WWE NXT
Aired July 15, 2015
Taped June 18 at Full Sail University
Report by Zack Zimmerman and ProWrestling.net

A “last week on NXT” recap showed Charlotte teaming up with Sasha Banks in exchange for a title shot this week, and the match was hyped as the main event… The opening video played…

Inside the arena, the fans chanted “NXT” before the team of Jason Jordan and Chad Gable made their entrance. There was a moderate “Gable” chant before the bell.

1. Chad Gable and Jason Jordan vs. Steve Cutler and Elias Sampson. Gable wanted to start but Jordan coaxed him out onto the apron and kicked things off with an amateur-style takedown on Sampson. Jordan tagged Gable in, and Gable showed some very impressive and smooth-looking mat work. A short time later though, Gable was backed into the opposing corner and began to be worked over. Gable managed to hit a nice judo throw and make the tag to Jordan. Moments later, Jordan picked Cuther up for a back suplex, but then tossed him over to Gable who caught him out of the air and and finished the suplex himself with a bridge for the win.

Gable and Jordan over Cutler and Sampson in about 3:00.

A recap showed the debuts of Sasha Banks, Becky Lynch, and Charlotte from Raw… The main event was hyped.

Back in the arena, Samoa Joe made his entrance to his back music. His opponent was already in the ring.

2. Samoa Joe vs. Axel Tischer. Ticher went right after Joe and landed some shots in the corner, but that didn’t last long as Joe reversed momentum and beat Tischer down. Joe hit a stiff soccer kick to the back and a chop before Tischer tried to fight back. Fischer washed Joe’s face across the top rope, but Joe came right back with the atomic drop, boot, and senton combo. Joe planted Tischer out of the corner with the STJoe before hooking the Muscle Buster and dropping down. Rather than making the pin, Joe locked in the Clutch and Tischer tapped as he faded out.

Samoa Joe beat Axel Tischer in about 3:00.

The main event was hyped… [C]

A Baron Corbin vignette aired. He showed off his four college conference rings, which he claimed he won himself. He said he was a golden gloves champion, and the baddest man to ever play in the NFL. Corbin mocked the fans who support internet guys and said those guys were getting paid in chips and hot dogs while he was making giant checks in the NFL. He said he will enjoy destroying the fans’ heroes and he’s the angel who will destroy fate…

Eva Marie came out onto the stage and was booed roundly. She said she’s just as excited to see them. She said she’s also excited to watch Charlotte and Sasha Banks tonight, but she said she’s here to announce that her in-ring debut will take place next week. She told the fans to have their signs ready and warned that all red everything is coming. The commentators said this was the start of her path to the top…

The Tag Chamions Blake and Murphy made their entrance with Alexa Bliss. Their opponents were already in the ring.

3. NXT Tag Team Champions Blake and Murphy (w/ Alexa Bliss) vs. Angelo Dawkins and Sawyer Fulton. Dawkins came out with a nice dropkick early, but Murphy got his boot up in the corner and BaM began to take control. Even the commentators got bored as they began talking about toothpaste sandwiches. Blake yanked Fulton off the apron before they hit their running suplex and frog splash for the win.

Blake and Murphy squashed Dawkins and Fulton in about 3:00.

The tag champs celebrated and Corey Graves tried to put over their “Blake and Murphy Factor.” Bliss suddenly gave a signal and the champs began to beat down the other team again. Bliss watched on from the corner until Blake and Murphy went over and hurled her into her twisting splash finisher onto Fulton…

Sasha Banks was shown prepping for the title match tonight… A medical update on Sami Zayn was hyped up next… [C]

Back in the arena, Sami Zayn made his entrance in a polo and black jeans, with his arm in a rather complex looking sling. The fans were understandably excited to see him and welcomed him back with lots applause, “Ole” chants, and “Sami Zayn” chants. He said that was nice and thanked the fans. He mentioned that he recently had shoulder surgery and this was a nice escape from the doctors offices and therapy rooms. He said that he hasn’t forgotten the fans and it sounds like they haven’t forgotten him either. A loud “Sami” chant broke out.

Zayn said that people keep asking him for updates, and he said he’ll give them what they want but admittedly it sucks. He said that 2014 was the best year of his career, ending on the highest of highs by winning the NXT Championship. He said that in stark contrast, 2015 has been the worst year of his career and that will continue because he probably wont be back until next year.

He said that he’s not out there to be depressed Sami, but to tell everyone that he’ll be back. He said he’s setting little goals like finding a comfortable position to sleep in, and soon it will be lifting his arm again, and before long it will be him coming back and regaining his NXT Championship. He then addressed Kevin Owens and said that whether or not Owens likes it, his Career has always been linked to Sami Zayn and it always will. Zayn warned Owens to watch his ass because when he comes back, he’s coming for Owens…

A recap showed Charlotte and Sasha making the title match last week… Charlotte was shown jumping rope in preparation for the main event… A recap aired of Finn Bálor defeating Kevin Owens to win the NXT Championship at Beast in the East… A clip from ComicCon was shown with William Regal announcing the rematch between Bálor and Owens for the NXT Championship at Takeover Brooklyn…

Charlotte made her entrance for the main event. The champ Sasha Banks was out next. A little girl in the front row was all decked out in Bayley gear holding her replica NXT Women’s title high in the background when Sasha did it. Very cool. Both ladies got full formal in-ring introductions. Charlotte got a fair share of “Woo’s” and a smattering of boos, and Sasha got a mixed reaction as well. There’s clearly respect for both, but they have the crowd split with each having their camp of supporters as well as their detractors.

4. NXT Women’s Champion Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte for the NXT Women’s Championship. The two briefly exchanged to a stalemate before another exchange saw Charlotte getting the better with a headstand headscissors. Charlotte applied the figure-four head scissors rolled forward into slams, but before long, Sasha had regained control and hit her double-knee drop in the corner. [C]

Back from break, Sasha had Charlotte in a strait-jacket hold as a replay showed her hitting a running double-knee strike during the break. Sasha hit a boot in the corner and Charlotte Flair Flopped in the middle of the ring. Sasha mocked her with a strut and then went back to working the strait-jacket, this time working it into a kneeling surfboard variation.

Charlotte tried to roll over the top, but Sasha caught on and hooked in Charlotte’s own figure-four headscissors. Sasha worked it into facebusters and a cradle attempt before Charlotte powered up to her feet with Sasha on her shoulders. Sasha tried to spin around into a ‘rana, but Charlotte hoisted her back up and planted her with a wicked kneeling powerbomb and both ladies were down.

Referee Drake Wuertz began the count but both ladies made it to their feet. Charlotte hit her spinning neckbeaker and followed up with a spear for a two-count. Charlotte went back to the well on the neckbreaker and Sasha reversed, connecting with the Bankrupt neck breaker for a two-count of her own. Sasha slapped Charlotte and declared “I’m better than you” which just fired up Charlotte who went wild on Sasha. Charlotte looked for the Figure-Four, but Sasha rolled through.

They tried a wheelbarrow facebuster, but it looked like Charlotte didn’t snap forward on the bump the way she did and thus looked like a weak botched victory roll. A short time later, Charlotte had fought back and applied the Figure-Four. Sasha managed to reach the ropes, but Charlotte rolled to ringside with the leglock still applied and wrenched it over the apron until the ref’s count got to four.

Back in the ring, both ladies traded roll-ups for near-falls before Sasha connected with the Backstabber and floated over into the Bank Statement. She put some crazy looking torque on it and Charlotte looked like she was fading. Charlotte rolled backwards into a quick roll-up attempt, but Sasha shifted her weight and re-applied the pressure until Charlotte was forced to tap out.

Sasha Banks forced Charlotte to submit in about 13:00 to retain the NXT Women’s Championship.

A series of replays showed all of the highspots and the finish. Charlotte was in tears in the corner and Sasha celebrated her win before the two ladies met in the middle of the ring with a hug. Charlotte raised Sasha’s hand before they embraced again with watery eyes and that’s how the show closed.

• SPOILER: TOP WWE Legend Set For SURPRISE RETURN At Monday’s RAW!

The Monday, July 13, 2015, WWE Battleground “go-home” edition of WWE RAW averaged 3.531 million viewers for the show that featured the main roster debut of Sasha Banks, Charlotte and Becky Lynch, as well as the final angles heading into this Sunday’s pay-per-view.

Despite the big NXT Divas storyline debut and final angles before Sunday’s big event, RAW was down this week in viewership, as last week’s show averaged 3.647 million viewers.

The hourly viewership breakdown for this week’s edition of WWE RAW is as follows:

Hour One: 3.432 million viewers
Hour Two: 3.514 million viewers
Hour Three: 3.647 million viewers

• *NEW* — PHOTO Of THE UNDERTAKER Working Out At The Gym! [>>]

– Hip-hop legend and actor Snoop Dogg commented on his cousin Sasha Banks making her main roster debut on Monday’s WWE Battleground “go-home” edition of WWE RAW in Atlanta, Georgia. The rap star wrote, “The boss has arrived. My cuzn.”

– Jim Ross’ guest on this week’s “Ross Report” podcast, which drops tonight on PodcastOne.com, is Ring Of Honor star Michael Elgin.

– Stardust recently posted a photo indicating he was still coming for “Arrow” actor Stephen Amell. Amell took to Twitter to respond to Stardust with the following comments:

https://twitter.com/amellywood/status/620808233012195328

• HUGE Backstage Update On Beef Between RODDY PIPER & STEVE AUSTIN~!!

– John Cena and Michael Strahan shared some raps during Cena’s appearance on “Live! With Kelly & Michael” this morning, which you can check out above.

– WWE Hall Of Famer Mick Foley noted on Facebook that he cried when Sasha Banks, Charlotte and Becky Lynch debuted on the main roster on Monday’s edition of WWE RAW. Foley wrote the following:

“I actually shed tears of happiness while watching the women on ?#RAW?! The first non-death related, non-Green Mile, non-Tori Amos induced tears I’ve shed since I was 14. Truly one of my all-time favorite ??WWE? moments!”

• HUGE Backstage Update On Beef Between RODDY PIPER & STEVE AUSTIN~!!

– The new Diva trio of Naomi, Tamina and NXT Women’s Champion Sasha Banks are going by the team name of “Team B.A.D. (Best at Dominating).”

– With Kane suffering a storyline leg injury during RAW last night and J&J Security being out of action indefinitely, the idea is that Seth Rollins has no back-up going into his WWE World Heavyweight Championship match against Brock Lesnar at this Sunday’s WWE Battleground pay-per-view.

– WWE posted the following video of the Tough Enough cast meeting The Bella Twins backstage at Monday’s RAW.

• HUGE Backstage Update On Beef Between RODDY PIPER & STEVE AUSTIN~!!

On Monday’s WWE Battleground “go-home” edition of RAW, Stephanie McMahon announced a revolution of women’s wrestling in WWE.

Stephanie brought up the success of women in sports these days and went on to bring Becky Lynch, Charlotte and Sasha Banks to the main roster.

The storyline appears to be three groups of six, as Team Bella consists of The Bella Twins and Alicia Fox, while Becky Lynch, Charlotte and Paige were grouped together, and the trio of Naomi, Tamina and Sasha Banks were paired together.

• BACKSTAGE NEWS: USA Network UPSET w/ WWE Over Tough Enough!

The main roster debuts of Charlotte and NXT Women’s Champion Sasha Banks have been spoken about quite a bit over the past few months.

This coming Wednesday on WWE NXT the pair will face off against each other for the NXT Women’s Championship after Charlotte joined forces with Banks last week to take on Dana Brooke and Emma.

It’s expected that when the pair do come up to the main roster, they’ll be featured in the feud that Paige is currently having with The Bella Twins.

Their debut was speculated on last week’s episode of RAW, and again some are expecting it to take place again tomorrow night (July 13th) but this could all change.

According to Wrestling Observer Radio with Dave Meltzer, the WWE have recently provided staff down at NXT with a memo which states who they won’t be using in upcoming storylines for later in the year.

Neither Sasha Banks or Charlotte were featured on that list is a strong indication that their main roster debuts could be imminent.

– NXT Women’s Champion Sasha Banks and former NXT Women’s Champion Charlotte are both scheduled to be at Monday’s edition of WWE RAW in Atlanta, Georgia.

– This week’s edition of WWE SmackDown averaged 2.388 million viewers, up from last week’s average of 2.265 million viewers.

– The following is a clip of Kevin Owens talking about his new WWE action figure.

• CM Punk Narrows His UFC Fighting Debut Down To The EXACT MONTH!

WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross recently updated his official blog with his latest thoughts and opinions. Below are some of the highlights.

On WWE Tough Enough: “Happy to see the TV ratings for Tough Enough rebound. With fewer contestants still alive, the show should continue to get more compelling as it will allow the viewers to get to know the prospects better. The format is unique to say the least but I’m more interested in the participants giving us their true selves and not attempting to play the role of what they perceive a pro wrestler is supposed to be. Just as in life, simply be yourself and when you want to be noticed or ‘heard’ simply AMPLIFY!”

On the WWE announcer script: “Man, I’m getting some really asinine questions about the WWE announcer’s memo that has been going around the internet. I’m having a hard time understanding the fascination with this document.”

On Charlotte and Sasha Banks: “The two, best female wrestlers to arguably come along in approximately a decade @SashaBanksWWE and @MsCharlotteWWE will go nose to nose again next week on NXT TV which is all the reason that you need to make sure that you watch the broadcast. Catch now while they are on NXT because they won’t be there much longer IMO.”

Check out the complete blog at JRsBarBQ.com. You can also order JR’s Bar-B-Q products online at WWEShop.com.

• VIDEO: UFC Releases Footage Of CM Punk Training For Octagon Debut!

– During last night’s episode of WWE NXT, Sasha Banks joined forces with Charlotte to take on the team of Dana Brooke and Emma. Following the match Charlotte challenged Sasha for the title.

Sasha was quick to accept the challenge and later on in the episode it was confirmed that next week it will be Charlotte vs Sasha Banks for the NXT Women’s title.

– Bayley also appeared on the show in a recorded video message where she talks about having to watch everyone else fight while she deals with a broken hand thanks to Emma.

She said that her biggest goal is to become the NXT Women’s Champion and spoke about how Triple H and Steve Austin managed to come back from injuries to become champions.

Bayley let Emma know that when she’s given the go ahead to come back, she will be the first person that she goes after.

– NXT Diva Becky Lynch is out of action for a few weeks due to a hip flexor injury that she suffered during her NXT Takeover match with Sasha Banks. Lynch had continued to work through the injury, however she is now taking some time off to recover.

– WWE Divas Champion Nikki Bella is currently working with a partially separated shoulder. There is currently no word as to whether or not the injury is something that will eventually require her to take time off or not.

• VIDEO: UFC Releases Footage Of CM Punk Training For Octagon Debut!

(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

– While Stardust (Cody Rhodes) was back at television this week, WWE decided not to use him. The belief is that WWE isn’t ready to turn Stardust babyface, and due to the fact that he is Dusty Rhodes’ son and people probably won’t want to “boo” him, they are waiting to bring him back.

– At one point, a few of the NXT Divas, Charlotte being one we can confirm specifically, were scheduled for this past Monday’s edition of WWE RAW. This wasn’t the first time NXT Divas were set to make their main roster debuts only for plans to be changed. As noted recently, Charlotte and Sasha Banks are expected to be brought up to the main roster in time for SummerSlam, and they are likely to be involved in the Paige vs. Team Bella angle, siding with Paige.

• VIDEO: UFC Releases Footage Of CM Punk Training For Octagon Debut!

(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

While there has been a lot of speculation about the outcome of the current storyline involving Paige taking on Team Bella (Alicia Fox and The Bella Twins), we can now report what the current working plan is.

According to PWInsider.com, NXT Diva Charlotte is scheduled to make her main roster debut at next month’s WWE SummerSlam pay-per-view. Another NXT Diva, likely current NXT Women’s Champion Sasha Banks, will be debuting alongside Charlotte to help Paige.

There was some discussion of calling up Bayley for this storyline, however she is dealing with a broken hand, so the talk now is that Banks will be the second Diva called up for this angle.

• KEN SHAMROCK Talks About BEATING UP Big Show & JBL BACKSTAGE In WWE!

WWE NXT’s Women’s Champion Sasha Banks was featured on the Sam Roberts Wrestling Podcast recently and the full interview can be seen in the video above.

– Highlights from the interview include Sasha discussing what will happen when she makes it to the main roster and how women main eventing shows won’t be something that’s exclusive to NXT.

– The NXT star also revealed that she believes WWE will be her future forever and that money isn’t a factor, she does this because she loves it, that’s why she worked the indies for free.

– Sasha also spoke about being in the main event with Charlotte on the NXT show in Philadelphia and how she was shocked that they were trusted to be in that position.

You can watch Sasha talk about all all that and more, including her cousin Snoop Dogg, the “boss” gimmick, times when she surprises herself, in the video above.

At a recent convention, WWE Divas Champion Nikki Bella, along with her twin sister — WWE Diva Brie Bella — fielded questions from fans in attendance about a variety of topics.

During the discussion, Nikki Bella revealed who she would like to defend her title against the most.

“I would love to square off with Sasha Banks,” said Nikki. “Champ vs. champ, WWE Divas Champ vs. NXT Champ. (Kevin Owens and John Cena) beat us to it, I was so pissed. Hopefully after their run, we can have a run.”

Brie added, “Charlotte, Bayley Sasha — there’s a lot of good ones down there [in NXT].”

Nikki also spoke about working with some of the NXT talent during a show at Madison Square Garden.

“Last year Nattie and I had a match with Sasha at Charlotte at MSG,” said Nikki. “It was awesome and really fun to work them. So I’m dying for some of those girls to get up here.”

NEW PHOTO GALLERY: CONTROVERSIAL Pics Of RONDA ROUSEY In SKIMPY Outfits

WWE is currently discussing the possibility of bringing in additional part-time talent, such as Samoa Joe and Rhyno, for their NXT brand.

Internally, WWE is looking at their plans for 2016 lately and the feeling is most of their current top stars in NXT, such as Finn Balor, Sami Zayn, Hideo Itami, Tyler Breeze, Sasha Banks, Charlotte and Becky Lynch, by all rights should be on the main roster by then, meaning they will need to replace those top spots on NXT shows.

WWE is looking to secure enough high-profile independent talent to fill what is expected to be several open top spots to carry a full NXT card, which will be tough to do if the aforementioned talent move up to the main roster and the current trainees aren’t ready to move up within the developmental system.

According to one source, this is the reason that WWE has been negotiating with Evolve about a “feeder system” or a “farm league” system that would include merchandise deals and other business agreements that would help them avoid the situation they recently found themselves in with Kevin Owens’ recent Ring Of Honor merchandise.

• CM Punk Talks IN-DEPTH About The Passing Of Dusty Rhodes

(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

– WWE has announced that NXT Diva Becky Lynch will be returning to action on this week’s edition of NXT television on the WWE Network. Lynch last worked at the NXT Takeover: Unstoppable special, losing to NXT Women’s Champion Sasha Banks.

– Legendary pro wrestling personality Jim Cornette is the guest on the latest edition of Roddy Piper’s “Piper’s Pit” podcast. You can download the show right now at PodcastOne.com.

– As noted earlier today, WWE touted the fact that they have surpassed the half a billion follower mark on social media. WWE Chairman Vince McMahon has commented on the milestone, as you can see in the following tweet he posted earlier today.

"You can't see me," but thanks to the half a billion people who can see @WWE. pic.twitter.com/kOBE30eCX7

— Vince McMahon (@VinceMcMahon) June 8, 2015

• PHOTO GALLERY: Ronda Rousey Looks HOT In New TV Commercial!

– In response to rumors that she is out of action due to a shoulder injury, NXT Women’s Champion Sasha Banks wrote the following on social media: “No I didn’t. Stupid news.”

– WWE recently posted the following clip of various talent singing Shawn Michaels’ infamous theme song.

– Former TNA Knockout Sarita (Sarah Stock) was recently at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida working with the NXT Divas. Stock was reportedly brought in to teach the women the Mexican style of wrestling. NXT coach Sara Del Rey tweeted out the following photo of Sarita working with some talent.

Great having @SSDarkAngel in with the divas this week experience/knowledge like no other @WWEPerformCtr @WWENXT pic.twitter.com/bUL2LuyOvf

— Sara Amato (@WWESaraAmato) May 28, 2015

• VIDEO: UFC Champion MARKING OUT In The Crowd At WrestleMania 31!

– WWE NXT Women’s Champion Sasha Banks responded to a report attributed to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter from Dave Meltzer claiming that she missed last week’s WWE NXT events due to an injury to either her arm or shoulder.

She quoted the report on her account on Tumblr and wrote, “No I didn’t stupid news.”

After successfully defending the WWE NXT Women’s Championship against Becky Lynch at WWE NXT TakeOver: Unstoppable, Banks didn’t appear at the following night’s WWE NXT tapings, nor did she work that weekend’s non-televised events. Meltzer says he was told she suffered either an arm or shoulder injury, but is not sure whether she suffered the injury during her match against Lynch or if she entered the contest hurt. Banks was scheduled to wrestle during the fourth WWE NXT episode taping but left Full Sail University to go to the hospital when her fiancé, Sarath Ton, was legitimately knocked unconscious during a tag match teaming with Jason Jordan against The Vaudevillians. Ton was recently hired by WWE to go on the road with the main roster and work as a seamster.

– It was reported in April that Sarah Stock, formerly known as Sarita in TNA Wrestling, served as a guest trainer at the WWE Performance Center for one week that month. She has been in Orlando, Florida since last week showing the ropes to some of WWE’s female talent. Sara Del Rey, WWE NXT Assistant Head Coach, put over the internationally acclaimed grappler on Twitter on Thursday.

Great having @SSDarkAngel in with the divas this week experience/knowledge like no other @WWEPerformCtr @WWENXT pic.twitter.com/bUL2LuyOvf

— Sara Amato (@WWESaraAmato) May 28, 2015

It was reported in this week’s edition of Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Stock, who primarily competes for Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) as Dark Angel, was brought in to teach the women the Mexican style of wrestling. The same publication reported earlier this month that Stock has not wrestled for CMLL since her initial training stint at the WWE Performance Center. She will, however, be making her return to CMLL ring this Saturday in a six-women tag team match. (see poster).

• Why does Dolph Ziggler have backstage heat?

Although the word going around earlier this week was that Sasha Banks was not injured, the talk now is that she suffered either an arm or shoulder injury.

Banks was scheduled to work a match during the fourth episode of Thursday’s NXT television tapings, but she ended up leaving to go to the hospital when her fiancee’ — Sarath Ton, working as Mikaze — was knocked unconscious during a tag-team match.

It’s not currently clear whether or not Banks went into her match at NXT Takeover against Becky Lynch with the injury, or how serious it was if she did.

• PHOTOS: CM Punk Training For UFC Debut w/ Former Champions!

(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

NXT Women’s Champion Sasha Banks, Charlotte, Bayley and Becky Lynch spoke to WWE.com this week about their efforts to change the face of women’s wrestling.

Dubbed the “Four Horsewomen of NXT,” each of them talked about what they’re doing to ensure WWE has no choice but to #GiveDivasAChance.

Charlotte said it’s hard to be the “hardest worker in the room” in the NXT Women’s division, because everybody is the hardest worker in the room. She raved about Triple H’s decision to hire (the recently promoted) Sara Del Rey and said she gets goosebumps thinking about how lucky she is to have so many talented women to work with.

Bayley said Triple H has been incredibly supportive of them, showing a lot of interest in each individual. Triple H has solidified their mission to revolutionize women’s wrestling.

Becky Lynch said she stopped watching wrestling many years ago because it didn’t seem like women had a chance to be featured in a meaningful way. She said she walked around the WWE Performance Center and did not see any women’s wrestlers featured on the WWE PPV poster banners there. She knows that in five years, when she walks around the performance center, she’s going to see Bayley, Sasha and Charlotte on those banners. “Hopefully I’ll see myself, too, but I know I’m going to see them, and it’s not just because they’re good for girls. They’re just good. Just really good, and we’re just changing.”

Sasha Banks said that when she was working the indies, people wouldn’t care about women’s matches. Now, people come up to her and tell her she had the best match on the show. Male wrestlers come up to her and admit they are going to have a hard time following her match, which is an amazing feeling.

– WWE announced that there will be NXT matches at the “Aftershock Festival” in Sacramento, California on October 24th and October 25th. Names advertised for the shows include Finn Balor, Sasha Banks, Baron Corbin, Charlotte and Blake & Murphy. For more, visit WWE.com.

– ROH issued the following press release today regarding the release of their new action figure line, which includes WWE Superstar and current NXT Champion Kevin Owens.

(Baltimore, MD – May 26th, 2015) – Get ready for the best wrestling figures on the planet! Ring of Honor Wrestling (ROH) and Figures Toy Company are proud to announce the official lineup for the debut series of ROH Wrestling action figures! Series 1 will feature four of the top names in Ring of Honor history, and this series marks the first time that any of them have been released in action figure form!

From “DemBoys” to a ruler of a Kingdom, ROH and Figures Toy Company will be releasing four major names to launch the line:

Jay Briscoe: The current Ring of Honor World Heavyweight Champion, Jay Briscoe is an ROH Original in every sense, including being the very first ROH match ever. With his roughneck reputation and the in ring skills to back it up, Briscoe is one of ROH’s most recognizable stars.

Mark Briscoe: Brother of Jay and another ROH Original. Together, The Briscoes wreaked havoc on the ROH tag division, and have held the Ring of Honor World Tag Team Championship an unprecedented 8 times! Now Mark and Jay Briscoe team up to make history once again as a part of the very first Ring of Honor action figure series.

Adam Cole: The former Ring of Honor World Champion, and the leader of The Kingdom. Cole’s brash attitude has not endeared him to the ROH fanbase, and now he has something new to brag about, as he’ll surely be flaunting his Ring of Honor action figure for all it’s worth.

Kevin Steen: The “Throwback” star in Series 1, Kevin Steen has a long and storied history in Ring of Honor. From his tag team with El Generico to wreaking havoc as the Ring of Honor World Champion, Steen has made a name for himself not only in ROH but throughout the wrestling world. He may not be raising hell in ROH any longer, but he is still a force on the rise, and collectors everywhere will be clamoring for their very first Kevin Steen figure.

The Ring of Honor action figures will be 6 inch tall figures with multiple points of articulation, and will be compatible with other wrestling figures on the market. Each figure will come packaged with assorted accessories such as realistic cloth clothing, figure sized title belts, and weapons. Each figure will be released in a resealable clamshell package. Figures Toy Company will be releasing pre-order information for Ring of Honor Series 1 action figures in the near future, so make sure to follow them on social media for updates on upcoming Ring of Honor products!

Follow on Twitter: @RingofHonor, @figurestoyco and @wres_superstore
Instagram: RingofHonor, figurestoycompany and wrestlingsuperstore
Facebook: RingofHonor, Figures Toy Company and Wrestling Superstore

• Ronda Rousey STRONGLY Hints At Making SURPRISE WWE Return!

– Samoa Joe made his NXT in-ring debut at Thursday night’s tapings and was featured prominently on the shows that will air through June 17th. The 4-episode taping culminates with Joe facing off against NXT Champion Kevin Owens in a non-title match.

For complete NXT TV spoilers for the next four weeks, click here.

It’s also worth noting that Samoa Joe’s new WWEShop.com t-shirt is currently sold out.

Joe will be wrestling this weekend for Absolute Intense Wrestling this Sunday (5/24) in Cleveland, Ohio against Johnny Gargano.

AIW promoter John Thorne jokingly tweeted that he might reach out to CM Punk about replacing Joe on the show. Punk responded asking what the offer was, but obviously they were just messing around.

– Despite successfully defending her NXT Women’s Championship against Becky Lynch at the NXT Takeover: Unstoppable special on Wednesday, Sasha Banks did not work last night’s NXT TV tapings. There is currently no word yet as to why she didn’t work the show.

– Mick Foley and his son were in attendance for the NXT TV tapings last night. They were also in attendance at the “Unstoppable” show on Wednesday night.

• RONDA ROUSEY Worried About Nude Photos Of Her Leaking Online!

WWE Hall Of Famer Mick Foley is hyping up the upcoming NXT Women’s Championship match between Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch at the upcoming NXT Takeover live special on the WWE Network.

In his latest official Facebook blog, Foley touched on the Banks-Lynch showdown.

“I’m going out on a limb here and predicting ?#?BeckyLynch? and Sasha Banks will have a ?#?MatchOfTheYear? type of contest on May 20 at ?#?NXTTakeover?. (No pressure at all ladies.),” said Foley. “I just get the feeling that both women are at the right place, at the right time, with the right combination of skills, character, and in-ring chemistry to pull it off.

“One of my GREAT regrets is that I didn’t make it to the WWE NXT show in ?#?SanJose? during ?#?Mania? week, for what I heard was a sure fire contender for Match of the Year with Sasha and Ms Charlotte.”

Foley concluded, “No doubt about it, 2015 is shaping up to be a great year for ?#?WomensWrestling?”

Follow more Mick Foley blogs online at Facebook.com/RealMickFoley.

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NXT Women’s Champion Sasha Banks recently spoke with the Miami Herald about her current run in WWE. Below are some highlights from the interview.

On standing out with her look: “I’ve always known that I wanted to be different. I wanted to stand out so my gear is very elaborate, very blingy, very loud, because I want people to notice me, want to look like me. The Boss necklace, the ring. I want everything big.”

On winning the title in a Fatal 4 Way at Takeover in February: “Just to be a part of that, it’s really indescribable. It’s something I’ve always dreamed of, but I never really saw it happening. So to be in the moment and see it happening was just crazy. I’ve never had so many tweets in my life. Afterward, people were tweeting ‘That match was Match of the Night.’ ‘You women are [going above and beyond].’”

On her cousin Snoop Dogg: “I hope one day he can make my entrance music. All my family on that side are big WWE fans, huge.”

Check out the complete interview at MiamiHerald.com.

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