Drew McIntyre returned to WWE’s black-and-gold brand during this week’s episode of NXT. “The Scottish Psychopath” made a surprise appearance near the end of the show, delivering a Claymore Kick to Dominik Dijakovic. He was subsequently taken out by Keith Lee.
Taking to Twitter, McIntyre thanked Triple H for the open door invitation he gave to both RAW and SmackDown rosters. He noted how “The Game” helped bring him back to WWE before promising to “put your boys down” this Sunday at Survivor Series. McIntyre also addressed Lee’s actions on NXT, referencing their past problems on EVOLVE before promising him a “bag of receipts.”
“Appreciate the invite @TripleH You brought me back to @WWE but this Sunday I gotta put your boys down #SurvivorSeries P.S @RealKeithLee First @WWNEVOLVE now @WWENXT I got a bag of receipts to collect on you”
Lee attacked McIntyre during the WWN Live Mercury Rising: EVOLVE vs. PROGRESS event back on April 1, 2017. This attacked forced McIntyre off the card, giving him an opportunity to appear in the front row of NXT TakeOver: Orlando over WrestleMania 33 weekend.
McIntyre is a part of Team RAW alongside Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, Randy Orton and Ricochet. They take on Team NXT and Team SmackDown, comprised of Roman Reigns, Mustafa Ali, Braun Strowman, King Corbin and Shorty G. As of writing, members of Team NXT have yet to be announced.
Keith Lee picked up a big win over Dominik Dijakovic to kick-off NXT this week. The win avenges a loss Lee suffered at the hands of Dijakovic earlier this summer. The heavyweight spoke with WWE correspondents following the match.
“I’ll be honest with you, I can’t tell you about the match importance but what I can tell you is that for awhile now Jordan Myles and I have been talking back and forth and the first thing he said to me was ‘you just got to keep going Keith’ or as he would say ‘you just got to go the distance, put in the miles,’ no pun intended. And so today I proved that and sir, the grind continues.”
Keith Lee and Dominik Dijakovic are now 1-1-1 against each other on NXT programming. The two went to a double count-out against each other in February and Dijakovic won an early match they had which was taped in August.
A WWE NXT star has returned from injury to in-ring action and that’s Keith Lee.
Lee, who has been sidelined since March due to an unknown injury, competed at a recent house show. WWE held an NXT live event on Thursday in Lakeland, FL at the Lakeland Armory.
In the headliner, Lee teamed up with KUSHIDA and Babatunde Aiyegbusi to beat The Undisputed Era (Adam Cole, Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly) in a six-man tag team match
In May 2018, Lee signed with WWE and was placed in their developmental system, NXT. He would later make his television debut in August but has yet to work a special event, NXT TakeOver.
WWE NXT Lakeland, FL Results
Albert Hardie Jr. defeated Samuel Shaw
Dominik Dijakovic defeated Kona Reeves
Taynara Conti defeated Rachel Evers
Brennan Williams defeated Elliot Sexton
The Forgotten Sons defeated Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch
Shane Thorne defeated Denzel Dejournette
Io Shirai defeated Deonna Purrazzo
Kushida, Keith Lee and Babatunde Aiyegbusi defeated The Undisputed Era’s Adam Cole, Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly
The WWE Network will present an episode of 205 Live and NXT tonight. 205 Live could get moved back to their live Tuesday night timeslot next month, however, as the Mixed Match Challenge is scheduled to finish at the TLC PPV.
NXT 11/28 Preview
Tonight’s episode of NXT was filmed at a San Jose house show on the 15th. WWE will be back in San Jose next month for TLC.
Keith Lee vs Lars Sullivan
A battle of heavyweights tonight. Sullivan is main roster-bound but that doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll lose to Lee tonight. Lee is someone who could have a big future ahead of him in NXT and WWE as well so it’ll be interesting to see who comes out looking stronger in this clash tonight.
Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch vs the Mighty
The NXT tag-team division will see Burch and Lorcan take on Australia’s the Mighty tonight. The Mighty have seen better results since they started breaking the rules but tonight they’ll be in tough against the hard-nosed team of Burch and Lorcan.
EC3 vs Marcel Barthel
EC3 could use a win after being bounced out of title contention before the last Takeover. He was also the target of an attack by the Undisputed Era which took him out of action for a few weeks. You can’t keep the top 1% down for long, however, and EC3 starts his road back to the top of the men’s singles division tonight.
Mia Yim vs Vanessa Borne
Mia Yim took a loss to Bianca Belair her last match out. In fairness, only Nikki Cross has faced Belair in NXT and managed to avoid taking a loss. Vanessa Borne has been progressing as of late, however, and won’t let Mia Yim get back in the win column so easily.
205 Live 11/28 Preview
Hideo Itami Returns
Hideo Itami has not wrestled since being defeated by Mustafa Ali in a Falls Count Anywhere match to blow-off their rivalry. Itami will be in single’s action tonight but his opponent has yet to be named, likely meaning they are enhancement talent.
Mustafa Ali & Cedric Alexander vs Tony Nese & Buddy Murphy
Things are tight atop the Cruiserweight division at the moment. Murphy’s reign as champ has included just the one title defense against Mustafa Ali thus far but a new challenger could emerge in this match here. Alexander has never received a rematch from his loss to Murphy in Australia and Alexander had previously defeated Murphy in a title defense as well. Their trilogy bout could be upcoming. On the other hand, Tony Nese recently defeated Alexander, so he could be in line for a shot at his training partner’s belt.
WWE will air two previously unaired shows with matches taped inside LA’s Staples Center tonight. NXT will feature matches taped before WarGames on Saturday and 205 Live filmed last night before Smackdown.
NXT 11/21 Preview
NXT will feature both Nikki Cross and Lars Sullivan tonight. Cross has been up and down from the main roster a couple of times this year while vignettes featuring Sullivan’s pending call-up have appeared on both Raw and Smackdown this week.
Candice LeRae vs Nikki Cross
Candice LeRae says she’s ready to”play” with Nikki Cross this week. With the rivalry between Shayna Baszler and Kairi Sane coming to a likely end at Takeover on Saturday, the field is wide open for a new contender to emerge from the NXT women’s division. That contender could easily be the winner of this match, although Bianca Belair is likely the front-runner, however.
Lars Sullivan In Single’s Action
The last time Sullivan wrestled he defeated Velveteen Dream. Tonight, Lars will be in singles action in front of a live Los Angeles crowd. His opponent has yet to be named, however, which likely means they are enhancement talent.
Keith Lee In Single’s Action
Keith Lee will also see in-ring action tonight. As with Sullivan, Lee’s opponent has yet to be officially named by WWE, likely meaning they are enhancement talent.
Fallout From WarGames
WWE will also be airing highlights from all the action from Saturday’s Takeover: WarGames event tonight as well.
205 Live Preview 11/21
TJP vs Gran Metalik
TJP used to wrestle as a luchador in Mexico but that doesn’t mean he respects the culture. The former Cruiserweight Champion has gone out of his way to disrespect the masks of the Lucha House Party. He’ll be in tough tonight, however, when he goes one on one with Gran Metalik.
Don’t forget Maria Kanellis is now aligned with TJP as well. She’ll likely be around to help her new client.
Buddy Murphy’s Next Challenger Revealed?
With Murphy having taken care of Mustafa Alli at Survivor Series, it opens the door for a new number one contender to be named. Drake Maverick will likely have something to say on this matter tonight. That is, only if he isn’t in segments where he is urinating himself, that is.
Keith Lee tried out for WWE on three occasions before the company finally signed him in 2018. His first tryout was a decade ago.
“I had a five-day tryout in 2008, a three-day tryout in 2011, and in 2013 I was part of the first tryout group at the WWE Performance Center,” Lee recently told WWE.com. “I believe there were 32 of us there.”
Lee said it was during this tryout that he received some advice from the legendary Dusty Rhodes.
“During the 2013 tryout, if you were going to show who you were on a microphone, you had to do it in front of The American Dream. When I finished, he pulled me aside and said to me, “That’s it, baby. You’ve got a presence I can literally bask in. Take it and do what you want.” And thus, ‘Bask in my glory’ was born. It is now something I hold very dear.”
Keith Lee WWE
In the 10 years since that first tryout, Lee has gone from someone WWE was willing to pass on to a superstar with “Limitless” potential.
“When I first met and worked with him, he let me know how much and where I lacked,” Lee said of Dusty. “I applied his words and honed myself.”
Lee has had two televised matches thus far on NXT programming, winning both in squash-match style.
WWE believes they have a top prospect in Keith Lee. Few who followed his career on the independents will disagree with that sentiment.
Lee is a former PWG World Champion and a former WWN Champion with Evolve. He was shown in the crowd at NXT Takeover: Chicago II.
WWE released the following promotional video for Lee recently:
Keith Lee NXT
Lee sent the following message out on Instagram after his final match with PWG.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BjPbQU0gzeL/?hl=en
Lee is expected to make his in-ring NXT debut over the next couple of weeks. He taped his first match for the brand at the recent set of tapings held in mid-July.
Lee defeated Chuck Taylor to win the PWG title in March. He lost the title to WALTER just 29 days later in Reseda, CA. WALTER is still the promotion’s champion.
Keith Lee bid farewell to the independent scene at the end of May. He is believed to have signed a WWE deal at the beginning of the month, finished up his dates, and then appeared at Takeover: Chicago in June.
Since then, however, Lee has been out of action. He’s yet to have an official match since reporting to NXT. A fan on Twitter asked Lee if there was any chance he’ll find himself on the card for NXT Takeover: Brooklyn IV.
There are many things to be considered, and many transitions to be made. I cannot make any guarantees at the moment.
What I can *promise* you…however, is that I will do everything in power to be active as quickly as possible. And give my all as per usual. https://t.co/g0SHHx6ssV
“There are many things to be considered, and many transitions to be made. I cannot make any guarantees at the moment. What I can *promise* you…however, is that I will do everything in power to be active as quickly as possible. And give my all as per usual.”
The show takes place the night before SummerSlam on Saturday, August 18th, 2018.
Keith Lee in WWE
The former PWG Champion has been wrestling since 2005. His career started to hit a real upswing in 2015, however, when he began competing for Ring of Honor. By 2017, he had become one of the most talked about athletes on the independent scene primarily because of the cult-like following he obtained in Pro Wrestling Guerilla.
Lee defeated Kassius Ohno at a WrestleMania Axxess event in April. It was widely believed after that WWE had a strong interest in him. Lee finished up his independent schedule in late May, concluding with a loss to Mia Yim on a Beyond pay-per-view show.
Triple H has discussed what is in store for the WWE’s latest signing, Keith Lee.
As seen at Saturday’s (June 16, 2018) WWE NXT TakeOver: Chicago II event in Chicago, Illinois at the Allstate Arena on the WWE Network, former WWN Champion Keith Lee made an appearance in the crowd, signaling that he has signed a deal with the company. Lee was referenced on-air as a former WWN Champion by NXT commentator Nigel McGuinness.
Following the event during the post-NXT TakeOver: Chicago media conference, Triple H talked about what the WWE has planned for Lee in NXT.
“I think I’m gonna let him land first,” Triple H said. “I saw Keith Lee walk through the entrance way at the arena this afternoon and stood on the same spot on the stage while we were walking through rehearsals for probably about an hour with just a blown-away look on his face.”
“I think it’s gonna take a minute for Keith Lee to land on the ground,” Triple H continued. “But once he does I’m expecting big things from Keith Lee. He’s a phenomenal talent, big dude that probably shouldn’t be able to do the things that he does. He’s a phenomenal talent and I can’t wait to work with him, our team to work with him to help him take everything that he’s done so far and just take it to a whole nother level.” H/T to Wrestling Inc for the transcript
What are your thoughts on Triple H’s comments? Sound off in the comment section.
WWE Hall of Famer and one of the greatest play by play commentators in the history of the game has some high praise for the bout between Ricochet and Velveteen Dream from last night’s NXT Takeover: Chicago event.
Jim Ross took to Twitter to express his love for the match between the two NXT Superstars, stating that “It’s any announcers dream to broadcast a match the level of @KingRicochet & @VelveteenWWE at #NXTChicago.” Good Ol’ JR went on to give extra special mention to the potential of the Velveteen Dream, claiming that “Considering his lack of experience, Dream can be truly spectacular for years to come.“
Opinion: There are persistent rumors that Velveteen Dream is due for a call up to the main roster of WWE in the near future. Dream’s stellar bouts in his short time for NXT has gained him some proponents in the company’s top brass and his bout against Ricochet will do him no harm at all.
It’s any announcers dream to broadcast a match the level of @KingRicochet & @VelveteenWWE at #NXTChicago
‘Limitless’ Keith Lee appeared during last night’s NXT Takeover: Chicago broadcast and was seen in the crowd during the event. The former EVOLVE/PROGRESS star took to Twitter to offer some comments following his appearance, you can check these out below:
WWE linked independent star Keith Lee posted a cryptic tweet following his appearance at Revolution Pro Wrestling’s (UK) Epic Encounter 2018 event last night. Lee faced NJPW star Tomohiro Ishii in the main event of the show for the British Heavyweight Championship, he lost the bout and left the ring to a standing ovation from the British fans.
Lee wrote “England….I sure hope there’s a next time” alluding to the rumors that he has in fact signed a contract with WWE and will be reporting to NXT and the Performance Center following his contracted independent dates this month, which include a bout against Minoru Suzuki at tonight’s OTT ScrapperMania IV show.
According to a report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter back in March both Keith Lee and fellow Independent star WALTER were offered spots at the NXT Performance Center starting in May but at that time it was unknown if WALTER was going to accept the contract. Lee was however expected to accept WWE’s offer and it appears as though he may well be making the transition to WWE in the near future.
According to reports from PWTorch, indie star Keith Lee has signed a developmental deal with the WWE.
Lee has previously worked for Ring of Honor, EVOLVE Wrestling and Pro Wrestling Guerrilla and has been fairly successful on the indie scene. He beat Kassius Ohno and Lars Sullivan in two matches on two nights last month at WrestleMania Axxess in what would be his couple of first matches in the WWE.
Even though Keith has reportedly signed with the WWE, he still has dates in other promotions.
PWG has already announced the Bask in His Glory event which will be in name of Keith Lee’s farewell which is going to take place on May 25.
In just five minutes, tickets to Keith Lee's farewell event, Bask in His Glory, go on sale! Get yours at https://t.co/KhAHlkQzBk at 8PM!
Lee is said to have gotten mixed reactions from WWE officials for his first match against Kassius Ohno at Axxess during WrestleMania weekend. It is being noted that Lee will have to adjust his wrestling style when he arrives in the WWE.
Former PWG Champion Keith Lee has taken to Twitter to offer his congratulations to the man who dethroned him at this past weekend’s All-Star Weekend.
It is being described as an enthralling main event between three of the top independent performers in the world. wXw and PROGRESS star WALTER defeated both Keith Lee and Jonah Rock to become the PWG Champion for the very first time. Lee made the following comments on Twitter following his loss: “*sigh* @WalterAUT….do it right. Do it with passion. Do it with pride. But most importantly….do it BIG.”
The man who asks you to “bask in his glory” also made the following statement regarding the company and their fans: “Just wanted to start this morning off with an enormous thank you to @OfficialPWG and its fans. I love you. All of you.”
Whilst this is in no way an indication that he will be leaving the independent scene for a run in WWE/NXT the title loss and this message certainly come at an intriguing time. Lee and interestingly WALTER have both been linked with WWE in the past few months and both appeared at the Axxess shows over Wrestlemania weekend.
You can see the report from earlier this year linking the two men with WWE here.
Just wanted to start this morning off with an enormous thank you to @OfficialPWG and its fans. I love you. All of you.
EVOLVE, PWG and PROGRESS Star Keith Lee tweeted earlier today to confirm his status following a car accident. The man who asks you to ‘Bask in His Glory’ stated: “Yes. I was in a car accident earlier today. Thank you all for the concern and support. But There is NO WAY I miss ANY matches this weekend!”
Lee is currently scheduled to face NXT Superstar Kassius Ohno at WrestleMania Axxess amid rumors that he will heading to the company in the near future, Lee has denied that he has signed a contract. Another man who will be facing Ohno this weekend will be WALTER, who is also slated to be heading to WWE in the near future but again has denied that a contract has been signed.
Keith Lee will also be appearing at several independent events over the weekend, make sure you’re following him on Twitter for further updates:
Just wanted to chime in. Yes. I was in a car accident earlier today. Thank you for all the concern and support.
But there is NO WAY I miss ANY matches this weekend!
And for further positivity, @DonovanDijak found me a decent place to eat! Thanks bro! Off to Bourbon St.
You may have seen recent reports linking independent stars Keith Lee and WALTER with a possible move to WWE. WALTER has recently rebuffed these claims and categorically stated that WWE has had no contact with him recently regarding any potential contract. The initial report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter stated that; both performers have been offered spots at the Performance Center starting in May but it is unknown if WALTER will accept. Lee is expected to accept WWE’s offer.
WWN, PWG and PROGRESS star Keith Lee has remained silent thus far on the rumor but he recently took to Twitter to state that he will be addressing “a rumor I’ve been asked about most recently.”
Whether this refers to WWE remains to be seen, this could easily be a rouse and an intriguing way to push his upcoming independent dates, which include PROGRESS’ Super Strong Style 16 tournament in May.
I think tomorrow morning I'm gonna post a quick video to address a rumor I've been asked about most recently. Be on the look out.
Both Keith Lee and WALTER are believed to have been offered WWE contracts recently, though this has not been made official and all parties are keeping quiet publicly.
According to a report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, however, both performers have been offered spots at the Performance Center starting in May but it is unknown if WALTER will accept. Lee is expected to accept WWE’s offer.
WALTER
Billed at 6ft4 and 310lbs, WALTER is one of the larger heavyweights in Europe. He was born in Vienna and is the head trainer for WXW.
North American fans have seen him in PWG and EVOLVE as of late.
It is not known if Walter will accept WWE’s offer. He has plenty of ties to the European wrestling scene and the report from the Observer suggested he may not be willing to move to Orlando.
Keith Lee
Lee has been wrestling in WWN since leaving Ring of Honor. He’s also performed for the Crash in Mexico and at PWG shows. According to the report from the Observer, Lee is expected to accept WWE’s offer and will report to the Performance Center in May.
Irish promotion Over The Top Wrestling (OTT) has announced the first two matches for their upcoming Scrappermania IV show. Scrappermania is OTT’s Wrestlemania, it is the biggest wrestling show in Ireland and will again be held in Dublin’s National Stadium. These two matches are more than worth of the honor, as Keith Lee will be taking on Minoru Suzuki and Jeff Cobb will be facing Tomohiro Ishii.
The speculation following these two match announcements is that both Keith Lee and Jeff Cobb are being looked at as possible entrants in this year’s G1 Climax tournament. Jeff Cobb has already made his debut for New Japan as part of 2017’s World Tag League tournament where he teamed with Michael Elgin (he was originally scheduled to team with Matt Riddle). Keith Lee has yet to make his way over to NJPW but he does have the pedigree for a run over in Japan, having faced Tomohiro Ishii in an absolute barnburner back at Rev Pro’s Global Wars 2017 as well as his incredible runs in PROGRESS, EVOLVE and PWG.
Tickets for OTT’s Scrappermania will be available to purchase as of March 2nd.
PROGRESS has released an updated list of names for their upcoming Wrestlemania weekend shows from the Pontchartrain Center on April 6th/April 7th. The company has also confirmed that the famed ‘Thunderb*stard’ match will be coming to the United States for the very first time.
Here are the confirmed names for the weekender:
PROGRESS World Champion Travis Banks
PROGRESS Women’s Champion Toni Storm
PROGRESS Tag Team Champions Zack Gibson and James Drake
ATLAS Champion WALTER
Jimmy Havoc and Mark Haskins
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Will Ospreay
‘Flash’ Morgan Webster
The company has also confirmed that ‘Limitless’ Keith Lee will be joining the Super Strong Style 16 tournament in May alongside WWE UK Champion Pete Dunne. The SSS16 is regarded as the premiere tournament in European wrestling and the 2018 iteration looks set to be one of the biggest in company history.
Revolution Pro Wrestling has announced the first two matches for their upcoming Epic Encounter event on Friday May 11th.
EVOLVE and PROGRESS star Keith Lee will be facing Tomohiro Ishii for the second time, the first bout was a hard hitting spectacular for the Rev Pro faithful and this sequel looks set to wow the York Hall fans once again.
The second announced bout sees Undisputed British Tag Team Champions Minoru Suzuki and Zack Sabre Jr taking on the team of Travis Banks and Chris Brookes. Also known as CCK, Banks and Brookes will be looking to introduce Suzuki to the best that the UK scene has to offer, this could well be one of the best tag bouts in the country this year and is definitely worth checking out on demand in May.
Lucha Underground star Jeff Cobb has been pulled from wXw’s upcoming 16 Carat Gold tournament in Oberhausen, Germany. The event takes place on March 9th-11th and this will clash with Lucha Underground’s television tapings, where of course Cobb will reprising his role as Matanza Cueto.
Replacing Cobb will be EVOLVE and PROGRESS star Keith Lee. The man that asks you to “Bask In His Glory” blazed through the independent scene last year and now he is part of arguably the biggest tournament in Europe outside of PROGRESS’ Super Strong Style 16.
PROGRESS has announced more matches for their upcoming Chapter 57 event ‘Enter Smiling.’
EVOLVE star and Super Strong Style 16 standout Keith Lee will again be performing for the promotion when he takes on homegrown star and recent PWG newcomer ‘Flash’ Morgan Webster.
Four of PROGRESS’ Women’s division stars will be looking to put themselves in contention for a match against Toni Storm down the line. Alex Windsor, Jinny, Dahlia Black and Candyfloss are all credible title challengers and this could be a contender for show stealer.
Two veterans of the UK scene will be looking to establish themselves in the ATLAS division when Doug Williams takes on Wolfgang. The WWE UK star Wolfgang recently joined the promotion and it is clear that the PROGRESS management have big plans for him going forward.
Keith Lee recently spoke to ESPN to talk about various topics. Here are the highlights:
His decision to leave Ring of Honor: “You know, when I made that decision, I was 100 percent comfortable with it then. I felt like I made the right decision. Other people will tell you, ‘Now it’s justified — now I made the right decision.’ No, I made the right decision then, and I’ve been able to capitalize on opportunities given to me. I think that knowing that I was going to get opportunities to push myself and have the matches I believe I’m worthy of, and opportunities to be in a position where I can stand out or have the opportunity to run with the ball, so to speak, meant more to me.” Working with Matt Riddle: “Matt Riddle is a very unique competitor. I think more people are trying to emulate his style nowadays, but his style, as a wrestler, is something I enjoy. We’re actually somewhat similar in terms of how we carry ourselves too. I’m a fairly laid-back fellow and I often just enjoy myself in a ring. And Riddle is very much the same. But when he gets pushed to another level he becomes a very intense animal, so to speak. And so getting in a ring with him, automatically, if you are a true talent, it’s going to push you to another level.” You can read the entire interview here.
Posted October 29th, 2017 in News. Tagged: Keith Lee.
PROGRESS has announced the main event for this Sunday’s Chapter 56 event ‘La Danse Macabre.’ PROGRESS World Champion Travis Banks will be defending his title against International standout Keith Lee. Travis Banks captured the PROGRESS Title at Chapter 55 from Pete Dunne and this will be his first defence.
This bout will be a rematch from earlier in the year, Lee was successful on that occasion but now with the stakes raised even higher will the #CCK and South Pacific Power Trip member Banks find a way to overcome the physically intimidating Keith Lee?
International star Keith Lee has been announced for Insane Championship Wrestling’s upcoming event in Liverpool, England on November 4th.
Lee has been making sporadic appearances across the UK for the past 6 months, including stints for XWA, PROGRESS and Revolution Pro. The EVOLVE/PWG star is highly praised by many in the independent wrestling scene and he has been touted for success in WWE by Mick Foley.
Tickets for the event are available to purchase through Ticketmaster.
Rising UK Independent promotion XWA has announced two big international matches for their upcoming Charter Hall event in Colchester, England on July 23rd.
Former WWE Superstar Simon Gotch will be taking on Big Japan wrestler Daisuke Sekimoto and Former NXT star Bull James faces EVOLVE standout Keith Lee.
Tickets for the event are still available to purchase through the company’s Facebook page.
XWA has also recently unveiled their brand new on demand service, the first event uploaded featured the DDT style war between Kota Ibushi and Goto Ihashi, you can check out the XWA/Pro Wrestling EVE On Demand Service here for $9.99 a month.