On Monday’s WWE Royal Rumble “go-home” edition of RAW, two new matches were announced for this Sunday’s pay-per-view event.
In what will be the WWE Royal Rumble “Kickoff Show” match, the New Day faction, which consists of Kofi Kingston, Big E. and Xavier Woods, will compete in a six-man tag-team match against Tyson Kidd, Cesaro and Adam Rose.
Also announced for this Sunday’s Royal Rumble show is a Divas tag-team match, which will feature The Bella Twins vs. Paige and Natalya.
Make sure to join us here on the website this Sunday night for live WWE Royal Rumble play-by-play results coverage.
– The New Day faction consisting of Big E., Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods, ditched their normal blue gear in favor of red attire, which you can see in the following photos from this past weekend’s WWE live events.
As we noted recently, WWE will be releasing a new DVD and Blu-ray set called “The Destruction of The Shield” on February 17, 2015. According to WrestlingDVDNews.com, there will be a documentary, as well as an interview with Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose airing before and after each match on the set.
The following matches are confirmed thus far for the project.
– Roman Reigns on FCW Triple Threat Match
– Triple Threat Match: Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins vs. Leakee, FCW • February 5, 2012
– Dean Ambrose on United States Championship
– United States Championship Match: Dean Ambrose vs. Kofi Kingston, Extreme Rules • May 19, 2013
– Roman Reigns on WWE Tag Team Championship
– Tornado Match for the WWE Tag Team Championship: Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins vs. Team Hell No, Extreme Rules • May 19, 2013
– WWE has started shipping out re-printed copies of their new Sting DVD and Blu-ray to stores. It was reported a while back that the back-cover of the DVD mistakenly included a photo of the “fake Sting” (the “nWo Sting”), however the new copies that were sent out corrected the mistake and now features a photo of Sting and Bret Hart.
– It looks like Kofi Kingston and Big E. will be the two members of “A New Day” that will be facing Goldust and Stardust this Sunday at the WWE TLC event.
– As noted before, Stardust teased an announcement during Friday’s SmackDown, which ended up being a vignette with his tag-team partner, Goldust. The two cut a promo about “darkness,” noting that “darkness falls on the new day.”
Due to the phrasing, many have speculated that this would mean Goldust and Stardust could be working a program with “A New Day,” the new WWE faction that consists of Big E., Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston.
– The latest edition of “WWE Top 10,” which you can check out below, looks at the best fan reactions.
The new faction, “A New Day,” made their official WWE debut on Friday’s edition of SmackDown, as Xavier Woods, Big E. and Kofi Kingston defeated Curtis Axel, Heath Slater and Titus O’Neil in six man tag-team action.
After the show, Woods tweeted the following about the group finally making their television debut.
Big E Langston, Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods debuted their new “A New Day” stable at Tuesday night’s WWE SmackDown tapings from Fort Wayne, Indiana.
The trio defeated Heath Slater, Curtis Axel and Titus O’Neil in a six-man match. The group celebrated around ringside and with the announcers after the match.
– According to one source, there’s a chance that the new faction, “A New Day,” which features Xavier Woods, Big E. and Kofi Kingston, may make their official debut at this Sunday’s WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view.
– In the latest edition of “WWE Inbox,” which you can see below, various WWE Superstars and WWE Divas discuss “The Icon” Sting.
The following matches were taped in Kansas City prior to Monday’s WWE Hell In A Cell “go-home” edition of RAW for this week’s WWE Superstars show.
– Tyson Kidd def. Kofi Kingston in singles competition to open up the show. This was said to be a good, high-flying type of match that the crowd seemed to enjoy.
– Jack Swagger def. Bo Dallas in the main event of the evening. We didn’t get a lot of specific details from our correspondent on this one, but in the end, Swagger got the “W.”
The following matches were taped prior to Monday’s RAW in Atlanta, Georgia for this week’s edition of WWE Superstars.
– Bo Dallas def. Zack Ryder in singles action to open the show. Ryder got some offense in early on and was setting up his finisher, but Dallas knocked him out to the floor. Dallas followed up with a Bo-Dog for the 1-2-3.
– Cesaro def. Kofi Kingston in a good match to close out the taping. There were a lot of fun spots throughout the match. Cesaro teased the big swing at one point. Kingston reversed a Cesaro move attempt but ended up getting launched into a European uppercut for the pin.
Here are some highlights of Kofi Kingston’s recently interview with the UK’s The Independent newspaper:
NXT Champion Adrian Neville: “Some of the things he does are just incredible, he calls himself the man that gravity forgot, and he just defies gravity with everything he does. For me, as a fan, I think he’s going to be one of the greatest of all time when he gets it all going. As a performer I would love to get in there with him and mix it up, I think our styles would mesh well and produce a great match for the people watching.”
His new stable with Big E and Xavier Woods: “I’m always trying to climb the ladder, and right now myself, Big E and Xavier Woods are trying to get a team off the ground. We have been having a lot of matches on live events, and we are trying to get something going. If ,and when it does take off, it should be very entertaining, and something people can get behind. As of now, we’re just three smart athletic friends hanging out and having a good time. As a matter of fact, when we come to the UK I’ll be teaming with Big E, and Xavier will probably be there too as we’ll be taking on the Wyatt Family. It’s awesome, I tell everyone that the UK is one of my favorite places to go.”
Wanting the WWE World Heavyweight Championship: “That’s what everyone always strives for. Myself, I always tell people that if you’re not getting better you’re only getting worse, and every day I try and be better than yesterday. The ultimate goal in mind being to be WWE World Heavyweight Champion. That’s what you always strive for, and if you don’t believe that you can then you probably shouldn’t be in WWE.”
The following matches were taped prior to Monday’s RAW in Chicago, Illinois for this week’s edition of WWE Superstars.
– Kofi Kingston def. Sin Cara in singles action to open up the show. This was said to be a good match with a lot of high flying spots.
– Jey Uso def. Stardust in a battle of tag-team competitors in singles action. This was also considered to be a good match that was well received by the Chicago fans.
– As noted earlier today, the faction consisting of Xavier Woods, Big E. and Kofi Kingston is rumored to be named “The Smart Athletic Friends,” however F4WOnline.com reports that the group will be called “Speed Force.” We also noted earlier today that each individual pairing among the three would have their own name, one of which was “Speed Force,” however the F4WOnline report claims that is the name of the trio as a whole.
– Below is this week’s “SmackDown Fallout” video, which features WWE Diva Natalya.
Xavier Woods has been referring to his stable with Kofi Kingston and Big E. as “The Smart Athletic Friends,” however it appears each tag-team combination of the group will have their own individual names. Woods and Kingston teamed up this weekend and the duo was called “Speed Force.”
As far as whether or not the group are heels, they worked last night’s live event as babyfaces against Los Matadores. They have worked as heels in the past, however lately they seem to be getting a try out as good guys.
The following matches were taped at the FedEx Forum in Memphis, Tennessee prior to Monday’s post-Night Of Champions edition of RAW for this week’s edition of WWE Superstars.
WWE Superstars Spoilers (Air date: September 25, 2014)
– Naomi def. Alicia Fox in Divas action to open the show. Naomi picked up the win via submission when Fox tapped out after a few minutes in what was described as a decent little Divas match.
– Kofi Kingston def. Justin Gabriel in the main event of the show in what was said to be a pretty fun match with a lot of high-impact and fast-paced offense. In the end, Kingston nailed Gabriel with his “Trouble in Paradise” finisher for the 1-2-3.
– NXT Women’s Champion Charlotte defeated Bayley in what was said to be an excellent main event at the NXT live event in Citrus Springs, Florida on Sunday night. The reason the NXT Divas were in the headline match of the evening was because several of NXT’s top talents were on the road with the main WWE roster this weekend.
NXT Champion Adrian Neville defeated fellow NXT performer Tyler Breeze at the WWE live event in Dayton, Ohio. Sami Zayn defeated Tyson Kidd and The Ascension lost to Big E. and Kofi Kingston at the WWE live event in Hampton, Virginia.
– Speaking of NXT, several new promos for NXT Takeover 2 have been added to the official NXT Instagram account. The two newest additions feature Sami Zayn and Sasha Banks talking about the upcoming live WWE Network special. You can check those out at Instagram.com/wwenxt.
The status of the new version of the “Nation Of Domination” faction in WWE, which consists of Big E., Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston has been a hot topic among fans this past week. One of the main reasons is due to the fact that the group has been used at recent WWE live events and in dark matches, both as babyfaces and heels.
Apparently the members of the group have been told by WWE that they will be used together in the future. As of right now, WWE is trying to figure out the best way to present the group and how they want to move forward with it in the future.
Campuses around the country are infested with returning college students this week. In honor of all the alcohol that will be consumed and the knowledge that will hopefully be absorbed, it’s time to take the WWE to school, and I’ll be the one doling out the grades.
Welcome to the first ever WWE Raw Report Card. Matches will be graded based on usual factors such as workrate, in-ring psychology, move variety, crowd reaction, and overall impact on the storyline. Important in-ring promos will also be graded based on factors such as originality, believability, and importance. Without further ado, here are this week’s grades.
Hall of Fame Forum
This week’s Raw started with a roundtable discussion regarding the upcoming rematch between John Cena and Brock Lesnar. First off, I never thought I’d see the day where Shawn Michaels was the worst dressed man in the ring, but his combination of cowboy hat, jacket, and Remington t-shirt didn’t do him any favors.
Overall, it was nice seeing the legends together, even if it did feel a bit scripted at times and offered little insight. One hilarious moment was when Michaels said everyone loves Cena, eliciting massive boos from the audience. Speaking of Cena, his promo was surprisingly compelling, and it was nice to see him own up to the beating he took at SummerSlam.
Grade: B-
Rusev vs. Jack Swagger
This was likely the last contest between Rusev and Swagger, and all I can say is, “Good riddance.” This match featured a lot of downtime that resulted in a poor workrate, and a lot of the match was spent outside of the ring with nothing going on.
The in-ring psychology was pretty good (Swagger sold the rib injury well) and the crowd was into it, so that raised the grade a bit, but it was ultimately a fitting ending to a rather pointless program that saw Swagger dominated at nearly every stage of the feud.
Grade: C
Rob Van Dam vs. Cesaro
This was a rather short match, but both superstars worked well together during the time they were given. One criticism is that the ending felt a bit rushed. One moment Cesaro was rolling outside of the ring to avoid the Five Star Frog Splash and only a few seconds later he was hitting the Neutralizer for the win in a sequence that felt a bit off.
The match also served its purpose by building a championship match between Cesaro and Sheamus – a program that looks like it could be entertaining with two of the company’s better workers.
Last night’s Raw was held in Portland, Oregon and featured a crowd packed with hipsters, a few memorable contests, and the nWo reunion that had been teased on social media all week leading into the event.
The show was the “go-home” edition of Raw and was the final build for Sunday’s SummerSlam pay-per-view. As always, a few questions were answered, but many still remain. Here are five questions that need to be answered following Monday’s Raw.
5. Is Corporate Kane Back Permanently?
Kane was back in his suit and tie this week on Raw, having once again handed in his mask on last week’s episode. The Demon made a match between Roman Reigns and RybAxel before departing for the locker room.
My question is simple: Does Kane have anything left in the tank with his corporate character? It seems the company doesn’t know what to do with him, as he has shifted back and forth between demon and corporate Kane over the past few months. If Kane is going to become a permanent fixture in the Authority storyline, hopefully something worthwhile comes of it, because it otherwise simply results in a convoluted storyline.
4. Where Have the Usos Been?
The Usos were absent from Raw this past week (other than the announcers issuing an open challenge on their behalf for tonight’s Main Event), and with SummerSlam only a few days away, they are also noticeably absent from the pay-per-view card. There are rumors of a fatal four-way tag team contest being put together for the pre-show, but nothing has been confirmed thus far.
With the Usos having defeated basically every tag team on the roster and holding the titles for most of the year, I think it is time for the brothers to drop the titles. Nothing against the Usos, but they have fought everyone on the roster and their run is quickly becoming stale. It appeared the titles were going to be put on the Wyatt Family a few weeks back, but the Usos prevailed. Hopefully a title change can shake up an otherwise stagnant tag team division.
Kofi Kingston has been working as a baby face during the WWE tour of Australia, leading to some speculation that WWE may have dropped the potential new “Nation Of Domination” type faction.
Additionally, Big E. was flying solo on the latest edition of SmackDown in his loss to Rusev and has been tagging with Diego as a baby face at recent WWE live events.
WWE hasn’t made a mention of a faction with Big E., Kingston and Xavier Woods in over a week and according to some, the idea in general may have been dropped.
It looks like a match between The Usos and the team of Big E. and Kofi Kingston may take place at SummerSlam for the WWE Tag-Team Championships, as opposed to the previously reported idea of a fatal four-way match between four tag-teams for the titles.
Outside of that match and the other officially announced matches, as well as the rumored matches we have talked about here on the website over the past few days, it would seem that the lineup for this year’s SummerSlam is now finalized, perhaps with the potential addition of a “Kickoff Show” match or two.
This week’s Raw took place in Miami, Florida in the home of the Miami Heat. LeBron James and Flo Rida both made appearances, and Triple H crowned a new number one contender.
Overall, it was a rather exciting episode of Raw, with the build to SummerSlam officially underway. As always, a few questions were answer, but many still remain. Here are five questions that need to be answered following Monday’s Raw.
5. Is Poor Booking Hurting the Wyatt Family?
Bray Wyatt attacked Chris Jericho backstage at Raw last night and commandeered the Highlight Reel. Wyatt of course lost to Jericho clean at Battleground, while Luke Harper and Erick Rowan also failed to capture the Tag Team Titles once again.
A few weeks back, fans were chanting “boring” during Wyatt’s promo, leading me to wonder if poor booking is hurting he and his family. Ultimately, I think they will be fine, as they are some of the best talents in the business, but better booking could help make them appear stronger and increase their popularity. Here’s to hoping for a clean Wyatt victory at SummerSlam.
4. Has Bo Dallas Actually Won Me Over?
When Bo Dallas first appeared in the WWE, I thought his character was destined for failure. He seemed to be nothing more than a troll hell-bent on annoying anyone within a thousand-mile radius. He was once again victorious last night, extending his undefeated streak.
I must admit though, Dallas has really won me over in recent weeks. His promos have been hilarious and his in-ring work has seemingly improved on a weekly basis. I still feel that he needs a new finisher before he can be taken too seriously, but I’m sure that will come with time. I never thought I’d say this, but I believe Dallas could be one of the better midcard superstars and a run with either the US or IC title could restore some interest in the midcard championships.
WWE held its annual Battleground pay-per-view last night. It was the second incarnation of the event and featured a total of six matches on the actual card and two additional matches on the pre-show.
On paper, the event looked more than solid and seemed like it would be one of the best shows of the year. Things quickly took a turn for the worse, however, and the WWE dropped a massive turd on its fans last night. The event was clearly slopped together and featured some of the laziest storytelling fans will ever encounter.
Lana and Rusev received some serious heat last night after referencing the recent Malaysia Airlines crash. It will be interesting to see if the WWE takes a step back after receiving criticism from multiple news outlets.
The company also pulled a total bait and switch on fans that paid to see the event. The most anticipated match of the night for many was Seth Rollins squaring off with former Shield partner Dean Ambrose. Prior to the event, the match had been heavily advertised and was clearly one of the main reasons fans were tuning in.
Instead of holding the match, however, Triple H cancelled the contest and threw Dean Ambrose out of the building, eventually awarding the victory to Seth Rollins due to forfeit. Fans were expecting an absolute classic of a matchup, but instead were treated to a few backstage brawl segments that were nothing special, and amounted to the same thing fans can see for free each week on Raw.
Last night, the WWE basically told the fans that this matchup was too good to take place at a crummy pay-per-view such as Battleground and will be saved for SummerSlam. Honestly, fans should feel cheated after what they saw with the Ambrose/Rollins program last night.
Following Monday’s RAW, here is an updated look at the official WWE Battleground pay-per-view lineup:
WWE World Heavyweight Championship
– Kane vs. Roman Reigns vs. Randy Orton vs. John Cena
Battle Royal for the WWE Intercontinental Championship
– Cesaro, Kofi Kingston, Damien Sandow, The Great Khali, Rob Van Dam, Dolph Ziggler, Big E., Ryback, Curtis Axel, Alberto Del RIo, Bo Dallas, Sheamus and Fandango
– Following Monday’s edition of WWE RAW in Montreal, here is the updated list of official participants confirmed for the Intercontinental Championship Battle Royal at the upcoming WWE Battleground pay-per-view: Cesaro, Kofi Kingston, Damien Sandow, The Great Khali, Rob Van Dam, Dolph Ziggler, Big E., Ryback, Curtis Axel, Alberto Del RIo, Bo Dallas, Sheamus and Fandango.
– The following is the Bret Hart and “Bret Sandhart” segment from Monday’s RAW: