– As of this week, this is a lot of speculation behind the scenes that Triple H will be turning heel at SummerSlam. As we’ve been reporting, the longterm plan is for Triple H and Stephanie to be heels and feud with Vince McMahon, who will bring in a “conquering hero” to take out Triple H at WrestleMania XXX next April.
– With SummerSlam just 3 days away, WWE is already working on the main event for September’s Night of Champions pay-per-view. With current WWE Champion John Cena undergoing elbow surgery soon, the match currently scheduled to headline Night of Champions is Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton.
At this point, it looks like Daniel Bryan will in fact win the WWE Championship this weekend, but could drop the title Randy Orton later that night or the next night on RAW.
During Thursday’s WWE investor meeting where they reported Q3 2012 financial results, WWE announced that PPV revenues were $16.3 million for the three events held in the quarter. This is up from $15.8 million earned in Q3 2011. Here’s a breakdown:
– WWE Money In The Bank (July): 188,000 buys, down from the 195,000 buys in 2011.
– WWE SummerSlam (August): 358,000 buys, way up from 296,000 buys in 2011. The show drew 296,000 buys in 2011, 350,000 buys in 2010, and 369,000 buys in 2009.
– WWE Night Of Champions (September): 189,000 buys, up from 161,000 buys in 2011.
We’ll have more of WWE’s Q3 2012 financial results up this afternoon, so stay tuned.
– The preliminary pay-per-view buys estimate for WWE’s Night of Champions pay-per-view event on September 16, 2012 is 189,000 worldwide. This is up from 161,000 buys for last year’s show headlined by WWE Champion CM Punk vs. Triple H.
The break down is 100,000 domestic buys (53 percent) and 89,000 international buys (47 percent).
The event was headlined by WWE Champion CM Punk vs. John Cena.
– Ringside Collectibles hosted former Raw General Manager AJ Lee at Ringside Fest 2012, the ninth annual Ringside Fest. She discussed the event, her first ever Mattel WWE action figure and more.
– Former WWE Superstars John Morrison and Melina have canceled their advertised appearances at “Chiller Theatre” this weekend at the Sheraton Parsippany in Parsippany, New Jersey.
– A Steel Cage Match between WWE Champion CM Punk and John Cena was held after Raw went off the air Monday. The bout resulted in a disqualification loss for Punk since Dolph Ziggler and Alberto Del Rio interfered, leading World Heavyweight Champion Sheamus and Randy Orton to surface and even the odds. Ziggler was left in the ring as he took the babyface wrestlers’ respective finishers.
– During a commercial Monday night on Raw promoting this week’s episode of WWE Saturday Morning Slam on The CW, it was announced that Zack Ryder will be in action. The program will also feature segments on WWE Champion CM Punk and The Miz.
– As reported Sunday, Randy Orton was caught on camera using the middle finger gesture during his match against Dolph Ziggler at Night of Champions. According to F4WOnline.com, Orton’s flippant action stemmed from a group of fans ringside chanting “Orton sucks.” Following the match, Orton reportedly threatened a fan that he would “kick his ass” after the show.
– According to an account backstage at tonight’s Raw show in Bridgeport, Connecticut, John Cena is walking around fine after rolling his ankle last night at Night of Champions. As of 4:00 p.m., he was scheduled to compete on the show.
– Before World Heavyweight Champion Sheamus and Alberto Del Rio squared off last night at Night of Champions, SmackDown General Manager Booker T reinstated the Brogue Kick, which aided The Celtic Warrior in retaining his title. According to F4WOnline.com, Sheamus is moving on to a new opponent on television as Big Show is scheduled to confront him tonight on Raw. This will lead to a match at Hell in a Cell on Oct. 28.
– Zack Ryder is featured on the cover of the latest issue of WWE Kids Magazine. The Raw Superstar excitedly tweeted a photo of the issue.
– John “Bradshaw” Layfield addressed his appearance on Raw tonight at the announce booth via Twitter: “Yes back on @wwe raw with my burden, @MichaelCole ! Like Usain Bolt having to run with crutches being with Cole!”
– WWE referee Chad Patton was interviewed by WWE.com after the controversial finish to the CM Punk vs. John Cena match at WWE Night of Champions. For those who missed it, John Cena was originally declared the winner and new champion via pinfall, but because Cena’s shoulders were also down, the match was ruled a draw and CM Punk retained.
Patton defended his officiating to WWE.com and also tweeted this:
I felt I made the right call….. @WWE#NOC tonite both opponents shoulders were down and I counted 1 2 3! What are your thoughts?
– With Jerry Lawler still in the hospital recovering from a heart attack last week, PWInsider.com reports that Lawler’s job as a WWE announcer is not in jeopardy. Vince McMahon reportedly told Lawler to take as much time as he needs to get healthy and his announcing job is waiting for him as soon as he’s ready to return. That said, even though doctors told Lawler he can probably wrestle again, WWE is reportedly against the idea.
– Ted DiBiase returned to WWE “television” for the first time since March at Sunday’s WWE Night of Champions pay-per-view. He competed in the #1 contender battle royal on the 30-minute online pre-show.
– SmackDown General Manager Booker T reinstated the Brogue Kick at Night of Champions – and Sheamus used it on Del Rio to retain his World Heavyweight championship.
– After Night of Champions went off the air, John Cena received a standing ovation from his hometown Boston crowd. He saluted the audience before heading to the back to end the show.
– After reportedly being shunned by Beyoncé, Hollywood heavyweight Kim Kardashian has ‘wrestled’ up a new pal in former WWE Diva Stacy Keibler.
New York Daily Newsreports Sunday that Kim K. was spotted with the former Miss Hancock a number of times last week.
“They’ve known each other for years and have always been friendly, just not best friends,” said a source.
– As reported this morning, John Cena will debut new pink attire in recognition of breast cancer awareness at tonight’s Night of Champions pay-per-view event in Boston, Massachusetts. The Cenation leader addressed the charitable endeavor on Twitter this afternoon.
“2nite is a big nite as far as #WWENOC but it is also much bigger than that. Thank u S.G.K. For allowing me 2 be part of #riseabovecancer,” Cena wrote. “It is an honor to be partnered with the Susan G. Komen organization, a very proud day for all of @wwe Now time for #WWENOC.”
– Former WWE Diva Maryse Ouellet is currently on the lookout for her beloved dog Flake. The pet escaped from her babysitter’s home in Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles Saturday night while she was in Las Vegas, Nevada promoting her fashion line.
Enclosing a photo of the dog, she tweeted, “Please if you see my dog Flake in Hollywood area, call the number thats on him thank you.”
It was announced on Friday’s SmackDown that The Miz will defend the WWE Intercontinental Championship against Rey Mysterio, Sin Cara and Cody Rhodes in a Fatal 4-Way Match this Sunday at Night of Champions.
With the addition of the match, all six titles will be at stake at Night of Champions. The United States Championship Match will be set on the pre-show when the winner of a battle royal advances to the pay-per-view to challenge Antonio Cesaro.
* WWE Champion CM Punk vs. John Cena
* WWE Intercontinental Champion The Miz vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Sin Cara vs. Cody Rhodes
* WWE World Heavyweight Champion Sheamus vs. Alberto Del Rio
* Randy Orton vs. Dolph Ziggler
* WWE Tag Team Champions R-Truth and Kofi Kingston vs. Kane and Daniel Bryan
* WWE Divas Champion Layla vs. Kaitlyn
* Pre-Show Battle Royal to name No. 1 Contender to WWE United States Champion Antonio Cesaro
This Sunday at WWE’s Night of Champions, WWE Champion CM Punk will have the opportunity to, as John Cena put it, “define [his] existence” by defeating the master of the Five Knuckle Shuffle before Cena’s hometown crowd in Boston, Massachusetts. Promoting their pay-per-view encounter, the Straight Edge Superstar cut a promo on Twitter Wednesday afternoon asking whether Boston has any pride in Cena.
@johncena says main event after main event has escaped me. Yet, at MITB '11, the Summer Slam '11 I beat him. In the main event…
At Tuesday’s WWE SmackDown tapings, Sin Cara was named the #1 contender to the Intercontinental Championship and will wrestle The Miz this Sunday at Night of Champions.
Don’t Forget: SEScoops.com will have Live Coverage of Night of Champions this Sunday night. We’ll be live blogging throughout the entire show – so you won’t miss any of the action.
With the IC Title match set, here’s the updated card for this Sunday:
WWE Title Match
CM Punk (c) vs. John Cena
World Heavyweight Title Match
Sheamus (c) vs. Alberto Del Rio
WWE Tag Team Title Match
Kofi Kingston & R-Truth (c) vs. Kane & Daniel Bryan
WWE Intercontinetal Title Match:
The Miz (c) vs. Sin Cara
WWE Divas Title Match
Layla (c) vs. Kaitlyn
WWE United States Title Match
Antonio Cesaro (c) vs. Battle Royal Winner
Randy Orton vs. Dolph Ziggler
YouTube Pre-show Battle Royal
Winner will face Antonio Cesaro on PPV
– Tonight’s WWE SmackDown tapings take place from the Scotiabank Place in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. No matches have been announced for the tapings as of Tuesday afternoon, but we’ll see the latest on Booker T banning the Brogue Kick and the final hype for Sunday’s Night of Champions PPV. Alberto Del Rio is also teasing that he has a surprise for Sheamus at the show.
The advertised dark match main event for tonight is a triple threat no-disqualification match featuring Sheamus vs. Randy Orton vs. Alberto Del Rio.
– Some of the WWE-related terms that trended on Twitter during Monday’s RAW include Jerry Lawler, Owen Hart, CM Punk, Paul Heyman, RKO, Bret Hart and Heath Slater.
– Ticketmaster.com still has several hundred tickets available for Sunday’s WWE Night of Champions pay-per-view from Boston, MA. There are also many tickets available on third-party vendors such as Stubhub.com.
Three new matches have been announced for Sunday’s WWE Night of Champions pay-per-view:
– A Battle Royal will take place during the 30-minute online pre-show to determine the challenger to Antonio Cesaro’s United States championship.
– WWE U.S. champion Antonio Cesaro defending against the Battle Royal winner.
– WWE Tag Team Champions Kofi Kingston & R-Truth defend against Daniel Bryan and Kane. Bryan and Kane defeated the Prime Time Players on RAW to become #1 contenders.
WWE has announced its WWE Home Entertainment 2013 DVD/Blu-ray release schedule, which confirms several rumored titles. In addition to pay-per-view events, the sports-entertainment organization will be releasing compilation videos on WCW Monday Nitro, Bret Hart, Mick Foley, In Your House, Goldberg, ECW, War Games, WWE Divas, Triple H, Money in the Bank and Raw, among others. A History of WWE title is also scheduled.
WWE TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs 2012 – 01/15/13
Best of Raw & SmackDown 2012 – 01/29/13
The Best of Nitro Volume 2 – 02/12/13
Royal Rumble 2012 – 02/26/13
Bret Hart Unreleased Matches – 03/05/13
Elimination Chamber 2012 – 03/19/13
Mick Foley Biography – 04/16/13
The Best of In Your House – 04/30/13
WrestleMania 29 – 05/14/13
Top 25 Rivalries – 05/28/13
Extreme Rules 2013 – 06/18/13
Goldberg – 06/25/13
TBD PPV – 07/16/13
ECW Unreleased Vol. 2 – 07/30/13
Money In The Bank 2013 – 08/13/13
Best of MSG – 08/27/13
Best of War Games – 09/10/13
SummerSlam 2013 – 09/17/13
Top 20 Divas Countdown – 09/24/13
Triple H Biography – 10/08/13
Night of Champions 2013 – 10/15/13
Money In The Bank Anthology – 10/29/13
Over the Limit 2013 – 11/05/13
History of WWE – 11/19/13
Hell in a Cell 2013 – 11/26/13
Raw 20th Anniversary Box Set – 12/03/13
Survivor Series 2013 – 12/24/13
Best WWE PPV’s – 12/31/13
– F4Wonline.com speculates that based on WWE’s recent live event cards, United States Champion Antonio Cesaro will defend against either Sin Cara or Cody Rhodes this Sunday at WWE Night of Champions.
WWE Intercontinental champion The Miz is also without an opponent for this Sunday. With tonight being the final RAW before the pay-per-view, expect several new matches to be announced this evening.
– Here is the latest episode of WWE Download with Dolph Ziggler:
– WWE.com announced Sunday afternoon that Randy Orton will face Dolph Ziggler in a singles match next Sunday at Night of Champions.
Following their scuffle on Friday’s SmackDown, an irate Ziggler confronted SmackDown General Manager Booker T’s Senior Advisor Theodore Long to demand a third match with The Viper. Orton pinned Ziggler on the prior week’s show while The Showoff overcame Viper in a re-match on Raw.
– Toronto Star has published an unfavorable review of WWE Studios’ No One Lives, which debuted Friday night at the Toronto International Film Festival.
“While parts of it are deliberately campy, the low-budget production veers onto the amateurish and some of the jump cuts make it look like it was edited with a switchblade. Or make that a butter knife,” Tony Wong wrote.
The reviewer wrote that No One Lives should find an audience with WWE fans, or die hard followers of director Ryuhei Kitamura.
– Wade Barrett is featured in today’s “Superstar Spotlight” on WWE.com. Click here to view his photos and videos.
– The official WWE website is advertising Randy Orton for this weekend’s SmackDown live event tour of Ontario after “The Viper” was briefly pulled from listings. He will also appear at a non-televised Raw and SmackDown event on Sept. 15. It will be his last live event appearance until November since production for his latest film role, 12 Rounds: Reloaded, begins Sept. 26 and will go through the month of October. He is, however, advertised to appear at all SmackDown tapings in the meantime.
– All Japan Pro Wrestling has announced that Kevin Nash will appear for the promotion at their Sept. 23 event in Yokohama as he partners with Keiji Mutoh (a/k/a Great Muta) in a “Special Tag Match” against Seiya Sanada and Taiyo Kea. The match would mark as an nWo reunion, with Nash being a member of the original New World Order faction and Mutoh being a member of nWo Japan.
– In the biggest match of her career, WWE NXT season three winner Kaitlyn faces her friend, and Divas Champion, Layla, at Night of Champions on Sept. 16. Regarding the upcoming bout, Kaitlyn tweeted Thursday, “2 years of Workin hard behind the scenes and flyin under the radar… It’s MY time at #NOC. let’s make this #NightOfKaitlyn @WWEUniverse.”
At Tuesday’s WWE SmackDown tapings from Moline, Illinois, WWE teased two more potential matches for the upcoming Night of Champions pay-per-view.
The Prime Time Players became the #1 contenders to the WWE Tag titles. The date of their title match was not announced, but it’s expected they’ll wrestle Kofi Kingston and R-Truth at Night of Champions.
Also at the SmackDown tapings, WWE continued Randy Orton’s feud with Dolph Ziggler, with a match at this month’s PPV also looking like a real possibility.
The following matches are confirmed for Night of Champions:
WWE Championship Match:
CM Punk (c) vs. John Cena
World Heavyweight Championship Match:
Sheamus (c) vs. Alberto Del Rio
WWE Divas Championship Match:
Layla (c) vs. Kaitlyn
Intercontinental Title Match:
The Miz (c) vs. TBA
WWE United States Title Match:
Antonio Cesaro (c) vs. TBA
WWE Tag Title Match:
Kofi Kingston & R-Truth (c) vs. TBA
Following Monday’s WWE RAW, here is the updated lineup for the upcoming WWE Night of Champions pay-per-view on Sunday, September 16th:
WWE Championship Match:
CM Punk (c) vs. John Cena
World Heavyweight Championship Match:
Sheamus (c) vs. Alberto Del Rio
WWE Divas Championship Match:
Layla (c) vs. Kaitlyn
Since all WWE titles are defended at Night of Champions, WWE will be announcing matches for the Intercontinental, United States and Tag Team titles over the next week.
It was announced during Friday’s episode of SmackDown that Layla will defend the Divas Championship against Kaitlyn at Night of Champions.
Three title matches have now been set for the pay-per-view headlined by CM Punk vs. John Cena for the WWE Championship. The updated line-up for the event taking place Sept. 16, 2012 at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts is as follows:
* WWE Champion CM Punk vs. John Cena
* World Heavyweight Champion Sheamus vs. Alberto Del Rio
At Tuesday night’s WWE SmackDown tapings, it was confirmed that Kaitlyn, #1 contender to the Divas championship, will get her title shot against Layla at Night of Champions next month.
With that match set, here’s the updated card for the PPV:
WWE Championship Match
CM Punk (c) vs. John Cena
World Heavyweight Championship Match
Sheamus (c) vs. Alberto Del Rio
WWE Divas Championship Match
Layla (c) vs. Kaitlyn
– Alberto Del Rio is the #1 contender to Sheamus’ World Heavyweight championship after defeating Randy Orton on Friday’s SmackDown. WWE has announced the match will take place at Night of Champions.
– Also on SmackDown, WWE gave some attention to the tag title picture, with a backstage segment featuring Booker T’s assistant Eve Torres telling the Prime Time Players, Epico & Primo, The Uso’s and Tyson Kidd & Justin Gabriel that she will be looking at each team’s recent win/loss records to determine the next contender’s to the tag team championships.
– Here is Zack Ryder’s latest Z! True Long Island Story: