be the 7th participant in the Money In the Bank Ladder Match.
– Below is video of Xavier Woods interviewing NBA 2K17 cover athlete Paul George at the 2K16 Road to the Finals event in LA last week:
– Bray Wyatt continues to tease his upcoming return to WWE, this time referencing “Abby.” Wyatt was seemingly in the process of turning babyface prior to his recent injury during WWE’s post-WrestleMania European tour. His calf injury had an expected recovery time of 4-6 weeks, so he should be ready to return any week now.
After arguably the worst string of injuries in WWE history, several of WWE’s top names are gearing up to get back in the during. During today’s WWE Q1 earnings conference call, Vince McMahon painted an optimistic outlook regarding the company’s future, in part due to the imminent returns of John Cena, Seth Rollins, Bray Wyatt and Randy Orton. A couple new details courtesy of PWInsider:
– It’s expected that the other returns will take place after John Cena’s big homecoming on the Memorial Day edition of RAW in less than two weeks.
– Bray Wyatt is still recovering from his right calf injury and likely won’t be wrestling for some time after he’s back on TV.
– Seth Rollins is scheduled to be back in early June after “Temple” finishes filming.
Vince McMahon noted that 13 wrestlers have recently been called up to the main roster and additional talent called up soon, so it will be interesting to see how this “new era” looks come June.
Bryan Alvarez noted on Wrestling Observer on Wednesday that Bray Wyatt will be out of action for 6-8 weeks. Wyatt suffered a calf injury back on April 14th during his match with Roman Reigns in Milan, Italty.
The original plans for Payback were for The Wyatts to wrestle The League of Nations, but those plans — and the League of Nations stable itself were scrapped as a result of Bray’s injury.
Erick Rowan and Braun Strowman haven’t appeared on WWE TV since the injury.
– As seen last night on RAW, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson wore jackets with the phrase “#GB 4 Life.” written on the jackets they wore to the ring. In response to social media speculation regarding what “GB” stands for, Gallows’ wife Amber confirmed that it stands for Good Brothers.
– Bray Wyatt checked in on Tuesday with an update about his looming return. The Eater of Worlds is recovering from a calf injury and should be back in action before next month’s Extreme Rules pay-per-view.
Brie Bella and Bray Wyatt have been scanned for 2K Sports’ WWE 2K17 video game, and Pixelgun Studio has posted the below photos from their scans online. As noted, WWE Hall of Famer Alundra Blayze was also recently scanned for the game.
WWE 2K17 is expected to be released in October on PS3, PS4, Xbox One and Xbox 360 consoles. It will be the eighteenth game in the WWE games series and the third under the “WWE 2K” banner.
The Italian WWE announce team confirmed today that Bray Wyatt has been pulled from the rest of the European tour. Wyatt suffered an injury to his right calf muscle at Wednesday night’s live event from Milan, Italy.
Wyatt won’t be at Monday’s RAW or the SmackDown tapings on Tuesday. Wyatt was scheduled to headline various events on the tor against Roman Reigns.
Wyatt will undergo a medical examination upon his arrival back in the United States, and should know how long he’ll need to recover. Prior to his calf injury, Wyatt was already dealing with a back injury.
WWE has confirmed that Bray Wyatt suffered an injury to his right calf muscle at Wednesday night’s live event from Milan, Italy.
As noted earlier, the match was stopped once it became clear Bray was injured. Erik Rowan and Braun Strowman ran to the ring, followed by The Usos and the Dudley Boyz. There was a big brawl, with Reigns clearing house. Sheamus ran down and got speared. Reigns then gave a speech apologizing to the crowd and saying that he’d never wish an injury on an opponent.
New video has surfaced online showing the moment Bray was injured. No word yet on how long he’ll be out of action.
Update: WWE.com has confirmed Bray Wyatt suffered a right calf injury.
Earlier: It appears that Bray Wyatt injured his ankle at Wednesday night’s WWE Live event from Milan, Italy. Bray was wrestling WWE World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns. Based on live reports from fans who were in attendance, they were brawling in the corner and the ref began counting for them to break it up. As Bray was walking away from Reigns, he slipped. When it became clear he could not put any pressure on one of his legs, the ref stopped the match. Bray was helped backstage by WWE officials.
Roman was standing in the ring unsure of how to proceed when Erik Rowan and Braun Strowman ran to the ring. The Usos and the Dudley Boyz quickly followed. There was a big brawl, with Reigns clearing house. Sheamus ran down and got speared.
Afterwards, Reigns gave a speech apologizing to the crowd that the match ended abruptly.
Here is video that picks up right after Bray slipped:
