WWE will tape their weekly Main Event and SmackDown television programs tonight in Charlotte, North Carolina, before heading out for their bi-annual European tour on Wednesday.
The main event for this week’s SmackDown, as announced on WWE RAW on Monday night, is Daniel Bryan vs. Luke Harper.
Also announced on Monday’s RAW was a match pitting the current Intercontinental Champion Curtis Axel against Big E. Langston, in a match that was originally slated to serve as the Kickoff Show match prior to the WWE Hell In A Cell pay-per-view in late-October.
World Heavyweight Champion John Cena was advertised on RAW as appearing on this week’s SmackDown for the second time in a row, as he will continue the build to his rematch against the former champion, Alberto Del Rio, at the upcoming WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view.
In addition to the aforementioned WWE Superstars, the following names are being advertised locally for the SmackDown and Main Event television taping in Charlotte are Triple H, Stephanie McMahon, Randy Orton, Big Show, The Shield, The Wyatt Family, Dolph Ziggler and Wade Barrett.
The post-show dark match scheduled for the taping tonight is John Cena vs. Alberto Del Rio for the World Heavyweight Championship. That match, which also served as the dark match main event at RAW in Greenville, South Carolina on Monday night, is subject to change.
Make sure to check back here later tonight for complete WWE Main Event and WWE SmackDown spoiler results.
The following are highlights from a recent Busted Open Radio interview with former WWE Superstar Chris Jericho:
On being drunk when he tweeted his response to Triple H’s promo on RAW: “The funny thing was had I not been drinking Grey Goose vodka and not been completely loaded when I heard about it, I wouldn’t had bothered twitting about it but I was like: ‘Screw him, I’m going to tweet back.”
On his thoughts about Triple H’s promo on RAW: “That’s Triple H being Triple H. It’s just the way he is and whether he believes it or not, it’s part of the show. I don’t feel that way and I never did feel that way. It’s funny throughout our careers, Triple H and I were almost at the same level. We were always the guy that worked with ‘the guy.’ Triple H is a huge star, one of the greatest of all time but also never really ‘the guy.’ Who really has been ‘the guy’ over the last ten years? I can think of three. Rock, Stone Cold, and John Cena. There you go.”
-The official WWE website has added the latest Michael Cole interview with WWE COO Triple H. In the interview, “The Game” explains why he didn’t save his best friend, Shawn Michaels, from the attack by Daniel Bryan on RAW on Monday. Additionally, HHH reveals that Big Show is “banned for life” from WWE. You can check out the new interview online at WWE.com.
-WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross recently spoke with Cotton of Music Geeks about his past and future in pro wrestling, as well as other business-related projects he is working on. Below is a video of the new interview:
-As previously reported, the plan for the upcoming WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view is to book Randy Orton vs. Big Show for the WWE Championship. The reason it seemed like WWE was pushing a Big Show vs. Triple H match once again on Monday’s RAW is because the plan is for that match to headline the WWE TLC pay-per-view in December. Obviously plans could change as time goes on, but as of right now, that is what’s scheduled to happen.
-For those asking why Vince McMahon did not appear on RAW on Monday night, apparently there were two scripts for Monday’s show. One script had McMahon written into the show, while the other didn’t. WWE apparently went with the script that didn’t have McMahon appearing, despite the fact that he was heavily advertised locally. The plan is for McMahon to still return sometime in the near future, with Big Show planting the seeds for his return by referencing him in an around-about way in promos.
Following Monday’s post-Hell In A Cell edition of WWE RAW in Orlando, Florida, WWE COO Triple H cut a promo on all the fans in the arena.
HHH, standing in the ring with the new WWE Champion, Randy Orton, told all of the fans in attendance to get out of his building for laughing at him. The fans did the Daniel Bryan “No!” chant, which further angered “The Game.” Triple H then hired all of the fans. Seconds after informing all of the fans that they now had jobs with WWE, he told them they were all fired and again demanded that they leave his building.
At one point, the WWE COO even told JBL, who was still seated at ringside alongside his RAW broadcast partners, to call the cops and have all of the fans arrested for trespassing.
You can watch a video of the off-air happenings from Monday’s RAW below:
Following the WWE Hell In A Cell pay-per-view event in Miami, Florida on Sunday night, WWE Superstar Daniel Bryan, who failed to capture the WWE Championship in the main event of the show, was helped to the backstage area by a couple of referee’s.
The new WWE Champion, Randy Orton, who won the title by defeating Bryan with help from a super-kick by the special guest referee, Shawn Michaels, continued his celebration after the pay-per-view ended.
WWE COO Triple H, who was also involved in the complex finish on Sunday night, was in the arena with Orton after the show.
According to one fan in attendance, the “energy was sucked out of the building like a vacuum” following the finish of Orton-Bryan.
-Triple H has reportedly sold 703 shares of Class A common WWE stock, according to a SEC filing released on Tuesday. At a price of $11.53 per share, it translates to a minimum amount of $8,105. Following the transaction, Triple H still owns 50,764 shares of Common A stock.
-Monday’s edition of WWE RAW averaged 3.825 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research. The 3.825 million average marks a decrease from last week’s 3.992 million viewers. The final RAW rating for Monday should be released shortly.
In addition to Chris Jericho, who we reported about earlier today responding to Triple H’s promo on Monday’s WWE RAW where he spoke about specific names from the past and how they were never “the face of WWE,” WWE Hall Of Famer Adam “Edge” Copeland has checked in with his reaction as well.
In a new tweet postedon Tuesday afternoon, Edge wrote:
I think everyone forgets it's entertainment. Santa isn't real either. Or the Easter Bunny(I think, rabbits are sneaky) @GioPontiFan@TripleH
Following Friday’s edition of WWE SmackDown, some new items have been revealed for this coming Monday’s edition of WWE RAW.
RAW on Monday is scheduled to feature, among other things, an official contract signing between Randy Orton and Daniel Bryan for their Hell In A Cell match for the vacant WWE Championship at the WWE Hell In A Cell pay-per-view.
WWE Hall Of Famer Shawn Michaels, who will serve as the special guest referee for the aforementioned Orton-Bryan title match, will also be appearing on Monday’s RAW.
Also announced for RAW on Monday, as we reported previously, is Triple H “dealing with the Rhodes Brothers” for winning the WWE Tag-Team Championships from The Shield’s Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns on last week’s show, as well as more information on “The Game” stripping Big Show of his name.
Finally, WWE will follow-up on the storyline concussion that RAW General Manager Brad Maddox suffered after being on the receiving end of a Big Show knockout punch on Friday’s SmackDown.
WWE has posted week-seven of their sit-down interview series with Triple H. The interview, which was once again conducted by WWE announcer Michael Cole, featured a few newsworthy items.
Triple H discussed the WWE Tag-Team Championships changing hands on Monday’s RAW, noting that he will “deal with the Rhodes Brothers,” after they won the belts from The Shield with help from Big Show.
Speaking of Big Show, according to Triple H in the interview, he has stripped Big Show of his name, and he is now simply Paul Wight after being “fired” on RAW recently.
You can check out the complete video interview online at WWE.com.
– There is talk backstage in WWE that the ongoing Big Show storyline will lead to a singles match against Triple H at November’s Survivor Series pay-per-view from Boston.
-As previously reported, AJ Lee has been medically cleared to return to in-ring action following a recent concussion scare. According to one report, while AJ is unlikely to work a match at the upcoming Hell In A Cell pay-per-view, there has been talk of adding a match featuring AJ and Tamina Snuka against The Bella Twins
-WWE announced Dean Ambrose vs. Dolph Ziggler for Ambrose’s WWE United States Championship as the main event for WWE Main Event on Monday’s edition of WWE RAW.
WWE Main Event will be taped on Tuesday night in Kansas City, Kansas.
-Also on RAW this week, it was announced that in a “rare appearance,” CM Punk will be on this week’s edition of WWE SmackDown, which is also taped on Tuesday night in Kansas City.
-And finally, the WWE Tag-Team Championships changed hands on Monday’s RAW, as Cody Rhodes and Goldust defeated Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns to capture the titles. The Rhodes Brothers picked up the victory via help from Big Show, who interfered on their behalf in the main event of the show.
The following are highlights from a recent AP interview with Hulk Hogan:
His Recent Discussion with Triple H:
“He just welcomed me with open arms. He said if ever I decide I get the itch to come back home, the door’s open.”
The Possibility of Appearing at WrestleMania XXX:
“My mind has been going crazy the last couple of weeks trying to figure out the best thing to do will be.”
His Status With TNA:
“We couldn’t figure things out. We’re talking, but I’m wide open right now.”
If he has one more match left in him:
“Let me put it to you this way, brother: With the right guy, the right situation, with a big enough event, big enough storyline, you’re damn right I have one more left in me.”
Check out the complete interview online at AP.org.
-Apparently the WWE television storyline where Triple H bought Big Show’s house was taken from the CM Punk DVD that the company produced. On the documentary portion of the DVD, a real-life story was told where Joey Mercury was facing financial problems due to some personal issues he was experiencing, and as a result, Punk bought Mercury’s house for him.
-It’s said to be unlikely that WWE Superstar Wade Barrett’s new gimmick will be the “Bad News Barrett” character that we see on the weekly JBL & Cole Show that appears on the official WWE YouTube channel. Many in the company feel it would be surprising if the higher-ups chose to use anything that is featured on YouTube on their actual television storylines. Regardless, the rumors are true that the company is planning on repackaging Barrett, simply because the feeling is the roster is lacking depth in the heel department.
According to one source, the reason for the sudden storyline change in attitude and confidence in Big Show this week on RAW is likely because of Vince McMahon’s rumored return to television, which is expected in the near future.
The storyline surrounding Big Show lately has seen him say “how high” when Triple H and/or Stephanie McMahon say “jump,” until he was fed up with their abuse and defied their orders with his actions in the main event at WWE Battleground on Sunday. This led to his overly confident attitude when being dressed down by Stephanie McMahon in the opening segment of RAW on Monday.
Apparently the reason for that is Vince McMahon, who is scheduled to return to television earlier than originally planned due to recent extreme dips in television ratings and other business projections, will come back as a babyface that will defend Big Show. This would allow Big Show to be confident, as we saw on Monday, despite the fact that his superiors, Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, are threatening his job.
Following the televised portion of Monday’s WWE RAW, which ended with Big Show knocking out WWE COO Triple H, WWE Superstar Daniel Bryan continued his celebration. Bryan went as far as to steal the suit coat off of HHH’s back and wear it as he continued his celebration standing on top of the announce table to a loud “Yes!” chant from the crowd. Bryan also took JBL’s hat and put it on.
After that, the post-RAW dark match took place, which featured Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton. The following are results from that bout:
-Daniel Bryan def. Randy Orton. Bryan picked up the victory over Orton, and after the match, The Shield ran in to beat up Bryan. This led to Kofi Kingston, Cody Rhodes and Goldust coming out to make the save.
According to a recent press release, The Sports Legacy Institute will be presenting WWE with the 2013 “Impact Award,” which recognizes WWE’s attempt to solve the recent concussion epidemic in sports.
WWE employees Triple H and Stephanie McMahon will accept the honor at the awards dinner on October 23rd at the Boston Harbor Hotel.
“”Our partnership with SLI is a key component of WWE’s talent health and wellness program,” said Paul Levesque (aka Triple H). “Talent is the only natural resource that WWE has, and we are committed to their well-being.”
-The folks at WrestleTalk TV have posted the full, uncut version of their recent interview with WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross, which you can check out online at WeAreWrestling.net.
-Speaking of interviews, the Sports 360 website has posted a new video interview with WWE Superstar The Miz, which you can check out online at Sport360.com.
-WWE COO Triple H is seen getting on the official WWE airplane for his trip to tonight’s WWE Battleground pay-per-view in Buffalo, New York, in a new tweet posted on the official Twitter account of Stephanie McMahon. Stephanie tweeted: “@TripleH On our way to #Battleground,” which was accompanied by a link to the following photo:
-Former WWE CEO Linda McMahon celebrates her 65th birthday today. McMahon was born on October 4, 1948.
-WWE Superstar Sheamus will be signing autographs for the first 300 fans who show up at the Dollar General Store on 2144 Thompson Lane in Murfreesboro, Tennessee on Saturday, October 5th.
-Episode 45 of the JBL & Cole Show has been uploaded to the official WWE YouTube channel today. The show is accompanied by the following description: “In this edition of The JBL & Cole Show, the guys take a look at NXT, Triple H stops by to talk business and to congratulate JBL & Renee Young on their new positions within the WWE, and Ricardo Rodriguez gets some bad news.”
Check out episode 45 of the JBL & Cole show below:
It will be announced on this week’s WWE SmackDown that WWE Intercontinental Champion Curtis Axel will defend his title against R-Truth. Bray Wyatt also teased an appearance at Battleground, which will likely be the rumored match we reported on Tuesday with Wyatt taking on Kofi Kingston. That match, however, is still strictly a rumor at this point.
With that now known, here is an updated look at the official lineup for Sunday’s WWE Battleground pay-per-view from Buffalo, New York:
Vacant WWE Championship
-Randy Orton vs. Daniel Bryan
World Heavyweight Championship
-Alberto Del Rio (c) vs. Rob Van Dam*
WWE Intercontinental Championship
-Curtis Axel (c) vs. R-Truth
WWE Divas Championship
-AJ Lee (c) vs. Brie Bella
-CM Punk vs. Ryback
-Cody Rhodes & Goldust vs. Seth Rollins & Roman Reigns**
WWE Battleground Kickoff Show
-Dolph Ziggler vs. Damien Sandow
RUMORED Match:
-Bray Wyatt vs. Kofi Kingston
* – The Del Rio vs. Van Dam rematch will be contested under “Battleground Hardcore Rules.”
** – Dusty Rhodes will be in the corner of Cody & Goldust. If the Rhodes Family loses, all three men will never be allowed to work for WWE again. If they win, Cody and Goldust get their jobs back
Make sure to visit SESCOOPS.COM this Sunday night for the absolute best live results coverage of the WWE Battleground pay-per-view. The coverage will begin at 7:30pm E.T. with the WWE Battleground Kickoff Show, and will continue throughout the entire duration of the pay-per-view. Until then, stop by the SESCOOPS.COM Facebook Page and/or the SESCOOPS.COM Twitter Page to share your predictions for this Sunday’s pay-per-view!
-Former WWE Superstar Mark Jindrak recently posted a tweet on his official Twitter account in response to the news that Triple H revealed in the Extras section of his new “Triple H: Thy Kingdom Come” documentary, where he talked about Jindrak being the originally intended fourth member of the old Evolution faction in WWE, instead of Batista, who ended up filling the role. Jindrak wrote:
“I wasn’t ready for Evolution at that time in my career. I was immature and Batista fit better. It was mine to lose and I dropped the ball…But since then I’ve matured and understood why I missed that chance and it’s helped me in my career which ended up in CMLL in Mexico.”
-WWE Superstar Ryback recently shared a story with the media in India while he was there doing promotional work for the new WWE 2K14 video game, about his favorite pro wrestlers growing up, and how one of them now texts him to tell him what a good job he’s doing. Ryback said:
“Growing up, I loved Razor Ramon, ‘The Bad Guy,’ I thought he was the coolest thing walking on the planet. But him, Shawn Michaels, Bret Hart and The British Bulldog were all interchangeable there for awhile. I liked Diesel, the big seven footer… It’s also cool because Razor Ramon – Scott Hall’s his real name – he texts me now or will call me and just says, ‘great job, keep doing what you’re doing.’ So for me, growing up he was my favorite, that’s pretty cool to me now that this guy that I grew up idolizing texts me now tells me, ‘good job.'”
Several new matches and stipulations were added to the WWE Battleground event on Monday’s “go-home” edition of RAW. WWE Battleground emanates from the First Niagra Center in Buffalo, New York this Sunday, October 6, 2013. Below is an updated look at the official lineup for the first ever Battleground pay-per-view.
Vacant WWE Championship
-Randy Orton vs. Daniel Bryan
World Heavyweight Championship
-Alberto Del Rio (c) vs. Rob Van Dam*
WWE Divas Championship
-AJ Lee (c) vs. Brie Bella
-CM Punk vs. Ryback
-Cody Rhodes & Goldust vs. Seth Rollins & Roman Reigns**
WWE Battleground Kickoff Show
-Dolph Ziggler vs. Damien Sandow
* – The Del Rio vs. Van Dam rematch will be contested under “Battleground Hardcore Rules.”
** – Dusty Rhodes will be in the corner of Cody & Goldust. If the Rhodes Family loses, all three men will never be allowed to work for WWE again. If they win, Cody and Goldust get their jobs back
Make sure to visit SESCOOPS.COM this Sunday night for the absolute best live results coverage of the WWE Battleground pay-per-view. The coverage will begin at 7:30pm E.T. with the WWE Battleground Kickoff Show, and will continue throughout the entire duration of the pay-per-view. Until then, stop by the SESCOOPS.COM Facebook Page and/or the SESCOOPS.COM Twitter Page to share your predictions for this Sunday’s pay-per-view!
WWE returns live to Biloxi, Mississippi on Monday night for the WWE Battleground “go-home” edition of RAW.
The main item heading into this week’s show is the Rhodes Family being “invited back to RAW” for a “business proposal” from the WWE COO Triple H. As noted, the Rhodes Family will be on RAW this week to build towards the six-man tag-team match against The Shield.
Also advertised in advance for this week’s RAW is the debut of the Los Matadores tag-team, which is the repackaged duo formerly known as Primo and Epico. After weeks of vignettes hyping their debut, Los Matadores will finally arrive on RAW in Biloxi on Monday night.
Outside of the aforementioned items, the main focus on this week’s show will be the final build towards the three previously announced WWE Battleground main events which consist of Randy Orton vs. Daniel Bryan for the vacant WWE Championship, the “Battleground Hardcore Rules” match between Alberto Del Rio and Rob Van Dam for the World Heavyweight Championship and the CM Punk vs. Ryback match.
The officially advertised talent roster for this week’s show includes Triple H, Stephanie McMahon, Daniel Bryan, Randy Orton, CM Punk, Paul Heyman, Ryback, Curtis Axel, Alberto Del Rio, Rob Van Dam, Dolph Ziggler, Big Show, Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, Roman Reigns, Jack Swagger, Antonio Cesaro, Zeb Colter, Damien Sandow, Bray Wyatt, Luke Harper, Erick Rowan, A.J. Lee and Kaitlyn.
There are two advertised dark match main-events for this week, as Orton will take on Bryan and Punk will take on both Heyman and Axel in a Handicap Match.
Stay tuned to SESCOOPS.COM throughout the day for continued updates on this week’s live edition of WWE RAW.
SESCOOPS.COM reader Aaron Carnevale of WrestlingDVDNews.com sent along the following highlights of a recent Dustin “Goldust” Rhodes interview with the Monday Night Mayhem radio show:
The health benefits he has seen since starting DDP Yoga: “With DPP Yoga, there are a couple benefits. I stand up straighter now, and I can bend in ways I couldn’t bend. I feel so much better: my joints, muscles, and bones. It is awesome.”
His memories of working with Scott Hall as Goldust and what valuable lessons Hall taught him in his career: “Me and Scott have had some fun times with the Goldust stuff, even though we didn’t see eye to eye all the time. We always went out there and gave 110%. I had to learn and Scott was a good teacher. He taught me what I needed to know and how to do things the right ways, and I just grew from that. I love Scott.”
His expectations on the night of his WWE return earlier this month on Monday Night RAW against WWE Champion Randy Orton and why he took out his frustrations on Triple H via Twitter: “My nerves were shot. Cody loses his job, and my little brother had the world taken out from under him all because he spoke up. That pissed off my family so I started getting on Twitter saying things to Triple H. Going into that match with Randy, I was focused. I went into that match very focused and very nervous. I was fighting for Cody’s job, and I lost fair in square.”
With the current state of events in the WWE between the McMahons and the Rhodes families, whether or not he envisions his one-on-one Dream Match with his brother Cody in the foreseeable future: “It could take place in the foreseeable future or whenever, you never know what is going to happen in the WWE. But, I’ll say that I don’t want that anymore.”
-A number of WWE Superstars, including Big Show and The Prime Time Players have posted Tout videos sharing their feelings on the Rhodes Family appearing on Monday’s edition of WWE RAW. You can check those out online at Tout.com.
-Speaking of the Rhodes Family on RAW, both Goldust and Randy Orton have commented on the angle coming up this Monday in new tweets. You can check those out below:
Randy Orton:
So the Rhodes boys will be at #Raw Monday. Should be interesting.
Dustin “Goldust” Rhodes:
Upset the established order and there will be chaos! #RhodesDynasty #raw monday night! @WWE
-In the Extras portion of the new “Triple H: Thy Kingdom Come” WWE DVD, which was released in stores this past week, “The Game” revealed that former WWE Superstar Mark Jindrak, not Batista, was originally supposed to be the fourth member of the former Evolution faction, which also included Ric Flair and Randy Orton. In fact, the company went as far as to shoot vignettes of Jindrak with the group, which you can see pictured below:
