Posts Tagged ‘Finn Balor’

WWE 2K16 Commentators, Brock Lesnar On RAW, Finn Balor Celebrates Milestone

– Yesterday it was reported that if you pre-order WWE 2K16, you’ll get WWE Hall of Famer Arnold Schwarzenegger as a playable character – the above trailer was also released.

On the topic of WWE 2K16, Michael Cole confirmed during RAW last night that both he and JBL will be providing commentary for the game which is due out in October.

– Next Monday when RAW comes to the Sap Center in San Jose, California, Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman will be on hand to address the recent actions of The Undertaker.

– Current WWE NXT Champion Finn Balor took to Twitter to note that it was a year ago that his journey with the WWE began:

WWE SmackDown Rating Rises, Next Ross Report Guest, Finn Balor

– The Thursday, July 23rd edition of WWE SmackDown scored a final cable rating of 1.79, according to Nielsen Media Research. The 1.79 final draw marks an increase compared to last week’s 1.63 rating. Thursday’s SmackDown averaged 2.35 million viewers, which was also up from last week’s show, which scored 2.153 million viewers.

– NXT Champion Finn Balor celebrates hs 34th birthday today. Balor, real name Fergal Devitt, was born on July 25, 1981.

– Pro wrestling veteran Al Snow will be the guest on Jim Ross’ “Ross Report” podcast, which drops next Tuesday night at PodcastOne.com. The official description for the episode reads: “Al Snow, gifted trainer, broadcaster and wrestler talks about his unique career and the wrestlers that he’s trained and the 30+ year career that he’s still enjoying. Talks Smoky Mountain Wrestling, ECW, WWE Attitude Era, TNA and much more. Super show if you want to be in the wrestling business.”

Video: Batista Featured In James Bond: Spectre Trailer

Former WWE Superstar Batista is featured in the new trailer for the new James Bond movie, “007: Spectre,” where he plays villain “Mr. Hinx.”

The movie is scheduled for a November 6th release in theaters.

Chris Jericho Interviews Jarrett & Magnus, Balor/NXT, Cena Workout Clip

– Global Force Wrestling founder Jeff Jarrett and GFW talent Nick “Magnus” Aldis were the guests on the latest edition of Chris Jericho’s “Talk Is Jericho” podcast. You can download the show right now at PodcastOne.com.

– WWE posted the following Finn Balor themed preview for tonight’s edition of NXT on the WWE Network.

– WWE United States Champion John Cena posted the following video clip of himself working out with the caption, “Focus.”

Details On NXT Contract Signing, WWE Network News, WWE & NXT Attendance

– WWE Network does not have a Battleground post-show scheduled for this Sunday.

– Next week’s edition of NXT on the WWE Network will feature a “Takeover: Brooklyn” contract signing between NXT Champion Finn Balor and challenger Kevin Owens. NXT General Manager William Regal will be on hand to oversee things.

– The following are some recent WWE and NXT attendance figures:

* July 9th in Largo, FL for NXT drew a sellout of 375 fans
* July 10th in Orlando for NXT drew 275 fans
* July 10th in Philadelphia drew 8,000 fans (John Cena, Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins)
* July 11th in Jacksonville for NXT drew a sellout of 500 fans
* July 11th in Pittsburgh drew 6,000 fans (Cena tour)
* July 11th in Nashville drew 4,500 fans (Reigns tour)
* July 12th in Macon, GA drew 2,000 fans (Randy Orton headlined)
* July 12th in Knoxville, TN drew 4,500 fans (Rollins and Reigns)
* July 13th in Atlanta for RAW drew 12,500 fans

Finn Balor On His Trademark Body Paint Look, WWE Allowing Him To Use It

NXT Champion Finn Balor was recently interviewed at the San Diego Comic Con about his new action figure in the United States, as well as his trademark body paint look. Below are some of the highlights from the interview.

On his first U.S. action figure: “Excited and surprised. I wasn’t aware I was getting a figure until today, and I wasn’t actually aware I was coming today until yesterday at 3 pm. I’m as surprised as anyone.”

On his unique body paint look: “It goes back to when I was in Japan, and I was looking for something new to do outside the box. I toyed with the idea of wearing a full bodysuit or a mask. It was originally meant to be a once-off for the Tokyo Dome. It got a great reaction, and one show led to another, and it became a whole big thing.”

On using the body paint look in WWE: “When I left the independents and New Japan, I thought I was leaving that part of my personality behind me. When I arrived here in WWE, I had a meeting and I laid it all on the table and they said ‘we want you to try it here sometime.'”

Check out the complete interview above.

Finn Balor To Defend Against Kevin Owens At Takeover: Brooklyn

NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn is set to take place on Saturday, August 22nd, the night before SummerSlam at The Barclay’s Centre in New York City.

The event will be broadcast on the WWE Network and William Regal has just confirmed a huge title match that will take place during the event.

Speaking at the Mattel panel at this year’s Comic Con in San Diego, William Regal confirmed that Kevin Owens will get his NXT Title rematch against Finn Balor.

Finn Balor defeated Kevin Owens at the recent “Beast in the East” WWE Network special live from Tokyo Japan to begin his first reign as the NXT Champion.

Steve Austin Talks Finn Balor, Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens & WWE’s Top Young Talent

WWE Hall of Famer Steve Austin just spoke with MTV UK to promote being on the cover of the upcoming WWE 2K16 video game. Here are some highlights of what he said about:

Finn Balor, Kevin Owens and WWE’s Top Young Talent:

“I know Seth Rollins, Daniel Bryan, Dean Ambrose, Paige, Bad News Barrett [are all included]… but Finn Balor, I think, is going to be an interesting addition to the game. Here’s a guy from Ireland who’s been around for about 15 years, give or take – a guy with his experience and moveset and the different paint jobs he wears to the ring, he’s very entertaining guy and I’m looking forward to big things from him. I know this is the biggest roster they’ve ever had in this series of WWE games from 2K – but for me to speculate who could be on there, I have no idea. I have heard some very interesting rumours but I cannot speak to those rumours. But it should be a very cool and – if I might say so – completely badass roster!”

“I tell you what, first of all, I love Finn’s work. There have been some tremendous workers come out of Ireland and Northern Ireland over the years. I talked to him once on the telephone – and I’m a big fan of Fit Finlay – so he reminds me a little bit of Fit, but much more dynamic with his moveset and all of his experience in Japan. Man, the kid is just a walking highlight reel as a far as technical wrestling, a master. He’s just a good looking kid, he knows his business in the ring. And I’m a fan of the bodypaint he wears on special occasions. And then you put him across the ring from Kevin Owens… again, there’s a guy – probably, what a 13 or 14 year veteran? – and finally getting a shot here in the big leagues and for those two guys to go in there and have match in Japan, I think it is a good time to be a WWE fan. Some people consider these guys rookies on the big scene but they are veterans, have paid a lot of dues and are damn good workers so I think right now is a pretty exciting time as we see these guys develop further and get some more ring time, get more over than they are. But they certainly have all the tools, all the moves and all the talent to do so. I think the horizon is very bright for the upcoming in ring product as far as WWE is concerned.”

WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins:

“There’s a guy who has got all the pieces put together right now, he’s on a roll and I think he’s an exciting guy, I think he’s representing very well. I think he has a pretty good repertoire right now. I might play him a little bit more aggressively than he performs in the squared circle, dial him up from that aspect and give him a bit more of a mean streak. But I think you’re looking at a guy who is a very well-rounded athlete. I know he loves crossfit for his training regime. All of these guys are so dynamic now.”

Backstage News On Finn Balor’s NXT Title Win, Beast In The East Commentary, More

– For those curious, Michael Cole and Byron Saxton did the commentary for this weekend’s WWE “Beast In The East” live WWE Network special from WWE Studios in Stamford, Connecticut for the show in Tokyo, Japan. The two were not live in Tokyo, but instead worked from the main WWE offices.

– While many were surprised to see Finn Balor come away with the NXT Championship after the “Beast In The East” special in Tokyo, it has actually been the plan for a while. With Kevin Owens moving up to the main roster full-time, it was always the plan for Owens to drop the title to Balor on the way out.

– WWE will air a new episode of “Culture Shock with Corey Graves” on the WWE Network this Wednesday at 4pm EST. The official description for the show reads as follows:

“Corey Graves dives into a world where Hardcore Bowling and Punk Rock music collide on this thrilling edition of Culture Shock!”

(Partial Credit: PWInsider.com)

Funaki Backstage At WWE Japan (Photo), Finn Balor’s Face Paint, Woods/Cesaro

– The official WWE website has a new poll up asking fans to vote on which Superstar has the coolest face paint. With over 3,000 votes, Finn Balor leads the pack with 43%, while Sting is just behind him with 40 percent. Other options included Goldust, Stardust, The Usos and The Ascension.

– In the following video from Xavier Woods’ WWE-endorsed YouTube gaming channel — “UpUpDownDown” — Woods and Cesaro play the old video game “Double Dragon.”

– Former WWE Superstar Funaki was backstage at the WWE “Beast in the East” special in Tokyo, Japan this weekend. Below is a photo of him with The Lucha Dragons.

https://instagram.com/p/4wogY9im2E/

Finn Balor Comments On His Win In Japan, Congratulated By Other Superstars

– Moments after winning the WWE NXT Championship at WWE’s Beast in the East live event in Tokyo, Japan, Finn Balor was congratulated by a number of Superstars backstage.

In the video above, after defeating Kevin Owens for his first title reign in the WWE Balor was congratulated by Cesaro, Neville, United States Champion John Cena and William Regal.

– Following the match against Kevin Owens yesterday in Japan, Balor took to his Twitter account and shared the following photo:

If you missed the match then you can watch the full show at this link.

WWE’s “Beast In The East” Main Event Videos, Triple H Thanks Fans For Watching

– Following the “Beast in the East” live show from Tokyo, Japan which was broadcast on the WWE Network, the WWE have shared two videos one of which features Finn Balor taking on Kevin Owens.

The second short video features the “Beast in the East” himself Brock Lesnar in his match against New Day member Kofi Kingston. The full show can be seen here – with results here.

– Shortly after the event, Triple H took to Twitter to thank everyone from around the world for tuning into the live event:

Triple H Shares Photo Of Finn Balor, Note On Why Naomi Missed Show

At today’s WWE live event “Beast In The East” which was shown around the world on the WWE Network, Finn Balor defeated Kevin Owens to become the new WWE NXT Champion.

Following the match, WWE Hall of Famer Tatsumi Fujinami came out to congratulate Balor. After this Owens declined a handshake from Balor.

This is Balor’s first title run within the WWE and Triple H tweeted a photo shortly after the match showing Balor backstage with his title.

– During the WWE Network Special, the Divas Championship match was advertised as being Nikki Bella defending against Naomi and Paige.

As noted Tamina had replaced Naomi and fans began asking Naomi on Twitter why she wasn’t at the show and she explained the tweet below that they were dealing with the loss of a family member:

WWE Network’s Live Special “Beast In The East” Results

WWE were live this morning (July 4th) from Ryogoku Kokugikan, Tokyo, Japan for their “Beast in the East” special event which was broadcast on the WWE Network.

The event has been focused around Brock Lesnar making his return to Japan where he would compete in a WWE ring for the first time since WrestleMania 31 where he lost the WWE Championship.

Below are the results for the show:

Chris Jericho vs Neville
Winner: Chris Jericho by making Neville submit with the Lion Tamer.

WWE Divas Championship
Paige vs. Tamina vs. Nikki Bella (c)
Winner: Nikka Bella retains with a forearm on Tamina.

Kofi Kingston vs. Brock Lesnar
Winner: Lesnar wins with an F5 and attacks New Day after the match.

WWE NXT Championship
Finn Balor vs. Kevin Owens (c)
Winner: Finn Balor wins after defeating Kevin Owens with a Coup De Grace.

John Cena & Dolph Ziggler vs. Kane & King Barrett
Winner: John Cena and & Dolph Ziggler win after Cena hits the AA on King Barrett.

If you didn’t get to see the show live then click this link to be taken to the WWE Network where you can catch a replay of exactly what went down.

Video: Finn Balor Makes His Entrance At Live Event In Singapore

YouTube user Primus SJ posted the following video of Finn Balor making his grand entrance on the way to the ring during the live event in Singapore.

Finn Balor was on his way to the ring where he defeated King Barrett in front of an audience of more than 10,000 fans ahead of the WWE Network Special on Saturday.

Various reports say the match was very good, Balor’s reception was excellent, Barrett managed to insult the fans and following the match, Balor thanked the fans by bowing down in front of them.

Make sure you don’t miss the WWE Network Live Special “Beast in the East” which takes place tomorrow from Tokyo, Japan. The full card can be seen at this link.

NXT TV Results – July 1, 2015

WWE NXT
Aired July 1, 2015
Taped June 18 at Full Sail University and aired on WWE Network
Report by Zack Zimmerman and ProWrestling.net

A hype video aired for the main event tag match of Finn Bálor and Samoa Joe vs. Kevin Owens and Rhyno… The opening video played… Inside the arena, the fans chanted “NXT” before The Vaudevillains made their entrance. The Mechanics were out next.

1. The Vaudevillains (Aiden English and Simon Gotch) vs. The Mechanics (Dash Wilder and Scott Dawson). Dawson took control early with a cheap shot to the mid-section, but Gotch went up-and-over him out of the corner and The Vaudevillians took control briefly. Moments later, Dawson regained the advantage on Gotch and The Mechanics began to isolate him.

There was a miscommunication leading to an English lukewarm tag. They hit the reverse uppercut into a swinging neckbreaker and scored the pinfall.

The Vaudevillains over The Mechanics in about 3:15.

The commentators, Rich Brennan, Byron Saxton, and Corey Graves checked in from the commentary table and hyped the Beast in the East special as well as tonight’s main event…

At the WWEPC, Devin Taylor was standing by with Becky Lynch who said she sprained her hip flexor at Takeover, so she has to take a few weeks off. She said she’s going to come back more motivated than ever and win the NXT Women’s Championship. She said this was just the start of N-Bex-T. Total babyface mode.

Back in the arena, Baron Corbin made his entrance. His opponent was already in the ring and was introduced.

2. Baron Corbin vs. Tucker Knight. Corbin hit a weird looking jumping face crusher and then End of Days for the win.

Baron Corbin squashed in about 0:45

The next installation of the Finn Bálor story was hyped next… A Beast in the East vignette aired…

In his office, William Regal looked ready to explode as bickering voices filled his office. He finally had it and yelled “enough!” to stop Enzo & Cass and The Vaudevillains from yelling at each other. He declared that next week the two teams would face off to determine No. 1 Contenders to the NXT Tag Team Championships. Enzo & Cass left to help Carmella get ready for her match later…

The Finn Bálor story picked back up. Bálor talked about how NXT had really sparked his creativity and some of the most rewarding things he’s experienced is the art he’s inspiring in kids. Basically, he loves fan art. He talked about how the body paint helps the wrestler side channel the artist side. Bálor said that prior to NXT, he had a limited reach and was an unknown commodity amongst the masses. So he spoke about how great of a feeling it was to hear the response when “Prince Devitt” appeared on the screen on the night of his debut.

He discussed combining Finn McCool and Bálor to come up with his name, and also noted that his dad’s nickname is Finn. They showed him in the empty Full Sail arena working with the production crew on his entrance. Matt Bloom spoke about how the guy didn’t have much wrestling to learn, but the production side of things was where he had to learn. Triple H was shown helping and giving him specific advice.

Finn said that NXT is his home. He discussed how much it meant to him to be able to work the WWE Live tour in Ireland in the same building he went to watch WWF as a kid. He said that he’s naturally an introvert, but when he puts on the paint it helps him release his inner demon. He said it’s not just paint, it’s being able to channel all of his intensity into his work. He talked about the evolution of his paint while wanting it to remain recognizable.

Bálor said that he left Japan last April expecting to never see his friends over there again. William Regal’s announcement of the title match was replayed and Bálor discussed how excited he was. He was shown with Karl Anderson in a couple of clips. They aired soundbytes of Bloom, Lynch, and Bálor really building him up as the future of the business.

Kids were shown talking to a roving reporter talking about how cool Finn is. An older fan predicted he would revolutionize WWE. Lynch broke down in tears discussing how much he deserves this because of his much he helped her. A music video played with more soundbites and clips of him in NJPW and NXT. Bálor said that he truly believes that he’s left everywhere he’s gone better than when he got there, from the UK to Japan to NXT and eventually WWE. Corey Graves hyped that the WWE Network would be replaying the Finn Bálor story in its entirety… [C]

Eva Marie was shown working in an empty arena in front of William Regal and Sara Amato… Back in the arena, Emma made her entrance with Dana Brooke alongside. Her music is now her old music remixed into a new theme. Carmella was out next. She cut a promo on her way to the ring introducing herself and closed “Bada-bing, hottest chick in the ring.”

3. Emma vs. Carmella. The crowd went back-and-forth with ‘Evil Emma” and “Emma sucks” chants. After a back-and-forth opening minute, Carmella hit a hurricanrana out of the corner, but Emma took control of a referee separation settled into a lengthy bodyscissors.

Carmella threw a few back elbows, and finally began to mount a comeback. It was pretty weak until she hit a side kick and a running mafia kick. Carmella did her goofy taunt, which allowed Emma to apply the Emma Lock for the tap.

Emma forced Carmella to submit in about 4:10.

Backwtage, Bull Dempsey was banging on a vending machine for stealing his dollar. He was about to smash it with a stool, but Regal stopped him on the backswing. Bull said he was just trying to get the pistachios, but Regal didn’t want to hear it. Bull had something smeared around his lips so Regal took a swipe with his finger and tasted it, and then momentarily looked disgusted in himself for doing that. Regal told Bull to sort himself out or he’s going to find himself in a bad spot… The main event was hyped… Tyler Breeze was hyped in action next.

Backstage following his loss last week, Devin Taylor was standing by with the world’s worst tag team wrestler, Jason Jordan. Chad Gable approached and began to wipe the sweat off. Gable said he always watches Jordan’s matches, which Jordan thought was creepy. Gable said Jordan is making himself look like a loser, but he’ll be ready, willing and Gable when Jordan finally figures it out…

Tyler Breeze made his entrance. His opponent was already in the ring.

4. Tyler Breeze vs. Tye Dillinger. A segment of the crowd chanted “10” for Dillinger’s “perfect 10” schtick around the live events, while another portion chanted “Breeze is gorgeous.” Dillinger took control of Breeze out of the gate and shoved his boot all over Breeze’s face in the corner. Dillinger worked Breeze over methodically with stomps and a body slam, but the crowd was eating him up.

Dillinger looked for a back-body drop, but Breeze floated over and used a fallout reverse DDT. Breeze used his headscissor takeover into a mount before raining shots down on Dillinger. Moments later, Breeze hit the Beauty Shot and scored the pinfall.

Tyler Breeze beat Tye Dillinger in about 2:50.

The main event was hyped up next… [C]

In the ladies locker room, Emma and Dana Brooke had their eyes all over Sasha Banks’s NXT Women’s Championship. They warned her that they’re going to be coming for her. Sasha said that she’s the boss of NXT and she’ll take them both on. Brooke said that sounds like a challenge. Emma set up a tag match and the heels laughed that Sasha doesn’t have any friends because she’s turned on them all. Sasha said she’d find someone.

Back in the arena, the main event competitors made their entrances.

5. Finn Bálor and Samoa Joe vs. NXT Champion Kevin Owens and Rhyno. Joe and Rhyno opened up with Joe teeing off with jabs. Rhyno came right back after him but Joe hit his twisting enzugiri and made the tag to Bálor. Rhine managed to back Bálor into the corner where Owens tagged in. Bálor briefly got the better of Owens, but he was unable to lift Owens for a suplex and Owens took control with a hard whip into the corner.

Owens dumped Bálor to ringside going into the final commercial break. [C] Back from break, Owens was in firm control of Bálor before tagging out to Rhyno. Rhine used a stalling suplex with some squats for good measure. A short time later, Owens hit the 5 Moves of Doom, but Bálor fought out of the AA and hit a jumping double-stomp leading to a double tag.

Joe got the better of Rhyno with an atomic drop, boot, and senton, but walked right into a hard spinebuster Owens tagged in, but Joe planted him with the STJoe. My feed skipped and when it resumed, Rhyno accidentally hit Owens with a Gore. Bálor followed up with the shotgun dropkick on Rhyno which sent him crashing into Owens in the corner. Bálor hit a hesitation dropkick before he went up top and came down with the Coup de Grace on Owens for the win.

Bálor and Joe defeated Owens and Rhyno in about 8:00.

Post-match, the commentators debated whether or not this would be the outcome in Japan on Saturday for the NX Title. Replays aired before Joe raised Balor’s arm in the ring and the commentators gave one final plug to the Beast in the East special.

Kevin Owens Pinned For First Time In NXT, Owens/Balor Update & More

On Wednesday’s edition of NXT on the WWE Network, which was ultimately the “go-home” show for Saturday’s WWE “Beast In The East” live special with Kevin Owens vs. Finn Balor for the NXT Championship, Owens was pinned for the first time on NXT television.

The main event last night featured Owens and Rhyno teaming up to take on the duo of Finn Balor and Samoa Joe. The finish saw Balor, who challenges for the title this weekend, pin the champion.

WWE has released post-show videos featuring reactions from both Balor and Owens, which you can check out below.

WWE Planning More Live Specials, Possible Balor/Owens Spoiler, More

The current plan in WWE is to hold a few special events like this Saturday’s “Beast In The East” live WWE Network special from Japan a few times per year whether live or tape-delayed. However, it’s worth noting that WWE views this as broadcasting house shows opposed to it being a major production.

Speaking of this Saturday’s live special, WWE premiered a new documentary on Finn Balor called “The Demon Revealed” that showed his journey to his co-main event match on the show against Kevin Owens for the NXT Championship.

It’s worth noting that everyone is expecting a title switch in the Balor-Owens match, as the belief is Owens is pretty much done with NXT and will transition completely to the main roster exclusively as soon as he drops the title.

(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

Plans For Special WWE Hall Of Fame Special In Japan This Weekend, More

WWE is scheduled to hold a special Hall Of Fame ceremony for 2015 WWE Hall Of Famer Tatsumi Fujinami on the July 3rd WWE live event in Tokyo, Japan, the night before the big WWE Network “Beast In The East” special.

Also while WWE is in Japan this weekend, the company will be holding tryouts for Japanese wrestlers who would report to the WWE Performance Center in Orlando and attempt to rise through the NXT ranks.

Headlined by Brock Lesnar vs. Kofi Kingston and Kevin Owens vs. Finn Balor for the NXT Championship, WWE’s “Beast In The East” live special takes place on Saturday, July 4, 2015 in Tokyo, Japan, airing live on the WWE Network.

Make sure to join us here at SEScoops.com on July 4th for the best “Beast In The East” live results coverage on the web!

(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

What Happened After RAW, Tough Enough Tonight, Linda McMahon At RAW & More

– After last night’s RAW went off the air, The Authority continued beating down Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose until Ryback, Dolph Ziggler and R-Truth hit the ring. Everyone brawled and all the babyfaces hit their finishers to run end the show.

– Former WWE CEO Linda McMahon was backstage at last night’s RAW.

– WWE tapes this week’s Smackdown and Main Event tonight from Hershey, PA. Check back tonight for live spoiler results.

– Episode 2 of Tough Enough featuring an appearance by Roman Reigns airs tonight on the USA Network. After Tough Enough, a new edition of Tough Talk will air on the WWE Network, hosted by Miz.

– Finn Balor was at RAW last night and will be attending tonight’s SmackDown tapings as well. He’ll be traveling with the WWE crew overseas to Singapore and Japan tonight.

Finn Balor Special To Air On The WWE Network

Next Thursday, 2nd of July at 10:30pm EST, the WWE Network will air a 30-minute special looking at the career of WWE NXT superstar, Finn Balor.

The special has been given the title of “Finn Balor: The Demon Revealed” and is described as “an in depth look inside the life, career and future of NXT Superstar Finn Balor.”

It’s unclear at present whether or not this will be related to the short series that have been featured on WWE NXT the past few weeks as a lead in to the show in Japan next weekend.

Next weekend, live on the WWE Network at 5:30am EST / 2:30am Pacific, from Tokyo, Finn Balor will challenge current NXT champion Kevin Owens.

NXT TV Results – June 25, 2015

NXT TV Results
Taped at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida
Aired on June 25, 2015 on the WWE Network
Report by ProWrestling.net

The show opened with the entire NXT roster on the stage headed by Triple H. The words “The American Dream” were on the video wall and Dusty Rhodes’s image was on both side screens. Triple H delivered a short but meaningful speech discussing how the NXT family had lost one of their guiding lights. Triple H, the “NXT Kids,” and the rest of the Full Sail Arena stood in silence for a 10-bell salute to The Dream… The opening video played…

Back inside the arena, Hideo Itami made his entrance in a suit with his arm in a sling. They threw to a replay of the parking lot clip where Itami sustained the injury. In the ring, an anonymous interviewer welcomed him back and said it’d be 3-4 month before he could compete again. Itami said he can’t wait to get back in the ring. The interviewer mentioned Itami’s recent PR trip to Japan for the July 4th show. Itami said it doesn’t matter who wins the NXT title match, Itami will beat them and become NXT Champion.

NXT Champion Kevin Owens’s music hit and he made his way out onto the stage. The crowd loudly chanted “Fight Owens Fight” but there were a handful of boos as well. Owens said he’s happy to now Itami will be in Japan where he’ll get to see his kids and wife. Owens said it’s just too bad he can’t compete. Owens said that Itami will be there to watch him destroy Bálor. Owens said that it might be the meds that they’ve been giving Itami, and then he stumbled over the word delusional and quipped that he sounded like Itami trying to speak English. Owens again stated that he had nothing to do with Itami’s injury because if he did, Itami wouldn’t be here. He said he wants an apology for Itami calling him a bad person a few weeks ago.

Itami said that Owens is a great champion, but a terrible human being. Owens said that if he’s going to get blamed for the injury, he might as well do something to deserve it. Owens pointed out that Itami still has one good arm and said he’s going to do something about that. As Owens began to head towards the ring, Finn Bálor attacked Owens. Bálor had Owens set up for a Coup de Grace off the stage, but Rhyno blindsided Bálor and then kicked him off the stage… [C]

A replay showed the brawl between Bálor and Owens, as well as the subsequent attack from Rhyno. The commentators updated that the main event of the show would be Finn Bálor vs. Rhyno… Back in the arena, Enzo, Cass, and Carmella made their entrance. Enzo did his usual schtick and then Cass cut a really bad promo trying to incorporate all of the recently released movies. Even the homer crowd wasn’t feeling it. HE closed with the S-A-W-F-T lien for the save. Their opponents, Jason Jordan and his partner-of-the-week Sylvester Lefort were already in the ring.

1. Enzo Amore and Colin Cassady (w/ Carmella) vs. Jason Jordan and Sylvester Lefort. Enzo and Cass were in control of Lefort early until Jordan blind-tagged himself into the ring and began to work Enzo over. Lefort and Jordan stayed in control until Enzo rolled up Jordan for the win out of nowhere.

Enzo and Cass over Jordan and Lefort in about 2:30.

A replay of last week’s brawl between Samoa Joe and Kevin Owens aired… Backstage, Samoa Joe yelled “Let them fight!” Joe said that he got the fight he wanted, but he didn’t get the fight he wanted because Owens is still standing. He repeated “I want Kevin Owens. Let me fight,” before walking off set… Dana Brooke was hyped in action next… [C]

Back in the arena, Dana Brooke made her entrance accompanied by Evil Emma. Her opponent was already in the ring wearing an awful looking one-piece outfit with a skirt.

2. Dana Brooke (w/ Emma) vs. Cassie. Cassie got a quick rollup attempt and a running headscissors in before Brooke hung her up on the middle rope and took control. Brooke hit a body slam and settled into a lengthy grounded bow and arrow lock. Cassie finally rought out and fired up with clotheslines and a running back spin kick in the corner, but Brooke caught her when she went to the top rope and then planted her with the Samoan Driver for the win…

Dana “Brock” over Cassie in about 3:30.

Backstage, Charlotte said that she doesn’t know what Dana Brooke’s problem is. She said she didn’t have any doors opened for her, she made the most of her opportunities. She was about to go off when she reconsidered and said that she’s going to give Dana her message personally… The commentators hyped the “Beast in the East” live special on July 4th before throwing to part 2 of Finn Bálor’s career recap video…

The video opened with Sami Zayn coming over to Bálor’s condo. The big reveal was that Bálor loves to ply with Legos. Bálor discussed Legos in his sit-down interview which was spliced in with Bálor and Zayn’s lego discussion. After that, Matt Bloom (a/k/a Tensai/Bernard/Albert/A-Train) discussed his friendship with Devitt. They spliced in inters with both, a scene shot with them at Finn’s condo, and some hilarious pictures from Twitter. Bálor discussed their time in NJPW before showing off a NJPW jersey with the tags still on.

Bloom gave an idiot’s guide to the NJPW dojo system and Bálor described how Japan became his second home and the most incredible chapter of his life. Bloom said that Devitt was an absolute superstar in Japan. Devitt discussed his time as Prince Devitt in NJPW and Bloom talked about putting out the feelers between Devitt and WWE. Becky Lynch talked about how huge Devitt signing with NXT was. Bloom said he has an incurable desire to be the best. Bálor recapped his time on the UK indies, in Japan, and closed by saying that his next journey had just begun. Part 3 was hyped for next week…

Beast in the East was hyped… Corey Graves said that William Regal had ordered Bull Dempsey to get in better shape and then displayed a bunch of the recent fat-shaming Instagrams of Bull… Back in the arena, the Hype Bros made their entrance. Mojo is now donning eye-black and gauntlets on his wrists. Their opponents were already in the ring.

3. The Hype Bros (Mojo Rawley and Zack Ryder) vs. Angelo Dawkins and Sawyer Fulton. Stuff happened and then Mojo hit his hammer time drop to no reaction. The amateur guys took control with the WGTT leapfrog spot. Ryder got the hot tag and ran through his paint-by-numbers comeback. Moments later, the Hype Bros hit the spinebuster/Rough Ryder combo for the win.

The Hype Bros over Dawkins and Fulton.

Zim Says: What a contrast. That Bálor/Devitt thing was the best and this Hype Bros thing is the worst. Oh, and the ladies match was fine but unspectacular. Except for Cassie’s gear. That has to go.

William Regal was approached in his office by Eva Marie. Eva said that she’s been working really hard and Regal is the man who can give her a match in NXT. Regal said that she can’t just waltz in because the women’s division is setting the world on fire. Regal said that whenever Eva is ready to show him what she’s got, he’s ready to see… A Finn Bálor Demon vignette aired for July 4th…

Back in the arena, Finn Bálor made his entrance for the main event. A replay aired of Rhyno Goring Bálor on the stage after their match three weeks ago and then attacking him earlier on this show. Kevin Owens’s music hit and he came out to join the commentary team. Bálor looked bothered by this and glared at Owens. Rhyno was out next in his new singlet with uncharacteristic Pink accents.

4. Finn Bálor vs. Rhyno. The two came out brawling and went right after each other at the bell. Owens began to get frustrated with Saxton asking about attacking Itami before Bálor hit his flip dive over the ropes. For perhaps the first time, he did not appear to destroy his tailbone upon landing. Back in the ring, however, Rhyno halted the momentum and took control when he planted Bálor with a hard spinebuster.

Owens and Saxton continued to go at it on commentary as Graves and Brennan tried to keep things on track. [C] Back in the ring, Bálor hit the ropes with several forearms and then connected with a diving missile dropkick for two. Owens continued to grow increasingly more agitated with the non-stop questions from Brennan and Saxton. Bálor set up his reverse Bloody Sunday, but Rhyno reversed with a Northern Light’s throw. Rhyno his repeating shoulder thrusts in the corner, but Bálor came back moments later with the Pele kick.

Bálor rocked Rhyno with another high kick and went to the top rope, but Owens left the commentary table and walked down to ringside. Owens jumped up on the apron where he ate a dropkick from Bálor, but the opening was enough for Rhyno to hit the belly-to-belly. Bálor managed to avoid the Gore, however, and connected with the Slingblade. Bálor went up top and came down with the Coup de Grace for the win.

Finn Bálor pinned Rhyno in about 8:00.

Afterwards, Owens ran in and attacked Bálor. Owens and Rhyno put a beatdown on Bálor until Samoa Joe ran out to make the same. Owens and Rhyno hit the ramp as Joe and Bálor held the ring to close the show.


BRAND NEW PHOTO GALLERY: Ronda Rousey In Skimpy Bikinis & Tight Outfits


Unseen Footage Of HHH’s Special WM31 Entrance (Video), JR/Torrie Wilson, NXT

– Former WWE Diva Torrie Wilson is Jim Ross’ guest on this week’s edition of the “Ross Report” podcast, which is available now. You can download the show at PodcastOne.com.

– The following matches are confirmed for tonight’s edition of NXT on the WWE Network:

– Enzo Amore and Colin Cassady vs. Jason Jordan and Sylvester Lefort

– Dana Brooke vs. Cassie

– The Hype Bros (Zack Ryder and Mojo Rawley) vs. Sawyer Fulton and Angelo Dawkins

– Finn Balor vs. Rhyno

– Plus, Hideo Itami will address his injury

– WWE posted the following “unseen footage” of Triple H’s special “Terminator: Genisys” ring entrance at WrestleMania 31 earlier this year.

https://youtu.be/uxCykS6JHBk

Photo: First Look At Demon Finn Balor In WWE 2K16

WWE 2K16 is due to be released later in the year on PS4, Xbox One, PS3 and Xbox 360 and an image of NXT Superstar Finn Bálor has been unveiled on Twitter.

The image, shown below, features the wrestler standing next to an image of what his character will look like when he makes his debut on the franchise later in the year.

Last week at the 2K Games booth at E3 2015, six characters were confirmed for the game including Bad News Barrett, Daniel Bryan, Dean Ambrose, Paige, Seth Rollins and of course Finn Bálor.

Other superstars and divas have confirmed themselves as being in the game including Sasha Banks, Rusev, Rosa Mendes and Zack Ryder though these have yet to be confirmed by 2K Games.

WWE 2K16 is due to be released on the PS4, PS3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, and PC on the 27th of October in North America, and on the 30th of October in other parts of the world.

NXT Diva Getting Called Up Soon, WWE’s 4th Of July Network Special & More

– Paige’s ongoing storyline with the Bella Twins talking about bringing change to the Divas division will likely culminate with one of the NXT Divas being called up to the main roster.

Ric Flair’s daughter Charlotte is a strong possibility, since she’s been considered ‘ready’ for quite some time now.

– Bayley is currently working through a broken arm. She was wearing a cast at this past weekend’s NXT live events.

– Joey Styles confirmed on Twitter that the July 4th WWE live event from Tokyo, Japan will air live on the WWE Network in its entirety. Aside from the Kevin Owens vs. Finn Balor NXT Championship match, Brock Lesnar and Chris Jericho will also be in action on the show.  (Full Card)

– The following is Part 1 of WWE’s new in-depth look at Finn Balor as he prepares to face Kevin Owens for the NXT Championship on July 4th.