WWE applied for a trademark for the term “Big Red” last week, as that will be part of Erick Rowan’s new name on television.
As seen on WWE TV since The Wyatt Family has split up, WWE has been constantly making small changes to Rowan’s gimmick, as he went from a silent, goofy character who had a crush on Renee Young, and later toy kittens, to a secret genius with a rubik’s cube and high IQ.
(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
The following are results of this week’s edition of WWE Main Event on the WWE Network. The report was written by Chris Aiken of F4WOnline.com.
WWE Main Event from Fort Wayne, Indiana featured a fairly hot crowd compared to crowd reactions over the last few weeks on WWE TV. The show opened with Miz cutting a promo in the ring shadowed by Mizdow. Miz basically put himself over and also said he wanted to thank someone for helping him win the titles. Mizdow became giddy until Miz said he wanted to thank his moneymaker. By the way, Mizdow was way over with this crowd as this act continues to grow in popularity.
>Tag team champions The Miz & Damien Mizdow beat Los Matadores (with Torito). The bullfighters got in some offense early on. Mizdow caused a distraction and got knocked off the apron, allowing Miz to cut off the bullfighter. Miz started to get heat on him as the crowd chanted “we want Mizdow.” Likewise, the crowd kept popping for Mizdow’s faux-selling and antics during the match. Eventually, the matadors made a hot tag and the fresh matador ran wild with a flying headscissors and a senton off the top rope. Mizdow lowbridged the top rope and sent the fresh matador sailing out to the floor. Mizdow made a blind tag and the crowd popped before he delivered the skull crushing finale. Miz made a bling tag and covered the fallen matador for the pinfall.
Backstage, Renee Young tried to interview Fandango and Rosa Mendes but the couple just gazed lovingly into each other’s eyes. They made out before leaving Renee hanging on the interview.
Fandango (with Rosa Mendes) beat Adam Rosa (with the Bunny & the Rosebuds). The crowd seemed to be unsure who to cheer for. Fandango showed a lot of fire and aggression. He backdropped Rose on the ring apron at one point in the early portion and dominated most of the match. The Bunny led cheers for Rose before flirting with Rosa at ringside. Rose made a comeback and executed a swinging neckbreaker only to run into a boot when charging into a corner. The Bunny tried to cause a distraction but Fandango knocked him off the apron. Fandango threw a clothesline and Rose took a Curt Hennig bump. Then, Fandango delivered a legdrop off the top for the pin.
Somewhere backstage with a Thanksgiving feast as a backdrop, Natalya told Tyson Kidd she was thankful for him. Layla and Summer Rae interrupted a loving embrace and stormed into the scene. Layla said Tyson is thankful for headphones because Nattie talks a lot. Tyson laughed and Nattie was mad he failed to take up for her. Tyson agreed his wife did talk a lot. Layla then shoved a pumpkin pie in the face of Nattie and Summer sprayed whip cream on her face. The heels stormed out as Tyson held Nattie back. He told her to save it for the ring.
Natalya (with Tyson Kidd) beat Layla (with Summer Rae). This was a good, albeit short, match as Nattie sold really well throughout and the crowd was into it. Nattie still had pie on her face as the match began. At the outset, Nattie jumped out of the ring to shove Summer down at ringside. Natalya was a house of fire until Layla cut her off. The crowd would start chanting “Nattie’s husband” at Tyson and he would put on his headphones to drown out the chants. The more Natalya sold the more the crowd got behind her and they even started chanting “Nattie” at one point. Layla applied an upside down vertical leg scissors over the top rope only to get sent crashing to the floor. Nattie made a comeback. Layla missed an attempted double springboard crossbody off the middle rope. Directly thereafter, Natalya applied the sharpshooter and Layla tapped out for the submission.
Dean Ambrose beat Kane. They brawled early on before Ambrose executed a tornado DDT followed by a neckbreaker. Kane cut him off and began to pummel him. Ambrose fired up, hit a dropkick, then a crossbody and he sent Kane over the top rope to the floor. Ambrose looked to do a tope but Kane cut him off before a commercial. After the break, Kane grounded Ambrose and began to get heat on him. Ambrose fired up again and went for his slingshot clothesline but ran into a big boot. Kane got heat on him as the crowd started a “let’s go Ambrose” chant.
Ambrose started a comeback and dove off the middle rope with a missile dropkick. Ambrose followed up an elbow smash in a corner with a running bulldog for a nearfall. Ambrose again went for the slingshot clothesline and Kane once again cut him off. Ambrose blocked a chokeslam and sent Kane over the top rope to the floor. Ambrose dove through the ropes with tope. At ringside, Kane rammed Ambrose into the ringpost. Kane draped Ambrose on the top turnbuckle and went for a superplex. Ambrose blocked it and shoved him off then dove off the top with a flying elbow drop on a standing Kane.
Ambrose climbed to the top again and dove off into a chop to the throat from Kane. Ambrose escaped the clutches of Kane when he went for a tombstone. On the third attempt, Ambrose hit his slingshot clothesline. Kane countered Dirty Deeds and Ambrose countered a chokeslam. A moment later, Ambrose rolled up Kane with a schoolboy for the pinfall.
The following are results of this week’s edition of WWE Main Event, which emanated from Knoxville, Tennessee and aired live on the WWE Network.
– The Usos def. Goldust & Stardust in tag-team action. The match was a non-title bout, which saw Uso hit a superkick and top-rope splash on Stardust for the 1-2-3.
– Alicia Fox def. Paige in Divas action. Paige dominated most of the action, however Fox rolled her up out of nowhere for the pinfall victory.
– Renee Young interviewed Adam Rose backstage. The Bunny was also there. Young shows footage of The Bunny humping Rose on RAW. Rose talks about finding The Bunny broke in Times Square. He tells The Bunny not to hump anymore, calls himself a god and says it’s his job to put his “creatures” back in their place.
– Tyson Kidd & Natalya def. Adam Rose & The Bunny in an interspecies tag-team match. The finish saw The Bunny accidentally bump Rose to the floor. Kidd slapped the Sharpshooter on The Bunny, Rose teased making the save, but instead backed off and watched as The Bunny tapped out. After the match, Kidd hit The Bunny with a cheap-shot, which Natalya didn’t like.
– Michael Cole provided an injury update on Sheamus. He said that after being put through a table by Mark Henry on RAW, Sheamus has a number of neck and nerve injuries, which are bad enough that he will not be able to compete at Survivor Series.
– Bray Wyatt cuts an in-ring promo. He talks about the match with Dean Ambrose this Sunday at Survivor Series. He said Ambrose turned his back on him and made a mockery of him, and said because of that, there will be repercussions. He says they could have ruled the world together.
– Bray Wyatt def. Jack Swagger in the main event of the show. It was a competitive match which saw Swagger hit a Swagger Bomb and lock in the Patriot Lock on Wyatt, but ultimately Wyatt fought his way out and nailed Swagger with Sister Abigail for the pin. Prior to hitting his finisher on Swagger, Wyatt yelled out “this is your fate, Dean Ambrose!”
PHOTOS: UFC Women’s Fighter’s EAR FALLS OFF During Fight At Saturday’s UFC PPV!
– NXT star Hideo Itami was one of the most-searched terms in Japan over the past week. There has actually been more interest in Itami than anyone on the New Japan Pro Wrestling roster.
– WWE broadcaster Renee Young welcomed the newest addition to the WWE broadcast team, Arda Ocal, in a new message posted on Twitter. Young tweeted the following shortly after the news was released that Ocal would be working for WWE.
Yessir! @arda_ocal and I are reunited!! Happy to welcome him to @wwe! congrats buddy!!
— Renee Young (@ReneeYoungWWE) September 24, 2014
– Memphis wrestling legend Lance Russell was backstage at Monday’s RAW. Prior to the start of the show, Jerry Lawler, who worked closely with Russell throughout much of his career, brought him out in front of the crowd for a quick segment.
– For whatever this is worth, during part one of the WWE 2K15 roster reveal after RAW on the WWE Network on Monday night, the reaction to CM Punk was muted on the broadcast. Steve Austin and Renee Young, who hosted the event, would reveal various Superstars as being part of the game, each of which would get varying reactions from the fans in attendance, however when Punk was shown, there was absolutely no reaction.
– Independent wrestling star Willie Mack is scheduled to begin his WWE career in NXT in the near future. Mack is scheduled to start with the company upon completion of the signing process.
– The WWE SummerSlam “Kickoff Show” is scheduled to be 30 minutes long and will feature the usual panel of Renee Young, Alex Riley and Booker T. As things stand right now, there is no SummerSlam post-show scheduled.
The official WWE website has a new video interview up with Renee Young talking to Prince Devitt, who is referred to as “Fergal Devitt.”
Devitt talks to Young about leaving stardom in Japan for NXT, as well as what fans can expect from him in terms of his in-ring style.
You can watch the complete Devitt-Young interview above.
According to sources within WWE, the company has yet to come up with anything that would begin Ric Flair as a regular weekly character on television.
The last time Flair was on RAW in Richmond, Virginia, which was an in-ring interview segment with Renee Young, he was scripted to hit on her the way that he did. In fact, the only ad-lib Flair added was the references to his past in the city, where he told fans to “ask your mothers and fathers.”
The Richmond edition of RAW was originally going to be the beginning of Flair’s return as a regular television character, however the creative team has yet to come up with anything for him.
As noted in the past, Flair was at one point going to serve as the manager for The Miz, however those plans are now said to be completely off the table.
(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
– The latest edition of Jim Ross’ “Ross Report” podcast, which features part two of an interview with Kurt Angle, is now available. The official description for the show reads as follows:
TRR – Ep22 – Kurt Angle Pt2
“And here’s part 2 with Kurt Angle… it’s a very candid discussion about his personal battle with drugs and ultimate departure from the WWE, his friendship and in-ring chemistry with Chris Benoit, and Kurt’s off-book match with Brock Lesnar. Plus, hear what Kurt thinks about CM Punk’s situation, The Undertaker streak’s ending, and his own possible return to WWE.”
You can download the show right now at PodcastOne.com.
– It has been rumored in the past that Dean Ambrose and Renee Young may be dating in real life. For whatever this is worth, here’s a photo of the two arriving together at Monday’s RAW in Richmond, Virginia:
Renee Young has been impressing a lot of people in WWE in recent months, with many people acknowledging that she has a very bright future with the company.
Young was recently added to the WWE Superstars announcing team and is expected to eventually wind up doing commentary on SmackDown and eventually RAW.
ESPN has expressed interest in signing Renee Young, but she has some time left her on WWE contract and has given the company the impression that she is sticking around for now.
* Former WWE Employee Trashes The Company’s Poisonous Corporate Culture
(Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
Following the announcement that she would be joining the WWE Superstars commentary team, WWE broadcast member Renee Young tweeted the following:
So excited about this!! First full time female commentator in over a decade, thanks for the opportunity @wwe http://t.co/AIclzdaEBA
— Renee Young (@ReneeYoungWWE) July 3, 2014
She also spoke about her debut alongside Tom Phillips.
Tonight's my big fat debut on @wwe #Superstars get your ear holes on some commentary and sweet matches on the @WWENetwork
— Renee Young (@ReneeYoungWWE) July 3, 2014
“@TomPhillipsWWE: Thrilled to be sharing the announce desk with @ReneeYoungWWE http://t.co/AIclzdaEBA via @wwe” thanks Tom!
— Renee Young (@ReneeYoungWWE) July 3, 2014
The following is an excerpt from a new article on the official WWE website announcing Renee Young as the latest addition to the WWE Superstars television announce team:
It’s impossible to escape Renee Young these days but, then again, why would you ever want to? Over the past year, the captivating Canadian has been seen and heard on WWE Network’s Raw Pre-Show and Backstage Pass, After Total Divas, the 30 Years of WrestleMania podcast series, pay-per-view Kickoffs, the Slammy Award-winning JBL & Cole Show and as a backstage interviewer on all of your favorite WWE shows — not to mention her color commentary gig on WWE NXT.
Now, the always-busy Ms. Young prepares to make the next major leap in her burgeoning WWE career by joining Tom Phillips on the “WWE Superstars” announce team, becoming WWE’s first full-time female commentator in more than a decade.
“I feel there is definitely a certain amount of pressure, not only as a performer and broadcaster but representing women who may not even know this is something that they want to do,” Renee told WWE.com. “I can show other women that if you’re not a Diva and you still want to be involved in WWE, there’s so much you can do. It’s definitely really cool to be in the position to create a bit of a niche for myself and other women.”
Check out the complete article at WWE.com.
In another cost-cutting move, WWE changed the pre-and-post shows for RAW from being filmed live in the arena to a studio setting. The SmackDown pre-and-post shows were canceled.
Additionally, WWE did not hold a post-show or press conference after Money In The Bank this past Sunday, as they went from the conclusion of the live broadcast directly into a replay of the pay-per-view.
As a result of Josh Mathews’ WWE release, Renee Young will now be hosting the RAW and PPV pre-and-post shows on the WWE Network.
(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
It was revealed during Monday’s edition of WWE RAW, which was the “go-home” show for this Sunday’s WWE Money In The Bank pay-per-view that Daniel Bryan will appear on the “Kickoff Show” to address being stripped of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
In addition to that, it was recently announced that Bryan will be answering questions from fans during the pre-show as well. Fans interested in submitting questions for the leader of the “Yes! Movement” can do so on Twitter with the hashtag: #WWEKICKOFF.
Speaking of the “Kickoff Show” for this Sunday’s pay-per-view, the expert panel for the evening will include Renee Young, Booker T, Alex Riley and Christian. As noted earlier today, Josh Mathews, who generally hosts these panels, was released from the company.
– As seen on Monday night’s edition of RAW, Dean Ambrose suffered a pretty bad cut under his chin during the main event of the show. According to the official WWE website, Ambrose required nine stitches to close the wound. You can check out a photo of Ambrose getting stitched up below.
– Speaking of Ambrose, according to a recent article in the UK-wrestling magazine “Power Slam,” Ambrose and WWE interviewer Renee Young may be dating. The publication wrote the following:
“One of our spies spotted Renee ‘Young’ Paquette and Jonathan ‘Dean Ambrose’ Good “looking very chummy together” on King Street in Toronto on the afternoon of May 8.”
WWE uploaded the much-talked-about NXT Takeover “Fallout” post-show from Thursday night to their official YouTube channel.
The official description for the show reads as follows:
“Now that the smoke has cleared from NXT Takeover, watch NXT Takeover Fallout. Renee Young and Paul Heyman get on-the-spot reactions from the NXT Superstars and Divas after their matches and see what the future holds for WWE NXT. “
You can check out the full show above.
This Thursday night at 8pm (EST), WWE presents “NXT Takeover” – the developmental promotion’s second live special on the WWE Network.
The night before, a special “NXT Takeover Preview” show will air on the WWE Network at 10pm (EST). Hosted by Renee Young, the show will feature interviews with WWE Hall of Famers Ric Flair and Bret Hart, previewing the NXT Women’s title match between Charlotte and Natalya.
Prior to Thursday’s big 2-hour event, there will be a 30-minute pre-show show on the WWE Network.
It’s also been announced that NXT Takeover will then kick off with Adam Rose and the Exotic Express.
– Renee Young got ribbed backstage at Monday’s WWE RAW from Knoxville, Tennessee. During a backstage interview with Evolution that aired after RAW on the WWE Network, Triple H told her that The Shield should not bring a pen to a sledgehammer fight. Randy Orton said that they’ve already proved they are the superior faction and Batista joked that they should sue if The Shield doesn’t show up for their fight on Sunday.
As they were wrapping up the interview, Triple H asked Renee why she wasn’t wearing any shoes. She responded, “I don’t really have an answer…” The camera then panned down to show Renee Young standing there barefoot as she stood there looking flustered.
– Here are this week’s RAW Fallout videos:
Alicia Fox speaks about her match with Emma on Raw.
Adam Rose and his Rosebuds get the party started to celebrate his debut victory on Raw.
Paul Heyman and other “surprise guests” have been announced for the NXT Takeover pre-show next Thursday night.
The NXT Takeover pre-show will be hosted by Renee Young, and will also feature “Nature Boy” Ric Flair and Rob Van Dam. Flair, as noted in the past, will be in the corner of his daughter Charlotte for her NXT Divas Championship match.
NXT Takeover airs on Thursday, May 29th, live on the WWE Network. The pre-show begins at 7:30pm EST.
– It has been confirmed recently that Renee Young is now a permanent member of the WWE NXT announce team.
– WWE Hall Of Famer Hulk Hogan is not being advertised for this coming Monday’s edition of WWE RAW in London, but he may appear at the show as he will already be in town for the SmackDown taping.
– WWE added to their official YouTube channel Renee Young’s backstage interview with new WWE United States Champion Sheamus from RAW. Hear what the “Celtic Warrior” had to say about capturing his second WWE U.S. title on Monday night below.
– Below are highlights of WWE’s WrestleMania XXX international media morning, which was just recently added to the company’s official YouTube channel.
The latest WWE sit-down interview has been released on YouTube and features Renee Young talking to Triple H.
Young asks HHH about Kane’s recent actions, Ric Flair endorsing The Shield on RAW on Monday and Evolution’s upcoming battle at Extreme Rules this Sunday.
You can check out the complete interview above.
– WWE publicly acknowledged during Monday night’s Extreme Rules “go-home” edition of RAW that this Sunday’s pay-per-view will not be available on DISH Network or DirecTV. Michael Cole encouraged fans to sign up for the WWE Network to watch Extreme Rules this Sunday night.
– WWE recently added the following video to their official YouTube channel, featuring a sit-down interview with Renee Young talking to the current WWE Intercontinental Champion Big E.
WWE Diva Summer Rae recently spoke with The Miami Herald to promote Total Divas on the E! Network. Here are some highlights of what she said about:
How She’s Portrayed On Total Divas: “I think how people view me on the show is going to change throughout the season,” she said. “I think that right now I’ve kind of done some things to rub people the wrong way. I think by the end of the season you are going to see a different side of me.”
Her Relationship with Renee Young: “I think someone who has helped me the most in the locker room has been one of my closest friends,” she said. “[WWE interviewer and host] Renee is just really cool. It’s good to get a non-wrestling, non-diva perspective on matches. She is very funny, good comic relief. We’re kind of buds. I love my Renee Young.”
Her Role In WWE Studios’ The Marine 4: “Doing the movie is such a huge opportunity I think for all the divas,” Rae said. “We are breaking into WWE Studios, so I’m very fortunate when it comes to that.”